Chapter 76: Legend

"By the way, besides the Feixian Platform's reception I just mentioned, there is also a method akin to smuggling that circulates in our Linghuan Realm, allowing one to secretly ascend to the Immortal Realm without being received by the Feixian Platform." Sima Jingming, seeing Han Li silent and thoughtful, suddenly thought of something and added.

"Oh, do tell." Han Li's heart stirred, but he asked casually.

"To put it simply, the principle is easy: find some weak spatial nodes between the Linghuan Realm and the Immortal Realm, and forcibly break through them using spatial array power or other means to enter the inter-realm gaps, finally reaching the Immortal Realm." Sima Jingming said after thinking for a moment.

"This method is not the proper way; I'm afraid it's fraught with difficulties." Han Li said thoughtfully, but inwardly he gave a bitter smile.

Wasn't this method exactly the one he had used when ascending from the Human Realm to the Spirit Realm?

But it seemed that only a realm as close to the Immortal Realm as the Linghuan Realm could use this method.

"You are wise, Senior. This method is extremely risky; the inter-realm gaps are incredibly dangerous. Even if one manages to pass through, upon reaching the Immortal Realm, there is a high chance of being transported to some dangerous places, since the weak spatial points in the Immortal Realm are generally not good locations. Moreover, ascending this way means one cannot enjoy the benefits of the Immortal Pool's body tempering or obtain an Immortal Token for identity verification, leading to many difficulties in the Immortal Realm." Sima Jingming replied honestly.

Han Li nodded slowly, his expression calm, but inwardly he was quite excited.

The matter of ascending to the Immortal Realm had always been a thorn in his heart, and now he had finally found a solution.

As for the dangers Sima Jingming mentioned, given his current strength, as long as he made ample preparations, he should be fine, so he didn't take them to heart.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Sima." He nodded in thanks.

"Senior Han, please don't stand on ceremony. You have given our sect such great benefits; the Patriarch specifically instructed me to express our sincere gratitude to you." Sima Jingming said earnestly.

"Is that so? I didn't expect Fellow Daoist Leng Yan to still remember me." Han Li said with a faint smile, a hint of meaning in his words.

"Senior Han jokes. The Patriarch..." Sima Jingming's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly said.

"Alright, Fellow Daoist Sima, please stay." Han Li said, then turned abruptly, his figure transforming into a green rainbow that shot into the distance.

Watching the green rainbow completely disappear into the distant horizon, Sima Jingming breathed a great sigh of relief.

...

After leaving the Lengyan Sect, Han Li vanished like a vapor, never appearing again in the Linghuan Realm.

However, for some reason, several embellished versions of his deeds gradually spread, making him a legendary figure.

Because of his appearance, within just a few years, the Linghuan cultivation world, which had originally reached a certain balance, was thrown into a bloody storm.

Some said he was a reclusive master who had been in seclusion for years; others said he was actually a banished immortal; still others claimed he was an ancient demon with true spirit lineage who had lived for countless millennia.

Opinions about him in the entire Linghuan cultivation world were mixed. Some thought he was a merciless demon, while others believed he had eradicated the Tian Gui Sect, a force that had always been overbearing and unreasonable, restoring peace to the Linghuan Realm.

In short, opinions varied.

However, the chaos following the fall of a behemoth like the Tian Gui Sect lasted for several hundred years. Only after countless rounds of major and minor struggles among various sects and forces, and the fall of countless cultivators, did a new order gradually form and stabilize.

But that is a story for another time.

A few months after Liu Le'er's disappearance, on a scorching sunny day.

In the northern part of the Linghuan Realm lay a boundless ocean, often shrouded in thick black fog that blotted out the sky, hence called the Black Fog Sea.

This sea area was rich in spiritual energy, harboring many sea beasts and several unique spiritual materials not found elsewhere, attracting a steady stream of cultivators seeking adventure, treasure, and hunting sea beasts.

Near a desolate island deep in the Black Sea, rumbling sounds echoed far and wide. Within dozens of miles, the sea surface churned, sending up huge waves over ten zhang high that surged in all directions. Even the thick black fog above the sea spun under an invisible force, forming a massive vortex.

At the center of the vortex, a green-clad young woman, a black-robed old man, and a middle-aged Daoist were locked in fierce battle with a sea beast resembling an ox.

All three had early Deity Transformation cultivation. Though they practiced different techniques, their coordination was smooth, clearly not their first time working together.

The light of their magic treasures connected, forming a large circle that surrounded the ox-shaped sea beast, launching wave after wave of relentless attacks.

The sea ox was entirely azure, with two black stripes running from its forehead to its tail, looking quite peculiar.

It occasionally let out ox-like roars, and blue light flickered on its body as dense blue lightning spheres emerged to fend off the incoming attacks, while it continuously spat thick blue beams at the three above.

Though its cultivation was slightly higher than theirs, at mid-Deity Transformation, its attack methods were ultimately limited, and it was gradually suppressed by the three cultivators' magic treasure light.

The fierce battle continued for another half hour before the blue sea ox's protective light was finally broken. Its head was pierced by the black-robed old man's rapidly spinning black sword light, leaving a large bloody hole.

The sea ox let out a mournful cry, struggled a few times, and soon lay still.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Qin's Soul-Devouring Heart-Piercing Sword is truly formidable, even this adult Black-Striped Mystic Sea Ox, known for its defense, couldn't withstand it." The middle-aged Daoist laughed in praise.

"You flatter me, Fellow Daoist Kumu." The black-robed old man's eyes showed a hint of pride as he waved his hand to retrieve the black sword light, revealing a strangely shaped sword, like two venomous snakes intertwined, emitting a faint, cold black light.

The old man put the sword away with great care, as if it were a treasure.

This treasure had cost him most of his life's savings, its power nearly comparable to a common spiritual treasure, with some armor-piercing abilities, specially refined for dealing with thick-skinned sea beasts.

The three quickly divided the sea ox's carcass, each gaining a considerable harvest.

"In my opinion, with the three of us working together, even against a late Deity Transformation sea beast, even if we can't win, we should be able to retreat safely. How about we go a bit deeper?" The green-clad young woman looked toward the sea ahead and suggested.

The middle-aged Daoist's eyes flickered, seemingly tempted by the proposal.

"Absolutely not. You two may not know, but not far ahead is the famous dangerous area of the Black Sea, the Star Luo Sea Eye region. At the bottom of the sea there are countless deep sea eyes, home to many extremely powerful sea beasts, including those at the Void Refining stage, even the Body Integration stage. There are even rumors that at the deepest part of the sea eyes lives a five-clawed black dragon comparable to the Great Vehicle stage. Although those sea beasts mostly stay in the sea eyes and rarely come to the surface, except for some Body Integration greats, no one dares to approach. To be honest, chasing this Black-Striped Mystic Sea Ox here is already very dangerous. We must not go further; it's best to retreat immediately." The black-robed old man quickly said, his expression serious.

"A Great Vehicle stage sea beast! How is that possible?" The middle-aged Daoist gasped.

The green-clad young woman also looked incredulous.

"That's just a legend. It's said that the five-clawed black dragon has been here for over a hundred thousand years. Its last appearance was several thousand years ago, when its strength had reached the peak of Body Integration. Having not appeared for so many years, perhaps it has already exhausted its lifespan. Regardless, this place is fraught with danger; we must leave immediately." The black-robed old man shook his head and said anxiously.

The middle-aged Daoist and the green-clad young woman quickly nodded. Just as they were about to fly back, a deafening roar came from the sea ahead.

The sound seemed to come from very far away, yet it reached them clearly, and the nearby sea trembled violently.

The three's faces changed.

Before they could react, another rumbling roar came from ahead, accompanied by a vast and chaotic spiritual pressure surging toward them, raising a monstrous hurricane.

Terrified, the three turned to flee, but it was too late. Before they could fly far, the hurricane caught up and swept them away, tossing them like three leaves in a gale, tumbling uncontrollably.

Fortunately, the hurricane's force weakened after traveling a short distance. The three quickly stabilized themselves by circulating their techniques, their faces pale with fright.

At that moment, another earth-shattering roar erupted!

The sea surface a hundred miles ahead suddenly exploded, and a massive black shadow flew backward from within, traveling a great distance through the air before crashing heavily onto the desolate island near the black-robed old man and his companions, shaking the entire island violently and sending rings of air waves that stirred up turbulent waves.

The black shadow was a gigantic ink-black flood dragon, two to three hundred zhang in length, covered in pitch-black, gleaming scales, with two crystal-clear horns like coral on its head.

On its chest and abdomen grew four large dragon claws, each with five toes like black giant swords, emitting a chilling, icy light.

An indescribably vast aura emanated from the five-clawed black flood dragon.

This sight left the three pale as ghosts, especially the black-robed old man. He was not a rogue cultivator but an inner disciple of a sizable sect, which had a Body Integration patriarch.

Yet the aura of this five-clawed black flood dragon far surpassed that of his sect's Body Integration great.

"Could that legend be true?" The old man's heart shook, and a bold guess arose in his mind.

The five-clawed flood dragon struggled to turn over, causing the ground to tremble again.

Startled, the black-robed old man and his companions retreated over a hundred zhang. Looking closely, they saw a large hole in the dragon's chest, gushing torrents of blood that stained large areas of the desolate island.

With a "swoosh"!

A green figure shot out from the sea, moving so fast only a blur was visible, flashing past the five-clawed flood dragon.

A cold gleam of light flashed!

The flood dragon's body stiffened, then its massive head shot upward, a thick column of blood spurting into the sky, drenching the entire island in a rain of blood, spreading a nauseating stench.

Boom!

The dragon's enormous body crashed to the ground, trembled a few times, and then lay still.

At that moment, a black light flashed out from the giant dragon's head, containing a miniature black dragon only a few inches long, which frantically tried to flee into the distance.

But the green figure seemed to have anticipated this, appearing before the dragon with a flicker, opening his mouth to emit a green mist that enveloped it, pulling it back and casually stuffing it into a jade bottle.

The black-robed old man and his companions watched in stunned silence, frozen in midair not far away. The green-clad young woman even unconsciously swallowed.

A green shadow flickered, revealing a tall figure in a green robe, appearing to be about twenty-five or twenty-six, with ordinary features and somewhat dark skin.