Chapter 2478: Transaction, Conference

Wuxia Novel

Volume Eleven: A True Immortal Descends

Fan Paozi smiled slightly. He immediately flicked his sleeve, and from it, a palm-sized fiery red jade box flew out. Its surface was covered with a layer of golden talismans, almost entirely obscuring it.

As soon as the jade box flew out, it shot towards Han Li with a flash.

Han Li's eyes flashed. His arm blurred, and he grabbed the box firmly. With a tap of his finger on the jade box, all the talismans immediately floated off, and the lid silently opened.

Inside were seven scales of various colors, all faintly emitting an astonishing aura of power.

"This is..."

Seeing this, Han Li was greatly surprised.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you will understand once you take a look," Fan Paozi said, spreading his hands, inviting Han Li to examine it freely.

Han Li felt a slight suspicion, but he wasn't afraid of any tricks the other party might use. He flicked his wrist slightly, and a light blue scale immediately leaped out of the box, landing precisely in his other palm.

The moment his finger touched the scale, Han Li's expression changed. As if sensing something, he quickly pressed the scale against his forehead and closed his eyes.

Time passed little by little!

Han Li's expression began to change rapidly. Sometimes he seemed greatly astonished, sometimes a little horrified, and finally, even a hint of fear appeared.

After a full quarter of an hour, Han Li lightly coughed as he removed the scale from his forehead and reopened his eyes.

"So these scales are actually..."

"It's good that Fellow Daoist Han understands," the old man in golden robes said calmly. "These items are naturally useless to ordinary people, but for those who aspire to ascend and overcome tribulations, their value is immeasurable. After all, not everyone has the opportunity to experience the ascension tribulations of others."

"But your noble clan's ascension tribulations should be somewhat different from those of ordinary beings, correct?" Han Li asked cautiously after his expression changed several times.

"They are slightly different, but there isn't a significant difference overall," Elder Jin said, stroking his beard with extreme confidence. "And to my knowledge, apart from our True Dragon clan, very few others are willing to have outsiders nearby when undergoing tribulations, let alone witness the true power of an ascension tribulation firsthand. This 'True Scale Projection Art' is also a unique innate divine ability of our Dragon clan. Even if others tried to do the same, it would be utterly impossible under the power of the heavenly tribulation. Among these scales, there are records of successful tribulations and also of those who were directly destroyed by the heavenly tribulation. I believe their importance to Fellow Daoist Han should be no less than that of the True Soul Pill."

"These must be consumable items that can't be replicated, can they? Otherwise, Senior wouldn't offer them so easily," Han Li asked with a hint of understanding after briefly examining the scales again.

"Heh heh. Fellow Daoist Han is truly worthy of being a powerful individual who has personally slain an immortal," the old man in golden robes said, showing no surprise. Instead, he admitted it candidly. "These scales indeed cannot be used permanently; each can only be used three times. Once the uses are exhausted, they will self-destruct. As for the replication technique, only this elder in the clan knows its intricacies. Otherwise, how could I dare to offer such items for external goods?"

"If they can only be used three times, their practicality is greatly reduced. They might not be enough to exchange for the True Soul Pill," Han Li said, becoming very calm.

"If these aren't enough, what if I add a bottle of Millennium Golden Mulberry Nectar?" the brocade-robed old man added without hesitation. "This spiritual liquid is not only incredibly miraculous itself but also a necessary ingredient for refining several legendary elixirs. Even on Dragon Island, there are only a few bottles."

"Millennium Golden Mulberry Nectar? With this spiritual liquid, it is indeed enough. Alright, Han agrees to the exchange." This time, Han Li didn't hesitate much. The moment he heard the name of Golden Mulberry Nectar, he immediately agreed.

While the True Soul Pill could greatly boost one's soul power and further solidify it, its practical utility for him was truly not as good as these scales that recorded the Dragon clan's ascension tribulations. Moreover, they could be used multiple times, allowing even his close associates to greatly benefit, which was something a single True Soul Pill couldn't compare to. Of course, this was also because he still had two True Soul Pills in his possession; otherwise, he wouldn't have made such a swift decision.

The old man in golden robes was somewhat surprised by Han Li's quick agreement. After a slight pause, he spoke with a hint of delight:

"Fellow Daoist is indeed a generous person. No wonder Fan Paozi handed over the invitation upon your first meeting. I believe Fellow Daoist will have other gains at the Dao Fruit Assembly."

As soon as he finished speaking, he flipped his palm, and a small golden bottle suddenly appeared in his hand. With a flick, it silently slid towards Han Li.

Han Li, with a flick of his sleeve, drew the small bottle towards him as if by water. He opened the lid, swept his spiritual sense inside, then nodded and put it away.

Then, with a slight movement of his other arm, a palm-sized wooden box appeared out of thin air before him. He flicked a finger.

"Whoosh!"

The wooden box shot towards the opposite side.

The old man in golden robes simply raised his hand, and the wooden box trembled to a stable stop directly in front of him. Without him making any further moves, the lid opened by itself, revealing a golden elixir.

The old man's eyes narrowed. He sniffed lightly, and a satisfied expression appeared on his face.

"Haha, it truly is the True Soul Pill," he chuckled. "With this, I can finally give an explanation to that old friend of mine."

For the remainder of their time, Han Li did not converse much further with the True Dragon Clan's Grand Elder. After exchanging a few polite words, he bid farewell and left.

Fan Paozi naturally saw him off personally.

"Although I sensed during our first meeting that Fellow Daoist Han was no ordinary powerful cultivator," Fan Paozi said to Han Li, half-jokingly and half-seriously, in the void over a hundred li away from the golden giant boat. "I never expected that in just a few years since we last met, Fellow Daoist would gain such immense renown. Not only did you slay the infamous Mother of Demonic Insects, but you even killed a True Immortal who descended from the Immortal Realm. Tsk tsk, it's a pity I missed out on such an exciting event!"

"I was only able to accomplish these things with the help of various external forces and through fortunate coincidences," Han Li replied with a slight smile. "If I had to do it again, how could I possibly be their true match? I didn't realize that this Dao Fruit Assembly had such a profound origin. Your grace in gifting me the invitation that day means I owe Fellow Daoist a considerable favor."

"Haha, what's there to thank for!" Fan Paozi laughed heartily and said nonchalantly. "I did it because I found Brother Han very agreeable that day. If it were someone else, I naturally wouldn't have done it."

"Regardless, this Dao Fruit Assembly has indeed been quite beneficial to me," Han Li said, his expression becoming serious. "Even if I don't obtain a Dao Fruit, this trip won't have been in vain."

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Han should have a good chance of winning the Dao Fruit competition in a few months, right?" Fan Paozi's eyes darted, and he asked with a half-smile. "Although there are many powerful cultivators from various realms invited to Dragon Island this time, there are probably very few who can truly compare to Fellow Daoist. Besides, I heard that girl Tian Feier seems to owe you a considerable favor from before, and she's also one of the officials for this assembly."

"Ahem... Brother Fan, you're exaggerating a bit," Han Li replied vaguely with a light cough. "There are so many powerful cultivators who have come to Dragon Island this time. Who would truly dare to say they are certain to obtain a Dao Fruit? As for Fairy Tian, I've only met her twice."

Fan Paozi chuckled, an expression of utter disbelief on his face, but he didn't press the matter further. Instead, he changed the subject and asked with great interest about the Mother of Demonic Insects and the True Immortal, Ma Liang.

There wasn't much to hide regarding these questions, so Han Li answered most of them one by one, which Fan Paozi listened to with great interest.

Half an hour later, Fan Paozi returned alone to the golden giant boat, while Han Li had already vanished without a trace.

Half a month later, in an extremely secluded mountain cave, Han Li pressed a white jade slip to his forehead, his eyes flickering slightly.

"True Monarch Feng Yue. Ascended to Grand Ascension stage fifty thousand years ago. From Yan Du Realm, proficient in Five Peaks Profound Arts..."

"Heavenly Sparrow Master. Ascended to Grand Ascension stage thirty thousand years ago, from Xuan Wei Realm, adept in thirty-six types of poison arts. Can kill peers invisibly; absolutely must not be allowed within a hundred zhang..."

"Prajna Rogue Immortal. Ascended to Grand Ascension stage sixty thousand years ago, from Ling Luo Realm. Primarily cultivates three great Buddhist divine abilities; his Arhat Golden Body has reached grand completion. Once, single-handedly, he slew three Grand Ascension demonic cultivators in a single day..."

These pieces of information flashed one by one through Han Li's spiritual consciousness, yet his face showed no expression.

Three months later, the Dao Fruit Assembly officially commenced as scheduled. After a grand ceremony held by the True Dragon Clan, the competition for the Dao Fruits began in a vast space imbued with the Dragon Clan's unique restrictions.

In a dense forest where trees towered into the clouds, Han Li slowly flew forward beneath the trees, three feet above the ground.

Suddenly, several large trees nearby blurred and transformed into several hundred-zhang-tall savage giants. Each was naked and bald, exuding a murderous aura. With a mere raise of their dozens of arms, countless emerald green thunder-fire bolts rained down with overwhelming force.

A booming sound simultaneously erupted!

Dense fist shadows, emitting dazzling emerald light, also shot down from these giants' hands. For a moment, it seemed as if the entire void would be crushed to pieces.

"Excellent!"

Seeing this, Han Li showed no surprise. Instead, with a cold chuckle, he stomped his foot down suddenly.

"Boom!"

First, countless azure sword energies shot out from below, slashing apart most of the fist shadows and thunder-fire. Then, with a flash of golden light, a thousand-zhang tall, three-headed, six-armed demonic god burst out from the dense forest. After its six arms merely swept like spinning wheels, a circle of golden halo immediately surged forth, instantly sweeping away and annihilating all the remaining fist shadows.

"Eh?"

A surprised sound immediately came from a giant tree several li away. The three-headed demonic god instantly swept its six eyes like lightning towards it. Suddenly, its central head opened its mouth wide, and a dark green light orb sprayed out, dimly enclosing a small green bottle a few inches tall.

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