Upon seeing Han Li's actions, Marquis Nanlong and the old man each discreetly tucked a medicinal bottle into their own storage pouches.
Naturally, the trio's gazes fell upon the two remaining ancient treasures. Now it was two treasures among three people — which made dividing them rather tricky.
Just as the other two were hesitating, Han Li blinked and suddenly chuckled softly.
"How about this. I'm not short on ancient treasures. If the two Fellow Daoists are carrying enough spirit stones, you're welcome to take both remaining pieces. Just pay me an equivalent amount in spirit stones," Han Li said unhurriedly.
"Fellow Daoist Han is too generous. In that case, we'll graciously accept. I did bring quite a large supply of spirit stones," the Lu-surnamed elder said with visible delight upon hearing this, agreeing at once. After all, ancient treasures were the kind of thing in the Cultivating Immortality world of Tianan that could never be bought at any price, regardless of wealth.
Marquis Nanlong himself was even more lacking in ancient treasures, so he naturally agreed to Han Li's proposal with a face full of smiles.
And so, after the two of them had scraped together just about every spirit stone they had on them, they finally gathered a sufficient quantity and handed it over to Han Li.
In this way, both sides could be considered pleased with the outcome.
Once Han Li saw Marquis Nanlong and the old man stow away the two remaining ancient treasures, he casually waved his hand with an air of nonchalance and drew the Blue Silkworm Robe — the one Marquis Nanlong had tossed aside — into his grasp. Then he tucked it away with a swagger.
When the other two saw this, they were momentarily stunned. But Han Li had just yielded two ancient treasures to them, so they could hardly quibble over such a minor matter.
The robe, though rare, had little practical use, and so they simply let Han Li take it.
After the three had finished dividing the treasures, their greed still hadn't been sated, so they also plucked the spirit grass growing beside the lava lake, each receiving several stalks.
That these spirit grasses could survive in this place meant they were no ordinary plants. They were a top-grade fire-attribute material known as Golden Sun Lingzhi, used in the refinement of fire-attribute spirit pills.
Once they had confirmed that nothing else in the vicinity warranted their attention, the three gathered before the stone platform once more to discuss their next move.
"Since we've obtained the treasures, I have no intention of remaining in the Inner Valley. I plan to follow the original route back and return directly to the Outer Valley. Fellow Daoists, why not come along?" Han Li said first, in an unhurried manner.
"Fellow Daoist Han must be joking. Elder Lu and I went through tremendous difficulty to enter the Inner Valley — we certainly won't be returning just like that. But tell me, Fellow Han, why the rush to leave the valley?" Marquis Nanlong asked with a chuckle.
"Nothing in particular. I've already gotten what I came for, so I see no reason to take further risks. The Path of Immortal Cultivation is long and stretches far ahead. I have no desire to linger in such a dangerous place," Han Li replied offhandedly.
"Heh heh! It seems Fellow Daoist Han truly knows the art of self-preservation. Pity that the two of us can't follow you. Fellow Daoist Han may leave the valley on his own first," the Lu-surnamed elder said with a thin smile.
"Leave alone? But if I take the Two-Yin-Yang Ring with me, how will the two of you deal with the Polar Aurora Light in the passage?" A peculiar expression flickered across Han Li's face as he asked slowly.
"That's something we've already taken care of. Brother Han, rest easy! That Cangkun Shangren discovered a teleportation array deep within the Inner Valley that can send us directly back to the Outer Valley. However, it's a bit of a trek to get there — slower than simply retracing our steps. Otherwise, I would have told you about it straight away," Marquis Nanlong replied with supreme confidence, without the slightest hesitation.
Han Li couldn't help but pause, but his expression quickly returned to normal as he nodded: "I see. Then I shall bid you both farewell here. I hope you two reap great rewards as well."
"Many thanks for Fellow Daoist Han's kind words!"
"I, Lu, won't see you out."
The moment Marquis Nanlong and the Lu-surnamed elder saw that Han Li was truly taking his leave, both inwardly rejoiced and spoke these words.
Han Li gave a faint smile. In the end, his gaze drifted almost imperceptibly toward the crystalline skeleton one last time before his figure transformed into a streak of cyan radiance and shot toward the exit. In the blink of an eye, he had vanished without a trace.
The elder, who had been smiling throughout, immediately wiped the grin from his face the moment Han Li's escape light departed the area. Marquis Nanlong, meanwhile, slapped his expressionless hand against the spirit beast pouch at his waist, and several small golden birds shot out from within.
They were his personally trained spirit birds — Thousand-Li Orioles.
With a sweep of his broad sleeve toward the exit, the orioles transformed into several streaks of golden light and shot into the passage, flickering once before disappearing.
Then Marquis Nanlong gently closed his eyes, seemingly sensing something.
Lu Weiying raised an eyebrow slightly at this, then simply stood nearby in silence, saying nothing.