Chapter 1697: Running Far and Wide

The youth in yellow explained that the Dream-Returning Ant’s greatest strength lay in its Sea of Consciousness. Therefore, its soul-core could be refined into a pill capable of purifying a corrupted mind. However, Dream-Returning Ants were exceptionally rare in the Immortal Spirit Realm. Furthermore, one would need at least a 5th-rank core to affect the Sea of Consciousness of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

After his initial shock, Li Yan remained silent. He knew exactly where to find Dream-Returning Ants, but that place had long since been transformed into the “Earth-True Domain.” Finding a living one there, let alone its core, was a fantasy. Nevertheless, it was a lead, and he filed the information away.

Though the medical expert had failed to cure Bai Rou, his visit confirmed to Wei Zhongran and the others that Li Yan’s plan was sound: the Hazy Moon Purity was indeed a viable path to her recovery.

A few mornings later, under the watchful eyes of Zhao Min and Gong Chenying, Li Yan offered a light wave of his hand.

“Based on the clues left by that senior, I will find the Hazy Moon Purity as quickly as possible. Once I wake Senior Sister Bai, I will return. Now that everything else is settled, you must focus on your cultivation. Strive to reach Spirit Transformation as soon as you can!”

The two women, their faces radiant, nodded to him. The tender words Li Yan had shared with them over the past few days still made their cheeks burn with heat.

Li Yan had left behind a significant hoard of resources for everyone except Mo Qing. He gave a portion of pills and spirit stones to Zi Kun and Wei Zhongran. These were mostly high-grade stones, with a few supreme-grade ones mixed in for emergencies. Although Li Yan would be with Dong Fuyi, he knew he might need supreme-grade stones at any moment while abroad. His net worth was superior to most Spirit Transformation cultivators, but he was far from “wealthy” by upper-realm standards.

Zi Kun cultivated innate divine abilities. Giving him complex manuals would only slow him down, so Li Yan instructed him to focus purely on his bloodline talents.

Wei Zhongran did not refuse the pills, though he declined the spirit stones, knowing Li Yan would need them more while traveling. When he saw that some of the pills were designed to strengthen and repair the soul, Wei Zhongran deemed them essential. He worried about Li Yan going out alone, but his own master was only at the same level as Li Yan. Having just arrived in the realm, he couldn’t very well beg his master to find another protector for Li Yan. Still, he trusted his disciple. Li Yan had survived alone for centuries in this realm; his survival instincts far surpassed Wei Zhongran’s own.

Most of the pills Li Yan provided had been purchased at the Moji Daoist Sect—all high-quality items. A smaller portion had been gifted by Master Lan. While they weren’t as heaven-defying as the Soul-Returning Pill, they were effective for soul nourishment. For a cultivator, the soul and divine sense were the hardest things to train; even a minor boost was considered precious beyond measure. Li Yan was never stingy with his own.

Finally, he gave Zhao Min and Gong Chenying a set of basic soul cultivation manuals. This was not the Sacred Soul Transformation; he would wait until his relationship with the Soul Suppression Palace was fully clarified before making that decision. Regardless, soul cultivation had to start from the basics. These techniques, including the ones Mu Guyue practiced, were considered ordinary within the Earth-True Domain, but for these outsiders, they would provide terrifyingly potent results.

When the two women looked over the manuals, waves of shock crashed through their hearts. Soul cultivation was the stuff of legends—mysterious and overwhelmingly powerful. They finally understood another reason for Li Yan’s incredible strength. Had they known that these “ordinary” manuals were nothing compared to the top-tier techniques in Li Yan’s possession, they would have been even more stunned.

Li Yan instructed them to give a portion of the resources to Li Zhaoyan. Depending on her progress, they could teach her some soul arts, provided it didn’t interfere with her primary cultivation. He knew his daughter well; though her temperament had improved, she was still prone to being easily influenced by external distractions. Teaching her too much too soon would be counterproductive. In cultivation, it was often better to master one skill to perfection than to be a jack-of-all-trades.

Though shocked by his gifts, Zhao Min and Gong Chenying intended to study them only after making progress in their primary realms. Reaching Late-stage Nascent Soul and then Spirit Transformation was their most urgent priority. Their inability to assist Li Yan was the knot currently tied in their hearts.

Li Yan knew he would likely be away for decades. He understood their personalities; since childhood, they had both been driven by their own goals, moving forward with singular focus. He didn’t need to worry about their planning. He trusted that these manuals would only make them stronger, not distract them from their path.

As he flew a short distance away, Li Yan paused. A voice transmission drifted into their ears.

“Those Great Void Fruits… were a gift from Mu Guyue!”

With that, he sped toward the mountain gate, leaving the two women staring after him in surprise. After a long silence, they looked at each other.

“By the way… he still has to descend to collect Mu Guyue, doesn’t he?” Gong Chenying said softly. They never mentioned the demoness in his presence, but they weren’t blind to his intentions.

In the lower realm, they had agreed that Mu Sha could enter the family, but they had never asked Li Yan how he planned to handle the final logistics. When Li Yan spoke of finding the herb, they hadn’t called him out on his secondary objective: he was almost certainly going to fetch that mother and son.

A moment later, Zhao Min’s voice—like clinking ice—rang out. “We must reach Spirit Transformation quickly. I want the chance to meet this Mu Guyue… and Mu Sha.”

After leaving the sect, Li Yan sped toward a prearranged market town. Once he found Dong Fuyi, they departed immediately. Dong Fuyi let out a long sigh of relief upon seeing that Li Yan was no longer surrounded by his large entourage.

That group of elders and youngsters had looked at him like a greedy thief, yet he’d had to swallow his pride, pay their fees, and act as their bodyguard. Settling his mind, he looked at the sheepish Li Yan and spoke.

“I will take you to the inter-realm array at maximum speed. Once we reach the Jiyou Realm, we will find the Black Demon territory. I want to get as close as possible before releasing the other two. Let’s get this over with quickly.”

Before Li Yan could respond, Dong Fuyi swept him up. With a casual tear of the void, they entered the spatial turbulence…