"Well then, even if that demon were mighty, having been sealed for so many years, and with numerous late-stage cultivators having descended, there should be no shortage of strength to handle everything." Han Li gazed deeply at the base of the cliff, then spoke calmly. He then called out to Gui Ling, and the two of them drifted gently downward. The descent proved to be profound and seemingly endless—after drifting for a full cup of tea's worth of time, they still hadn't reached the bottom. Han Li was both puzzled and somewhat startled. Now, the place they found themselves in was dim and obscure, with darkness all around, making it difficult to see beyond a short distance. Yet, when they looked upward, the white light above remained faintly visible. For ordinary cultivators, under such constraints on their awareness, they would typically only perceive movements within a few dozen zhang around them. But Han Li, despite being in peril, had activated his Qing Ming Ling Miao technique, his pupils flashing with blue light continuously, allowing him to maintain clear awareness of everything within several hundred zhang around. Not knowing how long it had been since then, Gui Ling suddenly softly reminded, "Master Han, have we reached the bottom now?" Upon hearing this, Han stirred and lowered his gaze. Indeed, a few glimmers of light came from not far below, faintly outlining the shadow of a tall structure. As his expression shifted, he was about to examine it more closely when, with a quick sweep of his peripheral vision, he seemed to catch something flash by on one side—a crimson ribbon of light, flowing silently and unobtrusively from the darkness. A sharp, pungent scent of blood rushed toward Han, so strong it made one want to retch. Four scattered immortals! Han recalled this figure almost instantly, his heart suddenly tightening. The bloodlight moved as swiftly as lightning, appearing before him in a single flash. Had it not been for Han's constant alertness, he would have realized the danger too late and been helpless. Without hesitation, Han raised his hand, launching a small, shimmering silver shield into the air—precisely the Yuan Gang Shield. As the shield expanded, a pale, hazy glow emerged upon its surface, forming a protective aura that enveloped Han. The bloodlight swept past in an instant, engulfing Han Li within it. A sharp tearing sound rang out, and suddenly, a formidable blade of nearly ten feet in length emerged from the bloodlight, striking hard against the luminous shield. The blade was unusually shaped—no wider than two fingers, thin as paper, shimmering with an eerie blood glow. The shield trembled and then cracked in segments. The blood blade then surged directly onto the core of the Yuan Gang shield. A flash of light rippled across the shield’s surface, which instantly smoothed out to a mirror-like finish. For a moment, the blood glow and silver shield interwove, creating a tense standoff. Han Li’s expression eased slightly, just as he began to relax, when the blood blade—without any prior warning—curved gracefully, like a venomous snake, weaving past the shield and darting in from the side. Its movements were so swift and unexpected that they seemed almost unbelievable. Han Li, however, truly felt as though bitten by a serpent, his body suddenly shooting backward. At the same time, he rapidly snapped his fingers, aiming at the blade. "Thud! Thud!" The sounds echoed continuously as十余 streams of jade-colored sword energy shot forth, only to be cleaved apart by the exceptionally sharp blood blade of Quan, with no pause at all, reaching directly to Han Li's body. Han Li's face paled, and as he opened his mouth, a shimmering blue glow enveloped an object and expelled it outside. "Clang!" The blood blade could not penetrate the glow, and thus was finally halted. A thunderous roar surged within him, and a layer of golden arcs instantly materialized around him. Where the arcs flashed, bloodlight shattered and dispersed, unable to approach within reach. Divine Thunder of Defense! Seeing this, the figure in darkness grew even more astonished, realizing he had encountered a formidable opponent. "Master Four-Scattered?" Han Li glanced toward the distant figure, speaking coldly. The figure said nothing, but the blood-sword emitted steady hums, suddenly enveloped in bloodlight, and shot back toward its origin. Then, the figure in darkness flickered, transforming into a streak of radiant light, and sped downward. A moment later, he vanished into a massive shadow below. "Master, are you all right?" The sudden attack had lasted only an instant. Gui Ling seemed utterly surprised and had not yet had the chance to act. Now, with growing anxiety, he approached to ask, fearing that Han Li might hold any blame. "Never mind, it truly bears a resemblance to the Dragon Blade. If not for my shield absorbing and rebounding part of the attacks, ordinary treasure would have been cleaved in two long ago." Han Li spoke calmly, lifting his hand to grasp the Yuan Gang shield and flipping it over to examine the surface. A fine, deep gash had clearly appeared on the shield! Han Li's eyes widened slightly, and his expression darkened. He poured a surge of spiritual energy into the shield, causing the surface to shimmer with silver light—the gash gradually faded and vanished. Han Li then folded the shield back into his hand and, with a simple motion, drew the Xitian Ding into his mouth. "Did Brother Han clearly see the figure's appearance?" Gui Ling couldn't help asking. "No, the figure was completely enveloped in luminous aura, making it impossible for me to penetrate and determine whether he was indeed a Fourth-Class True Immortal. However, his cultivation level appears to be rather modest," Han Li said slowly, then lowered his gaze toward the vast, dark structure below, his eyes narrowing as he pondered. Guilin had no idea what Han Li was thinking about, though he longed to go down immediately. He could only stand by quietly. "Guilin, friend! This hesitation shall count as the first time—treat it as if I had never seen you before. I hope that next time it's my turn to act, you won't harbor any other thoughts." Han Li spoke calmly, not lifting his head, and without waiting for Guilin to respond, he transformed into a streak of green light and sped downward. Besides the dark stone staircase descending just a short distance ahead, there were no other entrances. "Magistrate Tower! How does this resemble a tower at all!" Han Li murmured as he spoke. At that moment, Gui Ling alighted beside him. Hearing Han Li's remark, she quickly stepped forward to explain: "Master may not know, this Magistrate Tower differs from ordinary towers in the mortal world. It was constructed in reverse by ancient cultivators—its tip is at the bottom, and its base at the top. The more powerful the demons and spirits imprisoned beneath, the more formidable they are." "Ah, now I understand!" Han Li nodded in realization, then glanced around, as if completely unbothered by the earlier warning regarding the creature. This only deepened Gui Ling's sense of apprehension toward Han Li. Han Li raised his hand, tossed a moonstone into the air, where it floated above his head, and then called out to Gui Ling. With that, he stepped into the staircase, and the two finally entered the tower. The first few floors of the tower were vast and remarkably tranquil, with not a single ghostly figure in sight. Clearly, the cultivators who entered earlier had been wiped out completely. Yet the traces of combat suddenly multiplied, suggesting that the remaining cultivators fought even more fiercely to prevent others from advancing to the lower levels. When reaching the third level, a corpse with a scorched protective aura was found beside a stone pillar. Han Li stood there examining it for a while before finally confirming that he did not recognize the person—clearly one of the Ye family's cultivators. However, the person's cranial cavity had been ruptured, and his true essence had flown off, though it was uncertain whether he had successfully escaped or was ultimately eliminated during the chaos. By the time they reached the fourth level, no surprises were encountered. It was only at the fifth level that two additional corpses were discovered—one entirely green, clearly having died from a rare toxin, with his face swollen beyond recognition. Another one, however, was a large-bodied cultivator among the scattered practitioners who had drawn special attention from Han Li. Yet his massive head had tumbled to one side, and his body had been severed into more than seven or eight pieces by a flying sword. Watching the man's face, filled with disbelief, as though even at the moment of death he could not believe he had perished right here, Han Li, though deeply shaken, did not halt his progress. After casually reducing the body to ash, he solemnly led Gui Ling into the sixth layer. This time, however, he unexpectedly encountered a living person—a lady in imperial court attire, sealed within a massive block of ice. It was Bai Yaoyi. The woman was pressing her palms together in a series of gestures, holding a clear, translucent flying sword, her eyes closed. If not for the faint pulse of spiritual energy emanating from her through the ice, and if not for the pale, lifeless appearance of her face, Han Li would have thought she too had already perished. He did not immediately unseal the young lady, but first used his divine awareness to sweep through the entire layer, finding no other anomalies, before raising his hand and gently pressing it onto the massive ice. A soft "pffft" sound echoed as a layer of purple flame enveloped his palm. The originally pale, misty ice instantly absorbed this icy flame, its coldness being drawn in. In an instant, the massive ice shrank rapidly, shrinking from large to small. After a brief moment, Bai Yao Yi was finally released from within the ice. Once the final layer of cold ice had melted away from her body, Bai Yao Yi's eyelashes fluttered twice, and then she opened her eyes on her own. To her surprise, she found Han Li standing before her. The slight tension on her delicate face immediately eased. "Ah, it's Brother Han! I thought it was someone else all along!" She smiled weakly, as though her vital energy had been significantly depleted. "If I'm not mistaken, Master Bai practices a technique rooted in ice energy—did you perhaps seal yourself in ice just now?" Han Li furrowed his brow, glanced at the beautiful face before him, and then asked slowly. (Second update!)