The location where Han Li stood was about twenty miles from the Elder's Tower. From afar, he gazed at the towering, sky-reaching stone tower of a deep green hue. As he knew, whenever the tower stood, both human and elven clans would send one elder at the Consolidation stage to reside there. Reflecting on this, Han Li felt a genuine sense of nostalgia. Back in the human realm, the Immortal-level cultivators were always elusive—like dragons seen only by their heads, never their bodies—making it difficult for ordinary people to meet them. But now, in this Tianyuan City, even elders at the Consolidation stage were so close by, and there was ample opportunity in the future to seek their guidance. It seemed that, until he could fully cleanse the foreign aura within himself, staying here would be quite favorable. Han Li silently pondered these thoughts. As for the dispute over the spiritual land with that man who frowned slightly—he had already faced off against cultivators at the Transcendent stage—his concern was naturally minimal. After a moment's further observation, a flash of green light emanated from Han Li's body, and he swiftly transformed into a streak of green light, racing back toward the Flying Spirit Hall. Back at his room, Han Li immediately activated the seal, then entered the inner chamber and settled cross-legged. Though he was confident about the battle three days hence, he naturally made no preparations at all. Before that, however, he still had a small matter to attend to. With a flick of his sleeve, he raised a delicate silver circular bracelet in his other hand. The bracelet appeared refined yet remarkably light, as though hollow. This was the Ling Sheng Ring, renowned alongside storage bracelets in the Spirit Realm, divided into several compartments that could simultaneously house different spirit beasts and insects. Since his journey to the Sunset Tomb, Han Li had transferred creatures such as the Gold-Eating Insect and the Soul-Calling Beast into it, and had long since discarded his original spirit-beast satchel. Now, with a simple gesture, he brushed his hand over the ring, and instantly a yellow orb the size of a fist emerged, rapidly expanding until it grew into a small creature about a foot in height, bound tightly by five green cords. It was precisely the mutated leopard-qilin beast captured by the spiritual race that day in the Tomb of the Setting Sun. From the memories of the devouring flame, Han Li had already learned that though this creature appeared no different from a common leopard, it was actually an immortal beast bearing traces of qilin blood. Moreover, as a mutated form of leopard-qilin, it had already achieved the strength of a Yuan-Enlightened cultivator even before reaching maturity. While recovering his inner energy, Han Li naturally considered ways to subdue this beast. However, it proved extremely wild and had begun to develop a sense of spirit, refusing to yield even at the brink of death. With no other choice, Han Li had only placed it within the Spiritual Beast Ring, intending to patiently wear down its wildness over time. Now, after being confined there for several decades, the beast finally finds itself unable to endure. Recently, it sent a message of submission from within the ring. Yet, due to the series of events involving his own celestial transformation and other matters, Han Li has simply lacked the time to attend to this matter. Now there are three days—enough time for him to first subdue this beast. As soon as the young creature emerged from the spirit-beast ring, it immediately emitted a plaintive, mournful cry, its pair of emerald eyes expressing a clearly human-like plea. With its compact, cat-like form, it appeared especially endearing. "I shall now implant a seal upon you. If you release the mythic power, I will lift the restraints upon you and grant you certain benefits. Otherwise, I shall imprison you for a hundred years." Han Li did not hesitate, stepping straight into a firm threat. Though the creature's intelligence was not particularly high, it clearly understood Han Li's words, and upon a slight tremor of its body, it could only nod its furry head repeatedly. Han Li smiled gently, then flipped his hand, bringing out a dozen slender silver needles. With a swift motion, he sent all the needles vanishing into the creature's body. Then, he produced a crimson scroll, exhaled a glob of pure blood onto it, and gently waved his finger, holding the scroll in place. A soft "pffft," the scroll transformed into a swirling mass of blood mist, hovering without dispersing. Han Li murmured incantations continuously, yet with a single palm press against his celestial crown, a jade-sized infant spirit emerged, its feet resting upon a small steaming cauldron. As soon as the spirit took form, it opened its mouth and expelled a sphere of green light. Upon encountering this green glow, the blood mist surged forth and immediately converged, merging seamlessly into a vibrant green-red flame. At this moment, the infant spirit raised both hands, sequentially casting several spells toward the flame. As the flame absorbed these incantations, it suddenly trembled, then surged and rolled violently, eventually solidifying into a ghostly face the size of a clenched fist—menacing and fierce. Han Li gently pointed his small hand at the creature. The ghost's face cracked open, as if alive, and then turned around with a roar, vanishing into the creature's head. The creature let out a loud cry, then collapsed instantly, its eyes rolling back, unconscious. At the same time, a shimmering light of green and red appeared on its body, flickering intermittently between light and dark. Seeing this, Han Li smiled with satisfaction, and with one hand, he reached out vacantly toward the small creature's body. "Thud!" The jade cord wrapped around the creature snapped inch by inch, dissolving into nothingness. Then Han Li paid no further attention to the creature, simply placing both hands on his knees and beginning to meditate. Throughout the remainder of the time, Han Li did not leave the chamber at all, and the three days passed in the blink of an eye. On the fourth day, early in the morning, a beam of fire broke through the outer seal and flew straight into the living room, then surged toward the chamber. However, as soon as the beam reached the chamber's door, a delicate layer of pale mist suddenly rippled across the surface, blocking the fire outside. The fire spiraled around the door several times, attempted to enter once more, but still failed. Then it began to emit a series of low hums. Suddenly, the door of the sealed chamber flashed with a deep green light, and a figure materialized mysteriously from within, catching the flames in his hand. It was Han Li, who had been in seclusion for three days. Now, his expression was calm, and a small creature resembling a lynx rested on his shoulders. He composedly immersed his consciousness into the flame ball in his hands. This was the transmission scroll sent by Yu Que Pavilion, announcing their bid for the sacred land. "Guangwu Hall," Han Li murmured, rubbing his hands together, and the flame ball instantly vanished. Then he strode purposefully toward the main door. Two hours later, hovering above the open courtyard of a vast hall, Han Li floated gracefully amidst a vast, hazy light screen. Outside the screen, a tall man with a golden armor and a scarred face stood with his arms folded, his expression cold and composed. Time passed slowly. Han Li remained motionless, waiting for a meal's worth of time. Even the heavily armored man grew slightly impatient, occasionally glancing up at the seven blazing suns in the sky, as if counting the minutes. Suddenly, a flash of brilliance appeared on the horizon—a streak of blue light shot toward them and arrived at the light barrier within moments. The glow faded, revealing a cultivator. "Forgive me, senior! I came a little late due to refining my divine artifact. Did I miss the combat period?" He bowed politely, his face filled with apology. This man was the elderly man named Wang. "Hmph! If you had arrived even a bit later, your qualification would have been canceled. You're lucky to have arrived just in time. Enter now," the scar-faced armored cultivator said, sweeping his gaze over the impatient man with impatience. Then, he pressed his palms together, casting a golden seal of magic directly at the white light barrier. Suddenly, the ethereal veil flashed brilliantly, and in a violent tremor, a passage several zhang wide opened before the Wu-family man. "Thank you, elder." The Wu-family man was delighted, his body shifting slightly, and he instantly transformed into a streak of vibrant blue light, rushing through the veil. When he reappeared before Han Li, he glanced at him, his face contorting into a grim, fierce smile. "Excellent! You've truly come. It seems you do have some courage. You dared to face me at your initial stage of cultivation." The man with the arched brow said coldly. Han Li merely lifted the corner of his mouth slightly, offering a lazy, indifferent smile, as if he had no intention of engaging in conversation with him. Seeing this, the man with the arched brow was instantly furious. The restrained anger he had previously held surged once again. "Listen closely," he declared, "the contest on the spiritual land has no restrictions. As long as you step outside the range of the seals, any means you wish may be employed." Unless one voluntarily steps forward to concede, I will not intervene at all. If you feel your strength is insufficient, it would be wise to do so sooner rather than later. While cases of death due to the spiritual land conflicts are relatively rare, it is common for fighters to be severely wounded and fall one stage in their cultivation. Should there be no objections, the match shall now begin." The scar-faced cultivator spoke with his usual composed tone. Han Li and the man with a furrowed brow watched each other silently, remaining utterly silent. The golden-armored cultivator nodded and uttered the words, "Begin." In an instant, both Han Li and the man with a furrowed brow launched their attacks. Facing an opponent who treated even a late-stage Shen Shen cultivator with great courtesy, Han Li naturally held no slight regard. With a simple flick of his sleeve, seventy-two swords of about one span in length surged forth, shimmering in golden light and forming radiant golden lotus blossoms that spiraled around and circled his body in constant motion. At the same time, he opened his mouth again, and a small tripod was spurted out, instantly expanding into a towering tripod several zhang high, emitting resonant hums as it radiated brilliant light. It was the Xutian Sacred Tripod! Meanwhile, the man with a furrowed brow on the other side pressed a series of hand seals, and points of blue light burst forth from his body. These blue specks, only rice-grain sized, surged continuously, rapidly multiplying until they densely covered him, almost completely engulfing him. Then, with his other hand, he reached out toward the void, and a brilliant silver glow flashed, forming a luminous silver wheel in his hands—about the size of a palm, yet remarkably ancient, with intricate incantations engraved upon its surface, clearly no ordinary object. He tossed the silver wheel into the air, where it immediately spun smoothly like a glowing silver orb, steadily expanding and swelling with each chant of incantations. Soon, the wheel grew to several zhang in diameter, shining like a bright silver sun, suspended steadily above the man's head. Having completed his spell, he glanced toward the opposite side, his face momentarily pale with surprise. The seventy-two golden swords remained unremarkable, but upon seeing the massive cauldron emitting a continuous hum, he felt a sudden sense of alarm! (Second chapter!