Han Li flicked his fingers rapidly, each stroke leaving a brief flash of silver light that immediately surged into a vibrant burst. In a short while, the luminous shield began to boil, much like oil in a pot receiving a splash of cold water—countless runes emerged and started to rotate in a rhythmic, orderly pattern. Han Li kept his gaze fixed on the shield, his hand movements unceasing. Suddenly, he issued a low command, then swept his sleeve downward—dozens of array flags shot forth from the motion, spiraling before settling into an unusual formation above the shield. Under the humming of the flags, they gently trembled and emitted various hues of spiritual light. With a soft utterance, Han Li raised one hand and pressed firmly into the air. "Pffft!" All the flags dimmed, their spiritual lights interweaving and pulsing to form a complex, intricate light array that slowly rotated steadily at a low altitude. "Go," Han Li said, a blue glow flashing in his eyes as he once again pressed his finger against the Guanghan Command.
At once, the token trembled and shimmered with a flash of golden and silver light, then vanished into a specific point within the light array. Immediately thereafter, an eerie aura emanated from the array, followed by a series of resonant cries. Two beams of golden and silver light surged forth from the center of the array, striking precisely upon the silver light shield. The shield, which had remained motionless until then, emitted a sharp "crackling" sound upon contact and began to melt like spring snow. However, after a short while, the symbols surrounding the shield surged rapidly toward the point where the light beams landed, halting the melting process and even causing the shield to gradually thicken again. Seeing this, Han Li smiled instead of growing angry. With a single sweep of his hand over his storage bracelet, two additional orbs of golden and silver light shot out, revealing two more ordinary, ancient tokens—both of them Guanghan Seals. One was the token he had originally secretly retained; the other was the one he had recovered from a warrior of the Douli Rong clan, whom he had found inside the Yuanmagnetic Peak.
To his surprise, the one among the Rong族 who had refined the Changhan Command was not the most powerful Rong族 giant. Two Rong族 members who had been sealed within the Yuanmagnet Peak had been completely emptied of their storage bracelets and then transformed into ash by his Shenshen True Fire. Now, as soon as the two Changhan Commands were summoned and gently brushed into the luminous aura with his fingertip, they trembled and seamlessly integrated into the light array. The light array surged violently, emitting a deep, resonant roar. The streams of silver and gold light shooting out from the array instantly thickened to more than three times their original diameter. The silver light shield, which had previously managed to hold firm, now suffered renewed turbulence as its various symbols boiled and dissolved under the overwhelming power. After a period of about a cup of tea's time, a tremendous, thunderous explosion erupted under the expectation of Han Li. The silver light shield finally collapsed and dispersed, then vanished completely. Han Li was delighted, and with a single hand gesture, he pressed a seal and pointed it toward the light array in the sky.
With a deep rumble, the light array instantly collapsed and dispersed, reverting back into individual banner flags and three tokens. As the sleeve was swept once more toward the sky, a surge of emerald mist surged forth, instantly sweeping away both the banners and tokens. Turning his gaze downward, Han Li focused on the now exceptionally clear golden characters etched onto the stone wall. Though accustomed to calm composure, a visible spark of excitement flickered across his face. After an indeterminate length of time, a streak of azure light erupted from the great gully, spiraled through the air, and then materialized into a black mountain peak, which, in a single motion, expanded to match the scale and form of a true mountain, and plunged downward into the gully. A series of earth-shaking thunderclaps followed one after another. Under the relentless impact of the colossal black peak, the entire gully endured a violent tremor, as if the very ground were splitting apart, and was reduced by several dozen feet in height. The stretch of gully was nearly entirely flattened. As the emerald glow receded, Han Li's figure emerged clearly in the sky.
He glanced faintly downward at the valley below, and with a seemingly casual single hand motion, reached out toward it.
A massive mountain roared, swiftly shrinking into a streak of dark light that flashed back and vanished instantly into the sleeve of Han Li.
The glow on his body dimmed, and he then transformed into a streak of jade-green light, breaking through the air and vanishing.
Yet, Master Han had only left two days ago. Even with his extraordinary powers, he shouldn't have been so easily taken. After all, there were over a dozen beings of the same stage as ours on that side. The elder found it hard to believe as well. "The identity of the visitor is uncertain, but whether or not it is indeed Master Han will soon be clear." Moon Lady's eyes flashed, and with a single hand motion, a white silk handkerchief shot out, transforming into a luminous white veil that settled over the figure. In an instant, both the woman and the veil vanished. The elder nodded and, with a single hand gesture, produced a pale green banner from his palm, which then dissolved into light. The vast mountain peak now stood utterly empty. A flash of luminous light appeared on the horizon in one direction, and a streak of jade-green light surged forth, racing directly toward the island. The streak spiraled down and landed upon the emerald mountain peak of the island, then settled as the light faded, revealing Master Han's form.
With a subtle flash of blue light sweeping around, Han Li smiled. "Ladies, I've returned with the complete set of the Divine Method. Don't hesitate—come forward!"
"Indeed, it's Han brother!"
"Congratulations to Han brother!" The voices of Yue Xian and the elder Xu rose simultaneously, and as a shimmer of pale green light passed, both figures materialized nearby. Their faces lit up with joy.
"Han brother, you truly managed to obtain the entire set of the Divine Method for refining the Spirit?" The woman still couldn't believe it, her voice trembling slightly.
"Hehe, of course. If you don't believe me, simply take a look." Han Li smiled gently and raised his hand, where a jade scroll of jade green color shot out and soared toward her. Yue Xian was momentarily startled, yet instinctively reached out and caught the scroll in her hand, her eyes expressing a touch of hesitation. Han Li had given her the scroll so effortlessly—such a surprise to her.
The elder Xu stood by, also looking somewhat surprised. As for Han Li, he paid no attention to the two's astonished glances, merely maintaining a calm, gentle smile throughout. "Then I shall proceed without further hesitation!" Moon Princess steadied herself, scanned the jade scroll in her hands with her spiritual awareness, confirming that there were no unusual seals or restrictions, then smoothed away her expression of surprise, placing the scroll gently upon her forehead to begin carefully reviewing the contents recorded within. She claimed to understand the golden script—this seemed credible. After a while, her expression gradually began to shift, occasionally revealing thoughtful concentration and subtle signs of delight. Yet after a full cup of tea's worth of time, Moon Princess's demeanor grew steadily more serious, eventually turning into a state of growing concern and uncertainty. Seeing this, the elder Xu brushed his beard with a slight movement, his eyes flickering with interest. With a soft exhalation, she lowered her arm, gently shifting the scroll from her forehead, then offered a faint, wry smile to Han Li and the elder.
"Master Yue, is there something amiss? Isn't the golden seal script within the secret cave indeed the technique of refining the spirit?" Master Xu couldn't help but ask.
"The essence of the method is genuine, and it truly is the spirit-refining technique. However, upon a cursory glance, my younger sister noticed that the cultivation conditions are extremely rigorous—perhaps few among us in the spiritual realm can even begin to practice it. That makes sense, for this method was originally a secret art of the true immortals' realm; it's natural that it wouldn't suit us well. Nevertheless, the jade scroll contains only the first half of the method. Perhaps the second half holds another solution!" Master Yue glanced at Han Li meaningfully, speaking slowly and deliberately.
Upon hearing Han Li's explanation, Master Xu's expression subtly changed, and he turned to look at Han Li as well.
Han Li furrowed his brows slightly, but soon smoothed them out, speaking calmly:
"Yes, indeed, only half of the method is present here. Once the two of you have imparted the golden seal script to me, I will return the other half to you."
Xu Brother, Yue Xianzi—how do you find it?
"Ha ha, of course there's no issue. We, along with Yue, had originally agreed to pass on this true scripture to Han Brother in exchange for his methodological treatise. However, the Jin Zuan script is exceptionally profound and can only be conveyed orally; thus, it may take Han Brother some time to master it." After a hearty laugh, the elder nodded firmly and agreed.
"Since Han Brother has retrieved the treatise, I shall certainly uphold my end. Nevertheless, as we are so close to the secret cave, we shall seek a more tranquil location and then transmit the scripture to Han Brother there." Upon hearing Han's terms, Yue Xianzi smiled gracefully.
"Your suggestion is sound. Then let us set off immediately," Han smiled and nodded in agreement.
Thus, after a brief further discussion, the three of them each cast their light and swiftly vanished, forming three brilliant streaks of rainbow light that surged toward the horizon.
Five days after Han and his companions departed the island, a group of fifteen warriors from the Rong people—each with long hair—appeared in the sky above a distant deep gully.
A distinguished elder with a human face gazed downward at the vast gulf that had nearly been erased, his expression as solemn as still water. Meanwhile, the three of Han Li and his companions had already taken refuge in a small mountain far beyond countless miles. Inside a grand hall carved out within the mountain's core, the three sat cross-legged. Thanks to Han Li's exceptionally powerful divine awareness surpassing that of his peers, he swiftly mastered the entire set of Jin Zhuan scripts within just fifteen days, under the continuous instruction of the two others. Once he felt confident that he had fully integrated and understood the techniques, he promptly handed over the second half of the Ling Shen cultivation scripture. The elder and the Moon Immortal were delighted, each copying their own copies, and then immediately bid Han Li farewell, setting off in different directions. With only a short time remaining until the Guanghan Realm would close, they naturally began seeking out secluded locations to enter deep meditation and advance through their current developmental thresholds.