Chapter 877: Ruined Stone Tablet
Like the last time Han Li delved into the abyss of devilish Qi, he was protected in a net of Divine Devilbane Lightning. Soon, the rings of thunder grew softer as he delved deeper and soon the golden lightning could no longer be seen.
On the surface of the ocean, the three great cultivators were talking with one another as Han Li delved deeper.
“Brother Sunreach, do you feel that Fellow Daoist Han truly doesn’t have enough Divine Devilbane Lightning to make the entire trip? Will his lightning be consumed too quickly to have any remaining for the trip back?” Wei Wuya asked with his hands behind his back.
“Does Brother Wei mean to say that my previous words were false?” Master Sunreach’s expression sank and he appeared displeased.
Wei Wuya chuckled and said, “Please don’t misunderstand me, I didn’t mean that at all. I simply asked because I felt that Fellow Daoist Han agreed far too easily.”
Master Sunreach’s expression relaxed and he said, “If that’s the case, I’m not too sure myself. However, I consumed greater amounts of magic power the deeper I delved into the abyss of devilish Qi. I imagine one would need an astonishing amount of Divine Devilbane Lightning if they wish to make a whole round trip. I don’t believe Fellow Daoist Han can accomplish this with his lightning alone. Perhaps he has something else that can withstand the devilish Qi for a time.”
“That is quite possible. After all, there are an endless number of mysteries and wonders in the cultivation world. But regardless of how it is said, it will be good if this calamity could be smoothly resolved.” Wei Wuya spoke with a smile and took a glance at Devil Concord. The large black-robed man had his arms crossed as he glanced down at the whirlpool, his face emotionless as he remained silent.
For the time being, silence filled the air.
...
Ten kilometers deep into the devilish Qi, a light barrier surging with golden lightning was floating motionlessly. Han Li was inside it, solemnly reading through the jade slip that detailed where the formation plate should be placed.
A short moment later, Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense from the jade slip and looked around. His surroundings were completely devoid of light, not surprising as he already reached the farthest depths of the devilish Qi abyss.
Han Li frowned and opened his mouth, spitting out an inch-long golden sword.
In a flicker of golden light, the small sword flew out of the light barrier with a layer of thin lightning covering the body of the blade. It circled around him before revolving above his head, turning into a strange inch-large golden ring of light.
Han Li formed an incantation gesture and pointed at the ring of light above his head, ordering it to suddenly stop and shoot out in a streak of golden light. He then closely followed after it in a blur.
He flew a meter across the abyss before the small golden sword suddenly shot downward and released a muffled bang. The flying sword had pierced into something.
A trace of joy appeared on Han Li’s face and arrived three meters above where the sword had landed. In the pitch black darkness, all he could see was the faint light of the small sword flickering with lightning. It had pierced into a huge flat rock.
Han Li muttered to himself for a moment and pressed one of his hands against his light barrier. The net of lightning surrounding the barrier suddenly surged with blinding light and released several dense bolts of golden lightning that quickly revolved in the nearby area, turning into several golden pythons. As a result, the golden pythons cleanly swept away all the devilish Qi in the nearby area, illuminating the huge rock underneath.
Han Li examined it for a moment and revealed shock. This wasn’t a rock, but rather the floor of an altar. It appeared to stretch beyond the range of the golden lightning.
He was amazed. The area that the formation masters wished to bury the formation plate was unexpectedly remarkable.
Han Li commanded the golden pythons to quickly envelop the rest of the altar, revealing its general appearance.
It was a square building that stretched out about a hundred meters. All of the characteristics and engravings on the stone walls illustrated that it was a building created by cultivators from antiquity.
After Han Li viewed his surroundings, he waved to the sword embedded in the floor and it returned to his sleeve in a golden streak. He then flew towards the center of the building and after a short moment, it began to flicker with white light.
His heart stirred at the sight and he sped up, eventually clearly seeing what laid at its center. It was a shattered stone tablet. Only a small portion of its foundation remained standing upright with the rest of its fragments scattered around.
Han Li’s eyes wandered around the stone tablet as he observed it. Although it was shattered, he was able to see a few worn talisman characters that he couldn’t understand. It was unknown what kind of material it was carved from as it would only occasionally sparkle with a faint white light.
‘Could it be a rare material on par with the Gold Lightning Bamboo?’ Han Li thought. Soon, he reached out towards a fist-sized piece of the stone tablet and his hand glowed with azure light before summoning it into his grasp.
The stone piece was grey and unremarkable. If it weren’t for the traces of spiritual light, Han Li wouldn’t have found anything particular about it.
Han Li looked at it several more times and his brow stirred before he suddenly exerted great strength into his grasp.
As a result, a strange scene occurred. The stone wasn’t crushed to powder as Han Li thought. Instead, it flickered with white light and suddenly turned soft, allowing his fingers to sink deep into the stone.
Han Li felt his heart jump. He frowned and asked Monarch Soul Divergence, “Senior Soul Divergence, do you know what this is?”
“No, I’ve never seen it before,” Monarch Soul Divergence said with a lazy tone, “But this is no surprise. There were so many rare materials used during ancient times, it is impossible for someone to know them all. You may as well let me research that piece. I am idle and have little better to do.” Then without another thought, Han Li tossed the stone piece into the bamboo tube behind him.
Light flashed from the bamboo tube and a mist of white light sucked the strange stone inside of it.
Han Li quickly turned his attention to the shattered stone tablet. It hadn't been long since it was shattered, and it appeared that when the spell formation was damaged, the stone tablet had shattered as well.
With that thought, Han Li collected the rest of the stone fragments in a sweep of azure light. He then flicked his fingers and launched over ten streaks of azure sword light at the stone foundation, wishing to take the rest of it with him.
A series of booms sounded out and to Han Li’s surprise, the sword Qi wasn’t able to cut through the stone. It didn’t seem to have any effect.
“How strange!” Han Li yelped in alarm and hesitated for a moment. He no longer paid attention to the rest of the stone tablet and launched several streaks of sword Qi in a different direction.
Although he had enough Divine Devilbane Lightning to sustain for a while longer, Han Li didn’t dare to linger too long in such a dangerous place and began to place down the formation plate.
A series of muffled explosions sounded out, followed by the appearance of a three-meter-deep hole at the side of the stone tablet.
With a wave of his hand, white light flickered and an exquisite formation plate appeared. Han Li shook his hand without the slightest hesitation and sent the formation plate into the hole in a streak of light.
Grimly staring at the formation plate, his two hands then formed a hand incantation and the formation plate began to shine with even greater light.
Soon, the formation plate released a clear ring and a thick beam of white light shot out towards the sky, only to disappear without a trace.
Han Li felt at ease. Since the formation plate was functioning as expected, he had clearly found the right place.
With that thought, Han Li swept up an azure gale with a wave of his sleeve, completely burying the hole with rocks. He then released a spell seal and muttered an incantation before melting the pile of rocks to seal the hole completely in a smooth layer. The hole now appeared as if it never existed.
Han Li walked around the large hole to make sure that nothing appeared out of the ordinary and he nodded with a satisfied expression.
With that done, he released several spell seals, striking the nearby golden lightning pythons. With pangs of thunder, the lightning pythons faded away into specks of light and the devilish Qi began to quickly roil as there was no longer anything holding it back.
Han Li pondered to himself before the lightning flashed around his light barrier, preparing to rush back up to the ocean surface.
At that moment, Monarch Soul Divergence’s voice echoed through his spiritual sense, “Youngster, wait a moment!”
Han Li stopped in surprise and asked, “What does Senior have to say?”
“Since this is the center of the sealing formation, it is also the densest area of devilish Qi, and since it has been suppressed since ancient times, it is possible several Devil Essence Diamonds have formed here. According to ancient records, they were a material used to refine precious Devil Dao treasures. You should see if you can find them nearby.”
“Devil Essence Diamonds?” An odd expression appeared on his face. Then after some thought, he slapped his storage pouch and took out a yellow jade scepter with a wolf’s head.
This was the ancient treasure that originally housed Silvermoon. Although its artifact spirit was missing, it was still capable of using simple earth movement techniques, but not to the superb skill that Silvermoon was capable of.