The Gate of Yue Lu Hall

Han Li stood on a stone platform halfway up a mountain called Wu Jun Shan. At the far end of the platform, which was several dozen yards wide and paved with mountain stone, lay a massive cave dwelling completely concealed by a formation—the “Yue Lu Hall.”

This Yue Lu Hall was the dedicated repository for the Yellow Maple Valley’s formulas for magical tools and pills, its cultivation texts, and its secret techniques. It also provided various auxiliary tools for alchemy and artifact forging, along with some commonly used raw materials. It was one of the most important locations within the entire mountain gate. Consequently, the place was not only thick with restrictions, layer upon layer of interlocking formations, but also constantly patrolled by over a hundred vigilant disciples to guard against enemy intrusion. There were even rumors that a Core Formation-level Elder Uncle permanently resided within this hall, meditating in seclusion, to deter any expert from attempting to breach it.

Han Li ran the relevant information he had gathered through his mind one more time, then walked forward with a composed air.

The moment he had landed, he had already felt several wary gazes sizing him up from the shadows. But perhaps because they judged his magical power to be mediocre, those gazes quickly withdrew. Even so, Han Li was secretly startled.

The fact that he could not sense their positions meant that these people either possessed excellent concealing magical tools or were indeed his superiors in magical power—all elite disciples of the twelfth layer or above. How could this not make him even more cautious?

After taking a few steps forward, he stopped. He quietly recited a short incantation, raised his hand, and a red light flew from his palm, striking what appeared to be empty space ahead.

A spatial fluctuation rippled out, and a glowing red barrier materialized in front of him. Immediately after, two disciples dressed in red appeared behind the barrier.

“Was it you who triggered the restriction?” one of the red-clad disciples said coldly.

“This disciple is Han Li, I—”

“We don’t care who you are. Since you haven’t reached Foundation Establishment, you must have a guarantor. Hand over the guarantor’s token!” The disciple cut off Han Li’s explanation impatiently.

Han Li, unfazed by the discourteous tone, calmly retrieved a jade talisman from his chest and placed it on the ground in front of him, separated from them by the light barrier.

The cold-speaking disciple touched the light barrier with a finger, and a palm-sized circular opening appeared out of thin air.

The other red-clad disciple, who had not yet spoken, made a casual beckoning motion. Han Li’s jade talisman flew up like it had grown wings, passing through the small opening and landing in his hand.

“Senior Martial Brother Ma is your guarantor?” The red-clad man who had examined the talisman spoke with a hint of surprise.

“Indeed. Senior Martial Uncle Ma gave me this token,” Han Li answered honestly. But inwardly, he was shocked. These two red-clad disciples were not old, yet they were both Foundation Establishment experts. This was a considerable surprise.

After all, in an immortal sect, seniority was not determined by who entered the sect earliest, but by depth of cultivation realm. On the path of immortality, those with greater ability were the teachers.

“That Senior Martial Brother Ma who is utterly obsessed with alchemy?” The red-clad disciple beside him also seemed taken aback.

“Exactly. He actually agreed to guarantee someone? That really is surprising. You wouldn’t happen to be his personal disciple, or a nephew or something, would you?” The red-clad man, having confirmed the token several times, grew curious.

“No, disciple merely watches over the medicine garden for Senior Martial Uncle Ma. But even for this token, I already agreed to look after the garden for a full year free of charge,” Han Li replied respectfully, a wry smile appearing on his face.

Every word he said was true.

When Han Li had first thought of obtaining formulas, his mind had naturally turned to this Senior Martial Uncle Ma. Since the old man planted so many medicinal herbs, he must surely have studied alchemy extensively and would certainly be in possession of many pill formulas. So, a few months earlier, Han Li had taken the opportunity while the old man was collecting some herbs to probe him with a casual hint.

The result had left Han Li dumbfounded. The moment the old man heard the request, he shook his head frantically and refused outright. According to his own words, every formula in his possession had been personally refined through countless failures by himself, a master alchemist. How could he simply hand them over to anyone? Absolutely impossible!

When Han Li patiently explained that he only wanted the original, unmodified formulas, the old man rolled his eyes and impatiently told Han Li to just go to Yue Lu Hall and find them himself—why bother him, an old man, with such a tedious errand? And so, Han Li had traded a full year of unpaid labor for the old man’s guarantee token, which had only now made his trip to Yue Lu Hall possible.

“Haha! So that’s how it is. I thought the rumored Senior Martial Brother Ma had suddenly changed his ways.” The two red-clad disciples exchanged glances and laughed. The one holding the talisman spoke cheerfully.

“Alright, come in.”

Both red-clad disciples struck the light barrier with a spell seal simultaneously. The barrier was forcibly pried open, forming a passage about a yard wide—just enough for one person to enter.

Han Li did not hesitate. With a flicker of movement, he stepped inside.

However, the scene behind the light barrier left him greatly astonished.

Outside, the red light barrier had blocked his view, but now that he was inside, what appeared before him was a bare mountain face. Aside from a small circular formation, there was no building of any kind. Han Li was thoroughly puzzled.

“Take this talisman back. Every time you come, you will need to undergo the same inspection. That is the rule here.” After withdrawing the spell seal from the barrier, the disciple who had checked the token returned it to Han Li.

“Thank you, both Uncles,” Han Li said, withdrawing his roaming gaze and doing his best to appear respectful and courteous, hoping to leave a good impression on these two. After all, he would be coming here often.

“Mm. Come with me.”

Apparently, Han Li’s efforts had not been wasted. Both men’s expressions had softened considerably. After all, most of the people who came here were fellow disciples of their own generation and rarely as polite as Han Li. He had earned himself some goodwill.

“But, Nephew Han, what made you think of coming to Yue Lu Hall? You should know that whether it’s opening a furnace to refine pills or casting tools, it’s best to wait until you’ve reached Foundation Establishment. Coming here now is a bit premature,” one of the red-clad disciples asked casually as they led Han Li toward the circular formation.

“Nephew merely witnessed and heard many things about alchemy while at Senior Martial Uncle Ma’s place. I’ve also managed to save up some raw materials taking care of the medicine garden, so I thought I’d try my luck here. I was hoping to find a suitable formula and refine some pills to advance my cultivation. My aptitude is truly poor, so I have to rely on external help,” Han Li replied, his answer half-truthful and half-fabricated. He deliberately stayed half a step behind them.

“I see. But Nephew, don’t get your hopes up. Once you go inside, you’ll understand why,” the other disciple said with a light shake of his head, clearly not optimistic about Han Li’s purpose.

By now, the three had reached the circular formation. One of the red-clad disciples gestured for Han Li to stand in the center of the formation, while the two of them took positions on either side.

“Normally, using the teleportation formation requires a low-grade spirit stone. But since this is your first time, Nephew, we’ll waive the fee this once. Next time, however, you’ll have to follow the rules,” one of them said with a low laugh.

Having said this, the two expertly struck the formation with a red light each. The several spirit stones embedded in the formation began to glow.

Before Han Li could thank them, he suddenly felt the world spin around him. His surroundings blurred. A flash of light passed before his eyes, and he found himself standing in a strange, spacious hall. Beneath his feet was a formation identical to the one he had just been standing on.

So this is the legendary teleportation formation. Truly miraculous, Han Li marveled inwardly. Only after the disorienting aftereffects of the teleportation had faded did he begin to survey the unusually large hall around him.