"No wonder a spirit spring was placed here — it was to nourish this tree. I want the ten-thousand-year spirit milk, but I'm equally curious about this Soul-Nurturing Wood." Han Li looked at Yuan Yao and said unhurriedly.
The moment these words left his lips, Yuan Yao's expression turned icy cold.
"Relax. After so many years of nourishment, this tree must have grown quite large. I only need a small section of the root — I won't compete with Miss Yuan for the most important trunk." Seeing her expression, Han Li smiled faintly and said.
"Only the root?" Yuan Yao was first taken aback, then her expression softened, though a trace of suspicion still flickered in her beautiful eyes.
"Of course, as compensation. I still expect to receive the ten-thousand-year spirit milk that Miss Yuan promised earlier." Han Li's face turned serious again as he spoke.
"Hehe! Fellow Daoist Han is quite the schemer. I'm sure plenty of sects would pay good money for the roots of Soul-Nurturing Wood, Brother Han. But alright, I agree." Yuan Yao's eyes glinted with understanding, and believing she had guessed his intentions, she burst into a fit of delicate laughter.
However, this seemed to put her more at ease.
Han Li smiled faintly and didn't explain anything further.
"All right then, let's break the formation. I'll first share some of my insights with you." Yuan Yao immediately said with a bright smile, looking even more eager than Han Li.
"Wait a moment. This spirit spring — don't you want to take it, Miss Yuan?" Han Li pointed at the pool with an ambiguous half-smile.
"Brother Han must be joking. This spirit spring has long been connected to the entire inner hall through profound restrictions by the master of the Void Heaven Hall. If I had such power, I would have gone to take the Void Heaven Cauldron directly. Why would I be stuck here?" Yuan Yao said with a pout.
Hearing this, a hint of disappointment crossed Han Li's face. But then, on second thought, he couldn't help but laugh at himself.
He was becoming too greedy — the moment he saw a treasure, his first instinct was to claim it for himself.
This wasn't a good omen. He didn't want to end up like those who die for wealth or birds that perish for food.
With that thought, Han Li silently warned himself to be more careful, then dropped the matter and instead said in a low voice: "Fellow Daoist Yuan, give me the spirit milk first, then explain the formation to me. If we work together, we should be able to break this formation within two or three days."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao gave Han Li a stunningly beautiful smile, her radiance captivating and her charm overwhelming!
...
Two days later, a flash of white light appeared on the sea surface several dozen li from the Void Heaven Hall.
Then, enveloped in the glow, the figures of a man and a woman materialized out of thin air.
The man had an ordinary appearance — aside from a pair of unusually clear eyes, there was nothing remarkable about him. The woman was tall and slender, gorgeous and alluring, with a hint of infinite charm lurking behind her bright, flowing gaze.
The moment the pair appeared on the sea surface, they surveyed their surroundings with extreme wariness. Only when they confirmed no other cultivators were nearby did they both let out a sigh of relief.
They were none other than Han Li and Yuan Yao, who had been teleported out after breaking the formation in the secret chamber.
"It seems the others are still trapped inside the Void Heaven Hall. They won't be able to leave until the time comes." Yuan Yao glanced toward the direction of the Void Heaven Cauldron, a strange light flickering in her beautiful eyes.
"Those Nascent Soul old monsters — might they have been teleported out after claiming their treasures, just like us?" Han Li was not so easily reassured. He furrowed his brow as he spoke.
"Don't worry. The location where you're teleported after claiming a treasure is random. You could end up right near the Void Heaven Hall, or hundreds of li away. No one could possibly monitor such a vast area all at once." Yuan Yao casually brushed a strand of hair aside and said lightly.
"Good!" Han Li nodded, feeling reassured.
"What's wrong? Could it be that Brother Han has offended those old monsters? If so, Fellow Daoist Han had better be careful." Yuan Yao's beautiful eyes shimmered with a probing light as she asked with a hint of testing in her tone.
"There's no need for Fellow Daoist Yuan to worry about that. I have urgent matters to attend to, so I'll be going first." Han Li's expression was neutral as he cupped his fists toward Yuan Yao. Then, without waiting for her response, he turned into a streak of azure light and flew off without the slightest hint of reluctance.
Yuan Yao watched Han Li's departing light, a peculiar expression appearing on her face.
After a long moment, she lightly shook her head. A flash of black light appeared in her hand, and a section of strange wood about a foot long materialized in her grasp.
The wood was charred black and rough on the outside, pitted with holes — truly extraordinarily ugly.