Chapter 341: Shocked

Volume 3

A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality – Volume 3

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“I am…”

“Sir, don’t try to claim you’re a rogue cultivator. If you do, I won’t believe it for a second!” Han Li interrupted the other party emotionlessly.

Hearing Han Li’s words, "Qu Hun" gave a bitter smile. It seemed he had indeed been unwilling to give up just now, intending to say just that.

Then, Qu Hun hesitated slightly before saying weakly,

“Just as you suspect, my identity is indeed a bit special. I am not a cultivator from Yue State.”

“Not from our Yue State?” Han Li’s expression changed slightly just from the first sentence, and he felt a shock in his heart.

“I am actually a cultivator from the Spirit Beast Sect of Tiandu State, and I came to Yue State for a journey,” Qu Hun slowly explained.

“The Demonic Dao’s Spirit Beast Sect!”

Han Li’s eyes narrowed, sharp as blades.

“Yes, I came to your land several years ago, but unexpectedly, a highly skilled cultivator from your country mysteriously destroyed my physical body, which is how I ended up in this state,” Qu Hun said with a look of helplessness when mentioning his body being destroyed.

Han Li thought for a moment, then raised an eyebrow and asked,

“Your body was destroyed five or six years ago, wasn’t it?”

Han Li’s voice was extremely calm, and Qu Hun, not understanding the meaning of Han Li’s words, answered honestly,

“Yes!”

“During the several years you occupied this body, did you never think of going back?” Han Li asked calmly.

“Of course, I did, but you know too little about our Demonic Dao,” Qu Hun said, his face full of frustration.

“What’s going on? Although I know a little about the Demonic Dao, it’s only scattered rumors,” Han Li admitted frankly.

“Our Demonic Dao emphasizes the law of the jungle. Power is truth; you enjoy power commensurate with your strength. My position in the Spirit Beast Sect back then was not low; I had a beautiful dao partner and some servant disciples. But now that my cultivation has greatly decreased, do you think those things would still be mine if I went back? Nine times out of ten, I would be secretly poisoned by the senior and junior disciples who had long coveted my position,” Qu Hun explained with a sneer.

Han Li frowned after hearing this, but said nothing.

Qu Hun then continued,

“My cultivation plummeted to this extent because of the soul possession. Therefore, I’m confident that if I hide and cultivate for thirty or forty years, my cultivation will be fully restored. Then I can return openly. Otherwise, do you think I’d willingly hide in this godforsaken place?!” Qu Hun’s words were filled with resentment.

“So, you’ve been hiding near Jiayuan City. Have you not seen any other cultivators?” Han Li’s expression was indifferent, appearing unmoved.

“No, you are the first Yue State cultivator I’ve seen since I took over this body,” he said, his face looking unwell.

“Why didn’t you say so from the beginning? Why impersonate a cultivator from Spirit Beast Mountain?” Han Li pressed on, not letting up.

“Wasn’t it because I thought you might be a cultivator from the Seven Sects, and you would be unfavorable to me?” he said, somewhat awkwardly.

Upon hearing this, Han Li suddenly smiled!

“Is this your honest truth?” Han Li said amiably. However, his expression sent shivers down Qu Hun’s spine.

“Yes! Is there something you’re dissatisfied with?” he asked cautiously, a hint of unease in his expression.

“I once heard someone say that the easiest lies to deceive people are those that are seventy percent true and thirty percent false. I wonder how much of what you just said was true?” Han Li stared into the other party’s eyes, speaking each word distinctly.

“Heh heh! You are too suspicious, Daoist friend. Every word I said just now was indeed the truth,” Qu Hun knew this was not good, but thinking of the consequences of telling the truth, he could only brace himself and persist.

“In that case, let me tell you some news! Your Demonic Dao’s Six Sects have already invaded our Yue State. That means we are now opposing forces, so I won’t bother interrogating you for any secrets. I’ll just extract your Nascent Soul and destroy it now, saving us time,” Han Li said with a grim, chilling expression.

At these words, the one who had just suffered wore a ashen face.

“Invaded your Yue State? How is that possible? The time isn’t even ripe yet?” As soon as the words, spoken in urgency, left his mouth, his face instantly turned pale, revealing a look of regret.

But Han Li’s heart was startled.

“You know about this? It seems I really underestimated you. However, no matter how high your status was in the Spirit Beast Sect, you are now just a Qi Condensation stage cultivator! So don’t blame me for being ruthless,” Han Li’s eyebrows slowly rose, and he spoke with a murderous aura.

Then, Han Li flipped his palm, and the “Soul Gathering Bowl” reappeared, instantly bringing back the chilling aura.

A scene that surprised Han Li appeared: "Qu Hun" didn’t show fear. Instead, he stared at the bowl, a strange expression on his face.

Seeing this, Han Li felt a bit uneasy in his heart.

How could he know any "Soul Refining Art"? He was merely trying to intimidate the other party. If the other party truly preferred death over speaking, Han Li would have no choice but to destroy both Qu Hun’s body and the opponent. However, the newly obtained blood sacrifice secret art did contain some methods for extracting souls, but unfortunately, he hadn’t had time to learn them.

As Han Li was thinking this, Qu Hun sighed deeply and suddenly said,

“I do have some secrets, and they are related to the life and death of your Seven Sects. But how can you guarantee that you will let me go after I tell you? I’m afraid I’ll still likely die from soul refining!” When he mentioned the words “soul refining,” his face couldn’t help but twitch.

Han Li heard the other party speak so solemnly, rubbed his nose, and with a wave of his hand, put the bowl away again.

“What kind of guarantee do you want? As long as it’s reasonable, I can consider agreeing!” Han Li said with a normal expression, seemingly not taking the other party’s bold claim seriously.

“Hmph! I won’t believe ordinary vows. But as far as I know, practicing ‘Soul Refining Art’ is most taboo when swearing with soul artifacts. If one violates the oath, they will likely suffer a backlash from the Soul Refining Art and die a miserable death. I want you to swear an oath using a soul artifact that if I tell the truth and you still act maliciously, your soul artifact will shatter, and you will suffer the pain of soul refining,” Qu Hun said without hesitation.

“Okay, I agree!” Han Li agreed without the slightest hesitation, but secretly sneered in his heart.

Subsequently, Han Li took out the “Soul Gathering Bowl” and swore a solemn oath as the other party requested.

Seeing Han Li so cleanly and quickly swear the oath, Qu Hun felt a bit suspicious, faintly sensing that something was amiss.

“I’ve already sworn the oath, you’re not going to ask for any other conditions, are you?” Han Li said calmly, preventing the other party from dwelling on the anomaly, deliberately showing dissatisfaction.

“Of course not. I still know the consequences of being insatiably greedy. However, before I reveal the secret, you must first tell me about the current situation between our Demonic Dao and your Seven Sects. Because I don’t know if this information is outdated,” Qu Hun was indeed distracted and explained with a forced smile.

A hint of hesitation flashed across Han Li’s face, but he still slowly introduced the current situation of the Seven Sects and the Demonic Dao.

“Qu Hun” listened very carefully, but when he heard that a major battle would begin in just over a month, a hint of mockery appeared on his face. Han Li, who had been paying close attention to his expression, saw this clearly.

After listening to the introduction, Qu Hun pondered for a moment, then began to speak.

However, his very first sentence genuinely startled Han Li.

“If you are willing to listen to me, Daoist friend, there is no need to rush to the Seven Sects’ main camp now. Because at this moment, the Seven Sects and the allied cultivators from the other two countries have likely already suffered a major defeat. Your going there would only be to your death,” he said with a strange expression.

Han Li’s expression remained unchanged; he simply watched the other party coldly, waiting for his explanation.

The cultivator from the Spirit Beast Sect, seeing Han Li so composed, couldn’t help but feel a little admiration, but he also grew more wary of Han Li. At the same time, he continued to speak:

“You probably don’t know this, but Spirit Beast Mountain has, in fact, maintained a secret connection with our Spirit Beast Sect ever since its establishment. The previous false rebellion, if my estimation is correct, was a smoke screen deliberately released by our Six Sects, specifically to wait for cultivators from the other two countries to arrive, so that we could wipe out the cultivators of all three countries in one fell swoop. Presumably, after this battle, our Demonic Dao’s Six Sects will be able to dominate several countries,” this person slowly revealed a secret that chilled Han Li’s heart.

“Smoke screen? Wouldn’t doing that be a bit redundant? Spirit Beast Mountain explicitly revealed its relationship with your Spirit Beast Sect. Wouldn’t it have been better if it hadn’t?” Han Li said with a somewhat ugly expression, still in shock.

“Do you really believe that the other Six Sects don’t know the origin of Spirit Beast Mountain? You must know that among your Seven Sects, besides Spirit Beast Mountain being a branch of our Spirit Beast Sect, the strongest sect, Masked Moon Sect, and our Six Sects’ Harmonious Bliss Sect also have deep ties. It’s just that Masked Moon Sect genuinely broke ties with Harmonious Bliss Sect several hundred years ago, ambitiously planning to establish its own independence,” the Spirit Beast Sect cultivator said, revealing another surprising piece of information to Han Li.