Renowned in the Domain, News of Nangong Wan

Han Li still remembered this young girl vividly; after all, he had been the one to personally recruit her into the Yellow Maple Valley back then. But right behind her came the image of Senior Apprentice Brother Ma, the short, elderly man, flashing through his mind, and he was instantly struck by a wave of melancholy.

Given the old man's age, he had never had any chance of forming a Core. That man, who had gotten along with him better than anyone else in the Yellow Maple Valley, had probably already turned to dust by now.

“A little girl! Junior Sister Xiao is no longer some little girl now. She’s been married for years, and she entered Core Formation decades ago.” Nie Ying said, her voice a mix of delight and reproach, a faint, elusive smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

“Oh. She entered Core Formation too. That rather took me by surprise.” Han Li was stunned for a moment, then gave a soft chuckle.

“I’ve heard Junior Sister Xiao mention how you brought her into the sect several times. Junior Sister Xiao has always felt deeply indebted to you, Senior Han, and speaks of you often.” Nie Ying’s tone was gentle.

“I took her on under Senior Apprentice Brother Ma back then only because I thought her aptitude wasn’t bad. It was a momentary whim. Things are different now; people have changed. What’s the point of meeting?” Han Li’s smile vanished as he spoke placidly.

Seeing that Han Li still showed no intention of returning to the Yellow Maple Valley even after such persuasion, Nie Ying and Lei Wanhe exchanged a glance before letting out a helpless, bitter laugh.

The two of them weren’t stupid; they could guess seven or eight-tenths of the reason Han Li was unwilling to return.

Of the core disciples who had been smuggled into the Nine Nations Alliance back then, Han Li hadn’t been among them. This former ‘Senior Han,’ once merely a small-time Foundation Establishment cultivator, had clearly been treated as one of the bait—one of the ones who had been abandoned.

No wonder he was so indifferent to the Yellow Maple Valley, without the slightest inclination to return.

Just as the two were feeling somewhat helpless, Han Li fell silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly turned to the middle-aged cultivator from the Moon-Masking Sect and asked slowly:

“Does your Moon-Masking Sect have a female cultivator named Nangong Wan? What is her current situation?” Han Li’s voice had dropped, sounding somewhat low.

“Ah! You know Senior Nangong, Senior? Senior Nangong is currently stationed in the sect. She is doing very well.” This middle-aged cultivator, named Tang Minghua, was startled at first, but then he respectfully replied.

“Senior? She’s reached Nascent Soul too?” After a moment of shock, an undisguisable note of joy crept into Han Li’s words.

“Senior Nangong successfully condensed her Nascent Soul over a hundred years ago. She is now one of our sect’s elders. Is Senior an old acquaintance of Senior Nangong’s?” the middle-aged cultivator said, his tone detailed and full of eager attentiveness.

To him, if he could use this opportunity to build a connection with a Nascent Soul cultivator, the benefits would naturally be endless.

“An old acquaintance! You could say that. I was once greatly indebted to your senior, and I’ve always wanted to see her again. Unfortunately, I’ve been busy all these years and never had the chance.” Han Li let out a sigh, a flicker of absent-mindedness passing across his face as he murmured.

“Hehe! Although Senior Nangong rarely receives guests, if you truly wish to see her, it’s simple enough. In three months, Senior Nangong will be holding a Dual Cultivation Grand Ceremony with Elder Wei of the Resolve Transformation Sect, formally becoming his dual cultivation partner. This celebration was originally only to invite the high-level cultivators of the alliance. But since you, Senior Han, are an old acquaintance of Senior Nangong’s, if you were to come to our sect for the occasion, our patriarch would certainly…”

“Dual Cultivation Grand Ceremony?” Han Li’s mind buzzed; he couldn’t take in another word after that. He spun around, his voice suddenly turning icy.

“That’s right. This Elder Wei Lichen of the Resolve Transformation Sect formed his Nascent Soul in a mere three hundred years. His divine abilities are unfathomable; he’s considered an unprecedented cultivation prodigy in the Heavenly South. Our sect and the Resolve Transformation Sect expended great effort to bring about this beautiful union.” Han Li’s frigid expression startled the middle-aged cultivator, and a thousand strange thoughts swirled through his mind. But under Han Li’s cold, piercing gaze, he involuntarily spilled everything.

Seeing this, Lei Wanhe and the others all wore strange expressions.

At this point, even an idiot could see that Han Li’s relationship with the Moon-Masking Sect’s Nangong Wan seemed anything but simple!

Otherwise, why would Han Li have such a violent reaction upon hearing this news?

But to everyone’s great surprise, after staring at the middle-aged cultivator for a moment longer, the cold expression on Han Li’s face vanished in an instant. Instead, his voice softened, and he said calmly:

“Fellow Daoist Tang, there’s no need to panic. Han has no ill intentions. I was just a little agitated to hear that someone I once admired is about to become another’s wife. Since I now know of this matter, I naturally intend to attend the grand celebration of my good friend’s happy union.”

Hearing Han Li’s candid confession, the middle-aged cultivator breathed a huge sigh of relief, repeatedly voicing words of welcome.

But Han Li only gave a faint smile and said nothing more.

Lei Wanhe and the others also seemed to relax. After all, the six sects of the former Yue Nation were almost a single entity now. The last thing they wanted was to stir up any more trouble.

For a while longer, Han Li asked a few casual questions about the six sects of Yue, nothing that was particularly important. The five of them naturally answered one by one.

When he heard that the Yellow Maple Valley’s Grandmaster Linghu was nearing the end of his lifespan, Han Li’s brow furrowed, but he quickly smoothed it away as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

“By the way. Does your Senior Nangong have a younger cousin named Nangong Ping? She should also be a cultivator of the Moon-Masking Sect.” As if recalling something, Han Li asked offhandedly.

“Nangong Ping! This junior has never heard of her. Senior Nangong has always cultivated alone; no one has ever mentioned she had a younger cousin. Senior, could you be mistaken?” The middle-aged cultivator was taken aback, then asked in confusion.

Hearing this, Han Li was suddenly dumbstruck. But after taking a deep breath, he immediately pressed on:

“This female cultivator, Nangong Ping, should be a Core Formation cultivator of your sect! Could you have forgotten about her?” Han Li’s voice grew urgent.

“If our sect truly had such a person, how could I not know? This junior can assure you, Senior, our sect does indeed have no such woman.” Tang Minghua gave a wry smile and spoke as if he was about to swear an oath.

“What Fellow Daoist Tang says is true. If the Moon-Masking Sect truly had this Core Formation female cultivator, we would also know. There is indeed no such person. I wonder where Senior learned of this person’s existence.” Lei Wanhe couldn’t help but interject to help, a look of surprise on his face.

“It’s nothing! Perhaps Han made a mistake.” Han Li said these words aloud, but his face was full of a strange expression, tinged with a hint of bewilderment.

Given Han Li’s crafty nature, he naturally realized now that the ‘Nangong Ping’ of that day was no cousin of Nangong Wan’s at all, but clearly Nangong Wan herself, disguised and altered. No wonder she hadn’t been ruthless with him back then, and her expressions and words when they parted had been so strange.

For the remainder of the time, Han Li seemed to have completely lost interest in talking. He simply drove the Divine Wind Chariot forward with a gloomy expression, flying on in silence.

The others could also see that this ‘Senior Han’ was in a bad mood, so naturally, none of them dared to make any loud conversation in the chariot.

For a time, the Divine Wind Chariot was filled with absolute silence.

After half a day, when they arrived at a small, uninhabited mountain, Han Li brought the Divine Wind Chariot to a stop.

“I’ll take my leave of you all here. This place is only a day’s journey from the border of Fengyuan Country. It’s considered a safe area. Han has other pressing matters, so I won’t see you any further.” Han Li stood on the chariot, calmly beginning to dismiss them.

Lei Wanhe and the others naturally dared not raise any objections. After once again thanking Han Li for saving their lives, they all flew out of the Divine Wind Chariot.

Without another word, Han Li changed direction, driving the chariot through the air, instantly vanishing from sight without a trace.

“Fellow Daoist Lei, was this ‘Senior Han’ truly once a disciple of your Yellow Maple Valley, and even once your junior apprentice nephew?” another older cultivator from Tianque Fortress, unable to contain his curiosity, finally blurted out to confirm with Lei Wanhe now that the Divine Wind Chariot had disappeared.

“What, does Lei look like a man who would spout lies?” Lei Wanhe frowned, his tone sour.

Although he had been saved by Han Li today, having a former junior’s cultivation surpass his own, and having to call him ‘Senior’ and mind his manners with caution, was not something that left anyone in a good mood.

“Hehe! Brother Lei, don’t be angry. I was just a little curious. If what you, Brother, say is true, then this Senior Han should be around the same age as Fellow Daoist Nie. Fellow Daoist Nie, may I ask how many years you have cultivated to reach your current realm?” This Qian Family cultivator of Tianque Fortress did not get angry, but instead turned to ask Nie Ying seriously.

“It took me over two hundred years to reach my current early Core Formation stage.” Nie Ying seemed to understand what he was getting at and replied with a slightly changed expression.

“So that’s it. This Senior Han formed his Nascent Soul in roughly the same amount of time, just over two hundred years. Do you know what that means?” The Qian Family cultivator stroked the few sparse whiskers on his chin, speaking with a serious face.

“Brother Qian, you mean…” the burly Shi Family cultivator from Giant Sword Sect couldn’t help but exclaim.

“That’s right. This man very likely has the opportunity to impact the Divine Transformation stage. The last recorded Divine Transformation cultivator to appear in the Heavenly South was over ten thousand years ago. Although that one disappeared from the cultivation world shortly after entering the Divine Transformation stage, during that brief period of existence, he swept the entire Heavenly South without a single opponent. The entire Heavenly South, whether orthodox, demonic, or neutral sects, was almost entirely consolidated under him. No one could stand against a Divine Transformation cultivator. Even if that person was only at the early Divine Transformation stage.” The Qian Family cultivator said gravely.