When Wei Wuya suddenly arrived at the Yang Shang Ren and casually spoke of Han Li in the great hall, he was surprised to see Dong Xuan'er standing right outside the hall doors. The young woman had appeared from a side pavilion at some point, standing there with her forehead slightly lowered, as though deep in thought. The gatekeepers, knowing she had come with Yun Lu, the old master, simply let her stand there without interruption, giving her no attention at all. When Han Li stepped out, Dong Xuan'er seemed to sense something, and raised her head to look. Upon seeing Han Li, however, her expression turned strange—she appeared somewhat at a loss, as if even a touch of resentment stirred within her. This left Han Li puzzled. Though he had little to say to her, he simply ignored her, passing by without a word and walking slowly toward the distant streets. Dong Xuan'er remained motionless in place, gently biting her red lips, gazing after Han Li’s back, saying nothing at all. After turning a corner, he finally noticed the absence of someone watching from behind, and unconsciously furrowed his brows, shaking his head. "Master, do you know that female cultivator?" came a voice of curiosity from Yinxue in his mind. "An old acquaintance from back then, though our relationship wasn't particularly close." Han Li replied casually. "Indeed? But I observe her expression, and it seems her connection with Master is far more significant than that. Perhaps Master's past...?" Yinxue smiled brightly, saying half of her thought, deliberately leaving the rest unsaid. "Stop making assumptions. I don't have a particularly favorable impression of her—on the contrary, I even once had direct conflict with her." Han Li seemed slightly displeased, giving a cold sigh. Yinxue gently smiled, gave him a mischievous look, and then wisely fell silent. Since Han Li had rescued Yinxue that day and, without pressing her about the loss of her ancient treasures—the jade tripod and the floral basket—Yinxue had grown noticeably more close to him. Although not yet bold enough to be overly extravagant, it was clearly evident that he had begun to open up to Han Li. Han Li naturally sensed this, and trusted him even more. Their relationship had improved significantly since the beginning. Since my junior brother has such confidence in the battle, I won't say much more. However, before the battle, if he has any needs, he need only instruct his disciples to attend to them. Upon hearing this, Lu Luo's expression eased slightly. Han Li smiled, but after a brief thought, slowly added, "For this great battle, I truly need to make some preparations. There are certain special materials that will require a few of my junior nephews to collect." Han Li did not hesitate, immediately producing a jade scroll that had been prepared in advance and handing it to Lu Luo. "Rest assured, as long as the materials can be found within the city of Tian, I will surely gather them all for my junior brother." Lu Luo accepted the scroll without hesitation. Han Li felt a warm sense of comfort. After nodding and exchanging a few more words, he then departed. The jade scroll he handed over contained the auxiliary materials needed for crafting the Jiangling Seal. He had already thought through these details on the way back to his quarters. Although he was confident that his current abilities would suffice for the gambling contest, the careful and cautious man still felt it wise to have a backup plan. Thus, he immediately recalled the "Spirit-Calling Seal"—a move that was the only one he could prepare effectively within a few days. Other preparations, such as remaking his flying swords or refining the Dajing Sword Array, simply couldn't be completed within such a short timeframe. The only concern he still had was the success rate of crafting the "Spirit-Calling Seal." Originally, he had intended to find a particularly satisfactory spiritual brush, practice his seal-making technique for some time, and then proceed with crafting the seal. But now, it seemed too late. Even if the success rate were lower than ideal, he would have to give it a try. If successful, he would gain an additional powerful move; if not, it would still be a minor setback. After all, in just a few days, no matter what he did, he wouldn't be able to significantly enhance his own strength. Thinking thus, Han Li calmly arrived at his living floor. After entering the bedroom, he sat cross-legged on the bed and soon settled into meditation, closing his eyes. ...Indeed, the movements of the disciples from Luoyun Sect were quite thorough—within just two days, Han Li had gathered all the materials he needed and had them fully delivered to him. Seeing this, Han Li felt pleased. It seemed that this Luoyun Sect elder truly was a capable person. With these materials in hand, Han Li entered the inner chamber once more and sat cross-legged in the center, arranging the auxiliary items neatly before him. Finally, he withdrew a small bottle of deep green hue from his storage sack and carefully opened the lid. "Pffft!" A bright crimson light burst forth from the bottle. Yet, having anticipated this, Han Li remained calm, raised his hand slightly, and with his fingers spread out, gently reached into the void, catching the crimson glow in his hands with a shimmering, jade-like palm. Then, a faint, shimmering light continued to flow and swirl. With a slight flick of his fingers, the blood-colored glow instantly took on its true form within the azure light. It revealed a small blood-jade dragon, only a few inches in size, constantly spinning wildly on his palm, as if eager to take flight at any moment. Yet the surrounding azure glow was subtle and almost imperceptible, firmly trapping the dragon's spirit within his grasp—like a bird confined in a cage—preventing it from moving an inch. Han Li narrowed his eyes slightly, with a gentle blue glow pulsing subtly within his pupils. At once, he gained a clear, comprehensive view of the toxic dragon's spirit from within and out. Though this lively, vibrant little dragon seemed as active and lively as when he first captured it several years ago and sealed it into a bottle, Han Li clearly noticed subtle differences under the Ming-Qing spiritual sight. While the dragon's internal spiritual energy remained as powerful and impressive as ever, its eyes—normally bright and focused—now scattered and lacked cohesion, appearing as though it were three-quarters dazed. This was unmistakably the sign of a lost spiritual awareness. The dragon's spirit now possessed strong spiritual power, yet its consciousness had That mere flight just now was merely an instinct of the living. Han Li sighed. Back then, that eight-tiered toxic dragon, how magnificent its aura and vast its powers! Yet now, with its spirit in his hands for only a few years, it had gradually lost its awareness, becoming little more than a wild beast. The contrast between its former grandeur and its current state was truly touching—making Han Li deeply aware of the hardships on the path of cultivation. Should he one day be extinguished, with his spirit captured by an enemy, his fate would surely not be better than that of this toxic dragon. After sitting quietly and pondering for a while, Han Li sighed again, then gently shook his hand. A cluster of emerald light enveloped the crimson young dragon and launched it straight toward the space one zhang above his head, where it hovered motionless. Turning no longer to the dragon's spirit, Han Li lowered his gaze and surveyed the materials before him. Suddenly, he extended his hand and lightly tapped a piece of unknown spiritual beast hide. Instantly, the rare, jade-green hide rose gently and floated to rest upon his chest. Han Li's eyes flashed with a gleam. As he opened his mouth, a stream of jade-colored infant flame erupted and struck the spiritual skin, enveloping it—yet strangely, the skin did not catch fire. With both hands, he swiftly pressed a series of gestures, his fingers jumping rapidly, one after another, each casting a spell upon the spiritual skin. The infant flame flickered, now dimming and brightening intermittently. At that moment, Han Li halted his gestures, extended a single slender white finger, and pointed it at a white jade box before him. With a "whoosh," the lid of the box flew open to the side, revealing a gleaming container of silvery powder inside. He then swept his finger toward the box, and a portion of the powder instantly transformed into a silver thread, rushing directly into the jade-colored infant flame. Silver sparks immediately emerged within the flame and, under the guidance of Han Li's spell, converged swiftly toward the spiritual skin at the center of the flame. The entire spiritual skin instantly bloomed into a large, radiant silver lotus, slowly rotating within the flame. Han Li's expression grew increasingly serious, and he began to point sequentially at the various vials and jars before him, causing one after another of the materials to vanish into the infant flame. The flame encasing the spiritual skin first turned from silver to black, then from black to green, and finally to deep crimson. When it reached this hue, Han Li exhaled gently, ceasing the addition of materials and instead began to softly chant a spell. As his fingers trembled, several fine strands of silvery thread shot out from his fingertips and directly struck the spiritual skin. Instantly, the skin stopped rotating and began to sway irregularly—sometimes slow, sometimes rapid. While chanting, Han Li maintained his steady movements, and gradually, thin streaks of black vapor emerged on the surface of the skin. These black vapors immediately dissolved upon contact with the outer crimson infant flame, leaving a faint, briny odor within the chamber. Yet, the overall volume of the spiritual skin had shrunk slightly. Han Li paid no attention to this, and the action continued for over an hour. When the very last trace of black energy on the spiritual skin was fully refined, he exhaled deeply, his expression relaxing. After adding several more materials to the flame and allowing it to simmer for a little while longer, Han Li blinked several times, then gently blew at the flame with a soft breath. "Pffft!" The flame instantly died out, revealing the entire spiritual skin, now a deep crimson color, and only palm-sized. Seeing the transformation, he beamed with satisfaction. He raised his head to gaze at the dragon soul above, then, without hesitation, pointed at it. A sudden flash of emerald light rippled around the dragon soul, which then dispersed into scattered points of luminous energy. Yet the dragon soul seemed drawn to something, and immediately shot straight toward the crimson spiritual skin, vanishing into its surface with a smooth, liquid sound.