Chapter 84: The Statue

In the dense forest, ancient trees stood serene and lush.

Han Li moved through the woods, and even with his vast experience and knowledge, he felt a sense of being overwhelmed by the sights.

Everywhere he looked, there were countless exotic flowers and rare herbs, some of which, even in the Spirit Realm of old, would have been considered top-grade spiritual materials seen only once in a century. Now they were everywhere, most of them quite old, many over a thousand years, and a few even over ten thousand years.

There were also some spiritual plants he did not recognize, but most contained astonishing spiritual power or had peculiar appearances or scents. He unceremoniously gathered them all into his storage.

Although he had swept the area with his divine sense when he first entered this mysterious bubble space, seeing it in person still filled him with awe, and he secretly congratulated himself for not leaving immediately.

After about half an hour, Han Li's figure stopped in a relatively open area in the forest, where the trees were sparse and no spiritual herbs grew, making it seem somewhat barren.

About a hundred zhang ahead of him was a huge cave, over a hundred zhang wide, like a giant sack opening its pitch-black mouth toward him.

Standing still for a moment, Han Li glanced around and, confirming nothing unusual, walked to the cave entrance and looked inside.

The cave did not go straight down but slanted into the earth, with a constant "whoosh" of wind coming from within.

A blue light flickered in Han Li's eyes, and he strode into the cave.

The cave was dark and somewhat damp, with the sound of water droplets falling from the ceiling and side walls, and the ground was soft underfoot.

He descended for about a quarter of an hour when the cave suddenly turned in another direction, and white crystals emitting a cold light began to appear in the rock walls.

At first they were sparse, but as he went deeper, the crystals became denser, gradually illuminating the entire passage.

After another quarter of an hour, he finally reached the end of the cave—a huge underground cavern several hundred zhang in size.

The ceiling was densely packed with countless white crystals, their cold light filling the entire cavern.

At the bottom, the clear sound of flowing water could be heard; an underground river passed through, forming a small lake, surrounded by a sandy beach of yellow crystalline sand.

The white glow and the rippling water reflected off each other, casting shimmering light on the cave walls, creating a strangely beautiful scene.

But Han Li had no mind to appreciate the scenery; his gaze was fixed on a large rock protruding from the water in the center of the cavern.

On that landmass, about thirty zhang in size, grew a strange tree about ten zhang tall.

Its trunk resembled that of a common walnut tree, but it was completely bare, without a single leaf, and on its branches hung walnut-like fruits.

Han Li leaped onto the land and carefully examined the tree.

Upon closer inspection, he found that the trunk was covered in mysterious patterns he had never seen before, which seemed not man-made but naturally grown.

The walnut fruits hanging from the tree were even more peculiar, with dense, twisted patterns that looked like strange human faces—some like old men, some like newborn infants, some like middle-aged women, all different.

Regardless of their patterns, all these human-faced walnut fruits exuded astonishing earth-attribute spiritual energy.

It was this energy that had attracted him here.

Han Li stroked his chin, a thoughtful expression flashing across his face, and a vague guess formed in his mind.

This mysterious bubble space should have belonged to the one-eyed giant, and the centaur beast had risked its life to fight for the strange walnut tree inside.

Although he could not identify the tree or its fruits, one thing was certain: something that could cause two beasts with cultivation comparable to True Immortals to fight over it was no ordinary thing; it must be some unknown heavenly treasure.

But that no longer mattered; now everything here belonged to him alone.

...

The Immortal Realm.

Above a range of unknown,连绵 mountains, leaden clouds obscured the sky, and howling winds carried swirling snowflakes, making the whole sky gray.

On the dozens of peaks, below the mid-mountain area, a few trees bent under thick snow could be seen, but above that, everything was pure white and completely frozen.

Between heaven and earth, apart from the wailing wind and the rustling of falling snow, there was no other sound, nor any sign of life.

But at that moment, from deep within the belly of the tallest ice peak in the mountain range, a sharp female voice pierced through the layers of snow, unaffected by the wind:

"Who? Who is so bold as to kill my spirit pet? Whoever it is, I will find you, tear you into pieces, and extract your soul to suppress it under my Chongyin Peak, so you can never reincarnate!"

Her voice was full of rage, echoing through the storm, shaking the entire snow peak.

Countless huge blocks of snow, accumulated over who knows how many years, broke off, slid down the cliffs, pushing and gathering more snow, rolling mightily down the mountain with a drum-like rumble.

...

In the Northern Cold Immortal Domain, within a vast blue sea.

A blazing sun hung in the sky; the washed-clear sky was dotted with wisps of thin white clouds. A gentle breeze blew over the sea, raising small waves.

On the rippling blue sea lay a black island spanning thousands of li, its edges surrounded by countless oddly shaped black reefs, looking very irregular. From above, its shape resembled a giant leaf.

At a port on the northern side of the island, many ships were moored, but they were empty, with no one aboard.

From the port, a wide bluestone road led into the island's dense forest.

At the end of the road, an ancient village with clustered buildings was hidden among towering ancient trees.

At that moment, fires blazed everywhere in the village, thick smoke billowed, and a continuous roar of battle cries came from all directions. The glows of magical treasures flashed one after another, and the air was thick with the smell of blood.

Amidst the chaotic ruins, nearly a thousand cultivators were locked in chaotic battle, roughly divided into two factions, with similar numbers on each side.

One faction did not seem human; they were tall, with green skin and fangs, mostly wielding hammer- or club-type magical weapons, their bodies covered in a faint white light.

Among these alien cultivators were also some tall warriors in yellow armor wielding spiked clubs, but their bodies were waxy yellow, looking more like movable wax statues than living beings.

The opposing faction consisted mostly of humans and some strange soldiers in blood-red armor.

These blood-armored soldiers had skin the same color as their armor, with wooden expressions, showing no emotion even when charging into battle, like puppets.

On a high ground, a blood-armored soldier wielding a blood-red spear leaped down, thrusting his spear at a waxy yellow warrior charging forward.

Before he landed, a blood-colored vortex burst at the spear tip, sending countless blood rays sweeping down.

With a loud "boom,"

a hole the size of a water vat was blasted in the chest of the waxy yellow warrior, from which yellow wax flowed, and he staggered back a few steps.

But the next moment, he bent his legs and leaped up like lightning, swinging his spiked club, sending countless club shadows forming a yellow whirlwind that swept toward the blood-armored soldier just landing.

With a "bang!"

the blood-armored soldier's head exploded before he could defend, but at the last moment, he hurled his spear, which turned into a blood shadow and pierced the waxy yellow warrior's head.

Both fell almost simultaneously, one turning into a pool of blood, the other into a lump of wax.

Elsewhere, a short, fat old man suddenly appeared from behind a broken wall, holding a blood-colored jade bottle. He inverted the bottle, pointing it at an alien cultivator dozens of zhang away who was chasing someone.

The old man lightly tapped the bottle's bottom; a blood light flashed at the mouth, and dense blood threads shot out, weaving into a blood-colored beam that silently shot toward the alien's back.

A strange scene occurred!

The blood beam, upon touching the white light on the alien's body, slowed abruptly. Though not completely neutralized, its power seemed to diminish by a third.

With a "bang!"

the alien was knocked staggering, spitting blood, but not fatally wounded. Instead, he turned and charged at the old man with a roar.

Similar scenes played out everywhere in the village.

Both the waxy yellow warriors and the blood-armored soldiers fought fiercely, with a fearless, suicidal spirit. But due to their similar numbers and strength, neither could tip the balance.

However, the alien cultivators, protected by the strange white light on their bodies, saw the power of any magical tool or spell reduced by a third. They soon gained the upper hand, forcing the human cultivators to retreat toward the village center.

Meanwhile, in a white stone square at the village center, dozens of people in black robes sat cross-legged around a huge statue, chanting obscure incantations.

Among them were men and women, old and young, all with pale faces. They rolled up their sleeves and extended their left arms.

On each wrist was a thin blood line, from which drops of red blood fell to the ground.

On the ground, half-finger-deep grooves were carved, interconnected into a complex array pattern leading to the statue in the center.

The statue, about ten zhang tall, depicted a young scholar in a headscarf, holding a scroll, gazing into the distance.

If Han Li were here, he would be surprised to find that the young scholar's features were three-tenths similar to his own, though Han Li was noticeably taller in build.

In front of the statue, a white-haired old man in a gray robe, arms crossed over his shoulders, prayed devoutly:

"Great Ancestral God! Please heed the loyal call of your bloodline, descend!"