A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Immortal Realm

Chapter 847: No Return

"No need for formalities, Elder Xu," Shi Chuankong said.

"What brings you here today, Your Highness?" Xu Fu asked with a puzzled expression as he took a glance at Han Li.

"We have some matters to attend to here today," Shi Chuankong replied.

"In that case, please come in, and we'll talk inside," Xu Fu said as he stepped to the side before making an inviting hand gesture.

Shi Chuankong and Han Li exchanged a glance with each other, then entered the hall together.

Upon learning that Han Li and Shi Chuankong intended to enter the Scalptia Spatial Domain, Xu Fu immediately attempted to dissuade them in an alarmed manner.

In response, Shi Chuankong pulled out an handwritten edict prepared by Shi Pokong, claiming that the two of them were carrying out an urgent mission that required them to enter the Scalptia Spatial Domain right away.

"Your Highness, the Scalptia Spatial Domain has already been sealed for many years, and no one knows what things are like in there right now. As for the teleportation array that you mentioned, that hasn't been used for a very long time," Xu Fu said with tightly furrowed brows.

"The Balance Fall Duke has already made arrangements for us, so you can rest assured, Elder Xu," Shi Chuankong replied with a dismissive wave.

"In that case, I won't try to dissuade you any further. Please come with me," Xu Fu said, then led Han Li and Shi Chuankong to the rear hall.

There was a backdoor in the rear hall that led to the sand hills outside, and it clearly served at the entrance to the spatial restriction.

"Once you go in there, just step onto the sand hills, and you'll automatically sink into the Scalptia Spatial Domain. Do keep in mind that this is a one-way entrance, so you can't exit from it," Xu Fu cautioned in a solemn manner.

"We'll be sure to remember that," Han Li replied.

Xu Fu flipped a hand over to summon a black seal, which he pressed into a slot above the door frame, following which the restriction on the back door was opened at his behest.

"I wish you a safe and smooth journey, Your Highness," Xu Fu said.

"Thank you for the well wishes," Shi Chuankong replied with a smile.

After emerging from the hall, the two of them quickly made their way to the edge of the first hill before stopping in their tracks.

Han Li examined the hill briefly, but wasn't able to detect anything abnormal from it. It wasn't giving off any spatial fluctuations, and it looked no different from a normal hill.

Shi Chuankong flipped a hand over to produce a long black saber, which he strapped to his waist, and in response to Han Li's inquisitive gaze, he explained, "Seeing as we can't use any treasures, surely carrying a weapon will be better than going in empty-handed."

Han Li offered no response as he swept a sleeve through the air to conjure up a door of silver light, from within which Daoist Xie emerged.

Shi Pokong had told them that storage tools couldn't be accessed, and even though he hadn't made any mention of domain treasures, Han Li still decided that it would be best to release Daoist Xie in advance as a safety precaution.

Shi Chuankong took a glance at the two sabers strapped to Daoist Xie's waist, and he was very pleased to see that someone had the same idea as him.

After some contemplation, Han Li didn't summon any of his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords. Instead, he placed all of his storage tools into his domain treasure, and all that remained was the ring of time on his ring finger.

With their preparations complete, the trio exchanged a glance with each other before jumping onto the hill in unison.

As soon as the three of them landed on the hill, a burst of hazy silver light instantly emerged to sweep up the trio, following which they slowly sank downward before vanishing out of sight.

"How strange. No one has even come near this place for so many years, yet recently..."

Xu Fu's voice trailed off there as he watched the trio vanish with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Forget it, who am I to be worrying myself with the affairs of the nobility?"

With that, he closed the restriction, then turned and made his way back to the front of the hall.

……

Inside the Scalptia Spatial Domain was a deserted island with plumes of smoke rising up everywhere.

A giant lizard and a massive centipede were rushing at each other from two opposing ends of the island before crashing into each other with tremendous force.

The force of the clash immediately sent both of them flying backward, and the resulting shockwaves scattered all of the surrounding smoke.

Both the lizard and the centipede were sent tumbling over the ground, but as soon as they steadied themselves, their eyes immediately met once again, and they were clearly preparing for a second clash.

Right at this moment, the sound of blowing wind suddenly rang out from the ground right in between the two giant beasts, and a geyser of sand rose up from the ground, following which Han Li's trio emerged.

The sand around the trio quickly dissipated, and the three of them were immediately struck by a sense of tremendous spatial pressure that was coming from all directions.

Han Li could feel his own internal organs being compressed by some type of external force, and his limbs were also feeling quite heavy, but not enough to impact his movement.

The most jarring change of all was that his immortal spiritual power circulation had instantly drawn to a grinding halt.

However, before they even had a chance to examine their surroundings, the ground beneath them suddenly began to tremble violently as the two giant beasts came charging straight at them.

"Look out!" Han Li yelled, and he swept a sleeve through the air, but nothing happened.

Only then did he recall that it was impossible to use any treasures, law powers, or spirit domains in the Scalptia Spatial Domain.

Despite this slight hiccup, he adapted very quickly, and all of his profound acupoints lit up as he threw a fist at the oncoming giant lizard.

At the same time, Shi Chuankong gripped onto his black saber with both hands, then launched himself up into the air before swinging the saber down upon the black centipede.

A resounding boom rang out as Han Li's fist struck the lizard's forehead, causing its head to cave in slightly, and it was sent flying back through the air before tumbling end over end along the ground.

As for Han Li himself, he was also knocked by several steps from the force of the clash before steadying himself.

He was quite surprised by this as the giant lizard didn't appear to be all that different from the ones that he had seen in the Immortal Realm, but it possessed far superior power and physical prowess to any similar creature that he had encountered before.

In the face of a punch thrown by Han Li after activating his Great Universe Origin Arts, a normal giant lizard would've had its head completely smashed open, yet this one remained largely unharmed, and that was nothing short of incredible.

At the same time, a sharp clang rang out as Shi Chuankong's saber struck the giant centipede on the head, then slid all the way down its body, leaving a bright trail of sparks in its wake, but the saber only left a mark on its body and couldn't even slice through its scales.

"Pokong was telling us that the creatures in here are all vastly different from those in the outside world, I can see now that he wasn't kidding," Shi Chuankong grumbled.

"The spatial pressure in here is at least twice as potent as it is in the outside world, so the creatures in here would've had to adapt, thereby making them physically stronger than their counterparts in the outside world," Han Li said in a grim voice.

As soon as his voice trailed off, the giant lizard was already charging at him once again.

Han Li clenched his right fist tightly, then launched himself toward the oncoming giant lizard, creating a deep crater each time his foot landed on the ground.

The distance between the two was rapidly shrinking, and right as they were about to clash, Han Li suddenly sprang up into the air before hurtling directly toward the giant lizard like a flying spear.

At the same time, he unclenched his fist and extended his fingers so that his hand resembled a flat blade, and he plunged it down toward the lizard's head.

The two fingers formed by the Flower Branch domain were flashing with a jade-like glow, and they struck the exact spot on the lizard's head where Han Li's fist had struck just a moment ago.

A huge geyser of yellowish-brown blood erupted forth as Han Li's hand pierced into the giant lizard's head, and his momentum propelled him forward until his entire arm was embedded inside.

The lizard let loose an agonized roar before collapsing to the ground.

Han Li's brows furrowed slightly at the pungent odor of blood in the air, and he was just about to withdraw his arm when he felt something inside the giant lizard's head.

After some digging, he withdrew his hand with a palm-sized fleshy object held in his grasp, inside of which was a longan-sized yellowish-brown crystal that appeared to be the lizard's beast core.

On the other side, Shi Chuankong was keeping the giant centipede occupied, while Daoist Xie seized an opportunity to rush into its mouth, then slashed Thunderslash and Heavenslash through the air in unison to slice it apart from within its oral cavity.

Han Li then strode over and took one of Daoist Xie's sabers before forcing it into a gap between two of the scales on the centipede's head, then forcibly pried off one of the scales.

After exposing the flesh of the giant centipede, Han Li plunged the saber into its head, then dug around momentarily before pulling out another beast core.