Chapter 1491: Black Wood and Golden Ape

Han Li murmured, "So that's how it is!" He now had a rough idea of the Underworld River.

"Alright, I can answer one last question. Think carefully," Mu Qing said coldly. "I want to know what exactly you want me to do once we enter the Underworld River!"

Although he also wanted to ask about the demon kings' schemes in the Underworld River, he was more concerned with matters related to himself. He wouldn't feel at ease without clarifying this. "Are you sure you want to ask about this?" Mu Qing was somewhat surprised. "Yes, please tell me clearly!" Han Li affirmed without hesitation.

"Since you're willing to use your last question for this, I can tell you. It's very simple. I want you to accompany me to retrieve something of great use to me. However, this item is guarded by extremely powerful demonic creatures, and it would be difficult for me to retrieve it alone. Only your Profound Evading Divine Thunder can subdue these creatures," the woman said calmly. "Demonic creatures? Isn't the Underworld River a place where ghosts and spirits gather?" Han Li frowned slightly, a little perplexed. "Indeed, it's mostly inhabited by ghosts and spirits, but there are also some demonic creatures living there. Don't ask me why; I have no idea," Mu Qing said in an undeniable tone. Han Li was speechless.

"However, don't worry. With the help of your Profound Evading Divine Thunder and my personal intervention, dealing with these demonic creatures will be no problem. Furthermore, if we truly obtain what I seek, I will give you another treasure. As the Saint Son of the Flying Spirit Race, you will definitely be interested in it." A cunning glint flashed in Mu Qing's eyes.

"Treasure?" Han Li showed a hint of doubt.

"Back when the demon tide erupted in the Abyssal Lands, I risked my life to kill an elder of the Flying Spirit Race, and from him, I obtained a bottle of true Saint Blood of the Flying Spirit Race. As far as I know, even if it's not from your direct lineage, it's still an invaluable treasure for all branches of your Flying Spirit Race," Mu Qing said proudly. "What kind of true Saint Blood?" Han Li was genuinely surprised.

"The true spirit blood of a Five-Colored Peacock. What do you think of that? Even if you can't use it, imagine the immense benefits if you could bring it back to your clan," Mu Qing's words were filled with temptation. It was no wonder!

Not to mention the Flying Spirit Race, who always revered true spirit blood as divine artifacts, even other foreign races would treat this item as an ultimate treasure if they acquired it. After all, true spirit blood possessed incredible miraculous effects whether used for alchemy or artifact refinement!

The Five-Colored Peacock was also renowned among many true spirits, a formidable existence ranking among the top avian true spirits.

Han Li was also suddenly overjoyed.

Among the three transformations he had already learned from the "Awakening of Insects Twelve Transformations" he cultivated, one was precisely the transformation secret art of the Five-Colored Peacock.

As long as he absorbed this spirit blood into his body, he could immediately cultivate the mantra and transform into a Five-Colored Peacock. The more transformations one learned from the "Awakening of Insects" technique, the more formidable their power would become.

According to the technique's principles, each additional transformation learned would increase the power of previously learned transformations by 30%.

Theoretically, if all transformations were learned and integrated, the post-transformation strength could increase by more than four times. Of course, the original transformations would also greatly increase in power as one's cultivation realm advanced. The multiple-fold increase of the "Awakening of Insects" technique was also an enhancement on this basis. Furthermore, after transformation, one could master various true spirit divine abilities. The terrifying power of the "Awakening of Insects" technique was thus imaginable.

The Five-Colored Peacock's divine ability, "Five-Colored Divine Light," was even rarer in the Spirit Realm.

It was said that wherever this true spirit's Five-Colored Divine Light passed, all Five-Element objects would be suppressed. It shared a similar marvelous effect to Han Li's Non-Magnetic Divine Light. However, the true power of the two was naturally vastly different.

Han Li's expression remained calm, but the hint of surprise in his eyes clearly did not escape Mu Qing.

She smiled slightly and continued:

"It seems Fellow Daoist Han is not dissatisfied with this Five-Colored Peacock true blood. In that case, it's settled. I'll give you a small portion of the true spirit blood first, and the other half after the task is complete."

As soon as Mu Qing finished speaking, she slapped the golden flower beneath her, and a small, crimson bottle instantly shot out from it. With a grab, the small bottle flew directly towards Han Li. A strange glint flashed in Han Li's eyes, and he swiftly grabbed the small bottle, immediately opening the cap.

Instantly, a clear cry emanated from the crimson bottle, and a five-colored light erupted, as if something was about to fly out. With a 'snap', Han Li unhesitatingly closed the cap as fast as lightning. In that brief moment, he had used his divine sense to scan the contents of the bottle. Although he had never seen this type of true spirit blood before, the astonishing aura emanating from it suggested it was indeed authentic. "Thank you, Senior, for bestowing this spirit blood!" Han Li no longer stood on ceremony, put away the blood bottle, and bowed.

"Hehe, just don't forget to lend me a hand when the time comes. You may leave this place now. As long as you don't go beyond the third level, you can choose any place in the Abyssal Lands to cultivate. In a few years, once our preparations are complete, I will summon you again." Mu Qing nodded, then actually issued an order for him to leave.

After a moment of contemplation, with a shifting expression, Han Li said nothing more, bowed once again, and with a flash of green light around him, transformed into a green rainbow and flew away.

After a few flashes, his escaping light vanished without a trace at the palace gate.

Mu Qing watched Han Li's disappearing escaping light, and the slight smile in her eyes vanished without a trace.

A moment later, the woman suddenly formed a hand seal with one hand.

Instantly, a black light flashed on the golden flower beneath her, and a black light array appeared out of thin air.

With a flicker, Mu Qing vanished without a trace from the golden flower. The black light array also dispersed and disappeared.

Almost simultaneously, in Mu Qing's cultivation cave, the Wood Spirit Cave, in front of the gate of Cuiyin Courtyard, which was strictly sealed by layers of restrictions, a similar colored light array flashed, and Mu Qing's figure emerged.

As soon as the woman appeared, she looked up at the gate in front of her, swayed, and unhesitatingly took a few steps forward. With a whoosh,

The layers of restrictions on the gate rippled in the void like disturbed water, but Mu Qing's body shimmered with black light, instantly dissolving into the gate and vanishing.

The next moment, Mu Qing's figure reappeared on the other side of the gate.

Before her, a massive garden filled with giant flowers of various colors appeared.

These giant flowers were astonishing in size, with some several zhang tall, and even the smaller ones about a foot in height. Some bloomed openly in the wind, while others remained tightly budded. However, every giant flower exuded an astonishing spiritual energy.

Amidst these giant flowers, a winding path existed. Mu Qing unhesitatingly stepped onto the path and slowly walked through the flower bushes.

After walking for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, having passed countless giant flowers, the flower bushes suddenly disappeared, replaced by a lush, green grassland.

At the center of the grassland, a massive pine tree, entirely black, stood tall. This tree was fifty to sixty zhang tall, extraordinarily large, but its appearance was very peculiar.

The entire tree seemed to have an invisible boundary through its canopy; one half of its leaves were dense and unusually lush. The other half was withered and shriveled, with not a single leaf remaining, like dead wood.

Gazing at the black giant tree before her, strange light flickered in Mu Qing's eyes as she stopped a dozen zhang in front of it.

Almost simultaneously, the lush half of the giant tree in front of her suddenly flashed with spiritual light, followed by a stream of black mist that shot out, heading straight for Mu Qing.

An incredible scene unfolded.

The black light on Mu Qing's body immediately peeled away under the sweep of the black mist, revealing a slender, graceful, and charming figure. Her true appearance was instantly revealed: a pretty woman with slightly dark skin.

Perhaps she wasn't a peerless beauty, but the nearly tangible aura of malice between her brows would make any ordinary person tremble with fear at a single glance.

"Old Jin, are you there?" The woman gazed at the black giant tree for a moment, then suddenly called out coldly.

A golden light flashed in the void, and a golden figure appeared before Mu Qing, cupping its fists towards the woman: "Greetings, Master. Jin Ling has always been here!"

The golden figure was actually a three-foot-tall golden ape, glittering all over with golden light, with two short swords strapped to its back, a half-foot white beard, and dark, shining eyes, its face filled with respectful deference.

"Old Jin, please rise! Has anyone tried to peek in here recently?" Mu Qing was surprisingly courteous to the golden ape, gently asking after gesturing for it to stand.

"No.

Jin Ling has not left the Master's true body for the past two years and has found no abnormalities," the ape replied without hesitation.

"Very good, Old Jin, you've truly worked hard these past years. As you know, even though my divine abilities are not weaker than the others, my body is formed by the soul of a spirit wood, which has the fatal weakness of its true form. I had no choice but to trouble you to guard it for me," Mu Qing said with a sigh.

"Master, there's no need to speak such words. Back then, I was just an ordinary wild ape that often played under your true form. If not for your guidance after you gained sentience, how could there be Jin Ling today? Moreover, last time, Jin Ling was careless and fell for someone else's 'lure the tiger away from its mountain' scheme, almost allowing your true body to be stolen. If you hadn't had a premonition and sacrificed half of your original essence, self-destructing to injure the intruder, Jin Ling would have long since committed an irreversible mistake. And even so, it's unknown how many years it will take for your spirit wood body to fully recover," the ape said with a look of shame.

"You can't be blamed for what happened last time. It was my oversight; I thought that with Six-Legs and the others with me, no one could threaten my true body, which allowed someone to exploit the weakness. However, since that person could secretly infiltrate the hidden location of my original spirit wood body and also lure you away beforehand, they must be someone very familiar with everything in the Wood Spirit Cave. I have a good idea who this person is. It's just that this person was also instigated by others, and I didn't want to alert the enemy and jeopardize the important matter in the Underworld River, so I've been pretending not to know. Once I return from the Underworld River and obtain everything I desire, I will personally flay this person and avenge what was done to my true body," Mu Qing said, her face darkening and a murderous glint in her eyes.