Around five to six days later, the giant ark finally flew out of the plains, and a vast mountain range appeared up ahead, comprised of a series of dark green mountains that stretched as far as the eyes could see.
The giant ark flew into the mountain range, then vanished into the distance after just a few flashes.
Around a month later, a giant city that had been constructed from a yellow stone material appeared in the distance within a basin. The city spanned an area of close to 1,000 kilometers, and half of it had been constructed next to a mountain, while the other half was surrounded by city walls that were over 1,000 feet tall.
The entire city was enshrouded under a yellow light barrier, clearly indicating the presence of a profound super restriction.
Han Li stood at the front of the flying ark and appraised the city in the distance with a contemplative expression.
"This is Illusion Night City, Brother Han. It can't compare with the super cities of our holy realm, but it's quite a large city considering the secluded geographic location. There are over 10 devilish lords in the city, and our Bai Family is one of the city's four major families. Regardless of whether you want to purchase something or if you encounter some trouble, you should be able to get a favorable outcome by revealing your ties with our Bai Family," Bai Yunxin said with a smile.
"Thank you, Fairy Bai; I really was planning to purchase some things in the city," Han Li also replied with a smile.
"You're all by yourself anyway, so why don't you stay in our Bai Family's guest pavilion, Brother Han? With your cultivation base, I'm sure the seniors of our family wouldn't object," Bai Yunxin proposed.
"Have you still not given up on recruiting me to your Bai Family?" Han Li chuckled upon hearing this.
"You've already reached the pinnacle of the late-Spatial Tempering Stage, and judging from how easily you were able to slay those devilish bats, you must be extremely close to progressing to the Body Integration Stage. A vagrant cultivator of your powers would be eagerly sought after by any major power, and our Bai Family is certainly no exception," Bai Yunxin replied with a completely unabashed smile.
"Unfortunately, I'll have to turn you down again. I have no intention of submitting to any power. I'm currently facing a major bottleneck, and I need to travel for some time for a chance to become a devilish lord. As such, I won't be joining any power for the next few centuries. However, I can promise you that if I do consider joining a certain power in the future, I'll definitely prioritize your Bai Family in my consideration," Han Li replied.
"I'll hold you to your word then, Brother Han. The doors of our Bai Family will always be open to you. As for your meeting with Senior Futian, I'll get that arranged once we get back. Seeing as you saved our lives in the plains, there should be no issues arranging the meeting," Bai Yunxin sighed in a slightly forlorn manner.
All of a sudden, Han Li changed the subject in a seemingly nonchalant manner. "I heard that it would be best to have an Eight-footed Devilish Lizard steed if one were to travel through the Illusion Howl Desert; does your Bai Family own any of these devilish beasts?"
"Eight-footed Devilish Lizards? Are you planning to enter the desert, Brother Han?" Bai Yunxin was rather taken aback to hear this.
"Indeed, and walking through the desert would take far too long," Han Li replied in a calm manner.
"We do, but it's most likely not going to be possible for you to obtain one. None of the four major families in the city would be willing to sell any Eight-footed Devilish Lizards to outsiders," Bai Yunxin said with furrowed brows.
"Oh? Why is that? If the price is the issue, then I can assure you that I should be able to afford one," Han Li asked.
"You won't be able to purchase any of the devilish lizards no matter how many devil stones you offer. The rarity of these devilish beasts is one reason behind this, but most importantly, these devilish lizards form the basis of our major families, so they're extremely important to us," Bai Yunxin replied after a brief hesitation.
"What do you mean by that?" Han Li was truly perplexed now.
"The reason behind this concerns a secret that I won't be able to disclose to you without permission from the seniors of our family. If you'd like, you can ask Senior Futian about this when you meet him. If he decides to disclose this information to you, then there won't be any issues, and only the most important seniors of our family have the right to make decisions on these Eight-footed Devilish Lizards," Bai Yunxin replied in a slightly guarded manner.
"I see. It looks like I'll have to speak to Senior Futian if I want to obtain an Eight-footed Devilish Lizard then," Han Li said in a contemplative manner.
Bai Yunxin nodded in response and didn't say anything further.
At this point, the giant ark had finally reached Illusion Night City, and it descended right in front of a city wall that was several hundred feet tall.
There were some devilish beings entering and exiting the city, and all of them immediately gave the yellow ark a wide berth with awe and veneration in their eyes. It seemed that all of them recognized this giant ark.
Han Li and the devilish beings of the Bai Family emerged from the ark, and Bai Yunxin made a hand seal, upon which the giant ark shrank down into a tiny streak of yellow light that vanished into her body in a flash.
After that, all of them made their way toward the city gate in an excited manner.
Having been away from home for so long, they were naturally very glad to be back.
As for Han Li, he wore a faint smile and wasn't eye-catching in the slightest as he made his way through the crowd.
There were around a dozen armored guards standing in front of the city gate, and they immediately extended respectful bows toward Bai Yunxin's group, then stepped aside to grant them priority passage into the city.
The passersby paid no heed to this at all, clearly already accustomed to this discriminatory treatment.
Bai Yunxin gave the guards a slight nod before leading the way into the city, upon which Han Li was immediately greeted by the sight of countless earthy yellow houses that stretched for as far as the eyes could see.
There were several remarkably wide streets between these houses, far less so than in the average city.
Furthermore, there was the occasional giant structure interspersed among these buildings, such as pagodas and multi-story pavilions.
Han Li only briefly inspected his surroundings before withdrawing his gaze.
Not only was there a flight restriction in the city, there was also an extremely potent spiritual sense restriction. Even with his enormous spiritual sense, he couldn't sense anything with good clarity more than several kilometers away.
Of course, it wasn't that Han Li couldn't extend his spiritual sense further than that. However, if he were to do that, he would definitely trigger the restriction, thereby exposing his own cultivation base.
Moments later, the group from the Bai Family suddenly stopped after making their way onto a certain street.
Han Li raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask any questions.
Shortly thereafter, several carriages that were drawn by a dozen or so creatures that resembled both horses and deers arrived at the other end of the street, then quickly drew to a halt in front of Han Li and the others.
All of the carriages had a "Bai" character emblazoned on the side, and each carriage was being driven by a man in a leather robe.
The man on the first carriage jumped down before extending a respectful bow toward Bai Yunxin. "I pay my respects to the esteemed young mistress. I was sent here by Master to take you home."
Bai Yunxin nodded in response before turning to Han Li with a smile. "Brother Han, are you really not planning to visit our Bai Family? If you return to the family with us, perhaps you'll be able to meet Senior Futian today!"
"Thank you for the offer, but I plan to travel around in the city for now, so I'll pay your Bai Family a visit another day," Han Li said with a smile and he cupped his fist in a salute.
"In that case, I won't keep you any longer. This jade pendant is something that I can be identified by. With this jade pendant, you'll be able to directly come and find me in our Bai Family without being questioned," Bai Yunxin said with a slightly wistful look as she flipped her hand over to produce an azure jade badge, which she tossed toward Han Li.
Han Li caught the jade pendant before taking a look at it, upon which he discovered that there were some crimson threads interwoven into its surface, indicating that it hadn't been refined using ordinary jade.
There was an image of an ascending woman engraved onto the badge, and the woman bore a strong resemblance to Bai Yunxin.
Han Li nodded as he stowed the jade pendant away, and the group from the Bai Family departed on the beast-drawn carriages.
As for Han Li, he immediately departed toward another street and disappeared into the crowd in the blink of an eye.
Even though there weren't any Sacred Ancestors in Illusion Night City, it was naturally still quite renowned due to the presence of over 10 devilish lords, and the number of high-grade devilish beings in the city also far exceeded that of normal cities of this scale.
In contrast with Blood Crow City, this city had far more buildings of all different types. Not only were there ordinary shops such as material and ingredient shops, there were also many dojos that taught specific devilish arts, which presented quite an intriguing sight to Han Li.
These were similar to the dojos that taught different cultivation arts in the Spirit Realm, and Han Li couldn't help but wonder if these had always existed or if the devilish beings had stolen the idea from the Spirit Realm.
While passing by a tall pagoda, a hint of surprise flashed through Han Li's eyes at the sight of the plaque hanging above the door.
