A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality

A faint smile appeared on Fan Paozi's face as he released a palm-sized red jade box out of his sleeve with a golden talisman adhered to it, covering most of the box.

The jade box was sent flying toward Han Li, who drew it into his own grasp before pointing a finger at it, upon which the talisman and lid of the box flew off on their own, revealing seven scales of different colors, all of which were giving off astonishing spiritual pressure.

A hint of surprise appeared on Han Li's face upon seeing this.

"Go ahead and take a closer look, Fellow Daoist Han," Fan Paozi said in a nonchalant manner.

Han Li was a little suspicious, but he wasn't worried that the two true dragons would plot against him, so he drew a light blue scale out of the box and into his grasp.

As soon as his fingers came into contact with the scale, his expression changed slightly as if he had sensed something, and he quickly pressed the scale against his own forehead before closing his eyes.

Time slowly passed by, and a series of expressions appeared on Han Li's face one after another, including astonishment, awe, and even a hint of fear at the end.

Only after a full 15 minutes had passed by did Han Li remove the scale from his forehead and reopen his eyes.

"I'm sure you've identified what these scales are by now, Fellow Daoist Han. They're completely useless to the average person, but their value is immeasurable for someone aiming to ascend. After all, it's not every day that you get the opportunity to experience someone else's ascension tribulation," Elder Jin said in a calm manner.

"That's certainly true, but there should be some differences in the ascension tribulations between true dragons and beings from other races," Han Li said.

"There are slight differences, but it's largely similar. Also, no one would be willing to have others in close proximity during their ascension tribulation, so it's almost impossible to witness such a tribulation. This ability to record experiences into scales is an innate ability unique to our True Dragon Race, and it's not something that can be replicated by anyone else. These scales contain experiences of both successful and failed tribulations, and there are even some from true dragons who perished during their tribulations; I'm sure their importance to you would be no lesser than that of the True Soul Pill," Elder Jin said with a confident stroke of his own beard.

"That may be true, but I'm assuming these are disposable items that can't be replicated. Otherwise, you wouldn't be offering them to me so easily," Han Li said.

"Hehe, as expected of someone who's slain a true immortal. Indeed, each of these scales can only be used thrice, and after three uses, they'll be destroyed. As for replication, I'm the only one in our entire race who knows the replication technique. Otherwise, I certainly wouldn't be offering these scales to you," Elder Jin replied.

"If each scale can only be used thrice, then they're a lot less practical, and they won't be enough to exchange for a True Soul Pill," Han Li said in a calm manner.

"In that case, how about I throw in a vial of Myriad Year Golden Mulberry Sap as well? This sap is a necessary ingredient to refine several types of legendary pills, and there aren't many vials of this liquid even on the entire True Dragon Island," Elder Jin proposed.

"Alright, in that case, I'm willing to go ahead with the exchange," Han Li quickly decided upon hearing this.

The True Soul Pill could drastically enhance the power and stability of his soul, but practically speaking, it wasn't as useful to him as the tribulation experiences recorded within the dragon scales. Furthermore, they could be used multiple times, so they could benefit those close to him as well, making them far more useful than a True Soul Pill. Of course, he wouldn't have made this decision so easily if it weren't for the fact that he still had two True Soul Pills in his possession.

Elder Jin was rather surprised by how quickly Han Li had agreed to the exchange, and he faltered slightly before an elated look appeared on his face.

"You're a straightforward man, Fellow Daoist Han; no wonder Fan Paozi decided to give you an invitation on just your first meeting. I'm sure you'll benefit immensely during this Dao Fruit Convention."

He flipped a hand over as he spoke, summoning a small golden vial that he tossed directly toward Han Li.

Han Li caught the vial before removing its lid and inspecting its contents with his spiritual sense, then nodded as he stowed it away.

Immediately thereafter, he flipped a hand over to summon a palm-sized wooden box, which flew directly toward Elder Jin.

Elder Jin raised a hand to stop the wooden box in its tracks, and the lid was removed on its own to reveal a golden pill.

He then took a whiff of the pill, and a pleased look appeared on his face.

"Haha, this is definitely a True Soul Pill. With this, I'll be able to repay the favor I owe that good friend of mine."

After that, Han Li conversed with Elder Jin for a short while longer before taking his leave, and he was accompanied by Fan Paozi.

"I knew from the first time I met you that you were no ordinary Grand Ascension Stage being, but I didn't think you'd forge such a resounding reputation for yourself in such a short time, Fellow Daoist Han. Not only did you kill that Stemborer Queen, you've even slain a true immortal now; it's a pity that I wasn't there for either of those battles," Fan Paozi said in a joking manner.

"I was only able to accomplish those feats through immense luck and with extensive external assistance. If I had been on my own, there was no way I would've been able to defeat those formidable foes. By the way, I must thank you for inviting me to this Dao Fruit Convention; it looks like I owe you quite a big favor," Han Li said with a faint smile.

"Haha, don't mention it! I knew that we would get along well, so I gave you an invitation. Otherwise, there was no way I would've done so," Fan Paozi replied in a nonchalant manner.

"In any case, attending this convention has benefitted me immensely. Even if I don't manage to obtain the dao fruit, it would've been well worth this trip," Han Li said with a serious expression.

"I'm sure you must be quite confident in your ability to obtain a dao fruit, Fellow Daoist Han. Many powerful beings from all realms were invited to attend this convention, but not many can compare with your power. Also, I heard that Tian Fei'er owes you a favor, and she's one of the convention's overseers, so..." Fan Paozi's voice trailed off here as a meaningful look appeared in his eyes.

"Ahem, you think far too highly of me, Brother Fan. Like you said, there are many powerful beings attending this convention; I certainly wouldn't dare to say that I'll be able obtain a dao fruit for sure. As for Fairy Tian, we've only met on two past occasions," Han Li replied in an ambiguous manner.

Fan Paozi offered no response to this, but he was clearly unconvinced. He then quickly moved on to other topics of conversation that he was interested in, namely Han Li's battles against the Stemborer Queen and Ma Liang.

There wasn't too much to hide about those battles, so Han Li answered all of Fan Paozi's questions.

Around an hour later, Fan Paozi returned to the golden ark alone, while Han Li was already nowhere to be seen.

......

Half a month later, Han Li pressed a white jade slip against his own forehead as he sat in an extremely secluded cave, and one piece of information after another was flashing through his mind.

"True Lord Feng Yue, reached the Grand Ascension Stage 50,000 years ago, proficient in the Five Mountain Profound Arts..."

"Tian Quezi, reached the Grand Ascension Stage 30,000 years ago, specializes in 36 types of poison arts, making him lethal in close proximity..."

"Layman Ban Ruo, reached the Grand Ascension Stage 60,000 years ago, has attained full mastery of the Asura Vajra Physique and once slew three Grand Ascension Stage devilish cultivators in a single day..."

......

Three months later, the Dao Fruit Convention officially commenced. After a grand opening ceremony, a massive space that was enshrouded under a restriction unique to the True Dragon Race was opened up, and the battle for the dao fruits began.

Within a dense forest, Han Li was slowly flying along around three feet above the ground.

All of a sudden, several of the nearby trees transformed into fearsome giants that were several thousand feet tall, and they raised their arms in unison, sending a vast expanse of green lightning crashing down from above.

At the same time, countless green fist projections were unleashed, threatening to pulverize this entire space.

However, Han Li was unsurprised to see this, and a cold smile appeared on his face as he stomped a foot down onto the ground below.

Countless streaks of azure sword Qi immediately erupted upward, slicing through the oncoming lightning and fist projections, following which a massive fiendcelestial with three heads and six arms burst out of the forest, then released a halo of golden light with its six palms to instantly eradicate the rest of the fist projections.

A faint cry of surprise rang out from a giant tree several kilometers away, and the fiendcelestial immediately cast its gaze toward that direction before opening its mouth to expel a ball of dark green light, within which contained a small green vial that was several inches tall.