Hm! The surface of the stele? Before Han Li had even figured out what was going on, the wealthy elder standing beside him suddenly pointed to the back of the stele. Han Li arched an eyebrow. If he wasn't mistaken, the back of the stele had been completely empty, nothing at all. Yet the elder surely wasn't acting without reason. In an instant, his body swayed slightly, and he materialized mysteriously on the back of the stele, now facing Han Li. After a quick glance, Han Li was momentarily stunned. To his amazement, the back of the stele was cracked into numerous fragments, yet within some deep fissures, shimmering blue light pulsed steadily. "Spirit stones?" Han Li's eyes flickered, his mind still uncertain. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers rapidly, sending out a dozen streaks of jade-green sword qi that interlaced and instantly coalesced into a bright green glow, fully enveloping the upper half of the stele. Dust and fragments flew everywhere, and the surrounding area turned hazy and gray. Yet, thanks to the sharpness of Han Li's sword qi, within moments, blue light began to emerge beneath the sword glow, growing steadily brighter As soon as Han Li stopped moving his fingers and the green light faded away, a large stone stele revealed itself, sliced open in the middle. Embedded at the center of the stele was a deep-blue crystal, as if it had always grown within the stone itself. The crystal was several feet long, glowing with a clear, luminous blue hue, and remarkably translucent. Though not fully exposed, it appeared to be flat and rectangular. The entire stone stele seemed to be merely a thick casing surrounding the crystal. "Not a spiritual stone," White Yao Yi said with a quick blink of her bright, clear eyes, immediately confirming. "Although it resembles water-type spiritual stones very closely, the inner essence is not water energy." "Indeed, not a spiritual stone. No one would use a spiritual stone directly to craft an object and then inscribe upon it. This looks more like a stele," Han Li observed, gazing at the exposed surface where ancient, raised and recessed characters shimmered. He exhaled softly. Then, without hesitation, he gathered all his inner spiritual power and reached out with one hand, grasping the crystal in the air. At once, a hand of jade-green light materialized before the stone stele, its five fingers curling like hooks and extending forward to grasp the top of the crystal. With a firm upward pull, it lifted the crystal with great strength. Though the stone proved remarkably heavy, thanks to his preparation, Han Li, drawing upon his powerful spellwork, managed to pull the entire crystal free from the stele. Before him now floated a blue-tinged crystal stele, its inscribed characters shimmering with a gentle, deep blue glow. Han Li glanced at the text briefly, his expression suddenly brightening—though he kept his composure, he immediately began to channel spells, swiftly pointing at the crystal stele. The stele trembled slightly, then rapidly shrank in size, transforming into a brick-shaped object about half a foot in size. It then vanished in a swift "whoosh," disappearing into the folds of Han Li's robe. Although the elder and Bai Yao Yi were equally eager to examine the crystal stele, they saw that Han Li had no intention of displaying it, and thus wisely refrained from mentioning it further. Instead, after a brief consultation, the two immediately decided to ascend the steps toward the mountain. By now they had confirmed that the faint rumbling sound indeed originated from above the mountain. At once, the three once again concealed their forms and took to the air. Naturally, Han Li was unaware that the rumbling they heard was actually the sound of Ye family cultivators, struggling to break through seals at a high elevation along the steps. Moreover, the distance between them was not as close as they had imagined—there still lay a seal between them and the location where the Ye family cultivators were situated. After all, the position where they had been transported via the teleportation array was significantly lower than the designated point where the Ye family cultivators had emerged through the seal cracks. Presently, the two extraordinary cultivators—both at the late stage of Yuan Ying—stood side by side, suspended in the air above a mountain cliff. Meanwhile, at a distance beneath the two of them, the other Ye family cultivators stood in various positions within a temporarily erected spell array, harnessing the array’s power to drive their various treasures and launch relentless attacks upon a grand pavilion subtly visible on the stone steps ahead. The ancient demon was also among the Ye family cultivators, commanding a dark, flying sword summoned from somewhere unknown, attacking with unwavering composure. This pavilion itself emitted ten thousand beams of shimmering light, effortlessly absorbing all incoming attacks, as though it were a rare and extraordinary artifact. "We've already been delayed here at this arch for too long. If we could also descend and lend a hand to them, the time we spend breaking the seal could be cut in half at least," the sturdy, odd-looking man murmured with growing frustration, yet his body remained still, showing no real intention to move. "Since there are ancient, formidable beasts like the lion-fowl appearing on this mountain, I naturally need to remain vigilant. It's better to delay the breakthrough by a day or two, as long as both of us maintain our magical energy throughout. Uncle Ji, please be patient! We've only been on this mountain for a few days—there's still plenty of time. Haste makes waste!" the scholar said calmly. "That's true. Even the Yuan-Ying cultivators from other sects, no matter how swift their movements, will need time to reach here and find the fissures in the seal before entering the mountain. Still, simply this one gate of ten thousand cultivators has already taken us so long—I'm afraid the subsequent seals will prove even more troublesome," the odd man sighed. "Don't worry, Uncle Ji." Our Ye family has planned for this mission over such a long period, naturally also considering the matter of breaking the seals. Over the years, we have already gathered several special treasures specifically designed to dissolve such seals. Yet, we haven't reached the time when they are needed yet." The scholar smiled gently, radiating great confidence. "Ah, so it is. Then I am reassured." The large, odd-looking man relaxed visibly upon hearing this. Afterwards, the two simply watched silently in the air, without speaking. But not long after, the man's nose twitched slightly, and his expression suddenly darkened. Without a word, he pointed his fingers toward a certain direction in the air, and instantly, several yellow sword-like energy streams burst forth unexpectedly, enveloping a large tree located several dozen zhang away. As the breeze stirred beneath the tree, a creature with a greenish fur coat and silver wings sprang up suddenly. The creature didn't move a muscle; merely flapping its wings, it effortlessly deflected the several sword beams. Then, this sharp-eared, broad-faced monster fixed cold glances upon the several Leaf family cultivators below, glanced at the scholar and the large-headed stranger, and immediately, without a word, spread its wings and shot backward with great force. After a few swift movements, the silvery-winged creature dissolved into a gentle breeze and vanished. "Did I miss something? How remarkably skilled in Wind Technique—able to become invisible by harnessing the wind! This appears to be the legendary Silvery-Winged Yaka. If it weren't for that faint corpse energy lingering on its body, I would have been completely fooled." The large-headed stranger did not pursue, but his expression grew serious. "Corpse energy? I didn't sense anything like that at all. Only my seventh uncle's Blood-Carriage True Method allows such refined cultivation abilities. Moreover, this Silvery-Winged Yaka seems to possess a surprisingly high level of intelligence." The scholar stared in the direction where the silvery-winged creature had disappeared, his expression also troubled. "Isn't Kunwu Mountain renowned as a land of immortals and spiritual beings? How come everything we've encountered so far are fierce, ominous creatures—lion-like beasts and flying corpses?" "Thanks to our combined efforts. If only one of us had come, the situation would have been perilous indeed." After shaking his head several times, the giant man frowned. "The term 'Heavenly Spirit Realm' is merely an old designation. Currently, Kunwu Mountain has been sealed off for some unknown reason. It's not unusual for things to be strange. But all of this is of no concern to us. Our mission is solely to obtain the Celestial Spiritual Treasure. Everything else we need not dwell on." The scholar paused before speaking slowly. "That's true. However, even if a creature possesses no intelligence, no matter how advanced its cultivation, there's little to worry about. But the silver-winged yaksha has shown remarkable intelligence. We must therefore remain vigilant about this creature. We must ensure it doesn't disrupt our mission." The giant man said, his expression growing stern. "Thank you, Uncle Seventh, for the reminder. I will keep a close watch on this yaksha." The scholar nodded, his tone now more serious. At the very moment when the senior elder of the Ye family was confronted by the Silver-Winged Night Monkey and driven back, within the seemingly ordinary, solid barrier at the height where the Ye family cultivators had once rested in a stone pavilion, a flash of light suddenly erupted. Then, a head crowned with white hair emerged, peering in with a rather comical awkwardness. Upon noticing that no one was present, the figure immediately launched himself without ceremony, his entire body shimmering with silver light, squeezing through the barrier. Then, stepping upon a vast, luminous disc, he glided steadily toward the pavilion and landed gracefully atop it, settling firmly. Only then did he lift his head, revealing a face etched with deep wrinkles, yet with smooth, small, round eyes. It was none other than the enigmatic old man, Xiang Zhi-li! The old man has been unlucky—just happens to be here, where he can't pretend not to know. Xiang Zhi-li glanced around slightly and immediately caught the rumbling sound. He then jumped up and began shouting angrily at the stone pavilion, his face looking utterly frustrated. "Since you've known this place brings bad luck, you still came? I must say, it takes real courage of yours." As soon as Xiang Zhi-li stopped his outburst, a sweet, gentle female voice reached his ears—soft and tender, like a lover's gentle plea. Yet upon hearing it, Xiang Zhi-li felt a sudden chill run through his body, as if all the blood in him had frozen. "Master, you—you've come out!" The elderly man swallowed hard, his words stumbling and stammering. "Come out? I've been out for countless ten-thousands of years. Back then, the three elders of Kunwu used the strength of ten thousand people to establish this final seal. It wasn't something I could break alone. Otherwise, I would have left long ago. I would still be waiting until now." The woman's voice remained as gentle and soothing as ever, yet Xiang Zhi-li's face turned instantly pale.