"The Essence Replenishment Pill can help you recover some of your energy, but if you want to fully recover, you'll have to rest some more. Before that, tell me how you fell victim to a Blood Curse Insect; those things are extremely rare on our Tian Yuan Continent," Han Li said with an intrigued expression.
"Seeing as you're aware of the existence of Blood Curse Insects, I'm sure you're also aware that they're not found on our Tian Yuan Continent. I fell prey to this Blood Curse Insect on the Blood Sky Continent, and if it weren't for the special nature of my body, I most likely wouldn't have been able to return alive to our Xu Family," the blood soul sighed.
"So you really did go to the Blood Sky Continent. According to Fellow Daoist Xu Jiao, didn't you intend to go to the Thunder Continent? Why have you gone to the Blood Sky Continent instead?" Han Li asked.
"I did indeed go to the Thunder Continent first, but after recovering a part of my memories, I discovered that I had to pay the Blood Sky Continent a visit as well, and that was something I didn't foresee," the blood soul replied with a wry smile.
"I see. According to my knowledge, Blood Curse Insects are extremely rare even on the Blood Sky Continent, and not just any cultivator can come into possession of them; it looks like you must've run into quite a bit of trouble on the Blood Sky Continent," Han Li said with a meaningful expression.
"That's an understatement; I've made myself several powerful enemies on the Blood Sky Continent, and if I were to return to the continent on my own, there's a very good chance that it'll be my final resting place," the blood soul sighed.
"Oh? It sounds like you plan to go back to the Blood Sky Continent again," Han Li remarked as his brows furrowed slightly.
"Unfortunately, that is a trip that I must make. My newfound memories tell me that Ice Soul vanished on the Blood Sky Continent, and I've already gathered some leads, but if I want to find my true body, then another trip to the Blood Sky Continent will be nothing short of mandatory," the blood soul said in a resigned manner.
"So Fellow Daoist Ice Soul disappeared on the Blood Sky Continent; it's no wonder that the Xu Family was unable to track down any leads. Having said that, this still doesn't explain why you decided to offer the Heavenvoid Cauldron to me," Han Li said with an inquisitive expression.
A peculiar look flashed through the blood soul's eyes upon hearing this, and she suddenly turned to the other members of the Xu Family present before instructing, "You can all go now; I have something very important to discuss in private with Senior Han, and I'll call for you if I need anything."
Xu Jiao and the others didn't dare to oppose her wishes, and he replied, "Yes, Senior; we'll be waiting outside."
"Senior Han, may I ask these fellow daoists to give us some privacy as well?" the blood soul asked as she cast a hesitant gaze toward Silvermoon and the others.
"It looks like Fellow Daoist Blood Soul really does have something very important to discuss with me, so I'll have to ask you to leave for now as well, Silvermoon," Han Li instructed in a calm manner.
Silvermoon and the others naturally had no objections to this, and they also departed along with the expressionless Daoist Xie.
Thus, Han Li and the blood soul were the only two people left in the room.
"Alright, you can go ahead and tell me what you want to say now," Han Li prompted with a hint of a smile on his face.
"Forgive me, Senior Han, but what I'm about to tell you next concerns very sensitive information. Would you like to know the true purpose of the Heavenvoid Cauldron? I'm planning to use it to make an exchange with you, Senior Han," the blood soul said with a serious expression.
"An exchange?" A hint of intrigue appeared on Han Li's face upon hearing this.
"That's right, I can assure you that learning this secret will benefit you immensely, Senior Han," the blood soul said.
"If this secret really is as useful as you proclaim, then I certainly wouldn't be opposed to an exchange, but you'll have to convince me first, Fellow Daoist Blood Soul," Han Li replied.
"I knew you'd be interested in this, Senior Han. Regarding the true origins of the Heavenvoid Cauldron, I'll have to go back to an opportunity I encountered in the human world. The cauldron is actually a treasure that I created while trying to replicate a treasure recorded on a page of the Golden Jade Tome, and its true purpose is not for battle. Instead, it's to be used as a key…" Thus, the blood soul began her story, and initially, Han Li listened with a faint smile, but his expression then gradually became more serious, and at the end, even a hint of astonishment had crept into his eyes.
Around half a day later, Han Li departed from the Xu Family and traveled toward the center of the human territory on a giant white ark.
"You spoke with Fellow Daoist Blood Soul for quite a long time, Brother Han; what did she discuss with you?" Silvermoon asked.
"Not much, we simply made an agreement," Han Li replied with a smile.
"An agreement?" A contemplative look appeared in Silvermoon's eyes.
"You can call it an exchange as well," Han Li added in a nonchalant manner.
Silvermoon merely smiled and didn't raise any further questions.
Li Rong was also very intrigued, but she knew that she couldn't compare with Silvermoon, so she made the wise decision to remain silent.
In contrast, Zhu Guo'er didn't think much of the matter, and asked, "Senior Han, where are we going next?"
"We'll be going to the holy island next. Fellow Daoist Li, I'll be counting on you to lead the way," Han Li said.
"Rest assured, Senior; I'll be sure to get us to the holy island as soon as possible," Li Rong hurriedly said in an elated manner.
Han Li nodded in response, and all of the sudden, the giant ark they were situated on accelerated by about twofold, almost instantly vanishing into the distance as a long streak of light.
……
Two months later.
In an extremely secluded mountain range on the border of the human and demon territories, there was a vast sea of mist that stretched as far as the eyes could see, and encompassed close to a third of the entire mountain range.
However, once one traveled close to 10,000 kilometers into the sea of mist, they would discover an island hovering several thousand feet in the air with hundreds of massive meteorite-like rocks slowly orbiting around it. Each giant rock was several acres in size, and there was a series of buildings situated on each rock alongside groups of armored warriors.
There were also some flying boats and carriages that occasionally entered and exited the giant island, patrolling the surrounding area.
A series of light barriers could be seen in the air around the island, spreading over virtually the entire sky.
This was none other than the revered holy island, and its defenses were truly quite formidable.
Within a hall at the center of the island, there were around a dozen Body Integration Stage elders in attires of different colors seated on two rows of chairs, and all of them wore anxious and uneasy expressions.
"Fairy Li should be here soon, right?" a clean-shaven man asked.
"Don't be so agitated, Fellow Daoist Xun; Fairy Rong has informed us in advance that she would arrive today, so she's definitely coming," an elderly man replied.
"I'm naturally aware of that, but it's already past noon now; I'm just concerned that they may have had an accident," the clean-shaven man sighed.
"Hehe, what could possibly go wrong with Senior Han accompanying them?" a woman in a white coat chuckled.
"Indeed, the powers displayed by Senior Han during his ceremony most likely place him above even Senior Mo and Senior Ao Xiao in terms of power. If it weren't for that, we wouldn't have waited here for him for so long," the elderly man said with a wry smile.
"Having said that, rumors are still just rumors; none of us have ever seen Senior Han in action in person. If he really is powerful enough to severely wound the Black Owl Monarch of the Yaksha Race with ease, then that would be quite extraordinary," the clean-shaven man said with a hesitant expression.
"Even if the rumors are slightly exaggerated, it's definitely true that Senior Han is far more powerful than the average new Grand Ascension Stage being. On top of that, both Senior Mo and Senior Ao Xiao have disappeared in the Elder Devil Realm, and Senior Han is the only one we can count on to save them. Regardless of how we look at it, it's imperative for us to assist Senior Han with all our power," the elderly man said without any hesitation.
"That is indeed true, but we've already severely offended him by trying to take his disciple; Senior Han isn't going to exact revenge on our holy island, is he?" the clean-shaven man sighed with a wry smile.
Several of the other elders' expressions changed slightly upon hearing this.
"Rest assured, Senior Han was able to progress to the Grand Ascension Stage, so he's definitely not a petty individual. On top of that, we were only doing what was best for our two races, so I'm sure Senior Han wouldn't blame us for that," the elderly man said in a nonchalant manner.
The other elders' expressions eased slightly upon hearing this.
Just as the elderly man was about to say something else, a pleasant voice suddenly rang out from outside. "Looks like everyone's all here. In that case, I won't have to inform all of you of my arrival one by one."
As soon as this voice trailed off, three women strode into the hall.
They were none other than Li Rong, Silvermoon, and Zhu Guo'er, and Li Rong was the one who had just spoken.
However, Han Li and Daoist Xie were nowhere to be seen.
"Ah, Fairy Li, Fellow Daoist Ling Long, has Senior Han already arrived?" the elderly man immediately asked as he rose to his feet.
"Senior Han has indeed already arrived at our holy island, but he's gone somewhere else first. Rest assured, he'll be joining us soon," Li Rong replied with a smile.
