Mortal: Supreme Being of the Ghost Path

Meanwhile, Qin Han and Ling Yuling landed side by side on the stone platform in front of Tianxing City. The latter briefly explained the situation to a yellow-faced cultivator in charge of patrol and guard, gave a few more instructions, and then left to heal her injuries.

Before leaving, she handed Qin Han a communication jade slip and said, "If you encounter any trouble in the city, you can use this to contact me."

Qin Han accepted the jade slip, nodded slightly, and watched her white light disappear into the city.

What followed was rather complicated.

The guards of the Star Palace took Qin Han to verify his identity. Upon hearing that he was an outsider cultivator, the guards immediately became wary, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

However, when Qin Han casually recounted his feat of killing two Reverse Star Alliance cultivators, the guards' attitude softened considerably.

After all, those who can kill members of the Reverse Star Alliance are at least not their enemies.

Immediately afterwards, Qin Han was told by an elderly cultivator at the Core Formation stage: "Fellow Daoist, you now have two choices. First, temporarily join our Star Palace and assist in fighting the enemy. In this way, you can still move freely within the city without too many restrictions. After each mission, the Star Palace will give you generous rewards, and will never let you work for nothing."

He paused, and seeing that Qin Han's expression remained unchanged, he continued, "Secondly, if you don't want to participate in the war and just want to stay quietly in the city, that's fine too. The Star Palace won't force you. However, during the citywide martial law period, you may not leave your residence at will except during designated time periods. Violators will be executed without exception by the Star Palace enforcement team."

Qin Han sneered inwardly after hearing this, but remained outwardly calm.

After a brief moment of thought, he chose the first option.

The old cultivator nodded and took out a gleaming yellow ring, handing it to him: "With this ring as proof, you are temporarily considered a member of my Star Palace. When the great war begins, you can use this ring to perform missions or register for battle. You will have a short period of free time each day, and the rest of the time the entire city will be under martial law. The ring will automatically transmit information when the great war begins; until then, you can wait patiently in your cave."

Qin Han took the ring, casually put it on his finger, and followed a guard into the city.

"Join the war?"

Walking on the deserted streets of Tianxing City, Qin Han sneered inwardly.

"Are you out of your mind? Why should I risk my life for you?"

He certainly wouldn't actually risk his life for the Star Palace.

From beginning to end, he had only one goal: to escape the inner sea by taking the teleportation array.

In the original story, Han Li was able to escape by bribing the Star Palace cultivators who were guarding the teleportation array.

Now he's doing the same thing. As long as he finds that greedy guard and uses spirit stones and treasures to smooth things over, he can leave without anyone noticing.

As for how the Star Palace and the Reverse Star Alliance fight, what does it have to do with him?

Thinking this, Qin Han's gaze swept over the rows of shops and cave dwellings on both sides of the street, secretly planning his next steps.

The most urgent task at hand is to first find the "Holy Mountain" from the original story, and then go to the "Star Palace" to find out the location of the teleportation array and the background of the person guarding it.

……

Qin Han finally arrived at the foot of the so-called "holy mountain".

We are currently on the third floor.

As Qin Han was pondering a more detailed countermeasure while flying towards the top of the Holy Mountain, his divine sense suddenly detected a very faint conversation.

Upon hearing this, Qin Han suddenly realized something and quickly inquired more closely.

"Brother Yi, Fellow Daoist Huang just brought back a message: they actually want five thousand spirit stones per person before they'll let us wait until we reach the Outer Star Sea..."

Could it be...? Qin Han suddenly realized something, and a look of joy flashed in his eyes.

In the original story, weren't there several people who were supposed to be teleported to the outer sea? It was through those people, with coercion, enticement, and even a magical treasure as a bribe, that Han Li was able to leave the inner sea.

This is truly a case of finding something you've been searching for everywhere without even looking for it, only to have it come to you effortlessly!

I actually ran into these people myself!

With this in mind, Qin Han immediately had an idea. He then concealed himself and headed straight for the direction from which the sound came...

……

Three days later, inside the Star Palace.

Several Foundation Establishment cultivators were standing in front of the teleportation array, talking with two Core Formation cultivators who were on guard.

The leader was a thin man with a dark complexion, about forty years old, who was smiling and talking to the two guards.

Just then, a voice that sounded like a half-smile suddenly came from the direction of the palace gate.

"I am a rogue cultivator, and I also wish to be teleported to the outer sea. I hope you two fellow cultivators can make an exception for me."

Qin Han slowly revealed himself, his cold eyes sweeping over the people in the hall, his expression calm as still water.

Of the two guards, a bald old man frowned, looked Qin Han up and down a few times, and spoke in an unfriendly tone.

"Fellow Daoist, where are you eavesdropping?"

"I overheard it by chance." Qin Han walked up unhurriedly, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "I do have important business to attend to at the outer sea, and I hope you two fellow Daoists will be accommodating. I am willing to repay you with generous rewards and will not let you two work for nothing."

The bald old man snorted coldly and waved his hand.

"The teleportation array can only accommodate seven people at a time, and it's already full. You want me to open another one for you? Absolutely not. Otherwise, if the higher-ups find out..."

Before he could finish speaking, Qin Han interrupted him with a smile.

"This is simple."

Before he finished speaking, Qin Han's expression suddenly turned cold. Without hesitation, he raised his hand, and black mist surged in his palm, unleashing a terrifying suction force!

The gaunt man in the lead didn't even have time to scream before he was pulled away by that force from a distance. A strange black aura wrapped around his neck, gripping him tightly and lifting him up in mid-air.

"Uh...ah..."

The gaunt man desperately tried to grab the black aura around his neck, but he couldn't grasp anything. His face turned from red to purple at a visible speed, and his legs kicked haphazardly in the air.

The other Foundation Establishment cultivators in the hall turned pale with fright and retreated. Some even collapsed to the ground due to their weak legs.

The bald old man's expression changed drastically. He abruptly stood up, his hands flashing with spiritual light, and shouted sharply, "Fellow Daoist, what is the meaning of this?! To make a move in the Starry Sky Hall, are you not afraid—"

Qin Han didn't even glance at him, his gaze fixed on the thin man in his hand. His lips moved slightly, but he transmitted his voice:

"Fellow Daoist, how about giving up your spot to me?"

The thin man stared wide-eyed, making a "hoarse" sound in his throat, but couldn't utter a word.

Qin Han continued to transmit his voice at a leisurely pace, his tone as calm as if he were talking about a trivial matter:

"Otherwise, if I were in a bad mood and exposed your practice of collecting spirit stones at a higher price, what do you think the consequences would be?"

The thin man's pupils suddenly contracted, and an undisguised look of horror appeared on his face.

However, Qin Han continued, "If you would like to give me your spot, I will be willing to reward you handsomely and will not let you suffer any loss."

He paused, his tone suddenly turning cold.

"But if I cannot teleport to the outer sea, I will likely become extremely agitated. If I accidentally kill you on the spot..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning couldn't be clearer.

The gaunt man trembled, his eyes filled with terror. He nodded frantically, making broken, gasping sounds.

"I...I'm willing...This junior is willing...Senior, please...release this junior..."

Qin Han chuckled softly and loosened his grip.

As the black mist dissipated, the gaunt man collapsed to the ground with a thud, clutching his neck and coughing violently, gasping for breath, his face as pale as paper.

Qin Han's gaze swept over everyone in the hall, finally settling on the bald old man and his companion, and he said calmly:

"Now that there's a spot available, I'll fill it. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"