Though deeply astonished, the purple-haired woman remained silent, her gaze shifting as she watched the actions behind Han Li. However, Han Li merely glanced briefly at the few wooden stands behind him and then immediately proceeded to the last row, where he removed a seemingly compass-like artifact from one of the stands and turned toward the hall's entrance. Upon seeing this, the purple-haired woman smiled gently, her eyes gleaming. "Han brother has chosen the Yin Compass—most astute indeed. With this item, even in the most perilous parts of the Huanxiao Desert, one need not fear getting lost in direction. It appears that your knowledge of the Huanxiao Desert surpasses what I had anticipated. Yet, your earlier choice of the unusual Yimago Gold is truly unexpected." "Nothing remarkable. In fact, I am preparing to craft a rather unique magical artifact, and I simply needed a large quantity of such Yimago Gold." "Now that I've seen it in your treasure vault, I naturally won't let it go." Han Li responded with his usual calm and vague tone. "Ah, then I must congratulate you, Brother Han. Now, let's both leave the vault first. The seals here have merely been temporarily shut down and will soon re-activate on their own." Though the purple-haired woman remained skeptical, she didn't press further with any insistent questions. "Of course, Madam Immortal, please!" Han readily agreed and stepped several paces back to join her beside. With a single hand gesture toward the empty hall, the jade pendant that had vanished reappeared, flashing once, then transforming into a beam of white light and shooting back. Only then did the woman gently exhale, her mind finally easing. Though this vault was the least valuable among the Bai family's several treasuries, it had still been painstakingly accumulated over tens of thousands of years by countless Bai family members—she naturally didn't want any mishaps. "I have one more matter to ask, Madam Immortal. Could you kindly clarify it for me?" As Han Li stepped out of the pavilion with the purple-haired woman, he suddenly asked, "Han brother, please go ahead and say whatever you'd like—my lady and the Daoist friend have known each other for some time, so there's no reason we can't speak frankly." A brief surprise flashed in the purple-haired woman's eyes, which quickly faded as she smiled and replied, "Then, I shall ask directly. Master Han wishes to know where the strange magical gold stored in the treasure vault originates, and how it came into the Bai family's hands?" Han Li asked calmly. "Strange magical gold! Hah! If it were any other material used for magical artifacts, I might need to consult someone else, but with this particular one, I am quite certain about it," the purple-haired woman said, first startled, then light-heartedly chuckling. "Ah, then I'd be most grateful if you could enlighten me," Han Li thought pleased beneath his composed expression, yet remained unflinching in his question. The purple-haired woman glanced steadily at Han Li's face, finding no obvious anomaly, and felt a touch of disappointment. After a moment's thought, she spoke with a slightly mysterious air: "This strange magical gold has only been stored in our treasury for a few years. In fact, Brother Han should have known about it long before now." "Indeed!" Henrik was momentarily startled, now somewhat puzzled. "Correct. Regarding the blood-teeth rice, didn't Brother Han once inquire with me and my brother about it? This magical gold reached us through the same channel. The difference is that, at the time of the transaction, the blood-teeth rice was the primary item, while this magical gold was merely a complimentary gift." The purple-haired woman spoke calmly, with a composed demeanor. "Ah, so it's possible that this magical gold originates from the very region where the blood-teeth rice is grown!" Han Li stroked his chin, thoughtfully. "But I cannot be certain about that." All I can say is that the person who traded with our Bai family for Blood-Teeth Rice must have come from 'Blue Waterfall Lake.' The purple-haired woman blinked her beautiful eyes and said so. "Thank you, Lady, for the information. I shall surely remember this favor." Han Li nodded and bowed slightly to the woman. "It's nothing at all. The favor you rendered during your rescue at the Fire Cloud Vein Mine—my younger sister hasn't had a chance to properly thank you yet." The purple-haired woman smiled gracefully and spoke with gentle ease. Seeing the woman's composed demeanor, Han Li smiled slightly and said nothing further, following her to the adjacent hall. Upon returning to the hall, Han Li found the bearded man again, and after a brief conversation, he excused himself and departed. This time, two elder ancestors from the Bai family personally escorted Han Li all the way to the main gate of the Bai family fortress before they returned together to the hall. "Which three treasures did the candidate select?" the bearded man asked the purple-haired woman as soon as he sat back down. Previously, when it came to Han Li's face, he had said nothing about it. "One box of Golden Whale Beads, one piece of Strange Demon Gold, and one panel of Yin Luo Compass!" the purple-haired woman replied truthfully. "Hm, he's taken these three items. They aren't among the most valuable treasures in the vault—this does seem unusual." The Han man frowned slightly. "Indeed, I find this rather strange as well. The Golden Whale Beads and the Yin Luo Compass are acceptable. But the Strange Demon Gold—well, in our eyes, it's not particularly valuable." The purple-haired woman nodded in agreement. "Did he say anything else?" "He gave only surface-level reasons, and then asked a few questions about the origin and source of this Strange Demon Gold." The purple-haired woman replied without hesitation. "So it appears he's genuinely interested in this Strange Demon Gold—seems like he needs a substantial quantity. But as far as I remember, several shops in the Huan Ye City already sell this Strange Demon Gold. I didn't see him going out to seek it or purchase it earlier." "The yellow-haired man still found himself puzzled. 'Could it be that the strange magical gold in the treasury has some other secret?' the purple-haired woman recalled the earlier events in the treasury, and unexpectedly revealed the truth. 'What secret could there be? We both personally inspected that piece of magical gold before placing it in the treasury—it was simply a larger piece of regular magical gold!' The man shook his head dismissively. 'Well, regardless of whatever hidden significance it holds, this matter has little connection to our Bai family. Brother has also sustained some vital energy loss during his recent journey—perhaps it's best for him to retreat and recuperate. In the meantime, I'll take charge of the family affairs myself, so as to prevent the other clans from making any subtle moves.' The purple-haired woman suddenly smiled, her expression relaxed. 'That's true. As long as the young Han doesn't harbor any ill will toward us, it doesn't matter what plans he may have. Then I'll begin my retreat tomorrow. From now on, you'll take care of the family's daily and major matters.' The yellow-haired man thought for a moment and then smiled faintly, responding. Naturally, the woman spoke a stream of reassuring words to the man. … When Han Li returned to his residence by beast-carriage, the sky had gradually grown dusky. Upon seeing Han Li's return, Zhu Guo'er could not hide her joy. Without Han Li, the Magus-Prince protecting her, she would likely remain under the yoke of servitude for a long time. Though Han Li had once extracted her soul, he had shown no cruelty or harshness toward her since. This naturally made the young girl unwilling to endure another harsh Magus as her master. With only a few words, Han Li sent the girl away from the top floor and activated all the previously set incantations and seals, then settled himself upon a mat. After a brief pause, he turned his palm, and instantly a jade box appeared in his hand. With a swift motion of his sleeve brushing against the lid, a surge of azure light shot forth, instantly rolling down the several talismans on the cover. The lid opened of its own accord, revealing a golden orb within. About the size of a thumb, its surface was exceptionally smooth, and a subtle fishy aroma wafted gently from it. Han Li's eyes flashed as he lightly touched the orb with a finger, sending a brief streak of green light that instantly vanished into the sphere. After a short while, waves of roaring sound surged across the surface of the orb, followed by a soft, golden haze that spread out and then coalesced into a delicate, miniature whale silhouette, which circled and danced around the orb in graceful motion. The figure was about a foot in size, and its movements were lifelike and vivid. Han Li remained expressionless at first, yet suddenly extended a hand from his sleeve—pure and jade-white—and spread his fingers, plunging them into the golden light. With a firm grasp, he caught the orb in his palm. A flash of azure light passed over his face, and pure magical energy flowed continuously into the orb. At that moment, the golden orb burst forth with a brilliant glow, and the originally scale-sized golden whale silhouette suddenly swelled to dozens of times its original size, stretching over ten zhang in length and nearly filling the entire top floor of the pavilion. On the massive head of the enlarged golden whale, a golden horn of a cun in length emerged, and clusters of golden scales of varying sizes appeared across its skin, making it appear fierce and intimidating. Han Li smiled slightly, gently loosening his fingers and severing the magical force he had infused into the orb. Instantly, the whale silhouette dispersed into scattered golden points, and the orb gradually dimmed, returning to its normal state. Only then did Han Li place the orb back into the jade box and resealed it with the talisman, carefully storing it within the bamboo house bracelet. He had naturally chosen this golden whale orb for a specific reason, though it remained uncertain whether it would ultimately prove useful. Nevertheless, his greatest gain on this journey was not the rare spiritual orb itself, but rather the block of unusual magical gold the size of a head. Han Li's face lit up with a rare spark of excitement as he thought of that magical gold. After taking a deep breath, he gave a gentle shake of his wrist storage bracelet. Instantly, amid a brilliant white glow, the large, black-and-white mineral stone materialized out of thin air and hovered quietly before him, motionless. With a simple finger movement, he swept his hand through the air toward the stone. "Pop!" A flash of emerald light passed through—then the black-and-white stone split neatly in two, and a egg-sized object fell out from the center. With a single hand motion, an invisible force surged outward and wrapped around the object, instantly drawing it into his palm—revealing a grayish, crystalline orb. Han Li gazed at this gray-white orb, his eyes blazing with enthusiasm. He slowly raised his arm, gradually drawing it closer to the orb with steady, focused intent. As he did so, the sleeves of his robe burst open in patches along his arm, revealing a series of gleaming golden scales, making his entire arm noticeably thicker. ------------ Volume X: The War in the Magic Realm With a simple expansion of his entire palm, he manifested a golden hand that grasped the crystal orb firmly. The tips of his fingers flashed with golden light, and countless golden characters surged forth from his palm, instantly enveloping the crystal orb in a solid golden sphere. Seeing this, Han Li exhaled gently and murmured a few words under his breath, while delicate crystalline filaments sprouted from each fingertip and swiftly penetrated the golden sphere. At that moment, a faint, almost imperceptible gray-white gas emerged along the filaments from within the sphere, then was restrained by an invisible force and captured entirely within Han Li's palm. Thereafter, Han Li closed his eyes and silently began to refine this strange energy. Now, his body shimmered with a gently fluctuating golden glow, and his aura alternated between strong and weak, appearing quite unusual. After several hours, when he opened his eyes once more, his face was filled with joy, clearly sensing that his internal qi had strengthened once again. "Indeed, the energy is exactly the same as that found in the previous piece of Yishema Gold. Therefore, as long as I can locate more such Yishema Gold, it should be entirely possible to raise my qi cultivation directly to the late Consolidation stage, even the Great Perfection level. That would save over a thousand years of grueling cultivation—so, if the opportunity arises, I truly must make a visit to Blue Cascade Lake." Han Li murmured these thoughts, his expression shifting between clouded and composed. However, the gray-white gas he had refined accounted for no more than one-tenth of the total energy contained within the crystal sphere. Should he fully extract all the energy, it would elevate his magical prowess by over ten percent—an unexpected bonus indeed. Yet, to be safe, Han Li did not intend to refine all the energy at once. Instead, he planned to spend over ten days, refining only a small portion at a time and then solidifying his cultivation level afterward. This would prevent his cultivation from advancing too rapidly and avoid any unforeseen complications. After all, the mysterious energy he had acquired this time was ten times greater than that from the previous instance. Once his decision was made, Han Li simply shook his sleeve, and several dozen gold and silver scrolls fluttered out, swiftly affixed to the golden orb, sealing it firmly in place. Then, he retrieved a small, jade-like bottle, gave it a gentle shake, and a cascade of five-colored light erupted, enveloping the golden sphere and drawing it inside. Han Li smiled slightly, took the small vial, and then placed his hands on his knees, settling into meditation once more. After over ten days, he never left the study room, finally transmuting all the energy within the crystal sphere into refined spiritual power, greatly enhancing his cultivation. In the following days, Han Li began visiting various parts of Huanye City frequently, collecting several scrolls and local specialties. In particular, he made several trips to the Wanshu Tower, eventually purchasing a secret technique for crafting magical crystal puppets from the two Liangxu-level magical beings stationed there. For this, he not only offered several top-tier magical artifacts but also paid a substantial sum of magical stones—so large that even the Magistrate-level lord found it difficult to bear. Yet Han Li felt entirely satisfied with the transaction. The technique for crafting these crystal puppets was fundamentally different from the methods used for spiritual realm puppets. These puppets were not activated through the practitioner's spiritual awareness, but rather through pre-installed seals and tokens embedded within the bodies of the puppets. Thus, as long as the constructs themselves are sufficiently powerful, even lower-tier cultivators can easily control them. There is no limit in terms of quantity—indeed, even lower-tier magi can effortlessly command entire armies of constructs. When Han Li learned of this, he could hardly contain his astonishment. Unfortunately, no perfection exists in the world. While the magical crystal constructs are undoubtedly impressive, they also come with several drawbacks. The most significant limitation is that, due to the inability of the cultivator's spirit awareness to control them, these constructs can only execute simple commands through their core enchantments and cannot carry out more complex instructions. As a result, compared to human-world constructs of the same rank, the magical crystal constructs exhibit a more limited range of attacks and are considerably less potent in their overall power. Secondly, crafting the puppet-driven core is extremely cumbersome and requires exceptionally rare materials, making it absolutely beyond the reach of ordinary individuals in terms of cost. The higher the rank of the magical crystal puppet, the more staggering the price becomes. What frustrates Han Li is that, despite the significant investment made to obtain the puppet crafting technique from Wan Lu Tower, the method acquired is only suitable for mid-to-low tier puppets. According to two Magi Realm-level immortal beings stationed at Wan Lu Tower in Xuan Ye City, the techniques for crafting high-tier magical crystal puppets are held exclusively by a few senior elders at the very highest levels of Wan Lu Tower and are never disclosed to outsiders. Even the high-tier magical crystal puppets themselves are rarely sold by Wan Lu Tower. This leaves Han Li with a sense of mild regret. However, he does not find this matter particularly pressing, as he does not see the immediate benefit of having a substantial number of such high-tier magical crystal puppets at this stage. He had only spent such a high cost in order to verify his own傀儡 theory, to see whether he could integrate and unify it, thus advancing his puppet technique further. Han Li remained secluded at his residence, once again deeply immersed in contemplation. During this time, he attempted to craft several lower-tier magical crystal puppets to test his understanding, and achieved notable results. On this day, while attempting to activate a four-armed magical crystal puppet within the seal at the highest level of his attic, he suddenly felt a low hum emanate from his body. A beam of white light shot out from his waist, flashed briefly before materializing in front of him, and then transformed into a piece of embroidered fabric. Upon seeing this, Han Li's expression changed slightly. He raised his hand and lightly touched the fabric, and a streak of green light entered it. Immediately, the fabric shimmered with a soft silver glow, and a row of silver characters appeared on its surface. Han Li studied the characters carefully, then paused thoughtfully before raising his hand and gestured. The silk and cotton instantly glowed white and flew into the sleeve. Han Li immediately turned and walked toward the lower hall. In the main hall of the upper pavilion, Zhu Guo'er was holding an old, slightly yellowed leather-bound book, intently reading. Upon seeing Han Li descend the stairs, she was startled, quickly rose to greet him, and respectfully inquired, "Master, is there anything I can assist with?" "Has anyone visited me recently?" Han Li asked casually. "No, Miss has been staying here continuously and has not yet received a visit from that senior guest," Zhu Guo'er replied carefully. "Very well. Then there's nothing urgent. You may remain here. I'll be going out for a while!" Han Li nodded gently, and without waiting for the young maid to speak further, he swept his sleeve and walked out toward the main gate. Zhu Guo'er blinked several times, still somewhat puzzled. Han Li had already flashed out of the pavilion, soon after securing a beast carriage on the street and heading straight toward the city gates. Several hours later, riding his incantation light, he appeared on a secluded mountain peak hundreds of miles outside the city, gazing downward. There, a pale, hazy mist enveloped the entire mountain, rendering the scenery beneath invisible to ordinary sight. Upon seeing this, Han Li relaxed slightly, exhaled softly, and raised his hand—sending a streak of fiery light that flashed and then vanished into the mist. A moment later, a faint male voice emerged from within the mountain: “Indeed, Master Han, I shall now activate the seal and welcome you inside.” The speaker, having confirmed Han Li’s identity, caused the previously hazy mist to part, revealing a clear path. Upon hearing the voice, Han Li’s expression brightened, and with a swift flash of his incantation light, he transformed into a streak of jade-green light and entered the path. When the mist before him cleared, Han Li materialized suddenly on an open patch of ground atop the mountain. On two cleaner stones a little distance away, two figures were seated cross-legged. One had a pale golden complexion, the other wore a black robe—these were the elder of Long family and another senior elder named Hui. However, as Han Li glanced at them, his eyes narrowed slightly. The elder of Long family was still in good condition, though slightly paler, and offered him a smile. The Hui elder, on the other hand, bore dark streaks on his face, looked visibly worn, and had notably lost one of his arms. "How is it that Hui brother appears in such condition? Has there been some great adversary encountered along the way?" Han Li asked, his expression now serious. "This story is quite lengthy, and I'll elaborate on it all for you later. For now, I'd like to ask you—have there been any others besides yourself who have reached the City of Phantom Night?" The elder of the Long family smiled slightly, then straightened his expression and asked, "Since Brother Long has already summoned others through his precious artifacts, if no one else arrives, it's likely that's the case. At least, at the inn I originally arranged in the city, I haven't seen any other guests coming." Han Li replied with a furrowed brow. "Then, let's just wait a bit longer—after all, it won't take much more time." After a brief hesitation, the elder of the Long family said this. Upon hearing this, Han Li nodded in agreement, without any objections, and casually settled himself on a nearby rock. Time passed slowly, and after exactly one hour, Han Li suddenly stirred, lifting his head to scan the sky above. A subtle blue glow flickered in his pupils, and he spoke calmly, "It seems others have indeed arrived—though I still don't know which of them." The elder of the Long family, upon hearing this, was slightly startled and likewise turned his gaze toward the thin mist above. Moment later, a pleasant female voice echoed in the air: "Which of my esteemed friends is this? I arrived a little late, and hope you won't mind!" The voice belonged none other than the elder of the Ye family, a young lady in appearance. Upon hearing this, the elder of the Long family beamed with delight, raised her hand and chanted a spell, once again parting the mist in the air. Instantly, a beam of霞light descended straight from the heavens.