As soon as the page was released, it began to buzz and tremor incessantly within his grasp, as if it were trying to fly away with all its might.
A faint smile appeared on Han Li's face, and he merely rubbed his hands together, upon which the buzzing immediately subsided.
He then held the page between two of his fingers before rustling it in a casual-looking manner.
Countless golden runes immediately surged out of the page in a frenzy, quickly forming a passage of text before him.
Han Li's eyes narrowed slightly as he began to carefully inspect the passage.
"Organ Refinement Origin Arts," he murmured to himself as he read the name of the enclosed ability.
His expression then changed slightly as if he had made a sudden realization, and he immediately began to read the rest of the text.
Time slowly passed, and a hint of elation gradually crept into Han Li's eyes.
After reading the entire passage, he swept a sleeve through the air to release a burst of azure light, which instantly scattered the passage of text.
After that, he closed his eyes and began to carefully review what he had just read.
A long while later, he reopened his eyes, and chuckled to himself, "How interesting! This is a very rare cultivation art specifically for refining one's organs. After mastering the cultivation art, one's organs would become magic power containers, much like dantians, and it can also drastically enhance magic power, as well as manifest many profound abilities. This cultivation art works perfectly in conjunction with the Hundred Meridian Refinement Mantra; they most likely stem from the same origins.
"It's quite fortunate that I was able to obtain two inner pages of the Golden Jade Tome containing immortal secret techniques of the same origins," Han Li murmured to himself, but his brows then furrowed slightly as a thought occurred to him.
According to the passage of text, this cultivation art had extremely stringent requirements on one's physical body and meridians.
Furthermore, a massive amount of the world's origin Qi had to be absorbed to use it, and the rate of cultivation was preposterously slow.
Having already cultivated the Hundred Meridian Refinement Mantra, Han Li's physical body was definitely powerful enough to satisfy the first criteria.
However, even if he were to use pills to drastically enhance his rate of cultivation, it would still take over 10,000 years to reach initial mastery in this cultivation art.
"Hehe, Hu Yushuang really wasn't kidding when she said that this cultivation art was going to take longer to master than others. If a normal Grand Ascension Stage being were in my place, a minimum of 50,000 to 60,000 years of arduous cultivation would be required to make any substantial progress."
The Provenance True Devil Arts were already considered to be extremely difficult to cultivate, and he had spent an extensive amount of time on it, but it was nothing compared to this cultivation art.
It was no wonder that the He Lian Trade Guild was willing to sell such a burdensome item.
However, according to that passage of text, even achieving initial mastery of this cultivation art would result in an astonishing enhancement of one's powers, so it would be a pity to just give up on it.
A hesitant look appeared on Han Li's face as he weighed up his options.
This immortal secret technique was very tempting, but 10,000 years certainly wasn't a short time.
One had to realize that it had only taken him less than 3,000 years to reach the Body Integration Stage from his base as a mortal.
As such, he was naturally very hesitant about practicing an auxiliary cultivation art that would take four to five times as much time to master.
All of a sudden, Han Li detected something with his spiritual sense, and a cold look appeared in his eyes as he yelled, "Who's sneaking around there?"
He then swept a hand toward the door of his secret chamber, and the door was immediately flung open to reveal a faint humanoid figure.
"Hehe, you really are very alert, Fellow Daoist Han; I only just arrived here using a secret technique, and you already detected my presence." The blurry figure quickly became clearer as he spoke.
Han Li's pupils immediately contracted upon identifying his visitor.
"You're quite courageous to have appeared here instead of trying to get away. Aren't you afraid that I'll detain you right here?" he said in a cold voice.
The humanoid figure was none other than the black-robed man who was supposed to have already gotten away.
The man currently had a smile on his face, but there was a hint of surprise deep in his eyes, clearly stunned by the fact that he had been discovered so quickly.
"If I could get away, then I would've already done so rather than coming here to see you, Fellow Daoist Han; that teleportation formation was only a smokescreen that teleported us into another corner of the underground world," the black-robed man chuckled as he strode casually into the secret chamber.
Han Li was rather surprised to hear this, but his expression then quickly returned to normal as he said, "That's quite a crafty plan; no wonder Fellow Daoist Ming and the others were all fooled. Why have you come here instead of trying to escape? Did you come specifically to see me?"
"That's right, I came here to find you," the black-robed man replied with a nod.
"Have we met in the past?" Han Li asked with furrowed brows.
"Of course not, this is our first meeting," the black-robed man immediately replied.
"In that case, why have you come to see him? It sounds like you're not unfamiliar with me; would you be able to give me an explanation?" Han Li asked in an expressionless manner.
"I heard about you from someone else. Do you still recall Fan Paozi, Fellow Daoist Han?" the black-robed man asked in an unhurried manner.
Han Li was rather taken aback to hear this. "You know Fellow Daoist Fan?"
"I don't just know him; he's one of my best friends. Otherwise, how could I have heard of you from him? He has a lot of admiration for you and has given you immense praise. I had thought that he was exaggerating, but now that I'm meeting you in person, I’m beginning to believe him," the black-robed man replied with a smile.
"You're far too kind, Fellow Daoist. Back when I met Fellow Daoist Fan, there was no one else around, so the fact that you mentioned him tells me that you're indeed a friend of his. Please forgive me for any transgressions I've made," Han Li said as his expression eased slightly, and he invited the black-robed man to take a seat.
It was clear that Fan Paozi had done some research on him following their first meeting.
"Haha, it's only to be expected; I would also be quite wary upon being approached by a stranger like this," the black-robed man said with a smile as he sat down on a futon across from Han Li.
"Brother Han, I really do need your help with something; I hope you can lend an ear to my request," the black-robed man continued as his smile faded.
"Go ahead," Han Li prompted calmly.
"Due to the heist that I just completed, the exits of this underground world and the teleportation halls in this area will all become extremely tightly guarded, so I most likely won't be able to leave this place in the near future through my own power. However, I heard that you secured several intercontinental teleportation spots, and I was wondering if you could take me with you during your teleportation; I'll be sure to compensate you handsomely for this," the black-robed man revealed in a straightforward manner.
Han Li was rather surprised to hear this. "You want to use the intercontinental teleportation formation?"
"That's right, this is the only method that I can think of that would allow me to get out of this place in the near future," the black-robed man replied with a wry smile.
"Why is it that you didn't plan a way to escape after your heist? And where is that companion of yours? You don't seem to have mentioned him at all," Han Li said.
"A mishap occurred in the escape measures that he set up, and he was able to escape, but I'm now stuck here without a way out," the black-robed man explained with an awkward expression.
"I see, things like this happen from time to time. Having said that, you really did create quite a drama, Fellow Daoist. The He Lian Trade Guild is already offering a reward for your capture, comprised of both the Ancestral Dragon blood, as well as three favors from the trade guild; have you already heard about this?" Han Li asked.
"Of course. The trade guild sure is generous; I'm almost tempted to hand myself in for such a lavish reward," the black-robed man chortled in response, seemingly without a care in the world.
"Regardless of why the trade guild decided to offer such an extravagant reward, it's a reflection of their determination to hunt you down. I wouldn't mind taking you with me during my teleportation, but there are no absolute secrets in this world; what if the trade guild finds out what I did after the event? I have some confidence in my own abilities, but I definitely don't want to make a superpower such as the He Lian Trade Guild my enemy. On top of that, all I know about you is that you're a friend of Fellow Daoist Fan's; I'm not sure I want to get involved in this," Han Li said with a shake of his head.
"I see you're concerned about the potential repercussions that could arise from this. Rest assured, I can swear an inner demon vow that I'll never tell anyone about this, and once all is said and done, I won't linger in the Spirit Realm at all and will return to my race immediately. My race will also take public accountability for this matter, so you won't face any repercussions at all. As for my origins, isn't that already obvious enough considering I'm a good friend of Fan Paozi's?" the black-robed man said with a faint smile.
Han Li's expression changed slightly as a thought suddenly occurred to him. "You're a true dragon!"
"That's right, please forgive me for not revealing this to you sooner," the black-robed man confirmed.
"I see, no wonder you came to steal the Ancestral Dragon blood," Han Li murmured to himself with a peculiar expression.
A hint of mockery appeared in the black-robed man's eyes upon hearing this. "Ancestral Dragon blood? Do you still believe that's what the auction item is?"
