Mortal: The Path to Immortality

At the same time, Han Li also painstakingly executed the heavily injured Blood Jade Spider.

Lu Nanzhu bent down and picked up the "Snow Soul Cone" that Xuan Le had dropped on the ground. It was icy cold to the touch, truly a fake talisman.

He then took the opportunity to collect Lü Tianmeng's "Flat Ruler" talisman, calmed his rapid breathing, and slowly walked back to Han Li.

Han Li stared at the spider's remains. The earthen-yellow light wheel talisman on its body had run out of uses and had now scattered into specks of light.

Seeing Lu Nanzhu approach, he put away the puppets and sighed, "This demonic beast is truly powerful. If Brother Lu hadn't used his talisman, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to withstand it."

"This monster is called the 'Blood Jade Spider,' quite famous in ancient texts, and often appears in pairs," Lu Nanzhu explained, while spreading his divine sense to repeatedly scan the silent stalactite cave. "I wonder where the other one is now; perhaps it's hiding in the shadows, waiting to ambush us?"

Upon hearing this, Han Li immediately became wary. The two stood back to back, simultaneously extending their divine senses to search for a long time. Apart from the occasional dripping sound of water from the cave ceiling, there was no other trace of anything else.

"It seems the other one most likely met with an accident and died at the hands of some cultivator." Lu Nanzhu withdrew his divine sense, his tone softening slightly.

After confirming there was no threat, the two began to assess the battlefield.

Lu Tianmeng and Xuan Le's storage bags were neatly divided, and the remnants on the spider's body, which were enough to forge top-grade magic weapons, were also taken into their own pockets.

Suddenly, Han Li discovered a nest wrapped in layers of spider silk in a hidden spot diagonally below the stone platform.

The two parted the thick outer layer of spider web, revealing dozens of large spider eggs.

Most of these eggs were shriveled and dull, lifeless, except for the two in the middle, which had a slightly moist appearance.

Han Li stepped forward, picked up the two spider eggs that still held some life, weighed them in his hand, and turned to look at Lu Nanzhu: "Brother Lu, you just witnessed the power of this Blood Jade Spider. If we can raise them, they will be an invaluable asset in battle. How about we each take one?"

"Brother Han, you don't know this," Lu Nanzhu said with a smile, waving his hand.

"Although this Blood Jade Spider is a rare species, it has a major drawback—it must be male or female to advance smoothly."

If we each take one, in the end we'll only end up with two stunted, underdeveloped offspring, wasting a lot of resources.

Han Li immediately withdrew his outstretched hand, feeling embarrassed. He looked at the two spider eggs in his hand, his eyes filled with reluctance.

He had experienced the ferocity of this monster firsthand in the previous battle, and he definitely wanted to raise it as a spirit pet.

As Lu Nanzhu looked at the two spider eggs, two voices in his mind were arguing incessantly, unable to be separated.

One of them said, "Hurry up! Seize this opportunity while the old demon is still weak."

This is a tremendous opportunity to obtain a heaven-reaching spiritual treasure!! If Heaven grants it and you don't seize it, you will suffer the consequences!

Don't be afraid of offending the old demon. At worst, while he's still relatively ignorant, you can trade him some other treasures!

Another voice immediately retorted:

"What's so good about this Blood Jade Spider? Its only advantage is its immunity to 'Dry Blue Ice Flame' and its ability to retrieve the 'Void Heaven Cauldron.' Besides that, what other use does it have?"

If we're talking about immunity to extreme cold, the newly bred 'Snow Beast' is the best of the best, so why would we need this 'Blood Jade Spider'?

Have you thought it through? When the time comes, will you be able to escape unscathed from the inner hall of the Void Heaven Palace, facing a bunch of Nascent Soul stage monsters?

If you ask me, the Blood Jade Spider should be raised by Old Demon Han. He should bear the risk; he has great fortune.

At worst, we can wait until the Void Heaven Palace opens before cooperating with him. If we are strong enough then to enter the inner palace, we can discuss the 'Void Heaven Cauldron' then.

The most urgent task is to get more supplies from him.

Just as Lu Nanzhu was frowning and wondering what to do, he suddenly noticed something moving in his storage bag.

He probed it with his divine sense, and the "little inkstone" emitted an unprecedented dark blue rhythm.

I initially thought the reaction was caused by the two spider eggs in Han Li's hand.

But when he crouched down and approached the remaining nest of dead eggs, "Little Inkstone" began to move even more violently.

He then realized that since this inkstone could revive and cultivate even withered Wind Spirit Sacred Fruits, these dead eggs with sparse vitality might also be excellent "breeding" materials.

After a moment's thought, he made a decision immediately.

"Brother Han, you should keep the spider eggs for yourself. I already have quite a few spirit beasts, and raising more would be too much for me in terms of time and resources," Lu Nanzhu said, looking at Han Li who was hesitating.

"Besides, I didn't come here for this item. It's for that ancient teleportation array."

Lu Nanzhu pointed to the array in the distance, then quietly put all the dead eggs into his storage bag and placed them together with the "small inkstone".

He stood up and led Han Li to the teleportation array, reaching out to stroke the stone pillar, his tone suddenly becoming heavy:

"Brother Han must be more aware of the current situation in Yue than I am. The six sects of the Demonic Path are determined to win, while the seven sects are only barely holding on by relying on the passes, and are ultimately at their last gasp."

"According to Junior Brother Lu, aren't the Seven Sects in grave danger right now?" Han Li frowned.

"That's not entirely true." Lu Nanzhu stared into Han Li's eyes. "As long as Nascent Soul cultivators don't perish, sects won't disappear. They'll just move to another place and establish a new sect."

However, while the sect is largely unharmed, the fate of us low-ranking disciples with average talent is uncertain. We'll likely either die in battle or become sacrificial pawns to cover the retreat.

Han Li remained silent, seemingly agreeing with the assessment.

"Junior brother, you must have made some arrangements after saying all this?" Han Li asked.

Lu Nanzhu pointed to the array beside him and said, "As the name suggests, this teleportation array was built by ancient cultivators. If I am not mistaken, this array can teleport cultivators to another land at the end of the boundless sea."

He raised his hand and cast a spell, taking a gleaming blue token from the arms of the five-colored skull leaning against the stone pillar, and continued,

"The ancient teleportation array is extremely powerful. Without the protection of a magical artifact, the immense spatial pressure during teleportation can crush a cultivator."

This "Great Teleportation Token" is a magical artifact that ensures cultivators can safely use formations.

He paused, then continued:

"To be honest, Brother Han, I also planned for a long time before finding this place. I suppose you are also planning to escape this dangerous place and cultivate in peace. If so, we can join forces to use this formation."

After hearing Lu Nanzhu's explanation, Han Li pondered for a moment and then asked, "What can I do?"

"Brother Han, you're very helpful! As you can see, to use this formation, both the formation diagram and the token are indispensable. I have the token now, and this formation diagram..." Lu Nanzhu quickly took out the jade slip and rapidly copied the formation patterns on the ground onto it.

After finishing his notes, he tossed the jade slip to Han Li and continued, "You now have the array diagram, but this array is still incomplete and needs to be repaired by an array master. The young lady Xin Ruyin from Yuanwu Kingdom was a good candidate."

Therefore, once we are both ready, we should meet here before we can use this formation. Neither of us can be separated. What do you think?

"I understand." Han Li steadily accepted the jade slip, and looked at Lu Nanzhu with a complicated expression, clearly not expecting the other party to have planned so far ahead.

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Nanzhu flicked a fireball from his fingertip, incinerating the five-colored skull. From the ashes, seven or eight shimmering, multicolored beads rolled to the ground.

Lu Nanzhu was already very tempted; this was the "Heaven-Mending Pill," which could refine spiritual roots. He activated his magic power and selected three pills: gold, green, and blue, leaving the rest for Han Li.

"What is this?" Han Li asked curiously, examining the remaining beads in his palm.

"This is a secret medicine left behind by an ancient cultivator. It won't burn when exposed to fire, so it must be extraordinary. Let's keep it for now; we'll find out how to use it later," Lu Nanzhu casually said, trying to cover it up.

The two nimbly looted all the valuables in the cave, then used an array and a boulder to conceal the cave entrance, before silently returning to the surface using an earth-遁符 (earth-遁符 is a type of talisman used in Chinese fantasy novels).

It was already late, and the cold wind on the wasteland made people feel much more awake.

"I still have to go to the mines in the northern border to fulfill my mission, and there can be no delay there." Lu Nanzhu cupped his hands to Han Li, his eyes full of meaning. "Brother Han, the matter of repairing the formation... the sooner the better, we don't have much time left."

"I understand, Junior Brother Lu, take care." Han Li also returned the greeting solemnly.

The two rode their magical artifacts separately and disappeared into the night.

As Lu Nanzhu felt the pile of dead eggs in his storage bag being gradually enveloped by dark blue light, a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips: He needed to find a place to use the "little inkstone" quickly.