Chapter 1293: The Danger of the Heavenly Tribulation

As he was now in the Spirit Realm, he naturally had no interest in creatures of any kind. His sole concern was how to recover his spiritual power and lift the Ice Phoenix restriction, thereby regaining his full range of abilities.

This was a matter of extreme urgency! According to the Heavenly Whiskered Beast's clone from years ago, Nascent Soul and Soul Transformation cultivators in the Spirit Realm faced a minor heavenly tribulation every three centuries. Though his spiritual power was currently absent, his cultivation realm remained. There was no telling if, or when, this heavenly tribulation would descend upon him.

Should a Soul Transformation heavenly tribulation truly arrive, his current mere fourth-level Vajra Arts, coupled with his inability to wield any treasures, would render him utterly incapable of surviving it.

The thought of this once again cast a shadow over Han Li's face.

The most effective solution was, naturally, to locate the Ice Phoenix as quickly as possible and mutually lift the restrictions they had placed on each other.

When he and the Ice Phoenix encountered an accident in the spatial node, she, leveraging her spatial abilities, escaped the node before him and should also be in the Spirit Realm. Just as he was now completely devoid of spiritual power due to the restriction, the restriction he had placed on the Ice Phoenix should likewise have taken effect. He was acutely aware of the potency of his own restriction. It was quite possible that the demoness's current predicament was even worse than his own.

However, within the immense Spirit Realm, even if his spiritual power were intact, finding her in a short timeframe would be utterly impossible. Across the Three Realms and Seven Lands, countless beings possessed spiritual powers and divine abilities far surpassing those at the Soul Transformation stage.

Currently, without an ounce of self-preservation, immediately locating her was clearly a fool's errand; his only path to recovering his spiritual power was through self-reliance.

However, given his current inability to absorb even a wisp of spiritual energy, rendering his extensive knowledge of secret arts and divine abilities utterly useless, re-cultivating his spiritual power seemed equally impossible. As for seeking assistance from other high-level cultivators, considering the multitude of secrets he harbored, such a suicidal approach was entirely out of the question.

Han Li sat in the chair, his expression fluctuating between gloom and contemplation for a long while.

“It seems I still have no choice but to follow the original path,” he murmured softly, his eyes flickering as his face grew somewhat shadowed.

During the month or so he spent traveling to Anyuan City, Han Li had already meticulously pondered the issue of recovering his abilities. After more than half a month of persistent deliberation, he had indeed conceived a viable method. However, this approach was far from ideal and appeared to be quite time-consuming. Initially, his lack of understanding of the Spirit Realm had kept him undecided. But now, after gaining a preliminary understanding of the Spirit Realm and conducting further analysis, it seemed he had no choice but to employ this method.

This involved cultivating the Vajra Arts, the only technique he could currently practice, to the grand completion stage.

According to the texts of this cultivation method, once all seven levels of the Vajra Arts were mastered, the sheer power of one's physical body alone would allow them to contend with Nascent Soul cultivators. If that were the case, his formidable physical body alone would be able to expel the Ice Phoenix's restriction.

At that point, he could resume cultivating his spiritual power and re-condense his Nascent Soul, which would be a far simpler task.

While condensing a Nascent Soul typically required a century, if he could just recover a small amount of spiritual power, he could retrieve his storage pouch. Then, by hiding in a deserted location and utilizing the vast quantities of spiritual pills and medicines within the pouch, he could significantly accelerate the process, perhaps by several fold.

In essence, to recover his full abilities, he first needed to eliminate the restriction within his body. Only then could he re-condense his Nascent Soul and completely restore his original powers.

He estimated that if a minor heavenly tribulation were to occur in his current state, it would most likely be three centuries away. However, this was merely speculation. For the sake of his life, it was undoubtedly best to cultivate the Vajra Arts to completion as quickly as possible.

Han Li had long understood the immense difficulty of cultivating the Vajra Arts, having learned of it directly from the Heavenly Whiskered Beast's clone.

Even with the Human Realm's exceptionally dense spiritual energy and secret techniques for forcible spiritual energy refinement, true body cultivators capable of mastering the Vajra Arts to grand completion were exceedingly rare.

An ordinary person, no matter how exceptionally talented, would never dare to possess such confidence.

But Han Li was no ordinary man. Not only had he ascended from a mere mortal to the Soul Transformation stage step by step, a journey that forged a will far surpassing that of common cultivators in the Spirit Realm, but his physical body had also become exceptionally robust from refining malevolent qi and consuming spiritual fruits and medicines such as the "Heavenly Corpse Pearl" and "Dragon Scale Fruit." Particularly, the Dragon Scale Fruit and his practice of the Bone Tempering Art had rendered his physique comparable to that of a typical demonic beast.

Upon arriving in the Spirit Realm, he further refined his two Nascent Souls, including his Second Nascent Soul, into immense vital essence, dispersing it throughout his body to grant his physical potential yet another significant boost.

With such a confluence of advantageous conditions, Han Li's confidence was hardly surprising.

Now, his sole considerations were the inhumane suffering he would endure during this cultivation, and the duration it would require.

Since areas far from the city were frequented by numerous low-to-mid-level demonic beasts and various animal packs, it would be unwise for him to cultivate alone in his current condition. Furthermore, cultivating the later levels of the Vajra Arts seemingly required insights gained through combat to increase the chances of breakthroughs.

Given this, it might be beneficial to remain at the Tiandong Business Alliance for a while. If he truly found it inconvenient or unsuitable, he could always leave later.

As for the blood curse from the scroll, the moment it entered his body, the potent vital essence within his physique instantly refined and purified it, rendering it utterly incapable of restraining him in the slightest.

With his decision made, Han Li did not linger. He soon left the restaurant with the books, then casually sought out a quiet, deserted spot. There, he gently pressed the ancient texts between his hands.

Instantly, under immense pressure, the thick volumes disintegrated into countless paper fragments, scattering across the ground. Next, he located a blacksmith shop in the city. After a quick inspection, he suddenly handed the Earth Dragon Tendon to one of the blacksmiths. He then quietly pointed to several materials displayed in the shop, giving a few low-voiced instructions, before handing the blacksmith two low-grade spiritual stones.

The blacksmith was initially taken aback by Han Li's words, but as soon as his fingers closed around the two spiritual stones, he instantly beamed with a wide smile and nodded profusely.

Han Li then departed the blacksmith shop with a faint smile. Along the road, he hailed an empty beast carriage drawn by two peculiar creatures that were neither deer nor horses.

Disregarding the driver's background, he tossed a substantial piece of silver forward. After uttering "Ruyun Inn," he swiftly entered the carriage and immediately closed his eyes, settling into meditation.

Beast carriages, pulled by various docile creatures, were a common sight on all the streets of Anyuan City. Given the city's vastness, without such transportation, traversing from one district to another could easily take several hours on foot.

The beast carriage before him was rather ornate, clearly not a public conveyance, but more akin to a private vehicle owned by a prominent family.

The driver initially flared up at Han Li's sudden halt, but then his eyes widened upon seeing the silver. After a brief moment of hesitation, he urged the beast carriage westward.

Han Li had almost dozed off in the carriage when the driver's voice broke his slumber:

“Sir, we have arrived at Ruyun Inn!”

Han Li slowly opened his eyes and wordlessly disembarked from the beast carriage.

Before him lay a vast complex of pavilions and courtyards. At the entrance of the foremost and tallest pavilion hung a massive plaque, bearing the words "Ruyun Inn" inscribed in golden ancient script.

On either side of the pavilion, rows of shed-like structures, built with wooden frames, housed beast carriages of various designs. The area appeared somewhat crowded, with occasional strange whinnies echoing from within.

Han Li's gaze swept over the scene, quickly settling on several porters standing before the pavilion's main gate, attending to departing guests. He raised a hand and gestured to one of them.

The porter, exceptionally quick-witted, immediately scurried over.

“Honored guest, how may I assist you? Are you here to check in?”

“Have any members of the Tiandong Business Alliance checked in today? Do you know where they are staying?” Han Li inquired impassively, tossing a piece of loose silver to the porter.

“Ah, honored guest, you’re looking for the esteemed gentlemen from the Tiandong Business Alliance! I’ll personally show you the way,” the porter exclaimed, taking the silver and beaming with delight.

He then led Han Li through the main pavilion and directly towards the cluster of courtyards behind it.

“The gentlemen from the Tiandong Business Alliance, due to their large numbers, have reserved the entire West Wing. It’s the finest collection of courtyards our inn has to offer…” The porter enthusiastically explained as he led the way.

Han Li listened to the porter’s enthusiastic remarks with a neutral expression, showing no particular reaction.

“Oh, Brother Han, you’re finally back! This is excellent! Brother Zhang already instructed me to bring you to see the Madam the moment I saw you. Come with me quickly.” Before they even reached the so-called West Wing, a young man approaching them froze upon seeing Han Li. Then, with a joyful stride, he walked over and casually reached out to grab Han Li's arm.

Han Li's eyebrow twitched, and his shoulder subtly shifted. The young man’s hand swept past him, strangely missing its target.

The young man paused, a flicker of surprise on his face.

“Ah, Brother Luo. Is the Madam you mentioned Madam Fang?” Han Li asked calmly with a faint smile.

This young man was indeed "Xiao Qi," one of the knights from the Tiandong Business Alliance.

“Yes, of course, it’s Madam Fang. She heard about your situation and is quite curious about you; she intends to meet you,” the young man surnamed Luo said with a smile, a peculiar look momentarily flashing across his face.

“As a member of the alliance, I will naturally obey Madam Fang’s summons. I’ll trouble Brother Luo to lead the way,” Han Li said nonchalantly.

“Haha, of course, it’s no trouble at all,” the young man replied, having just experienced Han Li’s evasiveness. He finally understood that Han Li’s skill far surpassed his own and naturally dared not make any further disrespectful moves, agreeing with a fawning smile.

Han Li then dismissed the porter and followed the young man surnamed Luo into the West Wing. Along the way, they encountered numerous guards and knights of the alliance, exchanging greetings with each one.

The two navigated through numerous turns, eventually passing over a dozen large courtyards before finally arriving at a small, secluded courtyard.

The area was notably quiet and elegant. At the entrance, two unfamiliar, burly men stood guard, unarmed.

As Han Li and the young man approached, four piercing gazes immediately swept over them, sending a slight chill down their spines.