Chapter 139: Pill Masters of the Immortal Realm
Han Li didn't pay any attention to the pills used for cultivation base enhancement or restoration. Instead, he made his way straight to the shelf that carried energy recovery pills.
Beneath each pill on the shelf was a detailed description of the pill's effects, as well as its price.
His gaze slowly roamed over the shelf, and he quickly spotted a type of pill called the Origin Return Pill.
This pill had an immense energy recovery effect. Every time he manifested a crystal that contained the laws of time, he would be left in desperately short supply of energy, so this pill was perfect for shortening his recovery time.
"I'll take five vials of Origin Return Pills," Han Li declared.
Each vial only contained three pills, but it cost 30 top-grade spirit stones. Thankfully, Han Li had obtained quite a few top-grade spirit stones from the Earthly Immortals and itinerant cultivators that he had previously slain, so the price wasn't too steep for him to afford.
"Yes, Senior!" An elated look appeared on Lu Ping's face as he pulled out a badge.
A burst of white light shot out of the badge before landing on the protective barrier around the shelf, and an opening appeared, following which one of the attendants immediately crouched down and pulled out five green jade vials.
After some more searching, Han Li picked out some Origin Watch Pills, which allowed the consumer to accelerate their absorption of the world's origin qi for a short time, as well as some Bone Alteration Pill, which was a pill that could provide a disguise that could fool even the spiritual sense of late-True Immortal cultivator.
These two types of pills weren't cheap, either, and he had spent the majority of his top-grade spirit stones here.
However, he was willing to make this investment if it meant that he could better deal with the potentially perilous journey ahead.
Manager Lu was naturally very pleased, seeing as this was quite a big sale for him.
Right as he was about to introduce some other pills to Han Li, the sound of footsteps rang out, and two more figures arrived on the fifth floor.
One of them was a young woman who appeared to be around 18 to 19 years of age. Her robes were as pristine as snow, and she resembled a pure celestial maiden who had descended from the palace on the moon.
Beside the young woman was a blue-robed young man who appeared to be in his twenties. He was also quite handsome in appearance, but the arrogant look on his face made for a negative first impression.
The blue-robed young man took a glance at Han Li out of the corner of his eye, then interjected in a rude manner, "Lu Ping, are the spirit ingredients I asked you to prepare last time ready?"
"Please pardon me for not coming out to greet you sooner, Master Fang. The spirit ingredients that you asked for have been prepared well in advance, I'll go fetch them now."
Manager Lu hurriedly made his way toward the duo, shooting Han Li an apologetic glance as he was speaking.
Han Li took a glance at the blue-robed young man, and his gaze settled onto a small crimson cauldron design emblazoned onto his collar.
"That's a symbol that can only be worn by pill masters. That man is an A-grade Temporal Pill Master," Mu Xue introduced in a quiet voice.
Han Li nodded in a contemplative manner upon hearing this, then withdrew his gaze as he continued to browse through the other pills on the shelves on his own.
Meanwhile, Lu Ping called over a couple of attendants to accompany the Master Fang and the young woman, while he quickly made his way downstairs.
The white-robed young woman had a concerned look on her face as she made her way over to the wooden shelf that carried all types of restorative and antidotal pills.
"Given Brother Mo's powers, I'd say he's most likely just fallen into some type of special space or restriction that severed his connection with his Origin Soul Lamp. There are examples of this happening in the past, so don't be too concerned," the blue-robed young man consoled in a gentle voice as he trailed along behind the young woman.
"I'm also confident in his abilities, but I have to find him no matter what," the young woman replied with a nod, and her voice was as crisp and pleasant as the call of an oriole.
Han Li paid no heed to the two of them as he quickly scanned through all of the pills on the fifth floor, but didn't find anything else that caught his fancy.
"Let's go," he said to Mu Xue, then turned to make his way back downstairs.
After leaving the Thousand Medicine House, Han Li took a glance at the throngs of people on the streets, then turned to Mu Xue as he asked, "Are there any cave abodes on Black Wind Island available for temporary accommodation?"
"Around 250 kilometers away from the city is a mountain by the name of Mount Youyang, and it was developed by the island master to serve as temporary accommodation for cultivators. I've taken a few people there in the past, so I'm very familiar with its whereabouts, and I can take you there as well if you need, Senior," Mu Xue replied.
"No need. Just tell me the rough location, and I'll go there on my own," Han Li said.
Mu Xue was slightly dejected to hear this, but he immediately did as he was told. "Just take the main road at the center of the city out of the northern gate and keep traveling northward to get to Mount Younyang."
With a flick of his wrist, Han Li casually tossed out a longan-sized azure rock, which fell toward Mu Xue.
Mu Xue hurriedly caught the object to find that it was a high-grade spirit stone, and an elated look immediately appeared on his face, but he then offered the spirit stone back to Han Li with both hands in a slightly fearful manner as he said, "This is too much, Senior. Five mid-grade spirit stones will suffice."
"Just take it. I'm not giving this spirit stone to you for free. There's something that I need you to find out for me," Han Li said with a smile.
Mu Xue faltered slightly upon hearing this, and he didn't immediately withdraw the spirit stone as he asked, "What is it, Senior?"
Han Li was quite pleased with Mu Xue's reaction, and he replied, "I want you to help me find out how I can claim one of the spots to leave the Black Wind Sea. If you can find out information that's useful to me, I'll be sure to reward you."
"Rest assured, Senior, you can count on me!" Mu Xue assured with a nod as an elated look appeared on his face.
With that, the two of them parted ways, departing in different directions.
Han Li slowly made his way along the main road at the center of the city while looking at the shops around him, and he was in no hurry as he casually strolled out of the city.
After emerging from the city, he walked for a while longer before abruptly springing up from the ground and vanishing in a flash.
250 kilometers was a distance that Han Li could cover in the blink of an eye, and he quickly descended in front of an elegant mountain that was several thousand feet tall.
He looked up to find that the mountain wasn't very tall, but it was extremely lush, and there was a ring of cloud and mist halfway up the mountain, giving it the appearance of an immortal abode.
He also noticed a layer of faint and peculiar spiritual power fluctuations that encompassed the entire mountain like an enormous, invisible net.
After observing the mountain for a moment, he withdrew his gaze, then made his way toward a grand hall situated at the entrance to the mountain.
Upon entering the hall, he was greeted by a sight of a massive screen, upon which the entirety of Mount Younyang was embroidered in golden thread, presenting a breathtaking sight to behold.
In front of the screen was a large wooden table that was of a reddish-purple color. Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, and a beast-head incense burner was sitting on the corner of the table, out of which incense smoke was billowing incessantly.
Behind the cloud of smoke was an elderly man in a scholarly azure robe, and he was reading an ancient book with keen interest, seemingly not having detected Han Li's arrival at all.
Han Li looked around to find that there was no one else in the hall, so he approached the table before clearing his throat to catch the elderly man's attention.
Only then did the elderly man raise his head to look at Han Li, and a hint of displeasure flashed through his eyes.
"Are you here to rent a cave abode?" the elderly man asked.
"Do you have any cave abodes that are more quiet and secluded in location?" Han Li asked.
The elderly man gave him a disgruntled glance as he replied, "I've heard this request so many times that my ears are about to develop callouses! Everyone who comes here asks for the same thing. Do you all regard yourselves as True Immortals?"
As soon as his voice trailed off, a burst of spiritual pressure that was far superior to the Grand Ascension Stage erupted out of Han Li's body, and the elderly man almost fell out of his chair in shock and horror.
He hurriedly stood up from his chair with a fearful expression, extending a deep bow as he implored, "Please forgive me for my insolence, Senior."
Han Li had no intention of pursuing the matter, and he withdrew his aura as he tossed a small pouch of spirit stones at the elderly man, then said, "Find me a quiet cave abode, and keep the change."
The elderly man accepted the pouch of spirit stones, and a hint of elation flashed through his eyes as he pointed at the giant screen behind him and said, "This cave abode here is situated on the edge of the Sun Watch Cliff on the mountain summit, and it's always been the most peaceful of the few A-grade cave abodes on the mountain. Will this one suffice for your needs?"
Han Li turned to find that a speck of light had appeared on the summit of the mountain embroidered on the screen, and it was indeed quite a peaceful and secluded location that was far away from all of the other cave abodes.
"Alright, I'll take that one," Han Li replied with a nod.
The elderly man immediately stowed the spirit stones away, then handed a round black badge to Han Li.
Moments later, outside the hall.
Han Li injected a wisp of magic power into the round badge, and a layer of faint dark golden light instantly appeared on its surface.
According to the elderly man, not only did this badge serve as the key to opening the cave abode, it was also the token that would allow him to enter Mount Youyang's mountain protection array.
As long as he had this badge in his possession, he would be able to fly anywhere on Mount Youyang. Otherwise, he would trigger the array and be targeted as a trespasser.
Han Li looked up at the sun, which was gradually setting in the west, and he flew up toward the mountain summit in a flash.
Before long, he had already arrived in a relatively spacious cave abode.
Even though restrictions had already been set up here, Han Li still set up several more restrictions of his own for peace of mind.
After that, he arrived in the secret chamber and sat down with his legs crossed, where he stared absentmindedly at the space before him with different emotions flashing through his eyes.
He had seen and heard many things in Black Wind City on this day that had left a deep impression on him.
After a brief silence, Han Li suddenly called out, "Mo Guang."
His shadow immediately swayed and warped for a moment, following which a shadowy figure emerged. It was none other than Mo Guang, and its expression was still as wooden as ever.
"Do you know how pill masters are ranked in the Immortal Realm, Fellow Daoist Mo Guang?" Han Li asked.
"According to my knowledge, pill masters of the Immortal Realm are primarily split up into three categories, namely Temporal, Earthly, and Heavenly," Mo Guang replied.