Chapter 1874: Revisit the Second Floor

A Record of a Mortal's Journey to ImmortalityChapter List, Volume 10: Battle in the Demonic Realm

With a single wave of the green-armored man's hand, several guards immediately stepped out of their ranks. A spiritual light then flashed in each of their hands, and they produced pale purple wooden tablets.

The wooden tablets glowed brightly, and two fleeting purple light beams instantly shot out. After a few flickers, they plunged into the center of the formation.

Immediately, the silver formation hummed, then vanished amidst a flow of strange light, revealing a colossal silver gate beneath that section of the massive wall.

The gate, tens of zhang high, emitted a cold, eerie glow, appearing exceptionally frigid, as if forged entirely from metal.

The green-armored man murmured incantations and flicked his sleeve towards the gate.

With a 'boom,' a wave of green mist surged forward, and the colossal gate slowly hummed open.

"Thank you, fellow Daoist!" Jin Yue said with a slight smile, also expressing her thanks.

Then, she, Han Li, and the other person, their escape lights merging, transformed into three dazzling rainbows and passed through the colossal gate.

A short while later, they vanished without a trace into the world beyond the gate.

The green-armored man stood before the silver gate, gazing at the vanishing figures of the three. He wore a pensive expression, as if something still weighed heavily on his mind.

"Never mind," the green-armored man murmured to himself, "perhaps I'm overthinking it. Although there was a strange feeling, that guard should be fine. Besides, Jin Yue is the Grand Elder of the Sky-Roc Tribe; she would surely never do anything detrimental to the Flying Spirit Race." With a command, he then had the massive silver gate sealed again, while he himself resumed his meditative posture at the original spot, closing his eyes once more.

Meanwhile, Han Li and the two women were already beneath a vast sea of mist, observing the currents of malevolent winds as they rapidly flew towards the entrance of the Abyssal Region.

Had Han Li's cultivation been at the Deity Transformation stage back then, flying through these winds might have been difficult. But now, having advanced to the mid-Body Integration stage, he regarded these malevolent winds as nothing at all.

Even when flying further and encountering the black icy winds, he merely flashed with a green light on his body, easily deflecting them. They couldn't come even a hair's breadth near him.

As for Lei Lan, who was by his side, under Jin Yue's deliberate care, it was naturally even less of an issue.

Before long, the group spotted the colossal funnel-shaped entrance to the Abyssal Region.

Gazing at the dark, colossal pit below, where cold winds whirled wildly, Han Li's eyes slightly narrowed before he descended without hesitation.

This time, Jin Yue and the other woman exchanged glances before following closely behind.

Upon entering the Abyssal Region, violent gales raged all around, and everything felt much the same as when Han Li first entered.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, his descent abruptly halted, and he finally entered the first layer of the Abyssal Region.

However, after surveying his surroundings, he couldn't help but frown slightly.

He found himself above a grey, misty swamp, enveloped by a layer of pale green mist. He could also smell the faint scent of decaying vegetation.

This was clearly not the same location he had entered previously.

"Fellow Daoist Jin, do you know where we are, and if it's close to the entrance of the second layer?" Han Li asked Jin Yue.

"According to the map, this appears to be the Poison Orchid Swamp," Jin Yue said with certainty after surveying the area and pondering for a moment. "It's neither too far nor too close to an entrance to the second layer; we can reach it in half a day. Fellow Daoist, please be a little careful. Although the poisonous gas below poses no threat to us, the swarms of venomous bees that accompany a highly poisonous orchid here are quite troublesome."

Now that the entire Abyssal Region was occupied by the Flying Spirit Race, their maps were naturally far more precise than the previously vague ones. Thus, the Grand Elder of the Sky-Roc Tribe recognized the place at a glance.

"Venomous bees?"

Upon hearing this, Han Li smiled, completely unconcerned.

After exchanging a few more words and confirming their direction, the three immediately shot off.

Half a day later, Han Li and the two women, transformed into dazzling rainbows, appeared above a mountain range. After flying for more than half an hour further, they arrived near a strange peak in the center of that range.

The peak was strange because it was split in two from its mid-slope, strongly resembling the giant Chinese character for 'person' (人). The entire peak was bare and uniformly greyish-white.

This was the entrance to the second layer, as indicated on Jin Yue's map.

Their journey had been exceptionally smooth. Apart from encountering a swarm of venomous bees in the swamp at the beginning—which Han Li easily swept away with a few sword strikes—they encountered almost no demonic beasts on the way, allowing them to travel almost without any delay.

It seemed that most of the low-level demonic beasts on the first layer had now been cleared out.

This was not surprising, as most low-level demonic beasts on the first layer had little value, so the Flying Spirit people naturally had no need to keep them.

However, just as they flew down to the base of the peak, about to flash inside, Han Li's expression subtly shifted. But the next moment, it immediately returned to normal.

Instead, it was Jin Yue, who was in the lead, whose escape light suddenly paused a moment later. She stopped abruptly at the 'person' character entrance below the peak and, with a grim expression, sharply shouted:

"Who's hiding there? Get out, all of you!"

"So it's Grand Elder and Holy Master Lei! Ming Zhen greets Grand Elder!"

In the void near the peak's entrance, a certain spatial area suddenly blurred and twisted. Then, a winged figure mysteriously flashed out and bowed deeply and respectfully to Jin Yue.

Judging by his aura, this person was clearly a male of the Sky-Roc Tribe, clad in pale blue battle armor and possessing a late Void Refinement stage cultivation.

Similar situations occurred in several other voids nearby, as five more figures emerged one by one. These individuals merely offered a slight bow to Jin Yue without speaking, though their expressions varied.

All these individuals also possessed cultivation above the Void Refinement stage.

"So, esteemed nephew Ming Zhen, you're saying they are from the Enforcement Squad? Could it be that you are ambushing the bandit who robbed the mine vein!" Jin Yue asked nonchalantly, her gaze sweeping over them as she sensed the astonishing malevolent aura emanating from their bodies.

"Grand Elder already knows about this! Grand Elder, you are insightful. We are indeed here under orders to blockade the entrances and exits of this place," the somewhat unsightly male of the Sky-Roc Tribe replied without hesitation. He then asked with some hesitation, "Why are Grand Elder and Holy Master Lei here?"

"Hmm, I learned about the mine vein incident from Commander Jin. As for Holy Master Lei Lan and me, we have other important matters in the Abyssal Region and won't be staying here for too long," Jin Yue said indifferently, without elaborating.

"I see," the Sky-Roc Tribe male said respectfully, his heart tightening. "In that case, this junior will not delay Grand Elder and Holy Master's journey. However, if Grand Elder encounters that rogue in the lower layers, we hope you can capture him. Currently, the entire second layer has been sealed by the Enforcement Squad, so that rogue should still be hiding in the lower layers."

"Hehe, if I truly encounter any suspicious person, I will naturally capture them," Jin Yue said, nodding. "You all guard this place well. I'll take Holy Master Lei Lan and go ahead." She said no more to these people, and immediately flew with Han Li and the other person towards the 'person' character entrance. After a faint flash inside, they mysteriously vanished.

"Brother Ming Zhen," another Flying Spirit person with a pair of grey feathered wings, who remained outside the peak, suddenly said to the Sky-Roc Tribe male after Jin Yue and the others vanished from the first layer, "so this is your esteemed clan's Grand Elder. As rumored, her cultivation is unfathomable! With Elder Jin here, your clan can rest easy for tens of thousands of years. But who is the other person? Their cultivation seems similar to ours, but their face is somewhat unfamiliar; I don't seem to have ever seen them before."

"Elder Jin's great advancement in cultivation is certainly a fortune for our clan," the Sky-Roc male named Ming Zhen said, glancing at his questioning companion, his expression darkening with some displeasure. "However, the most important thing is that after our clan regained two Holy Masters, the other clans will no longer have any excuse to act against our Sky-Roc Tribe. As for the person who was just with Grand Elder and Holy Master Lei, I haven't seen them either. But what's so strange about that? Even if our Sky-Roc Tribe is weak, we still have hundreds of millions of clansmen. Is it so suspicious to you that a few unfamiliar new faces appear?"

"Oh, Brother Ming Zhen, you're overthinking it!" The person with grey feathered wings gave an awkward laugh and quickly changed the subject. "I merely asked casually, and I naturally have utmost faith in Elder Jin and your esteemed clan's Holy Master."

"Alright, this is not a place for chatting. We are still on duty," another woman said at this moment, who had a short white horn on her head and purple feathered wings on her back. "Everyone, hide yourselves immediately and don't reveal any more traces."

The Sky-Roc Tribe male, who had originally intended to say more, immediately swallowed his words. The others also quickly nodded, all appearing greatly wary of this woman.

Thus, the six individuals performed hand seals, and with a shift of their figures, they once again vanished into thin air in the distance.

Almost simultaneously, Han Li and the two women, enveloped in a dense black mist, flew downwards.

"It seems the fellow who robbed the mine vein truly possesses considerable divine abilities," Jin Yue suddenly spoke from within her escape light beside Han Li, her words subtly carrying a hint of sarcasm. "Even an exit like this is guarded by six Spirit Commander-level beings. It seems this person, even if not a Saint-level existence, must have abilities not far inferior."

"Oh, judging by Fellow Daoist Jin's tone, you don't seem too concerned about this mine," Han Li remarked, his thoughts turning.

"Why should I care!" Jin Yue sneered. "This mine is supposedly divided among all our Flying Spirit tribes, but in reality, most of the minerals produced are taken by the top-ranked major tribes. What our Sky-Roc Tribe receives is merely negligible."

"I see," Han Li replied thoughtfully. "It seems that even if your esteemed tribe has escaped the danger of annihilation, its situation within the Flying Spirit Race is still not ideal."

"If that weren't the case, I wouldn't have so easily agreed to your request for the cultivation method," Jin Yue said indifferently. "As long as we have your cultivation method, and if our tribe is given tens of thousands of years, it will be enough to make our Sky-Roc Tribe powerful. Fellow Daoist Han, you'd best ensure that the latter half of this cultivation method is indeed flawless."

"Fellow Daoist Jin, rest assured," Han Li replied with a slight smile. "Once we arrive at our destination, I will immediately hand over the latter half of the cultivation method for you to inspect on the spot. Otherwise, I will submit to Grand Elder's judgment."

"It's good that Fellow Daoist Han knows!" After saying this, Jin Yue fell silent.

And just at that moment, the black mist began to thin, and the group finally appeared in the second layer of the Abyssal Region.