Chapter 721: Mind Entrapment Technique

"There wasn't much else to say after that. I returned to the Hidden Moon Sect, and once our sect had established itself in the Northern Liang State, I secretly went to the State of Yue to look for you again. However, the news I received was terrible; I only learned that you seemed to have been pursued again by the Ghost Spirit Sect, but the specific details were unknown. Soon after, I was discovered by people from the Demonic Dao and had no choice but to return to the Nine Nations Alliance. Since then, I've had no news of you and assumed you had likely perished. The mental demon related to you gradually faded away. Later, I luckily succeeded in forming my Nascent Soul and smoothly became an elder of the Hidden Moon Sect, remaining so until now," Nangong Wan said calmly.

Listening to Nangong Wan's calm narration, Han Li's expression changed several times. He had been completely unaware that she had done so much for him back then, and his gaze towards Nangong now held a touch more warmth.

"What about Wei Lichen?" Han Li finally couldn't help but ask after a long pause.

"Wei Lichen! Several years ago, I encountered an elder from the Intent Transformation Sect by chance during an outing. I don't like this person. He's practically a typical hypocrite, graceful on the surface but full of schemes and wickedness underneath. I heard he has as many as seven or eight so-called female disciples. And I also heard that he seems to have secretly cultivated a technique for 'harvesting yin to nourish yang.' His proposal to me likely didn't come from good intentions either. So, when he first proposed to me, I flatly rejected him," Nangong Wan said with a sneer on her face.

"Rejected him? Then how did it become like this now?" Han Li asked, looking puzzled after hearing this.

Nangong Wan didn't answer directly but suddenly asked, "Do you know about the three Nascent Soul cultivators of Tiannan?"

"Of course. One from the Righteous Dao, one from the Demonic Dao, and one from the Nine Nations Alliance have reached the late Nascent Soul stage, just a step away from entering the Deity Transformation stage? Otherwise, the major powers wouldn't have been able to maintain balance until now. As for our Nine Nations Alliance, we have a pair of mid-Nascent Soul cultivators who are skilled in combined techniques. When they join forces, they can barely withstand a late Nascent Soul cultivator. Why, is Wei Lichen connected to one of them?" Han Li asked with a grim expression, a faint premonition of trouble forming in his heart.

"Precisely. Wei Lichen's grand-uncle is Wei Wuya, one of the three great cultivators. Wei Wuya, as the Grand Elder of the Nine Nations Alliance, cultivates a rare poison-path technique. He can take someone's life without a trace with a mere flick of his hand. His divine abilities are far beyond what ordinary cultivators can imagine," Nangong Wan said softly, her jade fingers intertwining as a wry smile appeared on her face.

"Is that Wei Wuya personally making things difficult for you!" Han Li's mouth twitched, and a flash of killing intent appeared in his eyes as he spoke coldly.

"That's not it. But Wei Wuya did indeed intervene in this matter. Do you know that the current Grand Elder of the Hidden Moon Sect isn't the previous one anymore? It's now one of my former senior sisters. Although her cultivation isn't low, she's very ambitious and often clashes with me. Even though another elder tries to mediate, our relationship is extremely poor!" Nangong Wan said with a hint of indignation.

Han Li's expression darkened, knowing that Nangong Wan had reached the crucial point.

As expected, Nangong Wan bit her lip and continued, "After I refused Wei Lichen's proposals several times in a row, I don't know what method he used to personally persuade Wei Wuya to approach my senior sister. Although I don't know what they discussed, just half a year later, during the Samsara period of my Samsara cultivation technique, she suddenly restrained me. Then she forced me to marry Wei Lichen."

"Did that senior sister of yours lose her mind? To use such methods against a fellow sect member who is a Nascent Soul cultivator?" Han Li was stunned for a moment, finding it hard to believe.

"You're right! I didn't expect her to be so crazy. However, the conditions Wei Wuya offered were indeed hard for her to refuse. I later found out that as long as the Hidden Moon Sect agreed to this marriage, it would not only allow the Hidden Moon Sect, and even the six sects, to expand beyond the Northern Liang State, but it was also said that Wei Lichen was willing to leave the Intent Transformation Sect and join the Hidden Moon Sect after marrying me. With such a beneficial arrangement, it's no wonder she'd stop at nothing. She even released the news that I had agreed to cultivate together with Wei Lichen, regardless of my consent, and was preparing to hold a grand ceremony, hoping to make it a done deal. By then, even if I wanted to go back on my word, I wouldn't be able to," Nangong Wan said with a sarcastic smile playing on her lips.

"So you never agreed to the marriage! You deliberately said you were going to marry someone earlier, which made my heart drop!" Han Li exclaimed with delight after hearing this.

"I wanted to ask you! Since you formed your Nascent Soul several years ago, why didn't you come to find me sooner? If you had come just a year earlier, perhaps all these troubles wouldn't have arisen," Nangong Wan said, rolling her eyes at Han Li, clearly annoyed.

"It's not that I didn't want to find you, it's just that I..." Han Li paused, opening his mouth to explain something, but upon reflection, it did seem a bit strange.

Although he vaguely felt that Nangong Wan was probably the person he truly loved, for some reason, he had never considered directly touching upon that feeling. If he hadn't suddenly learned the news of Nangong's impending marriage, he probably would still have felt a trace of hesitation in his heart, not daring to directly confront these emotions.

While Han Li's expression remained uncertain, Nangong Wan gracefully stood up, walked a few steps to Han Li, and looked directly into his eyes, saying, "Actually, my situation is similar to yours. Although our experiences and divine abilities far surpass those of mortals, when it comes to matters of emotion, it's our first time, and we both feel a bit unfamiliar and fearful. Even though you and I have left deep imprints in each other's hearts, we are not ordinary worldly men and women after all. We cannot, like them, quickly burn through all our emotions and then fully release them for a brief moment of brilliance. For the best cultivation state, we cultivators must dilute and deeply bury most of our emotions. After the passion, what remains more is likely the simple and lasting respect of a married couple. So when I learned you were still alive, besides being happy, I carefully considered it for two days and two nights before finally deciding to accept you according to my true heart."

After saying this gently, Nangong Wan extended her slender, fair hand and held one of Han Li's palms.

Han Li remained silent for a moment, then without a word, he placed his other hand over hers, feeling the delicate softness of her hand. A warm feeling unexpectedly rose in his heart.

Nangong Wan's face flushed, and she quickly withdrew her hands, giving Han Li a chiding glance.

Han Li didn't mind, but suddenly smiled slightly and said, "Wan'er, although you are trapped here, seeing how calm you are, you must have already found a good way to escape. Otherwise, you wouldn't show no sign of anxiety since we met."

Upon hearing this, Nangong Wan pursed her lips and smiled, a hint of slyness flickering in her starry eyes. "You're quick to react! Indeed, although I am confined in this cave dwelling, only a few high-ranking individuals know about it; ordinary disciples are unaware. Otherwise, I wouldn't have directly received that sound transmission talisman from Senior Nephew Tang. But to prevent me from escaping, they placed several restrictions on me. Other restrictions are nothing. They don't know that once my Samsara cultivation technique entered the Nascent Soul stage, it gained many incredible divine abilities, and these ordinary restrictions cannot trap me at all. I can restore my original magic power anytime with a little time. However, only the 'Heart Confinement Art' personally cast by that senior sister is truly difficult to break. This spell was prepared for the grand ceremony. If I kept refusing the marriage, she would use this art to temporarily control me. She deliberately planted this restriction using her own vital blood. And the key to this restriction lies in a restriction token. Unless this artifact is destroyed, I will be controlled as long as I am within a hundred miles. Fortunately, the difference in cultivation between us isn't too great, so this control can only manage simple movements; she cannot drive any of my magic power."

"Then what was your original plan..." Han Li asked curiously.

"Hehe! My original plan was to unexpectedly restore my magic power a few days before the ceremony, at a time when they were most lax, and then immediately flee far away. As long as I was outside the control range of that restriction token, she wouldn't be able to do anything to me. But now that you're here, this problem naturally falls to you. After all, you're the man who's going to marry me. And I heard that you easily defeated a fellow Nascent Soul stage cultivator. You must have some tricks up your sleeve, right?" Nangong Wan said with a soft, relaxed laugh.

"Heart Confinement Art? This restriction is indeed very troublesome. Besides destroying that token, there's no other simple way to resolve it," Han Li frowned, mumbling reflectively.

"If there's truly no way, then so be it. We can just leave the Hidden Moon Sect far behind," Nangong Wan said nonchalantly, her bright eyes flickering.

"No problem! It's just a restriction token, isn't it? It should be in your senior sister's hands. I'll go get it for you. And I'll get some revenge for you too!" Han Li's eyes narrowed slightly, a cold glint flashing through them as he spoke with great determination.

"I was just saying it to test your intentions! I didn't really mean for you to steal the token. That senior sister of mine has cultivated to the mid-Nascent Soul stage, and her cultivation techniques and divine abilities are not comparable to those of us in the early stage. It's better if we just sneak away. At most, I'll spend another ten or so years to gradually refine this restriction," Nangong Wan said, shaking her head and smiling with pursed lips, a hint of playfulness subtly appearing on her lovely face.

Speechless, Han Li suddenly recalled the mischievous young girl he had first met that day!