"It seems that merely enduring rigorous cultivation won't be enough to break through this stage within a short time—only another approach will do," Han Li murmured to himself. At that moment, he suddenly flipped his hand, revealing a black phoenix seal—precisely the silver vial containing three Black Flame Pills. Though the Black Flame Pills were renowned as the ideal elixir for overcoming the late stage of the Huashen phase, they were also effective for cultivators at the mid-Huashen level. However, their potency was often too strong; for cultivators with insufficient修为 or frail bodies, the contained black phoenix flame might prove fatal. Han Li, blessed with the Spirit-Consuming Heavenly Fire and having diligently cultivated both his spiritual and physical foundations, had no such concerns. He could certainly take the pills to aid his current breakthrough. Yet, doing so would mean sacrificing one of the Black Flame Pills when advancing to the Lianxi stage, thereby significantly reducing his chances of success. After all, such a rare and precious elixir was not easily encountered. His current mid-stage bottleneck was merely a matter of time—eventually, a breakthrough would surely come. Countless cultivators throughout their lives found themselves stalled at the late Stage of Transformation, and the relative scarcity of Liangxu cultivators compared to those at the Transformation level clearly demonstrated how difficult it was to advance. Therefore, when breaking through this bottleneck, the more auxiliary pills the better. After carefully pondering for a long time, Han Li finally smiled faintly, a touch of sorrow on his lips, and gently placed the medicine bottles back into his storage bracelet. Yet he did not intend to remain in seclusion any longer. He rose and walked toward the main door of the chamber. Outside the chamber, a giant ape automaton had been waiting there since the beginning. Han Li raised an eyebrow, still without speaking, when suddenly the automaton took a decisive step forward and presented him a slender, pale-yellow staff-like object, adorned with intricate patterns of peculiar dark green veins—exactly the Xuan Tian fruit. Upon seeing this item, Han Li's expression grew serious. He grasped it single-handedly, drawing it into his hands, and at the same time, his eyes flashed with a bright blue glow, directly penetrating through to its core. As a result, the luminous orb inside—originally no larger than a soybean—had now grown to the size of a thumb. Han Li held the treasure in his hands, feeling a touch of frustration. He had naturally carefully investigated various ancient books and scrolls in the classical bookstores of Tianyuan City regarding the Xuan Tian Fruit. Yet strangely, no matter how far back in time the sources went, not a single mention of this fruit appeared. Had it not been for the materials he had acquired during his time on the Human World relating to the Xuan Tian Immortal Tree and its vines, he might have been completely unaware of what the Xuan Tian Fruit even was. Nevertheless, since the fruit itself could contain the fundamental laws of an entire realm, it was undoubtedly a celestial-level treasure. Han Li had never let a single word slip about this. After attempting to infuse the fruit with spiritual energy once more without success, he gently traced his fingers over it, his expression growing thoughtful. Over the years, he has continuously infused the fruit with a mysterious green essence, and aside from the white spots growing slightly larger, no other abnormalities have been observed. Although he is uncertain whether a single infusion of spiritual liquid will truly enable the fruit to absorb and utilize it, he has now only been able to proceed with this method. After carefully storing the Xuan Tian fruit, Han Li then went to inspect the herb garden. There, the originally planted spiritual herbs, such as the Zhilong fruits, had already matured fully, and the puppets had specifically gathered a batch of them, storing them in another storage bracelet. Han Li naturally rejoiced and immediately transferred these spiritual fruits into his own personal storage bracelet. After completing these tasks, Han Li raised a single hand toward the puppet that had been accompanying him. Instantly, the second prenatal stage flew out of the giant ape puppet, spiraling once before vanishing back into its body. Han Li's eyes slightly narrowed, as if receiving information. After a moment, he slapped his back and released his second immaterial infant spirit, returning it to the puppet, while冷笑ing. "These mere mid-tier immortal beasts dare to come again? It seems they've found some allies." With that, Han Li strode steadily toward a hall within the dwelling. There, a massive array and a platform resembling a shrine stood quietly. The platform was positioned at the heart of the array, upon which a octagonal ritual disk was solemnly placed. Han Li said nothing, merely raised his hands and cast several hand seals upon the array. A low hum resonated, and the entire array shimmered with a series of white glows. As the white light danced, a silver luminous screen emerged on the octagonal disk, dotted with flickering white points that spread across the entire surface. When Han Li had established this dwelling, he had strategically placed a vast number of Wanhong Jades within a radius of several dozen miles around it. Now, with a mere glance across the luminous screen, he immediately spotted several flickering black spots shimmering at a location some twenty miles away. Han Li pressed two hand seals, and a vibrant green glow surged around him, transforming him into a streak of jade-green light that swiftly departed the hall. After a few flashes, he vanished completely, leaving only a trace behind. At such a distance, with Han Li's astonishing speed of travel, he reached his destination in barely a few breaths. There, a three-headed, azure-hued giant serpent, a small jade-colored creature with a cow's head and a lion's body, and a hazy gray light form were floating at a low altitude, whispering to one another. When Han Li materialized suddenly in the sky, the three creatures reacted promptly, instantly transforming into two swirling gusts of magical wind and one gray glow, scattering in all directions. But Han Li hummed lightly, and from one of his sleeves, three streaks of red light shot out, flashing briefly before mysteriously appearing behind the妖wind and the gray glow. The red light spread out, tightly ensnaring the three fleeing creatures, rendering them completely immobile. Han Li then gently shook his sleeve, drawing the three red threads taut, and with a swift pull, brought the three creatures firmly to his before. The ox-headed beast and the giant serpent both stared with expressions of alarm, while the creature enclosed within the gray glow suddenly spoke out. Though the tone was strange and unfamiliar, Han Li barely understood a word, yet he sensed a clear sense of threat in the voice. Han Li's expression darkened, and he said nothing, merely reaching out with his hand toward the creature in the gray glow. A brilliant, resplendent cascade of five-colored light surged forth. As soon as the gray glow shield protecting the creature was touched by the five-colored light, it melted and dissolved like spring snow. The creature itself then swiftly materialized in Han Li's hands, and he pressed his fingers firmly onto its head. This creature's body was only about half a zhang long, shimmering with golden scales, and it was a fish spirit with limbs growing from its abdomen. Its fish head even transformed into a face resembling a human man, though the face remained on the fish's head—naturally, this made the sight deeply unsettling. Han Li had encountered countless strange beasts, and though this six-tier fish spirit was formidable, it could not stir any reaction in him. Suddenly, the palm pressing against the creature's head burst forth with golden light. The spirit instantly cried out in agony, shuddered violently, and then went rigid, falling unconscious. Han Li directly employed the Soul-Searching Technique, beginning to extract what he needed from the spirit's spiritual essence. The three-headed serpent and the ox-headed small beast standing nearby were terrified, trembling all over, their eyes filled with fear. With Han Li's current powers, performing a soul-searching on a six-tier beast was a simple task—within just one cup of tea's time, he had thoroughly extracted everything from the spirit's mind. "The Tianpeng Clan, the Devotees, the Precious Light Master!" These words successively appeared in Han Li's mind, causing him to be momentarily stunned. He then drew back the golden mist in his hands and suddenly loosened his fingers. Instantly, the fish spirit plummeted straight downward from the sky. At that moment, the red silk binding the spirit swelled in volume, transforming into a thick, blazing fire chain, which then surged out, instantly enveloping the spirit in a bright crimson flame—reducing it to ashes within moments. The fire chain flickered and swiftly retracted into a thin red silk strand, vanishing seamlessly into the sleeve of Han Li. Only then did Han Li turn his head, his gaze settling on the other two spirits, his expression unchanged. "You must have quite the nerve," he said after a brief silence, "to dare to lay claim to my abode for such humble wood-bell flowers?" He spoke in an unfamiliar language, one he had mastered through the soul-searching ritual. This experience not only enabled him to grasp the language but also gave him a clear understanding of why these mid-tier beasts had repeatedly targeted his dwelling. "Without the Wood Bell Flower, I won't be able to gather enough offerings from my peers in cultivation at Black Yin Mountain, and inevitably, the Tian Peng Clan will strip my essence and re-shatter my spiritual awareness. Even though I know you possess great prowess, I have no choice but to make an attempt." Clearly, the ox-headed creature possessed the highest intelligence and spoke first. "The Wood Bell Flower—do you mean this kind of spiritual herb?" Han Li chuckled and, with a simple hand motion, suddenly revealed a small purple blossom in his hand, resembling a bell and emitting a distinct fragrance. "Exactly this one. Though Black Yin Mountain boasts many spiritual peaks, this flower is now only found in the mountain where you reside." The ox-headed creature stared intently at the blossom in Han Li's hand for a long while before finally letting out a wry smile. "The spiritual essence contained in this flower is not particularly abundant, nor can it be used to prepare fine elixirs or pills. Yet, in your thousand-year tradition of offerings, it ranks first. That is rather unusual." Without it, you truly might have been severely punished by those celestial pterodactyls. Yet, you came to me, seeking a sea dragon beast only recently taking its humanoid form, and expected to conquer my abode—how very overconfident of you. Indeed, offering ten such golden essence crystal insects as compensation—quite a substantial investment. However, as I understand, these rare hybrid beings—part crystal, part insect—are typically hidden deep within various precious underground minerals, hard to locate and discover. Even when encountered, once seized, they instantly lose all vitality and turn into solid crystal. How, then, did you manage to capture living golden essence crystal insects? Han Li stroked his chin, his eyes flashing with sharp insight, and then casually asked, “As for this matter, I’d be glad to hear it. Indeed, when this region was first discovered by the celestial pterodactyls, there were no fewer than those among us in the Black Hidden Mountain Range who surpassed our own level of cultivation. Yet they were all wiped out by the three elder patriarchs of the Tianpeng Clan. It is only because of our unique talents—working together, we have been able to gather the offerings they require—that we are still allowed to continue our cultivation here. Otherwise, how could we have survived until today! Suddenly, a cold laugh erupted from the ox-headed creature. (Second update!) ------------ Two chapters updated. Last 24 hours—please vote for a monthly subscription. It's the last day of August—we're asking for your support at month's end! Don't let your votes go to waste. Additionally, last autumn, several enthusiastic readers organized the first Book Review Contest to promote and support the "Commoners" section, and to invigorate the book review community. Since then, the Commoners section has become more vibrant and lively. 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