A Borrowed Strand of Mana

Chapter 597: Stirrings Beyond the Seas

Han Li was somewhat surprised to hear such straightforward words from the woman before him.

But he was not an ordinary man. Although a flicker of surprise flashed across his face, he quickly composed himself and nodded.

“This Netherworld Domain is fraught with danger and unexpected events at every turn. Naturally, the sooner I can recover my mana and retrieve a few treasures, the better. If something were to happen, we would be caught unprepared.”

Mei Ning was not surprised by Han Li’s words and nodded in agreement. But as if something had occurred to her, her face flushed slightly, and she spoke in a low voice.

“As for the method of transferring this Spirit Essence Qi, if my mana were still active, I could easily pass the qi to you, Brother Han, through palm contact. But now my mana is all sealed within my body. If I am to transmit the qi to you, it can only be done through… through mouth-to-mouth contact.” When Mei Ning said “mouth-to-mouth contact,” her head drooped low, her voice became almost inaudible, and she even stammered slightly.

Han Li was momentarily taken aback, but seeing her charming, blushing face, his heart stirred involuntarily.

The prospect of restoring his mana while receiving a kiss from this beautiful woman was, for Han Li, a welcome and fragrant opportunity. A strange feeling stirred within him. The atmosphere in the room began to grow ambiguous.

Seeing Mei Ning silent with her head lowered, Han Li knew, despite his limited experience with romantic affairs, that waiting for her to take the initiative was nearly impossible. Especially since there was no prior intimate relationship between them.

With this thought, Han Li stood up without a word. A flicker of his form, and he was beside the stone bed, sitting down close to her.

Mei Ning subconsciously tried to shift away, but a strong arm wrapped around her slender waist.

Her heart pounded wildly. She raised her head and met Han Li’s teasing gaze. Her face flushed even deeper, and she tried to lower her head again.

But Han Li raised a hand, gently cupping her delicate chin, preventing her from looking away.

Mei Ning’s mind went blank. She felt light, unable to think of anything.

Han Li took a deep breath of the faint fragrance emanating from the woman. Drawn by the shyness and allure in her bright eyes, his gaze grew intense. Unable to restrain himself any longer, he lowered his head and pressed his lips firmly against hers.

A look of dazed helplessness appeared in Mei Ning’s eyes, but a moment later, she suddenly snapped back to her senses. She raised a delicate hand, trying to push Han Li away.

Although she had mentally prepared herself for his advances, when the moment actually came, her shyness overcame her, and she instinctively resisted.

Although this woman had many suitors, she had never truly been intimate with any man before. In that moment, she was flustered.

Han Li, however, seemed to taste something exquisite in that kiss. His desire was stirred.

Mei Ning’s strength was far inferior to Han Li’s. Pinned down by his forceful embrace, she lost all power to resist. She struggled weakly for a moment, but soon, resigned to her fate, she gave up.

Surrounded by a strong masculine aura, the woman kept her eyes tightly shut, her cheeks flushed like a tide, and her long lashes trembled slightly. Her mind was clearly in turmoil.

For the moment, she had completely forgotten about the matter of transferring qi.

However, Han Li’s will was far stronger than that of an ordinary man. After a few moments, the heat and madness in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a clear, cold look.

He lifted his lips from hers, turned his head, and whispered with a light laugh into her exquisitely carved little ear.

“Miss Mei, while the joys of intimacy between a man and a woman are indeed wonderful, you mustn’t forget about the qi transfer.”

Hearing this, Mei Ning’s body trembled, and her jade-like face grew even more crimson.

Han Li dared not delay. He quickly rose from her and sat down cross-legged beside her, beginning to circulate the strand of qi.

Mei Ning also sat up, hurriedly straightening her somewhat disheveled robes. But the blush on her face would not fade for a time.

She hesitated for a moment, then stole a quick glance at Han Li. Seeing his eyes tightly shut, she let out an unknown sigh of relief.

Then she got down from the bed, walked a few steps, and sat down on Han Li’s original chair, staring blankly at his calm, meditative face with a complex expression of hope and uncertainty.

After an unknown amount of time, Han Li finally opened his eyes, meeting her troubled gaze.

Startled, Mei Ning quickly turned her face away, unable to look at him any longer.

Seeing her flustered expression, Han Li smiled.

But he immediately withdrew his smile and suddenly slapped his storage pouch.

With a flash of white light, one item after another appeared beside Han Li. Soon, there was a large pile.

Among them were treasures, as well as materials like demon beast sinews and hides. It was unclear what Han Li intended to do with them.

“You can use mana now!” Though Mei Ning was confident in her Spirit Essence Qi, seeing Han Li actually open his storage pouch still made her cry out in pleasant surprise.

“The amount of mana is very small. I can barely release even a low-grade spell, but at least opening the storage pouch is no problem,” Han Li said with a smile. His hands did not hesitate, however. In a short time, he had taken out everything he needed. Then, he retrieved the unused ancient treasures like the golden mirror, blue basket, and silver bell from his bosom and, with a sweep of his sleeve, stored them back in the pouch.

Mei Ning was dazzled by the display. She glanced at the pile beside Han Li, a strange look on her face.

“Brother Han, I’ve never asked. Are you a Foundation Establishment cultivator?” The woman finally sensed something amiss and asked hesitantly.

“Of course not. I am a Core Formation cultivator,” Han Li said frankly, seeing no reason to hide it at this point.

“What!” Even though Mei Ning had vaguely guessed, she still let out a cry of pleasant surprise.

Han Li smiled, ignoring her suddenly strange gaze. He then slapped a spirit beast pouch.

A flash of light, and a small monkey appeared. It was the Crying Soul Beast.

Strangely enough, as soon as it appeared, the normally lazy beast suddenly perked up. It sniffed the air a few times with its large nose, then became excited, hopping around Han Li.

This caused Han Li’s heart to stir with interest.

Mei Ning clearly did not recognize the famous mystical beast. She only glanced at the small monkey, showing a hint of curiosity.

“Miss Mei, wait here for a moment. I’m going to take advantage of this remaining mana to take care of a few things,” Han Li said calmly.

“Things?” The woman blinked her beautiful eyes, momentarily confused.

Han Li did not explain further. He picked out a few items from the pile and placed them inside his robes. Ignoring the rest, he walked to the door, pushed it open slightly, and looked outside.

The sky outside was the same as before. It seemed this place had no distinction between day and night. However, it was hard to tell the time. Far fewer people were active outside now than before. It seemed most had returned to their rooms to rest.

Han Li beckoned to the Crying Soul Beast. With a swoosh, it automatically flew into his sleeve.

Only then did he turn and smile at Mei Ning, then walked out with an air of nonchalance, leaving the beautiful woman alone in the room, her face a mask of uncertainty.

Outside, Han Li moved with practiced agility, doing his best to avoid the attention of others.

In the blink of an eye, he stopped before a larger stone house.

After a quick glance around, he unhesitatingly pushed open the door and walked in.

After a short while, Han Li emerged with a satisfied expression on his face.

This place stored a certain amount of a unique local liquid called “Sinking Water.” Han Li used several large, empty bottles from his storage pouch to fill them with a small portion of the stockpile, then left the house.

As he rounded a corner and saw a round stone house of peculiar design, Han Li’s expression shifted, and he stopped once more.

If his memory served him, this was the residence of that middle-aged man named Feng.

At this moment, he could already feel that the strand of mana he had been able to utilize was beginning to wane, fading away.