68: action

Watching his Senior Brother disappear from his sight, Han Li stood for a moment, then turned, his gaze falling upon the ruyi compass on the table.

"This thing, just leave it on Yuhua Peak."

After a moment of thought, Han Li put away the ruyi compass, turned, and entered the inner hall, finding a secret compartment to place it in... Three days passed in a flash.

Yuhua Peak was covered in thick white snow, and the air was filled with a bone-chilling cold.

The heavy snow had fallen for several days, only stopping today.

Within a courtyard in the rear hall of Yuhua Peak, a streak of swift green light darted through, traversing the courtyard in a few breaths.

"Swoosh—!"

Han Li stopped, and in his mind, the Heaven and Earth Demon Seed vibrated. The next second, a surge of blood Qi poured into his body.

"Buzz!!!"

A faint glow blossomed from his skin, and a powerful light of blood Qi illuminated him, dispelling the surrounding cold.

Han Li stood in the center of the courtyard. Only when the glow around him dissipated did he open his eyes.

Winds Arise, Clouds Surge (Second Stage 1%)

"Breakthrough!"

Looking at the panel in his eyes, Han Li checked the data for Divine Travel Eight Desolations again.

It had broken through from Mortal Rank High Grade to Profound Rank Low Grade.

His entire body was filled with an unprecedented sense of lightness.

"Let's test the speed!"

Han Li's thought stirred, and the next second, his figure flashed, a surge of True Qi swirling around the courtyard.

In an instant, he had circled the courtyard once.

This Breakthrough had no unusual phenomena, and the previous green Qi had also disappeared.

However, Han Li could feel the subtle changes within it.

His speed was faster; one step could cover several times the distance he could before.

With the help of the wind between Heaven and Earth, he could even achieve a temporary lift off the ground.

"Not bad."

Exhaling, Han Li nodded with satisfaction.

"The Divine Ability has broken through. Now, I can begin to act..."

Looking at the white sky, relevant information quickly surfaced in Han Li's mind.

Black Tiger Stronghold!

Within Beichuan County, under Qingyun Prefecture of Qingzhou.

He had originally planned to act earlier, but unforeseen circumstances had caused a change of plans. Now, he could proceed.

"First, I'll go to Heaven and Earth Peak to see if there are any suitable missions."

Withdrawing his gaze, Han Li instantly vanished from his spot... After getting ready, Han Li left Yuhua Peak without stopping, heading straight for Heaven and Earth Peak.

White snow covered the land.

Han Li walked through the snow, leaving no footprints, perfectly achieving the feat of 'walking on snow without a trace'.

In the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he arrived at Heaven and Earth Peak.

Entering the Mission Hall, there weren't many people today. Han Li casually chose a window and began to select missions.

As he scrolled the spirit mirror, a dazzling array of missions appeared before his eyes.

The Qingyuan Sect's missions were not static; they changed constantly.

Several missions he had seen before had now disappeared.

Han Li browsed hundreds of missions and finally selected three suitable hunting missions.

After accepting the missions, he left Heaven and Earth Peak... Outside the Qingyuan Sect's mountain gate, in the snow, Han Li took out his ruyi compass and simultaneously reviewed the three missions again.

One of these missions included the Black Tiger Stronghold mission.

Compared to the mission to hunt the Blood Wind Stronghold, the Black Tiger Stronghold mission offered more merit points.

A full fifteen thousand merit points, twice the merit points of the previous Blood Wind Stronghold mission.

The other two missions were for hunting Demonic Qi.

They also offered a good amount of merit points; combined, this trip's missions could earn him roughly thirty thousand merit points.

"I'll put the Black Tiger Stronghold on hold for now. I'll complete the other two Demonic Qi missions first. With the help of blood Qi, I can further enhance my strength."

Thoughts flashed, Han Li confirmed the mission information locations, and took out his ruyi compass to pinpoint them.

"Six hundred li. If I'm fast... I should arrive by evening."

Looking at the route distance, Han Li put away the ruyi compass. A force of wind wrapped around him, and the next second, a white flash, and he vanished from before the mountain gate like a white lightning bolt... The moon was bright and stars were sparse.

Outside Blackwater County, Qingyun Prefecture, Han Li's figure appeared.

Traveling at full speed, traversing mountains and ridges, Han Li successfully reached his first target destination after nightfall.

Blackwater County.

The location of the first Demonic Qi mission.

Dots of starlight illuminated the snowy mountains and forests in the outskirts. Han Li stood on a hillside, looking at Blackwater County in the night.

"Eagle Sorrow Stream..."

Han Li's mind recalled the mission details, confirming the specific location.

It was located in a place called Eagle Sorrow Stream within Blackwater County.

This was a snake demon. According to the mission details, this snake demon was on the verge of transforming into a Flood Dragon.

If it successfully transformed into a Flood Dragon, it would be able to break through and become a Demonic Qi comparable to an Innate master.

For him, this mission was very challenging.

"It's late. I'll rest in the county town tonight and go tomorrow."

After carefully reviewing the mission details and settling his mind, Han Li quickly disappeared into the night.

Entering the county town, he casually chose an inn and settled down.

Resting and recuperating, this Peak-level monster could not be underestimated... The night passed, and early the next morning, Han Li ate breakfast and left.

Leaving Blackwater County town, Han Li headed straight for his target destination.

Traversing mountains and ridges, in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Han Li's figure appeared on a cliff.

"Whoosh—!"

Looking down, it was a hundred zhang deep. In the mountain stream, the rushing sound of the stream water flowed like a great river.

"This is Eagle Sorrow Stream..."

Looking at the rushing stream below, Han Li's gaze was solemn.

His gaze swept around, and Han Li looked upstream.

The mission details stated that this snake demon was hidden in a deep pool in Eagle Sorrow Stream.

The stream water flowed here, but there was no deep pool.

"Go upstream first..."

Han Li's mind stirred, and he instantly vanished from the cliff. Grabbing a vine, he swung through the mountain stream like a pendulum.

He went deeper and deeper, with sheer cliffs on both sides, but this did not pose a challenge for him.

Soon, Han Li arrived at the upstream of Eagle Sorrow Stream.

Grabbing a tree trunk on the cliff, Han Li stepped on a protruding rock and looked down into the depths, at a deep pool a hundred zhang wide.

The black water seemed bottomless.

"There's Demonic Qi... It seems it should be here."

Catching the Demonic Qi emanating from the deep pool, Han Li's eyes lit up.

The next second, he let go, his figure like the wind, lightly drifting down from the hundred-zhang high cliff, like a leaf in the wind, steadily landing on the ground beside the deep pool.

The hundred-zhang wide deep pool was so vast that even standing by the water, Han Li could not see the bottom.

Black water signifies a deep abyss.

"Entering the water would be like serving myself up on a platter. I need to lure this beast out."

Looking at the deep pool water, Han Li's thoughts flashed.

If he entered the water, his combat power would be greatly reduced. Han Li was not that reckless.

"Buzz—!!"

Light bloomed in his hand, and the silver Dragon Pattern Spear appeared in his grip.

Holding the Dragon Pattern Spear, Han Li's True Qi quickly erupted. He thrust the spear towards the deep pool, and with the powerful True Qi augmentation, the long spear was like a Dragon.

"Boom—!!"

Like an explosion of gunpowder, the calm deep pool instantly roared, splashing waves several zhang high.

The enormous sound echoed through the mountain stream, and powerful True Qi impacted the surroundings.

Han Li stood with his spear, his eyes fixed on the deep pool.

Waves surged, and from within the deep pool, a surge of Demonic Qi emanated.

"Whoosh!"

The recently subsided waves surged again, and a thick black shadow emerged.

A giant black python appeared before his eyes.

Its head was larger than a man, and its eyes glowed with green light.

"It's here!"

Han Li's eyes brightened. The moment the snake demon rushed out, he flicked his long spear, and a spear technique instantly struck.

"Roar—!"

The snake demon roared, emitting a sound like a Dragon's cry. Water surged, forming a shield in front of it.

"Boom—!"

One spear shattered the water shield, and immense True Qi impacted the surroundings. Han Li took a step back.

Before he could even catch his breath, the sound of air being torn instantly rang out. Under the snake demon's control, several water arrows rushed towards him.

"Sweeping Thousands of Armies!"

The long spear vibrated, True Qi erupted, transforming into several spear shadows that spread around.

The water arrows collided with the spear shadows, perfectly deflecting the snake demon's attack. A portion of the spear shadows struck the snake demon's body, emitting a crisp metallic sound.

The spear shadow attacks left no trace.

The snake demon's scales easily blocked the blow.