Half a month later, the stone door of the secret chamber opened by itself, and Han Li emerged from within with a tranquil expression.
Silver light flashed outside the door, and the humanoid puppet, which was now completely identical to Han Li, appeared before him.
Han Li glanced at the puppet, and a smile appeared on his face. He stroked his own forehead, upon which the second Nascent Soul immediately appeared.
The Nascent Soul wore a completely blank expression as its body swayed before flying through the air as a streak of black light, disappearing into the humanoid puppet's body.
Moments later, the puppet suddenly blinked its dead eyes, and it was suddenly filled with vitality, as if it were an actual living person.
Han Li rubbed his hands together with a smile upon seeing this. "Not bad. This is exactly how I envisioned this go. Using the secret technique on the Great Development Treasure Scriptures to inject the second Nascent Soul into the humanoid puppet's body allows it to control the puppet. From now on, I won't have to worry about being unable to control the puppet due to distance constraints. As long as I don't go on excessively lengthy journeys in the future, the humanoid puppet can remain in this cave abode along with the second Nascent Soul."
"This is indeed a very creative masterstroke, Fellow Daoist Han, but aren't you worried that mishaps could occur if the second Nascent Soul develops sentient will again? In that case, it would possess a late-Nascent Soul Stage vessel in the form of this humanoid puppet. It'll be extremely difficult for you to recover the second Nascent Soul again after that," the unimpressed voice of a small child suddenly sounded from within Han Li's sleeve.
"I'm well aware of that potential risk, Fellow Daoist, which is why on this occasion, I'll be using a few restriction secret techniques that I recently mastered as a late-Nascent Soul cultivator on the second Nascent Soul, and I'll also be tinkering with the humanoid puppet a bit as well. Unless the second Nascent Soul's spiritual sense really becomes more powerful than that of my main Nascent Soul, I'll be able to completely immobilize at any time I want," Han Li replied confidently.
"Hehe, looks like you've planned things out well in advance, Fellow Daoist Han. It appears that my concerns were unwarranted," the small child chuckled.
"Regardless, I must still thank you for your kind intentions. Now then, would you like to transcend your lightning tribulation here on the interconnected peaks or go somewhere else during this process?" Han Li asked.
The small child hesitated momentarily before suggesting in a euphemistic manner, "These interconnected peaks most likely won't be a good place for tribulation transcendence. After all, even the restriction here won't be able to conceal the metamorphosis stage lightning tribulation. I have full trust in your abilities, but I think it's best to find a more secluded place."
"Alright, I'll go and see Wan'er first, then take you somewhere else." Han Li had no intention of arguing with the Endless Sky Beast on this manner.
He then exited the cave abode and traveled to the Drifting Cloud Sect to visit Nangong Wan in order to check on her cultivation progress.
A day later, Han Li left the Drifting Cloud Sect again, and flew toward the west as a streak of azure light.
Five days later, Han Li appeared above an extremely barren and desolate set of plains.
There was not a single blade of grass growing on this land, and there were only yellow soil as well as greyish-white rocks of different sizes stretching as far as the eye could see in all directions.
Han Li unleashed his spiritual sense to survey the area in a radius of tens of thousands of kilometers, upon which he discovered that there wasn't so much as a single cultivator or mortal around.
Han Li swept a sleeve through the air, and a small cauldron enshrouded in a ball of azure light shot forth from within. He then said, "How about this place? This is a vast expanse of dead land on the border between our State of Xi and the State of Huayu. There's no one around for hundreds of thousands of kilometers, so it'll be a lot safer for you to transcend your metamorphosis stage lightning tribulation here."
The small child inside the cauldron gave an elated reply, "This is indeed a good place for tribulation transcendence! Please release my true body from the cauldron and let me meditate for three days. After that, I'll be ready for the tribulation transcendence."
"No problem!" Han Li nodded before flicking a finger toward the small cauldron in the air.
A light thud rang out as the cauldron lid flew into the air of its own accord. The small cauldron then tipped itself over, and a burst of azure light swept forth, revealing a demon beast that was about half a foot in size with the head of a cow and the body of a wyrm.
Upon emerging from the azure light, the demon beast's body instantly swelled drastically to several tens of feet in size, and its entire body was shimmering with azure light.
"I'll have to trouble you to protect me for a while here, Fellow Daoist," the demon beast said in the voice of a small child. Its wyrm body then coiled up, and it descended onto a large white rock down below, where it sat in a completely stationary manner.
Han Li didn't say anything as he looked on from above. However, his body then swayed, and he also descended onto a nearby rock, where he sat with his eyes closed and his legs crossed.
Thus, the two of them sat for three days and three nights.
Just as the sun began to rise on the fourth day, both of them opened their eyes in unison.
"The magic power within my body is now in its most optimal state, so I have at least a 60%to 70% chance of being able to successfully transcend this lightning tribulation. You don't have to help me in the initial phase; if I encounter any difficulty, it should be in the later phases. If you can defend me from the final three waves of lightning strikes, I'd be extremely grateful to you," the Endless Sky Beast said with a serious expression.
"I see. I'll do as you say. I suggest you take a drop of this before you transcend your tribulation." Han Li suddenly flipped his hand over to summon a small profound ice vial that was emanating bursts of glacial Qi, and he tossed the vial to the demon beast before him.
"What's this?" The demon beast caught the vial with a slightly bewildered expression, then opened the lid on the vial and assessed its contents with its spiritual sense.
"Glacial Quintessence? I didn't think you would have something like this, Fellow Daoist," the Endless Sky Beast exclaimed with shock and elation.
"I happened to obtain some during my time in the Great Jin. Seeing as you taught me the beveled silver text, I can offer a drop of this Glacial Quintessence to you. I hope that's enough for you," Han Li said as he stroked his chin.
"Haha, it's definitely enough! Glacial Quintessence is something that's extremely rare, even in the Spirit Realm. Some would occasionally be discovered, but they would quickly be taken by my demon race brethren." The Endless Sky Beast was very excited as he turned to Han Li, and said, "Just a single drop of this is enough for me. I'll remember this and be sure to repay you handsomely for this in the future."
The demon beast's final sentence was very earnest.
Han Li smiled upon hearing this, but didn't reply. Instead, he patted the storage pouch hanging from his waist, and a stack of formation flags and formation plates abruptly appeared in his hand.
He then began setting up a relatively complex restriction formation in the surrounding area.
Around 10 minutes, Han Li's body swayed, and he returned to his original spot. Layers of white mist had appeared nearby, concealing the entire area.
Han Li turned to the demon beast, and said, "This formation should be able to prevent any unforeseen mishaps from taking place. I'll be assisting you from outside the formation, and I'll leave the initial waves of lightning tribulation to you, Fellow Daoist."
"Of course. Metamorphosis stage tribulation lightning is true heavenly lightning, so there's no way that a normal restriction in the human world would be able to keep it at bay. By the way, my lightning tribulation can perhaps benefit you as well." A thought seemed to have suddenly occurred to the demon beast, and a peculiar light flashed through its eyes.
"Your lightning tribulation can benefit me?" Han Li was quite surprised to hear this.
"Indeed. This is a little-known fact in the human world, but something that is common knowledge in the Spirit Realm." The Endless Sky Beast chuckled before its lips tremored, and it began to transmit its voice to Han Li.
Han Li listened within a hint of bewilderment on his face, which was gradually replaced by excitement.
"If that really is true, then this is indeed a rare opportunity. I just so happen to be carrying a treasure that fits this description, so I can give it a try," Han Li said with a nod.
"Haha, I wouldn't lie to you about something like this, Fellow Daoist. However, make sure you strike only when the moment is right. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, it could harm you rather than benefit you," the demon beast cautioned.
"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist, I won't act recklessly," Han Li replied with a smile.
"I can see that you're not a rash individual, Fellow Daoist Han. Now then, I'm going to draw the heavenly lightning to me and prepare to transcend my tribulation. If it weren't for the fact that I'm proficient in some concealment secret techniques, the lightning tribulation would've descended from the moment that I emerged from the cauldron." The Endless Sky Beast heaved a faint sigh before slowly hovering up into the air.
Han Li's heart stirred upon hearing this, and he immediately flew out of the formation he had just set up as a streak of azure light.
Blue light then flashed within his eyes as he stared intently at the demon beast through the layers of dense white mist.
After rising to an altitude of over 300 feet, the demon beast stopped and looked up into the sky. All of a sudden, a dull sound rang out from its nostrils, and azure light began to flash violently all over its body. At the same time, gusts of grey demonic winds were swept up around it, concealing its body within.
Han Li's expression changed slightly upon seeing this.
An earth-shattering roar then erupted from within the gusts of demonic wings, and a burst of powerful demonic Qi erupted into the heavens. The Endless Sky Beast seemed to have unleashed some type of secret technique that had made its body swell drastically to several times its original size.
It was putting its demonic Qi as an eighth grade demon beast on full display.
Within the span of a breath, a clap of thunder suddenly exploded in the cloudless sky. Immediately thereafter, gale-force winds were swept up in a radius of thousands of kilometers as dark clouds appeared from thin air, giving the sky an extremely dark and sinister appearance. At the same time, rain began to pelt down amid the rumbling thunderclaps.
Han Li couldn't help but click his tongue in wonder upon seeing this.
As far as he was aware, this barren land was known as the dead land as it had always been an extremely dry place. It was often the case that this land would experience no rainfall for stretches of several decades. However, as soon a the Endless Sky Beast had unleashed its demonic Qi, the climate here had been completely transformed. It appeared that its metamorphosis stage lightning tribulation really wasn't something to be scoffed at.
The dark clouds in the air before tumble and surged drastically as arcs of lightning as thick as human arms surfaced within the dark clouds. Each and every flash of lightning was followed by an astonishing clap of thunder. A series of massive lightning nets gradually took shape.
Han Li pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes as he looked on from below.
Right at this moment, the demon beast within the formation let loose an almighty roar.
As a result, the grey demonic winds became several times more powerful, transforming into a greyish-white hurricane that rose straight up into the sky, as if it were threatening to plunge into the dark clouds and eradicate the lightning within.
