The young man was naturally none other than Han Li, who had finally arrived back at Deep Heaven City after traveling for close to half a year.
At this moment, a man and two women also emerged from the cabin of the ark; they were Silvermoon, Daoist Xie, and Zhu Guo'er.
A hint of surprise also flashed through Silvermoon's eyes at the sight of the elders on the city wall.
Elder Gu finally returned to his senses, and even though he was feeling very apprehensive internally, he still put on a smile and returned Han Li's salute. "It's fantastic news for our city that you've returned, Brother Han, but we were actually unaware of your return and are waiting for someone else. Otherwise, we definitely would've been better prepared to welcome you."
He swept his spiritual sense toward Han Li as he spoke, only to discover that he was completely unable to ascertain Han Li's cultivation base; all he could sense was that Han Li's aura had become even more unfathomable, and his heart immediately jolted upon sensing this.
Even though he didn't know the outcome of Han Li's breakthrough attempt, it was clear that he had become significantly more powerful nonetheless.
All of the other elders also attempted to detect Han Li's cultivation base, but with their spiritual sense, there was obviously no way they would be able to glean anything unless Han Li explicitly released his Grand Ascension Stage spiritual pressure.
Thus, everyone was left feeling quite uneasy, and the smiles they put on were rather forced.
Han Li could see how unnatural everyone's expressions were, and his heart stirred slightly, but his own expression remained unchanged as he said, "I see. It must be quite an important guest for all of you to be gathered here in welcome. Could it be one of Senior Mo Jianli or Senior Ao Xiao?"
"I'm afraid not; it's been a while since we've lost contact with those two seniors," Elder Gu said in a slightly hesitant voice as his smile faded slightly.
Even with his wealth of experience, he was unsure of whether he should disclose the matter about the holy island envoys.
Fortunately for him, there was no need for him to mull over this issue any longer as right at this moment, a vast expanse of five-colored light came surging forth from the distance.
It appeared to be moving quite slowly, but it arrived above the city in just a few flashes, revealing a pristine white giant ark that was around five times larger than Han Li's jade ark.
Han Li faltered slightly upon seeing this, then cast his gaze toward the giant ark to find that there were around a dozen people standing on it, and the trio at the forefront possessed auras far superior to those of the people behind them.
The trio was comprised of a yellow-haired and green-eyed man who appeared to be in his thirties, a graceful and refined white-robed young man, and a hideous dark-skinned woman.
Han Li swept his spiritual sense over the trio and immediately detected that the yellow-haired man and dark-skinned woman were both at the mid-Body Integration Stage, while the white-robed young man was at the pinnacle of the late-Body Integration Stage, seemingly ready to commence a Grand Ascension Stage breakthrough at any moment.
However, what drew Han Li's attention the most was the massive "holy" character engraved upon the surface of the giant white ark.
Han Li instantly recognized this to be the symbol of the holy island, and it became clear to him why so many elders of the city had gathered to welcome these guests.
However, it was quite an uncommon occurrence for the holy island to send envoys to Deep Heaven City, and the expressions that the elders of the city had displayed earlier were quite suspicious.
Could it be that the arrival of these holy island envoys had something to do with him?
Within mere moments, Han Li had roughly deduced the nature of the situation.
However, he displayed no reaction to this, and merely looked on in silence.
At the sight of the holy island envoys' arrival, all of the elders present exchanged a wry smile.
They didn't need to ponder what they had to tell Han Li anymore; both sides had arrived at the city at the same time.
However, what was quite alarming to Elder Gu was that aside from the white-robed young man, the other two envoys were also very powerful, and were quite renowned even on the holy island.
As for the white-robed young man himself, this was the first time they had met him, but they were all struck by a sense of powerlessness in his presence, and that made Elder Gu even more uneasy.
Just as Elder Gu was mulling over the situation, Elder Yan suddenly transmitted his voice to him. "I think this is a good thing, Brother Gu. We'll get Fellow Daoist Han to communicate with the holy island envoys in person, and even if they end up taking his disciple in the end, he won't be able to blame us."
Elder Gu's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and he stole a glance at Han Li to find that Han Li was currently appraising him with a hint of a smile on his face.
His heart immediately jolted at the sight of this, and he merely nodded in a seemingly casual manner instead of transmitting his voice in response.
At this moment, Buddhist Monk Jin Yue extended a salute toward the three Body Integration cultivators on the giant ark, and said, "Greetings, envoys of the holy island; my name is Jin Yue."
"Ah, so you're the vastly renowned Buddhist Monk Jin Yue. I am Du Yu, and it's an honor for me to make your acquaintance," the white-robed young man said with a smile.
The other envoys remained silent, and it was clear that the white-robed young man was their leader.
Elder Gu's expression changed drastically upon hearing this. "Du Yu? Are you the fellow daoist who's planning to attempt a Grand Ascension Stage breakthrough on the holy island?"
Buddhist Monk Jin Yue was also quite surprised to hear this.
"You must be Fellow Daoist Gu, right? I have only recently emerged from seclusion on the holy island, and I do indeed plan to attempt a breakthrough soon. However, I'll require your city's cooperation for this objective," Du Yu said in a modest manner.
Elder Gu's lips lips twitched slightly upon hearing this, and he took another quick glance at Han Li as countless thoughts flashed rapidly through his mind.
"Our city will be sure to cooperate with the holy island to the best of its abilities, but this is not a good place to talk; let's return to the city first. After you, Brother Han, Fellow Daoist Du."
"Brother Han? Could it be that this fellow daoist is…" Du Yu's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and he immediately cast his gaze toward Han Li.
Du Yu had already noticed Han Li, and he could sense an extremely unsettling hint of pressure emanating from Han Li's body. On top of that, his inability to glean Han Li's cultivation base with his spiritual sense further exacerbated his uneasiness, and even though he had always held himself in high regard, he was still rather intimidated in Han Li's presence.
He had heard all of the rumors surrounding Han Li as soon as he had come out of seclusion, and after learning that Han Li's disciple could help him nullify some of the power of his true lightning tribulation, he conducted even more research into Han Li.
As a result, he learned about how Han Li had managed to progress from the Deity Transformation Stage to the late-Body Integration Stage in less than 2,000 years, as well as all of the miraculous victories that he had scored against all types of formidable enemies.
There were even rumors that not only had Han Li killed an astonishing number of devilish lords during the devilish tribulation, he seemed to have ventured deep into the Elder Devil Realm and returned safely not long ago.
If all of this were true, then Han Li was simply far too fearsome to fathom.
Du Yu had always thought that his aptitude was inferior to no one in the history of the human race, but he had to concede that there was no way he could match Han Li's extraordinary feats.
However, it was rumored that Han Li had left Deep Heaven City to prepare for a Grand Ascension Stage breakthrough, so why was he suddenly back? Could it be that he had received some news that his disciple was being targeted?
If that were the case, then the situation could become very troublesome.
Despite the shock and wariness in Du Yu's heart, he still cupped his fist toward Han Li in a polite salute.
"I've heard much about your exploits, Brother Han. Seeing as you're here as well, we'll have to discuss my objective for coming here."
"You wish to discuss your objective with me? It looks like there really is something going on. Brother Gu hasn't had a chance to disclose the situation to me yet, so I'll be hearing it firsthand from you, Fellow Daoist Du," Han Li replied as his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Of course, let's enter the city now," Buddhist Monk Jin Yue said in a slightly awkward manner.
……
Shortly thereafter, the elders, Han Li, and the holy island envoys arrived in a hall on the top floor of a massive stone pagoda, then each took a seat.
A group of female servants immediately flocked into the room at Elder Gu's behest, carrying cups of spirit tea, as well as platters of spirit fruits and spirit wine that they placed down onto everyone's tables.
Han Li took a customary sip of spirit tea before setting the teacup down, then asked, "Can you tell me why the holy island has sent envoys to our city now, Bother Gu? Could it be that this has something to do with me?"
