"I have no other choice. If I can't refine metal and wood attribute Extreme Origin Crystals within the next year, then I'll most likely lose my chance to do so forever. In this current situation, you are the likeliest candidate to help me succeed, Brother Han," Yue Long said with a wry smile.

Han Li was rather taken aback to hear this. "What do you mean by that?"

"Drawing out the power of heaven and earth is not a simple task; not only can it only be done in special spirit regions, the exact time and changes in the power of stars must be calculated in advance for any chance of success. In order to refine these Extreme Origin Crystals, I had expended a massive price for a divination master of our race to calculate the changes in the stars at the expense of a large chunk of his lifespan. According to his divination, the changes in the stars that would bring about the power of heaven and earth of the metal and wood elements are extremely rare, and if I can't refine the Extreme Origin Bricks in this window of opportunity, the next opportunity to arise could be countless years in the future.

"I don't have the time to wait, so I must refine the remaining Extreme Origin Crystals during the next year. If I hadn't encountered you today, I was planning to take a risk to recruit the assistance of an old devil with a rather bad reputation. However, you're naturally a much better choice. At the very least, you were willing to venture into the Elder Devil Realm to slay the Stemborer Queen and rescue so many fellow daoists of our Spirit Realm, so you seem like a righteous and trustworthy character," Yue Long explained.

Han Li's expression remained unchanged as he listened to all of this, but his mind was racing as he made a series of judgments. After a long while, he replied, "I don't know much about you, but the answers you provided were satisfactory, and I see no need for you to deceive me. If it won't take too long to refine the remaining two types of Extreme Origin Bricks, then I can agree to help you. However, for compensation, I want one each of the Extreme Origin Bricks of the other two attributes as well in addition to these three, and these three bricks must be issued to me a deposit right away."

Yue Long was ecstatic to hear this, and he immediately replied, "That's not an issue at all. Rest assured, the spirit region where the power of heaven and earth can be drawn upon is not far away, so we can begin at any time. As for these three Extreme Origin Crystals, they're already yours!"

"In that case, let's not delay any further. If it's alright with you, we can set off for that spirit region right away," Han Li said with a pleased smile as he swept a sleeve through the air, releasing a burst of azure light to stow away the three Extreme Origin Bricks.

Yue Long was very elated to hear this, and he replied, "Fantastic! You're a very straightforward man, Fellow Daoist. However, I must make some preparations to draw upon the metal and wood attribute power of heaven earth; how about to stay here for a night and we'll set off tomorrow?"

"Alright, then tomorrow it is. Please pardon my intrusion for tonight," Han Li agreed after a brief moment of contemplation.

Yue Long was very pleased to hear this, and he immediately issued an instruction, upon which groups of female servants strode into the hall with more spirit fruits and spirit wine.

After that, the two of them began to drink and chat.

All of a sudden, a thought occurred to Han Li, and he said, "By the way, there's someone I would like to ask you about; perhaps you may have heard of him."

Yue Long was rather taken aback by this request, but he immediately replied, "I'll be sure to tell you everything I know, Brother Han."

"This fellow daoist is also a member of your Flying Spirit Race, and he possesses very formidable Five-colored Divine Light, so he should be from the Five Light Race. As a fellow Grand Ascension Stage Flying Spirit being, I'm sure you would've heard of him," Han Li said.

Yue Long's expression changed drastically upon hearing this, and he hurriedly asked, "The Five Light Race? What is that man's name and where did you meet him?"

"I thought I was the one asking you a question," Han Li said with a hint of a smile on his face.

"Ah, please forgive me for my lack of composure; it's just that your question truly caught me off guard. Our Flying Spirit Race isn't exactly a major race, but we have never had less than three Grand Ascension Stage beings. However, only a single Grand Ascension Stage being has arisen from the Five Light Race in the past 1,000,000 years. As soon as he had reached the Grand Ascension Stage, he had departed on a long journey, and nothing was heard from him ever since. We had all thought that he had perished, so I'm very surprised to hear that you've encountered him."Would you be able to disclose some information about this fellow daoist?" Yue Long said in an apologetic manner as he quickly composed himself.

"I see. Unfortunately, I don't have much information to offer as I only encountered him by chance in a perilous region of the primordial world. All I know is that his surname is Yi and that he possesses a Five-colored Peacock transformation. I was suddenly reminded of him as I was speaking to you and decided to ask about him on a whim," Han Li replied.

"If his surname is Yi, then he's definitely the fellow daoist I'm referring to. I'm glad to hear that he hasn't perished; I hope he can return to our Flying Spirit Race soon," Yue Long said with a smile, but Han Li could see that his smile was slightly forced, and it seemed that Yue Long shared quite a complex relationship with this Grand Ascension Stage Five Light being.

Thus, instead of lingering on this topic any further, Han Li casually changed the subject to one of cultivation, refraining from revealing the true fate suffered by this Fellow Daoist Yi.

For some reason, Yue Long didn't ask any further questions, either, and readily began to exchange cultivation insights with Han Li.

Just as the two of them were having a spirited conversation, a female servant suddenly strode in before extending a respectful bow.

"Patriarch Yue, Elder Jin of the Tian Peng Race wishes to request an audience with you; would you like to see her?"

"No! I don't want to see anyone! Can't you see I'm entertaining an esteemed guest?" Yue Long scolded with a displeased expression.

"Please forgive me!" the servant was petrified and immediately kowtowed as a gesture of repentance before hurriedly exiting the hall.

However, before she could leave, Han Li suddenly said, "Hold on, are you referring to the grand elder of the Tian Peng Race, Jin Yue?"

"Oh? Do you know Elder Jin Yue?" Yue Long was rather surprised to hear this.

"I've met her on several occasions, and she's technically an acquaintance of mine. Why don't you see what she has to say?" Han Li replied.

Yue Long was rather taken aback to hear this, and he immediately instructed, "If she's an acquaintance of yours, then I would certainly be willing to grant her an audience. Go and invite Elder Jin to see me."

"Yes, Patriarch Yue!" The female servant quickly departed.

Shortly thereafter, a white-robed Flying Spirit woman with golden wings on her back entered the hall, accompanied by the same female servant.

The woman had an ordinary appearance, but gave off a regal aura, and she was none other than Grand Elder Jin Yue of the Tian Peng Race, whom Han Li had met on several past occasions.

As soon as Jin Yue strode into the hall, she immediately bowed and lowered her head, not daring to look around. "Jin Yue pays her respects to Patriarch Yue."

However, she still caught a brief glimpse of Han Li out of her peripheral vision, and she was surprised to find that he was rather familiar. The man was seated as an equal across from Yue Long, so he had to be a Grand Ascension cultivator as well; could it be that this was a Grand Ascension Stage being that she had met before?

Han Li's cultivation base and aura had completely changed since their last meeting, so she was unable to identify him as the past holy disciple of her Flying Spirit Race.

"You can get up now. Why have you come here instead of taking care of matters in the Tian Peng Race? I recall that an envoy from each race can only see me once per century unless I summon them for an audience," Yue Long said in an indifferent voice.

"I had no choice but to come here, Patriarch Yue. Half a year ago, the Chi Rong Race suddenly made a big move, invading and conquering over 10 spirit mines and several cities of our Tian Peng Race, abducting all of the Tian Peng beings in those areas. I went to the Chi Rong Race in person for an explanation, only to be ganged up on and wounded by several of their elders. As a result, I was forced to go into seclusion for half a year to recover from my injuries, and I've come here right after emerging from seclusion," Jin Yue explained with a furious look in her eyes.

"So it's an issue with the Chi Rong Race again. I'm already aware of this," Yue Long sighed with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

Jin Yue's heart jolted slightly upon hearing this, and a thought suddenly occurred to her. "What? Could it be..."

"That's right, the grand elder of the Chi Rong Race also came to complain to me three months ago, but he said that it was your Tian Peng Race that encroached upon their territory a year ago, so everything they're doing now is justified," Yue Long said.

Jin Yue's face paled slightly upon hearing this, and she hurriedly argued, "Please look into the situation, Patriarch Yue! This is blatant slander from the Chi Rong Race! What happened was..."

"Hmph, I'm currently preparing for my next tribulation; I have no time to look into these trivial matters. As long as the survival of your race isn't under threat, don't come to see me. You can go now," Yue Long said in a cold voice.