After thinking through all these matters, Han Li heaved a faint forlorn sigh, then flicked a finger toward Zhu Guo'er.
A ball of azure light was expelled before vanishing into her body in a flash, and her eyelids fluttered before she slowly awakened.
However, as soon as she recalled how she had fallen unconscious, she immediately sat up with a dark expression.
"Did you search my soul?" she asked as she glared at Han Li.
"If I didn't search your soul, how would I have found the information I wanted? Rest assured, I only obtained the specific pieces of information that I'm interested in, and I didn't harm your soul during the process. It came as quite a surprise to me to learn that you're from the Small Spirit Sky as opposed to the Spirit Realm," Han Li said in a calm manner.
Zhu Guo'er bit down on her lower lip upon hearing mention of the Small Spirit Sky, and she didn't say anything.
"I've already planted a restriction in your body, so act as my servant for now here in Illusion Night City. If you serve me well, I can consider freeing you when I leave the city. You can go and find a room to rest in now; don't come to me unless it's an important matter. Also, you have to start referring to me as master from now on," Han Li continued in a nonchalant manner.
"Yes, Master; I'll be taking my leave now," Zhu Guo'er could only reply in a resigned voice before extending a curtsey toward Han Li, then obediently departed.
She was well aware that it would be both futile and foolish to try and resist a Body Integration Stage devilish lord.
However, judging from her dejected expression, it was clear that she wasn't very hopeful that Han Li would fulfill his promise.
Following Zhu Guo'er's departure, Han Li looked up at the ceiling and became engrossed in his own thoughts once again.
For the next three days, Han Li remained on the top level of the pavilion to meditate, and didn't go anywhere else.
However, on the fourth day, someone came to see him.
"Did the master of the Zhao Family send a messenger?" Han Li asked as he raised an eyebrow.
Zhu Guo'er replied, "Yes, Master. An elder of the Zhao Family just delivered a message, and he insisted that I relay it to you."
"Let me take a look…"
Han Li's eyes narrowed slightly as he made a grabbing motion to draw the letter into his grasp, then gently opened it.
A ball of golden light immediately erupted out of the letter before transforming into the projection of a graceful and refined middle-aged man.
The man had black scales on the corners of his eyes and a pair of golden pupils; it was none other than the master of the Zhao Family!
The projection cupped its fist in a salute toward Han Li, then relayed two things in a polite manner.
The first thing was that he had heard from Shopkeeper Huang of the Myriad Slave Tower about the arrival of Han Li, and he wished to befriend Han Li while explicitly stating that the Zhao Family wouldn't hold any grudge against him over a mere slave. The second thing was that the Zhao Family was going to hold a ceremony to worship their ancestors in a month, and he was inviting Han Li to attend as a guest.
After that, the projection extended another salute toward Han Li before fading into nothingness, leaving only the letter behind.
Han Li looked down at the letter to find that it was covered in black devilish symbols with a shimmering golden "Zhao" character at the center.
He rubbed his hands together expressionlessly, and a ball of silver flames emerged to instantly incinerate the letter into ashes.
"When the Zhao Family sends someone for a reply from me, tell them I accept their invitation," Han Li instructed.
"Yes, Master," Zhu Guo'er replied before taking her leave.
Han Li closed his eyes again to meditate, but to his surprise, he was paid another visit by Zhu Guo'er the very next day, who informed him that a woman with the Bai surname had come to visit him.
Han Li immediately guessed that this was most likely Bai Yunxin.
It seemed that the Bai Family had become aware of his status as a devilish lord, after all. Otherwise, she wouldn't be so eager to pay him this visit.
Even so, Han Li had no intention of turning away. Thus, he instructed Zhu Guo'er to take her to the hall on the first floor, and only after a while did he make his way down from the top floor in an unhurried manner.
As soon as he arrived at the hall on the first floor, he discovered that it was indeed Bai Yunxin who had come to visit him, and a smile appeared on his face as he said, "Greetings, Fairy Bai. Please forgive me for my tardiness."
Han Li released his Body Integration Stage aura without making any attempt to disguise it as he spoke.
Bai Yunxin swept her spiritual sense toward Han Li, upon which she immediately stood up from her seat before hurriedly extending a curtsey.
"I was unaware that you were a devilish lord, Senior Han; please forgive me for any offense I may have caused you!"
"You didn't know, so you're not to blame. I disguised my own aura precisely because I was worried that you would be too stiff and reserved if you had known the truth," Han Li chuckled as he motioned for Bai Yunxin to take a seat, and he also calmly made his way over to the main seat before sitting down himself.
Bai Yunxin's heart eased slightly upon hearing this, but she still didn't dare to sit down as she extended words of gratitude toward Han Li in a careful manner.
Han Li didn't force the issue any further and allowed her to remain standing as he asked, "You didn't come here just to apologize, did you, Fellow Daoist Bai?"
"Indeed, Senior; I had already informed Senior Futian of your arrival in the city, and I was sent here to extend an invitation to you on Senior Futian's behalf," Bai Yunxin replied.
"I see. In that case, I would be more than happy to meet Fellow Daoist Futian. Please lead the way, Fellow Daoist Bai," Han Li said with a nod.
Bai Yunxin was ecstatic to hear this, and she immediately gave an affirmative response.
Han Li instructed Zhu Guo'er to remain in the pavilion, while he followed Bai Yunxin out of the room.
When they arrived at the massive entrance, there was already a giant carriage being drawn by eight unicorns weighting for them.
There was a purple banner with an inky-black "Bai" character emblazoned on its surface protruding from the top of the carriage, and it was clear that this was a carriage that the Bai Family reserved for esteemed guests.
On either side of the carriage were 16 black-armored guards atop two-headed giant wolf steeds, all of which were also clad in suits of black armor.
The guards were each carrying two huge swords on their backs, and they were all at the Deity Transformation Stage.
Han Li's expression changed slightly as he glanced at these armored guards, and Bai Yunxin smiled as she introduced, "These Baleful Tiger Guards are the elite guards trained by our Bai Family. All of them have once lived along on the plains for over 100 years and have slain countless devilish beasts; what do you think, Senior Han?"
"They seem to be no less powerful than the elite guards of major cities," Han Li replied with a nod before making his way into the carriage, where he sat down and closed his eyes.
Bai Yunxin naturally didn't dare to ask any further questions, and she also got onto the carriage before issuing an instruction.
The carriage immediately set off with the 16 Baleful Tiger Guards following along close to the sides.
All of the ordinary devilish beings on the streets immediately parted for the carriage and armored guards with reverent and envious looks in their eyes.
Thus, the carriage raced along without any impediment, and after several hours, it finally drew to a halt in front of a fortress within the city.
Han Li emerged from the carriage, and a hint of surprise flashed through his eyes as he cast his gaze toward the fortress.
This was naturally where the Bai Family was situated, and not only was the entire fortress completely seamless, its walls were as smooth as jade virtually without any gaps.
On top of that, the material used for the walls was neither metallic nor jade in nature, and he couldn't identify exactly what it was even with his vast wealth of knowledge and experience.
Judging from the menacing aura being given off by the fortress, so it was clearly laden with restrictions and definitely wasn't as simple as it appeared.
Directly in front of the fortress was a giant gate that was over 1,000 feet tall, and on either of it were several tens of devilish beast statues of different sizes, creating a long path.
All of the statues were dull and black, but they were extremely life-like, and there were also eight yellow-robed devilish beings standing in front of the gate in an expressionless manner.
Under Bai Yunxin's guidance, Han Li strolled through the gate past the slightly bewildered yellow-robed devilish beings, and around 15 minutes later, Han Li was seated on a purple chair in a hall with antiquated decor, sipping from a silver teacup.
A fragrant scent was emanating out of the cup, and there were four extremely beautiful devilish female servants standing off to the side in an extremely respectful manner.
Bai Yunxin was currently nowhere to be seen, and the entire hall was completely silent.
A short while later, gentle footsteps suddenly rang out from outside the hall, and a person strode into the room in a graceful manner.
The newcomer turned to Han Li with a faint smile, and said, "I am Layman Futian; it's a pleasure to have you at our Bai Family, Fellow Daoist Han."
"You're Layman Futian?" Han Li asked in a slightly dumbstruck manner.
