Chapter 1215

The three skulls were even worse off.

When the black mist they spewed out touched the five-colored flames, it similarly slowed down, and was immediately swept away by the rolling flames.

Seeing the five-colored flames gradually approaching, the three skull heads, though still spewing black mist from their mouths, finally showed a hint of fear, and their wailing cries grew louder.

Witnessing this scene, the Five Children Heart Devil let out a sinister, strange laugh, then suddenly halted the cold flames in their mouths, and their bodies transformed into five streams of grayish-white qi that shot into the sea of fire.

The next moment, when the five-colored flames pressed to the top of the bone banner and reached the three skull heads at close range, the five streams of grayish-white qi flashed out from the fire sea and instantly transformed into five ferocious ghost heads.

They seemed extremely excited, their fangs grinding wildly, and without using any divine abilities, they lunged forward.

A loud "Gaba!" sound rang out!

The five ghost heads ferociously opened their huge mouths and bit toward the three white bone skulls.

The three skull heads naturally refused to be devoured like this, and likewise opened their mouths wide to counter-bite the five devils.

In an instant, strange cries and furious roars echoed without cease, as the five ghost heads and three skull heads became locked in a biting frenzy.

Because they had spewed out too much black mist earlier, the three skull heads seemed to have insufficient vital energy, and being outnumbered three to five only made things worse.

In the blink of an eye, two of the three skulls were each seized by one side by four of the ghost heads, who began gnawing fiercely; the remaining one, under the threatening pressure of the last ghost head, could only muster a defensive effort.

Seeing this, Han Li gave a slight smile, revealing a hint of satisfaction.

At the same time, a faint sigh came from the small cauldron in his hand.

"What, Fellow Daoist Tianlan, do you have any advice regarding my five-colored cold flames?" Han Li's eyes flickered as he spoke.

"Advice is too strong a word! But your five-colored cold flames reminded me of several cultivation methods in the Spirit Realm that possess five elemental attributes. When these methods are employed, they also manifest five colors, somewhat similar to your cold flames. However, your cold flames are of extreme cold; if an uninformed opponent mistakes them for five-element techniques, they might suffer a significant loss."

A flash of green light appeared, and on the Xu Tian Ding, a red-lipped, white-toothed green-robed child materialized, barefoot with a pair of plump, white feet, standing on the cauldron lid, leisurely speaking while gazing toward the five devils in the distance.

"Five-element techniques?" Han Li was startled upon hearing this.

"Indeed. I discovered upon arriving in your mortal realm that your cultivation methods rarely involve cultivating multiple attributes; most are single-attribute. Hehe, if this continues, even if someone truly ascends to the Spirit Realm, they would have little hope of advancing to the Void Refinement stage." The child smiled, revealing a hint of mockery.

"What does Fellow Daoist Tianlan mean by this?" Han Li's heart jolted, and he pressed further.

"Nothing much. Bringing up Void Refinement with you now is somewhat premature. However, I can offer you a hint: the key to advancing to Void Refinement is the unification of the five elements. If you can advance to Spirit Transformation, you should immediately switch your primary cultivation method to one that cultivates multiple attributes; if that's truly impossible, at least cultivate a secondary method with special attributes like wind or thunder, which can barely suffice. This way, your chances of breaking through Void Refinement will improve considerably. Of course, such multi-attribute methods are naturally far harder to cultivate than ordinary ones, and magic power progresses much slower than with single-attribute methods. If you have no hope of breaking through Void Refinement, it's better to stick with single-attribute cultivation—this way, magic power grows faster, making it easier to endure the minor heavenly tribulation that occurs every three hundred years!" The child casually remarked.

Han Li stared, dumbfounded, and only after a long while did he ask in astonishment:

"Five elements unified? That's truly troublesome. My Qing Yuan Sword Technique is a single wood-attribute method. Cultivating wind or thunder attribute methods, I can understand that. After all, variant attributes originally arise from the fusion of multiple attributes. But cultivating any attribute's method—shouldn't one possess the corresponding spiritual root? Does that mean heavenly spiritual root cultivators in your Spirit Realm are actually mediocre? And what exactly is this minor heavenly tribulation? Do we humans in the Spirit Realm also face lightning tribulations like you demon cultivators?"

"Hehe, I never expected my casual remark to provoke so many questions from Fellow Daoist. Since that's the case, I'll gladly explain a couple of points." The child gave a half-smile as he spoke to Han Li.

"Heavenly spiritual roots are also rare in our Spirit Realm and certainly not mediocre; they are precisely what major sects and various powers strive to recruit as disciples. After all, single spiritual root cultivators only encounter the five-element unification issue upon reaching Void Refinement; before that, heavenly spiritual root cultivators are vastly superior to ordinary spiritual root cultivators. In our Spirit Realm, Void Refinement cultivators are also sect masters or regional overlords. And heavenly spiritual root cultivators, when they truly reach the breakthrough stage of Void Refinement, most will either cultivate dual methods or switch to multi-attribute methods. As for the spiritual root issue, it's easily resolved. In our Spirit Realm, someone long ago devised a secret technique using specially refined beast inner pellets to substitute for missing spiritual roots. This spiritual root is called 'Pellet Spiritual Root'; its effect is naturally inferior to true spiritual roots, but cultivating other attributes with it is still feasible. Of course, this 'Pellet Spiritual Root' only works for cultivators who already possess other attribute spiritual roots; ordinary mortals cannot refine Pellet Spiritual Roots. In fact, our Spirit Realm once had another kind called 'Vessel Spiritual Root,' where a magical artifact or treasure substitutes for spiritual root function. However, this method of refining artifacts into spiritual roots is not only excessively time-consuming, but once successful, it carries extreme danger. Hence, few in our Spirit Realm still use it. As for those innately possessing three, four, or even all five spiritual roots who break through to Void Refinement on their own, our Spirit Realm is so vast that such individuals certainly exist. But these people are all exceptionally determined—far beyond ordinary cultivators. Hehe! As for the so-called 'minor heavenly tribulation,' this is what every Nascent Soul and above cultivator in the Spirit Realm must undergo."

The child's voice paused, then continued:

"Lower-realm Nascent Soul and Spirit Transformation cultivators experience a heavenly tribulation every three hundred years, hence called the 'minor heavenly tribulation.' Mid-realm Void Refinement and Mahayana, as well as Great Vehicle cultivators, face tribulations every three thousand years, called the 'great heavenly tribulation.' As for those who cultivate to the final layer and undergo the tribulation to ascend to the True Immortal Realm, that is naturally the celestial tribulation! Of course, even for the same type of tribulation, each stage and even each individual experiences some differences. But generally speaking, even if your cultivation stagnates without progress, the next tribulation will be far more severe than the previous one. Thus, although the Spirit Realm abounds in spiritual energy and cultivation speed far surpasses your mortal realm, once a Nascent Soul is successfully formed, it becomes like sailing against the current—no advance means retreat. Many renowned cultivators perish in various heavenly tribulations each year, though the exact number is unknown. Fellow Daoist Han, do not think that reaching Void Refinement means you can henceforth rest easy. Although, theoretically, Void Refinement cultivators with sufficient heavenly and earthly spiritual energy have inexhaustible lifespans, in reality, no one has heard of a Void Refinement or above cultivator who truly achieves eternal ease. As long as one hasn't ascended to the Immortal Realm, dying in various great heavenly tribulations is merely a matter of time." Saying this, the child's expression darkened, and a deep sense of fear flickered in their eyes.

Han Li's expression also became solemn.

Though the other party said little, their words clearly indicated that the Spirit Realm is by no means a true paradise. However, upon hearing that Void Refinement cultivators have unlimited lifespans, Han Li couldn't help but feel great joy.

Although he had occasionally seen in ancient texts claims that Void Refinement cultivators seem to have inexhaustible lifespans, only after receiving definite information from the other party this time did he truly feel at ease.

According to the other party's tone, this infinite lifespan can only be truly realized in the Spirit Realm; otherwise, even if one advances to Void Refinement in the mortal realm, the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy cannot supply sufficient amounts, naturally resulting in a limited lifespan. Spirit Transformation cultivators can initially communicate with heavenly and earthly spiritual energy; surely upon reaching the Spirit Realm, their lifespan will certainly not be merely two thousand years. No wonder those Spirit Transformation old monsters painstakingly ponder methods to ascend to the Spirit Realm.

Regarding the other party's mention of heavenly tribulations, Han Li felt some wariness, but did not dwell on it deeply.

Such matters, to him, seem distant. They are not something he needs to worry about now.

After casually asking a few more questions about Pellet Spiritual Roots and Vessel Spiritual Roots, Han Li finally nodded and fell silent, though his eyes flickered—no one knew what he was thinking.

After a moment, Han Li played with the emerald-green bottle in his hand, lightly tapping the lid with a finger.

A flash of green light appeared, and the bottle overturned by itself, the lid popping open.

But for a moment, the space below was empty—nothing emerged from inside.

Han Li felt a jolt in his heart, about to take further action when suddenly a green light shot out from the bottle, flashing and seeming about to escape.

Although Han Li was somewhat caught off guard, he would not let it escape; he immediately let out a muffled grunt from his nose and fiercely grabbed at the void with his backhand.

A green large hand appeared out of thin air above the green light, reaching down to seize it.

The fleeing green light seemed already weakened to the point of exhaustion; although it strained to evade, its escape speed was not fast, and the large hand easily caught it.

In the flashing green light, it turned out to be a female cultivator at Nascent Soul stage with a blurred face!

Han Li couldn't help but rub his chin, a hint of surprise appearing on his face.

"Who are you, Fellow Daoist? How were you imprisoned in the bottle by the Six Paths?" Han Li stared at the female Nascent Soul cultivator and slowly spoke.

"Who are you, Fellow Daoist? And where is that old devil of the Six Paths?" This Nascent Soul, though firmly grasped by the large hand, showed no courtesy and immediately countered.

"Six Paths! If Fellow Daoist wishes to see him, I fear you'll be disappointed—I've already sent him on his way." Facing a mere Nascent Soul, Han Li gave a light smile, saw no need to expend mental effort, and directly replied.

"What, you killed that old devil? How is that possible? Eh, you are..." This Nascent Soul's body trembled, and an incredulous voice came from their mouth.

The text ends abruptly here.