Автор: sergey

Han Li didnt immediately rise to his feet. Instead, he turned toward that direction expressionlessly.

The two approaching cultivators had clearly seen Han Li from afar, and they immediately accelerated toward the small island that he was situated on. The streaks of white light soon appeared above the island, before receding to reveal a man and a woman.

The woman appeared to be around 25 or 26 years of age with skin as fair as snow and luscious black hair. She wore a vibrant green palatial dress and her entire body was emanating a regal and esteemed aura. In contrast, the man was a white-robed scholar who appeared to be around 40 years old. His looks were very ordinary, yet his brows were as dense and dark as swords. There was a sinister aura radiating from his body and his expression was as cold as ice.

The two of them hovered in the air at altitudes of around 300 feet, appraising Han Li from above.

Han Li slowly rose to his feet and his body drifted into the air.

Moments later, he was standing at the same altitude as the two of them.

Ive heard a lot about the Heavenly Star Sages, and I am immensely fortunate to be able to see both of you today, Fellow Daoists. Han Li put on a smile that was neither cold nor enthusiastic.

At the sight of Han Lis indifferent display, a vibrant smile appeared on the face of the woman in the palatial robes, who had seen Han Li once before, and he exuberant smile on her face presented a glorious scene akin to that of myriad flowers blossoming at once.

There are only so many late-Nascent Soul cultivators in the Scattered Star Seas, seeing as you agreed to meet us, we were, of course, not going to leave you hanging. This is my Dao Companion, Ling Xiaofeng. The two of us do indeed have a bit of renown, but not many people actually know our real names, the woman said.

Han Li smiled and didnt say anything, yet he turned his gaze toward the man beside her. His eyes just so happened to meet Ling Xiaofengs cold gaze, and shudders ran through both their hearts in unison. They couldnt quite put their finger on the reason for this, but both of them were suddenly struck by the feeling that the other was not to be messed with.

I heard from Elder Zhao that you already have a Dao Companion, and shes also a Nascent Soul cultivator. Thats rather unfortunate news for us, Brother Han. However, its impossible that our Star Palace wouldve completely failed to have heard of a new female Nascent Soul cultivator in the Scattered Star Seas, even if shes been in seclusion for an extended period of time. You must be from the Great Jin and not from our Scattered Star Seas, right, Brother Han? Ling Xiaofeng asked. Han Lis expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and he exclaimed, So the two of you have also been to the Great Jin before!

Han Li exhaled as countless thoughts flashed his mind, and he neither confirmed nor denied this notion. However, the tone of his voice led the Heavenly Star Sages to automatically believe that their speculation rang true.

The man nodded with an expression that suggested he suspected this to be the case all along. The Great Jin is known as the holy land of cultivation in the human world, Of course my Dao Companion and I have visited it before. However, even though theres an ancient teleportation formation that can take one from the Scattered Star Seas to the Great Jin, the teleportation formation on the other side is situated in an extremely mysterious location, and even with the power levels of my Dao Companion and me, that place still poses some risk to us. As such, aside from the past masters of the Star Palace, there have been very few Nascent Soul cultivators from the Scattered Star Seas who have visited the Great Jin. Of course, there arent many people who know about this ancient teleportation formation to begin with. However, our Star Palace is located quite close to the teleportation formation, and a palace elder is permanently settled there to guard the formation. If you teleported to the Scattered Star Seas using that formation, theres no way that the two of us wouldve been oblivious to your arrival. Aside from that, its possible for someone to fly here from the Great Jin, but the journey will take upward of 10 years, and will be quite a perilous one. Theres almost no one who would do something so stupid. How did you get to our Scattered Star Seas, Brother Han? Wen Qing asked with undisguised curiosity in her eyes.

I merely arrived here by chance and not intentionally. As for the method through which I got here, its very difficult to replicate, so you dont need to be concerned about anyone else emulating it. Han Li gave half of a reply and didnt elaborate any further.

Ling Xiaofeng and Wen Qing looked at one another, and they could see the confusion in each others eyes, but they did press the issue any further. The man asked, Has Elder Zhao informed you of our objective for meeting you here?

Han Li was silent for a moment before chuckling as he said, He did mention it. Apparently, the two of you wish to discuss with me matters regarding a breakthrough to the Deity Transformation Stage. I naturally couldnt refuse such a tempting invitation.

Indeed. The two of us have been stagnant at the late-Nascent Soul Stage for several centuries, but Im sure we can still provide some insight that can prevent you from going down the wrong path, as well as several methods and secret techniques that will assist you greatly in making a breakthrough to the Deity Transformation Stage. Of course, whether youll be able to succeed or not in the end will be up to you, Wen Qing continued with a pleasant smile on her face.

Oh? That does sound great, but surely you wouldnt disclose those secret techniques to me free of charge, right? A hint of caution flashed through Han Lis eyes.

If you had agreed to become Yulings Dao Partner, then we would naturally have unconditionally presented you with this information. However, seeing as you turned down our offer, we can only strike a deal with you, Brother Han, Wen Qing said in a slightly forlorn manner.

What deal would you like to propose? Han Lis eyes narrowed as he looked at Wen Qing with a calm expression.

A serious look appeared on Wen Qings face as she replied, Its quite simple, I hope to provide these secret techniques and insights in exchange for your assistance to help our daughter take care of the Star Palace, all the way until she can look after the Star Palace on her own.

You want me to assist Fellow Daoist Yuling? Han Lis brows furrowed with a contemplative expression on his face.

The Heavenly Star Sages werent in a hurry, either. They waited patiently while Han Li digested their proposition.

Fellow Daoist Ling is currently only at the early-Nascent Soul Stage, right? Han Li asked.

Indeed, she is. A smile reappeared on Wen Qings face, as if she could already guess what Han Li was going to ask next.

How long do you think it will take for the two of you to help Fellow Daoist Yuling reach the late-Nascent Soul? 100 years? 200 years? Or even longer than that… Han Li asked.

The two of us have a way to help our daughter reach the mid-Nascent Soul within 100 years. As for progressing to the late-Nascent Soul Stage, thats no simple matter and itll be up to her to get there on her own, Ling Xiaofeng replied coldly.

Then do you think shell be able to take care of the Star Palace on her own without a late-Nascent Soul Stage cultivation base? You wouldnt be expecting me to spend several hundred years of my life helping her out, would you? Han Li stroked his chin as he chuckled coldly.

Wen Qings smile stiffened slightly upon hearing this, but she quickly recomposed herself.

If you think that condition is going too far, then we can change to another one. As Im sure youre aware, the clowns at the Starfall Coalition have constantly been provoking our palace. If you can assist us in killing the Archsaint of the Six Paths and Wan Sangu, then we would also be willing to offer the aforementioned methods and secret techniques. As far as I know, you have turned many of the Starfall Coalitions Nascent Soul cultivators against you after obtaining the Heavenvoid Cauldron, so this will be a win-win situation for both of us, Wen Qing offered with a smile.

Even though the Archsaint of the Six Paths and Wan Sangu are vastly renowned great cultivators, Im sure the two of you will fancy your chances against them. Besides, I have no intention of getting swept up in any feuds in the Scattered Star Seas. After this, I plan to go into seclusion to cultivate, so Im afraid I cant help you with this, either.

Wen Qings smile faded after Han Li turned down her second condition. Even though she didnt say anything, she was clearly becoming quite displeased. At this moment, Ling Xiaofeng said, Brother Han, you may not aware of this, but the secret techniques that we are offering to provide to you have only been invented after countless years of effort and research from several past masters of the Star Palace. They are priceless treasures to late-Nascent Soul cultivators like us. Youre not hoping to obtain them from us free of charge, are you?

Ling Xiaofengs expression had cooled even further.

Han Li completely disregarded the two sages discontent, and clasped his hands behind his back as he said, I wouldnt dare to dream of it. According to my knowledge, all of the past masters of the Star Palace were late-Nascent Soul great cultivators, yet very few of them actually managed to reach the Deity Transformation Stage. Im sure the methods and secret techniques youre offering are very valuable, but I really am rather skeptical of their efficacy. Of course, referencing these things will surely be of great benefit to me, even if they cant directly assist me in making a breakthrough. However, its too much to ask of me to expend several hundred years to help your daughter or to take such a massive risk in assisting you two in battle. Please state some simpler conditions. I definitely wont consider anything thats too complex or too ambitious.

The expressions of the couples faces immediately darkened upon hearing this. However, they didnt say anything in response. Instead, they exchanged a glance and began to communicate using voice transmission right before Han Lis eyes.

Han Lis lips twitched slightly upon seeing this before looking up into the sky expressionlessly.

A short while later, the couple seemed to have finished their discussion. Ling Xiaofeng turned to Han Li expressionlessly, and said, For everything were offering, were only asking you to assist our daughter on three separate occasions. As long as you can do that, we have a deal.

Han Li contemplated this condition momentarily before replying, I can agree to that. However, I will only step in when Fellow Daoist Yulings life is under threat, and Ill only do what I can.

Alright. Theres no need for you to swear a vow or do anything of that nature. As a fellow great cultivator, Im sure youll keep your promises, Fellow Daoist Han. I have three Myriad Distance Talismans here that were refined by ancient cultivators using special methods. Even if youre millions of kilometers away from our daughter, youll be able to see anything that she writes on her talismans replicated on your talismans. Please keep the safe, Fellow Daoist Han. Ling Xiaofeng swept a sleeve through the air, and three shimmering white talismans appeared. He then swiped a finger across the three talismans and a thin golden line flashed past, upon which the three talismans split up into six.

Three of those talismans disappeared into his sleeve, while the other three shot forth toward Han Li as three streaks of white light. frewenovel.com

Han Li raised an eyebrow as he caught the three jade talismans before taking a cursory glance at them.

The runes on these talismans were quite complex and even though they had been split in half, there was still spiritual light shimmering over their surfaces, thereby indicating that these were no ordinary artifacts.

Han Li flipped his palm over and stowed them away into his storage pouch.

Haha, thats all I needed to hear. What do you think of Elder Ling from our Star Palace? the elderly man asked with a smile.

Are you referring to Fellow Daoist Ling Yuling? Han Li asked with a peculiar look on his face.

Indeed, she is also the daughter of our two palace masters! The elderly man nodded in response.

Fellow Daoist Ling naturally has exceptional cultivation aptitude to be able to reach the Nascent Soul Stage at such a young age. Im not quite sure I understand what youre asking, fellow Daoist. A hint of confusion flashed through Han Lis eyes.

Elder Lings aptitude is indeed quite exceptional, but its far inferior compared to yours, Brother Han. However, theres no doubting the fact that both of you are supremely-talented prodigies. If you two join forces, perhaps there will be a chance for you to succeed in your pursuit of the Great Dao and Immortality. Brother Han, would you be willing to become Elder Lings Dao Companion?

Dao Companion? Han Li was given a massive fright upon hearing this, and his jaw dropped straight to the ground.

Indeed. Both Brother Han and Elder Ling are so young with such exceptional aptitude, you two are a match made in heaven! Would you allow me to act as a matchmaker for the two of you? The elderly man wore a wide smile on his face.

The astonishment on Han Lis face immediately receded as his brows furrowed.

The elderly man was slightly surprised to see this.

Could it be that Han Li was unwilling to accept such a brilliant arrangement?

One had to realize that in the cultivation world, female Nascent Soul cultivators were almost nonexistent, and it was even more difficult to find a female Nascent Soul cultivator of a similar age as Han Li. As such, even though everyone knew about the benefits of dual cultivation, most male Nascent Soul cultivators could only take Core Formation or even Foundation Establishment female cultivators as their servants or concubines. There were very few of those couples who actually became Dao Companions. A female Nascent Soul cultivator would occasionally appear, but she would immediately be pursued by many male cultivators with similar cultivation bases.

Ling Yuling was a Nascent Soul cultivator-an extremely beautiful one, at that-and she was also the daughter of the vastly renowned Star Palace masters. Wasnt this almost the best possible thing that could happen to Han Li? So why was it that he appeared to so reluctant to accept this arrangement?

That was simply astonishing to the elderly man.

However, this man was a late-Nascent Soul cultivator, so the elderly man naturally didnt dare to express the displeasure in his heart. His expression remained unchanged as he continued in an enthusiastic manner, The two palace masters have said that as long as youre willing to become Elder Lings Dao Companion and live in our Heavenly Star City, youll be the next master of the Star Palace for sure. In that case, youll become the ruler of the Scattered Star Seas Brother Han, and on top of that…

The elderly man began to rattle off a long list of benefits that the dual cultivation arrangement could bring to Han Li, and his voice was tinged with more than a hint of envy.

Han Li continued to remain silent, but the elderly man didnt who any intention of stopping anytime soon, so he could only heave an internal sigh in the end, and cut him off.

Im very grateful to the palace masters for thinking so highly of me, but I must refuse this proposal.

What? Please consider this carefully, Brother Han! This is an important matter and it would be unwise to make a rash decision. The elderly man could sense from Han Lis aloof reaction that he was quite averse to the proposal. However, his heart still sank after hearing Han Lis refusal, yet he was still unwilling to give up. It would place him in a very awkward situation if he failed to complete this mission that the Heavenly Star Sages had assigned to him.

Its not that I think Fellow Daoist Yuling isnt good enough for me or that I harbor any unfavorable bias toward the Star Palace, its just that I already have a Dao Companion, and shes also a Nascent Soul cultivator, Han Li explained.

I see. Theres no helping it then. Looks like you and Elder Ling simply werent meant to be. I still think its quite a pity, though. The elderly man heaved a resigned sigh upon hearing this.

However, he was also quite relieved that he would have an excuse to pass on to the Heavenly Star Sages.

At the same time, he was feeling rather perplexed. It seemed that in the past 100 years, there were no new female Nascent Soul cultivators that had appeared in the Scattered Star Seas aside from Ling Yuling.

Could it be that this mans Dao Companion was also a powerful yet obscure cultivator like him?

The Heavenly Star Sages hadnt mentioned to him that Han Li may have been a foreign cultivator. As such, he automatically assumed that Han Li was one of those cultivators who spent the majority of time cultivating in seclusion, thereby making him an obscure figure in the cultivation world.

The elderly man heaved a forlorn sigh before suddenly changing the subject as he said, I wont press the issue with Elder Ling any further, but the palace masters have instructed me to pass on another message to you if you turn down the dual cultivation proposal, would you be interested in hearing it, Brother Han?

Of course, please go ahead, Han Li replied.

Seeing as the Star Palace had failed to recruit him, they were naturally going to try some other tricks, this did not come as a surprise to Han Li.

The elderly man suddenly adopted a more solemn expression as he said, The palace masters would simply like to meet with you again. Of course, youre free to choose the location as long as its within or somewhere close to Heavenly Star City. The palace masters have said that they would like to discuss an important matter with you regarding a breakthrough to the Deity Transformation Stage. I hope you can accept this proposal, Brother Han.

Something related to a breakthrough to the Deity Transformation Stage, eh? Han Li stroked his chin with a contemplative look.

If it werent for that final part of the message, he would turn down the proposal without any hesitation. However, this proposal was quite tempting and he had to think carefully about it.

After all, he didnt have a single clue with regard to how he was going to progress to the Deity Transformation Stage. Even if the process was likely going to be quite risky, he still didnt want to miss out on an opportunity like this.

After contemplating for a long while, Han Li finally said, If the Heavenly Star Sages wouldnt mind, I can meet them on that small island 1,500 kilometers north of Heavenly Star City. Ill be there on the island in the three days. At his current power level, as long as he wasnt trapped in an inescapable place and ganged up on by too many Nascent Soul cultivators at once, he didnt need to fear any ambushes or sneak attacks. As such, meeting them shouldnt incur too much risk.

Alright, Ill be sure to pass on your response to the palace masters. An elated expression appeared on the elderly mans face.

Han Li chatted with this man for a while longer before taking his leave.

The elderly man could see that Han Li wasnt interested in conversing with him any further, so he didnt try to keep Han Li.

After that, Han Li headed straight toward the teleportation formation on the island.

At his speed, it didnt take him long at all to reach the mountain upon which the teleportation formation was situated. Once there, he just so happened to catch sight of the burly cultivator who was guarding the teleportation formation on the previous occasion that he was here as well. The man wore a stern expression and was speaking to several cultivators. As he did so, he shook his head incessantly as if he were refusing something.

Dazzling azure light flashed and Han Li appeared in front of the group of people, seemingly out of thin air.

I pay my respects to Senior Han! The bury cultivator immediately recognized Han Li, and he hurried over before extending a respectful salute.

I want to go back to the inner seas. The teleportation formation is ready to go, right? Han Li asked coldly.

Of course! Right this way, Senior Han! the Star Palace cultivator quickly replied. Before Han Li even had to ask, he immediately handed over a teleportation talisman.

Even though he had the Greater Teleportation Medallion, Han Li still took the talisman before entering the teleportation formation.

Moments later, white light erupted within the stone chamber and Han Li disappeared.

The other cultivators had all put on reverent expressions in response to Han Lis arrival, and following his departure, their expressions eased in unison.

One of the Core Formation cultivators who was familiar with the burly cultivator asked, Brother Yu, was that senior an elder of your Star Palace? He looks quite unfamiliar to me.

He actually isnt. Ive only met this Senior on one previous occasion, and hes carrying a guest elder badge from our Star Palace. Even though no official announcement has been made, I assume he must be a new elder whos about to join our Star Palace, the burly man replied with a smug smile.

I see. Doesnt that mean your Star Palace is going to grow even more powerful now? It appears this elder is quite powerful, I wonder if hes an early-Nascent Soul or mid-Nascent Soul cultivator, the Core Formation cultivator clicked his tongue with wonder.

Im not too sure of that, either. This senior seems to be carrying some sort of treasure that prevents people from ascertaining his cultivation base. However, I assume that hes still an early-Nascent Soul cultivator. After all, if he were at the mid-Nascent Soul Stage already, surely he would be more renowned, the burly cultivator speculated hesitantly.

I agree with you one that one. In any case, hes not someone that the likes of us can compare with. Tsk tsk, a thousand-year lifespan… I wonder if we still have a chance to progress to the Nascent Soul Stage. A cultivator with a sword strapped to his back heaved a forlorn sigh.

Three days later, on a nondescript coral island 1,500 kilometers north of Heavenly Star City that was only several kilometers in size, there was a young man meditating with his legs crossed and his eyes tightly closed.

That young man was, of course, none other than Han Li.

Several days ago, after returning to the inner seas using the teleportation formation, he had immediately left the massive island without delaying so much as a single moment.

He had been wary that the Heavenly Star Sages would take advantage of that opportunity to attack him, but it appeared that he had been overly paranoid.

He managed to leave the Star Palaces territory without any impediment.

Han Li was quite relieved as a result, and stayed for a few days in the nearby region before arriving on the island that he had agreed to meet the Heavenly Star Sages on.

At this moment, he had already released his powerful spiritual sense to its maximal extent as a safety precaution. Everything within a radius of several hundred feet had been enshrouded within his spiritual sense, regardless of whether it was the seabed that lay at depths of tens of thousands of feet or the sky hundreds of thousands of feet above, all of it was within the scope of his surveillance.

Han Li naturally wasnt going to get complacent when faced with vastly renowned cultivators like the Heavenly Star Sages.

They were a couple and both were using the same cultivation arts so when they combined their powers, they would most likely be far more troublesome to deal with than two normal late-Nascent Soul cultivators.

Furthermore, the Divine Essencefused Light was certainly no joke. It was said that it could crush all powers of the five elements in this world, that was clearly an exaggeration, but it wasnt too far off the mark.

Han Li didnt want to lose his life over a moment of carelessness.

Thus, he had made sure to establish surveillance over everything in the surrounding region prior to the arrival of the sages, in order to protect himself from any sinister intentions they could harbor.

When it was close to noon and the sun had almost reached its highest point in the sky, Han Li suddenly stirred as he opened his eyes.

In the far distance, there were two spots of white light flying through the air side by side, heading directly toward the small island that he was situated on.

Five thin wisps of spiritual Qi poured out from the spirit stone. The spiritual Qi was cool to the touch and remarkably substantial, crawling up Han Lis fingers like five tiny snakes.

Han Li was caught off guard and given a fright as he reflexively withdrew his fingers from the spirit stone.

Even so, the five tiny snakes still squirmed into the meridians in his arms before dissipating on their own.

All of a sudden, a burst of spiritual power that was filled with exuberant vitality spread through his entire body.

Han Li was immediately enshrouded by a warm yet cool sensation, making him feel extremely comfortable, as if he were floating on a cloud.

So this was a top-grade spirit stone? As expected, the spiritual Qi that it provided was far superior to that from high-grade spirit stones.

Han Li hurriedly absorbed this influx of spiritual power with elation in his heart.

Absorbing just that small amount of spiritual power had the same cultivation effect as half a month of meditation. If he were to absorb all of the spiritual power in the entire spirit stone, it would save him at least 10 years of arduous cultivation!

Of course, he wasnt going to succumb to that temptation and waste such an exceptional treasure. A spirit stone that contained such an immense amount of spiritual Qi naturally had to be reserved for critical junctures during breakthroughs.

Han Li flipped his palm over and a small azure box appeared.

He carefully placed the top-grade spirit stone into the wooden, then plastered several talismans of different colors onto the box before stowing it away into his storage pouch.

Han Li let loose an internal cry of elation as he shot forth into the distance as an azure streak of light.

Several months later, Han Li was close to returning to Silver Shark Island.

However, he immediately realized that something was amiss. As he approached the island, he didnt encounter so much as a single cultivator. That was very bizarre.

When Han Li finally caught sight of Silver Shark Island from afar, the scene presented before his eyes made him falter involuntarily.

A blue barrier of light had appeared over Silver Shark Island and at the same time, restrictions on the island all seemed to have been fully activated. After sweeping his spiritual sense through the surrounding air, Han Li discovered that there was no one around. It was as if all of the cultivators were seeking refuge within the restrictions on the island.

Han Li was rather taken aback upon making this discovery, and he also scanned through the nearby seabed with his spiritual sense. After verifying that there werent any abnormalities present, he began to fly toward the entrance to the island with a hint of bewilderment in his heart.

The fluctuations of the restriction were more steady there, so it was most likely the designated entrance of the formation.

After flashing through the air a few times, Han Li reached the barrier of light and the azure light around his body receded.

He looked at the light barrier before raising a hand to send a voice transmission talisman flying into the barrier.

He then hovered in the air expressionlessly, awaiting a response from the other side.

Which fellow Daoist is returning to the island at a time like this? May I know your name? a wary male voice sounded from the other side of the light barrier. At the same time, a burst of spiritual sense scanned toward Han Li.

Han Lis expression darkened as azure light erupted from his body. The spiritual sense was immediately repelled, and Han Li also lashed out at it in an offhand manner.

A muffled groan rang out behind the light barrier, clearly belonging to the owner of the spiritual sense.

Hmph! Is my name something for juniors like you to interrogate? Hurry up and ease the restriction! I have some matters to attend to on this island, Han Li harrumphed coldly.

The cultivator repressed the sharp pain in his spiritual sense as he hurriedly explained, My apologies, I was not aware that you were a Nascent Soul Stage senior. Under normal circumstances, I would naturally grant you passage without asking any questions, but a large horde of demon beasts from the nearby ocean suddenly attacked the island just a few days ago. I was sent here to guard this restriction, and I must verify the identity of all cultivators returning to the island before granting passage.

Han Li recalled back to the scenes where the demon beasts had attacked Green Spirit Island, and his expression eased slightly as he said, Is that so? How do you plan to verify my identity?

Would you be able to provide me with your name and a brief introduction, Senior? Alternatively, do you have any items that can prove your identity? the cultivator behind the light barrier asked in a timid manner.

Will this suffice? Han Lis brows furrowed as he raised a hand, sending a streak of golden light disappearing into the light barrier.

It was none other than the guest elder badge given to him by the Heavenly Star Sages.

Please forgive me, Senior Han! Ill let you in right away, the mans surprised voice sounded from behind the light barrier.

Han Lis heart stirred slightly upon hearing this and a peculiar light flashed through his eyes, but he quickly recomposed his expression as he awaited entry into the island.

A short while later, the blue light barrier before him tremored, and a small opening appeared.

Han Lis body swayed and he flew in through the opening, which slowly sealed over amid a burst of buzzing.

Han Lis eyes immediately lit up as he flew into the light barrier. There were over 10 white-robed Star Palace cultivators standing in front of him, all of whom were divided into two rows.

The azure light receded and Han Li was revealed to these cultivators.

We pay our respects to Senior Han. A middle-aged cultivator hurriedly stepped forward before extending a respectful bow to Han Li.

Judging from his voice, he was the one who had been conversing with Han Li earlier. This man was a Core Formation cultivator and his face was slightly pale, clearly still recovering from the spiritual sense backlash that had just been inflicted upon him.

Youre the only ones guarding this place? Han Li raised an eyebrow with a hint of surprise on his face. Aside from the one Core Formation cultivator, all of the other Star Palace cultivators were only at the Foundation Establishment Stage. This was not a formidable force by any stretch of the imagination.

The demon beasts launched an extremely fierce assault against the island a few days ago, and all of our other fellow Daoists have retired to the town within the island to rest, leaving only disciples like us to guard this place in shifts. However, please rest assured, Senior Han, the closest town to this place is only just over 50 kilometers away, and there are over 100 Star Palace disciples there who can come to reinforce us at any time, the man explained.

Why are you calling me Senior Han? How do you know of me? Han Lis expression darkened as a burst of astonishing spiritual pressure erupted from his body, forcing the man to stumble back in retreat as his expression changed drastically.

The man steadies himself, and hurriedly replied, Senior Han, weve received portraits of your appearance several months ago from the Star Palace, and we were told to constantly be prepared to do your bidding.

I see. I didnt think the two palace masters would pay so much attention to me. An ambiguous light flashed through Han Lis eyes and a smile suddenly appeared on his face as the astonishing spiritual pressure abruptly disappeared.

The man heaved an internal sigh of relief as a fawning smile appeared on his face.

Right at this moment, Han Li turned his attention deeper into the island as he asked, Have you notified everyone else of my arrival?

The man gave an honest reply. I have. We were told to immediately notify the elder on the island of your arrival should you come here.

I see. Han Li remained expressionless and it was impossible to identify what he was thinking. However, a shiver suddenly ran down the mans spine as a hint of unease welled up in his heart.

Right at this moment, a streak of white light appeared in the distance, rapidly approaching them.

Han Li turned to look up into the sky with narrowed eyes.

Its Elder Zhao coming to welcome Senior Han in person, the man hurriedly said in a fawning manner.

Han Li merely nodded expressionlessly as he stood still with his arms crossed.

The man was slightly surprised at the sight of Han Lis careless display.

He wasnt aware of the fact that Han Li was a late-Nascent Soul cultivator. After his spiritual sense had been repelled, he didnt dare to try and ascertain Han Lis cultivation base again, so he simply assumed that he was an early-Nascent Soul cultivator that the Star Palace had only recently recruited.

The streak of white light descended before revealing an elderly man with a head of white hair. This man wore a brocade robe with a jade belt around his waist, and his brows were thin and long. He was an early-Nascent Soul cultivator.

The elderly man immediately identified Han Li from within the crowd, and his eyes lit up as he strode toward him. He cupped his fist in a salute, and said, Please forgive me for failing to provide a timely welcome, Fellow Daoist Han.

The elderly man wore a warm smile on his face, as if he and Han Li were old friends.

Han Li raised an eyebrow as he replied in an indifferent manner, Youre far too kind, fellow Daoist. I heard the situation on Silver Shark Island has been a little hectic of late, are you the one calling the shots on the island, Brother Zhao?

Hehe, there was a horde of demon beasts that attacked the island, but there wasnt even a single metamorphosis stage demon beast among them, so they were taken care of with relative ease. Im not the one overseeing things here on the island, that would be Ning Changcai. However, hes currently away at the moment, investigating the reason behind the demon beasts unprovoked attack against the island. I was actually sent here with the sole purpose of welcoming you, Fellow Daoist Han, Elder Zhao said with a smile.

You were sent here to welcome me? A hint of surprise finally appeared on Han Lis face upon hearing this.

Indeed. The palace masters have asked me to pass on a message to you: they insist on meeting you again when you return to the inner seas. Truth be told, Ive been waiting on this island for you for several months already, Fellow Daoist Han, the elderly man explained with a smile.

Oh? What business do they have with me? Han Lis brows furrowed slightly. He had a feeling that there was some serious trouble brewing.

Hehe, this is not the place to discuss such matters. Please come with me to a quieter location, Brother Han, the elderly man suggested with a mysterious smile.

Sure, then lets head over to that small mountain over there. Han Li looked around with a contemplative expression before suddenly pointing to a small mountain around 10 kilometers away.

Elder Zhao turned his gaze toward the small mountain, and immediately agreed, As you wish, Brother Han.

Han Li nodded in response, and after the elderly man delivered some instructions to the Star Palace disciples, the two of them flew toward the mountain together.

The mountain wasnt very far away, so the two of them naturally arrived in a very short time.

Han Li landed on the mountain and said in a calm voice, What message would you like to pass on from the palace masters, Fellow Daoist Zhao? You can tell me now.

Haha, theres no need to be so cautious, Brother Han, I have fantastic news to deliver to you. The elderly man stroke his beard with a smile.

Fantastic news? What are you referring to? Han Li was taken aback upon hearing this.

Fellow Daoist Han, youre not yet at 500 years of age, right? the elderly man asked with a smile.

So what if thats the case? Han Li was struck by a peculiar feeling, but he didnt deny this.

However, that split second of hesitation proved to bear lethal connotations.

A burst of spatial fluctuations suddenly appeared several tens of feet away from it. Han Li emerged from thin air with purple flames all over his body before sweeping a sleeve toward the demon tortoise.

36 small swords shot forth from his sleeve at once, transforming into over 100 streaks of golden light in the blink of an eye. The golden light formed a dense net of swords that came crashing down toward the demon tortoise.

Its you?

The demon tortoise finally caught sight of Han Lis true features, and it immediately identified him, upon which it let loose a horrified cry as if it had seen a ghost. As the sight of the streaks of golden light hurtling toward it, the demon tortoise immediately turned deathly pale.

It had seen how Han Li had used just a single streak of this golden to slay an eighth grade demon beast, and even his victims most prized treasure wasnt able to pose any resistance.

The demon tortoise was only an eighth grade demon beast itself and in its intense horror, it let loose several roars in quick succession. At the same time, it took off its long robes, which transformed into a dark cloud that came flying toward the net of swords. At the same time, inky-black demonic Qi materialized over its body as it attempted to unleash a secret technique to get away. However, right at this moment, a bone-chilling harrumph sounded from between Han Lis lips.

The demon tortoise was immediately struck by excruciating pain, as if its spiritual sense were being torn apart. It clasped its hands over its head and let loose a bloodcurdling cry as jets of black blood shot out from his ears and nose.

The demon tortoise then plummeted from the sky.

Meanwhile, the dark cloud was instantly sliced into countless segments by the net of swords, and those segments transformed into fingernail-sized tortoise shell fragments that came raining down from above.

Brilliant golden light flashed and the net of swords descended toward the demon tortoise without any pause.

The demon tortoise had only just recovered slightly from the agony of having its spiritual sense torn apart, and it was completely unable to avoid this net of swords.

In its despair, the demon beast gritted its teeth, and roared, Brother Gold, this man is the Li-surnamed man from…

However, before it had a chance to finish its sentence, Han Lis expression darkened as he abruptly activated his sword arts.

The net of swords immediately contracted as countless streaks of golden light flashed past the demon tortoises body, slicing it into countless pieces. Even the green flames manifested by its soul only flashed once before it was inundated by golden light.

It had only taken Han Li several seconds to slay the demon tortoise. His body swayed and he transformed into a streak of azure light again, covering a distance of several thousand feet in the blink of an eye.

The azure light flashed several times in the distance between completely disappearing from view.

The Golden Wyrm King was naturally unwilling to let him escape, but he was unable to catch up to Han Li, and nor was he confident that he would be able to defeat Han Li in a one-on-one battle. As such, he could only give up in his pursuit and returned to the stone peak with a thunderous expression.

A man with the surname of Li, the Golden Wyrm Kings expression suddenly changed as he murmured to himself.

At this moment, all of the other metamorphosis stage demon beasts gathered around, and their expressions were also quite strained.

A demon whose true features were obscured by the flames all over its body asked, Brother Gold, who was that late-Nascent Soul cultivator? From his voice and appearance, he doesnt appear to the Archsaint of the Six Paths, and theres no way that the Heavenly Star Sages would leave the Heavenly Star City. Could it be that hes a new great cultivator among the human race?

Im not sure. However, his cultivation arts and treasures are all very unfamiliar, so I know Ive never fought him before. It seems that theres no one among the Nascent Soul cultivators of the Scattered Star Seas that fit his description, the Golden Wyrm King replied in a dark voice.

A green-robed demon beast said with a fearful expression, This man is extremely powerful. Even Fellow Daoist Lan and Fellow Daoist Wu couldnt last more than a few seconds each against him. Hes most likely even more powerful than the Archsaint of the Six Paths and the Heavenly Star Sages.

The other demon beasts also wore the same fearful expressions. After all, most of them were eighth grade demon beasts and were no more powerful than the two eight grade demon beasts that Han Li had just slain with ease. If Han Li had set their sights on them, they wouldve also undoubtedly been killed on the spot. Many of the demon beasts had already made up their minds, if they were to ever encounter Han Li again, they would drop everything and run for their lives!

I fought the Archsaint of the Six Paths once in the past and this man does indeed appear to be an even more troublesome opponent. At the very least, without employing the use of sneak attacks, the Archsaint of the Six Paths wouldnt be able to kill our metamorphosis stage brethren so easily. However, theres no need to be too fearful of him. This is our first time clashing with him, so his skillset is very unfamiliar to us. Otherwise, he wouldnt have been able to succeed in his plan so easily, the Golden Wyrm King analyzed calmly.

Upon hearing this, some of the other demon beasts were enlightened, while the others remained silent with contemplatives looks on their faces.

Right at this moment, a ninth grade demon beast-the portly mendicant who had been battling the blue-robed man-suddenly asked, Brother Gold, what was that about a Li-surnamed man that Fellow Daoist Wu yelled before his death? Have you managed to figure it out? If I recall correctly, back when we attacked the human cultivators on their island near the Unfathomable Depths, we were searching for a cultivator with the surname of Li. Does that man have anything to do with this?

The mendicants speculation sent a stir running through the rest of the demon beasts present.

However, the Golden Wyrm Kings brows furrowed as he replied, I dont think so. Back then, I was wounded by a sneak attack from a Core Formation human cultivator, and that was why I deployed forces to hunt him down. However, that man was a late-Nascent Soul cultivator, how could it be the same person? Unless this man is a once-in-100,000-years freak prodigy, how could he have become this powerful in less than 200 years?

Thats not necessarily the case. I slew a Nascent Soul human cultivator once, and after using a soul search technique on him, I discovered that the so-called number one treasure in the human world, the Heavenvoid Cauldron, had appeared, and was obtained by a Core Formation cultivator with the surname of Han. However, after an extensive investigation by many Nascent Soul cultivators, they discovered that this man was at our outer seas for a long time, posing as a man with the surname of Li. The Heavenmend Pill in the Heavenvoid Cauldron is vastly renowned. With the assistance of this pill and the other unknown ancient pills in the cauldron, its not impossible for this man to have progressed to the late-Nascent Soul Stage so quickly, the mendicant chuckled.

All of the demons beasts were flabbergasted upon hearing this, and some of them immediately began to chat among themselves again.

The Golden Wyrm King also fell into deep thought upon hearing this. After a long while, a cold light flashed through his eyes, and he said, If youre correct, then that man may well be the same cultivator who had attacked my son all those years ago. If thats the case, then I definitely wont let him get away with this. He killed my son close to 200 years ago and now, hes responsible for the death of Fellow Daoist Wu and Lan. Furthermore, hes also taken our top-grade spirit stone and possesses a supreme treasure like the Heavenvoid Cauldron. That only gives us even more reason to capture him and offer him as a blood sacrifice.

The mendicant shook his head as he said in a cautious voice, But this man is a late-Nascent Soul cultivator and hes extremely powerful. Unless we force him into a dire situation and have more than three brethren with cultivation bases comparable to Brother Golds, we wont be able to do anything to him.

This man is indeed not someone to be scoffed at. Well have to devise a plan and invite Brother Jie and Fellow Daoist Bi to assist me. But theres no need to hurry. As long as that man remains in the Scattered Star Seas, well always have chances. Overall, this was still a triumphant trip for all of us. Even though two of our fellow Daoists have fallen by the hands of that man, we slew six Nascent Soul human cultivators and all of the spirit stone mines on the Green Spirit Island belong to our sea race now. Even though that top-grade spirit stone had been taken, there may be other top-grade spirit stones that have yet to be excavated in the mines, so theres no need to overly frustrated. Our top priority is to set up the restrictions again and gather more troops in case the human cultivators launch a counterattack. The Starfall Coalition and Star Palace wont be willing to accept defeat so easily, so we have to be prepared for them.

The Golden Wyrm King didnt seem to be very interested in the subject of revenge, and he immediately changed the topic to focus on the spirit stone mines.

These mines were going to benefit all of the demon beasts present and as expected, their attention was entirely drawn to this new topic of discussion. Only that mendicant wore a concerned expression with his brows furrowed, seemingly still a little unsettled.

At this moment, around 5,000 kilometers away, Han Li unleashed his spiritual sense to verify that there were no pursuers within a radius of several hundred kilometers before slowing down significantly.

Of course, Han Li wasnt going to return to that so-called Lightning Sky Island. Instead, he was heading straight back to Silver Shark Island.

As he flew through the air, he couldnt help but pull out that azure storage pouch before tipping out its contents with an excited look on his face. freewbnove.com

A burst of white light erupted from the storage pouch as a green thumbs-sized spirit stone appeared in his hand.

Han Li cradled the spirit stone in one hand and began to carefully assess it.

There was spiritual light revolving erratically over the surface of the spirit stone, and the brightness of the green light emanating from it was oscillating sporadically, as if it were a living being. There also seemed to be tiny white substances flowing out from the surface of the spirit stone. However, the white substance was extremely minuscule and Han Li was struggling to identify it.

Han Lis pupils contracted upon seeing this and blue light abruptly flashed through his eyes, finally allowing him to clearly see the substance within the green light.

They were spots of white light that somewhat resembled snowflakes, but also appeared to be runes.

These spots of light were relentlessly pouring out of the spirit stone before self-detonating, transforming into traces of pure wood-attribute spiritual Qi in the process. There was simply an excessive amount of spiritual Qi contained within this spirit stone, thereby forcing it to expel some out from its surface.

Han Li was both shocked and elated to see this.

This was definitely a legendary top-grade spirit stone, and it just so happened to be a wood-attribute one, so it was perfect for him.

When he thought about it, it made sense that this was a wood-attribute spirit stone. The spirit stone mines on Green Spirit Island had always yielded an abundance of wood-attribute spirit stones, so it was only to be expected that this top-grade spirit stone followed that trend.

Han Li closed his eyes and briefly sensed the wood-attribute spiritual Qi emanating from the spirit stone.

After a while, he hesitated momentarily before azure light flashed from his five fingers as he attempted to absorb the immense spiritual Qi within the stone.

This was a strange demon beast with the appearance of a seahorse, but it also had four arms. All four of its hands were cradling an azure storage pouch, and there was elation on its hideous features.

Han Lis pupils contracted minutely upon seeing this.

Right at this moment, the blue demon beast that was hovering in the sky began to converse with the four-armed demon beast through voice transmission, following which an excited look also appeared on its face. Its body flashed through the air and it flew toward the four-armed demon beast as a streak of blue light.

After witnessing the joy on the eighth grade demon beasts face, the final hint of hesitation disappeared from Han Lis heart.

He immediately relinquished his concealment technique and a thunderclap erupted behind him as his Thunderstorm Wings appeared on his back, following which he abruptly disappeared.

After flashing through the air several times, Han Li appeared over 10,000 feet away as an arc of silver lightning.

A booming thunderclap rang out and he abruptly appeared above the four-armed demon beast.

Argh!

The four-armed demon beast was also quite alert. Upon arriving at the realization that it was being attacked, it immediately opened its mouth, from within which a dense expanse of yellow light came surging forth. At the same time, it transformed into a streak of yellow light and changed directions, skirting around Han Li in the air and flying directly toward the eighth grade demon beast.

It appeared that this demon beast knew that Han Li was far too powerful for it to handle, so it showed no intention of engaging in battle with him.

However, this was but a mere sixth grade demon beast, so there was no way it was getting away from Han Li. Thus, he immediately ignored the thunderous roar of rage from the eighth grade demon beast as he swept a sleeve through the air, summoning a vast expanse of azure light.

The spots of yellow light, of which there were over 100, were easily brushed aside by the azure light, and they fell from the sky as thin yellow needles.

At the same time, Han Li raised his other arm and feigned a grabbing motion toward the four-armed demon beast.

A scene akin to how the Golden Wyrm King had handled the blue-robed man ensued.

Azure light flashed above the demon beasts head as a huge azure hand was manifested. The hand came crashing down like lightning and ensnared the demon beast in the blink of an eye, making it feel as if its soul were about to escape its body from sheer horror!

Golden light flashed violently and erratically over its body as its four arms abruptly transformed into four sharp blades, which he used to hack viciously against the large azure hand.

However, a technique unleashed by the late-Nascent Soul Stage Han Li certainly wasnt going to be broken by a mere sixth grade demon beast.

The blades were attacking the azure hand relentlessly, yet the latter remained completely unscathed.

Han Li raised an eyebrow as a cold expression appeared on his face. He brought together the five fingers on his outstretched hand and the huge azure hand also clamped its fingers together, upon which a howl of anguish abruptly rang out.

The four-armed demon beast had quite a sturdy body for a being of its level, but there was no way that it would be able to defend itself from a late-Nascent Soul cultivators attack, and its body was forcibly clamped into several segments.

Almost at the exact same moment, Han Li disappeared on the spot as an arc of silver lightning again. In the next instant, he appeared beside the demon beasts mutilated corpse before grabbing its azure storage pouch. He then quickly swept his spiritual sense through the contents of the pouch and a delighted look appeared on his face.

Leave that spirit stone!

A rumbling roar erupted from nearby. Han Li had appeared out of nowhere, killed the four-armed demon beast, and taken the treasure that the entire demon beast army had been searching for. In the aftermath of all this, it wasnt difficult to imagine the rage coursing through the eighth grade demon beasts heart. As such, it immediately let loose a roar of thunderous fury.

Furthermore, it had injected its magic power into the roar, making it audible to all of the demon beasts in a radius of several tens of kilometers.

Han Lis brows furrowed as he turned toward the demon with an expression that was cold to the extreme, as if he were appraising a dead man.

Blue light flashed and the demon beast was drawing close to Han Li. However, the glare that Han Li directed at it made it feel as if it had been plunged into a glacial pit.

The demon beast was extremely alarmed and immediately stopped cold in its tracks. Only then did it remember to assess Han Lis cultivation base with its spiritual sense, upon which it abruptly drew a sharp breath.

Youre a late-Nascent Soul cultivator? Who are you? The eighth grade demon beast took an involuntary step backward as it hurriedly flipped a hand over, summoning tow shell-like treasures. It held the treasures up in front of itself as an expression of shock and horror flashed through its eyes.

Who am I? Why should I answer to a dead person? Han Li turned his gaze from the demon as he surveyed his surroundings.

It appeared that the roar it had unleashed had taken effect. In the distance, two metamorphosis stage demon beasts were locked in heated battles with a male and a female cultivator, yet they immediately ditched their opponents, transforming into two clouds of azure demonic wind as they rushed toward Han Li.

Even further in the distance, golden light was flashing amid indistinct thunderclaps. That Golden Wyrm King was also on its way back. With that demon beasts fearsome speed, it would only take it an instant to return to this place.

Han Li contemplated the situation as a cold smile appeared on his face. He put away the storage pouch before flipping his hand over to summon a green wooden ruler.

Upon seeing this, the eighth grade demon beast immediately activated its shell-like treasures without any hesitation. White light flashed over the surfaces of the two shells, forming a resolute barrier of light that shielded the demon beast within. The demon was feeling quite relieved after adopting those defensive measures.

However, a deriding sneer appeared on Han Lis face upon seeing this. He gently waved the wooden ruler through the air and green spiritual light flashed as the sound of Buddhist chants erupted from above the demon beast. A silver lotus that was several tens of feet in diameter appeared, from which seven-colored Buddhist light came raining down in a frenzy.

The eighth grade demon beasts body swayed as it reflexively attempted to evade the Buddhist light.

However, a horrifying scene then ensued. The air around it suddenly tightened as an immense invisible force descended upon its body, making it unable to move so much as a single finger. After being enshrouded under the Buddist light, its spiritual power also congealed, rendering it completely unable to use its power.

Argh!

The demon beast only had the chance to cry out in shock and horror before a streak of golden light around 10 feet in length came hurtling toward it. The golden light only flew in a few circles around the barrier of light, upon which the light barrier emitted a cracking sound as it completely fell apart.

The golden light flashed past right before the demon beasts horrified eyes.

In the next instant, its body had been sliced in half and the two halves plummeted directly toward the ground.

However, a ball of green flames suddenly shot forth from the mutilated body. A loud thunderclap erupted as Han Li abruptly appeared near the two halves of the body before pointing a finger at the green flames.

The green light shuddered slightly and was forcibly locked in mid-air by Han Lis immense spiritual power.

With his other hand, Han Li summoned an azure jade vial, from within a burst of white light emerged.

The white light surged through the air before sweeping up the green flames and drawing it into the vial.

Right at this moment, the other two demon beasts had also drawn quite close to Han Li, but their hearts shuddered in unison upon witnessing him making short work of that eighth grade demon beast before taking its soul.

The two demon beasts hurriedly stopped in their tracks before turning to look at one another, seeing their own horror mirrored in each others eyes.

At this moment, the figure approaching from the distance was becoming clearer and as expected, it was indeed the Golden Wyrm King. There were also clouds of demonic mist of all different colors approaching from other directions, it seemed the other powerful demon beasts were also rushing back.

Han Li contemplated the situation momentarily before murmuring to himself, Seeing as Ive already obtained the spirit stone, its best not to take any unnecessary risks.

With that in mind, a smile appeared on Han Lis face and he flew into the distance was a streak of azure light.

Stop him!

The Golden Wyrm King was still several thousand feet away, yet it had already issued an absolute command.

The other two demon beasts couldnt just stand by idly any longer. If the top-grade spirit stone were to be taken right before their very eyes, they would be punished severely.

As such, they could only follow the order, making hand seals to summon two azure wind wyrms that threw themselves at Han Li in a vicious manner.

However, Han Li chortled boisterously as he disappeared on the spot, appearing over 200 feet away in the next instant as an arc of silver lightning. Only then did he continue to fly through the air as a streak of silver light, and the two wind wyrms were completely unable to match his speed!

Leave the spirit stone behind! A vicious light suddenly flashed through the Golden Wyrm Kings eyes as he hurled his golden spear from afar.

Han Li faltered slightly upon seeing this. A thunderous boom erupted and the golden spear flashed several times in quick succession, taking it to less than 400 feet away from Han Li.

When the spear disappeared once again, Han Li had already reverted back to his normal expression. His fleeing figure stall momentarily as he flipped his hand over to summon a small silver shield, which then rapidly expanded to around 10 feet in diameter.

Almost at the exact same moment, the golden spear appeared around 10 feet away from Han Li. Lightning flashed and the spear struck the silver shield at an incredible speed.

A loud clang rang out as golden and silver light intertwined, and neither side was able to overwhelm the other.

The Golden Wyrm King also stopped in mid-air as he hurriedly cast an incantation seal. A silver lightning snake shot forth from the spear amid a rumbling thunderclap, circling around the shield and heading directly toward Han Li.

Hmph, what a pathetic little trick! Han Li harrumphed as he reached out with his bare hand.

He didnt appear to be moving all that quickly, but his hand managed to grab onto the silver lightning snakes neck with unerring accuracy. At the same time, an explosive boom erupted from his entire arm, following which golden arcs of lightning began to appear.

The golden arcs surged down his arm in a frenzy, destroying the silver snake in one fell swoop.

In the distance, the Golden Wyrm Kings expression changed slightly upon seeing this. However, Han Li didnt stop there. After destroying the lightning snake, he slammed a palm into the silver shield before him.

A layer of piercing silver light immediately surfaced over the shield, making it as smooth as a mirror.

The golden spear tremored and was repelled by the silver light as it was sent flying over 80 feet away.

Han Li took advantage of this opportunity to fly toward a certain direction as a streak of azure light. However, he wasnt conserving his spiritual power in the slightest this time. After unleashing his maximal speed, the streak of azure light covered a distance of over 1,000 feet in the span of a few breaths.

Coincidentally, there was a black streak of light containing a demon beast flying directly toward him, and it was none other than that demon tortoise that had accompanied the Golden Wyrm King.

Han Li was traveling far too quickly for the demon tortoise to get a clear look at his appearance. However, it had witnessed Han Li slaying an eighth grade demon beast before blocking an attack from the Golden Wyrm King with ease.

As such, the demon tortoises expression changed drastically upon seeing Han Li flying in its direction.

It immediately changed directions in an attempt to avoid Han Li.

A cold light appeared in Han Lis eyes upon seeing this, and the azure light around him suddenly flashed violently before vanishing.

The vast expanse of space before him suddenly became completely empty.

The demon tortoise couldnt help but falter upon seeing this, and it slowed down slightly in the process.

The blue-robed mans actions seemed to have acted as a signal, prompting all of the other Nascent Soul cultivators to unleash incredible secret techniques. Some of them disappeared on the spot amid bursts of white light, some of them threw up mouthfuls of blood essence and fled into the distance as streaks of crimson light, in any case, all of them fleeing with all their might, even if doing so necessitated the infliction of severe self-harm.

Hmph! A cold harrumph rang out in the air as a frosty look appeared on the Golden Wyrm Kings face. It waved a hand and a loud thunderclap erupted, following which a streak of golden and silver light shot forth through the air.

The demonic cultivator had hurled its golden spear directly toward the blue-robed man.

As soon as the spear left its hand, it disappeared in the flash.

Crap!

The blue-robed man was paying close attention to the Golden Wyrm King, and his heart shuddered upon seeing this as he immediately tossed his azure mirror behind him.

Azure light erupted, creating the projection of a full moon that was several tens of feet in diameter. The moon projection was azure in color and encapsulated the blue-robed mans body within.

Almost at the exact same moment as the moon projections emergence, a golden spear that was over 100 feet in length appeared nearby. Silver lightning flashed along the spear before striking the very center of the azure moon.

The surface of the azure moon cracked like a mirror and as the huge spear continued onward, the moon projection was completely destroyed.

Argh! The blue-robed man was extremely alarmed to see this, and the purple light on his body swayed as he attempted to unleash a secret technique to get away.

However, right at this instant, the huge spear shrank to about half its size and shot forth from within the remnants of the moon projection before striking the purple light in the flash.

A resounding boom erupted.

The handkerchief was quite a powerful treasure in its own right, as evidenced by the fact that the purple light it was manifesting was able to keep the spear at bay. Even so, the blue-robed man felt as if he had been dealt a heavy blow, and was completely unable to control his own body as he was sent flying for several tens of feet.

The Golden Wyrm King raised a leg and somehow managed to cover a distance of over 100 feet with a single step. Its body only had to flash through the air a few times before it caught up to the blue-robed man before reaching out with its hand.

Golden light shimmered over its five fingers, making it appear as if they were constructed from pure gold.

The blue-robed man had only just recovered slightly from the last attack when he caught sight of the Golden Wyrm King reaching for him from nearby. In his panic, he hurriedly opened his mouth to blast out a ball of green light. It was a green fist-sized bead.

The golden claws clashed with the green bead amid a loud clang, as well as the loud earsplitting screech of metal scraping against metal. The green bead instantly expanded drastically, attempting to free itself from the Golden Wyrm Kings hand.

A cold light flashed through the Golden Wyrm Kings eyes as nails of several feet in length abruptly sprouted from its five fingers. At the same time, a golden scale of roughly the same size as a copper coin appeared on the back of his hand.

Following a dull thump, it was able to crush the bead with its bare hand.

A burst of piercing green light flashed past, yet the golden claws remained completely unscathed.

The Dragonification Arts! The blue-robed man exclaimed in the same instant that the bead was destroyed. At the same time, he threw up a mouthful of blood essence due to the backlash he had incurred from having his magic treasure destroyed. However, the exchange did buy him some him, allowing him to rush through the air again and opening up a distance of over 100 feet in the blink of an eye.

On this occasion, the Golden Wyrm King didnt set off in pursuit again. Instead, its expression darkened slightly as it slowly threw a fist at the streak of purple light in the distance.

A huge golden fist around 10 feet in size suddenly appeared in the air directly above the purple light, before crashing down at the speed of lightning.

Following a thunderous boom, the blue-robed man was struck down by the massive fist, plummeting like a meteorite toward the stone peak. His body crashed straight through a pavilion, leaving a huge gaping hole several tens of feet in diameter in his wake, before being inundated by countless fragments of rubble.

A cold smile appeared on the Golden Wyrm Kings face. Its body swayed and in the next instant, it appeared directly in front of the huge hold in the pavilions wall.

It raised an arm and shiny golden light erupted from its palm as it prepared to put an end to the blue-robed mans life.

However, right at this instant, his expression changed and he abruptly feigned a grabbing motion toward the gates of the pavilion. As he did so, he yelled, Whos there? Show yourself?

Five golden claw projections streaked through the air before disappearing into the ground.

Five trenches, each several tens of feet in length, were gouged into the ground in front of the pavilion. The trenches were incredible deep, yet they didnt strike any target aside from the ground.

A hint of bewilderment flashed through the Golden Wyrm Kings eyes up seeing this. A moment ago, he had suddenly been struck by a hint of fear without any premonition. This bone-chilling sensation sent a shiver running down his spine, and he lashed out without any hesitation.

He hadnt actually discovered anything, it was his instinct as a heavenly spirit beast that had prompted him to attack in a reflexive manner.

During his tens of thousands of years of cultivation, this sense of foreboding had saved his life on several occasions.

However, now that the attack had failed to strike any target, the Golden Wyrm King was left feeling a little hesitant, wondering if that sensation had merely been a figment of his imagination.

After all, that sense of foreboding had proven to be incorrect on several occasions in the past.

It was just that the chilling sensation that he had just experienced was a little too strong, as if there were some sort of extremely dangerous being spying on him from the shadows and even now, there was still fear lingering in his heart.

Just as he was considering widening the scope of his search. a pile of rubble at the foot of the massive hole in the pavilion suddenly stirred before reverting back to normal.

However, that split second of abnormality was enough to draw the Golden Wyrm Kings attention. He scanned his gaze across the pile of rubble beneath him, upon which a flash of killing intent surfaced on his face.

He immediately reached out and feigned a grabbing motion.

Following a resounding boom, that golden spear appeared once again with lightning snakes arcing over its surface.

He grabbed the spear before viciously swinging it downward.

Arcs of silver light flashed as the spear transforming into a streak of blinding golden light, hurtling downward before disappearing mid-away again. When it was revealed once again, the spear had already plunged into the ground in a certain spot over 200 feet away from the pavilion.

The golden spear disappeared into the ground with a loud boom.

A muffled groan then rang out as the ground nearby completely crumbled. Countless rock fragments shot forth in all directions, from within which a streak of purple light emerged. The purple light contained none other than the blue-robed man.

However, at this moment, the blue-robed mans face was extremely pale and there was blood trickling down the corner of his lips. The brightness of the purple light over his body was also oscillating sporadically, looking as if it were about to crumble at any moment. The purple light was indeed quite powerful, but after taking several heavy attacks from the Golden Wyrm King, it was finally about to give out.

As soon as the blue-robed man was forced to reveal himself, he fled in a panicked frenzy away from the stone peak.

The sinister smile on the Golden Wyrm Kings face widened and he reached out again, upon which the golden spear materialized out of thin air.

He then waved his arm through the air again to launch the golden spear. The speed of the fleeing blue-robed man had already decreased drastically, and even though he summoned a shield and metal ruler to defend himself, those two treasures were completely ineffective in the face of the golden spear.

Two loud booms erupted in quick succession as the two treasures were destroyed, while the golden spear continued onward.

The blue-robed man tried to evade with all his might, but the spear was simply far too fast for him to avoid.

In the end, the golden spear punctured the feeble layer of purple light and pierced through his chest.

The blue-robed man let loose a howl of anguish before plummeting down from above. He crashed straight to the ground, where he lay, completely stationary. A charred black hole with a diameter comparable to the size of a bowl had appeared on his chest. Several thin arcs of lightning were flashing incessantly around the wound, and the smell of charred flesh wafted through the air.

The Golden Wyrm King raised a hand to summon the golden spear back to him as he harrumphed coldly. Hmph, you think a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator like you can escape from me? What a joke!

He then swept his arm through the air again, and several fingernails shot forth, expanding drastically during their decent. In the blink of an eye, they had swelled to become huge golden nails around a foot in length before pinning the blue-robed mans limbs and neck firmly to the ground.

Runes began to flash over the nails as several golden chains emerged, forcibly sealing the blue-robed man in place in order to prevent his Nascent Soul from escaping.

The Golden Wyrm King feigned a grabbing motion toward the blue-robed man, drawing the storage pouch hanging from his waist toward him. He then swept his spiritual sense through the contents of his storage pouch, upon which his expression immediately darkened.

He raised his head with a dark expression as he swept his gaze around him.

A short while later, two of the other fleeing Nascent Soul cultivators had been caught up in battles against demon beast opponents again, while a grey-robed gourd-wielding cultivator and a cloud of blood mist fled into the distance. In the blink of an eye, they had already become two black spots on the horizon.

There were demon beasts flying toward the grey-robed man in hot pursuit, yet the cloud of blood mist was getting further and further away from his demon beast opponents, traveling at a far faster speed than his pursuers.

The Golden Wyrm Kings lips twitched as he looked at the cloud of blood mist in the distance. He contemplated momentarily before his body flashed through the air, transforming into a streak of golden light as he hurtled toward the blood mist.

As the golden light flashed into the distance, Han Li heaved a faint sigh of relief as he stood behind the pavilion gates.

When the blue-robed man had been sent flying into the pavilion, he had been tempted to quickly subdue him before searching to see if he were carrying the top-grade spirit stone. However, he deemed that to be too risky in the end, and refrained from doing so.

To his surprise, the Golden Wyrm Kings spiritual sense was able to detect something during Han Lis split second of indecision, the attack he had unleashed almost managed to strike Han Li.

Thankfully, he had mastered his teleportation technique to an extremely high degree, thereby allowing him to soundless travel to the other side of the pavilion gates, causing the Golden Wyrm King to miss his attack.

From the Golden Wyrm Kings expression, it appeared that the top-grade spirit stone wasnt in the blue-robed mans storage pouch, and nor could he possibly be carrying the spirit stones on his body somewhere.

After all, if an item with such pure spiritual Qi werent placed in a storage pouch, anyone would be able to identify its whereabouts.

Han Li paid no heed to the blue-robed man on the ground and turned his attention to the air above.

Beneath the blue demonic mist, there was only an unidentifiable eighth grade demonic cultivator. He was hovering in the air, completely still, seemingly having been left behind by the Golden Wyrm King to oversee the situation on the stone peak.

This demonic cultivators face was of a faint blue hue and his facial features were quite sinister. There were also large patches of blue scales on his arms and legs, giving him an extremely ghastly appearance.

All of a sudden, he turned his gaze toward a certain direction.

Han Li stirred upon seeing this and also turned his attention toward the same direction.

A ball of light yellow light was flying over from the distance, within which there seemed to be a demon beast that was carrying something.

A blue light flashed through Han Lis eyes as he unleashed his Brightsight Spirit Eyes to survey the demon beast within the yellow light.

Hehe, even if youre willing to let us get away with this, we still wont rest until we get our hands on the spirit stone, Brother Tang. I discovered the news about the spirit stone by using a soul search technique on the person who discovered the spirit stone, so dont try to fool me, the fatso chuckled coldly as his flabby folds tremored incessantly.

So you were the ones who killed Protector Li! The blue-robed fan faltered initially upon hearing this before flying into a thunderous rage. He waved his azure mirror through the air and several thick pillars of light were launched toward his opponent.

So youre not going to deny your possession of the spirit stone anymore? A deriding sneer appeared on the fatsos face as the round bowl in front of him blasted out a burst of yellow light, which absorbed all of the oncoming pillars of light.

So what if I do? Everyone knows that top-grade spirit stones are extraordinarily useful for breaking through bottlenecks, theres no way Id hand it over to you demon beasts! Are you not afraid that the Star Palace will be the one to benefit from our battle in the end? The blue-robed mans enraged expression faded as he quickly calmed down.

Star Palace? You think its just our sea race thats attacking your Starfall Coalition? Let me tell you the truth, our sea race has developed all of our most powerful beings this time, and not only are we going to take the top-grade spirit stone, were going to take back all of the spirit mines on this island as well! The outer seas rightfully belong to our sea race, for you human cultivators to even think about taking a share of the spirit stones on this island is nothing more than a joke! We only allowed you to thrive for as long as you did because we hadnt yet gathered all of the forces we required. The fatso raised his flabby neck and a peculiar expression appeared on his face.

Elder Tangs expression changed drastically upon hearing this.

All of a sudden, a burst of howling erupted in the distance, as if to support the fatsos claims. Another burst of blue demonic mist then came sweeping forth from that direction, seemingly containing countless demon beasts within.

Haha, looks like the Star Palace cultivators have already been taken care of. As expected, mobilizing our troops before taking down one side first was the right course of action. None of you will be able to escape now! The fatso burst into raucous laughter upon seeing this. Large swathes of yellow light surged from his round bowl in a frenzy, hurtling directly toward the blue-robed man down below. At the same time, the golden rings around his arms also shot forth before transforming into layers of projections and descending at a frenetic pace.

Seeing as reinforcements had arrived, the demon beast immediately increased the intensity of his attacks, not allowing his opponent to get away. The blue-robed mans expression was twisted with shock and rage, yet he found himself unable to escape from his opponent.

Similar scenes were unfolding in the other battles nearby as well. All of the metamorphosis stage demon beasts began to unleash torrential barrages of attacks without any consideration for their demonic power reserves. Spiritual light of all different colors intertwined as loud rumbling booms erupted.

None of the Starfall Coalition Nascent Soul cultivators were able to shake off their opponents to get away from this place.

On the other side, the cloud of blue demonic mist as approaching as fast as lightning and in the blink of an eye, it had already drawn so close that the sinister features of the demon beasts within were clearly visible.

Even the Starfall Coalition cultivators with the slowest reactions had realized that they were in deep trouble at this point. In the end, someone suddenly yelled, Retreat!

All of the low-grade cultivators down below immediately fled in all directions, while the Nascent Soul cultivators in the air above all began to search for opportunities to extricate themselves from their respective battles. Some adopted a more defensive approach as they slowly retreated toward the stone peak, while others unleashed powerful attacks with all their might, hoping to temporarily force back their demon beast opponents before taking the opportunity to flee. There were also some who had secret techniques that could help them escape, so they were combating their opponents in a calm manner while scanning their eyes across their surroundings, seemingly in search of something. Meanwhile, Han Li was initially planning to get away, but those plans were immediately aborted upon hearing the words top-grade spirit stone.

Even though he had never seen any legendary top-grade spirit stones, he had seen records of their miraculous effects in countless tomes.

Setting aside the fact that this spirit stone was a compulsory item for setting up several types of legendary primordial formation spells in the human world, just its effect in assisting cultivators in breaking through bottlenecks alone was an extremely tempting prospect.

Furthermore, this assistance effect was applicable to all cultivators from the Core Formation to the Deity Transformation Stages. Of course, the more advanced ones cultivation base, the less pronounced the spirit stones effect would become. Even so, top-grade spirit stones were still extremely sought-after among cultivators of the human world.

Now that a top-grade spirit stone had been extracted from one of the mines here, it was no wonder that the Starfall Coalition was immediately gathering their Nascent Soul cultivators, while the demon beast didnt hesitate in the slightest to launch an attack against this island. Seeing as one top-grade spirit stone had been excavated from the mine, there would perhaps be a second or even a third one in the mine.

Han Li took a deep breath and quickly made sense of the situation.

Seeing as such a rare treasure had appeared before him, he certainly wasnt going to give up on it without a fight.

However, it was a rather difficult predicament to identify just who was carrying the top-grade spirit stone.

Theoretically, a treasure of this caliber naturally had to be assigned to the person with the highest cultivation base for safekeeping. In that case, the blue-robed man would fit the bill. However, it could also be the case that the blue-robed man had intentionally given the spirit stone to a certain nondescript low-grade cultivator, who would then sneak the spirit stone out of the island.

If the latter strategy were employed, then no matter how powerful he was, he wouldnt be able to capture all of the Starfall Coalition cultivators, especially not with so many powerful demon beasts around as well.

Han Lis brows furrowed as he carefully contemplated the situation, but his expression then immediately relaxed.

The intelligence of those metamorphosis stage demon beasts definitely wasnt inferior to that of human cultivators, so they had most definitely already considered this problem as well. As such, even if he didnt do anything, the invading demon beasts definitely wouldnt allow any Starfall Coalition cultivators to escape, either. All he had to do was to swoop in and take the spirit stone as soon as it appeared. At his current power level, none of the demon beasts and cultivators here would be able to stop him.

With that in mind, Han Li stood in front of the pavilion and continued to conceal his presence as he surveyed the battle with a cold expression.

As expected, around 200 to 300 demon beasts suddenly rushed out from the demonic mist approaching from the distance, al of whom began to pursue the low-grade cultivators on the island.

Most of these demon beasts were only at the third or fourth grades, but there were also about a dozen or so fifth grade demon beasts. All of the human cultivators were being pursued by a demon beast of a concurrent power level.

In the face of such a formidable army, it really was rather implausible that any of the cultivators would be able to escape from the island.

The blue demonic mist instantly arrived in the air directly above the battlefield before merging with the original cloud of mist. A burst of extremely powerful demonic Qi rose into the sky, following which a ball of golden flames shot forth from within.

A brilliant light flashed before a demonic cultivator in a suit of golden plate armor appeared.

The demonic cultivator had the head of a wyrm and the body of a human. It was wielding a golden spear, along which silver arcs of light were flashing, forming a long and thin lightning snake that flowed along the surface of the spear. It was quite apparent that this was no ordinary treasure. As for that suit of golden plate armor, it was constructed from countless golden scales, each and every one of which were carrying tiny runes that were emanating demonic Qi.

As soon as this demonic cultivator appeared, a burst of sharp light shot forth from its wyrm eyes as an extremely powerful spiritual sense instantly enshrouded the entire stone peak.

All of the Nascent Soul cultivators were still engaged in heated battles with their respective demon beast opponents, and their hearts sank in unison.

The blue-robed mans face turned deathly pale upon seeing this demonic cultivator, and he yelled with incredulity, Golden Wyrm King! Impossible! How could you go against our agreement and come here in person?

This Wyrm was a tenth grade demon beast!

Why cant I come here? If you want me to uphold the agreement, then you humans have to show me that you have what it takes. Its been 3,000 years since a Deity Transformation cultivator has appeared among your ranks, and a top-grade spirit stone is at stake here, so why should I uphold the agreement? The wyrm spoke with a cold expression.

Right at this moment, two more demonic cultivators emerged from the demonic mist. One of them was a black-robed being with red hair, a green face, and a mouthful of sharp fangs. It was quite tall and broad, and was somewhat familiar to Han Li.

Huh? Isnt that the demon tortoise that was with the Savage Flood Dragon? Han Lis heart jolted at the sight of the golden wyrm before surprised look appeared on his face upon seeing the black-robed demonic cultivator. His expression immediately darkened as he hurriedly cast his gaze toward the demonic mist, but no other demonic cultivators emerged from within.

Han Lis brows furrowed upon seeing this, but he didnt recklessly unleash his spiritual sense or spirit eyes to assess the situation.

After all, a tenth grade demon beasts spiritual sense was extremely powerful. He could avoid being discovered by the Golden Wyrm King using his concealment technique, but he would be immediately exposed if he were to release his spiritual sense.

Seeing as this Golden Wyrm King had appeared, the Starfall Coalition cultivators were most likely all going to be killed. However, it was rather surprising to Han Li to see the demon tortoise here with this Golden Wyrm King. Could it be that the latter was somehow related to the Savage Flood Dragon?

Upon hearing the Golden Wyrm Kings declaration, panicked expressions appeared on the faces of all of the human cultivators on the stone peak, and the blur-robed mans heart sank even further.

However, he was a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator, and he certainly wasnt going to give up so easily. All of a sudden, he let loose a shrill cry and the blue flying sword that was wreaking havoc within the demonic mist suddenly exploded amid a loud boom.

This flying sword was quite a powerful ancient treasure, and after being forcibly detonated by Elder Tang, the power it could unleash was simply unimaginable to normal cultivators. A massive ball of silvery-white light appeared in the air above the stone peak, repelling all of the blue mist that was emanating from the fatsos mouth. The projections formed by his two golden rings were also destroyed with ease.

The fatsos heart jolted with shock upon seeing this, and he hurriedly injected all of his power into the round bowl before him. The vast expanse of yellow light instantly transformed into a protective barrier of light in front of him. At the same time, he hurtled back in a rapid retreat.

The blue-robed man took advantage of this opportunity to summon a purple handkerchief, which he immediately activated without any hesitation.

The handkerchief transformed into a ball of purple light that enshrouded the blue-robed man before flying through the air as a purple streak of light, traveling so rapidly that it had covered a distance of over 200 feet in the blink of an eye.

Han Li chuckled and didnt say anything else. The jade slip in his hand shuddered as he inserted his spiritual sense within.

After reading through just a few sentences, Han Lis expression suddenly changed drastically. There was an initial flash of surprise, followed by incredulity, then elation.

Man Huzis Nascent Soul was rather perplexed by his reaction.

However, it was indeed true that he hadnt tampered with the cultivation art, so he had no need to worry about anything.

After 15 minutes, Han Li had already finished reading through the jade slip, taking much less time than Man Huzi had anticipated he would. Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense from the jade slip and his expression became rather confused.

Brother Man, where did you learn this Heavenbearing Devil Art? Do you know its origins? Han Li asked.

Origins? This is a renowned cultivation art in the Scattered Star Seas that has been passed down for a long time. Its no less renowned than the Archsaint of the Six Paths Six Apex Devils Art. Its just that this cultivation art has always been passed down to only one person per generation, and I only managed to learn it after I encountered my master. Why do you ask? Is there something amiss about this cultivation art? the Nascent Soul asked.

No, no! Han Li shook his head in response before flipping his hand over, upon which the jade slip disappeared.

After witnessing the wide array of emotions Han Li had just displayed, Man Huzi certainly wasnt going to believe that. However, he didnt pry any further into the matter. Brother Han, if you dont have the time to cultivate this art, then just pass it on to any disciple of yours. The inheritance of the Heavenbearing Devil Arts must go on.

His top priority was naturally to engulf Zenith Yins Nascent Soul, so he immediately continued, Seeing as youve already seen the cultivation art, would I be able to begin now?

Red light flashed in the Nascent Souls eyes and a solemn look appeared on its face as it spoke.

Han Li glanced at the frozen Zenith Yin before a smile appeared on his face as he asked, Of course. Youre a little feeble at the moment, though, would you like me to assist you?

Thank you for your kind offer, but that wont be necessary. My current magic power isnt comparable to even a tenth of what it once was, but its still more than enough to handle an immobilized cultivator. Man Huzi shook his head with a confident look.

Alright, then Ill be waiting outside. Han Li smiled and didnt say anything further. His body swayed and he appeared at the entrance before slowly making his way out of the stone chamber.

Thus, only Man Huzi and the frozen Zenith Yin were left in the chamber.

Man Huzi turned to Zenith Yin and a sinister look appeared on his face. Zenith Yin was completely immobilized, but there was a horrified look in his eyes. Meanwhile, Han Li was standing in the passageway outside the stone chamber, silently surveying the jade slip in his hand.

The stone chamber was completely silent. After around 15 minutes, a weary voice sounded from within.

Fellow Daoist Han, you can come in now. The voice belonged to none other than Man Huzi, but it was slightly hoarse.

Han Li raised an eyebrow as he put his hands together, upon which the jade slip in his hand disappeared without a trace again.

He then made his way into the stone chamber.

The massive block of blue ice was still completely untouched, but Zenith Yins eyes had already completely rolled over and he was clearly very much dead.

Meanwhile, the Nascent Soul was hovering over the block of ice. It had grown a little in size and was filled with vitality, creating a strong contrast with its previous feeble state. However, it wore an exhausted expression on its little face as it said, You have my thanks, Brother Han. Ive only temporarily recovered most of my energy and I must take this opportunity to pass on to the afterlife. Otherwise, my efforts would all be wasted. My secret cave abode is located at…As the Nascent Soul began to disclose the location of its collection, it fell silent and began to transmit its voice to Han Li instead.

Han Li listened carefully before nodding expressionlessly.

The Nascent Soul exhaled, and calmly said, Alright, Ive exacted my revenge, so its time for me to pass on now. Farewell, Fellow Daoist Han.Its body then swayed as it flew toward a corner of the stone chamber, where it sat down with its legs folded in front of itself.

Dazzling golden light erupted from the Nascent Souls body and its aura became extremely unsteady, oscillating between strong peaks and feeble troughs.

A smile appeared on Han Lis face as he turned his attention away from Man Huzis Nascent Soul. Instead, he rubbed his hands together before raising them.

A loud thunderclap erupted as several thick arcs of golden lightning struck the massive block of ice. The ice exploded amid a flurry of golden light, and Zenith Yins frozen body was shattered into countless pieces.

Han Li inspected the remains carefully to ensure that there wasnt a soul fragment or a second primal soul or something of that nature. After verifying that, he nodded with a content expression before turning away.

Right at this moment, a series of cracks had already surfaced on the Nascent Souls shimmering body. Golden light flashed from within the cracks and it was as if golden liquid were about to spill out.

Han Lis eyes narrowed as he stared intently at Man Huzis Nascent Soul, but he didnt say anything.

Following a faint thump, the entire Nascent Soul exploded into specks of golden light before disappearing.

After witnessing Man Huzis Nascent Soul passing on to the afterlife, Han Li heaved a faint sigh. He flicked a finger at Zenith Yins remains on the ground, and a fireball shot forth, enshrouding everything in scorching flames.

Han Li didnt stay behind to watch everything burn. He transformed into a streak of golden light before disappearing from the stone chamber in the blink of an eye.

Han Li didnt need to fear anything when escaping from this place, so he traveled at full speed and quickly reached the end of the passageway.

A stone wall that was shimmering with spiritual light stood in his way.

Han Li immediately raised a hand without any hesitation. Golden light began to flash from his fingertip as he prepared to summon sword Qi to slice through the wall.

However, right at this moment, an earthshattering boom suddenly erupted. The entire passageway began to tremor and quake while emitting a rumbling echo.

Han Li was slightly surprised by this turn of event, but his hands didnt slow down in the slightest. Several streaks of golden light layered on top of one another before flying through the air and slicing through the stone wall.

Han Lis body swayed and he emerged on the other side.

He had emerged on the first level of the pavilion, and the stone wall that he had just broken through was a secret door located in a corner of the pavilion.

As soon as he emerged from the passageway, the rumbling and quaking were exacerbated by severalfold. There was raucous laughter, cries of rage, and loud explosions erupting outside. It was as if the entire stone peak had become a battlefield and there were people engaged in battle outside.

Han Lis brows furrowed, yet a streak of red light suddenly came flying into the pavilion from outside. Before the incoming cultivator had even identified the man inside the pavilion, he immediately began to yell, Bad news! The demon beasts of the Ironstone Peak have suddenly… Eh? Who are you? Wheres Elder Wu?

The cultivator was stunned upon making the discovery that the man standing in the hall wasnt actually Zenith Yin.

Han Li chuckled coldly before opening his mouth, upon which golden light flashed from within, and a cry of anguish rang out.

The cultivator within the red light had been sliced in half before he even figured out what was going on.

This Starfall Coalition Core Formation cultivator was very unlucky. He didnt even manage to get a good look at Han Li before his life was forfeit.

However, Han Li roughly understood the situation from what the Core Formation cultivator had said prior to being killed. It appeared that the demon beasts in the sea had suddenly attacked the Starfall Coalition.

He was rather confused about the situation, but he didnt want to get involved in these affairs. As such, he made a hand seal and withdrew his aura, completely concealing his presence. He then strutted straight out of the pavilion.

However, before he had even reached the main gate, he heard a thunderous roar erupting from up above.

Fellow Daoist Tang, our sea race has deployed a large number of metamorphosis stage brethren this time, theres no way your Starfall Coalition will be able to contend with us. If youre smart, youd hand over that top-grade spirit stone right now. Perhaps we can consider letting you live, then.

The owner of the voice sounded rather wheezy and out of breath, yet he possessed an astonishing cultivation base. All of the low-grade Starfall Coalition cultivators outside the pavilion were struck by a sense of physical debilitation just by hearing this voice, and the spiritual power within their powers also congealed as a result.

Han Lis heart jolted upon hearing the words top-grade spirit stone. He immediately shot through the gates of the pavilion and looked up into the sky.

A mass brawl was taking place there and spiritual light was shimmering incessantly amid strings of resounding booms. There were several tens of cultivators engaged in intense battles with some strange-looking demon beasts. In the air above, blue cloud and mist had almost obscured the entire sky.

Beneath the cloud and mist, there were also several battles taking place. There was a thin blue-robed elderly man holding an azure mirror in his hand, from which countless streaks of piercing azure light were hurtling through the air. In his other hand, he was wielding a blue flying sword that was as powerful as a raging flood dragon.

Before him stood an incredibly tall and portly mendicant. There was a golden ring around each of his two arms and he was holding a round bowl in his hand. At the same time, he was expelling blue mist from his mouth, and was able to keep all of the blue-robed mans attacks at bay. The thunderous roars were coming from none other than that massive mendicants mouth.

Blue light flashed through his eyes as he appraised the mendicant, and he noticed several shimmering silver scales on his neck.

Elsewhere, a man and a woman were battling a scholar with a pair of short horns on his head. There was also a grey-robed elderly man releasing gusts of Yin winds from a gourd, and he was locked in an intense battle with a humanoid figure who was completely enshrouded in crimson flames. Slightly further away, there was a large cloud of crimson mist tumbling and surging incessantly, from within which indistinct roars and explosions could be heard. There seemed to be a fierce battle taking place in there as well.

It was difficult to determine which side would be able to come out on top in this battle. However, it appeared that the Starfall Coalition had been correct to summon all of their Nascent Soul cultivators back to this island.

Otherwise, the guards on the stone mountain wouldve been no match for this demon beast army.

The blue-robed mans expression remained unchanged, yet he was injecting even more power into his treasure as he calmly said, What top-grade spirit stone? Where did you hear this false rumor from? I dont have any top-grade spirit stones.

Youre still trying to hide it from me now, Brother Tang? Dont you find that to be farcical? Clouds of blue mist continued to pour out from the huge mendicants mouth as a disdainful look appeared on his face.

The blue-robed mans expression cooled even further as he replied, So you really did come here based on a rumor alone. How can top-grade spirit stones exist in the human world? You arrived unannounced and unprovoked, killing so many of our Starfall Coalition cultivators, I wont allow you to get away with this.

Man Huzi!

Only then did Han Li notice the physical appearance of the Nascent Soul, a discovery that he was quite shocked to make.

If his memory served correct, Man Huzi had almost reached the end of his lifespan when Han Li last saw him. Now, close to 200 years had passed by, so he shouldve passed away already. So how was it that his Nascent Soul continued to exist, and how had it been captured by Zenith Yin?

In his confusion, Han Li set aside his intention to kill Zenith Yin right away. Instead, he began to carefully assess Man Huzis Nascent Soul.

All of a sudden, he raised a hand and feigned a grabbing motion.

A large azure hand appeared above the Nascent Soul before swooping down like lightning, immediately ensnaring the Nascent Soul between his five fingers.

Spiritual light was shimmering over his hand, and the Nascent Soul was completely unable to move.

Theres no need to be so cautious, Fellow Daoist Han. In my current state, I wont even be able to use any teleportation techniques, how will I be able to escape? Man Huzi wasnt making any effort to try and struggle free from Han Lis grasp.

Hmph, that may not actually be the case. I didnt think that you would survive for this long. I recall that back in the Heavenvoid Hall all those years ago, you seemed to have harbored ill intentions against me as well. Are you appearing before me now so I can send you on your way as well? Han Li asked with a dark expression.

Youve already reached the late-Nascent Soul Stage, so if youd like to exact your revenge for what happened in the Heavenvoid Hall, then you have every right to do so. However, you were only a mere Core Formation cultivator back then, I think anyone in my situation back then wouldve tried to hunt you down. Even if you dont kill me, Ive already expended the last of remaining energy to break through that restriction just then, so my time in this world is very much limited. The Nascent Soul didnt appear to fear death at all.

Han Li was silent for a moment before saying something that came as a huge surprise to Man Huzi. Thats certainly true! In your current feeble state, it wont be long before your Nascent Soul dissipates. Im not an ungrateful person, even though you did harbor animosity toward me in the Heavenvoid Hall, the Royal Scale Plate you gave me saved my life once. As such, I wont put an end to your life here. Neither of us owes the other anything now!

Man Huzi faltered initially upon hearing this before a wry smile appeared on his face as he replied, I didnt give you that treasure out of generosity or kindness, I was merely trying to use you! You dont need to pay that any heed.

I dont care what your intentions were, the fact of the matter is that the Royal Scale Plate really did save my life once. However, dont expect me to save you, either. Whether you survive or die here will be entirely up to you. Han Li waved a hand, and the large azure hand in the air disappeared, freezing Man Huzis Nascent Soul once again.

He then turned his attention to the massive block of ice off to the side.

Man Huzis Nascent Soul took a deep breath before glaring at the frozen Zenith Yin as he asked again, Fellow Daoist Han, I have a blood feud with this Zenith Yin. Could you leave him to me and grant me my final wish to kill him before I die?

I also have a vendetta against Zenith Yin, so Ill be the one to put an end to him. Theres no need for you to intervene, Han Li immediately turned him down.

Im willing to offer some rare materials and my own secret technique tome in exchange for this opportunity. Man Huzi suddenly became extremely flustered upon hearing this and he hurriedly offered a reward to try and change Han Lis mind.

Han Li turned to look back at the Nascent Soul, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

Tell me what your true intentions are. Im not naive enough to believe that youd be willing to pay such a heavy price just for revenge. If you tell me your true intentions and your plan isnt detrimental to me in any way, then I might agree to let you do the honors. Also, Im very interested to hear how you were able to survive until this point and how you ended up in Zenith Yins hands. I hope you can impart this knowledge upon me, Han Li said in a slow voice.

Upon hearing this, the urgent expression on the Nascent Souls face slowly disappeared and was replaced by a hesitant look.

Man Huzi heaved a long sigh and finally made up his mind. So be it, theres no need for me to keep this a secret from you. Let me tell you everything.

Id be honored to hear it! Han Li replied calmly.

He then waved a sleeve toward the block of ice, upon which all of the golden flying swords were withdrawn by a burst of azure light before disappearing into his sleeve in the blink of an eye.

Man Huzi began to tell his story through gritted teeth. Youre actually aware of this already, Fellow Daoist Han, back over 100 years ago, I was already about to reach the end of my lifespan. I managed to obtain some pills and medicines that could extend my lifespan in the Heavenvoid Hall, but that was only delaying the inevitable. The only reason why my Nascent Soul still exists is because Zenith Yin used a cruel secret technique to completely overexert my Nascent Souls latent potential, thereby forcing me to survive through his torture. As a price for extending my lifespan, when my spiritual power runs out and my Nascent Soul dissipates in the end, my soul wont be able to exist in this world, so theres no chance of reincarnation for me.

Han Li didnt say anything in response. He knew that Man Huzi was only building up context for the rest of his story.

As expected, Man Huzi required no encouragement as he continued, Back then, I obtained the Heavenmend Pill from the Heavenvoid Hall and lived the good life for a while. No one was actually going to challenge me just over a pill. However, good times never last. Just as I was about to reach the conclusion of my lifespan, the Archsaint of the Six Paths came to my residence and asked me to give my body to him after I died so he could cultivate his devilish arts with it. I naturally refused and in the end, I was severely wounded by his Six Apex Devils Art. Thankfully, I was able to unleash a secret technique and escape, but along the way, I bumped into that accursed Zenith Yin. This bastard saw through the fact that I was severely wounded and immediately attacked me. We battled for three days and three nights, but I succumbed to my injuries in the end, and my body was destroyed. That was how my Nascent Soul ended up in his hands. He had always yearned for my collection and that Heavenmend Pill, so he imprisoned me for interrogation, all the way until now.

Interrogation? Why didnt he use a soul search technique on you? Han Li was slightly surprised to hear this.

Man Huzi chuckled coldly before replying in a proud manner, Hehe, if this were any other cultivator, even a late-Nascent Soul great cultivator wouldnt be able to avoid the fate of having their soul forcibly searched. However, the Heavenbearing Devil Arts that I cultivated makes me immune to soul search techniques. With it, I can guard my spiritual sense resolutely within my soul, making it very difficult to forcibly extract. If he increases the power of his soul search technique, then my soul will be destroyed. He was never going to be able to find out my secrets!

Such a secret technique exists? Han Li raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. He was rather interested in such a technique.

Of course! Do you think the Heavenbearing Devil Arts has a false reputation? Its just that I never made this known to the world. Zenith Yin couldnt do anything to me, so he could only use his corpsefire to torture my Nascent Soul from time to time. Hehe, my I wont fold that easily. In any case, even if I did tell him everything, I would only be destroyed anyway. However, its been over 100 years since my Nascent Soul was forcibly enhanced by his secret technique, and I really am at the end of the road. Unless I unleash a secret technique to devour another Nascent Soul, reincarnation will definitely be beyond me. Even if I do manage to engulf a Nascent Soul, its still yet to be seen whether Ill have a chance for reincarnation. At the conclusion of his story, Man Huzi turned to glare at the frozen Zenith Yin, looking as if he wanted nothing better than to sink his teeth into Zenith Yins flesh.

I see. So youre planning to engulf Zenith Yins Nascent Soul for a chance at a second life. Ive heard of a secret technique like this, but it really is impossible to verify whether its actually effective Han Li murmured as he stroked his chin.

Regardless of whether it works or not, its my only opportunity, so I must at least try it. In any case, someone else may take my collection after I die anyway, so why not use it to exchange for a ray of hope for myself? Man Huzi heaved a resigned sigh.

That is indeed true. Do you still have that Heavenmend Pill? Han Li asked.

Not anymore. I took it as soon as I got out of the Heavenvoid Hall, but unfortunately, it didnt have much of an effect on me at all. Zenith Yin could see that my cultivation base hadnt improved, so he thought that I never took the pill in the first place, and had constantly been interrogating me about its whereabouts. Otherwise, he may not have had the patience to interrogate me for so long, Man Huzi replied in an honest manner.

Oh? Is that really the case? A hint of surprise flashed through Han Lis eyes.

Back when he had taken his Heavenmend Pill, it had had an extremely pronounced effect. However, Man Huzi had already been reduced to such a pitiful state, so he most likely wasnt lying. As such, it appeared that the Heavenmend Pills effect on Nascent Soul cultivators was negligible. Of course, that could also be because the aptitude of Man Huzis spiritual roots was quite good to begin with, so there wasnt much room for improvement.

Han Li contemplated the situation for a while before giving his response. I can allow you to do as you please, but you have to give me a copy of the Heavenbearing Devil Arts first. After that, Ill leave Zenith Yin to you. Im rather interested in the soul-locking secret technique you were referring to earlier. After you devour Zenith Yins Nascent Soul, you can tell me about where the rest of your collection is.

No problem! The Nascent Soul was overjoyed to hear this.

Han Li nodded in response, but he could see that the Nascent Soul was very feeble. As such, he made a few hand seals and cast a few incantation seals onto the Nascent Souls body in quick succession.

Spiritual light of different colors shimmered over the Nascent Souls body, upon which it was significantly reinvigorated.

Thank you, Fellow Daoist Han! Man Huzi was very grateful for Han Lis gesture.

Han Li waved a hand before tossing a blank white jade slip through the air.

The Nascent Soul hurriedly opened its little mouth to expel a burst of faint golden light. The jade slip was swept up in the golden light before rapidly shrinking to a size that could fit in the Nascent Souls hand.

After that, it lowered its head and began to replicate the devil arts.

This was something that he had completely committed to memory, so replicating it was a piece of cake.

10 minutes later, the Nascent Soul opened its eye before raising a hand into the air. A streak of white light was sent flying toward Han Li.

Han Li caught the white light and spiritual light flashed as the jade slip reverted back to its original size.

You havent tampered with this, have you, Brother Man? Han Li glanced at the jade slip before a half-smile appeared on his face.

The Nascent Soul didnt know whether it should laugh or cry upon hearing this. Surely you jest, Brother Han. With your current late-Nascent Soul cultivation base, youd be able to easily ascertain the authenticity of a cultivation art. Besides, Im already in such a pitiful state, why would I do something that harms you and doesnt benefit me in any way?

He spread open his fingers and a golden lightning wyrm shot forth from his arm, clashing directly with the oncoming black python.

Divine Devilbane Lightning!

Zenith Yins heart jolted with shock upon seeing this. He immediately tried to make another hand seal, but it was already too late.

The golden wyrm threw itself at the black python, creating a resounding boom.

Golden light flashed and the black pythons body was enshrouded by countless arcs of golden lightning before being reduced to nothingness in the blink of an eye.

The Divine Devilbane Lightnings efficacy against devilish Qi was no joke.

A hint of rage appeared on Zenith Yins face as he patted the storage pouch hanging from his waist.

A loud cry erupted as a streak of crimson light around a foot in length shot forth from the storage pouch. It flashed through the air before arriving directly above Han Lis head, where it transformed into a long crimson saber and came crashing downward.

Before the saber had even begun its descent, the pungent odor of blood and gore came rushing toward Han Li first.

Han Lis expression darkened as he tilted his head back and abruptly opened his mouth, sending a small golden sword flying upward.

A loud clang rang out as golden and crimson light became interwoven with one another. The crimson saber then let loose a cry of anguish before being sliced in half by the golden flying sword, following which its two halves came plummeting straight down toward the ground. Impossible!

Zenith Yins expression changed drastically upon seeing this and the ecstasy that was clouding his judgment was immediately dispelled.

Within the stone chamber, the restriction on ones spiritual sense didnt have any effect, so he immediately sent his spiritual sense sweeping toward Han Li.

In Han Lis eyes, Zenith Yin was already a dead man, so there was no need for him to hide his cultivation base. As such, he circulated his magic power with reckless abandon throughout his body.

After detecting Han Lis cultivation base, a series of spectacular expressions flashed through Zenith Yins face.

He initially faltered before a confused look appeared on his face, followed by incredulity and a hint of horror. When he used his spiritual sense to verify Han Lis cultivation base again, his face immediately turned deathly pale.

Youve already reached the late-Nascent Soul Stage?

Zenith Yin spat through gritted teeth as his entire body instantly became drenched in cold sweat!

Han Li began to recall events of the past and intense killing intent welled up in his heart as he said in a cold voice, Hmph, what good will that knowledge do you? Its actually better to die as a fool. Seeing as you pursued me relentlessly to try and take my Heavenvoid Cauldron, its only fitting that I kill you with this cauldron.

He then opened his mouth and a ball of azure light shot forth, spinning on the spot before revealing itself to be a small antiquated cauldron.

It was none other than the Heavenvoid Cauldron!

Zenith Yin was astonished by the fact that Han Li had progressed to the late-Nascent Soul Stage and even now, he still felt as if he were in a dream. However, he knew that he was in an extremely perilous situation after witnessing Han Li summon the Heavenvoid Cauldron, and he certainly wasnt going to surrender.

Thus, he gritted his teeth and abruptly spun on the spot. Bursts of inky-black Yin Qi exuded from his body, encompassing most of the stone chamber in the blink of an eye. At the same time, intimidating ghostly figures began to emerge in the black mist amid bursts of ghastly screeching.

Zenith Yin unleashed his Profound Yin Devilish Arts with all his might, while also releasing the 18 Heavenwide Corpses that he had been refining for several centuries. However, he didnt dare to attack Han Li with devilish Qi, which made him rather hesitant with regard to how to proceed.

In response, Han Li merely chuckled coldly.

Even though almost the entire stone chamber had been enshrouded in Profound Yin Devilish Qi, he could still see everything with great clarity using his spirit eyes.

Thus, he didnt waste any time with words as a pointed a finger toward the Heavenvoid Cauldron in front of him.

Azure light flashed over the surface of the cauldron as clumps of azure threads shot forth. There seemed to be no end to the azure threads and they formed a massive azure net in the blink of an eye before hovering in the air.

Zenith Yins heart sank upon seeing this and he immediately began to chant an incantation.

The devilish projections nearby flashed and 18 Heavenwide Corpses rushed out of the cloud of Yin Qi, heading directly upward while flailing their arms in an attempt to tear through the azure net.

Han Li looked on expressionlessly as he flicked a finger toward the small cauldron before him.

A faint clang rang out and dazzling light suddenly erupted from the azure net. A layer of blue glacial flames abruptly appeared beneath the net before transforming into a dozen or so shiny blue fire-birds, all of which flew toward the oncoming corpses.

The Heavenwide Corpses didnt even get the chance to utter a single sound before they were reduced to 18 sinister ice sculptures by the blue flames. The ice sculptures then fell from above and were shattered into countless pieces.

At this moment, the threads on the azure net suddenly shuddered as countless fist-sized blue fireballs hurtled toward the devilish QI down below. The black mist tumbled and surged violently before transforming into countless black pythons that rose up to meet the descending fireballs.

As soon as the two came into contact with one another, the blue fireballs exploded on impact, sending a vast expanse of blue glacial mist spreading through the entire stone chamber.

The temperatures in the stone chamber immediately plummeted as thick layers of ice materialized on the walls, floor, and ceiling.

In the blink of an eye, the stone chamber had been completely transformed into a glacial realm.

The black pythons were powerless in the face of the blue glacial mist and were reduced to countless ice sculptures, which then crumbled into countless fragments. The might of the blue glacial mist then vanquished all of the remaining devilish Qi, revealing the indistinct figure of Zenith Yin underneath. Under such circumstances, Zenith Yin definitely wouldnt be able to last long at all.

He was also aware of this himself and he immediately let loose a shrill cry and he blasted an inky-black bead out of his mouth.

As soon as the bead emerged, Zenith Yin bit through the tip of his tongue and threw up a mouthful of blood essence onto the bead.

The bead immediately shuddered before transforming into a ball of devilish flames. The fireball revolved in a circle around Zenith Yin before transforming into a layer of pitch-black flames that enshrouded him within.

This was none other than Zenith Yins trump card, his Heavenwide Corpsefire.

After unleashing these flames, Zenith Yins confidence was restored slightly. He swept up his remaining devilish Qi before transforming into a ball of black flames and rushing toward the entrance of the stone chamber, appearing as if he were fleeing for his life.

The Heavenwide Corpsefire really was a force to be reckoned with, after coming into contact with these flames, the blue glacial mist emitted a dull thump and was unable to freeze Zenith Yin. After a few flashes, he managed to fly out of the blue glacial mist and instantly appeared near the entrance.

Han Lis expression remained unchanged upon seeing this, but he internally activated his Artifact Imprint Technique.

Azure light suddenly erupted from the stone gate as countless azure threads shot forth from the nearby walls, interweaving with one another to create an impenetrable net.

Argh! Zenith Yins heart sank upon seeing this.

Right at this moment, a frosty sensation suddenly surged toward him from above and he looked up in shock and horror.

A massive ice lotus was materializing overhead above the azure net. The lotus was entirely blue in color and extremely vibrant and beautiful. More importantly, it was encompassing Zenith Yins entire body beneath it.

Crap! A wave of shock surged through Zenith Yins heart as he attempted to rush out of the lotus flowers range.

However, right at this moment, two clumps of azure threads suddenly erupted from the ground upon which he was standing, binding themselves tightly around his feet.

As a result, Zenith Yin was completely unable to escape. The azure threads continued up his calves, ensnaring his entire body in the blink of an eye.

The black flames were still raging over his body, yet the threads were seemingly completely immune to this fire.

Almost at the exact same moment, the blue ice lotus up above began to slowly descend.

Zenith Yin was absolutely petrified upon seeing this.

His Heavenwide Corpsefire was indeed quite powerful, but there was no way it would be able to withstand the might of the Celestial Blue Flames.

IN this dire situation, he opened his mouth and expelled a black jade pendant.

However, before he could unleash the power of this treasure, more clumps of azure threads shot forth toward him from nearby.

The small ade pendant was ensnared in a flash.

Zenith Yins heart jolted with shock and he hurriedly attempted to activate the jade pendant with his spiritual sense.

However, the azure threads around the pendant merely flashed and his connection with the treasure was severed.

The azure threads then dragged the jade pendant toward the Heavenvoid Cauldron.

The threads and the jade pendant flashed and both were absorbed into the cauldron.

An expression of despair appeared on Zenith Yins face upon seeing this.

He was unleashing his Heavenwide Corpsefire with all his might and summoned two other treasures to keep the ice lotus overhead at bay, but his struggles were ultimately proving to be futile.

As soon as the blue ice lotus began to descend, a layer of blue flames erupted with the lotus at the very center.

As soon as Zenith Yins Heavenwide Corpsefire came into contact with the Celestial Ice Flames, the former was immediately warped and crushed. Following a string of loud bangs, the Heavenwide Corpsefire was reduced to a pitiful state and appeared to be on the verge of being snuffed out.

During this period of time, Zenith Yin unleashed several secret techniques in quick succession to try and struggle free from the azure threads binding his body, all to no avail.

When the final wisp of Heavenwide Corpsefire was snuffed out, the blue lotus flower finally descended.

Despite Zenith Yins desperate struggles, he was completely enshrouded in glacial power and completely frozen solid. His entire body was encapsulated in a block of blue ice that was several tens of feet tall, and an expression of shock and horror still lingered on his face.

From the commencement of the battle all the way until Zenith Yin was captured, Han Li didnt use any treasure other than the Heavenvoid Cauldron, and he didnt even move a single step from where he was standing. After Zenith Yin was sealed in ice, Han Li chuckled coldly as he flicked a finger toward the cauldron again.

All of the azure threads in the stone chamber tremored in unison before returning to the cauldron as streaks of light, while spiritual light flashed incessantly over the surface of the cauldron.

Han Li immediately opened is mouth upon seeing this to swallow the cauldron back into his stomach. He then turned his attention to Zenith Yin, who was trapped in the block of blue ice, and he chuckled as a hint of a smile appeared on his face. However, his eyes were extremely cold and completely devoid of emotion.

Han Li drifted over to the blue ice sculpture and a ringing sound erupted from his sleeve as a dozen or so golden flying swords shot forth. The flying swords circled through the air before elongating to several feet in length. They then aimed their sharp tips at the blue ice sculpture from all directions, appearing as if they were going to completely dismember Zenith Yins body.

Please wait, Fellow Daoist Han! My entire family was slaughtered by this man. May I have the honor of putting an end to this mans life? A voice that was familiar to Han Li suddenly sounded from a corner of the stone chamber.

Han Li stirred as he arrested the momentum of his flying sword and turned toward the source of the voice.

Golden light suddenly shimmered beneath a thick layer of ice as a small fist smashed its way through the ice, causing the ice to shatter.

A golden Nascent Soul emerged from within the ice before rising into the air and looking directly at Han Li.