Published: September 8, 2025
Chapter 723: Two Polarity Rings
Han Li toyed with the Jade Slip in his hand with one hand, pondering thoughtfully for a moment. Then, a flash of azure light flickered, and the Jade Slip vanished without a trace. After identifying the direction, he strode away from this place.
Passing through more than half of Tian Tian City, Han Li arrived at a more secluded corner of the huge city, stopping in front of an apparently ordinary grocery shop.
Hanging on the shop’s door was a black wooden sign, on which the characters "Jade Harmony Pavilion" were written in a lively, flowing script.
Han Li glanced at it a few times, then slowly walked inside.
It wasn’t large—just a small hall about six or seven zhang in size. Most of the goods sold were ordinary items like talismans and materials. On one side was a small, discreet side door leading directly to the back room.
Facing the main entrance sat a middle-aged man in a gray robe behind the counter, looking over a small ledger book as if checking accounts.
Han Li swept his spiritual awareness over the man and immediately saw that his cultivation base was very low—only at the qi refining stage. This shopkeeper’s appearance was plain and unremarkable, someone who would definitely not draw attention in a crowd.
The middle-aged shopkeeper immediately put on a broad smile and stood as soon as Han Li entered, hurriedly coming forward to greet him.
“Senior, what would you like to see? Our shop has everything you could possibly need. We will definitely satisfy your requirements,” the man said, uttering the usual words every shopkeeper would.
Han Li smiled faintly. With a flip of his palm, the green Jade Slip appeared in his hand, and he directly handed it to the middle-aged man.
Upon seeing the Jade Slip, the shopkeeper’s expression changed slightly. He quickly took back the Jade Slip respectfully and asked, “May I ask your honorable surname, senior?”
“Han,” Han Li replied casually.
“So it really is Senior Han! The founder once said you would come, but I didn’t expect it to be so soon. Senior Han, please follow me,” the middle-aged shopkeeper said respectfully, stepping aside to invite Han Li through the side door leading to the back room.
Han Li nodded and silently followed him inside.
To his surprise, inside was more like a warehouse, filled with various boxes and cabinets arranged all around, blocking the walls tightly.
The middle-aged cultivator took a few steps forward to a wooden cabinet. He lightly pressed on one corner, and two adjacent cabinets slowly separated, revealing a bare wall behind.
“Because we feared setting up formations that might be sensed by the occasional visitors, the surface mechanisms are all made using secular methods,” the shopkeeper explained as he moved forward.
Han Li listened calmly, feeling nothing unusual.
The middle-aged man stepped on a green stone in front of the wall. After a muffled creak, the wall slowly moved aside, revealing a gloomy descending passage.
“I am not qualified to enter inside, so you will have to go down yourself,” the shopkeeper said with a forced smile, stepping aside.
Han Li furrowed his brow and swept his spiritual awareness inside. There were faint spiritual energy fluctuations, very weak. When he probed deeper, a layer of formation blocked him. But with Han Li’s formation expertise, he instantly recognized it as a simple spiritual perception concealment barrier.
Although he could forcibly break through it, whoever was inside would definitely sense it.
Han Li hesitated for a moment.
Though he trusted that the old man from the Heavenly Pole Sect wouldn’t be foolish enough to make moves right under the noses of people in Tian Tian City, he did not want to blindly rush into an unknown sealed place without knowing whether the person he was meeting was friend or foe.
Just as Han Li was hesitating, someone inside seemed to guess his doubts. In an instant, the barrier blocking Han Li’s spiritual awareness was removed.
Han Li’s heart stirred, realizing the other party had done so to gain his trust.