After leaving Poison Dragon Marsh, Han Li did not rush back to the Seven Mysteries Sect. Instead, he found a secluded cave on the outskirts of the Falling Cloud Mountains and spent half a month fully consolidating his cultivation at the qi refining ninth layer and mastering his newly acquired Soul-Seizing Bell and Shadow Blade.
The mysteries of the Profound Fiend Asura Art far surpassed the Seven Mysteries Sect's foundational cultivation methods. As he circulated it, his spiritual power grew purer and denser, carrying a chilling fiendish aura that multiplied its might. Han Li reckoned that with his current cultivation at the qi refining ninth layer, this art, and those two uncanny magical artifacts, he could put up a fight even against a cultivator at the foundation establishment early stage in a head-on clash! With a surprise attack, he might even kill someone at the foundation establishment middle stage!
"It's time to go back and settle this." Han Li opened his eyes, a shadowy gleam flashing through them. Mo Juren was like a sword hanging over his head. Until he removed him, he would never know peace.
He changed into the clothes of an ordinary wandering cultivator and suppressed most of his aura, revealing only a level around the qi refining seventh layer. Only then did he quietly leave the Falling Cloud Mountains and head toward the Seven Mysteries Sect.
The journey passed without incident. Several days later, the imposing gates on Seven Mysteries Mountain came into view.
Yet as soon as he approached the gates, Han Li keenly sensed that something was off. There seemed to be more disciples guarding the mountain, their expressions held a trace of tension, and their inspections were much stricter than usual. Seeing his "unfamiliar" face, a disciple immediately stepped forward to question him.
"Halt! Who are you? What business do you have with our Seven Mysteries Sect?" a disciple in the qi refinement middle period demanded warily, his hand resting on his sword hilt.
Han Li frowned slightly and displayed his Core Disciple Token. "It's me, Han Li."
The disciple took the token and examined it carefully, then looked up to scrutinize Han Li. Surprise appeared on his face, and he hastily cupped his hands. "So it's Senior Brother Han! Please forgive me, Senior Brother. Things within the sect have been... well, rather unsettled lately, so inspections have become stricter. Please come in."
Han Li took back his token and asked indifferently, "What happened in the sect?"
The disciple glanced around and lowered his voice. "You might not know since you were away training, Senior Brother Han, but about ten days ago, the Life-Bound Soul Lamps of Senior Brother Li Feiyu and his two followers suddenly... went out at the same time!"
Han Li sneered inwardly, but let a fitting trace of "surprise" appear on his face. "Oh? Something like that happened? Do they know who did it?"
"No." The disciple shook his head, a hint of fear on his face. "The sect sent people to search the rear mountain area where they were last thought to have appeared. They found only traces of a battle, but no bodies. It looked as though someone had destroyed the corpses to erase the evidence. Rumors are flying through the sect now. Some say a hostile sect assassinated them; others say they provoked a powerful enemy outside the mountain... sigh, everyone's on edge. The sect master and elders are furious and have ordered a thorough investigation."
Han Li nodded, asked no further questions, and stepped through the gates. Inwardly, however, he understood: Li Feiyu's death had indeed stirred up waves, but for now, no one seemed to suspect him, the dark spiritual root genius who had been "away training." That saved him some trouble.
He went straight back to his small courtyard reserved for core disciples. It was as quiet as ever, and the simple restrictions he had laid before leaving remained intact. Yet the instant he stepped through the courtyard gate, his gaze sharpened slightly.
At some point, an exquisite food box had appeared on the stone table in the courtyard. Beside it lay a Sound Transmission Talisman.
Han Li swept his spiritual sense over them and found no unusual aura on either the food box or the Sound Transmission Talisman. He picked up the talisman and activated it with spiritual power. A clear female voice sounded from within, tinged with hurt and concern:
"Senior Brother Han, you're finally back! I heard you left on a dangerous mission, and I was so worried. I made these pastries myself as a small token of my feelings. Also... Grandfather asked about you a few days ago. He seemed to have something important to discuss. If you have time, Senior Brother, please visit him at the Medicine Hall.-Caihuan."
Mo Caihuan? And Mo Juren?
A cold smile curved Han Li's lips. Old fox, already too impatient to wait? And now you're sending your granddaughter to tug at my heartstrings? Those pastries probably aren't as simple as they look.
He opened the food box. Inside were several delicate pastries and a flask of spirit wine, their fragrance wafting into his nose. He gathered an almost imperceptible thread of dark spiritual power at his fingertip and lightly brushed it over the pastries. Sure enough, at the mouth of the wine flask and inside one pink pastry, he detected two foreign energies so deeply concealed that he would almost certainly have missed them if his spiritual sense had not grown considerably and he had not been exceptionally sensitive to energy. One carried a faint hallucinatory aura. The other was far more sinister, like a festering sore clinging to the bone, and seemed to be some sort of tracking or controlling mark.
An upgraded version of Meridian-Eroding Powder? And soul-bewildering incense? What a clever scheme. Han Li's killing intent intensified. Had his cultivation still been what it was half a month ago, he might truly have fallen into the trap. But now...
Without betraying anything, he replaced the lid exactly as it had been, as though he had noticed nothing. Since the old fiend had laid out a feast, he would go meet him! It was the perfect opportunity to probe his true capabilities and find a suitable moment to send him to his death!
Before meeting Mo Juren, however, he needed to learn the latest developments within the sect, especially the higher-ups' attitude toward Li Feiyu's death, as well as... Nangong Wan's movements. That mysterious woman in white always struck him as unfathomable.
That night, Han Li slipped silently out of his courtyard and, like a phantom in the darkness, infiltrated the area near the sect's library pavilion. It was not merely a place where books were stored, but also where disciples exchanged information and all manner of rumors converged.
He concealed his aura, his spiritual sense spreading like mercury pouring across the ground as it caught fragments of the disciples' conversations inside and outside the pavilion.
"...Li Feiyu's death was suspicious. If you ask me, it was probably..."
"Shh! Watch your tongue! The elders are still furious..."
"Come to think of it, Senior Brother Han Li certainly chose an interesting time to return..."
"I heard Martial Aunt Nangong also returned from a trip a few days ago. Apparently, she brought back some important news..."
"The Blood-Colored Forbidden Land will open soon. I wonder how many places our Seven Mysteries Sect will get this time..."
Information came pouring in. Han Li keenly picked out several key points: the investigation into Li Feiyu's death seemed to have reached a dead end, and no one suspected him for now; Nangong Wan had indeed gone out, and had been in a hurry; most importantly, news that the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land would soon open seemed to have spread among certain circles, stirring hidden currents within the sect.
Just then, a cool strand of spiritual sense swept across the area as though by chance. Although it vanished in a flash, Han Li recognized it instantly-it was Nangong Wan!
Was she also keeping an eye on developments within the sect?
Han Li immediately suppressed every trace of his aura and merged into the shadows. That strand of spiritual sense did not linger and soon drifted away.
It seems the waters of this Seven Mysteries Sect are even murkier than I imagined. Light flickered in Han Li's eyes. Mo Juren, Nangong Wan, the impending opening of the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land... all these threads were weaving together.
He lingered no longer and quietly returned to his courtyard.
Early the next morning, Han Li straightened his clothes and restored an expression that mixed a genius's faint arrogance with the awkward reserve of someone "inexperienced in the ways of the world." Then he headed toward the Medicine Hall.
It was time to attend this "banquet with daggers hidden beneath the table."
Mo Juren, your death is close at hand!
Before you continue