The door to Han Li's secret chamber had not opened for several full months, while Silver Moon kept constant vigil over the situation outside the cave dwelling, lest Han Li miss the timing to enter Demonfall Valley.
As the miasma in the mountain range grew thinner by the day, the number of cultivators near the Wanling Mountains surged dramatically. Most of them gathered in the area facing Yehua City, since entering the mountains from that direction shaved more than half the journey to Demonfall Valley compared to other approaches.
Cultivators from every sect and clan who had obtained a Demonfall Token arrived one after another. Many, like Han Li, had established temporary cave dwellings nearby and settled in for the time being.
The formation Han Li had set up outside his cave dwelling was no top-grade restriction. Quite a few cultivators of deep cultivation had discovered his dwelling. Some even came by, wishing to pay a visit.
However, no matter what kind of voice transmission talisman they threw into the outer restrictions, there was no response whatsoever from within the cave.
These cultivators understood that the owner of the dwelling had no intention of receiving outside guests.
While some were quite displeased, without knowing who the owner was, they would not rashly barge in, lest they make a powerful enemy for nothing.
But a situation like Han Li's—completely refusing all visitors—was clearly an exception.
Regardless of how arrogant or proud the cultivators arriving here had been before, under the fearsome reputation of the most dangerous place in the Tian'nan region, every one of them became exceedingly cautious. And before entering Demonfall Valley, most had already begun forming alliances—gathering in groups of three or five, or building broad networks with friends and kin, forming numerous factions of varying sizes.
It was said that greater numbers didn't necessarily confer an advantage in treasure hunting, but when facing danger, the chance of survival was indeed far greater than going it alone.
With this in mind, even cultivators who had always preferred to walk alone began making a great show of befriending others during this period.
Just then, as the miasma in the mountains continued to dwindle, Silver Moon—who had been watching over the cave dwelling—was pondering whether she should call Han Li out of his secret chamber when the chamber door finally opened.
Han Li walked out at an unhurried pace.
After several months of secluded refinement, Han Li had successfully crafted over thirty puppets—roughly half in turtle form and half in tiger-demon form. Fortunately, he had collected a vast number of high-grade beast spirits during his time in the Chaotic Star Sea, which was why the process had gone so smoothly. Otherwise, even with all the materials prepared, such powerful beast spirits would have been impossible to find.
In the end, even the Grand Elder Spirit—who had been wholeheartedly researching puppet techniques in the "Heavenly Blessed Cave"—couldn't help but let out a surprised cry of "Little Monster" upon seeing Han Li produce one high-grade beast spirit after another, before falling silent once more.
The remaining materials could still produce a few more puppets, but Han Li estimated that time was running short. Crafting three or four more wouldn't make much difference, so he emerged from the chamber.
Silver Moon reported to Han Li a number of things that had occurred near the cave dwelling during the puppet-refining period.
Han Li listened carefully but merely nodded with a faint, noncommittal expression and said nothing further.
He then went to another secret chamber to examine the Heavenly Demon Sha Corpse.
Everything about the demonic corpse was in order. Han Li stored it away with satisfaction, then tucked Silver Moon's fox form into his sleeve as well before leaving the cave dwelling.
Han Li did not immediately fly off. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the hilltop where his dwelling was located and released his spiritual sense once more, slowly scanning the various gathering spots of cultivators and temporary cave dwellings in the vicinity.
With the formidable power of Han Li's spiritual sense, even an early-stage Nascent Soul old monster would fail to detect his probing if not paying close attention.
As a result, apart from a few individuals with exceptionally powerful auras and some locations protected by restrictions, everything within a hundred-li radius was immediately under Han Li's control.
But after a moment, Han Li opened his eyes and shook his head with a slight frown.
He had not found the person he was looking for. After a brief moment's thought, spiritual light flashed around his body, and he transformed into a streak of azure light, heading toward the nearby market.
Given the current situation, he should find something useful there.
……
The market nearest to Han Li's cave dwelling in the Wanling Mountains was established and operated by a powerful cultivation family from the Eastern Yu Kingdom. This clan had been in the business for a very long time, so even upon hearing news that treasure could be found in Demonfall Valley, they carried on as before, seemingly indifferent to it all.
As a result, with the influx of high-grade cultivators to the Wanling Mountains, business had become extraordinarily prosperous. Some ordinary cultivators with no intention of entering Demonfall Valley had also taken advantage of the thinning miasma and already made gains along the mountain range's outer edges.
At this moment, in a modest medicinal herb shop within the market, a pair of male and female cultivators dressed in white were pointing at a particular spirit herb, discussing something with the shopkeeper.
After a short while, the two sides seemed to reach a deal. The male and female cultivators pooled together a pile of spirit stones, and with pleased expressions on their faces, they left the herb shop with the spirit herb in hand.
"Junior Sister Yuan, we really lucked out this time. We barely arrived at this market and already managed to buy this 'Golden Spirit Seed.' You've been searching for that spirit herb for so long. Now we can finally begin refining that batch of 'Breath Transformation Pill.'" The young man was a refined-looking youth, and as he walked along the only street in the market, he spoke to his female companion with a broad smile.