A chill immediately ran down the spine of Han Li's Nascent Soul upon seeing this, and it felt as if it were a mortal in the presence of a fearsome beast.
The Nascent Soul immediately made a hand seal while letting loose a low cry, and the space within a radius of around half a kilometer tremored before everything suddenly became extremely sluggish as if the air had congealed.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Nascent Soul vanished on the spot, then appeared several kilometers away amid a burst of spatial fluctuations before casting a wary gaze toward the gargantuan creature.
From a distance, Han Li was finally able to see the true appearance of the massive creature, and he discovered it to be a mountainous menacing head!
The head had a pair of purple eyes and a huge golden horn. It was covered in faint silver scales, and had four extremely long feelers extending from it.
"It's a true dragon!" Han Li exclaimed.
In the next instant, the giant dragon's head whipped through the air, and the congealed space instantly returned to normal.
The dragon's head was still appraising Han Li intently, and it suddenly said in a rumbling voice, "So you're a new Grand Ascension Stage fellow daoist; it looks like this is your first time going on a spiritual journey, right?"
"This is indeed my first time on a spiritual journey. Are you a true dragon? Why have you appeared here?" the Nascent Soul asked in a cautious manner.
"Hehe, your Nascent Soul is far more consolidated than even most veteran Grand Ascension Stage beings, yet there are still wisps of the world's origin Qi escaping from it, clearly indicating that it's only recently reached completion. As for myself, I am indeed a true dragon, namely a Clear Purple Dragon. I encountered a powerful foe not long ago, so I had no choice but to hide here for some time," the giant dragon's head chuckled in a truthful manner.
Immediately thereafter, a gargantuan body the size of a mountain range forced its way out of the space behind the massive dragon's head.
Sure enough, it was a colossal dragon covered in shimmering silver scales, but its body was riddled with wounds and missing large patches of scales, clearly looking very much worse for wear.
Han Li faltered slightly upon seeing this, and he was forced to avert his gaze as scintillating light radiated from the scales of the silver dragon.
All of a sudden, the gargantuan creature disappeared, and in its place stood a young man who appeared to be around 16 years of age, appraising Han Li with a faint smile.
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist; my name is Fan Paozi. May I know your name? I am an acquaintance of Fellow Daoist Mo of your human race."
"Ah, so you're acquainted with Brother Mo. I am Han Li, and I've heard much about the vastly renowned Clear Purple Dragon. The enemy that you were referring to must be quite an extraordinary being as well to have inflicted these wounds upon you," Han Li's Nascent Soul replied.
"Normally, I would've stayed far away from that Seven-headed Owl, but unfortunately, I came here for an extremely important item that I couldn't give up on, so I had no choice but to face it in battle. As a result, I sustained some rather severe injuries and lost some of my true scales, but I also managed to smash two of its seven heads," the silver-robed young man said in a nonchalant manner.
Han Li's heart jolted slightly upon hearing this. "I see, so you were battling a Seven-headed Owl. That's one of the rare true spirits known for its intense bloodlust, so it's quite extraordinary that you were able to defeat it, Brother Fan."
"I didn't exactly defeat it; it was just a lose-lose battle. The Seven-headed Owl was extremely ferocious, but wasn't very intelligent, so I was able to obtain the item I came for using a little trick. If it hadn't been unavoidable, there's no way I would've engaged such a bloodthirsty creature in battle," Fan Paozi said in a smug manner.
"Then I'll have to congratulate you on obtaining your new treasure," Han Li's Nascent Soul said as it cupped its fist in a salute.
"Thank you, Brother Han. By the way, the Seven-headed Owl is still dwelling in a nearby realm; how about we join forces to kill it once and for all? Judging from how powerful your Nascent Soul is, you must be far more formidable than the average Grand Ascension Stage being. If we combine our powers, there's a very good chance we'll succeed. If we do manage to kill it, I'll give you the inner core and consume its flesh and blood to help myself recover; what do you think?" Fan Paozi proposed.
"Surely you jest, Brother Fan; a rookie Grand Ascension Stage being like me is far from ready to face such a fearsome true spirit," Han Li's Nascent Soul immediately refused with a shake of its head.
A forlorn look appeared on Fan Paozi's face upon hearing this. "Oh? So you're not interested? That's quite a pity; this is a very rare opportunity. The inner core of the Seven-headed Owl is an extremely prized item; you can absorb the baleful Qi within it to cultivate powerful abilities or use it as a material to refine a formidable treasure; are you really not going to reconsider? Even if you don't have any use for the inner core, there will be many people keen to exchange valuable treasures for it. If you miss this brilliant opportunity, who knows when another one will come around?"
"I wouldn't dare to irk such a formidable true spirit capable of wiping out entire nations and races. Please don't insist on this any further, Fellow Daoist Fan; I'm not conceited enough to think that I stand a chance here. If you really want to avenge yourself, then perhaps you can recruit another fellow daoist to accompany you," Han Li refused again in a euphemistic manner.
"In that case, then I won't mention this matter any further. I do have some good friends that are no less powerful than myself, but none of them are in any of the nearby realms, so it won't be easy for me to track them down. As for other ordinary Grand Ascension Stage beings, they most likely wouldn't stand much of a chance anyway. So be it, I don't want to face it again on my own, so I'll go somewhere else to rest and recuperate before returning to my own realm." Judging from the tone of Fan Paozi's voice, he had identified Han Li's true power and was regarding him as different from normal Grand Ascension Stage beings.
One had to realize that even though true spirits were technically supposed to be beings of the same caliber as Grand Ascension cultivators, even the most ordinary of true spirits could contend with several Grand Ascension Stage beings at once.
On top of that, some of the most powerful true spirits even possessed powers comparable or superior to some true immortals.
"Are you planning to leave right away, Fellow Daoist Fan?" Han Li asked as his expression changed slightly.
"Hehe, I was recovering from my injuries in the nearby spatial rift, but now that you're aware of my presence, are you content to allow me to remain in the territory of your human race? Are you not concerned that the Seven-headed Owl will pursue me to this place and bring disaster to your race?" Fan Paozi chuckled.
An awkward look appeared on Han Li's face upon hearing this, but his expression then quickly returned to normal as he cupped his fist in a salute. "If that Seven-headed Owl really does come here, then our human race will be in great peril, so I won't keep you any longer."
Fan Paozi smiled, and replied, "Even though this is only our first meeting, I feel like we have a great deal of affinity with one another, so I have a gift for you here."
Immediately thereafter, he suddenly opened his mouth to release a ball of silver light that flew directly toward Han Li.
Han Li faltered slightly upon seeing this, then made a grabbing motion to draw a flat disc into his own grasp.
He looked down at the object to find that it was a shimmering silver scale, and his heart stirred slightly as he asked, "What is this, Fellow Daoist Fan?"
"Grand Elder Jin Long of our True Dragon Race will be holding a Dao Fruit Convention on our True Dragon Island in a few centuries, and all true spirits, as well as some select Grand Ascension Stage beings, will be eligible to attend the convention. There are some true dragons such as myself who have the right to extend invitations to several people, and that scale acts as the invitation letter to the event. Shortly before the convention is held, the exact time and location will be displayed on the scale, and you can attend if you have the time to do so," Fan Paozi explained with a smile.
Han Li's Nascent Soul swept its spiritual sense over the scale, and after ascertaining that there were no issues with it, the Nascent Soul replied, "The Dao Fruit Convention, eh? Thank you for your kind invitation, Brother Fan."
Immediately thereafter, the silver scale vanished as a ball of silver light from Han Li's grasp.
A hint of amusement flashed through Fan Paozi's eyes at the sight of how carefully Han Li was treating the scale, and he continued, "I hope to see you again on True Dragon Island. By the way, even though you're a Grand Ascension Stage being and can release your Nascent Soul out of your body, it would be best not to display this ability in front of some powerful beings unless it's absolutely unavoidable. According to my knowledge, many true spirits view Grand Ascension Stage Nascent Souls as delicacies, and to them, the more consolidated a Nascent Soul is, the more delicious they'll be, haha…"
After that, Fan Paozi burst into laughter and reverted back to his giant true dragon form amid a flash of silver light, then disappeared into thin air with another flash of silver radiance.
