Chapter 816: Fifth-Grade Immortal Lamp

Beyond the Yellow Millet Domain lay the Ten Dreams Domain.

These two domains were not only adjacent, but the origins of the eighteen major rivers within the Ten Dreams Domain were all within the Yellow Millet Domain. The relationship between them was close, and since ancient times there had been the saying 'Yellow Millet, Ten Dreams.'

Although the Demon Domain was naturally not as vast as the Immortal Domain in terms of area, even so, the scenery of two neighboring domains could be vastly different.

Within the Ten Dreams Domain, besides the eighteen main river channels, there were also several hundred tributary systems, interwoven and connected, forming vast networks of rivers and waters.

On this day, Han Li and Shi Chuankong, having changed their appearances and attire, did not fly across the border but instead took an ordinary ferry boat, traveling north along the Liusha River, one of the eighteen great rivers, toward Lanke City.

Han Li had unusually transformed into a handsome scholar, wearing a long blue robe of the same style and color as Shi Chuankong, gently waving a folding fan in his hand, appearing quite cultured.

The soil on both banks of the Liusha River was fertile, and on each side stretched large tracts of pink peach forests, just at the peak of blooming. Looking into the distance, both banks seemed immersed in a sea of flowers, with faint fragrances permeating the air, intoxicating the heart.

However, after watching for a while, Han Li found it uninteresting and returned to sit inside the small boat's cabin.

'I thought this Dream Peach Forest would have something special, but it turns out to be nothing much. If ordinary people came to admire the flowers, it would be fine, but for us to look at it, it's a bit dull.' Han Li sighed softly, then flipped his hand to produce a bottle of fine wine, poured himself a cup, brought it to his lips, and sipped as he spoke.

Shi Chuankong had originally not intended to explain anything, but as soon as he saw Han Li bring out the fine wine, he immediately slipped back in, sat down opposite Han Li, and very self-consciously took out an amber gold cup, pouring himself a full cup.

'Brother Li, you are unaware of this. Within the Ten Dreams Domain, there are ten great illusory dreamscapes, and this Dream Peach Forest is one of them. The reason you feel nothing at all is that your divine sense is too powerful; this Dream Peach Forest is insufficient to bewilder you. In the eyes of ordinary people, they can see celestial maidens dancing and colorful deer galloping within the forest.' Shi Chuankong said slowly after drinking a cup of wine and savoring it briefly.

'So it seems I lack the fortune to see it,' Han Li said.

'If you withdraw your divine sense and offer no resistance, you too can see those sights. As we travel down the river, we will also pass the Dream Heavenly Ladder and the Illusory Fire Sea, two other illusions. Then we'll see if they can bewilder you,' Shi Chuankong laughed.

Han Li made no comment on this. Previously, by cultivating the Spirit Refining Art with the Ziyang Warm Jade, his progress had been rapid, advancing by leaps and bounds, and his divine sense had already increased several times over. However, he was still some distance from breaking through the final barrier and reaching the fifth level of the Spirit Refining Art.

He drained the wine in his cup, flipped his palm, and lightly wiped it over the small table before him. A flash of green light appeared in his palm, and a strangely shaped琉璃 lamp emerged.

'Brother Li, have you refined this item?' Shi Chuankong glanced at the琉璃 lamp and asked.

'This Soul Devouring Lamp was left behind by the Purple and Green Sisters. I feared there might be some hidden mark on it, so I have kept it sealed and not attempted to refine it,' Han Li shook his head and said.

'This is the Soul Devouring Lamp?' Shi Chuankong raised an eyebrow, quite surprised.

'You saw them use this before, why are you so surprised?' Han Li asked.

'Well... Brother Li, if you are unwilling to refine this item, you can name a price, and I would be willing to buy it,' Shi Chuankong glared at Han Li, then rubbed his hands together and said.

'Brother Shi, Brother Shi, for a merchant like you, saying that makes me unwilling to sell! Be honest with me, is this item of great origin?' Han Li laughed involuntarily upon hearing this.

'To be honest with you, Brother Li, this item indeed has a great origin. It is a fifth-grade soul immortal artifact, entirely powered by divine sense. Any cultivator from either the Immortal or Demon Domain can use it. The strength of its effect depends entirely on the user's divine sense. My earlier offer to buy it was just a joke; this item can only truly be effective in your hands,' Shi Chuankong smiled and said.

'I examined it once before and found no mark remaining, but I was worried that you in the Demon Domain might have some special technique that I couldn't detect, so I didn't rashly refine it. Since you say so, why don't you take a look at it as well? If there's no problem, I will refine it, so we can have another means to deal with enemies,' Han Li said after thinking for a moment.

'I was thinking the same,' Shi Chuankong nodded.

With that, he reached out and took the Soul Devouring Lamp from Han Li, examining it carefully.

After a long while, he handed the琉璃 lamp back to Han Li and said, 'I know the Holy Domain does have some secret imprinting methods, but I found none on this Soul Devouring Lamp.'

'If that's the case, I can safely refine it,' Han Li nodded.

'Brother Li, don't rush to refine it. Do you know what the four strange beasts on this lamp are?' Shi Chuankong quickly waved his hand and asked.

'Please enlighten me, Brother Shi,' Han Li's heart stirred as he said.

'These four strange beasts look similar in appearance, but there are subtle differences. The one with a single horn on its head is called 'Greedy Capture,' fond of shooting and capturing living souls. The one with sunken eyes is called 'Seal the Nether,' fond of gathering remnant souls. The one with closed ears is called 'Hear Not,' fond of imprisoning souls. And the last one, with a mouth full of fangs, is fond of devouring souls. Each represents one of the four abilities of this Soul Devouring Lamp,' Shi Chuankong said slowly.

"Brother Stone, why are you so familiar with this object, yet you couldn't recognize it earlier?" Han Li said, somewhat puzzled.

"Alas, when this item appeared in the Holy Domain back then, it was originally meant to flow into our Guangyuan Hall. The storage report had already been submitted, only awaiting my approval for it to be stored. Unfortunately, I was held up by other matters at the time and failed to handle it promptly, causing me to lose track of this treasure. I never expected it to end up in my elder brother's hands," Shi Chuankong said with a wry smile.

"I see. Then why did you tell me to refine it slowly?" Han Li smiled and asked again.

"Earlier, I told you the origins of these four beasts to make you understand that none of them are benevolent. Moreover, according to the contents of that previous report, this item cannot be refined using ordinary methods; otherwise, it is highly likely that one will be counterattacked by the spirits of the four beasts, leading to soul damage," Shi Chuankong sighed and said.

Hearing this, a knowing smile appeared on Han Li's face. With a twist of his wrist, a thin blue ancient book appeared in his palm, with the four characters "Soul Devouring Essence Refining" written on the cover.

"This is the method of use that the Purple-Green Sisters figured out on their own. It just so happens to record the method of refining," he said, waving the ancient book in his hand.

"No wonder you chose this item that day. I knew Brother Li would never suffer a loss," Shi Chuankong was taken aback, then grinned and said.

"Since we have nothing to do along the way, I'll refine this Soul Devouring Lamp first. Perhaps it might come in handy," Han Li said.

"That's fine. We haven't escaped danger yet, so having an extra means is an extra guarantee. You can focus on your meditation; I'll stand guard for you," Shi Chuankong nodded and said.

In the following time, Han Li wasted no words and began to set up a formation on the small boat according to the method recorded in the "Soul Devouring Essence Refining" manual.

After setting up a formation about ten feet in size, Han Li formed hand seals and activated it.

With a soft chant from him, a faint glow lit up within the formation, and a vast golden light emerged, enveloping the Soul Devouring Lamp placed inside.

The originally dim glass lamp, illuminated by the golden light, instantly became completely translucent, and within it, faint blue and purple fine lines began to emerge.

Han Li looked at these crisscrossing lines that filled the lotus-petal lamp and frowned slightly.

These were none other than the divine sense crystal threads left in the lamp by the Purple-Green Sisters.

With a thought from him, the golden light beneath the formation immediately began to generate a scorching heat, roasting the glass lamp.

The blue and purple threads inside the lamp suddenly trembled violently, like loaches plunging into boiling water, and began to dart about wildly.

Seeing this, Han Li twisted his wrist, pointed his fingers at the lamp, and softly shouted, "Dispel."

The golden light in the formation immediately surged into the lamp, igniting all the blue and purple threads, which melted away like snow under the scorching sun.

Seeing this, a smile appeared at the corner of Han Li's mouth. Having dispelled the divine sense crystal threads left by the Purple-Green Sisters, it was time to integrate his own divine sense crystal threads.

He changed his hand seals, slowly closed his eyes, and a crystal light flashed from his brow, shooting out dozens of transparent crystal threads that all pierced into the lotus petals of the glass lamp, gradually merging into the lamp's interior bit by bit.

Time passed drop by drop, and soon several months went by.

The small boat had long since left the Dream Peach Forest, passed through a treacherous stretch of winding rapids, and arrived at the area of the Dream Heavenly Ladder.

Shi Chuankong stood at the bow of the boat, his gaze sweeping across the banks of the great river. He saw towering peaks facing each other on both sides, with steep and majestic mountain terrain, and thousand-foot cliffs covered in cliffside carvings from various eras.

As the small boat rounded a mountain wall that jutted into the river, the water ahead suddenly widened.

It was early morning, and the thin mist had not yet dissipated. The rising sun was ascending, and a warm red glow rose little by little from the water's surface, spreading across the river like a bolt of red silk.

As the sun climbed higher, the orange-red light grew brighter, turning into a bright yellow hue.

By the time the thin mist on the river was completely dispelled by the sunlight, the sun had risen to mid-sky, casting a brilliant golden radiance.

Shi Chuankong frowned slightly and looked toward a cliff on the left. He saw the golden light reflecting off it, producing a dazzling glare. A golden stone ladder seemed to emerge from the cliff itself, extending upward along the mountain wall all the way to the summit.

It didn't stop at the mountaintop; the golden stone ladder continued to extend through the void, reaching straight into the white clouds above the dome before disappearing from view.

As Shi Chuankong watched this scene, he was just lamenting that Brother Li would miss this sight when his heart suddenly stirred, and he quickly turned to look back.

He saw that Han Li, who had been sitting still and silent for months, suddenly let out a muffled groan and began to tremble all over like a sieve.