Mistress Wan Hua was as pale as a sheet as she stood rooted to the spot down below.
Not only had the entire formation diagram been completely wrecked by the giant golden hand, even the massive black lion behind her had curled up into the ball, having been completely immobilized by the tremendous force weighing down from above.
She had already summoned several defensive treasures to protect herself, but judging from the fearsome power displayed by the giant palm, she knew that those treasures wouldn't be able to do much at all.
She had been forced to use all of her trump cards, yet she had still been crushed by just a single palm from her opponent.
This was an extremely heavy psychological blow to someone as proud as she was.
"Thank you for the battle," Han Li said before withdrawing his arm.
At the same time, the giant golden palm above Mistress Wan Hua also vanished in a flash.
Before she knew it, she was on the other side of the light barrier, returning to the spectator stands with a wooden expression.
Daoist Qing Ping and Xiao Ming exchanged a glance, and both of them could see their own astonishment mirrored in one another's eyes.
Han Li turned to Daoist Qing Ping from within the light barrier, and said, "It's your turn now, Fellow Daoist Qing Ping."
Daoist Qing Ping immediately returned to his senses upon hearing this, and he hurriedly waved his hands with a wry smile as he replied, "I'm no match for you, Fellow Daoist. There's no need for me to test myself against you; I concede."
He had made a very wise decision and conceded the match.
Han Li wasn't too surprised to hear this, and he didn't force the issue any further, either.
He merely nodded in response before withdrawing his Provenance True Devil Physique, then also emerged from the light barrier.
"Your powers far exceed those of anyone I've ever seen, Fellow Daoist Han. That reminds me; are you the Fellow Daoist Han Li of the Tian Yuan Continent who entered the Elder Devil Realm and slew the Stemborer Queen?" Xiao Ming asked.
"Those rumors paint me in a far too flattering light, but I am indeed Han Li," Han Li replied.
"Haha, so it really is you; no wonder your powers are so formidable. It seems that a truly esteemed guest has arrived in my city. You have to stay in the city for some time so we can exchange some insights and ideas," Xiao Ming said with an enthusiastic smile, completely disregarding the other two Grand Ascension Stage beings present.
Han Li was also rather interested in the Blood Dao cultivation arts of the Blood Bone Sect, so he smiled, and replied, "I certainly can't turn down such a genuine invitation."
"Great! Mistress Wan Hua, Fellow Daoist Qing Ping, let's go to my cave abode together," Xiao Ming said in an excited manner.
Daoist Qing Ping and Mistress Wan Hua exchanged a slightly hesitant glance before the former replied, "We came here to see you anyway, so we would've visited you even without an invitation. Please lead the way and pardon our intrusion, Brother Xiao."
"I've already instructed my servants to prepare a banquet in my cave abode that I'm sure you'll all be happy with. Please follow me, fellow daoists," Xiao Ming said with a smile.
Thus, the group departed from the arena as four streaks of light, flying toward a giant palace situated at the center of Blood Crane City.
Close to a day later, Han Li flew out of the palace just as night was arriving. It then took him close to an hour to arrive at an inn on a secluded street before making his way into a courtyard that had already been rented.
Patriarch Hua Shi and Zhu Guo'er were standing outside the entrance to the courtyard in a respectful manner, and they immediately extended deep bows upon Han Li's arrival.
Han Li waved a dismissive hand toward them before the trio strode into the courtyard together, following which the gate swung shut amid a flash of white light.
……
Meanwhile, Xiao Ming, Mistress Wan Hua, and Daoist Qing Ping were seated around a white jade table in the palace, and there seemed to be an argument taking place.
It was impossible to glean Xiao Ming's expression due to his mask, but both Daoist Qing Ping and Mistress Wan Hua wore cold expressions that were even intermingled with a hint of anger.
"That's going too far, Fellow Daoist Xiao. You're planning to take 90% of the spoils from the Heavenly Cauldron Palace and leave only 10 to us? Have you no respect for us at all?" Mistress Wan Hua yelled.
"If you two also possess the key to the Heavenly Cauldron Palace and know its rough location prior to its opening, then you'll also have the right to propose such conditions," Xiao Ming replied in a calm manner.
"We're naturally aware that you possess those things. Otherwise, we wouldn't have come to find you prior to entering the Myriad Moon Mountain Range. However, no matter how you look at it, 10% is far too little," Daoist Qing Ping said with tightly furrowed brows.
Xiao Ming refused to be swayed. "What kind of place do you think the Heavenly Cauldron Palace is? Without my key, you wouldn't be able to access the palace even if you learned its location in advance. I had to expend an extremely heavenly price to obtain this key, and I'm already being very generous by offering you two 10% of the treasures."
"Hmph, there's more than one key to enter the Heavenly Cauldron Palace; you only have a single key, and we still don't know if it's a genuine one or not. Last time the Heavenly Cauldron Palace appeared, many replica keys were created. Those replica keys couldn't allow one to safely enter the palace, but they can certainly notify one of the opening time and rough location of the palace, so we can try to enter the palace ourselves as long as we're willing to take a risk" Mistress Wan Hua said in a cold voice.
"Replica keys? I have heard of such things, but I can assure you that I definitely have an authentic key. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare to propose these conditions," Xiao Ming replied in a confident manner.
"I can see that you're very confident, so I'll take your word for it, but with so many replica keys in existence, there will most likely be many other Grand Ascension Stage beings who will try their luck at entering the Heavenly Cauldron Palace. After all, this is a cave abode left behind by Daoist Tian Ding, who endured the most major heavenly tribulations 1,000,000 years ago, and was even able to successfully ascend in the end; who knows how many treasures and pills that will be extremely useful to us can be found in the palace.
"At the very least, the cultivation arts and secret techniques left behind in the palace will tell us how Daoist Tian Ding was able to transcend all of his major heavenly tribulations, and just that alone would be extremely tempting to all powerful beings of our caliber. Even if you manage to enter the palace, do you think you'll be able to obtain all the treasures in there and leave safely without our assistance? Are you not afraid that we'll collaborate with someone else in possession of a key and compete against you for those treasures?" Daoist Qing Ping said as his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Are you threatening me, Fellow Daoist Qing Ping?" Xiao Ming's voice immediately cooled upon hearing this.
"It's not a threat; it's simply the truth. The fact that we've come here is an indication of our sincerity to collaborate with you. Besides, if you don't collaborate with us, who else will you turn to? That Fellow Daoist Han from the Tian Yuan Continent is extremely powerful; why didn't you invite him to enter the Heavenly Cauldron Palace with you? Could it be that even you're wary of his powers?" Daoist Qing Ping asked in a calm manner.
"That's right, I am indeed wary of him. I'm not confident in my ability to suppress him, so I didn't tell him about the Heavenly Cauldron Palace. However, you won't convince me to make a concession with just this point alone," Xiao Ming replied without any hesitation.
Daoist Qing Ping's expression darkened slightly upon hearing this.
"Fellow Daoist Qing Ping, seeing as Fellow Daoist Xiao is being so stubborn, why don't we tell him? I'm sure he'll be willing to make a concession once he hears what we have to say," Mistress Wan Hua suddenly said in a cold voice.
Xiao Ming faltered slightly upon hearing this before asking, "What do you have to tell me?"
A mysterious look appeared in Mistress Wan Hua's eyes as she asked, "Do you know Fellow Daoist Qing Ping's true origins?"
Xiao Ming turned to Daoist Qing Ping with a puzzled look upon hearing this.
"Truth be told, my true inheritance comes from…" Daoist Qing Ping completed his sentence silently through voice transmission.
Xiao Ming's eyes immediately lit up with elation after hearing what he had to say.
……
In an extremely deep canyon in the Myriad Moon Mountain Range, the blood soul was standing atop a giant black falcon puppet, staring intently at a burst of faint white light that had appeared on a stone face.
Within the white light were several peculiar runes that were constantly transforming, seemingly conveying a mysterious message.
"The Heavenly Cauldron Palace," the blood soul suddenly murmured to herself, and many sealed memories surged back into her mind.
……
Meanwhile, Han Li seated on a wooden chair in the rented courtyard, carefully inspecting a miniature cauldron that was only several inches tall hovering above his hand.
The cauldron was of a faint azure color with an antiquated appearance. Its surface was riddled with carved images of all types of different creatures, and they flashing incessantly with spiritual light, as if they were about to spring to life.
Han Li was stroking his own chin while appraising the miniature cauldron with a contemplative look on his face.
……
In a dark and secluded space within the Myriad Moon Mountain Range, a faint sigh suddenly rang out.
"The palace is finally about to open again. After being trapped here for so many years, I'll finally be able to leave."
