After a meal, from afar he spotted the vast city gates, clearly visible, and the bustling crowd of carriages and pedestrians gathering before them, his expression as dark as still water. "Well then. Knowing that this demon truly resides in the Great Jin Dynasty is indeed an unexpected bonus. You'll always have a chance to reclaim your sword, but right now isn't the optimal moment. Your cultivation hasn't fully recovered yet, and the Three-Flame Fan hasn't been forged. Even if this demon suffered a serious blow earlier, with his formidable soul-siphoning and essence-absorbing magic, he's likely now at around seven-eighths of his recovery. Facing him now, your chances of victory aren't particularly strong." In the depths of Han Li's consciousness, the Grand Sovereign of Daxian calmly transmitted his thoughts. "You're absolutely right. Even if I were to catch up now, my chances of successfully retrieving the sword would barely amount to a few percent. This ancient demon is simply too formidable. Previously, I only wanted to recover my sword so I could deploy the Dagen Sword Formation, which made me somewhat anxious. It seems now that I must wait until your puppet and that fan are both ready before I can face him again However, this demon seems to have urgent matters to attend to, flying swiftly throughout the journey without even detecting our presence. Yet he clearly still cannot master these two jade bamboo bee-cloud swords. He is unable to subdue them and has thus far been unwilling to let go. The swords are primarily crafted from golden-thunder bamboo of a thousand years' age, supplemented with two rare materials—crystallized essence and the Geng Jing. Indeed, these swords are no ordinary treasures. Should he wish to destroy them, he would have to expend immense inner energy, gradually refining them through magical fire. Such a costly effort would certainly not be something this demon would willingly undertake. Han Li chuckled, saying so. "That makes sense. Still, consider this: if your dozens of flying swords were fully dedicated to being nurtured and refined by infant fire for several to five hundred years each, and then arranged into a sword formation, their combined power might well rival even the finest spiritual treasures." The Great Derivation Sovereign sighed, expressing a sense of reflection. Back in his prime, he had never once dreamed of using such rare materials to forge his own life-long treasures. "Hmm, perhaps that's true." "But I simply can't spend half my life solely cultivating my treasures," Han Li chuckled. "Ha ha! You're much more astute than I am. If I had half your caution back then, I would have reached the Stage of Transformation long ago. This demon would surely have attended the auction by now. Han, you must pay close attention—don't let him spot you." "Thank you, elder. I'll be careful. Originally, I planned to leverage the influence of General Zunan's household to learn more about the auction details. It seems I'll have to find out on my own. I believe there's a tavern in Jinjing that belongs to the Feng family. I'll go there first. That way, I won't have to stay at an inn and draw attention." Han Li murmured softly. He then straightened his garments and walked confidently down the mountain, heading straight toward the distant grand city gate. Although the city of Jinjing was often praised by ordinary people and some lower-tier cultivators as magnificent and awe-inspiring, seemingly unparalleled in the world, in Han Li's eyes, it still fell short of the city of Xingxing Sea by several measures. That one truly was the first great city Han Li had ever seen. Yet Jinjing possessed its own unique merits—besides the outermost city wall, the city was further divided into six additional massive walls, each spaced one li apart from the next, rising five to six zhang higher than the one before. The final stone wall reached a height of over forty zhang, constructed entirely by the strength of ordinary people, a truly remarkable feat. However, beyond its numerous walls, Jinjing was subdivided into thirteen major districts. The Imperial City in the far north alone spanned dozens of li, and the other districts were also substantial in size. While comparable in scale to Xingxing Sea, Jinjing's streets and buildings were densely packed, as numerous as the hairs on a cow's back. Han Li walked through two districts from the city gate and reached a location within the city, taking nearly half a day. This pace, unfamiliar to him after a long time, made him frown deeply. Now, he glanced at the two-story inn before him, calmly straightened his hands behind his back, and stepped inside. The inn was doing fairly well, with most tables already occupied. After a casual glance, Han Li headed straight for the counter. A thin, middle-aged man in the role of a general manager stood there. As Han Li approached, he said nothing, subtly shifted his body to block the attention of most others, and with a gentle sweep of his robe, a jade pendant appeared silently on the counter—its face upward, clearly inscribed with the characters "Guan Ning Feng." The general manager's expression slightly changed upon seeing the pendant, he looked at Han Li for a moment, then composed himself and picked up the pendant, studying it carefully. A moment later, the man suddenly drew the jade pendant close, speaking in a low voice: "Follow me!" The storekeeper turned and, when no other guests were paying attention, promptly walked through the side door into the inner part of the inn. Han Li followed him. "The eldest son has arrived. This is Feng Quan, at your service, sir." As soon as the storekeeper and Han Li entered a quiet room, he immediately handed the jade pendant back to Han Li with both hands, bowing respectfully. It seemed that he had already regarded Han Li as the one who had died from poisoning at Feng Yue's hands. "Find me a private room, away from the bustling areas of the inn—ideally one with no other guests. Only you need to know that I've come here. No one else in the inn should be informed." Han Li spoke without hesitation, giving a cold command. "Of course, sir. I will immediately arrange your room. You may rest here for a while—only half a day should be needed." The storekeeper, Feng Quan, responded without delay, clearly demonstrating his competence. "Very well, go and return promptly," Han Li nodded, giving a satisfied command. Then the Feng掌柜 stepped back out of the room, carefully closing the door behind him, before hurrying off. Han Li took a chair at random and sat down, closing his eyes to rest. And then, stepping out from the back entrance of the inn, a half-new two-wheeled carriage was waiting at the door, with an elderly man slightly hunched over seated in the driver's seat. "Your thoughtfulness is truly commendable—you've even arranged the vehicle. Yet, didn't I say not to mention my name or affairs to anyone else at the inn? Who is this man?" Looking at the carriage, Han Li then carefully studied the old driver, whose hair and beard were completely white, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Your servant respectfully reports, sir: Master Wu is someone with a hearing impairment—he cannot hear any spoken words and will never speak at random. Moreover, the residence we serve is some distance away, so it's necessary to travel by carriage." "Ah, that makes sense. Very well." Han Li furrowed his brows, paused thoughtfully, and then climbed into the carriage. Feng, the general manager, followed suit. The elderly man, without waiting for either of them to give instructions, simply gave a firm tug on the reins and the carriage moved forward steadily. Han Li settled himself cross-legged in the carriage, remained expressionless, and closed his eyes once more. Feng Zheng was always seated at one corner of the carriage, bowing silently. The carriage moved at a moderate pace, weaving through several streets of varying sizes, before suddenly changing direction and heading toward a different district. After an hour, it came to a halt in front of a secluded courtyard. Indeed, there were no other residential buildings nearby—standing alone, it appeared somewhat desolate. Han Li and Feng Zheng stepped down from the carriage one after the other. "This is it, sir," Feng Zheng said with a smile, stepping forward and preparing to push open the courtyard gate to check on whether the servants had prepared the house for the guest. But at that moment, a calm voice from behind spoke: "Do you intend to first retreat into the protective spell ahead, and then have those three inside capture me?" Feng Zheng was startled, and without hesitation, he surged forward, thrusting both hands against the courtyard gate, eager to rush inside. But at that moment, an odd red line suddenly appeared behind Feng Zheng's head, flashing and vanishing in a brief instant, piercing through him. Immediately, Feng Zheng's body burst into flames, and in the blink of an eye, he was completely consumed. The hunched elder seated on the carriage beside him, upon seeing Han Li's sudden action, roared without hesitation, "Attack!" As he raised his hand, a green-bladed flying dagger transformed into a streak of jade light and swiftly cut toward Han Li. At the same time, throughout the seemingly quiet and deserted courtyard, waves of yellow mist suddenly rose, spreading across the entire area. From within the mist, a black flying spear and two fiery long spears shot forth, all converging on Han Li. Han Li smiled coldly, and with a gentle flick of his sleeve, sent a ripple of azure light spiraling out. The wave of shimmering green mist instantly engulfed the jade light of the flying dagger, then spiraled back into his sleeve. With the other arm, he casually reached out, palm extending into the void where the three flying artifacts were coming, and a faintly jade-hued hand suddenly materialized. In a lightning-fast motion, he seized them all—the flying spear, the long halberd, and the other implements—holding them firmly, rendering them completely immobile. A gasp of astonishment erupted from the yellow mist. Yet the hunched elder grew pale at this sight. His opponent had effortlessly collected their magical implements—what did this signify? He knew perfectly well. Without further thought, the elder flipped his palm, and a scroll glowing with a soft, blood-like radiance appeared in his hand. He gritted his teeth, spitting a concentrated drop of vital blood onto the scroll. Instantly, the scroll launched itself, transforming into a swirling cloud of blood that enveloped him, breaking through the air and carrying him swiftly to a height of over ten zhang below. The cultivator within the yellow mist responded just as swiftly, launching three luminous orbs of different hues that scattered in all directions, then fleeing in disarray.