Chapter 1842: The Elder Devil Realm Agreement
After a brief moment of contemplation, Han Li turned to the Long Family patriarch, and said, "I see, so it must've been you who revealed this information to Fellow Daoist Long. However, I'm sure there has to be other reasons why Brother Long is willing to believe this information so firmly, right?"
The grand elders of the Ye Family and the Lin Family also turned to the Long Family patriarch to await his response.
"I naturally have my own methods to verify the authenticity of this information, but I can't disclose the method I used. Thankfully, Fairy Ye's words from earlier provide further confirmation that those two spirit items do indeed exist somewhere in the Elder Devil Realm. In that case, it's up to us to decide whether we dare to take this risk to pursue this extraordinary reward. Truth be told, Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns, Brother Hui, and I have already decided to go on this venture no matter what, and we'll also be joined by several Holy Spirit level beings from the Spirit Race. The three sovereigns definitely wouldn't participate in something like this, so I decided to invite the three of you instead. Hehe, I actually initially only planned on inviting Fairy Ye and Brother Lin, but you turned out to be an unexpected surprise, Fellow Daoist Han. Now then, are the three of you willing to venture into the Elder Devil Realm with us?" the Long Family patriarch asked with a hint of finality in his voice.
Han Li and the others exchanged a few glances upon hearing this, and none of them immediately gave a reply.
After a long while, the woman from the Ye Family said, "When are you planning to travel to the Elder Devil Realm, Brother Long? According to what I've heard, this devilish tribulation is going to be far more perilous than the previous ones, and even our entire human race could be wiped out if we're not careful. If we pick the wrong time to leave, there's a very good chance that we could perish."
"I've naturally already considered all of this. After taking all these factors into account, I've decided to enter the Elder Devil Realm several decades after the commencement of the devilish tribulation. At that point, the human race would've most likely already weathered the most fierce part of the storm, and a stalemate would therefore ensue. If we enter the Elder Devil Realm under those circumstances, we should be quite safe. Fellow Daoist Han is a vagrant cultivator, so he doesn't have to worry about anything. As for the Ye Family and the Lin Family, I'm sure you two aren't the only Body Integration cultivators from your respective families, right?" the Long Family patriarch asked in a calm manner.
"Hmph, you sure seem to have a lot of information on our two families! If our Lin Family doesn't encounter any major peril during the devilish tribulation, then I'll accompany you on this journey," the man from the Lin Family said.
It was quite clear that despite his outward display of reluctance, the Spirit Cleansing Pond and Clean Spirit Lotus were simply too tempting for him to ignore.
"Seeing as we have a method to disguise our auras, we'll naturally have a much greater chance of survival. However, no matter how seamless a disguise is, it'll most likely be exposed eventually. Roughly how long will our journey require? If the journey is going to take too long, the chances of death will be quite high, and I'll need some time to consider the matter before I make my decision. Of course, if it won't take very long, then I naturally won't give up on this fantastic opportunity," the woman from the Ye Family said.
"That's a difficult question to answer. According to my knowledge, the Spirit Cleansing Pond and Clean Spirit Lotus are situated at the center of the Elder Devil Realm, so even if everything goes smoothly, the duration of the trip would be over 10 years. If we encounter some unforeseen trouble along the way, then it's quite possible that our journey would be several times longer than that. Furthermore, we won't be setting off as soon as the devilish tribulation commences, so we won't actually have a lot of time," Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns replied.
The woman from the Ye Family contemplated this matter for a long while before giving her response. "So it could take several decades? That's quite a long time. I'm going to have to think about this and give you a response later."
The Long Family patriarch wasn't surprised to hear this, and he nodded in a meaningful manner. "Of course, this is indeed a matter that'll require careful consideration. However, your Heavenly Phoenix bloodline grants you some powerful spatial abilities, so you would be a great asset to us if you were to come on this journey. If you choose to remain behind, it would be quite a pity."
The woman from the Ye Family also nodded in response before falling silent. Thus, everyone turned their attention to Han Li, who was the only one yet to provide an answer.
After a brief pause for contemplation, a wry smile appeared on Han Li's face, and he said something that came as quite a surprise to everyone. "I'm just a vagrant cultivator with no inhibitions, so I naturally won't hesitate to pursue an opportunity like this. However, I have some other important things to do in the next few centuries, all of which are rather time-consuming, so I may not be able to make it."
In contrast with the woman from the Ye Family, Han Li's participation didn't seem to matter much to the Long Family patriarch, and he replied in an indifferent manner, "I see, in that case, I wish you luck in your other engagements. If you have the time, then you would be more than welcome to come with us. Otherwise, I won't force you to do anything against your will. However, I must warn all of you to keep this a secret, regardless of whether you intend to go or not. We are the only ones who are aware of this information at this point. If I hear any rumors about this circulating in the outside world, then don't blame me for turning on you. I'm not concerned that other people would compete with us; I'm merely worried that if the Elder Devil Race were to learn of our plan, our trip to the Elder Devil Realm would become a lot more arduous."
Han Li merely gave a nonchalant smile in response, but the woman from the Ye Family was rather displeased by this insinuation. "What do you take us for, Brother Long? Why would we do something that would benefit others at our own expense?"
"I was only raising a hypothetical situation. If I didn't believe that you would keep this a secret, I wouldn't have revealed this information to you. Now then, everything has been said and done; it'll be up to you to decide whether you want to take this risk. However, you have to give me an answer prior to the commencement of the devilish tribulation. If any of you decide against joining us, I have to search for other companions," the Long Family patriarch said in a serious manner.
"Of course," the woman from the Ye Family replied with a nod, and Han Li also nodded with a contemplative look on his face.
Seeing as the discussion had concluded, Han Li and the others departed after making some small talk. They were accompanied out of the Myriad Spirit Hall by Elder Hui, leaving only the Long Family patriarch and Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns in the hall.
The smile on the yellow-robed woman's face immediately vanished, and she seemed to be pondering something. The Long Family patriarch was also staring off into space with a contemplative look on his face, and silence ensued.
After a while, Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns suddenly said, "I still don't understand why you insist on convincing someone from the Ye Family to join us. Do you really think her spatial abilities will be that important to us? I've already invited another good friend from the Spirit Race who possesses spatial abilities that definitely won't be inferior to hers; are you unwilling to trust me, Brother Long?"
"Of course not. You and I have been acquaintances for a long time, so I certainly wouldn't doubt you. However, the Elder Devil Realm is an extremely perilous place, so it would naturally be best for us to have two fellow Daoists with spatial abilities. On top of that, the Ye Family has many secret techniques and abilities that aren't inferior to those of our Long Family, so she would definitely be a valuable ally to us," the Long Family patriarch replied in a calm manner.
Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns was silent for a moment before continuing, "Alright, but is there really a need to recruit that Fellow Daoist Han? No matter how powerful he is, he's still only an early-Body Integration cultivator. If you want more numbers, I can return to the Spirit Race and recruit another mid-Body Integration Stage fellow Daoist."
"Hehe, we agreed that the same number of human and Spirit beings will be entering the Elder Devil Realm for this journey; you're not going back on your word, are you? Also, I'm afraid you're wrong about that Han brat. He may have only recently reached the early-Body Integration Stage, but I faced him in that sparring match, and I can assure you that his powers are definitely superior to those of Elder Hui. Even late-Body Integration cultivators like you and I would most likely find it quite difficult to defeat him. On top of that, the golden body that he's cultivated most likely stems from some top-grade cultivation art from the Elder Devil Race, so he should be able to control true devilish Qi. Perhaps that ability will come in useful in an unexpected way during our journey. Of course, he's not entirely indispensable. If he doesn't want to join us, then I'll just have to find another powerful vagrant cultivator," the Long Family patriarch replied in a confident manner.
Seeing as the Long Family patriarch had already established his plans, Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns didn't press the issue any further. "I'm the holy maiden of the Artifact Spirit Race, so I obviously won't go back on my word. Seeing as you've already made up your mind, I won't speak any further about this. I'll be leaving this devilish bead with you. You've already learned the method to use it, and I've signed the agreement with your human race on behalf of our Spirit Race, so I won't stay here any longer. I'll be setting off to return to the Spirit Race tomorrow; I'll have to ask you to oversee the collaboration between your Long Family and our Artifact Spirit Race."
"Rest assured, our collaboration is a mutually beneficial one, so I'll definitely be paying my due diligence. Looks like the next time you and I meet will be after the commencement of the devilish tribulation," the Long Family elder replied with a nod.
After that, they exchanged some more pleasantries before Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns also departed.
Meanwhile, Han Li had already returned to his living quarters and was lying on a large bed in his pavilion, contemplating something in silence.