Chapter 732: Two Forms Ring

**Volume 5: Achieving Widespread Renown**

Han Li idly played with the jade slip in his hand, pondering for a moment. A flash of green light in his hand, and the jade slip vanished. He then determined his direction and strode away from the spot.

After traversing a large portion of Tiancheng City, Han Li arrived at a somewhat secluded corner of the immense city, stopping before what appeared to be an ordinary general store.

On the door of the establishment hung a black wooden signboard with the characters "Yuhe Xuan" written in elegant, flowing script.

Han Li glanced at it a few times and slowly walked inside.

The interior was not large, just a small hall. The goods sold were mostly ordinary items like talismans and raw materials. On one side, there was also a small side door leading directly to the back hall.

Facing the entrance, a middle-aged man in a grey robe sat behind the counter, looking at a small booklet that resembled an account book.

Han Li's spiritual sense swept over the man, and he immediately discerned that the man's cultivation was extremely low, only at the Qi Condensation stage. Moreover, the shopkeeper's appearance was ordinary and unremarkable, the kind of person who would be completely unnoticed in a crowd.

As soon as the middle-aged shopkeeper saw Han Li enter, he immediately stood up with a wide smile and hastily came forward to greet him.

"Senior, what would you like to see?" the middle-aged man asked. "Our shop has all sorts of goods and can certainly meet your needs." He uttered the typical phrases spoken by all shopkeepers.

Han Li smiled faintly upon hearing this. With a flip of his hand, the green jade slip appeared in his palm, and he directly handed it to the middle-aged man. As soon as the shopkeeper saw the jade slip, his expression changed. He quickly put it away and respectfully asked:

"May I ask for Senior's esteemed surname?"

"Han!" Han Li replied nonchalantly.

"So Senior Han has indeed arrived!" the middle-aged shopkeeper said respectfully. "Our Patriarch mentioned long ago that Senior would come. I just didn't expect it to be so soon. Senior Han, please follow me." He then gestured for Han Li to enter the back hall through the side door.

Han Li nodded and walked in without a word.

Somewhat to his surprise, the interior was actually like a storeroom, filled with various boxes and cabinets arranged all around, completely covering the walls.

The middle-aged cultivator walked a few steps forward to a wooden cabinet. He reached out and gently pressed a corner. Instantly, two adjacent cabinets on the other side automatically separated, revealing a section of the wall.

"We feared that setting up restrictions might be sensed by occasional visitors, so the surface mechanisms are all constructed using mundane methods," the middle-aged shopkeeper explained as he walked forward.

Han Li's expression remained calm upon hearing this; he felt no surprise.

The middle-aged man stepped on a bluestone in front of the wall. After the wall emitted a muffled creaking sound, it slowly parted, revealing a dark, downward-sloping passage.

"This junior is not qualified to enter inside; Senior will need to proceed by yourself," the middle-aged shopkeeper said with an ingratiating smile, stepping aside. Han Li frowned and swept his spiritual sense inside. There were faint, almost imperceptible spiritual energy fluctuations within the passage, very weak. When he tried to probe deeper, he was blocked by a layer of restriction. However, with Han Li's mastery of array formations, he could tell at a glance that it was merely a simple spiritual sense-obscuring barrier. Although he could forcibly break through it, the people inside would certainly notice.

Han Li hesitated slightly.

Although he believed the elder from the Heavenly Extremity Sect wouldn't be foolish enough to try anything under the watchful eyes of Tiancheng City, he also didn't want to blindly plunge into an enclosed place of unknown depth just for a meeting with someone whose intentions, whether friend or foe, were unclear.

Just as Han Li hesitated for a moment, the person inside seemed to have guessed his doubts. In an instant, the barrier blocking Han Li's spiritual sense was suddenly removed.

Han Li's heart stirred, knowing that the other party had done so intentionally to gain his trust.

Without further ado, he unceremoniously used his spiritual sense to thoroughly probe the situation below once more. As a result, a look of surprise flashed across his face.

"So it's him! This is quite interesting," he murmured.

Han Li murmured a few words to himself. He no longer hesitated and walked into the dark passage.

The middle-aged shopkeeper watched Han Li's figure disappear into the passage. Only then did he close the entrance again and restore the cabinets to their original positions, before calmly returning to the front hall.

The passage was very long, extending dozens of zhang underground, clearly designed this way for secrecy. After walking for a while, Han Li saw a flicker of white light in the darkness ahead, knowing he had reached the exit. He quickened his pace slightly and stepped into a square stone room.

The room was large but empty, apart from a few meditation cushions. There was nothing else.

Facing the entrance, two people were sitting cross-legged on meditation cushions, smiling as they looked at Han Li.

Han Li said nothing and likewise sat down cross-legged on a meditation cushion in a corner of the room.

"I never expected it would be fellow Daoist seeking me," Han Li said with a light smile to one of them. "To see you here truly exceeds my expectations."

The man, wearing a high crown and a blue robe, couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh upon hearing Han Li's words:

"Indeed, even I, this Marquis, thought I was doomed. After we parted, I believed I had escaped. Who knew they had cast a tracking spell on me? They caught up to me at the edge of the Mulan Grassland. But heaven always leaves a path. Later, I encountered a group of high-level spellcasters who were looking for us. Taking advantage of the chaos, I managed to escape back, fortunately. As for those who attacked me, I will naturally settle scores with them later."

Towards the end of his words, the Mid Nascent Soul cultivator's voice subtly revealed a hint of ruthlessness.

This person was none other than Marquis Nanlong, who had been chased and forced to flee by other treasure-seeking cultivators that day. Now his face was pale and his eyes lacked spirit; his complexion was truly poor. He must have suffered considerable damage to his vital energy.

The person beside him was naturally the white-robed elder from the Heavenly Extremity Sect who had arranged the meeting.

"Under such circumstances, Fellow Daoist Nanlong was still able to escape; I am truly impressed," Han Li said. His smile faded, and his words subtly revealed a hint of displeasure. "However, Brother Nanlong, instead of returning to your cave abode to properly recover, why are you in such a hurry to see me? You even went so far as to have this fellow Daoist send disciples to disturb my concubine. This leaves me somewhat perplexed."

"Haha! Fellow Daoist Han has misunderstood," Marquis Nanlong said, offering a few words of explanation. "This Marquis was forced to do so. Do you know, your current situation is not much different from mine? We are both people that those few individuals are determined to pursue. I was afraid that fellow Daoist might not be aware of the danger and fall victim to a surprise attack. That's why I resorted to such a desperate measure. And this is my lifelong friend, Fellow Daoist Xuanji Zi of the Heavenly Extremity Sect." He then pointed to the white-robed elder beside him, introducing him briefly. "Originally, for the last treasure hunt, this Marquis also wanted to invite him along, but unfortunately, this close friend happened to have sect matters and couldn't spare a clone."

At this moment, Marquis Nanlong's attitude towards Han Li was vastly different from their first meeting; his words already conveyed an exceptionally courteous tone.

This was naturally because Han Li had single-handedly killed a Nascent Soul cultivator, causing Marquis Nanlong to feel a degree of apprehension.

At this moment, the white-robed elder smiled, clasped his hands in salute towards Han Li, and apologized with a hint of remorse:

"My methods were indeed a bit offensive, and I hope Fellow Daoist Han won't take it amiss. I truly apologize for any inconvenience caused."

"Never mind, since there was a reason, I won't pursue it further," Han Li said, waving his hand. Then he suddenly asked, "However, Brother Nanlong, what you just said, was it because of the jade box I took?"

"Fellow Daoist's guess is correct," Xuanji Zi said with a serious expression. "To my knowledge, the Ghost Spirit Sect paid a considerable price to bribe those who were also seeking treasure. They were almost certain to obtain Reverend Cangkun's route map and methods for entering and exiting the Demon-Slaying Valley. And Fellow Daoist Han happens to possess one of the essential items for entering the Demon-Slaying Valley. Only when used together with Brother Nanlong's route map can one avoid most of the dangers in the valley and potentially obtain the treasures."

"An essential item for entering the Demon-Slaying Valley!" Han Li was startled upon hearing this, but then slowly spoke as if remembering something, "Are you talking about that black ring?"

"The Two-Element Ring is indeed in Brother Han's possession, this is truly excellent!" Marquis Nanlong's spirit was roused, and a faint flush appeared on his face as he spoke.

"Two-Element Ring?" Han Li frowned, feeling as if he had heard of it somewhere before. But after a moment's thought, he was suddenly startled, staring at Marquis Nanlong as he asked with some surprise and doubt:

"Is it the Two-Element Ring that the Elder Xuanhuang refined from extraterrestrial meteor iron in ancient times? I heard that this treasure usually has no special abilities at all, but when it encounters Arctic Primal Light, it can control the light to kill people invisibly. It's considered a very impractical treasure in the cultivation world."

"Fellow Daoist Han is indeed knowledgeable," Marquis Nanlong calmly explained to Han Li. "That's right, it is this item. The Two-Element Ring is divided into two rings, Yin and Yang. With the Yin Ring on one's person, one need not fear the Arctic Primal Light harming the body, while only with the Yang Ring in hand can one control the Primal Light to attack enemies. The one in your hand should be the Yin Ring. Back then, Reverend Cangkun managed to safely pass through the Primal Light area in the valley and retreat unscathed precisely by relying on the Yin Ring. And to my knowledge, although there are other methods and treasures that can also avoid the Arctic Primal Light, either they require a large number of cultivators to set up a protective grand array, or other treasures are missing and can no longer be traced."

"Fellow Daoists mean..." Han Li asked, looking at the two, while secretly pondering the pros and cons in his mind.