Chapter 1214: Gathering Spirit Pearls

Outside the dozen or so guest buildings of the Falling Cloud Sect, Mu Peiling stood in front of one, occasionally gazing up into the high sky.

Suddenly, a flash of green light appeared on the horizon, and a dazzling streak of light shot forth. In the blink of an eye, it was above the building, circling once before descending.

"Greetings, Young Master! The Ghost Spirit Sect members are resting inside this building. The other two women are in Building C," Mu Peiling said softly, stepping forward a few paces as soon as Han Li appeared in front of the building.

"I understand. You're dismissed," Han Li said, nodding indifferently after glancing at the pavilion behind Mu Peiling and then another one nearby.

Hearing this, Mu Peiling bowed respectfully, then transformed into a streak of white light and departed.

Han Li's figure flickered, and he instantly appeared at the pavilion's entrance. After sweeping his spiritual sense inside, he calmly walked in.

Inside the main hall on the first floor of the pavilion, two men and one woman were conversing. The men were a bony, yellow-robed burly man and an unusually pale-faced elder. The woman was a beautiful young woman in her twenties, as lovely as a flower – it was indeed Yan Yan'er.

Though they were discussing matters, a faint, almost imperceptible trace of anxiety was evident in their expressions.

The moment Han Li's figure appeared at the hall's entrance, their gazes instantly swept over. After recognizing his face, all three stood up in pleasant surprise to greet him.

"There's no need for formalities, fellow Daoists. Let's sit and talk," Han Li said indifferently, waving his hand as he strangely flickered and appeared on a wooden chair opposite them before they could even speak.

Yan Yan'er and the other two couldn't discern his movements at all.

"Then we won't stand on ceremony," the pale-faced elder replied with a smile, though his heart had tensed.

The three immediately sat down once more.

"Fairy Yan, after so many years, you've finally advanced to the Nascent Soul stage. Now, you and I can address each other as equals," Han Li said with a faint smile, glancing at the young woman, who had grown even more charming.

Yan Yan'er, once the top female disciple among the younger generation in Yue State, had actually succeeded in forming her Nascent Soul and become a Nascent Soul cultivator.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you jest," Yan Yan'er replied, carefully observing Han Li for a few moments, a complex expression appearing on her beautiful face. "I only recently succeeded in breaking through the bottleneck, yet you are already the foremost cultivator in Tiannan. How can I compare to you, Brother Han? I have come here this time because I have a favor to ask of you."

Han Li smiled faintly, offering no reply, and swept his gaze over the other two Ghost Spirit Sect elders. His eyes finally settled on the elder's face. "You are Elder Zhong, aren't you? I saw you from afar in the Devilfall Valley back then."

"I didn't expect Brother Han to still remember me, Zhong. This old man is quite flattered," the elder said, chuckling a few times.

"It seems the Ghost Spirit Sect is currently facing a formidable enemy," Han Li said straightforwardly. "You three hold important positions in the Ghost Spirit Sect. Instead of dealing with this great enemy in Yue State, you've all come to my sect, specifically asking to see me. What important matter do you have?"

Seeing Han Li's straightforward demeanor, unwilling to beat around the bush, Yan Yan'er and the others exchanged glances, appearing hesitant as if unsure how to begin.

Seeing this, Han Li frowned, and a hint of displeasure appeared on his face.

The moment Han Li's expression entered their sight, the elder and the burly man's hearts sank, and their gazes involuntarily fell upon Yan Yan'er.

Yan Yan'er hesitated for a moment, but then, with her red lips slightly parted, she spoke:

"Fellow Daoist Han," she began, "in truth, we have come this time to seek assistance from your esteemed sect—no, it should be said, from you, Brother Han. We hope you can intervene and help our Ghost Spirit Sect overcome the current great tribulation. Otherwise, our sect might truly vanish."

"Help your sect?" Han Li countered, raising both eyebrows, a faint trace of sarcasm appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"I know our sect once greatly offended you, Brother Han," the other yellow-robed burly man hastily explained. "But those matters were all done by the former Sect Master Wang and his son. Sect Master Wang already perished in the Devilfall Valley, and now the Ghost Spirit Sect is no longer controlled by the Wang family."

"Not controlled by the Wang family?" Han Li said noncommittally, his expression unchanged. "But I heard that Wang Chan is still living quite freely in your sect, isn't he?"

Hearing Han Li's words, the elder and Yan Yan'er's expressions subtly changed. The burly man, though startled, still replied with a smile:

"Brother Han, please rest assured. Nephew Wang Chan made a grave mistake some time ago. He has already been stripped of his position as Enforcement Elder and is currently confined to our sect's Reflection Cave, repenting and reflecting on his actions. Unless a century passes, he will absolutely not be involved in any of our sect's affairs."

"Repenting and reflecting?" Han Li asked, a hint of surprise in his voice, but after sweeping his gaze across Yan Yan'er and the burly man's faces, he seemed to recall something and continued with a light smile, "Your face is quite unfamiliar, fellow Daoist. May I ask your esteemed surname? You seem to bear some resemblance to Fairy Yan."

"Brother Han indeed possesses keen insight," the burly man replied honestly after a slight hesitation. "My surname is also Yan, and I am Yan'er's paternal uncle!"

Yan Yan'er, standing by, also lightly nodded.

"Oh, the Yan family actually has two Nascent Soul cultivators now. Judging by this, it seems the Yan family is now in charge of the Ghost Spirit Sect!" Han Li said meaningfully, stroking his chin.

"Hehe, it's not wrong to say that our Yan family is in charge of the sect," the burly man said hesitantly, glancing at the elder surnamed Zhong. "This is also due to Elder Brother Zhong's consistent humility."

"Since Elder Brother Wang and the others were not effective in leading the sect, it was only natural for the Yan family to take charge," the elder said with a wry smile. "This old man cannot claim any humility in this."

"Oh, really?" Han Li said casually, then his eyes narrowed slightly, and he fell silent in contemplation.

The three Ghost Spirit Sect members dared not rush him and could only sit quietly. Yan Yan'er seemed calm, her bright eyes flickering as if lost in thought, but the burly man and the elder were greatly uneasy.

This foremost cultivator of Tiannan, currently before them, had quite a significant grievance with their Ghost Spirit Sect in earlier years. Although they had come under the pretext of congratulations, it wasn't likely the other party would openly retaliate against them. However, to say they had no worries about coming to see Han Li this time would be absolute self-deception. If the Ghost Spirit Sect hadn't been truly unable to withstand the combined pressure from several other sects, they would absolutely not have dared to come to the Falling Cloud Sect.

After all, in the entire Tiannan, Han Li was probably the only one capable of forcing several cultivation sects to retreat with just a word. While other Grand Cultivators could make major cultivation sects wary, whether they could achieve such a degree was another matter entirely.

"Even if we disregard past events, what makes you think I would help your Ghost Spirit Sect?" Han Li finally spoke, but his voice had turned somewhat cold.

The moment Han Li said this, Yan Yan'er's eyes flickered as she looked over, while the burly man and the elder were overjoyed.

All three detected a hint of possibility in Han Li's words.

"As long as Brother Han is willing to mediate on our sect's behalf," the burly man said after taking a deep breath, "our Ghost Spirit Sect is willing to cede Yue State to the other sects. We only ask to preserve our sect's lineage. And as a reward for your intervention, my humble self and the others have specifically brought you several gifts. We hope Brother Han will not find them too meager."

Immediately, he saw the burly man slap his waist with one hand. A misty white glow erupted from his storage pouch, and as the spiritual light swirled onto the tabletop in front of him, three items instantly appeared.

Han Li gazed over indifferently.

They were a blood-red bracelet, a porcelain bottle, and a pale green wooden box.

Han Li remained silent. With one hand, he reached into the empty space opposite him, and the three items trembled, flying into his hand from thin air.

At this moment, Yan Yan'er's voice, like a string of jade beads, suddenly sounded by Han Li's ear:

"Inside the porcelain bottle is our sect's sacred medicine, the Blood Limb Pill. This pill has no other effects, but it possesses incredible spiritual efficacy for bodily injuries. Even if a limb is completely severed, as long as this pill is taken promptly, the limb can regenerate, perfectly identical to the original. Because some of the spiritual herbs required for its refinement are difficult to gather, our sect currently only has a dozen or so. There are three pills in this bottle. As for the Blood Soul Bracelet, it is a demonic artifact known to very few cultivators. It was originally carried by successive Ghost Spirit Sect Masters, but when Sect Master Wang perished in the Devilfall Valley, this item was retrieved by Elder Zhong. This demonic artifact is unlike ordinary ones; it cannot be directly unleashed to defeat enemies. However, it can nurture special entities like Yin Souls and Blood Ghosts within the bracelet, and by drawing in blood qi through the bracelet, it can rapidly enhance their strength, allowing them to be released during combat to catch opponents off guard. As for the item in the last wooden box, it is, by comparison, the most valuable of the three." As she spoke to this point, Yan Yan'er's voice paused slightly, and her bright eyes flickered with a strange light as she glanced at Han Li.

But at this moment, Han Li's expression showed no change, as if the first two items had not impressed him in the slightest.

The woman sighed inwardly but still spoke calmly:

"I hear Brother Han cultivates wood-attribute techniques, and in this box is the rumored Wood Spirit Orb, one of the Five Elements Spirit Gathering Orbs!"

"A Spirit Gathering Orb?" Han Li, whose expression had originally been calm, now showed a drastic change in his countenance, as he seemed to ask in disbelief, "The legendary wondrous treasure that specifically absorbs spiritual energy of a certain attribute from the Five Elements of heaven and earth while simultaneously repelling other spiritual energy?"

"Precisely, it is this treasure," Yan Yan'er said slowly. "Although the Spirit Gathering Orb and the most basic formation, the Spirit Gathering Formation, have similar names and somewhat similar functions, I presume I don't need to elaborate much on the difference between the two and their true efficacy, as Brother Han should be very clear about it. As for how it compares to spirit-eye items, if the cultivation technique's attribute matches the Spirit Gathering Orb's attribute, ordinary spirit-eye items cannot even begin to compare to this item."

Han Li's gaze sharpened as he stared at the green wooden box in his hand for a moment. A pale yellow restriction talisman was affixed to it, making it impossible to see anything inside.

He suddenly opened his mouth and lightly blew towards the wooden box.

Instantly, a wisp of green mist swept over the wooden box, and the restriction talisman automatically drifted down. His other hand then swiftly pointed at the wooden box's lid.

With a "click," the wooden box's lid opened on its own.