"Still have more?" The old man was first taken aback, but immediately became even more delighted, beaming with joy.
Although he had no idea what materials Han Li would bring out next, good stuff always came at the end—that was just common sense. His gaze toward Han Li grew ever more eager!
Though Han Li harbored some doubts about this shop owner's refining skills, he couldn't find a more reliable refiner for the time being. With some hesitation, he laid out the materials from the Ink Flood Dragon on the table, one by one.
However, he had already made up his mind—if this old man couldn't even recognize the original forms of these materials, it would prove that his knowledge and craftsmanship were truly problematic! In that case, Han Li would simply have him refine the tough shells, and nothing more.
As for the good stuff from the Ink Flood Dragon, he would seek out a more skilled refiner elsewhere!
Having made this decision, Han Li naturally paid even closer attention to the old man's expressions and movements.
The result was that the old man was in the middle of raising a cup of clear tea to his lips for a sip when, upon seeing the pile of materials Han Li produced, he suddenly spat out the half-mouthful of tea he'd just taken, spraying it all over the floor in front of him.
"Dragon skin... and the sharp horn, fangs—this is the eye! Heavens, did this senior single-handedly slay a Flood Dragon?!" The white-haired shop owner was so shocked he lost all composure, staring at the items before him with disbelief, muttering incessantly.
No wonder the old man was so astonished! Not to mention that Flood Dragons, as heavenly demonic beasts, had long vanished from the surrounding cultivation world. Even if one existed, a two-stage evolved Flood Dragon like this would be comparable to a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Except for Core Formation cultivators, ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators could never be its match! And if many cultivators had attacked together... the pile of Flood Dragon materials in front of him was rather too complete, wasn't it? It was practically an entire Flood Dragon dismembered and carried over in one piece.
Did he take the whole thing for himself, not letting the others have a single shred? Or did this person possess some extraordinary ability to deal with the dragon all on his own?
The old man excitedly touched and squeezed the materials this way and that, while letting his imagination run wild.
Only now did he truly develop a sense of awe toward Han Li!
The shop owner had recognized these things at a glance, which somewhat exceeded Han Li's expectations. He had originally thought that even if the man could identify them, it would take considerable effort. The fact that he had appraised the materials so easily actually gave Han Li a bit more confidence.
"Shopkeeper Xu, you recognized them so quickly. I'm somewhat relieved now. Then please get to work, Master Xu!" After a moment of contemplation, Han Li said politely.
"Yes! Yes! Senior, please rest assured—when I was learning my craft, I once refined Flood Dragon materials together with my father. The chances of success are absolutely excellent!" The old man nodded repeatedly, still clutching a sharp claw from the Ink Flood Dragon, unwilling to let go even now!
Seeing this scene, Han Li found it somewhat amusing.
But he also understood that this old man was likely the type who was obsessed with refining. Otherwise, no matter how fine the materials, he wouldn't lose his composure like this. But this actually put Han Li more at ease—it suggested that this man's refining skill was probably quite good.
And so, the old man gathered the materials and led Han Li into the back courtyard!
...
Half a month later, Han Li finally walked out of the shop. He glanced back, then departed with a faint smile on his face.
The moment he left the market district's no-fly zone, Han Li raised his hand, and a delicate, exquisite white little boat darted out from his sleeve, hovering a few feet in front of him, swaying gently.
Han Li gazed at it fondly, then flicked his finger. A green spell seal struck the boat, and it slowly expanded until it became a real dugout canoe large enough for several people. Han Li and the boat vanished from their original spot and reappeared in the air, dozens of zhang high!
"This Divine Wind Vessel, refined from the Ink Flood Dragon's fins and tail, really is a remarkable flight treasure. Though it's far from matching the Moon Veil Sect's Celestial Moon Divine Ship in carrying capacity, and has no defensive ability whatsoever, in terms of pure speed alone, it should be an exceedingly rare flight treasure. Now I never have to use that leaf-shaped treasure that crawls along like a tortoise again!" Han Li stood at the bow of the boat, murmuring softly to himself, a trace of satisfaction on his face.
Han Li suddenly channeled spiritual power from his feet into the hull of the boat. The Divine Wind Vessel immediately blazed with white light, transforming into a streak of white radiance that shot forward. Its speed was enough to leave any ordinary cultivator dumbstruck!
Han Li sat at the bow, gently closing his eyes, savoring the sensation of unprecedented speed.
By his estimation, even flying at half speed aboard the Divine Wind Vessel, it would take no more than a little over an hour to return to his cave dwelling. Then he planned to set up the Inverted Five Elements Formation, now significantly weakened in power. That way, he could cultivate in peace with complete security!
Just as Han Li was thinking this, he suddenly sensed a powerful surge of spiritual energy hurtling upward from the ground below, straight toward his Divine Wind Vessel! Though he couldn't tell what it was, the sheer volume of spiritual power he felt was terrifying—if it hit the boat, it would surely result in the vessel's destruction and his death!
Han Li was both alarmed and furious, and snapped his eyes open! At once, the boat beneath him doubled its speed, darting dozens of zhang away to another spot in the blink of an eye.
Simultaneously, a massive yellow beam of light pierced straight through the area where Han Li had just been, shooting far into the distance without scattering. Han Li's expression turned grim.
"Could someone have known I would pass through here and set an ambush in advance?" Enraged and startled, Han Li couldn't help but think this. Immediately, he pulled out two green-red dual-colored spheres from his person and lightly tapped them together.
"Boom"—a muffled sound.
Instantly, a thick cloud of green-red smoke billowed from both spheres, rapidly engulfing Han Li and continuing to expand. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a massive green-red cloud more than ten zhang in diameter, completely concealing Han Li's figure within the mist.
With the protection of this green-red cloud, Han Li finally relaxed slightly, looking down at the ground with a calm and collected gaze!
When he clearly saw what was happening on the ground, Han Li's jaw dropped wide open, unable to close for a long while. Because on the ground below, a massive brawl was taking place!
Four or five Foundation Establishment cultivators, clearly on the losing side, were fighting against nearly a hundred enemies that had surrounded them in a tight ring. And these opponents—all expressionless, deathly still—were nothing but mechanism beasts like puppet tigers and leopards. Mixed among them were also some humanoid puppet archers, similar to the puppet archer in Han Li's possession.
Though these puppets each moved slowly and seemed easy to deal with, whenever one was struck down or destroyed by the cultivators' magic treasures, several fresh puppets would emerge from the surrounding woods to take its place, keeping the attacking number constant.
And their attacks were also quite fierce!
The mechanism beasts only needed to open their gaping mouths occasionally to unleash thick beams of light as wide as a bowl—identical to the one that had nearly hit Han Li. The only difference was that their beams came in various colors, representing different elemental attributes.
Han Li had been caught in their crossfire!
As for those humanoid puppets, they were even more formidable! There were bowman puppets just like Han Li's puppet archer, firing streams of five-colored light arrows as thick as fingers from the longbows in their hands. Though the power of each arrow wasn't as devastating as the mechanism beasts' light beams, they compensated by being relentless and never-ending.
If the cultivators hadn't collectively supported a massive protective barrier, they would have long since perished under the bombardment of light beams and arrows.
But what troubled them most were the close-combat puppet warriors wielding swords, spears, and other weapons. Not only were these puppets clad in heavy armor, but the blades in their hands gleamed brilliantly—they were genuine low-to-mid-tier magic treasures.
Though there were only a dozen or so of them, once they surrounded the barrier and began chopping and stabbing ceaselessly, the protective barrier trembled violently, its light flickering uncertainly! If two cultivators hadn't constantly pressed their hands against it to replenish spiritual power at all times, it would have been shattered countless times over.
This wasn't because the cultivators truly had no way of dealing with these puppets!
They were Foundation Establishment cultivators after all, possessing both substantial spiritual power and magic treasures of impressive might. In just this brief period, they had already rendered thirty or forty puppets immobile.
But no matter how powerful their magic treasures were, the puppets emerging from the forest seemed absolutely inexhaustible, pouring forth endlessly and waging a war of attrition against them. The longer this went on, the more despairing these cultivators became!
And Han Li, hiding within the green-red cloud high above, was equally dumbfounded! It seemed that for the time being, no one had discovered his presence. That stray beam really had just been collateral damage!
Finally, one cultivator could hold out no longer. He suddenly layered several defensive spells upon himself and, wielding a banner-shaped defensive treasure, broke away from the main protective barrier and flew outward, apparently attempting to flee the area!
The other cultivators saw this and couldn't help but erupt in curses.
But the moment their profanities left their lips, an enormous beam of light—over a zhang in diameter—suddenly shot out from the forest. In a flash, it struck the cultivator in midair, and the man didn't even have time to grunt before he was transformed into a ball of fire and tumbled to the dusty ground, his fate unknown.