80: Tianduan Mountains

Stepping into Han Family Village, everything was the same as when he left, nothing had changed.

However, his state of mind was different now.

Walking on the thick white snow, Han Li headed towards the village chief's house.

Upon arriving at the village chief's house, Han Li immediately saw the village chief.

"Village Chief."

Han Li called out, and the village chief, who was busy in the courtyard, looked towards the courtyard gate upon hearing the voice.

"Han Li?!"

Seeing his figure, the village chief was stunned, rubbed his eyes, confirmed he wasn't mistaken, and immediately put down what he was holding, walking quickly forward.

"It really is you, kid. Why are you back? And who is this young lady?"

The village chief looked at Chen Qi, who was beside Han Li, very curiously.

"I passed by my hometown today to take a look. This is my Senior Sister," Han Li said with a smile.

"Hello, Village Chief," Chen Qi nodded.

"Senior Sister... This means you've succeeded?!" Hearing this, the village chief's eyes lit up.

"Yes, I've succeeded," Han Li nodded.

Upon hearing this, the village chief's face immediately broke into a smile: "Haha, good, kid. You've made something of yourself. Come, sit inside."

The village chief was very enthusiastic, and Han Li and Chen Qi then stepped into the courtyard and entered the main hall.

In the main hall, the village chief kindly poured two cups of hot water. Han Li and Chen Qi sat by the fire, and the village chief also sat down, looking at the two: "This young lady is really beautiful. You're a lucky boy."

Han Li: "..."

"Village Chief, this is my fellow Disciple, my Senior Sister," Han Li said helplessly.

"I know, I know, you're family," the village chief said with a chuckle.

Chen Qi's expression remained unchanged. She held her teacup and took a small sip of water, her thoughts unreadable.

Seeing that he was only making things worse, Han Li immediately changed the subject: "Village Chief, how have things been these days?"

"Not bad, same as usual, no changes. But you, entering a great Martial Dao School, your future prospects are limitless," the village chief said with a smile.

Han Li: "The Martial Dao is long and very difficult."

"You'll definitely succeed, kid. You're the first Disciple from our Han Family Village to join a great Martial Dao School, no problem," the village chief said with a chuckle... After chatting for a while, Han Li and Chen Qi had a simple meal at the village chief's house before leaving. Before leaving, Han Li also gave the village chief a sum of money, ensuring they would have no worries about food and clothing.

Stepping out of Han Family Village, Chen Qi took out her white boat. With True Qi activated, she flew into the sky again, quickly disappearing into the vast, white world.

—

Chang County is a county town named "Chang."

A county town with a population of hundreds of thousands.

It is also one of the many counties under Ruyi County.

In Chang County, on a hillside outside the city, a beam of light streaked across the sky and descended from above in the night.

A white boat hovered a foot above the ground.

Looking into the distance at the dimly lit night view of Chang County, Han Li looked at Chen Qi beside him.

Chen Qi stepped out, landing on the ground, and looking at Chang County, she said: "Junior Brother, let's stay here tonight. We'll depart early tomorrow morning."

"Mm."

Han Li nodded, then stepped out of the white boat and put away the Spiritual Artifact. The two then headed towards the county town... Stepping into the county town, Chang County was still bustling under the night sky.

Compared to his hometown, Changshan County, Chang County was even larger in scale.

In the center of the county town, Han Li saw a statue more than ten zhang tall.

This statue had weathered the elements, but it was still vividly depicted and looked very divine, in the likeness of a middle-aged Daoist.

However, Han Li only took a glance.

After strolling with Chen Qi, the two chose an inn to stay in.

After a few instructions, Chen Qi entered her room, and Han Li entered another room.

Entering his room, he went to the window. Standing there, he could overlook the streets of Chang County.

Han Li glanced out, then turned and sat down by the bed.

"Heaven Severing Mountain Range..."

Some information flashed through Han Li's mind. Combined with what his Senior Sister had told him, he roughly understood the situation of the Heaven Severing Mountain Range.

The Heaven Severing Mountain Range was about a hundred li away from Chang County.

It was a vast and immense mountainous region.

This place was also an extremely dangerous area.

Not only were there rampant poisonous miasmas and harsh environments, but there were also many demons within it.

Among them, the most widely rumored were Demon Corpses.

That is, zombies.

In the Heaven Severing Mountain Range, zombies were the most numerous demons.

The Heaven Severing Mountain Range was filled with various mass graves.

Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, this place was once a land of green mountains and clear waters, nothing special.

Because a rebel army was besieged by the imperial court, tens of thousands of rebels were annihilated by the imperial court in the Heaven Severing Mountain Range. Due to certain reasons, the imperial army received urgent orders and needed to go to other places for support, so they didn't have much time to deal with the aftermath. However, they didn't expect that this would sow the seeds of disaster.

After the rebels died, an immense amount of resentful Qi formed, which caused the mountainous region to change. The rebels buried in the Heaven Severing Mountain Range were affected by the Yin and resentful Qi of heaven and earth, turning into Demon Corpses. Afterwards, this Yin and resentful Qi spread, attracting many demons, and gradually, it formed aJedi (deadly place).

The resentful Qi was monstrous, and a terrifying disaster once erupted. All life near the Heaven Severing Mountain Range was affected. Countless resentful Qi rushed out, and Demon Corpses and demons swept through, slaughtering hundreds of thousands of humans.

Afterwards, a Martial Dao expert passed through here and, with a supreme grand formation, forcibly suppressed the resentful Qi of the Heaven Severing Mountain Range, sealing it within, and exterminated the demons, thus resolving this disaster.

The statue seen upon entering the city earlier was the statue of that Martial Dao expert, erected by later generations to commemorate him.

Of course, this was just a rumor. After hundreds of years of history, only those present at the time could know the truth.

At present, Han Li was most concerned about the mission at hand.

The Heaven Severing Mountain Range, infested with demons, was a deadly place.

The difficulty of this mission was not small.

Although his Senior Sister was the main force, having cultivated a Divine Ability of Red Flame Sword Qi, there was still danger.

No one could guarantee against accidents.

However, having cultivated the Dragon Elephant Primordial Embryo, Han Li also had some confidence in his heart. Even against an Innate Demon King, he wasn't without the power to contend.

After analyzing the information and situation, Han Li didn't overthink it and went to sleep.

Everything would only become clear tomorrow when they reached the Heaven Severing Mountain Range... A night passed.

The next day, early in the morning, Han Li and Chen Qi left after having breakfast at the inn.

Leaving the county town, Chen Qi brought out her Spiritual Artifact. Han Li immediately stepped onto it, and with the Spiritual Artifact activated, they headed directly towards the Heaven Severing Mountain Range.

A hundred li was but a moment, and the two arrived.

Their figures descended from the sky, and Han Li looked towards the Heaven Severing Mountain Range.

This was a dangerous place, spanning several hundred li in area.

Above the Heaven Severing Mountain Range, large patches of dark clouds gathered.

Other places were sunny, but precisely the Heaven Severing Mountain Range was shrouded in dense dark clouds.

The oppressive dark clouds gave a feeling as if the sky was about to collapse.

It made one feel a chill down their spine.

Approaching the Heaven Severing Mountain Range, the cold Qi here was also extremely intense.

It was colder than other places.

Besides the gathered dark clouds in the sky, the entire Heaven Severing Mountain Range was also enveloped in a thick mist.

Poisonous miasma covered the entire mountain range.

By sight alone, it was difficult to see what the situation inside was like.

However, judging by the feeling, this was definitely not a benevolent place.

Combining his own information, Han Li felt that the centuries-old legend might not be false.

His heart grew even more cautious.

"Junior Brother, this is a Detoxification Pill. Take it before entering the mountain to avoid the effects of the poisonous miasma." Beside him, Chen Qi took out two Medicinal Pills, handing one to Han Li.

Han Li nodded and swallowed the Detoxification Pill.

"Follow me, don't stray too far."

Chen Qi reminded, and Han Li nodded.

Immediately, the two stepped into the Heaven Severing Mountain Range.

Upon entering the mountain, the cold Qi suddenly intensified.

The sky was hazy, and visibility decreased.

The resentful Qi was extremely strong.

In the air, visible wisps of poisonous Qi permeated, but fortunately, with the Detoxification Pill, the poisonous Qi here couldn't affect them much.

In the mountain forest, poisonous miasma was rampant.

Resentful Qi surged, covering the sky and sun, making it even more dangerous than the dangerous area of Demon Suppression Valley.

Calling it a deadly place was not an exaggeration.

Ordinary people, even Martial Artists who had cultivated some strength, would find it difficult to penetrate deep into the Heaven Severing Mountain Range.

The poisonous miasma alone would hinder their progress, and as for the resentful Qi, unless one had the Martial Artist's vital energy to resist it, an ordinary person would either fall gravely ill or even die on the spot.

Although the mission'sMerits (merit points) were extremely high, amounting to a million, the difficulty coefficient was also abnormally high.

Following Chen Qi, their pace also slowed down considerably.

In the Heaven Severing Mountain Range, various unexpected situations could arise at any time.

Besides the resentful poisonous miasma, the Demonic Qi was also extremely strong, making it impossible to determine the specific traces of demons; only when they appeared would it be clear.

Judging from this point alone, it was enough to prove the number of demons here.

However, for him, the presence of demons was also a good thing.

Killing to gain vital energy and improve the Demonic Seed was the fastest path to Cultivate.