Two years later, in the deepest chamber of the Qingyuan Palace, Han Li sat cross-legged in a corner, his ten fingers flicking colorful mana seals toward the front as fast as a spinning wheel.
At the center of the chamber stood a pale golden formation roughly a zhang in diameter. Within it, two green bottles of different sizes hovered one above the other.
The upper bottle was a bluish-green hue, only a few inches in size, its mouth inverted, and it flickered with an unidentifiable mysterious radiance that alternated between bright and dim.
The stream of mana seals shot from Han Li's hand all vanished into it without a trace.
At the center of the lower light formation hung a bluish-green luminous bottle roughly a foot tall. It was densely wrapped by countless five-colored threads of light that darted out from various points within the formation, and from its mouth flowed wisps of an unidentifiable iridescent luminescence, every wisp of which was drawn straight up and absorbed into the bottle above.
Each time the lower bottle gave up a portion to the one above, it shrank slightly, its color growing a shade fainter as well.
For a full half day this continued, until the lower bottle had dwindled to roughly the same size as the one above and its color had become nearly transparent. At last, with a soft *pop*, it dissolved into one final ball of iridescent light that shot toward the ceiling, only to be inhaled into the upper bottle as well.
"Go!"
In the corner, Han Li had not ceased casting for a single moment. Seeing this outcome, a flicker of delight crossed his face. With a low shout, he extended a finger and tapped toward the formation.
The formation, which had been humming in a low drone, abruptly fell silent as its operation halted. The myriad rays of radiance all contracted inward, and the upper bottle descended slowly through the air.
Han Li's brow arched. He withdrew his finger and beckoned with an open palm.
With a *whoosh*, the bluish-green bottle transformed into a streak of green light and dropped neatly into his hand.
"The Yuan Fusion Immortal Art from that newly acquired jade slip truly is remarkably effective. It actually managed to fully merge this replica into the Heavenward Flask. All that time wasn't wasted after all. Now, so long as I use the control method recorded on it, I can even activate this treasure with some ease, rather than merely using it to cultivate spirit herbs." Han Li turned the green bottle over in his fingers a few times, a faint smile forming on his face as he murmured to himself.
"Come to think of it, though I always knew this object had an extraordinary origin, I never imagined it was a treasure valued even by Dao Ancestors of the Immortal Realm. But how did it end up in the Lower Realm, and with only a portion at that? Where did the bottle spirit go — could it have been lost somewhere else in the Lower Realm as well?" After tucking the bottle away, Han Li fell into contemplation once more.
"Forget it. Obtaining even a part of this treasure is already an incredible fortune. The fact that I've come this far at all is largely thanks to having it in my possession. There's no need to be greedy about the rest. My task now is to enter secluded cultivation and thoroughly comprehend the several new divine abilities I've acquired, bringing them to full mastery. Then I'll refine the Yuanvap Five-Polar Mountain and the other major treasures, and continue cultivating diligently, further purifying and condensing my Magical Power until I finally reach the point where I can withstand the Ascension Tribulation. However, before I go into long-term seclusion, there are still a few matters I must settle first."
Han Li's thoughts raced. With a flip of his single hand, a somewhat damaged jade token appeared in his palm. He traced it gently with his fingers and softly uttered two words: "Spirit Race."
Not long after his return to the Boundless Sea, he had immediately instructed the Crab Daoist to use a tracking technique to determine whether the owner of this life-bound token truly existed in the Spirit World.
The result had genuinely astonished him.
After performing a brief divination with a secret art, the Crab Daoist had not only confirmed that the token's owner was indeed in this realm, but that the approximate location was not far from the Human Race's territory — most likely situated within the Spirit Race's domain.
After his initial shock, a figure had immediately flashed through Han Li's mind — the Spirit King.
Though he did not yet know the identity of the token's owner, it was almost certainly connected to this exceedingly mysterious Spirit King.
He had originally intended to investigate at once, but the aftermath of the great battle at the Mingsha Territory had demanded his attention. He needed to remain stationed at the Qingyuan Palace, and so the trip had been postponed until now.
"Over the past two years, no other races have come looking for trouble. It seems the time has come to settle this matter."
Han Li narrowed his eyes and arrived at his final decision.
…
Several months later, above the Spirit Race's sacred mountain, Fuling Mountain, violent fluctuations tore through the sky. A massive vessel as black as ink materialized silently from within them.
A figure flickered at the bow, and a young man in a green robe appeared directly in the void before the ship in a ghostly manner.
Naturally, chaos erupted within Fuling Mountain below. Layer upon layer of restrictions flared into existence, and countless figures soared into the air from every corner of the mountain.
But the young man paid absolutely no attention to any of it below. Instead, he exhaled a soft breath and declared in a voice devoid of any emotion: "Fellow Daoist Spirit King, Han Li has come to pay a visit. I humbly ask that you come out to meet me."
This young man was none other than Han Li himself.
Though his voice was ordinary in tone, it echoed ceaselessly across the entire expanse above Fuling Mountain, and it carried within it some immense divine power. The Spirit Race guards who had just risen into the air shuddered in unison the moment it reached their ears and plummeted from the sky.
Several Holy Spirits who had not taken flight likewise felt their Magical Power seize up the instant Han Li's voice entered their ears, rendering their circulation sluggish at best. Their expressions changed dramatically.
It was at that moment that a voice — ancient and weathered beyond measure — finally drifted out from within Fuling Mountain.