Han Li held the jade scroll in one hand, pondering thoughtfully for a moment. A flash of green light passed through his fingers, and the scroll vanished. Then, he oriented himself and walked continuously through half of Qian Tian City, eventually stopping at a quieter corner near a seemingly ordinary general store. At the entrance of the store, a black wooden sign hung, bearing the calligraphic characters "Yu He Xuan." Han Li glanced around and then stepped inside. The interior was modest, consisting of a small hall about six or seven zhang in size, selling mostly ordinary items such as scrolls and raw materials. On one side, a small side door led directly to the back hall. At the counter facing the entrance, a middle-aged man in gray robes sat, carefully reviewing a small ledger. Han Li swept his consciousness over the man and immediately observed that he was at a very low level of cultivation, only reaching the Qi Condensation stage. Moreover, the store manager appeared ordinary and unremarkable—someone who would blend seamlessly into a crowd and go unnoticed. Upon seeing Han Li enter, the middle-aged manager immediately beamed and rose to his feet, hurrying to greet him. "Master, what would you like to see? Our store carries a wide variety of goods, and I am certain we can fully meet your needs," he said—words that every store manager would naturally utter. Han Li smiled slightly, flipped his hand, and the green jade tablet appeared in his palm, which he then directly handed to the middle-aged man. Upon seeing the jade tablet in his hands, the manager's expression changed slightly. He quickly took it and respectfully asked, "Could you kindly tell me your esteemed name?" "Han," Han Li replied casually. "It's truly Master Han who has arrived! The Master had mentioned that you would come, though we hadn't expected such promptness. Master Han, please follow me." The middle-aged shopkeeper spoke with due respect, then stepped aside to invite Han Li to enter through the side door into the inner hall. Han Li nodded silently and entered. To his slight surprise, the interior turned out to be a warehouse-like space, filled with various cabinets and boxes arranged all around, completely blocking the walls. The middle-aged cultivator walked a few steps forward and stopped in front of a wooden cabinet, gently pressing at one corner with his hand. Instantly, two adjacent cabinets on the other side parted smoothly, revealing a full wall. "To avoid the occasional guests detecting the presence of seals, the surface mechanisms have all been designed using ordinary, secular methods," the middle-aged shopkeeper explained as he moved forward. Han Li listened calmly, showing no surprise. Then, with a gentle step, the middle-aged man tapped a piece of dark green stone before the wall. The wall emitted a deep, resonant creak and slowly separated, revealing a sloping, dimly lit passage descending below. "Since the junior members aren't qualified to enter, the elders will have to go down on their own," the middle-aged storekeeper stepped aside, smiling politely. Han Li furrowed his brow, lightly scanning the inner chamber with his awareness. There were faint, almost imperceptible fluctuations of spiritual energy, very subtle. Upon further probing deeper, however, he encountered a barrier that blocked his perception. Yet, with his deep expertise in array techniques, Han Li instantly recognized it as a simple spiritual shielding barrier—something that could be forcibly breached, though the people inside would certainly sense the disturbance. Han Li hesitated. Though he believed the old master from Jidi Sect wouldn't be foolish enough to make any moves while under the watchful eyes of Qiantian City, he didn't want to risk entering an enclosed space whose depth and intentions he didn't fully understand. Just as Han Li paused slightly in his hesitation, the people inside had already anticipated his doubts and, in an instant, suddenly removed the barrier that had been blocking his awareness. Han Li's mind stirred, realizing that the other party had deliberately acted this way to win his trust. Without further hesitation, he used his divine awareness to carefully investigate the situation once again, and was surprised to find the details clearly revealed. "It's him! That's quite interesting." Han Li murmured to himself, then stepped promptly into the dark passage. When the middle-aged storekeeper saw Han Li's figure disappear into the passage, he finally closed the entrance, restored the cabinets to their original positions, and then returned to the front hall as if nothing had happened. The passage was long, extending deep underground for dozens of zhang, clearly designed with secrecy in mind. After walking for a while, Han Li noticed a faint flash of white light ahead, indicating that he had reached the exit. He quickened his pace and entered a square stone chamber. The chamber was spacious, yet empty—besides a few mats placed on the floor, there was nothing else. At the entrance, two figures sat cross-legged on cushions, smiling gently at Han Li. Han Li said nothing, merely settling himself cross-legged on a cushion in a corner of the room. "Indeed, I never expected it to be you who sought me out," Han Li said lightly to one of the two. "To meet you here at all was truly unexpected." The man wore a high crown and a blue robe; upon hearing Han Li's words, he could only shake his head with a wry smile. "True enough—when I first parted ways with you, I thought myself surely doomed. I believed I had escaped. Yet it turned out that the other party had employed a tracking secret technique on me, and we were eventually caught on the edge of the Mulan Grasslands. Fortunately, just as we were being pursued, a group of senior cultivators searching for us arrived, and in the ensuing chaos, we managed to make our escape. Those who dealt with me will surely settle their accounts with me eventually." As he spoke, the mid-Stage Yuan Ying cultivator's voice carried a growing edge of determination and sharpness. He was none other than the Nanlong Marquis, who had fled from being pursued by other treasure-hunting cultivators at that very time. Now, his face was pale, his eyes lifeless, and his overall appearance clearly frail—severely drained of energy. Beside him stood the white-robed elder from Tianji Gate, the one who had come to summon him. "Under such circumstances, Nanlong Brother managed to escape unscathed, and I am truly impressed. Yet, despite his injuries, he has not returned to his abode to recuperate, but instead insists on meeting me urgently, even going so far as to have this guest's disciple disturb my concubine. This has left me somewhat puzzled," said Han Li, his smile fading slightly, an undercurrent of displeasure evident in his tone. "Ah, Han Brother, you've misunderstood. It was only out of necessity that I took this course of action. Do you know that your current condition is not much different from mine—both of us are the very ones they are determined to track down? I was deeply concerned that you might not realize the gravity of the situation and fall victim to a hidden trap. That is why I have taken this initiative. And this gentleman is Originally, last time when we went on the treasure hunt, I also intended to invite him along. Unfortunately, my dear friend had urgent matters within his household and was unable to make time.″ Nan Long Marquis spoke first, then pointed to the white-robed elder beside him and introduced him briefly. Now, Nan Long Marquis's attitude toward Han Li had changed considerably from when they first met—he spoke with an unusually courteous tone. This was naturally due to Han Li having single-handedly eliminated a Yuan-Infant cultivator, which had instilled a certain level of caution in him. The white-robed elder then smiled and bowed slightly to Han Li, offering a somewhat apologetic apology: "My methods may have been somewhat off-putting; I hope Han friend won't mind. I truly regret having caused any inconvenience." "It's all right," Han Li replied, waving his hand. "Since there's a valid reason, I won't hold it against you. However, Nan Long brother, was it because of the jade box I took that you mentioned?" "Yes, that's exactly what I meant." As far as I know, to secure the group who joined the treasure-seeking expedition, the Gui Ling Sect has invested considerable resources, nearly securing the route and methods for Master Ang Kun's entry and exit from the Valley of the Fallen Demons. And Master Han happens to possess one of the essential items required for entering the Valley of the Fallen Demons. Only when combined with the route map held by Brother Nan Long can they navigate past the majority of dangers within the valley and have a chance of retrieving the treasure." Master Xuanji spoke seriously, his tone grave. "The essential items needed to enter the Valley of the Fallen Demons—do you mean the black ring?" Han was momentarily stunned, then slowly recalled and said. "Indeed, the Er-Yi Ring is in Master Han's possession—this is truly excellent news," said Lord Nan Long, his spirits lifting and a faint flush rising on his face. "The Er-Yi Ring?" Han furrowed his brows, as though he had heard of it before. But after a moment's reflection, he suddenly grew alert, fixing his gaze on Lord Nan Long with a look of surprise and inquiry. "Is it the Er-Yi Ring crafted by the Xuan Huang Elder from celestial meteoric iron?" It’s said that this treasure possesses no special powers under ordinary circumstances, yet when it encounters the North Polar Primordial Light, it can manipulate that light to strike enemies unseen—making it a rather underappreciated and underutilized artifact within the immortal realm. "Friend Han, your insight and experience are truly impressive. Indeed, this is the very item in question. These Two-Principles Rings are divided into Yin and Yang components: the Yin ring, when worn on the body, protects against harm from the Primordial Light, while the Yang ring, when held in the hand, enables the manipulation of the Light to attack opponents. The ring you currently hold must therefore be the Yin ring. Back then, Master Angkun relied precisely on the Yin ring to safely navigate through the Light-filled region of the valley, emerging unharmed. As for other methods or artifacts capable of evading the North Polar Primordial Light, I’ve learned that while such alternatives exist, they either require a large number of cultivators to establish protective arrays, or the artifacts themselves have vanished—no longer traceable. "South Llong Marquis, calm and composed, explained to Han. "What exactly do you mean?" Han looked at the two, yet silently weighed the