This day, the scorching sun hung high in the sky.

On a desolate mountain sparsely populated with trees, gusts of wind howled incessantly, yet failed to disperse the faint mist that permeated the air.

Suddenly, a streak of green light flashed from the distance, shooting rapidly towards the mountain.

The green light faded, revealing a jade-green flying chariot that descended slowly from the sky.

Han Li leaped down from the chariot. After surveying his surroundings, he chose a large tree, its branches already withered, that would take two people to encircle, leaned against it, retrieved a pill from his hand, swallowed it, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

Jin Tong, astride the white jade Pixiu, followed closely behind, descending from the sky and arriving at his side.

Both, one large and one small, looked utterly exhausted. Even the Pixiu drooped its head, a picture of listlessness, and collapsed to the ground.

After a long while, Han Li finally exhaled a long breath of stale air, reopening his eyes. The fatigue on his face had lessened considerably, but a hint of worry still lingered deep within his gaze.

"Uncle, it's been more than half a year, and that fellow hasn't moved from the spot," Jin Tong said hesitantly after a moment.

"It seems the person who sent me the message is indeed extraordinary, capable of trapping a late-stage Taiyi realm spirit insect for so long. Even if its divine sense is inherently a weakness, it's still quite remarkable. The twenty years they spoke of is likely true," Han Li nodded, and said.

"Is this person really helping us, then?" Jin Tong blinked, asking.

"It's hard to say right now. After all, this is the Wildlands, and anything can happen," Han Li said noncommittally.

"That's right. This is the first time you've come to the Wildlands, Uncle. Even the Northern Cold Immortal Domain is rife with deceit and betrayal. I don't believe there are any good people in this Wildlands!" Jin Tong said, agreeing wholeheartedly.

"That's not quite right. Most of the true immortals in the various immortal domains are arrogant and pretentious, appearing serene and detached on the surface, but engaging in countless underhanded schemes behind the scenes. Although the Wildlands is also full of strife, its rights and wrongs, and grudges and gratitude, are much clearer," Xiaobai the Pixiu suddenly raised its head and said.

"Xiaobai, how dare you speak! Have you forgotten the ingratitude of those beast clans?" Jin Tong stretched out a hand and swatted down the Pixiu's newly raised head, saying angrily.

"Boss, you can't generalize like that. Those beast clans are just small clans on the edge of the Wildlands. The true Wildlands clans place great importance on the repayment of karma!" Xiaobai defended itself.

"Wildlands clans..." Hearing this, Han Li's eyes lit up slightly as he murmured to himself.

"Uncle, did you think of something?" Seeing this, Jin Tong ignored Xiaobai and hurriedly asked.

"That person can restrain a Gold Devouring Immortal for as long as twenty years and can directly transmit a message into my consciousness with a secret technique without me detecting it in the slightest. This shows their cultivation is high, at least in the late-stage Taiyi... or even the peak Taiyi or Grand Luo realm, perhaps. I don't recall ever meeting such a level of existence, but they might come from the Wildlands clans Xiaobai mentioned," Han Li shook his head and said.

"It doesn't really matter, as long as they're helping us. Who cares if they're a large or small Wildlands clan? If they could trap that Gold Devouring Immortal for two hundred years... no, two thousand years, that would be great!" Jin Tong said.

"Why two thousand years, and not trap it permanently?" Han Li was amused by Jin Tong's carefree manner and couldn't resist teasing him.

"With those two thousand years, I can eat and drink with Uncle everywhere and maybe become more powerful than that fellow. Then, I'll just wait for it to come to my door and let me swallow it, saving me the trouble of searching the world for it!" Jin Tong perked up at the mention of food.

"You haven't been swallowed by it, and you're already thinking about swallowing it in return?" Hearing this, Han Li suddenly felt speechless.

"Yeah! Although I don't know why, ever since I had memories, there's been an impulse in my heart, urging me to devour all the same species I can find. That feeling was especially strong when that fellow was chasing us," Jin Tong said seriously.

"Perhaps, that's the destiny of you Gold Devouring Insects," Han Li said thoughtfully.

Jin Tong didn't understand the meaning of Han Li's words and didn't think too deeply about it, continuing to ask, "So, Uncle, what should we do next? If it really doesn't work, should we listen to his advice and return to the Northern Cold Immortal Domain?"

"There's no way to return to the Northern Cold Immortal Domain. The Immortal Palace's wanted order must have been issued long ago. Returning is tantamount to throwing ourselves into a trap," Han Li said with a wry smile.

"Then, we continue forward?" Jin Tong nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly, and asked again.

"We were chased all over the place by your kind before, and now we can only confirm the general direction. We've deviated from all our original routes by who knows how many thousands of miles. With our current cultivation, if we continue to rush forward blindly like this, something will eventually happen. After all, the words of someone who can easily trap a late-stage Taiyi realm existence still need to be treated with caution," Han Li added.

"This won't work, that won't work. Don't tell me you want to find a place here to cultivate in seclusion, Uncle?" Jin Tong asked, startled.

"That's right," Han Li nodded and said.

As soon as he said this, Jin Tong and the Pixiu were both shocked.

"Cultivating in seclusion in this Wildlands? You're not joking, are you, Uncle? Besides, cultivation realms can't be improved in a short time," Jin Tong said worriedly.

"This is the only way... We've already arrived here, and we're now in a dilemma. Neither advancing nor retreating is feasible, so we might as well take a gamble and use these twenty years to improve our cultivation. Perhaps we can still find a chance of survival," Han Li said slowly, his gaze slightly focused.

"Alright. Since you said so, Uncle, I'm willing to believe you. You can cultivate in seclusion with peace of mind. Leave the task of protecting you to me," Jin Tong said, taking a deep breath and puffing out his chest.

Hearing Jin Tong's confident words, the white jade Pixiu silently buried its head in its front paws.

"Don't rush. The past half-year wasn't just spent rushing along the road. I've also been looking for a suitable place for seclusion, and I've already chosen one, but it's not here," Han Li said with a smile.

"Not here? There aren't any strange beasts near this barren mountain. Isn't it a good place for seclusion?" Jin Tong asked, puzzled.

"Do you remember the abyss we passed by some time ago?" Han Li asked casually, his eyes flickering.

"I remember. It's not far from the valley where that tree demon is. It's pitch black inside, and you can smell a stench and baleful aura from a long distance... Don't tell me you want to cultivate in seclusion there, Uncle?" Jin Tong said in surprise.

"That's right. In this Wildlands, the fierce beasts and strange beasts each have their own territories, and they usually don't invade each other. That tree demon's cultivation is not shallow, so the fierce beast that chased us before retreated on its own after reaching its territory. If we stay in the tree demon's territory, we won't be disturbed by other fierce beasts," Han Li explained.

"That's true, but how would that tree demon allow us to cultivate in seclusion in its territory?" Jin Tong still asked, puzzled.

"Have you noticed that the tree demon's root system branches are all over that valley and the large area outside the valley, but they don't extend toward that abyss? Do you know why?" Han Li changed the topic and asked.

Jin Tong hadn't noticed these things at all, so he naturally didn't know. He could only shake his head blankly.

"Trees and flowers rely on rainwater and sunlight to nourish them, so they like warm and humid environments, even after they cultivate into demons. That abyss is extremely dark, with almost no sunlight. The tree demon simply doesn't want to extend its roots there," Han Li continued to explain.

"So that's how it is," Jin Tong said, enlightened.

"More importantly, the baleful aura in that abyss is strong, which is exactly what I need... Alright, we've rested enough. Let's set off and go there now," Han Li said slowly.

After saying this, he waved his sleeve, enveloping Jin Tong and the white jade Pixiu, and together they landed on the flying chariot, transforming into a streak of green light and flying towards the abyss.

More than ten days later, the jade-green flying chariot stopped in the sky above a ravine on the surface, no more than a few dozen miles long and a few hundred feet wide.

Han Li stood at the front of the chariot, looking down at the abyss below, a look of hesitation on his face.

In fact, what he had said to Jin Tong earlier was mostly based on his own speculation. Entering this abyss also faced considerable risks.

In this Wildlands, where fierce beasts roamed, no one could guarantee that there wouldn't be existences in this abyss comparable to those tree demons and true spirits. Perhaps the reason why the tree demon didn't dare to set foot there wasn't because there was no sunlight, but because there was some powerful existence within that it feared?

Han Li shook his head, stopping himself from worrying unnecessarily. Given the current situation, he couldn't afford to have other concerns.

The next moment, his figure plunged downward, falling into the abyss.

As soon as he entered the abyss, the surrounding light immediately dimmed. A stench that made one want to vomit came from all directions, accompanied by extremely dense baleful aura.

Han Li was unmoved by this. A layer of blue light lit up around him. After falling nearly a thousand feet, he suddenly released his divine sense, probing into the abyss.

After probing, he discovered that this abyss was even deeper than he had imagined. It seemed impossible to reach the bottom, but for some reason, he couldn't feel any signs of living things inside.

Han Li followed one side of the abyss cliff, rapidly descending. The deeper he went, the more shocked he became.

On the sides of the mountain walls, there were uneven, protruding, jagged rocks, interspersed with slightly flat cliff stone platforms, some only a few feet in size, others as wide as several dozen feet.

On these protruding strange rocks, cracked stone walls, and broken cliff platforms, there were piles of white bones scattered everywhere, emitting a ghostly green phosphorescent light. Some were strangely shaped, others were enormous, and the number was extremely large.

Seeing this, Han Li couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.

Could it be that the reason why the baleful aura here was so strong was because the tree demon discarded the corpses of many strange beasts it had killed here? After accumulating for who knows how many tens of thousands of years, it had formed this appearance?