After spending some time alone, Han Li tinkered with a few gadgets before leaving his room.
After condensing the soul core, the group relaxed a bit. The auto-cultivation effect of the inner core version of the soul core was quite good, reaching 20%. Even with auto-cultivation, one day's effect was comparable to long periods of training previously.
In this situation, the group finally had some personal time and slightly reduced their cultivation hours, at least not dedicating all their time to it as before.
Sure enough, when Han Li came out, the three were already discussing where to go for a walk.
"If you're going out to play, take this with you. It will make it so others can't recognize you, and they'll see you as someone else. Of course, you three can still identify each other."
Han Li didn't intend to stop them and instead handed them three identical pendants with a smile.
"Is it really that magical?"
The three women happily accepted them and took turns testing the effect.
These pendants were made by Han Li using some damaged soul bones he had collected before.
It was simple. After forcibly erasing the residual patterns, he used his mental power to carve the simulation skill pattern from Skydream's skull into them, supplemented with certain permissions.
Although it couldn't achieve the same effect as the soul bone, it was enough for a simple disguise. Anyone with mental power inferior to his wouldn't see through it. This was much more advanced than disguising by altering one's appearance.
The pendants were mainly used to conceal Dugu Yan's sixth soul ring. Her golden-red soul ring was particularly eye-catching, and since she couldn't disguise herself, Han Li had to intervene.
This not only solved the problem of daily outings but also served multiple purposes.
"Is this very precious?"
The three women, after wearing the pendants carved with the "Han" character and surrounded by a pale red color, looked at Han Li.
"Not precious, but it does have a time limit. If used continuously, it can last for at most six months. After the pale red fades, just come to me for a recharge."
Han Li replied casually. While the material was somewhat difficult to obtain, it wasn't anything significant to him.
He made a dozen or so of them, all reusable, so they weren't considered precious to him.
"Can I have one more?"
Dugu Yan came over, hugging his arm and shaking it slightly.
"Oh, for Ye Lingling, right? I forgot."
Seeing her reaction, Han Li remembered Ye Lingling. Since she indeed needed one later, he took out a few more from his wristband and handed them to Dugu Yan and Shui Bing'er.
"Bing'er, you can take these and send them back to Aunt Su along with the letter. If they're not linked to your soul power, you can take them off after use to extend their lifespan."
Han Li also gave Shui Bing'er a few more. She had to discuss matters regarding the Soul Master Competition with her family, so these made for nice little gifts.
As for the concern of losing them, Han Li wasn't worried at all. The pendants were closely connected to him, and without his permission, others couldn't use them.
"Want to join us for shopping?"
The two collected the items and looked at Han Li.
"No, you guys go ahead. I have some matters to discuss with Qian Renxue."
Han Li declined decisively. Even now, he avoids shopping as much as possible, using a suitable excuse in the process.
"Alright, we'll bring you something back."
The three women said with a bit of regret, but they quickly left excitedly, holding hands.
Watching their backs, Han Li felt relieved to have avoided it. He also donned a disguise and left the mansion. Saying he had business with Qian Renxue wasn't entirely an excuse.
After going through the same process, Han Li successfully met Qian Renxue. After conveying his master's greetings, he received the Prince's token and a real student certification record at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy from her.
After chatting casually for a few moments and giving Qian Renxue his current address, Han Li bid farewell and left.
Planning to return home, Han Li remembered that the three women had already gone out. After a moment's thought, he hailed a carriage and headed to Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.
"There's no better time than now," he thought. With nothing better to do, he might as well visit some "old friends" and see if there was anything to gain.
Yes, the matter with Tang San should also be prioritized. He might as well acquire those techniques now. He had just checked, and Tang Hao was still lurking around the outskirts of the Sunset Forest, saving him quite a bit of trouble.
After all, the name Han Li was a member of the Seven Mysteries Sect, and Mysterious Heaven Skill was destined to be his.
He needed to think about the names. Mysterious Heaven Skill and Mysterious Jade Hand didn't need changing, but Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track could be renamed to Mysterious Star Steps, Controlling Crane and Capturing Dragon could be called Mysterious Dragon Cloud Grasp, Purple Demon Eye could become Mysterious Extreme Eye, and the rest could be named Mysterious Sect Hidden Weapons and Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.
After obtaining the techniques, he could attempt to modify them, releasing simplified, standard, and upgraded versions. Not bad at all.
The Seven Mysteries Sect, with seven techniques all beginning with "Mysterious," was just too fitting!
Even before reaching the academy and meeting Tang San, Han Li had already renamed the techniques.
As usual, Han Li got off the carriage not far from the academy and strolled towards it confidently.
Though he wasn't wearing Heaven Dou Imperial Academy's uniform or any disguise, once he activated the Immitation skill, he appeared to outsiders as a properly dressed, perfectly normal student. Naturally, no one stopped him.
Having already studied Heaven Dou Imperial Academy from a god's perspective and with the map Qian Renxue gave him, Han Li easily found the area assigned to Heaven Dou's second team.
Once he picked his spot and looked towards the field, he chuckled to himself. How coincidental!
In the training field, the dedicated Grandmaster was directing a few individuals in their training.
With a slight scan of his mental power, Han Li confirmed the current levels of the group, which were a level or two higher than in the original story when they first arrived at Heaven Dou City. But considering the time, it was expected.
It seemed that the training environment and resources here had provided them with some help, but still, none had reached the Soul Ancestor level.
The strongest here was probably Xiao Wu, a thought that suddenly crossed Han Li's mind as he remembered Skydream.
It was true. At least if Xiao Wu were to sacrifice herself, without controlling the violent energy, she could still take down a Titled Douluo. Under normal circumstances, an ordinary Titled Douluo couldn't withstand the intense energy impact of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast's sacrifice without cooperation.
Watching the group perform clumsy training exercises in such a luxurious venue, Han Li shook his head and decisively activated his soul bone skill to observe the soul power flow within their bodies.
As Han Li activated the skill, the connected aura between Tang San and Xiao Wu trembled slightly.
Both stopped their actions, bewildered, and turned to look in Han Li's direction, but found nothing.
"Oh, quite sharp, but unfortunately useless."
Han Li's figure appeared behind a tree, a mischievous smile on his face.
The reaction from their aura confirmed a few things, though this was the first time he actively involved himself with it, and his handling was a bit clumsy. This kind of incident wouldn't happen again, and when it came to aura, he currently had more than the group combined.
"Tang San's mental power is pretty impressive, almost reaching the Soul Emperor level, nearly surpassing two ranks. Years of hard training have indeed yielded some results."
Han Li remarked, continuing to stay hidden while observing the field.
In the training ground, Tang San and Xiao Wu's odd behavior caught Yu Xiaogang's attention.
"Xiao San, is something the matter?"
Yu Xiaogang frowned, following the direction of their gaze, seeing nothing but the lush trees swaying in the breeze.
"Nothing, teacher, maybe I'm just too tired and got a bit distracted."
Tang San glanced at Xiao Wu and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Yu Xiaogang checked the time and then looked at the visibly exhausted group, suggesting, "Let's take a break for now."
Hearing his words, Ma Hongjun and Oscar threw a grateful glance at Tang San and plopped down on the ground without a care for their image.
Why did they still have to undergo this kind of training at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy? Was it that difficult to use the academy's facilities like the first team?
Although the results were similar, it could have been much easier. The two exchanged a helpless look and grumbled internally. If it weren't for Flender and Tang San, they would have quit long ago.
They were quite popular at the academy now, especially Oscar. Once he shaved his beard and showed off his talent, many female soul masters were willing to approach him, and he voluntarily gave up pursuing Ning Rongrong; he preferred gentler girls.
Even Ma Hongjun, despite his less appealing appearance and off-putting demeanor, had many noblewomen pursuing him. Someone even offered to help him with his evil fire problem.
As for Ning Rongrong, she wasn't tired at all. She had only completed a third of the training, yet the Grandmaster turned a blind eye to it.
Why? Ever since Sword Douluo visited once, things had changed. Rongrong didn't know anything and hadn't complained.
When Grandmaster announced a break, she took the initiative to walk over to Zhu Zhuqing, pulling her aside and giving Dai Mubai a sweet smile.
Zhu Zhuqing was exhausted. She had meticulously completed all of the training, even voluntarily increasing the intensity.
She noticed Ning Rongrong's subtle moves but didn't care. She just wanted to recover quickly and dive into the next round of training.
Getting stronger, getting stronger—that was her only thought now.
She didn't know when the Holy Son of Spirit Hall, who had once approached her, would come again. But she understood that the stronger she was, the more valuable she would be as leverage. This principle was universally applicable.
Moreover, the Heaven Dou Prince had also offered her benefits. Although she knew she was still just an add-on, things were much better than before.
As for the Martial Soul Fusion Skill—, don't even think about it. After learning the truth, anyone who tried to persuade her would be her enemy.
Not far away, Dai Mubai watched Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing with a helpless expression. He glanced at Oscar and Ma Hongjun, looks exhausted, and lost in thought.
"This change is fascinating. I can't wait to see what happens next."
Han Li watched the group with interest, the smile on his face growing wider.
The last time he had gotten information from Qian Renxue, the situation wasn't like this. In just over a month, things seemed to have shifted again.