At the heart of the misty sea, the sky remained shimmering with silver light, yet beyond that, there was not a single cloud or mist to be seen, nor any sign of a gentle breeze. Within a radius of a hundred miles, not a single sound could be heard—everything seemed suspended, as though held by some mysterious energy. Time passed slowly, and the enigmatic phenomenon within the misty sea remained unchanged. However, on the second day, several dark spots appeared within the golden sun, gently pulsing. By the third day, these spots coalesced into a distinct shadow at the center of the sun. On the fourth day, the shadow began to stretch and thin out. On the fifth day, a long, slender black line emerged clearly on the sun's surface, appearing from afar like a closed, golden eye—most astonishing of all. On the sixth day, the celestial phenomena remained unchanged, though the golden light emitted by the sun grew increasingly intense and brilliant. On the seventh day at noon, Han Li, who had been meditating quietly within the abode, finally opened his eyes. At the same time, the golden giant eye formed from the sun underwent a subtle distortion and blurring of its black lines, and gradually opened itself with a slow, deliberate motion. Within the black light, a seven-colored luminous sphere resembling a pupil suddenly emerged. The surface of the sphere shimmered and shifted in an ever-changing manner, creating an astonishing sense of penetrating all things in the universe. A moment later, a long, resonant roar, reminiscent of a dragon's cry, burst forth from the mountain peak, rising in a clear, melodious tone all the way to the heavens. Suddenly, a faint figure glowing with seven hues emitted a soft "Hm?" and then exclaimed several times, "Strange." "Xuanming, what's going on? Why are you saying these strange things?" asked a neighboring figure, radiating white light, with a slightly puzzled tone. "There's someone practicing the 'Refining the Spirit' technique, and they've achieved the first stage. The celestial phenomena triggered by this accomplishment have been detected by my monitoring celestial artifact," the seven-colored figure replied after a brief hesitation. "The Refining the Spirit technique? This method has long been designated as a forbidden art across all immortal realms—how dare anyone take the risk to practice it? Even then, why not dispatch someone to capture the practitioner? What's there to be surprised about?" the white-lit figure remained astonished. "If it truly is so, then I shall naturally remain silent. The celestial responses detected by my monitoring artifact originate from a small spiritual realm—not from practitioners within the immortal realms," the seven-colored figure smiled slightly, adding. "From the lower realms?" Indeed, it was somewhat unexpected—seemingly a traveler from the lower realm who brought this technique down with them. Nevertheless, it no longer matters. The Art of Spiritual Refinement is already difficult even for the immortals of our celestial realm; how could a small spiritual realm like this possibly reach its final stage? The figure of light likewise paused, then smiled and said, "Agreed. Though I hold the position of oversight, I am not personally acquainted with practitioners from this very realm, so I had never previously been involved in this matter. Even if this person miraculously achieves the technique, they would inevitably be detected by the reception platform during their journey to transcend and ascend." The seven-colored figure responded with a warm smile. Their conversation lasted only a few brief exchanges. The others, having heard their remarks, began to pay a little more attention, but upon learning that it was a being from the lower realm who had mastered the technique, they dismissed it just as easily. One of them then smiled and interjected with a remark on another matter, and the conversation shifted to other topics. The seven-colored figure, however, completely dropped the subject, as though they had truly forgotten it entirely. …Han Li exhaled a long, steady breath, feeling his awareness grow by a factor of two. The extraordinary sense of connection he now had with the world filled him with profound delight. He had finally succeeded in mastering the first stage of the Spiritual Refinement Technique. Though he had not yet reached the Consolidation stage, even a fully accomplished late-stage Consolidation cultivator's spiritual perception was no greater than this. His consciousness instantly pierced through the inner chamber and reached beyond the mountain peak. Yet, upon closer inspection, his brow furrowed slightly. The celestial phenomena in the sky had long since vanished and dispersed, while the outside world lay in a state of disorder. The previous blizzard and gale had been severe—half of the nearby flowers and trees had been completely uprooted, and the remaining ones lay bent and trembling, as if barely holding on. The upper half of the mountain itself was now bare and desolate, appearing especially barren. Han Li circled the area several times with his awareness and then extended his perception further, instantly surveying everything within a thousand li. Suddenly, his expression changed, and his divine awareness paused at a certain mountain peak along the edge of the misty sea, then fully enveloped the entire mountain peak beneath it. Deep within the mountain foot, a cave dwelling seemed to subtly emit the divine awareness fluctuations of a Lingxu-level cultivator. Although several layers of seals were set outside the cave, they appeared as if mere paper in the presence of Han Li's powerful divine awareness. A single strand of divine awareness solidified and pierced through these multiple layers of seals, directly arriving at the point where the sensation was detected. Inside a sealed chamber, a young, elegant man dressed in a white robe was seated meditatively. Han Li's divine awareness, not concealed and reinforced by his deliberate efforts to break through the seals, was immediately noticed upon entering the chamber. The man with closed eyes opened them, smiled, and said, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Yun from Yueshan Valley in the southern mountains. Congratulations on your great cultivation achievements!" "Yueshan Valley? Is that the Yueshan Valley near Chenwu City?" Han Li paused, slightly uncertain. "Indeed," the man replied with a smile. "That is precisely "Have you heard of the Gu family?" This time, even the white-robed man was somewhat surprised. "Though I may not be intimately familiar with the Gu family, I do know something about the Duyuan Mountain clan. So, the cultivator rumored to have retired here in the mountains—yes, that must be one of your Gu family members." Han Li spoke slowly. "Hehe, I'm sure you've heard of the True Spirit Clans, haven't you? Our Gu family has been passing down this lineage since ancient times. To preserve the purity of our bloodline, we've naturally maintained limited contact with the outside world. While not many are aware of this, with your cultivation abilities, word will surely spread eventually." The white-robed man chuckled softly. "The True Spirit Clans—do you know of the Ye and Long families?" Han Li paused briefly, then asked suddenly. "The Ye and Long families are among the largest and most prominent within the True Spirit Clans. Though our Gu family is strong, we still consider ourselves somewhat behind when compared to these two. Is it because you know someone from either of these families?" "The robed figure hesitated slightly. 'Indeed, I have had some acquaintance with the offspring of both families, though not particularly close. Yet it is surprising that you have suddenly appeared here and chosen to stay—what might be the reason?' Han Li asked calmly. Han Li's voice gradually faded, and after a while, his spirit awareness dissolved and vanished within the chamber. Half an hour later, a streak of white light surged forth from below the mountain, flashing several times before reaching the edge of the misty sea some dozen li away. The previously still misty sea, with several large silver symbols briefly glowing, suddenly parted on both sides. A passage several zhang wide instantly appeared, extending straight into the depths of the misty sea. Gu Yun showed no hesitation; as soon as her light form took flight, she entered the passage, and shortly afterward, the white light disappeared into its depths. Then, the separated mist rolled back and seamlessly reunited as before. When Gu Yun arrived at the mountain peak at the center of the misty sea, Han Li had already stepped out of the gate of the pavilion, smiling warmly and waiting there. Seeing Han Li truly as she had expected—a cultivator of late stage of True Void Realm—Gu Yun's smile grew even more radiant. After a few polite exchanges, the two proceeded into the pavilion, one following the other. It was unclear what discussions had taken place between Han Li and the other party within the estate, but after nearly half a day, this cultivator from the Gu family finally stepped out with a look of regret, then soared away from the misty sea. Upon returning to his original residence, Gu Yun delivered a few instructions to an elder of the Gu family's branch before drifting off. At the same time, Han Li remained inside his inner sanctuary, gently handling a white jade scroll in his hands, deeply contemplative. "The Long family holds the esteemed title of the First Family of True Spirit Lineages, with a True Body cultivator stationed within the family. I shall need to keep a close eye on them in the future." Han Li murmured these words softly, then with a flash of light, the jade scroll vanished from his hands. This scroll had been gifted by Gu Yun, containing information about the True Spirit lineages that gave Han Li a general understanding of the human True Spirit families. Of course, these were not particularly secret matters—by the time cultivators reached the Lingxu stage, they would gradually learn of such things through various channels. The Gu family cultivator had merely made a courtesy visit. It was only after considering that the Llong family, a fellow True Spirit lineage, had suffered a severe setback when he had once strongly opposed them—thus undermining their grand strategic initiative against the Ye family—that Han Li invited him to his cave residence. Though several centuries had passed, such a span was hardly sufficient for the Llong family to forget the incident. Since Han Li had returned to the human race and intended to reside there for the long term, he naturally needed to first gain an understanding and establish defenses. That is why, upon hearing Gu Yun's identity, he promptly extended the invitation. As he had anticipated, Gu Yun, after only a brief conversation, proposed that Han Li join the Gu family as a guest senior elder. Han Li naturally declined, gracefully. With his current cultivation level and abilities, he could not be content to serve merely as a junior figure within any one family. Moreover, given his own standing and prestige, the generous terms offered by Gu Yun failed to make any impression on him. Han Li pondered the matter with a fluctuating expression for a while, then shook his head and set it aside. With a slight flick of his wrist, a scroll about a foot long suddenly floated before him.