Undercurrents stirred beside the Sword-Washing Pool. Though the Feng Family had temporarily retreated, their venomous stares felt like barbs against Han Li's back. He knew he could not linger here. He had to temper his spiritual power in the Sword-Washing Pool as quickly as possible, then leave this place of trouble.
He gathered his thoughts and circulated the Profound Fiend Asura Art at full strength, guiding the pool's pure sword intent energy through his meridians and dantian. As time passed, the dark spiritual power swirling around him grew increasingly concentrated, faintly radiating an incomparably sharp aura of the sword. The Profound Fiend True Core in his dantian shrank by a full size, yet became even denser and more brilliant. He was already nearing the peak of the Foundation Establishment middle stage.
Yet just as he immersed himself in cultivation, at a moment when his spiritual sense had deeply merged with the sword intent in the water, a sudden change occurred!
The pale green Small Bottle he kept close to his body, which had remained utterly motionless all this time, began trembling without warning! A barely perceptible gleam flashed across the blurred rune on its surface, and a faint yet extraordinarily pure suction arose within it!
That suction did not target the spiritual energy outside. Instead, it passed straight through Han Li's body and acted upon the water of the Sword-Washing Pool beneath him! More precisely, it acted upon an exceedingly sparse, special energy deep beneath the pool-one even Han Li had failed to notice!
"Hm?" Han Li abruptly snapped out of his meditation. Examining himself internally, he was shocked to discover the Small Bottle's movement. He tried communicating with it through his spiritual sense, but his efforts still sank like a stone into the sea. Meanwhile, that peculiar suction directed at the pool's depths continued unabated.
Is there something beneath the pool? Han Li's thoughts stirred. He activated the Profound Yin Spirit Eye at full strength, his gaze piercing the misty water to probe the bottom. The Sword-Washing Pool was not deep, reaching its bed at roughly thirty feet. Strange jade stones, polished smooth as mirrors by years of scouring sword intent, covered the bottom. At first glance, nothing seemed amiss.
But through the subtle resonance produced by the Small Bottle's movement, Han Li keenly sensed something beneath an ordinary-looking jade stone at the center of the pool: an extremely well-hidden trace of... vital energy? It was completely at odds with the vast sword intent filling the Sword-Washing Pool. That fluctuation was so faint it could almost be disregarded. Without the Small Bottle's guidance, he could never have discovered it!
Could it be... A thought flashed through Han Li's mind like lightning striking flint. According to fragments of ancient texts, in places where supreme sword cultivators passed away in meditation, the sword intent they had accumulated over a lifetime might linger undispersed and nourish legendary wonders such as Swordheart Jade Marrow or a Spirit-Linking Sword Embryo! Such treasures contained a trace of the sword's primordial vitality and were priceless to sword cultivators!
This Small Bottle could actually sense something so deeply concealed?
Han Li's heartbeat quickened slightly, but his expression remained unchanged. He understood all too well that possessing a precious jade could itself be a crime. Experts surrounded the pool, and the Feng Family in particular watched him like hungry tigers. He absolutely could not act rashly.
He forcibly suppressed the urge to investigate immediately and continued pretending to cultivate. In secret, however, he split off a strand of spiritual sense to lock tightly onto that unusual fluctuation while urging the Small Bottle on with all his strength. He vaguely felt that it yearned to absorb that trace of vital energy.
As the Small Bottle's suction continued, the hidden fluctuation of vitality seemed to be drawn into motion, rippling slightly. At the same time, an exceedingly subtle disturbance arose in the sword intent throughout the Sword-Washing Pool! The spiritual mist hovering over its surface wavered.
The change was extremely faint. Most of the other cultivators beside the pool were immersed in cultivation and noticed nothing. Yet Nangong Wan, who had been contemplating with her eyes closed, gave a slight flutter of her lashes and opened her beautiful eyes. Her cool gaze swept across the pool before lingering on Han Li for an instant, a hint of puzzlement flashing within it.
One of the black-robed elders beside the Feng Family's young man also seemed to sense something. His brows creased slightly as he looked suspiciously toward the bottom of the pool.
Han Li's heart tightened. He knew he could wait no longer! He had to act swiftly and finish this at once!
His thoughts raced, and he reached a decision in an instant. Quietly, he separated a tiny portion of the pseudo core flame he had been nurturing in his dantian and attached it to a strand of spiritual sense. It became a formless, intangible thread of yin flame, silently following the path indicated by the Small Bottle's suction toward that trace of vitality beneath the pool!
This was an extremely dangerous move. If he mishandled it, the pseudo core flame might ignite the sword intent in the pool, with unthinkable consequences! But Han Li's control over spiritual power had reached consummate mastery. The fine thread of yin flame precisely avoided the violent sword intent energy in the water, reaching its target like the most deftly wielded scalpel!
The instant the thread of yin flame touched that fluctuation of vitality-
Hum!
The jade stone at the bottom of the pool shuddered violently, and a nearly invisible emerald gleam flashed and vanished! Like a startled rabbit, that trace of vitality abruptly sprang into motion. Following the Small Bottle's suction, it turned into an exceedingly fine green line, pierced the jade stone and the water, and plunged into Han Li's body in an instant, where the Small Bottle swallowed it whole!
After devouring that trace of vitality, the Small Bottle grew slightly warm. Its trembling ceased, and it returned to the stillness of an ancient well, as though nothing had happened.
Yet Han Li clearly sensed that a barely perceptible hint of vigor seemed to have appeared within the Small Bottle. Even the blurred rune on its surface seemed just a little clearer.
At the same time, the jade stone beneath the pool rapidly turned dull and gray. With a crack, several fissures appeared across its surface, and all its spiritual energy vanished. The sword intent throughout the Sword-Washing Pool seemed to lose some central support. Though still vast, it had lost a trace of its living essence and become somewhat lifeless.
This change was far more obvious than the last!
"Something's happened beneath the pool!"
"The sword intent... seems to have weakened a little?"
This time, almost every cultivator beside the pool noticed the anomaly. They opened their eyes one after another and looked toward the water in bewilderment and suspicion, their gazes ultimately converging on the fractured jade stone at the bottom.
A sharp gleam flashed through Nangong Wan's eyes, and her gaze turned deeply searching as she looked at Han Li. The Feng Family's black-robed elder sprang to his feet, his piercing eyes fixed firmly on Han Li as he barked, "Boy! What did you just do?!"
Han Li inwardly cursed. He knew he could no longer conceal this. Slowly, he stood up, his expression calm as he met the elder's gaze. "While cultivating, I gained a sudden insight. The resulting surge of spiritual power inadvertently damaged the bottom of the pool. What advice do you have for me?"
"Bullshit!" The Feng Family's young man jumped up and pointed at Han Li, cursing, "You must have used some despicable trick to steal a treasure from the pool! You ruined my opportunity! Seize him!"
The two black-robed elders exchanged glances and, without further hesitation, attacked together! This time, they held nothing back. Their Foundation Establishment Late Stage spiritual pressure erupted in full. One summoned a large black banner steeped in ghostly energy. Its surface churned as countless Vengeful Ghosts howled and lunged at Han Li! The other formed hand seals, and several enormous stone hands suddenly burst from the ground, reaching for Han Li's legs!
They intended to subdue him in an instant!
"You're courting death!" A fierce, cold gleam blazed in Han Li's eyes! He knew this could no longer end peacefully. His only choice was to carve a bloody path out!
He no longer concealed his strength. His cultivation at the peak of the Foundation Establishment middle stage erupted with a thunderous surge! Dark spiritual power shot skyward around him like beacon smoke, and the fierce sword intent within it made the oncoming Vengeful Ghosts shriek in terror!
He pushed Shadow Step to its limit, his figure dissolving into several afterimages as he narrowly evaded the enormous stone hands! At the same time, the Shadow Blade traced an uncanny arc. Pseudo core flame covered its edge as it slashed toward the black ghost banner!
"Soul-Eroding Finger!"
"Profound Yin Binding!"
The force of his finger strike shot like lightning straight toward the brow of the elder controlling the ghost banner! Though launched later, the Profound Yin Threads arrived first, coiling toward the other elder's wrists!
The balance of attack and defense reversed in an instant! Han Li had actually taken the initiative to fight two Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivators alone!
Boom!
The thunderous collision of energy exploded across the summit! The ghost banner shook violently, and nearly half its Vengeful Ghosts dissipated! Profound Yin Binding checked the enormous stone hands! Both elders gave muffled grunts and were actually forced half a step back!
An uproar swept through the crowd! Everyone was stunned by the terrifying combat strength Han Li had displayed! A middle-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator had met two Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivators head-on without losing ground! What kind of monstrous talent was this?!
Unusual light flickered repeatedly in Nangong Wan's beautiful eyes. She raised her delicate hand slightly, seemingly preparing to intervene.
The Feng Family's young man turned deathly pale, unable to believe what he saw.
Han Li stood with his blade in hand, his gaze as cold as ice frozen for ten thousand years. He swept his eyes across the Feng Family's people. "Take another step forward, and you die!"
His chilling killing intent seemed almost tangible. It sent a chill through the two Feng Family elders' hearts, and for a moment, neither dared move again.
Just then, another sudden change occurred!
The entire Swordspine Peak began shaking violently! Cracks appeared along the edges of the summit platform! The water in the Sword-Washing Pool churned as though boiling, and its sword intent grew wild and chaotic!
"This is bad! The summit's collapsing!"
"Run!"
Everyone's expression changed drastically. Forgetting the fight, they rose in streaks of escape light and fled down the mountain in panic! Clearly, the disappearance of that core vitality beneath the pool had triggered some kind of chain reaction, causing this place of concentrated sword intent to begin collapsing!
Han Li took one long look at the boiling Sword-Washing Pool and the collapsing summit. Without further hesitation, he turned into a wisp of blue smoke and swiftly fled in the direction opposite the Feng Family!
Though danger had beset him at every turn on this journey, his gains were immense! Not only had his spiritual power been tempered, but the mysterious Small Bottle had also devoured a trace of primordial vitality that might have come from Swordheart Jade Marrow! The Small Bottle's secrets seemed to be revealing themselves, step by step!
His figure vanished into the smoke and dust engulfing the collapsing Swordspine Peak. Where would his next destination be?
Before you continue