A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Immortal Realm

A whole host of questions had arisen in Han Li's heart, but he chose not to articulate any of them, and after taking a moment to compose himself, he couldn't help but wonder why Shi Chuankong had revealed this to him.

"I'm guessing that my father sensed it when I used the secret technique passed down in our clan to refine the Virata Lute, and by using the lute as a medium, he was able to bring us back to the Devil Realm using his spatial powers," Shi Chuankong explained.

"I see," Han Li replied with a nod, and he was just about to say something else when a thought suddenly occurred to him, and he swept a sleeve through the air to conjure up a door of silver light before stepping into it.

Shi Chuankong was rather perplexed to see this, but he still followed along, as did Daoist Xie.

After stepping through the door of light, the trio arrived in the bamboo building in the Flower Branch domain, where Weeping Soul was laying on the ground, and Han Li hurriedly rushed over to her before picking her up.

He then began to inspect her condition with his spiritual sense, and moments later, he flipped a hand over to summon a golden pill that she fed into her mouth.

However, the pill seemed to have had no effect, and Weeping Soul remained unconscious.

"What's wrong with her, Brother Li?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"I don't know," Han Li replied with tightly furrowed brows. "Her injuries aren't very severe, nor has she sustained much damage to her soul, so she shouldn't be unconscious."

An enlightened look appeared on Han Li's face upon hearing this, and he hurriedly did as Shi Chuankong suggested, upon which a perplexed look appeared on his face as he mused, "I can't detect any essential power in her dantian..."

"That's most likely the cause of the problem then," Shi Chuankong said.

Thinking back to the events that had transpired before they entered the spatial passageway, Han Li couldn't help but feel as if Weeping Soul's current condition had something to do with the wheel projection from before, but at the same time, he couldn't be certain whether this was actually the case.

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Shi. Otherwise, I would've been completely stumped," Han Li said.

"It's fine. What do you plan to do about her condition, Brother Li?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"I've never seen anything like this before, so I don't really know what to do. Do you have any ideas, Brother Shi?" Han Li asked with a wry smile.

"I'm afraid not, but if you return to our holy capital with me, perhaps our grand priest would be able to offer a solution," Shi Chuankong replied.

A contemplative look appeared on Han Li's face upon hearing this.

"Pardon me for prying, but if you're not going to come with me, then what are your plans going forward from here?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"I thought we had returned to the Immortal Realm, but that's clearly not the case, so I'll have to have a good think about what I do from here," Han Li sighed.

"Right now, we're currently in a place known as the Ten Hazards Mountain Range, and it derives its name from the presence of ten Great Encompassment Stage demon beasts in the mountain range. Hence, this is an extremely dangerous place, so regardless of what you decide to do, it would be in your best interest to leave this place first," Shi Chuankong advised.

Han Li was quite startled to hear this, and after some contemplation, he said, "Truth be told, I know next to nothing about the Devil Realm. What do you suggest that I do from here, Fellow Daoist Shi?"

"The demon beasts in this area are extremely xenophobic, so we'll be in a great deal of danger if any of the Ten Hazards become aware of our existence. Hence, I think we should travel northward and leave this place as soon as possible.

“At the northernmost point of the Ten Hazards Mountain Range is a city that was constructed to ward off demon beast invasions, and there are Great Encompassment cultivators stationed in the city, so we'll be safe once we get there. From there, we can travel to the capital, Night Sun City, either through the city lord's manor or the Vast Origin House branch in the city," Shi Chuankong replied.

Han Li mulled over his options for a moment, then decided to accept Shi Chuankong's proposal.

Shi Chuankong was ecstatic to hear that Han Li was willing to come with him, and he immediately said, "In that case, let's set off right away. Those demon beasts have retreated for now, but there's no telling when they could be back, so this definitely isn't a safe place to stay."

"Hold on a second, Fellow Daoist Shi. Before we set off, there's something I want to ask you," Han Li suddenly said.

"Please go ahead, Fellow Daoist Li," Shi Chuankong prompted.

"Firstly, I must thank you for protecting me during my breakthrough, but at the same time, I can't help but wonder why you went to such great lengths to help me. If you need something from me, then feel free to tell me," Han Li said.

Having spent so much time with Shi Chuankong, he had developed a rough idea of Shi Chuankong's personality, and he knew that Shi Chuankong wasn't the type of person to take such a huge risk for nothing.

"You really are a smart man, Fellow Daoist Li. I do indeed have something to ask of you. The Ten Hazards Mountain Range is an extremely perilous place, and I'm not confident in my ability to get out of here on my own, so I was hoping that you would accompany me," Shi Chuankong admitted in a slightly embarrassed fashion.

"Of course. It's only right that we help each other out in such a perilous place," Han Li replied with a nod.

Now that he had reached the High Zenith Stage, his powers had been significantly enhanced, and he was fairly confident in his ability to ensure self-preservation, even in the face of the average Great Encompassment cultivator. If worse came to worst, he would just have to send Shi Chuankong into the Flower Branch domain so that he wouldn't be a hindrance.

"You have my thanks, Fellow Daoist Li. The headquarters of the Vast Origin House just so happens to be in Night Sun City, and there are spatial gates there leading to various immortal regions. As soon as we return to Night Sun City, I'll immediately arrange for you to be sent back to the Black Soil Immortal Region," Shi Chuankong promised.

"I'm not in a hurry to get back to the Black Soil Immortal Region, and I have a favor to ask of you once we get to the Vast Origin House headquarters," Han Li said.

The world's origin qi in the Devil Realm was quite abundant, and it was far away from the Heavenly Court's sphere of influence, so he would actually rather stay and cultivate here for now than return to the True Immortal Realm right away.

"What is it, Fellow Daoist Li? Is it the matter that you spoke to me about back in the Gray Realm?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"That's right. I would like you to draw upon the resources of the Vast Origin House to help me find an ascended cultivator. Here's what she looks like," Han Li said as he offered a blue jade badge to Shi Chuankong, and hovering above the badge was a visage of none other than Violet Spirit.

Shi Chuankong's eyes lit up as he accepted the jade badge, and he asked, "Is this your dao partner, Fellow Daoist Li? Her beauty is truly unmatched!"

"Her name is Violet Spirit, and she's a devilish cultivator from a lower realm. She may or may not have ascended at this point, and I'm hoping that you can find her for me, Fellow Daoist Shi," Han Li replied.

"If she's a devilish cultivator, then that makes things far easier. All devilish cultivators from the lower realm will ascend to our Holy Realm, and the ascension platform of our Holy Realm has always been overseen by one of my brothers, whom I'm very close to. Hence, as long as she's ascended, I'll definitely be able to track her down," Shi Chuankong assured with a confident smile.

"In that case, I'll be counting on you," Han Li replied with a smile of his own.

"I already agreed to this back in the Gray Realm, and now, I need your protection to leave this Ten Hazards Mountain Range, so I'm the one who'll be counting on you," Shi Chuankong chuckled.

With that, the two of them didn't delay any longer, and they left the Flower Branch domain before heading northward.

……

Countless kilometers away from where Han Li's duo was situated was an enormous mountain range, most of which was golden in color, perhaps due to the presence of some type of special ore in the area.

At the center of the mountain range was a huge mountain that was entirely golden in color and was giving off dazzling golden radiance that was clearly visible even from hundreds of kilometers away.

A cluster of giant palaces was situated on the mountain summit, all of which were extremely grand and spectacular. Everything in this cluster of palaces was also golden in color and enshrouded in golden light.

The Ten Hazards each had their own territory in the Ten Hazards Mountain Range, and they had countless powerful demon beasts under their command, so even the devil race was unable to do anything about them.

The cave abode of one of the Ten Hazards, the Golden Rhinoceros King, was situated here, and all of the guards and servants in the palace were also dressed in golden attire.

Stationed at the entrance of a large palace on the very outskirts of the cluster of palaces were two guards clad in suits of golden armor, and only half of their faces were visible through their golden visors.

"This armor is so heavy that I can barely breathe in it, but if I don't wear it, I'll immediately be harmed by the golden radiance here. No wonder no one wants to stand on guard duty on this Golden Peak Mountain," the guard on the left complained.

"It's definitely particularly uncomfortable when you first get here, but you'll get used to it over time. It's a grueling job, but we get far better compensation than everyone else, so just bear with it, Brother Ba," the other guard replied.

"Of course. There's no way I'd be willing to come here if not for the compensation! What a strange man the Golden Rhinoceros King must be to enjoy staying in an environment like this," the guard with the Ba surname scoffed.

"Shush!" the other guard hurriedly scolded through voice transmission.

"What's wrong?" the guard with the Ba surname asked.

"The Golden Rhinoceros King hates it when other people comment on his likes and dislikes. One of his new concubines recently made a similar comment, and she was immediately executed by sun exposure, strapped to the Scorching Sun Pole until she burned to a crisp, so make sure you don't ever say anything like that again!" the other guard warned in a solemn manner.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," the guard with the Ba surname hurriedly replied as he took a fearful glance at his surroundings, and he only heaved a sigh of relief after some time passed with no incident.