Fame Spreads Far and Wide; Reunion

Chapter 704: Fame Spreads Far and Wide; Reunion

Although he had failed to capture the other party’s Nascent Soul, the old man’s physical body had been destroyed. Without decades of time, there was no hope of him recovering his original vitality.

Moreover, once he returned, Possession was inevitable. But suitable physical vessels were not so easy to find. Whether he could locate one in time was an open question.

If forced to take any random body out of sheer desperation, a sharp drop in cultivation was all but certain.

On the other hand, he had obtained two ancient treasures and the old man’s storage pouch for nothing. This trip had been quite a haul. Even if he found nothing of value in Cang Kun Shangren’s cave dwelling, this venture into the Moulan plains would not have been a wasted journey.

Thinking this, he looked at the spot where the old man’s body had turned to nothing. A pale silver storage pouch floated there.

Han Li’s expression did not change. He made a grasping motion into empty air, and the storage pouch was drawn into his hand. Without a moment’s hesitation, he immersed his spiritual sense into it for a rough sweep.

The result was a grave disappointment!

Aside from a dozen or so mid-grade spirit stones, the pouch contained only some common refining materials and a few bottles of pills.

Opening the bottle caps, he saw they were all ordinary medicinal pills with nothing remarkable about them. It seemed the Moulan plains were indeed severely lacking in cultivation resources. Even a dignified Nascent Soul Dharma Warrior carried so little of value on his person.

What he had most hoped to find—jade slips and the like—were completely absent from the pouch. This puzzled Han Li, and he let out a light sigh.

He had wanted to obtain some Spiritual Arts techniques, to see what secret allowed them to instantaneously unleash such powerful spells. As things stood now, it seemed impossible in the short term.

He tucked the storage pouch away carelessly. Raising his head, his gaze grew hot as he stared at the distant giant peak.

Although its original master—the surnamed old man Mu—had already fled in Nascent Soul form, the black mountain peak had not changed in shape, its surface still rippling with spiritual light.

Han Li’s eyes narrowed slightly. He made a faint beckoning gesture toward the treasure. Now masterless, the ancient treasure shimmered, quickly shrinking as it flew straight back toward Han Li.

By the time it landed in his hand, it had shrunk back to the size of a miniature mountain small enough to hold in one palm.

Han Li weighed it curiously in his hand. It was not too heavy. He grasped the ancient treasure, turning it over and inspecting it carefully several times. On the bottom of the small black mountain, three pale gold characters were engraved.

“Thousand-Tier Peak,” Han Li muttered to himself, a look of satisfaction appearing in his eyes.

He put the mountain away, then glanced at the Divine Wind Chariot before storing it as well.

He cast a few glances in the direction where the old man’s Nascent Soul had vanished. Lowering his head in thought for a moment, he changed direction and shot away through the air toward one side.

Soon, Han Li’s figure vanished from the nearby sky, leaving no trace at all.

...

Three days later, in a part of the Moulan plains where several hills connected into a continuous stretch, the area was quiet save for waist-high wild grass. Not a single person was in sight. It seemed utterly peaceful.

But before long, azure light flickered at the horizon. A cyan rainbow flew from afar, approaching rapidly.

Moments later, the cyan rainbow arrived above the hills. After making one circle, the azure light converged, and Han Li’s figure appeared high in the air.

He glanced down at what lay below, frowned slightly, then suddenly shook his wide sleeve. From within the sleeve, his fingers flicked.

Several beams of azure light shot like shooting stars toward a particular hill below.

When they were twenty or thirty zhang above the hill’s surface, the azure light exploded. A faint, near-translucent white light barrier appeared below. And inside that barrier stood four people, all looking up at him with faint smiles.

They were none other than Nan Long Hou, the white-robed elder, the old woman, and the dark-faced man.

“Haha! Fellow Daoist Han’s safe arrival is a fortunate thing indeed!” Nan Long Hou stroked his long beard and laughed heartily. He waved a hand, and the light barrier silently vanished.

“Oh? The other fellow Daoists haven’t arrived yet?” Han Li replied with a faint smile. Without ceremony, he floated down slowly and landed before the four of them.

“I’m afraid the other Daoists won’t have such an easy time extricating themselves. When we scattered in different directions to flee, both Fellow Daoist Wang and Fellow Daoist You had Dharma Warriors pursuing them. Shaking off their pursuers will not be a simple matter,” the dark-faced man said calmly, shaking his head.

“Still, you, Daoist, surprised me even more. If I’m not mistaken, the Moulan’s Divine Wind Chariot was pursuing you. Tsk tsk! With the astonishing speed of a Divine Wind Chariot, and you still managed to escape so easily, it seems I did not choose wrongly this time.” Nan Long Hou appeared to be in high spirits as he spoke.

But Han Li only pursed his lips. He could vaguely detect a hint of wariness and suspicion toward him beneath these words.

“It was nothing. I may not excel in other areas, but I have some confidence in my escape arts,” Han Li replied calmly, though his words were deliberately vague.

Seeing that Han Li was not inclined to discuss how he had gotten away, Nan Long Hou did not press the matter. Instead, he began talking about the impact the Moulan’s declaration of war would have on the Nine Nations Alliance, and even on all the powers of the Heavenly South.

Apart from the white-robed elder, the old woman and the dark-faced man also chimed in with interest.

“The last great battle with the Dharma Warriors lasted more than ten years. I wonder how many years this one will drag on. During this time, the Heavenly South’s righteous and demonic paths, as well as Brother Han’s Heaven Dao Alliance, will certainly have to send men to join the fight. And given the Falling Cloud Sect’s position in the Heaven Dao Alliance, they will surely be required to dispatch an Elder to assist in the fighting. Perhaps Brother Han will have another chance to visit the Moulan plains,” Nan Long Hou said with a half-smile.

“Actually, aside from the three major powers contributing men and resources to assist the Nine Nations Alliance, some independent cultivators have also volunteered to come and resist the Dharma Warriors. There are a few skilled ones among them as well. I doubt the Moulan will gain much advantage,” the old woman nodded and said in a low voice.

“But what I find strange is that the other side clearly knows that once the various forces of the Heavenly South join hands, with the Moulan’s current strength, they don’t have a real chance. Otherwise, the last great war would have decided the outcome already. Yet they are still the ones to provoke a major war. That seems a bit unwise. Last time, they only launched their attack with renewed confidence after receiving reinforcements from somewhere. Could they have gained some new Great Tribe this time?” The dark-faced man frowned and spoke in a speculative tone.

“That’s not impossible. But...”

As the group talked, time passed by unnoticed.

Suddenly, Nan Long Hou’s voice cut off. He raised his head and looked into the distance. The others subconsciously followed his gaze, a faint tension appearing on their faces.

This was the Moulan plains, after all. It could be a rendezvous of their scattered team, but it could also be a passing Dharma Warrior.

From afar, light flickered in the sky. A streak of black light and two blobs of bloody light flew directly toward them.

Nan Long Hou stared fixedly for a while, then his expression relaxed.

“It’s fine. It’s Fellow Daoist Wang and his two juniors,” Nan Long Hou said with a relieved smile.

Upon hearing this, the others also relaxed.

Sure enough, after a few moments, the beams of light drew closer. It was indeed Wang Tiang and the Wang Chan trio.

This time, Nan Long Hou did not hesitate. He directly deactivated the aerial restriction, and Wang Tiang’s party descended onto the hill where Han Li and the others stood.

“Oh? Fellow Daoist Han got here even earlier than us. That is quite a surprise, Wang,” Wang Tiang said with a hint of surprise on his face as soon as he spotted Han Li standing among the group.

It seemed this Ghost Spirit Sect cultivator had also seen the Divine Wind Chariot pursuing Han Li earlier. He had likely been secretly gloating about it for some time.

“Pure luck! But seeing Fellow Daoist Wang bring two juniors here completely unharmed is what impresses me,” Han Li said unhurriedly, sweeping his gaze over Wang Chan and the others standing beside Wang Tiang. There was a trace of deeper meaning in his tone.

“Heh! The Dharma Warriors who chased the three of us were not particularly fast. Wang and his juniors used our sect’s escape technique together; it was easy to shake them off. That hardly compares to dealing with a Dharma Warrior driving a Divine Wind Chariot.” Wang Tiang replied nonchalantly.

Han Li sneered inwardly at these words. He was just about to say something else when his expression changed slightly. He fell silent.

“Oh? Fellow Daoist You has also arrived. It seems our luck is quite good, making it here safely. Earlier, I was wondering whether we could break the restriction if we suddenly lost one or two of our helpers!” Nan Long Hou raised his head toward the sky again, his face full of delight.

The others could not help but show expressions of relief as well. If the treasure hunt were to fail due to a shortage of manpower, they would have been equally frustrated.

“No! It seems Fellow Daoist You is being pursued. He looks a bit haggard.” The white-robed elder, who had been standing apart in silence, suddenly spoke gravely.

Hearing this, Han Li and the others were startled. They quickly looked up.

At the distant horizon, a white rainbow was charging forward frantically, chased closely by two patches of multicolored light—one green, one red.

In the blink of an eye, they had reached the hill where Nan Long Hou and the others were gathered.

Nan Long Hou’s expression sank.

(End of Chapter)