Chapter 2231: Saint Island Envoy

The individual these people were discussing was none other than Han Li himself.

Upon hearing Zen Master Jinyue's words, the faces of several individuals present, who had been inclined to surrender Han Li's disciple, became exceedingly grim.

Even as the two races' only remaining Mahayana cultivators, Mo Jianli and Ao Xiao's prestige slightly surpassed that of the Holy Island itself. If it weren't for the ancient regulations established by the two races, which prohibited Mahayana cultivators from interfering with the Holy Island's daily affairs, Mo Jianli and Ao Xiao could have personally controlled the Holy Island without any problems.

Now that these two Mahayana cultivators were involved, even those with differing opinions dared not express them easily for the time being.

The entire hall fell into complete silence.

"Hmm, I've had this point personally verified," Zen Master Jinyue said slowly after a period of contemplation. "I hear that the two seniors believe Fellow Daoist Han is the most likely among our two races to successfully achieve Mahayana, which is why they value him so highly. Furthermore, I've heard that Senior Ao Xiao's direct descendant, 'Fairy Linglong,' for some unknown reason, has also been by Fellow Daoist Han's side, and it seems they are now both in seclusion. If we truly anger Fellow Daoist Han, the consequences might not be any better than offending the Holy Island."

Upon hearing Jinyue's words, some present remained expressionless, while others' expressions changed dramatically. Clearly, their opinions still varied and could not be easily unified.

"That's not necessarily true," a black-robed man, who had been silent until then, stated dispassionately. "The Holy Island's request for Fellow Daoist Han's disciple from our Heavenly Abyss City this time is also for the sake of our two races' grand future. According to the Holy Island, Fellow Daoist Du Yu, who has been in seclusion on the Holy Island for ten thousand years, has finally emerged early, having reached the peak of the Integration stage and cultivated the Confucian supreme divine ability, 'Vast Purity Expelling Evil Art,' to its highest realm. With Fellow Daoist Du's cultivated Confucian holy art, combined with various auxiliary elixirs and artifacts meticulously prepared by the Holy Island, he has a full 20% chance of breaking through the Mahayana bottleneck. However, he still lacks effective means to counter the True Lightning Tribulation. But someone on the Holy Island, from an unknown source, learned that Fellow Daoist Han's disciple possesses the extremely rare Concealed Lightning Root, which can help others withstand lightning tribulations. That's why they are determined to summon the disciple to the island to assist Fellow Daoist Du Yu in passing the True Lightning Tribulation. If this action can truly add another Mahayana cultivator to our two races, I believe even Senior Mo Jianli would be pleased to see it succeed. Even if Fellow Daoist Han himself knows about this, he won't be able to blame us."

"Brother Yan makes a good point!" the golden-masked man said, stroking his chin and nodding in agreement. "The Holy Island is only asking Fellow Daoist Han's disciple to help Fellow Daoist Du Yu pass the True Lightning Tribulation; it's not necessarily going to lead to trouble. Perhaps it might even be an opportunity for a different kind of fortune."

"Hmph, you make it sound so easy," Fairy Silverlight interjected, her face showing a hint of anger. "Fellow Daoist Han's disciple has only just entered the Deity Transformation stage. Even with the rumored Concealed Lightning Root, how could they withstand the True Lightning Tribulation? Most likely, they'd have to forcefully elevate their cultivation realm by stimulating their potential and depleting their lifespan. Even if Fellow Daoist Han's disciple were to miraculously survive the True Lightning Tribulation, they would be completely crippled afterward. How could Fellow Daoist Han truly let this go?"

"For the grand plan of our two races, sacrificing a mere newly transformed cultivator to gain a Mahayana cultivator is an incredibly profitable endeavor," the black-robed man said, narrowing his eyes and speaking ruthlessly. "Why not?"

"Heh heh," the purple-haired woman scoffed, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "If Fellow Daoist Han truly doesn't become a Mahayana cultivator, then it's all simple; we just let the Holy Island forcefully suppress him. But what if he fortunately breaks through to the Mahayana realm? How would we face him then? Would it be then that the Holy Island would directly sacrifice us to quell his rage? Is it also an extremely cost-effective thing for our two races to appease the fury of a Mahayana cultivator with a few Integration stage cultivators? After all, our Elder Council personally guaranteed Fellow Daoist Han when he left that we would look after his disciples no matter what happened. Do you truly believe that after this incident, we can remain uninvolved?"

The black-robed man's expression subtly changed upon hearing this, but after shaking his head, he offered no further refutation.

The entire hall fell silent once more, as everyone silently pondered the pros and cons, their thoughts racing.

"Brother Gu, what's your opinion?" Zen Master Jinyue sighed, suddenly turning to the silver-haired old man.

"What good is my opinion at this point!" the silver-haired old man replied with a wry smile. "This matter is truly difficult to handle; it's unlikely we few alone can come to a definite conclusion."

"Even if it's difficult, we must deal with it and find a solution that satisfies both sides," the old monk said, his face twitching slightly to reveal a hint of distress. "While we cannot openly defy the Holy Island's orders, we are also deeply aware of Fellow Daoist Han's formidable power — he is almost the foremost Integration stage cultivator of our two races, and we cannot afford to provoke him either. Moreover, Fellow Daoist Han is not easily deceived, so common excuses and minor tricks won't work. This old monk doesn't wish to be misunderstood by him over this matter, like Fellow Daoist Azure Dragon who inexplicably suffered a great calamity back then."

As soon as others heard the name Azure Dragon, their hearts all grew cold.

Although no one present had personally witnessed Reverend Azure Dragon's demise that day, they knew deep down that it was, in all likelihood, Han Li's doing.

Back then, Han Li had unhesitatingly killed Reverend Azure Dragon, a grand elder of the Nine Star Sect in the Integration stage, all for the sake of a nominal junior sister. If they were to truly turn against him, would he also furiously strike them down with ruthless hands? No one could be certain of that.

After all, they had promised Han Li that they would ensure the safety of his disciples.

In a situation where they might create a formidable enemy who could easily take their lives, even though the Holy Island seemed overwhelmingly powerful, the golden-masked man and the black-robed man couldn't help but hesitate again.

"Forget it," the silver-haired old man said, his eyes flickering for a long time before he finally made the decisive call. "This matter concerns the entire Elder Council, and the few of us certainly cannot reach a conclusion today. The Holy Island's envoy won't arrive in our city for some time, so let's wait for all the other elders to gather, and then we can collectively discuss a stable solution. Of course, in the meantime, Fellow Daoist Han's disciples must temporarily be restricted from leaving Heavenly Abyss City. At the same time, Fellow Daoist Silverlight, please try to contact Senior Ao Xiao again to see if they can be reached. As long as these two seniors give direct instructions, we can act without worries, no matter what we do. Fellow Daoist Yan, you are responsible for contacting the Holy Island. First, find out who this Holy Island envoy is and see if there's any possibility of changing the order. As long as the Holy Island is willing to abandon summoning Fellow Daoist Han's disciple, Heavenly Abyss City can grit its teeth and agree to some other conditions."

"Senior Ao Xiao and Senior Mo Jianli have inexplicably disappeared simultaneously since signing the truce with the demon race back then," Fairy Silverlight replied, not holding much hope. "Even their direct descendants and disciples cannot contact them. This junior sister can only say I'll try again."

"I, Yan, have several close friends on the Holy Island, so inquiring about some news is an easy matter," the black-robed man said with a slight sigh. "However, persuading the Holy Island to abandon its previous order is simply impossible."

"Hmph, of course I know both these matters are extremely difficult," the silver-haired old man said expressionlessly. "But you must still do your best. What if there's a real turning point? Wouldn't we then be able to escape this great trouble?"

Hearing the old man's words, the black-robed man and Fairy Silverlight could only nod in agreement again.

So, for the time being, after the matters concerning the Holy Island and Han Li were temporarily set aside, the silver-haired old man and others began discussing the extermination of the remaining demon forces near Heavenly Abyss City...

Three months later, at the massive hundred-zhang-high city gate of Heavenly Abyss City, over a hundred armored guards stood neatly on both sides of the entrance. Several individuals in various colored robes stood atop the gate, gazing into the distant sky.

One of them had a head full of silver hair, while another wore a pale golden kasaya; they were none other than Elder Gu and Zen Master Jinyue. As for the others standing nearby, the black-robed man, Fairy Silverlight, and several other elders were also present.

Everyone stood silently atop the city wall, not saying a word, as if awaiting someone's arrival.

However, after a full hour had passed, there was still no spiritual light visible in the distant sky. The silver-haired old man, standing in the middle, looked up at the midday sun, then frowned slightly and suddenly asked the black-robed man beside him:

"Fellow Daoist Yan, will the Holy Island's spirit boat truly arrive in our city precisely at noon today? You haven't mistaken the time, have you?"

"Brother Gu, how could I possibly be mistaken about such a small matter?" the black-robed man replied after a moment's thought. "Perhaps the Holy Island's envoy encountered an unexpected situation on the way and was slightly delayed."

"What could have delayed them?" the silver-haired old man said, shaking his head slightly and thinking to himself. "This time, there are three Holy Island envoys, and even you couldn't ascertain their identities. It seems the Holy Island truly doesn't come with good intentions this time."

The black-robed man's eyes flickered slightly, but he didn't immediately respond.

However, Zen Master Jinyue, who was nearby, said indifferently: "Although our Elder Council has discussed this several times by now, we still haven't been able to come up with a solution. Now we can only go with the flow and adapt to the situation."

The other Integration stage elders nearby heard this and could only offer bitter smiles in response.

"They're here!" Fairy Silverlight suddenly whispered, her expression hidden by her mask.

Everyone tensed up and hurriedly looked up, gazing into the distant sky once more.

On the distant horizon, a flash of green light appeared, and a green rainbow tore through the air. Its incredibly fast escape speed meant that in just a few blinks, it arrived near the city gate.

The light suddenly converged, and a faintly green jade boat instantly appeared.

At the bow of the jade boat, a young man in a green robe stood ramrod straight. Upon seeing the crowd below, a trace of surprise flashed across his face, but he immediately cupped his hands and said with a smile:

"Brother Gu, Master Jin, why are you here? Could it be that you knew I, Han, would return to Heavenly Abyss City today?"

The many elders on the city gate, as soon as they clearly saw the young man's face, immediately became dumbfounded.