Chapter 1953: Countermeasures

“Can they be seized? Is that true! If I remember correctly, these two treasures seem to be refined as one with the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor. How could they be forcibly taken?” Han Li was first startled, then after pondering for a moment, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

“Have I ever told you, Fellow Daoist, that among those two ultimate treasures, the Purple-Word Cauldron originally belonged to me?” The old man stroked his beard, speaking meaningfully.

“What? Such a thing exists!” Han Li blurted out in surprise.

“Hmph, back then, I was ambushed by Bloodlight and forced to hide my primordial spirit within this Demon Suppressing Lock, which ultimately allowed me to escape that scoundrel’s notice. But the Purple-Word Cauldron, along with my physical body, fell into that villain’s hands. He spent over a hundred years refining the spiritual sense I left in the cauldron, then re-refined it for his own use. However, the spiritual sense I originally left in the cauldron actually had two aspects, one overt and one hidden. As long as that scoundrel hasn’t discovered the existence of the second spiritual sense, there’s naturally still a chance to help you reclaim this treasure,” the old man said, stroking his beard and revealing a hint of gloom.

“If Senior has such a trump card, then success might indeed be possible. But I wonder how strong the spiritual sense left in the treasure is, and how confident Senior feels about it,” Han Li asked cautiously, his heart stirred by the prospect.

“That wisp of spiritual sense was specially refined by me, specifically for dealing with such situations. As long as it hasn’t been discovered by Bloodlight, I have over a fifty percent chance of making this treasure break free from his control. Moreover, using my method, even if we unexpectedly fail to reclaim the treasure, it will still be enough to significantly weaken its power before you, Fellow Daoist Han, rendering it no longer a threat,” Che Qigong said with extraordinary confidence.

“Fifty percent confidence, that’s enough to risk a try. Since we don’t have to worry about the Purple-Word Cauldron, I wonder if Senior also has a way to deal with the Radiant Pagoda. Compared to the Purple-Word Cauldron, this treasure’s ability to absorb living beings is even more heaven-defying and troublesome,” Han Li nodded, then suddenly asked another question.

“Although the Radiant Pagoda is not my possession, it is a well-known Profound Heaven remnant treasure in the Saint Realm. I don’t know how that villain Bloodlight managed to acquire it. I’ve seen this treasure a few times, and its power is indeed astonishing; even if I were to face it myself, I wouldn’t be confident in breaking through it,” Che Qigong said with a solemn expression after pondering for a moment.

“So, this treasure is completely unmanageable?” Han Li’s heart sank as he spoke slowly.

“Although the Radiant Pagoda cannot be broken, there is a way to help you delay it for some time. As long as you can seize this opportunity to subdue the Purple-Word Cauldron, and then use that cauldron to deal with the pagoda, both being remnant Heaven treasures, it should be enough for self-preservation,” the old man said, his eyes glinting.

“Being able to resist it somewhat is enough. I humbly request Senior to impart this method,” Han Li said, a smile appearing on his face after a moment’s thought, cupping his hands.

“Hehe, I wouldn’t dare claim to ‘impart knowledge.’ Fellow Daoist wouldn’t truly think I’d just hand over the secret technique to activate the spiritual sense and the method for dealing with the Radiant Pagoda for free, would you?” The old man rolled his eyes and spoke unceremoniously.

“Oh, then what does Senior intend?” Han Li’s expression remained unchanged, as if he had long anticipated this.

“It’s simple: agree to the transaction I proposed earlier, and I will truthfully tell you all the secret techniques and methods!” Che Qigong said without hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Han Li narrowed his eyes slightly, and after a long moment, he said faintly:

“In that case, Senior, please state your conditions. Last time, I left in a bit of a hurry and didn’t get to listen carefully.”

“Don’t worry, I am not a greedy person. My conditions will also be greatly beneficial to you,” Che Qigong said, a hint of joy appearing on his face for the first time, his voice softening.

“Then I am all ears,” Han Li sneered inwardly, naturally not taking the other party’s words seriously, but his expression remained unchanged.

“The first condition is that after you are freed, you must immediately go to the nearby Underworld Hellfire region. There, you will use the nether flames of heaven and earth to extract some of the primal chaos energy from the Demon Suppressing Lock. I will tell you the extraction method later, but you must give me one-third of the extracted primal chaos energy,” Che Qigong stated solemnly.

“Senior, you are currently trapped here. How would you receive this primal chaos energy?” Han Li’s expression shifted, and he couldn’t help but ask, somewhat puzzled.

“You don’t need to worry about that, Fellow Daoist. Although I am suppressed by the Demon Suppressing Lock, I have my own way of accomplishing this. You just need to answer whether you agree or not,” the old man said, raising an eyebrow.

“Senior only requests one-third, which is indeed not excessive. Very well, I can agree to this condition,” Han Li said, his expression fluctuating for a moment before he finally nodded in agreement.

“Since that condition is agreed upon, the second one is even simpler, and it’s something for an unknown future. I see that your divine abilities are considerable; perhaps one day you will also advance to the Grand Ascension stage. Therefore, I merely ask for one more promise. Should a day come when you truly have the power, please help me slay that villain Bloodlight,” the old man said with a light chuckle, uttering words that made Han Li’s facial muscles twitch.

“Senior, are you jesting?! How could I possibly slay a Grand Ascension stage being? Even if that day truly comes, the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor would most likely be in your Demon Realm; how would I dare cross realms to go there?” Han Li shook his head vigorously, rejecting it outright.

“Fellow Daoist, don’t be so quick to refuse! I am not forcing you to fulfill this condition, nor will I actively demand that you go to the Saint Realm. I merely want a hope. If by any chance you are truly unable to accomplish this, then this condition can naturally be considered void,” Che Qigong said, his gaze deepening, then let out a bitter laugh.

“If that’s the case, then I can indeed make that promise. I swear by my inner demons: if one day my Dao cultivation becomes complete and I can truly slay that Bloodlight Saint Ancestor with ease, I will certainly assist you...” Han Li’s expression shifted for a long time before he slowly agreed, then immediately swore an oath by his inner demons.

Such an oath, sworn by one’s inner demons, becomes more binding the higher one’s cultivation level.

After all, none of them would want to fail at a critical juncture while attempting to break through a bottleneck due to a backlash from their inner demons.

Seeing this, the old man showed a satisfied expression, but then his gaze immediately sharpened, and he spoke cautiously:

“I will first tell you the secret technique for activating the spiritual sense and the method for dealing with the Radiant Pagoda. However, as for how to absorb the primal chaos energy, I can only tell you once you arrive at the Underworld Hellfire location. And only after I have received my rightful share of the primal chaos energy will I finally reveal the method for refining it. Do you have any objections to these points, Fellow Daoist Han?”

“What? Is there something special about refining this primal chaos energy?” Han Li’s heart tensed upon hearing this, and he couldn’t help but ask.

“What kind of spiritual essence is the primal chaos energy within the Demon Suppressing Lock? How could ordinary refining methods be effective? It’s not me boasting, but even among the Saint Ancestors in the Saint Realm, no more than three know the technique for refining this energy,” Che Qigong said, shaking his head proudly.

After listening, Han Li pondered for a long time before finally nodding somewhat helplessly:

“Very well, I will proceed as Senior says. That avatar of the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor isn’t too far from me. Once I’ve dealt with that fiend, I will immediately take Senior to the Underworld Hellfire location.”

“Hehe, Fellow Daoist Han, this choice is absolutely wise. I have a replicated jade slip here, with the secret techniques and methods already recorded on it. This item cannot be taken out of the Demon Suppressing Lock, so please memorize it thoroughly while you are here,” Che Qigong said with a faint smile, then flicked his sleeve, and a dark jade slip shot out.

“Thank you for your gift, Senior.”

Han Li did not stand on ceremony. With a single hand gesture, he pulled the jade slip into his hand from thin air, placed it against his forehead, and fell silent with a solemn expression.

The old man remained standing quietly in his original spot.

Han Li’s expression fluctuated. After about the time it takes to steep a cup of tea, he slowly removed the jade slip from his forehead, exhaling deeply. Then, with a slight squeeze of his fingers, it burst into a flash of spiritual light and shattered.

“I have memorized the secret techniques and methods. So, to deal with the Radiant Pagoda, one needs spatial-type treasures. However, such treasures are quite rare. Although I possess a few items obtained from others, I wonder if there are any specific requirements regarding the grade of these treasures, and if similar talismans would also be effective,” Han Li asked thoughtfully.

“The Radiant Pagoda is a Profound Heaven remnant treasure, so for spatial-type treasures used to affect its power, the stronger they are, the better. However, if the goal is merely to buy time, then regardless of their grade, self-detonating them will significantly impact the pagoda’s abilities. If you have talismans that can affect spatial stability, they would naturally work as well,” Che Qigong chuckled.

“I see, that puts my mind at ease. Without further ado, I will return outside to force back that avatar of the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor. Oh, I almost forgot to mention something. This avatar of the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor is vastly different from typical parasitic avatars. After possessing a body, not only does its magical power greatly increase, but the power of those two treasures also seems to be utilized to their full extent. It seems that ordinary divine sense projections cannot achieve such things, can they? Moreover, this avatar can even split into three, manifesting two other clones. Senior, do you know what kind of divine ability this is?” Han Li asked the old man, remembering something else.

“What? Such a thing exists, and it can even manifest other clones? That’s impossible! A divine sense projected from another realm absolutely cannot achieve such things,” the smile on Che Qigong’s face instantly vanished, replaced by an expression of disbelief.

“I also find it somewhat strange, because the Bloodlight Saint Ancestor already has an avatar nearby commanding the demon army, yet another divine sense descended and possesses such formidable abilities. If all the Saint Ancestors in your Demon Realm had such great divine abilities, our neighboring races would probably have been defeated by your Demon Race long ago,” Han Li said with a light sigh, seemingly filled with doubts.

“Hmph, other Saint Ancestors definitely don’t possess such cultivation methods. Let me think carefully; I seem to have heard of a similar divine ability somewhere, but it’s been too long, and I can’t immediately recall it,” Che Qigong said, his surprise fading, his eyes suddenly narrowing into slits.