Chapter 728: Sky Extreme Sect

A Mortal's Journey to Immortality, Volume 5: Renowned Across the Land

"You and Senior Martial Brother Gu didn't leave as planned. How could I not return?" Han Li sighed, a hint of helplessness in his voice. But after glancing at Mu Peiling a few more times, he chuckled lightly: "However, I truly didn't expect you to break through your bottleneck and reach the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment during this time. That's truly cause for celebration!"

"This humble one was fortunate enough to break through half a month ago. It's all thanks to your elixirs, Young Master. Otherwise, Peiling would never have reached the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment in such a short time." Mu Peiling was also exceptionally excited, her beautiful face appearing even more delicate and charming as she spoke.

Han Li's heart skipped a beat at the sight, but he quickly regained his composure, touching his nose.

"You and Senior Martial Brother Gu haven't left because of the Mulan Spell Warriors, have you?" Han Li asked casually, neither confirming nor denying anything.

"You've already guessed it, Young Master. Senior Gu and I had indeed planned to return as soon as the trade fair ended. But who would have thought that at the end of the fair, news of the Spell Warrior invasion would arrive? Senior Gu, as the Nascent Soul cultivator representing the Heavenly Dao Alliance in Tiancheng, had no choice but to stay and discuss countermeasures with other factions, so I remained as well," Mu Peiling bit her red lips slightly and spoke carefully.

"In that case, it truly isn't your fault. But Senior Martial Brother Gu, he's currently..." As Han Li continued to inquire, a hint of surprise suddenly flickered across his face, and he stopped speaking mid-sentence.

Mu Peiling was startled. Before she could understand Han Li's intention, a young man's loud voice suddenly echoed from outside the pavilion's protective formation.

"Fellow Daoist Mu, are you there? I am Bai Shujun. Please come out and meet me."

"Who is this person? Did you recently meet him?" Han Li swept his spiritual sense outwards and discovered a refined-looking young man at the Core Formation stage. He stood calmly outside the formation, facing the pavilion. Han Li couldn't help but ask casually, deep in thought.

The moment Mu Peiling heard the man's voice, her face instantly paled. Hearing Han Li's question now, she quickly began to explain: "Please don't misunderstand, Young Master. This person is a disciple of an elder from the Heavenly Extreme Sect. He accidentally saw me a few days ago and has been pestering me ever since. I've already told him I'm your concubine, but he keeps pursuing me relentlessly. I'll go make him leave."

"Such a thing happened? Does Senior Martial Brother Gu know?" Han Li raised an eyebrow, his expression unchanged as he asked.

"I did tell Senior Gu about this. But Senior Gu seems to know that Heavenly Extreme Sect elder and has some reservations. He told me to humor him for now and wait for you to return before doing anything else," Mu Peiling saw that Han Li wasn't angry and secretly let out a sigh of relief as she replied.

"Oh! The Heavenly Extreme Sect. Isn't it one of the Four Great Orthodox Factions? No wonder Senior Martial Brother Gu was so cautious. However, for a mere Core Formation cultivator to be so presumptuous... he seems a bit too bold. Come down with me. Let's see what this junior's true intentions are." Han Li remained silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke with a cold laugh.

"Yes, Young Master!" Mu Peiling was startled, then respectfully replied.

Han Li stepped out of the room without a word and headed downstairs. Mu Peiling followed closely behind.

"Fellow Daoist Mu, you finally... Eh! Senior, are you...?" Seeing someone emerge from the pavilion, the youth who called himself Bai Shujun initially thought it was the woman he admired. But upon seeing Han Li, he was first startled, then realized Han Li's cultivation was unfathomable, and immediately changed his demeanor to greet him.

At this moment, Mu Peiling also stepped out from behind Han Li, standing closely beside him.

The young man named Bai saw this scene, and his expression, as if realizing something, changed several times.

"Are you a disciple of the Heavenly Extreme Sect?" Han Li's face darkened. He asked the young man in an impolite tone.

"That's correct, this junior is a disciple of Elder Lu of the Heavenly Extreme Sect. Senior, could you perhaps be Senior Han?" Bai Shujun was indeed somewhat extraordinary; even facing Han Li, a Nascent Soul cultivator, the panic on his face was but a fleeting flicker, after which he asked politely.

"Speak! What exactly do you mean? Why are you persistently bothering my concubine? Doing something so thoughtless must have another purpose." Han Li's voice was cold.

Mu Peiling, upon hearing these words, showed a trace of astonishment on her beautiful face.

"Senior sees clearly! Actually, my master wished to meet you, but seeing that Senior Han had remained out of contact, he had this junior act in this way. However, I genuinely admire Fellow Daoist Mu. If Senior is willing to grant this junior's wish, I would be eternally grateful," The young man named Bai smiled, then spoke in a refined manner.

"Eternally grateful? What use do I have for your gratitude? Don't daydream. This Han's concubine is not one to be given away. Besides, I've had no dealings with your Heavenly Extreme Sect before, so why seek me out?" Han Li narrowed his eyes, glanced towards an unoccupied spot to the side as if seeing and yet not seeing. A strange smile appeared on his face, and simultaneously, a terrifying surge of spiritual pressure erupted from him.

The young man named Bai's face changed drastically as he stumbled back several steps. Then, his shoulders slumped as if Mount Tai were pressing down on him, and his knees buckled, nearly forcing him to kneel.

He was greatly alarmed and hastily tried to resist the immense force, but after his body trembled a few times, he still sank lower.

Just as he was about to kneel but hadn't yet, a white silhouette suddenly emerged from the side, flashed before the young man named Bai, and gently patted his shoulder with a hand.

Immediately, the pressure on Bai Shujun, who was about to kneel, sharply decreased, and he stood up again.

This was an elderly man with graying hair, dressed in white robes, with kind eyes and a benevolent face, and dignified features. As Han Li watched him, the old man also smiled slightly and said to Han Li: "Fellow Daoist Han, please don't be angry. In truth, this matter was initiated by me, through my humble disciple. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to meet you until now!"

"What is your esteemed name? Why do you wish to meet me? If I'm not mistaken, this Han is interacting with your esteemed sect for the first time. I've certainly never seen you before." The moment the white-robed elder appeared, Han Li's spiritual pressure instantly dissipated. At the same time, his expression returned to normal, as if nothing had just happened.

"Haha! This old man is Lu Weiying, currently serving as an elder of the Heavenly Extreme Sect. As for the reason I wish to meet you, it's not convenient to discuss in detail here. If Fellow Daoist wishes to know the reason, please gather here tonight. Then, Fellow Daoist Han will naturally know the full details." This Elder Lu showed no anger; he then raised a single hand, and a green jade slip, clearly prepared beforehand, shot towards them.

Han Li, expressionless, flicked his large sleeve, and a wave of green light shot out, sweeping the jade slip into his sleeve.

His spiritual sense quickly scanned the object in his sleeve. Indeed, it seemed to contain an address.

Han Li didn't examine it closely. When he looked up, about to say something, the Heavenly Extreme Sect elder simply clasped his hands together and gracefully departed with the young man named Bai.

Han Li's brows furrowed.

The other party was so mysterious, seeming to know some things but also misunderstanding others. It was as if they mistakenly believed he had been in Tiancheng all along, deliberately hiding himself.

Han Li rubbed his chin, a bit confused for a moment, and thus didn't attempt to stop them. However, after some thought, he returned to the pavilion with Mu Peiling.

"Where is Senior Martial Brother Gu now?" Han Li asked calmly the moment he entered the pavilion, not mentioning the previous incident at all, as if he had instantly forgotten about it.

"I heard the battle at the front lines has become tense again, so Senior Gu went to discuss countermeasures with them."

"Discussing countermeasures, where?" Han Li asked with a hint of interest.

"At the Grand Assembly Hall in Tiancheng. I heard that cultivators from all major factions who have reached the Nascent Soul stage can participate. Young Master, do you perhaps want to go see?" Mu Peiling said softly.

"Grand Assembly Hall?" Han Li muttered, but in his mind, a colossal hall built in the center of Tiancheng had already appeared. The area around it was heavily fortified with formations, which should be the so-called Grand Assembly Hall.

"Alright, I wanted to understand the situation with the Spell Warriors anyway. I'll go take a look there first. You stay here; don't go out casually." Han Li had already made up his mind. As soon as he knew Senior Martial Brother Gu's whereabouts, he immediately gave the woman a few instructions and left the pavilion.

The so-called "Grand Assembly Hall" was actually built on a massive elevated platform in the very center of the city, extremely conspicuous.

However, apart from matters concerning the life and death of the Nine Nations Alliance, this building was usually just a symbolic place, rarely visited.

But after more than a hundred years, when news of the Mulan people's renewed invasion arrived, the high-ranking members of the Nine Nations Alliance unhesitatingly opened this grand hall and summoned cultivators from other factions to discuss matters together.

After all, the Spell Warriors' invasion this time was so fierce; it seemed difficult for the Nine Nations Alliance alone to resist them.

When Han Li arrived in front of the Grand Assembly Hall, the guards at the entrance immediately noticed his cultivation and, after asking his name, promptly announced his arrival inside.

Han Li easily gained permission to enter, and then, respectfully led by a cultivator, he entered the grand hall.

The number of Nascent Soul cultivators discussing matters in the hall was not very high, only about a dozen, which was far fewer than Han Li had expected.

However, after a moment's thought, he understood.

Although Tiancheng had gathered many Nascent Soul cultivators, most of them belonged to several major factions, so there was no need for all of them to be present. Only a few representatives were sufficient.

Senior Martial Brother Gu was seated on a chair to the left, smiling as he watched Han Li. Han Li also recognized the person sitting next to him: it was none other than Fire Dragon Boy.

As for the others, apart from an old man in yellow robes, they were all strangers to him.

Han Li looked at the old man in yellow robes for a few more moments, then couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

This elder was precisely Old Ancestor Linghu of Yellow Maple Valley from back then!