"Great mastery of the technique? Hah! Have they ever thought about it? The Yuanmagnetic Divine Light technique has been passed down through the Luoxing Sea for how many years now? Has anyone ever truly mastered it? Of course, these two are fortunate—by chance, they discovered a small Yuanmagnetic mountain beneath the sea and transported it back to Tianxing City. But let's be honest—the Yuanmagnetic Divine Light cannot simply be cultivated with the aid of an external object. I'm beginning to doubt whether this technique was even genuinely established. Isn't it strange that any technique could overcome the Five Elements of the world? Moreover, even without practicing this method, these two already stand as rare talents in this realm. It truly seems like an unnecessary effort!" The Jiyin Master spoke with clear skepticism. "I hope things turn out as the senior says!" Although Chihuo still harbored some concerns, he could only express it in this way. "Still, two more practitioners—beyond the Purple Ling Lady and the other female cultivators—have managed to escape from the Eighteen Heavenly Dead Bodies. That's truly unexpected!" The Jiyin Master suddenly stroked the sparse, short whiskers on his chin, his eyes flashing with a touch of surprise. "Indeed. The Zilin Lady carried with her the 'Wood Dragon Stele,' the masterpiece of Miao Yin Sect, which enabled the three of them to ward off Tiandu Shi's attacks. But the other two are rather odd. When I observed them from afar, they had summoned numerous figures resembling mechanical servants—though their offensive power was modest and their defenses rather weak, they managed to control well over a hundred at once. That truly is unusual." The Chihuo Elder nodded in agreement, equally puzzled. "Well, those two are just small fish. We can overlook them! If it weren't for the limited spell power I can now command—along with several other constraints—I would never have let these young disciples slip away from my sight. As long as our primary target, this rebellious disciple, remains here, everything else is settled." "The fragmented celestial map that had been stolen would still have to be retrieved by me and come back to him," said the Master of Extreme Yin calmly, as if he had not the slightest concern for the escaped Han Li or Qu Hun. Seeing this, the Elder of Fiery Red could no longer bring up the matter. Soon after, he bowed and departed, transforming into a dark cloud and soaring upward. As the Master of Extreme Yin watched the dark dot of the Elder fade into the horizon, a subtle cold scorn appeared on his lips. Then, he slowly extended one hand and gently spread his fingers. To his surprise, a small section of white spider silk, only a few inches long, emerged from his palm. Gazing at this silk, the Master of Extreme Yin's eyes revealed a deeply intriguing and somewhat mysterious expression. "The Blood Jade Spider! I never thought I'd see you again. It seems fate has not abandoned me—indeed, I still have a chance!" murmured the Master, suddenly bursting into loud, thunderous laughter that shook the faces of the nearby Zhao Elders, causing them all to stagger and sway in the air. "Then, let's go!" "Return to the island," Master Jiyin laughed, then suddenly paused, and roared. With a mere gesture in the air, the middle-aged cultivator floating there drifted automatically into his hands. He then lifted his hand, leading the group away from the scene. Yet, despite having just escaped a near-death experience, Han Li could not settle his spirits and entered the city with a look of ill fortune. When he returned to the outer gate of his dwelling on the thirty-ninth floor, he was somewhat astonished. For within the sealing incantation at the gate, there floated a quiet transmission scroll—something that made Han Li's face turn dark. He furrowed his brows, reached out, and with a reluctant motion, gently shook the sealing token. Immediately, a green glow shot from the token and entered the incantation, whereupon the transmission scroll instantly transformed into a flame, soaring out with the green light and landing before Han Li. With a flick of his finger, Han Li sent a beam of white light striking the scroll, causing the flame to blaze brightly. Then, a delicate, feminine voice emerged. Han Li paused, startled at first, but soon grew visibly angry. It was Lady Fan's voice! After having just endured such hardships, she dared to show up again with such boldness. Han Li's pent-up anger burst forth all at once. At that moment, a glowing red sphere the size of a fist appeared in his hands, ready to be thrown at and shatter the transmission scroll. However, the very next sentence from the lady caused him to pause, and his hand immediately hesitated. After a while, the voice of Fan Lady faded away, and Han Li casually extinguished the fiery sphere with a hand stroke, then stroked his chin, lost in thought. To be honest, he had not expected these three female cultivators to escape unscathed. Yet now, he had little patience for the ladies of Miao Yin Sect. Nevertheless, the invitation from the lady to meet at a certain inn, along with her renewed mention of the Thunder Bamboo, and the subtle hint that she might still possess it, stirred a measure of hesitation within him despite his irritation. In the end, he decided to visit first and see what unfolded. Should they press further for reparation or support, he would simply decline. At that time, he would probably have to pay a much higher price for the jade stones to purchase this bamboo. He believed that, aside from himself, no one else would find much use in such a small section of this celestial thunder bamboo. After all, rare wooden materials like this were generally used as primary components for crafting special artifacts, rather than for more specialized purposes. As the Lady Fan described, this small section of bamboo was only a few inches long—likely insufficient even after removing impurities to craft a simple dagger. With this thought, Han Li felt a surge of renewed energy and, together with Qu Hun, flew toward the inn. Half an hour later, Han Li arrived at the "Longxing Inn," walking side by side with Qu Hun toward the guest rooms on the third floor. The inn was very well organized: the first and second floors housed ordinary civilians, while the third floor was reserved exclusively for temporary visitors among the cultivators. Han Li easily located the room mentioned, though a faint white glow emanated from the door, clearly indicating that the occupants had placed some minor protective spells there as a precaution. Seeing this scene, Han Li couldn't help but smile faintly with a touch of self-mockery. It seemed these ladies had also become as startled as himself—no less shaken than he was. Han Li gently shook his head and, with a casual flick of his finger, sent a beam of white light striking the seal, causing ripples to spread out in concentric circles. Though no sound came from within, after a moment, Han Li sensed that a divine awareness had swiftly circled him and Qu Hu, then promptly returned to the room. The white light on the wooden door flashed once, and the seal vanished. Immediately, a clear, composed voice—Zi Ling's—resonated. "It's the two of you, I see. Please come in—we've been waiting for several days." Without changing expression, Han Li pushed open the door and slowly walked in with Qu Hu. The interior was simple, featuring only a redwood table and a few antique wicker chairs. But what surprised Han Li was that there were no traces of the young ladies from Miao Yin Manor here—instead, standing at the center of the room was a stranger with a relaxed, carefree demeanor. Han Li gazed intently at the young woman's appearance for a moment, then shook his head silently. Though he didn't detect any obvious flaw in her demeanor—neither had she cast a spell upon her face nor appeared to have undergone a transformation—he still doubted that this was indeed the true form of Zilin, the Immortal Princess. After all, with so many extraordinary treasures in the world, it was no uncommon sight for a few to possess the ability to change their appearance or conceal their true faces.