Xiang Zhili gave no hesitation to Ling Long’s proposal and instantly agreed.
Corpse Xiong, on the other hand, wasn’t so easily swayed, but he eventually gritted his teeth and nodded. No matter how precious his blood blade may be, it was far below that of a path up to the spirit realm.
A short moment later, two yellow talismans and a crimson foot-long blade appeared in Ling Long’s hand.
The woman closely examined them and fiddle with the crimson blade. Red light blurred in the air before she nodded in satisfaction. She turned to the two and said, “In addition to temporary reverse spirit streams, there is one weak spatial node that connects the two realms. The worldly power of this location is so incredibly weak that there are spatial tears connecting the two worlds. With enough strength, you can open a path to the Heavens. In the past when the Elder Devils invaded the mortal realm, it was through a similar method. Otherwise, it would’ve been difficult for their holy lords to enter this realm, no matter how powerful they may have been.”
“A spatial node?” Xiang Zhili muttered. The others wore a curious expression when they heard this.
Ling Long indifferently explained, “Given how vast this realm is, they are incredibly difficult to find. During ancient times, they only found a dozen such points, and those would occasionally change position, but there are a few that have a fixed location. In any case, they are extremely unstable. The passages there would occasionally collapse and are only temporary existences, making them extremely dangerous unlike reverse spirit streams. But what is most dangerous when passing through them is not the strain of boundary between realms, but the spatial storms that would arise from their instability. Even extremely powerful characters would find certain death if they were drawn into them. As for their locations, I do know of a few, but untold years have passed. Most of them have likely disappeared or changed location. It will depend on you to find any new spatial nodes. But before you leave, I do have the location of my original node, the method to find it, and its particular details.”
“Then we must thank the Imperial Concubine for her trouble!” Corpse Xiong and Xiang Zhili were overjoyed and they both offered a white jade slip to the silver-haired woman. She then inscribed the information before returning them.
At the side, Lin Yinping looked on with longing, but she didn’t dare to request the information.
Ling Long then said, “Alright, the exchange is over, and given your experience, you should be able to judge if the information is genuine. Now, I’ll be heading back into the ninth floor’s pocket. If you don’t wish to be drawn in, leave. I can’t guarantee if the Elder Devil will use this opportunity to escape.”
Xiang Zhili and Corpse Xiong said a few more words to urge against her decision, but they soon gave up and said little else before flying off. Lin Yinping took a glance at Han Li before silently following suit.
In the blink of an eye, only Han Li and Ling Long remained.
Han Li looked at her with an indifferent expression and narrowed eyes. She, on the other hand, was watching the hall’s exit.
A short moment later, she let out a long sigh and said, “Those two were quite tactful. They didn’t leave behind any spiritual sense to pry. You can take out that Heavencrystal Stele now.”
Han Li inwardly sighed and replied, “How are you so certain that I truly have the stele?”
“If that wasn’t the Heavencrystal Stele, then what is? Don’t forget that a portion of my soul was your artifact spirit, and she saw the ancient characters written upon it. So long as you assist me in reclaiming my body, the Eight Spirit Ruler will be yours and I’ll even leave the Heavenvoid Cauldron in your hands. Although ordinary spirit treasures are incredibly rare, it isn’t a top grade treasure by any means in the spirit realm. But what I find strange is that I have an impression you still have a grand treasure of sorts, but I can’t quite remember what. You... didn’t perform any tricks on my soul fragment, did you?” With that said, Ling Long icily glared at him.
Han Li felt his heart jump, but he calmly replied, “Senior must be joking. With your vast spiritual sense, how could a mere mid-Nascent Soul cultivator possibly trick you.”
Ling Long sneered and examined Han Li with a malicious gaze. “I know that the artifact spirit pact has yet to disappear and that there is a memory related to it that is sealed. I am quite curious what treasure you possess that you hold even more dearly than the Heavenvoid Cauldron.”
Han Li’s expression turned unsightly, “What do you plan on doing with that information?”
The human-like puppet blurred to his side and began to shine with a layer of silver light.
Han Li had already resolved himself. If she intended on closely asking the question about the bottle, he would attempt to forcefully awaken Silvermoon through her bond as an artifact spirit. But it was more likely that he would be captured before Silvermoon was awakened. After all, he was helpless in the face of Deity Transformation-stage abilities, but luckily under their current circumstances, she didn’t dare to injure him.
Ling Long’s face grew frigid and her brows furrowed, displaying a faint trace of hostility.
Han Li vigilantly looked at her and took out the Triflame Fan from his sleeve, secretly casting a technique as well. At that same moment, the human-like puppet took out a small bow into its hand as well.
Then, a cackle sounded, and a rosy complexion and a sweet smile suddenly appeared on the woman’s face.
Han Li’s mind blanked and he cried out, “Silvermoon, it’s you?”
“Master, you are quite cunning. To seal away my memories about the bottle before I fused together with Long Meng. Were it not for our spiritual sense being gravely injured in the battle against the devil, forcing Long Meng’s soul to lie dormant, I fear you truly would’ve gotten away with sealing my memories.”
Seeing that Silvermoon’s soul had truly taken over, Han Li relaxed and happily said, “Didn’t you also agree to having your memories sealed? How else could it have easily succeeded?”
“Although I’ve taken control, Long Meng’s soul is far stronger than mine. After only a short rest or when our soul next takes damage, she will regain control. And although she had discovered the sealed memories from before, she didn’t have the time to pry into them. Such a simple blocking measure is very easily broken. If Master truly wished for information on the small bottle to remain hidden, you would need to use a spirit sealing technique. In my current condition, you’ll only be able to seal a small amount of information. This way, it will still remain hidden even if something were to happen to either of us, or if I was no longer your artifact spirit.”
“Then it will be done,” the happiness slowly faded from Han Li’s face and he sullenly asked, “Speaking of which, if you reclaim your body, will you be truly returning to the spirit realm?”
“I must,” an odd expression glinted across Silvermoon’s face, “Long Meng can’t call for a reverse spirit stream by herself, as we are damaged and part of another. And it will only be after I return to the spirit realm that I will have an opportunity to free myself of the status of an artifact spirit.”
For a time, Han Li remained silent.
Silvermoon slowly said, “How about Master cast the technique first? We don’t have the time to deliberate. In a moment, I will use the Worldbreaker Talisman to open the passage to the ninth floor and I’ll use the blood blade to tangle with the devil. You should use this opportunity to activate the Heavencrystal Stele. So long as you can activate the suppressing spell formation, I can use my soul devouring ability to forcefully take back my body. Once I devour Yuan Cha’s soul fragment, the matter will be settled.”
“Alright, I’ll lay down a temporary spell formation just in case the others return.” Han Li nodded and flipped his hand, taking out a set of spell formation tools. He sent them into the ground in streaks of light, soon covering a third of the hall in a mist of azure light.
Silvermoon simply sat silently and watched him.
Han Li sat down across from her and looked at her flawless face. “I will begin. Be careful.”
With that said, Han Li formed an incantation gesture and specks of light emitted from his body as he chanted a rather cryptic incantation. A short moment later, flaring light emitted instead, completely enveloping the two.
After the time it took to finish a meal, the chanting stopped, Silvermoon sighed, and the light disappeared.
She pressed her hand against her forehead, betraying a trace of pain from her face.
“Are you alright?” Han Li worriedly asked.
Silvermoon’s face returned to normal and she sweetly smiled at him, “I’m fine. The technique succeeded. Even if she regains control, she will not be able to recover the sealed memories. Let’s go, we have no time to lose. Long Meng could wake up at any second.”
Her original heartstopping beauty had made a complete return.
Han Li stared at Silvermoon and hesitantly nodded after making certain that she was fine.
The two then stood up and Silvermoon waved her hand, releasing a yellow talisman towards the hall’s wall.
As a result, a yellow eruption of light flashed, and the wall to the ninth floor’s spatial pocket ripped open.