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A translucent thread suddenly shot out of Han Lis glabella before vanishing into the giant stemborers body in a flash, but the carcass suddenly exploded into specks of white light as if it were nothing more than an illusion.

The translucent thread returned to Han Lis glabella, and his expression immediately darkened slightly.

Elsewhere, countless pink flower petals had filled an entire area, within which countless silver arcs of lightning were flashing incessantly.

Bao Hua had already arrived beside Daoist Xie and activated her spirit domain to trap the other stemborer.

That stemborers forte laid in its spiritual sense secret technique, but unfortunately for it, Daoist Xie was completely unaffected, as was Bao Hua due to the enhancements she received from her spirit domain.

The stemborers baleful lightning was also extremely powerful and was imbued with the power of the law of destruction, allowing it to damage even Profound Heavenly Treasures, but both Daoist Xie and Bao Hua were very cunning, refusing to engage in direct clashes with it.

As a result, it was becoming more and more enraged as all of its attacks were being evaded.

Once Bao Hua unleashed her Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain to trap the stemborer, the tables were immediately turned.

The stemborer immediately unleashed its baleful lightning with all its might to try and escape from the spirit domain, but this Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain was an ability that only true immortals could truly master, and it was far too difficult for the stemborer to break out of.

The sea of pink flower petals trapped the stemborer firmly at the center of the spirit domain at Bao Huas behest, causing it to become more and more sluggish despite the fact that it was resisting with all its might.

The stemborer had surrounded itself with arcs of grey lightning and a white light barrier manifested from its spiritual sense, but it was riddled with wounds and on the verge of defeat in the face of Daoist Xie and Bao Huas combined attacks.

Han Li summoned his green longsword again upon seeing this, then slashed it through the air to unleash 12 green lines at once.

In the next instant, the 12 green lines appeared right beside the stemborer in Bao Huas Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain in unison, then flashed past its body in a flash.

The light barrier and lightning around the stemborer were instantly wiped out of existence alongside the stemborer itself, and it was as if it had never been there in the first place.

Bao Hua was quite alarmed to see this, and only after carefully verifying that the stemborer was no longer in her spirit domain did she withdraw the spirit domain with tightly furrowed brows.

Spatial fluctuations erupted nearby, and Han Li emerged not far away, while Daoist Xie also reverted back to his human form before appearing behind Han Li.

Han Li cast his gaze toward Daoist Xie and was quite relieved to find that Daoist Xie was largely unscathed.

Your powers are truly formidable, Brother Han, even with my spirit domain to protect me, it wouldve definitely been very difficult for me to withstand that slash, Bao Hua said with a slightly wary look in her eyes.

Youre far too kind, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua, the stemborer was already a spent force after battling the two of you for so long. Otherwise, theres no way I wouldve been able to strike it down so easily, Han Li replied with a nonchalant smile.

Its not that simple. Bao Hua shook her head in response, but didnt say anything further.

Instead, she cast her gaze toward the spot where the stemborer had just disappeared with a perplexed look in her eyes.

Looks like youve also noticed that something is amiss. Its clear that we didnt manage to actually destroy those stemborers. Setting that little girl aside, these two stemborers dont seem to be physical beings, either, and theyre not that easy to kill, Han Li said as a grim look appeared on his face.

Indeed, I always felt like those two stemborers were off somehow. Both of them possess powerful abilities, but are extremely limited, one of them possessed an incredibly powerful spiritual sense, while the other had such a formidable physical body that it was able to match me with just a single claw. However, the one-sided nature of their abilities was a weakness that we could exploit to defeat them, Bao Hua analyzed.

If these stemborers were bred by the Stemborer Queen, then this is very strange. Considering how cunning the Stemborer Queen is, theres no way itd do something so unintelligent, Bao Hua continued.

Individually, those two stemborers were still manageable, but if their abilities were combined in a single stemborer… Han Li chuckled as he left his sentence unfinished.

Bao Huas face paled slightly as she drew a sharp breath. If that had been the case, all of us wouldve been in severe trouble.

Im not sure if you noticed, but the little girl and those two stemborers dont seem to be allies, even those two stemborers seemed to harbor some animosity toward one another. Otherwise, if they had teamed up from the very beginning, it wouldnt have been anywhere near as simple to exploit their individual weaknesses, Han Li said with a meaningful expression.

That is indeed rather strange. If they were bred by the Stemborer Queen, then why do they seem so hostile toward the Stemborer Queens soul? Bao Hua mused as her brows furrowed tightly.

I dont understand that, either, but judging from how those two stemborers disappeared just now, they seem to have been conjured up through the power of projection, Han Li remarked.

The power of projection? Are you saying that there are beings from other realms interfering with this matter as well? For a mere projection to be so powerful, could it be that true immortals are involved? Bao Huas expression changed significantly as this thought occurred to her.

Im not sure about that, this is only a suspicion of mine, and perhaps its incorrect. However, if that really were the case, then the situation here is very complex. How about you communicate with the spirit of the ancient seal to see if its found out anything, Han Li suggested.

The spirit of the ancient seal has become very frail from the seals power loss, and even I cant contact it now. Otherwise, the ancient seal will instantly fall apart, Bao Hua replied with a wry smile.

In that case, it looks like were completely in the dark, Han Li said with a grim expression. freewebnove.com

In any case, we cant turn back now. I still havent received any news from our other two fellow daoists, so somethings most likely happened to them, it looks like well have to venture down there ourselves, Bao Hua sighed.

Ill abide by our agreement and accompany you down there, but if we encounter any insurmountable peril, Im going to turn back right away, Han Li said with a serious expression.

Of course, Id do the same if our mission becomes too difficult to accomplish. Besides, Im sure youre capable of leaving this space even without the Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate, Bao Hua said with a knowing smile.

Im glad you understand that. Lets go down now, Han Li replied with an expressionless nod, then plunged into the water with Daoist Xie by his side. Bao Hua quickly inspected her surroundings, and after verifying that nothing was amiss, she also followed along.

Shortly after the three of them entered the water, a burst of faint spatial fluctuations erupted overhead alongside wisps of five-colored light. The five-colored light then quickly converged to form a tightly-shut giant five-colored eye.

……

Meanwhile, the giant stemborer carcass was hovering in the underwater abyss in a completely still manner, but two balls of devilish flames were burning within its eye sockets, and the flames were only becoming brighter and brighter.

Several broken treasures that were glowing with faint spiritual light hovered beside the carcass, one of which was a shattered jade badge, while the other was a black spear with cracks all over its surface.

These two were the elderly man and black-robed womans most prized treasures, yet they had been strewn around like garbage, and it was clear that the two of them were most likely already dead.

Spatial fluctuations erupted above the carcass, and two blurry balls of light emerged in unison.

One of the balls of white light transformed into a giant rotund insect, while the other morphed into an almost transparent insect.

These were none other than the two insects that had just been slain by Han Li and Bao Hua.

However, their bodies had become far more indistinct, and their auras had also waned significantly, making them resemble a pair of projections.

All of a sudden, a silver-robed woman emerged from the devilish flames within one of the eye sockets of the giant carcass.

The woman had an elegant figure, and she looked much like a more mature version of the little girl that had just been devoured.

Both of the blurry insect projections immediately sprawled down onto the ground in reverence.

The silver-robed woman cast a cold gaze toward the two projections, then harrumphed coldly, Useless fools! I cant believe youre unable to deal with a few puny Grand Ascension Stage beings of the lower realms. Having said that, its a good thing that they managed to wound the Stemborer Queens soul. Otherwise, I may not have been able to completely devour it so soon. Now that close to half of my powers has recovered, I no longer have any use for you two, return my energy to me now.

The silver-robed woman raised a finger and pointed toward the pair of projections as she spoke.

Quick! We have to strike it down now, its aura is becoming more and more powerful, so it must be recovering its powers! the elderly man yelled as he swept his spiritual sense toward the carcass.

He then vanished on the spot before reappearing over 1,000 feet away.

Immediately thereafter, he laid a hand onto the top of his own head, releasing a burst of blue light, within which sat a miniature humanoid figure that was completely identical to him.

As soon as the miniature humanoid figure appeared, a string of blue beads flew out of its body.

Each bead was only around the size of a thumb, but they were of an extremely deep blue color with impeccably smooth surfaces.

All of a sudden, the beads transformed into balls of light the size of wagon wheels at the elderly mans behest, then flew toward the giant carcass with devastating force.

As for the black-robed woman, she gritted her teeth before transforming into a cloud of crimson mist that vanished into the nine-headed snake projection behind her.

Immediately thereafter, the worlds origin Qi within the abyss surged into the nine-headed snake projection in a frenzy, allowing it to instantly take on a substantial form.

In this form, the snake had resplendent colorful scales, but its nine heads were as red as blood, and it opened its cavernous mouths once again to release purple devilish flames that were several times purer than what had been unleashed before.

Even though the carcass hadnt unleashed any attacks yet, the sense of pressure it was giving off struck both of them with a strong sense of foreboding.

The carcass had risen to its feet, but it seemed yet to return to normal as its movements were still quite clumsy and maladroit.

The dozen or so balls of blue light crashed into the invisible wall near the carcass, triggering a string of earth-shattering explosions that sent powerful shockwaves erupting in all directions.

These balls of light didnt appear to be all that remarkable, but all of them were imbued with incredible power.

The carcass raised its arms to shield itself, but it was still forced back a step with each ball of light that exploded.

After taking around a dozen steps backward in succession, the invisible wall around it finally shattered, and its smooth jade-like front limbs were quickly riddled with countless thin cracks.

Before the carcass had a chance to do anything, the nine-headed snake also arrived before transforming into nine chains of flames that bound themselves tightly around the massive carcass.

The purplish-black chains of flames were giving off an incredibly corrosive aura, instantly branding deep black gashes onto the carcass.

The dozen or so balls of light also began to bombard the carcass from all directions.

In the face of their combined attacks, the giant carcass had been forced onto the back foot, and both the elderly man and black-robed woman were ecstatic to see this.

Right at this moment, a delicate figure appeared above the massive carcass amid a burst of spatial fluctuations.

The elderly man and black-robed woman focused their eyes upon the small figure, and their faces instantly paled significantly

The small figure was none other than the little girl formed by the Stemborer Queens soul!

Wasnt she being kept at bay by Bao Hua and the others? How had she suddenly appeared here?

The elderly man and black-robed woman could only continue to attack the carcass while being extremely wary of the little girl.

The little girls face was clearly paler than it had been before, and she completely ignored the elderly man and black-robed woman as she turned to the carcass before saying something in a voice that was very pleasing to the ears. However, neither the elderly man nor the black-robed woman were able to understand what she was saying.

A layer of white light appeared around the carcass after hearing what the little girl had to say, and it raised its head through the attacks from the blue balls of light while completely ignoring the flaming chains. It then focused its gaze on the little girl and replied in the same unknown language.

The giant carcass was speaking in a nonchalant and unhurried manner, but the little girl seemed to be very displeased, and her voice abruptly rose a few octaves as if she were arguing with the carcass.

The elderly man and black-robed woman were rather perplexed to see this, but they were also taking advantage of this opportunity to attack the carcass even more vigorously.

The balls of blue light accelerated by around twofold, flying around the carcass like a series of shooting stars.

Meanwhile, sharp spikes erupted out of the surfaces of the chains of flames, embedding themselves deep into the carcass and corroding it at a noticeably faster rate.

Of course, as a precautionary measure against potential retaliation from the carcass and the little girl, the elderly man and black-robed woman were gliding back in retreat.

However, much to their surprise, the carcass paid no heed to them at all and merely continued to communicate with the little girl in that unknown language.

The little girl was very urgent and agitated, while the carcass was very calm and almost a little smug, creating a very strange contrast.

All of a sudden, a fierce look appeared on the little girls face, and she pointed a finger downward.

A speck of black light appeared on her fingertip, and it swelled dramatically in size while becoming extremely bright, as if it could absorb all of the light in the nearby area.

All of the worlds origin Qi in the entire underwater abyss erupted into a frenzy, and a burst of extremely fearsome power of laws descended.

Thats the law of time!

The Nascent Soul of the elderly man was seated on the top of his head, and a horrified look immediately appeared on its face.

As for the nine-headed snake that the black-robed woman had transformed into, it instantly severed the nine flaming chains in its mouths, then shot back several thousand feet before finally stopping in a wary manner.

Escaping on her own could attract the attention of the little girl and plunge her into grave peril. Otherwise, the black-robed woman wouldve fled the scene completely.

After the little girl unleashed her law of time, the massive carcass tremored slightly, and it began to speak a little faster, seemingly rather wary of the little girl.

The little girl also began to speak in a more urgent manner, and moments later, the carcass seemed to have made some sort of concussion as it opened its mouth to release a giant inky-black crystal that was around the size of a house.

A pleased look appeared on the little girls face, and the black light on her fingertip was withdrawn as she drifted toward the black crystal.

However, right as she was about to set foot on the crystal, an extremely fearsome aura suddenly erupted from the carcasss body, and it struggled free from the flaming chains before swiping a limb through the air, slicing all of the surrounding blue balls of light in half and causing them to explode.

An enraged look appeared on the little girls face upon seeing this, and the black light on her fingertip reappeared as her body blurred in preparation to teleport away.

However, a massive black mouth that was filled with sharp fangs suddenly opened up on the inky-black crystal down below, and it instantly swallowed the little girl before flying back into the giant carcasss mouth.

The elderly man and black-robed woman were stunned to see this, and after a quick conversation, the formers Nascent Soul returned to his body, while the latter reverted back to her human form.

The two of them then immediately fled together.

Having just witnessed the carcass dispelling their trump cards so easily, they knew that they were no match for it and could only escape to reunite with Bao Hua and the others.

However, in the instant that they decided to flee, specks of light suddenly converged within the massive eye sockets of the carcass, forming two balls of black flames.

It then cackled as it pointed a finger twice into the distance, and two balls of black light emerged before vanishing in a flash.

The power of the law of time instantly reappeared to envelop the elderly man and black-robed woman, and all of a sudden, both of them felt their surroundings blur into an unrecognizable swirl.

Once the surrounding area settled again, they discovered a giant white skull right in front of them, appraising them with a sinister expression.

The two of them had reappeared back to where the carcass was under the effect of the law of time.

They were naturally extremely alarmed by this, yet before they had a chance to do anything, the carcass had already opened its cavernous mouth to devour them.

……

In the air above the water, the devilfied Han Li was currently pulling a hand that was riddled with silver formations out of the body of a human-faced stemborer with an azure exoskeleton.

The stemborer was over 1,000 feet in length with a pair of massive front limbs that were several times larger than its own body.

Right as Han Li withdrew his hand, the stemborers front limbs suddenly sagged like a pair of balloons, instantly reverting back to the same size as all of its other limbs.

Han Li cast his gaze downward, and a befuddled frown appeared on his face upon failing to discover any traces of blood seeping out of the stemborers body.

What a powerful physical body, I wonder how it compares with Stem Two. A hint of surprise crept into the unsettling voice upon seeing this.

Han Li cast his gaze downward to discover that a completely translucent beetle-like insect that looked as if it were conjured up from liquid had appeared on the surface of the water down below.

The insect was over 100 feet in length and had eyes of different sizes all over its body, presenting a very chilling sight to behold.

The unsettling voice was coming from none other than that insect, and arcs of grey baleful lightning were flashing between its pair of remarkably long feelers.

Han Li looked down at the insect and the baleful lightning with a wary expression, then suddenly cast his gaze toward Bao Hua.

At this moment, Bao Hua was making a string of hand seals, and the massive Earth Emperor Nail was clashing with the giant claw up above at her behest.

The gigantic claw was extremely fearsome, but its owner remained hidden within the dark clouds overhead.

Even with just a single claw alone, it had gained a slight upper hand over the Profound Heavenly Treasure that was the Earth Emperor Nail.

Looking at the giant claw, Han Li couldnt help but recall the shattered weapons he had seen at the entrance of the hall where the formation core was situated.

Aside from the massive size difference, the claw was completely concurrent with the claw mark that had been inflicted on the piece of High Zenith Platinum, so its owner was most likely the one that had killed all of the guards.

The Earth Emperor Nail was sweeping up fierce gusts of wind as it surged through the air, while the giant claw was creating white spatial rifts with every single swipe, and the two were in a complete deadlock.

However, judging from Bao Huas slightly pale complexion, it was clear that she was exerting herself by continuously using the Earth Emperor Nail, and that she wouldnt be able to keep this up for much longer.

Han Li hesitated momentarily before making a decision. Brother Xie, Ill leave this insect to you, Im going to help Bao Hua take care of her enemy first.

Daoist Xie emerged behind Han Li amid a flash of silver lightning, and said, Alright, leave it to me. This insects spiritual sense secret technique and baleful lightning are both quite powerful, but they wont be very effective against me.

He had been instructed by Han Li to conceal himself into space as soon as the battle had begun, and only now did he re-emerge at Han Lis behest.

In the instant that Daoist Xie appeared, he quickly transformed into a gargantuan golden crab that was thousands of acres in size.

The colossal crab raised its pair of massive pincers, and countless balls of lightning quickly materialized before crashing down toward the transparent insect.

Not only were all of these balls of lightning astonishingly massive, there were also countless silver runes flashing within them.

The translucent insect seemed to have been enraged by the attack, and it let loose a sharp screech before releasing countless arcs of grey lightning with its feelers, to clash with the balls of lightning.

The two types of lightning exploded with ferocious power, illuminating the entire sky grey and silver.

The entire space tremored violently and gradually became scorching hot.

Despite the golden crabs enormous frame, it was able to rapidly traverse over the air while relentlessly releasing balls of lightning, but it made sure not to come into contact with its opponent.

The translucent insect was flashing through the air in a wraith-like manner, and as it did so, it was also constantly releasing bolts of grey lightning to shatter the balls of silver lightning.

As for the spiritual sense secret technique that it was most adept in, that was completely ineffective against a puppet.

On the other side, Han Li had released his green longsword and Provenance True Devil Projection again, unleashing a string of mountainous sword projections toward the giant claw.

Bao Hua was greatly reinvigorated by Han Lis assistance, and a tiny pink humanoid figure holding a giant pink flower suddenly emerged from the top of her head.

The miniature humanoid figure opened its mouth to release a pink halo of light, which swelled drastically in size before rising up toward the dark clouds overhead.

The owner of the giant claw had been hidden in those clouds this entire time, and with Han Lis assistance, Bao Hua was finally able to directly attack the being within the clouds.

……

Within a bottomless abyss in the water down below, the elderly man and black-robed woman were staring blankly down at an object with astonishment in their eyes.

The object was lying at the deepest part of the abyss, and it was a gargantuan set of insect remains that was as pristine white as jade and over 10,000 feet in length.

The carcass was completely still, but it was giving off a terrifying aura and a layer of grey light.

This aura was extremely similar to the one released by the little girl, but it was somewhat different in minute ways.

Is that the body of the Stemborer Queen? the black-robed woman asked in a hesitant manner.

That should be it. Aside from the Stemborer Queen, I cant think of any creature whose remains would give off such a fearsome aura, even the body we destroyed earlier cant compare with it, the elderly man replied.

Judging from the appearance of this carcass, the Stemborer Queens body mustve already perished long ago, so what was that thing we just encountered? Could it be that its already become a true immortal, and its soul can live for all of eternity even without a vessel? the black-robed woman speculated.

Im not sure about that, but in any case, our mission is complete, and this is definitely a good thing for us. As for why its soul is still able to thrive, that most likely has something to do with this carcass, the elderly man replied with a wry smile.

Now that you mention it, thats certainly quite possible. Ive heard that there are some ancient secret techniques that can allow one to focus all of their essence in a part of their body, if the Stemborer Queen had used such a secret technique before it had perished, then its soul should be able to live on for some time. In that case, lets destroy this carcass, the black-robed woman said as a hint of killing intent surfaced in her eyes.

As soon as her voice trailed off, she made a grabbing motion, and the same inky-black spear from before appeared in her grasp.

Hold on!

A thought suddenly occurred to the elderly man, and he hurriedly tried to stop her, but it was already too late.

The black spear came crashing down onto the massive carcass as a bolt of black lightning, striking the head of the carcass and sending countless thin arcs of lightning erupting in all directions.

However, after the black lightning faded, the head of the carcass was revealed to be completely unscathed.

Impossible! This spear of mine isnt a Profound Heavenly Treasure, but no top-grade treasure can even begin to compare with its power, the black-robed woman exclaimed in an astonished manner.

Right at this moment, scintillating light erupted from the carcass, and countless golden and silver runes surged forth before revolving around it.

Theres something wrong with these remains! the elderly man yelled as his expression changed drastically, and he immediately hurled his Myriad Beast Badge through the air, which transformed into a shimmering jade gate.

He then quickly made a hand seal, and countless beastly projections rushed out of the jade gate in a frenzy.

The black-robed woman was also very alarmed as she raised both hands up into the air, summoning a black nine-headed snake projection with purplish-black forked tongues.

The projection opened its nine mouths to send a vast expanse of purple devilish flames surging toward the carcass.

The purple flames gave off a rank odor, and the surrounding space instantly took on a black tinge, as if it had been contaminated by the flames.

After failing to destroy the carcass with her spear, the black-robed woman had immediately unleashed another one of her trump cards, which was her Infernal Contaminant Flames.

These flames were refined from 81 types of extremely poisonous Qi from several realms, and if a person were to catch a whiff of it even from hundreds of kilometers away, they would immediately perish.

As for living beings that came into contact with these flames, not only would their bodies disintegrate into dirty liquid, even their souls would be contaminated, making it impossible for them to reincarnate.

These flames had always been the black-robed womans most powerful trump card, but unfortunately, it was a limited resource, so the more she used, the less she would have left. As such, she only unleashed this trump card when it was absolutely necessary to do so.

The sea of purple flames and countless beast projections instantly inundated the carcass in its entirety, but the carcass suddenly stirred as it began to cackle in an unsettling manner, and it suddenly moved its two arms as it released a burst of invisible power.

All of the devilish flames and beast projections were kept at bay several tens of feet away from the carcass as if they had struck an impenetrable wall.

The beast projections self-detonated one after another while the devilish flames raged in a frenzy, but they were all firmly kept out.

Meanwhile, the carcass continued to cackle as it rose to its feet in a wobbly manner.

An explosive boom rang out, and the space before Han Li suddenly collapsed as the worlds origin Qi in the surrounding area funneled into the green sword in a frenzy, releasing a terrifying doomsday-like aura.

This was the first time that Han Li had unleashed the full might of his Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword after reaching the Grand Ascension Stage.

A green crescent sword projection flew out of the collapsed space, and countless translucent runes surged out of its surface in a frenzy.

The collapsed space and the green crescent then exploded in unison, and the countless runes and green light combined to form a long near-transparent thread before abruptly vanishing.

The translucent thread seemed to be very ordinary, but in the instant that it appeared, the entire sky dimmed, and the surrounding space began to warp in a rhythmic manner.

All of the space was warping toward the translucent thread, as if it were bowing in reverence.

Impossible! Thats a thread of laws! the little girl exclaimed as a stunned look appeared on her face, and a layer of black flames suddenly surfaced over her body as she donned a suit of bone armor that was riddled with countless sharp spikes.

Countless grey runes surged incessantly within the black flames, and each bone spike was as translucent as jade.

Innumerable silver patterns could be seen on the surface of the armor, and in the next instant, the translucent thread emerged right before the little girl amid a burst of spatial fluctuations.

She was immobilized by the spirit domain, so she could only watch as the thread of laws surged toward her.

Her bone armor and that layer of black flames managed to pose a slight hindrance to the translucent thread, but they were both breached in the end.

The little girl let loose an agonized cry as her body was sliced in half through the waist, and all of a sudden, thin gashes appeared all over her body before she was split up into countless chunks.

Nice!

Bao Hua was ecstatic to see this, and she immediately made a hand seal, upon which the massive floral tree shrank down to only around half a foot tall.

Halos of rainbow light then surged forth from the miniature tree, and Bao Hua grabbed onto it before sweeping it rapidly through the air down below.

The branches and the countless flowers on the tree instantly withered away, and at the same time, countless giant crimson flowers appeared around the chunks of the little girls dismembered body.

Each crimson flower opened up its petals before enveloping one chunk of flesh, then exploded into balls of pink light.

Once all of the explosions concluded, nothing remained of the little girls body.

At this point, Bao Huas miniature tree had clearly exhausted all of its power as well, and it shuddered before vanishing into thin air.

The entire spirit domain also surged violently before disintegrating.

Thus, Han Li and Bao Hua were the only ones that remained in this space.

I didnt think that youd be capable of unleashing a thread of laws, Brother Han, your mastery of your Profound Heavenly Treasure is truly extraordinary, Bao Hua said with a peculiar expression.

So that things known as a thread of laws? As expected, its far more powerful than what I was able to unleash in the past, Han Li mused as he glanced down at his green longsword.

Bao Hua was rather taken aback to hear this. Is this your first time manifesting that thread, Fellow Daoist Han?

Indeed, it is. I was only trying to maximize the power of this Profound Heavenly Treasure to the best of my abilities just now, Han Li replied.

I dont know what to say. Could it be that this Profound Heavenly Treasure has been nurtured within your body from the very beginning? Otherwise, its virtually impossible to manifest a thread of laws using a Profound Heavenly Treasure. Countless owners of Profound Heavenly Treasures have refined and nurtured their treasures for over 100,000 years, but are still unable to even begin to grasp a thread of laws, Bao Hua said with a wry smile.

It sounds like I was quite lucky, then. In comparison, Im more interested in the Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain, would you be able to tell me about that? Han Li asked.

This Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain is something that I only managed to attain after expending countless efforts and referencing an incomplete ancient tome. However, there are still many parts that require further refinement, and it cant compare with a true spirit domain. If youre interested, Id be happy to tell you about it some time, Bao Hua replied.

That would be great. Setting that aside for now, have we really managed to destroy the Stemborer Queens clone? Why is it that I still feel rather uneasy? Han Li asked with furrowed brows.

A clone of the Stemborer Queen should be nowhere near as powerful as the true Stemborer Queen itself, so theres no way it wouldve been able to survive our combined attacks. However, the feeling of unease in my heart hasnt abated, either, Bao Hua said as her expression darkened slightly.

Does that mean the clone isnt actually dead, but is merely unable to appear before us due to its injuries? Han Li asked.

Im afraid thats most likely the case, Bao Hua replied with a wry smile.

In any case, its a good thing that we managed to severely wound the clone, lets take this opportunity to find the body of the Stemborer Queen, Han Li said.

A faint smile appeared on Bao Huas face, yet just as she was about to reply, a sharp voice suddenly rang out from the spot where the little girl had just vanished not long ago.

You think youre safe now just because you beat Stem One? What a joke! Stem Two will have some fun now.

As soon as the voice trailed off, a gargantuan claw appeared up above before grabbing viciously down toward Han Li and Bao Hua.

The claw spread its five fingers, encompassing virtually the entire sky, and each claw was over 100 feet in length with azure light flashing from their sharp tips.

As the claws swept through the air, five long spatial rifts instantly appeared, as if the entire sky had been torn apart. Slow down, Stem Two, save some fun for Stem Three as well. Another unsettling voice rang out in all directions.

In the instant that Han Li heard this voice, a peal of laughter suddenly rang out in his ears, resembling the seductive panting of a woman.

His consciousness involuntarily faded for a split-second, and his movements also faltered.

At the same time, a massive bolt of grey lightning came crashing down toward him from above.

With Han Lis enormous spiritual sense, he was able to almost immediately recover from his moment of disorientation, and his expression immediately changed slightly at the sight of the grey lightning overhead.

He hurriedly withdrew his green longsword, completely disregarding the giant claw above him as he conjured up around a dozen identical projections that shot forth in all directions.

However, the bolt of grey lightning also split up into the same number of arcs before surging toward the projections as if it had a mind of its own.

Right at this moment, Bao Hua let loose a fierce cry, and her Earth Emperor Nail swelled to over 10,000 feet in size before crashing toward the giant claw up above.

In response, the giant claw unleashed five massive azure blade projections that swept down with ferocious might, seemingly completely unfazed by the massive nail.

An earth-shattering boom rang out as the nail and blade projections clashed, and the two attacks appeared to be evenly matched in power. reewebovel.com

Meanwhile, the grey lightning was pursuing Han Lis projections relentlessly, and it seemed that the lightning would never fade until it killed its target.

Do you really think this baleful lightning will be enough to bring me down? Han Lis enraged voice rang out from all of the projections, and each of them released a bolt of golden lightning that clashed with the grey lightning before immediately disintegrating.

As for the grey lightning, it remained completely unaffected aside from the fact that it had dimmed slightly, and it continued to surge toward Han Lis projections.

In the instant that the projections came into contact with the grey lightning, the former self-detonated into countless golden runes that seemed to be evenly-matched against the grey lightning.

However, one of the projections was the real Han Li, and purplish-golden light revolved all around his body as he threw a vicious punch at the oncoming bolt of grey lightning.

An earth-shattering boom rang out as a white pillar of light was unleashed to clash with the grey lightning.

In the instant that the lightning came into contact with the white pillar of light, it was completely devoured by the white light as if it had encountered the bane of its existence.

However, the purplish-golden light surging over Han Lis body also dimmed quite noticeably, clearly indicating that he had expended a lot of energy to unleash that attack.

So are we just supposed to trust the others? What if they take advantage of the opportunity to teleport away? Han Li asked through voice transmission.

Rest assured, Brother Han, I tampered with the Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate that I gave to everyone, so as long as I dont allow it, they wont be able to use the formation plates. Once theyre all made aware of this, Im sure they wouldnt dare to try anything, Bao Hua revealed with a smile.

Immediately thereafter, she turned and transmitted her voice toward the others.

Han Li cast his gaze toward the elderly man and black-robed woman, and sure enough, upon hearing what Bao Hua had to say, enraged looks appeared on both of their faces.

In contrast, Bao Huas expression remained unchanged, and she even had the nerve to smile at the two of them.

The elderly man and black-robed woman were naturally extremely furious, if it werent for the fact that they were facing such a fearsome enemy, they couldve easily turned on Bao Hua already.

Before they had a chance to communicate any further, the little girl cast her gaze toward them, and giggled, Have you thought about how to compensate me? How about this? Hand over your Nascent Souls, and perhaps Ill be full after eating one or two more, and Ill let the rest of you leave.

Do you really think such a blatant attempt to sow dissension among us will work? If we allow you to kill one more of us, the rest of us will completely be at your mercy, Bao Hua replied in a calm manner, then immediately swept a hand through the air.

The Earth Emperor Nail embedded into the black crystal instantly vanished, then reappeared in her grasp.

Oh? So youre determined to fight me? You were able to survive one of my attacks, and thats certainly quite remarkable. However, your Nascent Soul isnt the one I want to eat the most right now, its his! His spiritual sense is so powerful, Im sure his Nascent Soul would be far more delicious than the one I just had, the little girl said with a smile as she pointed toward Han Li.

Han Lis expression changed slightly upon seeing this, and Bao Hua and the others were also rather taken aback.

Judging from what the Stemborer Queen had just said, it seemed that Han Lis spiritual sense was even more powerful than that of Bao Huas, and that was quite surprising.

If you think my Nascent Soul will be quite good to eat, then come and get it, Han Li said with a faint smile, seemingly completely unfazed by the little girls threat.

Bao Hua and the others couldnt help but admire his courage. After all, not everyone could remain so calm and nonchalant in the face of a threat from a being as fearsome as the Stemborer Queen.

Alright, then dont mind if I do! the little girl said as she licked her lips and clenched her fists, then suddenly shot forth as a blurry shadow.

She was so fast that she reached Han Li in an instant, and he couldnt even clearly see how she had gotten there. A black flaming fist pierced through Han Lis chest, and only then did the shadow solidify as the little re-emerged with a smile on her face.

However, in the next instant, her smile immediately faded as a green line swept forth from Han Lis body without any warning, slicing the little girls body cleanly in half.

As for the Han Li that had just been struck by her punch, it suddenly exploded into a ball of golden light.

Over 100 feet away, another Han Li emerged expressionlessly amid a burst of spatial fluctuations, holding a green longsword that was releasing hints of powers of law.

That sword of yours is a Profound Heavenly Treasure! No wonder you were able to evade my attack, looks like it wont be that easy to take you down.

A burst of giggling rang out, and the two halves of the little girls body didnt shed a single drop of blood as they hovered in mid-air, while the two halves of her mouth curved upward into an unsettling smile.

Both the elderly man and black-robed woman couldnt help but shudder in the face of such a disturbing sight.

Right at this moment, Bao Hua suddenly raised a hand to hurl her Earth Emperor Nail through the air, then abruptly vanished amid a flash of pink light.

At the same time, her voice rang out within the ears of the elderly man and black-robed woman. We have to act now, fellow daoists, only after destroying the Stemborer Queens body will we be able to escape from this place. Fellow Daoist Han and I wont be able to hold off this clone for too long, so you have to make haste.

The elderly man and black-robed womans expressions changed several times, but after exchanging a glance, they could only grit their teeth and plunge into the water down below.

Even though they were enraged by Bao Huas tampering of the Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plates, they had no choice but to work with her now.

The little girls expression changed slightly upon seeing this, and she immediately tried to stop them, but a giant nail suddenly appeared above of the two halves of her body, then transformed into a yellow net that descended toward her.

Countless yellow runes surged out of the net alongside a burst of extremely formidable power of laws.

A cold light flashed through the little girls eyes as her body suddenly exploded into countless black threads that shot forth in all directions, allowing her to evade the yellow net.

A fierce look appeared on Han Lis face upon seeing this, and he let loose a loud cry as his Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword also transformed into countless green threads that vanished into thin air before appearing right in front of the black threads, then unleashed a barrage of ferocious attacks.

All of the black threads that came into contact with the green threads immediately exploded into clouds of black Qi.

Han Li pointed a finger forward, planning to spur on the green threads to eradicate all of this black Qi, but right at this moment, the clouds of black Qi suddenly dissipated, and in the next instant, the little girl re-emerged elsewhere amid a flash of black light, having completely recovered from her injuries.

She turned toward Han Li with a cold smile, yet just as she was about to unleash some type of ability, a peculiar aroma suddenly wafted through the arid around her.

Immediately thereafter, countless pink flower petals emerged, and the surrounding space suddenly became extremely viscous.

The little girl was quite alarmed by this, and she quickly tried to escape, but all of a sudden, Bao Hua emerged above her, carrying a giant ball of light that she immediately raised up high.

The ball of light exploded, and countless runes surged out of it, all of which were extremely dazzling to behold.

At the epicenter of the explosion, a wisp of green light appeared, transforming into a tiny green seedling, which grew to become a small tree in the blink of an eye and was still growing at a rapid rate discernible to the naked eye.

All of a sudden, a huge green tree had taken shape over Bao Huas palm.

Specks of pink light appeared all over the trees branches, transforming into pink flower buds that instantly spread over the entire tree.

Bao Hua then began to chant an incantation, and the flower buds slowly bloomed, turning the green tree a pink color.

Pink flower projections filled the entire space within a radius of tens of thousands of kilometers, creating a vast sea of pink.

This is a Profound Heavenly Spirit Domain! the little girl exclaimed as her smile finally faded, and a fierce look appeared on her face as countless grey runes appeared around her.

The surrounding space began to twist and warp, and it seemed that she was trying to escape the domain with all her might.

The entire domain also began to tremor violently, as if it were struggling to hold itself together.

An urgent look appeared on Bao Huas face as she hurriedly yelled, Strike now, Fellow Daoist Han!

As soon as her voice trailed off, she grabbed onto a branch of the tree and tore it off before slashing it toward the little girl down below. All of the huge flowers on the branch instantly transformed into five-colored runes that vanished in a flash, while the little girl let loose an agonized cry as one of her arms suddenly disappeared.

At the same time, the branch in Bao Huas hand had also vanished.

However, in the next instant, the little girl was able to regrow a brand new arm amid a flash of black light.

Bao Hua immediately tore two more branches off the tree before also slashing them toward the little girl.

In the next instant, both of the little girls arms vanished in unison.

A ferocious look surfaced in the little girls eyes, and she regrew both of her arms at once.

Meanwhile, Han Li was making a hand seal with a serious expression, and a string of cracks and pops immediately erupted within his body.

A series of purplish-golden scales then appeared all over his skin, and a short horn emerged on his forehead.

At the same time, two identical heads and four additional golden arms also sprouted out of his body.

The three heads let loose a thunderous roar in unison, and a third demonic eye opened up on the glabella of each head with purplish-golden light flashing within them.

Han Li had unleashed his Holy Nirvana Physique to its maximal extent!

His aura had swelled to over 10 times as powerful as it had been, and he gripped onto his Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword with both hands before slashing it viciously toward the trapped little girl in the distance.

A phoenix cry rang out, and a ball of five-colored light erupted out of the shattered formation plate before enveloping Bao Huas entire body.

Spatial fluctuations erupted, yet just as Bao Hua was about to vanish into thin air, a tender yet very cold voice rang out from down below.

Youre not going anywhere.

As soon as the voice trailed off, the water down below parted, and a shadow suddenly shot out.

A resounding thump rang out as Bao Hua was sent flying by a burst of tremendous force, and the layer of five-colored light around her instantly shattered.

Only after flying back for around 500 feet did she manage to just barely steady herself, and she couldnt help but throw up a mouthful of blood.

It seemed that she had sustained some substantial injuries from that attack!

However, she had been very alert and injected all of her magic power into the protective spiritual light around her right before she was struck by that attack. Otherwise, even if that attack wouldnt have been able to kill her, she would definitely still have ended up with far more severe injuries.

Everyone else was naturally very alarmed to see this.

Han Li immediately focused his gaze on the spot where Bao Hua had been standing before, and he caught sight of a small and delicate figure.

This was a little girl who appeared to be no more than 12 years of age, and she was slowly withdrawing her little fist as she appraised the Grand Ascension Stage beings present with a hint of a smile on her face.

The little girl had a dark complexion and was wearing an extremely ordinary set of tight-fitting clothes. Her appearance was quite ordinary, but her eyes were completely grey, as if she were blind from birth, and there was a glossy black crystal embedded into her glabella.

The crystal was very similar in appearance to the one left behind after the giant insects body had disappeared, except it was darker and smaller, seemingly able to suck in all light.

The little girl was the one who had just sent Bao Hua flying, and as she cast her gaze toward Han Li, the latter immediately felt a chill run down his spine.

As for the other Grand Ascension Stage beings, they were also very unsettled by the little girls sweeping gaze.

Even though she hadnt introduced herself, the fact that she had been able to send Bao Hua flying with a single attack was a clear indication that she was most likely the Stemborer Queen.

As for what that giant insect from before was, no one had the spare capacity to worry about that now, all of them had their attention focused entirely on this little girl.

No one had been able to clearly see the punch that had just sent Bao Hua flying, it had simply been far too fast.

The only one whose expression remained unchanged here was Daoist Xie.

He was appraising the little girl in an indifferent manner while arcs of silver lightning appeared over his body to form a lightning robe.

Oh? An immortal puppet? How interesting, I didnt think Id see something like this in a lower realm, the little girl said as she appraised Daoist Xie with an intrigued expression.

Are you the true Stemborer Queen? Bao Hua asked as she finally recovered the breath that had been knocked out of her by the earlier punch.

Hmph, are you saying that body you just destroyed isnt my true form? I shed that body 100,000 years ago, and it was very useful to me, yet youve destroyed it, how are you all going to compensate me? the little girl harrumphed coldly.

So that means your true body is hidden underwater, how crafty of you! Im also very surprised that you were able to dispel the power of the heavenly phoenix within my Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate, Bao Hua sighed.

Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate? Thats just a useless object containing a hint of the power of laws of the heavenly phoenix. It can wield some spatial power, but its nothing more than a toy in my eyes. I havent ever faced a true spirit heavenly phoenix, but Ive devoured quite a few powerful beings of the phoenix race, the little girl scoffed with a disdainful expression.

The black-robed woman had already snuck her Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate into her hand, and her heart immediately sank upon hearing this. She knew that she couldnt fully trust the little girls words, but she didnt dare to use her formation plate nonetheless.

However, there was someone that was completely unconvinced by the little girls claims, he was very confident in the Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plates power, and he felt himself to be quite far away from the little girl.

That person was none other than the red-faced man, and he suddenly summoned his Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate before instantly crushing it.

A burst of five-colored light emerged to envelop his entire body alongside a flurry of spatial fluctuations.

A cold look appeared on the little girls face upon seeing this, and she immediately shot forth as a blurry black shadow.

The red-faced man was already prepared, and he let loose a loud cry as he slashed his bone blade through the air.

An earth-shattering boom rang out as a mountainous blade projection struck the black shadow, tearing it into countless pieces.

Haha! The red-faced man chortled, and he didnt care whether his attack had actually harmed the little girl, what was important to him was that he was about to teleport away.

Everyone else had been intimidated by the Stemborer Queens threat, yet he was going to teleport away, and it was very likely that he was going to be the only one in the group to survive, so of course he was very pleased with himself.

However, his laughter then suddenly cut and was replaced by an agonized howl.

A slender arm had plunged through his chest, completely disregarding his protective spiritual light and armor.

It turned out that the little girl had appeared behind him in a wraith-like manner, and her arm was like a divine weapon capable of piercing through all things.

The little girl giggled as she pulled a miniature crimson humanoid figure out of the red-haired mans chest.

This was none other than the red-faced mans Nascent Soul, and it was struggling with all its might to escape, but to no avail.

The little girl opened her mouth to release a black thread, which struck the red-faced mans body with unerring accuracy, and it instantly withered away before disintegrating into dust.

No! Shes wielding the power of the law of time! Save me, fellow daoists!

The Nascent Soul thrashed violently with a horrified expression while calling for help in a panicked frenzy.

A hint of incredulity appeared in Bao Huas eyes upon hearing the words law of time.

The elderly man and black-robed woman had initially intended to step in, but both of them immediately abandoned those plans as horrified looks appeared on their faces.

In contrast, Han Li faltered slightly upon hearing this before a contemplative look appeared in his eyes.

Meanwhile, the little girl was looking at the little Nascent Soul in her hand as if she were appraising a delicacy, and she bit off half of the Nascent Soul in one mouthful, chewing several times before swallowing.

The Nascent Soul immediately let loose a bloodcurdling cry as it fainted on the spot. Even though it managed to instantly regenerate, the light radiating from it had dimmed significantly, and its aura had also become close to non-existent.

Bao Huas expression changed slightly, and she raised a hand to try and do something, but it was already too late.

The little girl giggled as she quickly devoured the rest of the Nascent Soul, then licked her lips with a pleased expression.

This was supposed to be quite an adorable display, but it was downright demonic in the eyes of the Grand Ascension Stage beings present.

Not only had the elderly man and black-robed womans faces paled significantly, Bao Hua had also fallen into a solemn silence.

Han Li remained quite calm, but he still waved a hand toward Daoist Xie, who immediately teleported over to Han Li.

It seemed that the situation was not looking good.

The Stemborer Queen had managed to wound Bao Hua with a single attack and easily killed a Grand Ascension Stage, it was definitely far more powerful than they anticipated.

How was it this powerful after only just awakening? Wasnt the spirit of the ancient seal supposed to have used all of its power to restrict the Stemborer Queen?

Even in its current state, the Stemborer Queen could still kill Grand Ascension Stage beings with ease, how had a pair of true immortals managed to seal it at the height of its powers?

There was clearly something suspicious about this story.

However, before Han Li had a chance to ponder this notion further, Bao Hua suddenly transmitted her voice to him.

Brother Han, this is not the Stemborer Queens body, its a clone manifested from its soul. As such, aside from Profound Heavenly Treasures, all other treasures will struggle to harm it. On top of that, its mastery of the law of time is very elementary, so it cant use that power easily. Every time it does so, its soul will be slightly weakened. As long as we use our Profound Heavenly Treasures to protect ourselves, theres nothing to fear.

How do you know so much? Han Li couldnt help but ask.

I was informed of all of this by the spirit of the ancient seal. Lets hold off this clone together while our other fellow daoists go underwater to destroy the Stemborer Queens body. As long as its body is destroyed, its soul wont pose any substantial threat, Bao Hua replied.

In that case, itll only be able to withstand our attacks with its physical body, and theres no way thatll end well for it, Bao Hua paused momentarily before continuing, However, the Stemborer Queen wouldve most definitely mastered the earth-attribute laws of heaven and earth as well, so I cant say for sure how long the Earth Emperor Nail will be able to restrict it for. As such, once I unleash this treasure, please attack without any hesitation.

Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua, our lives are on the line as well, so we definitely wont treat this lightly, the elderly man replied.

Everyone else also chimed in in agreement.

Alright, as a safety precaution, Ill contact the spirit of the ancient seal first and get it to focus all of its power here, both to restrict the Stemborer Queen and to disguise what were doing here, Bao Hua said.

She then made a strange hand seal and began to chant something, and the face within the mist suddenly appeared once again without any warning.

Bao Huas lips tremored as she communicated with the face through voice transmission, and shortly thereafter, the misty face vanished again.

Almost at the exact same moment, Han Li and the others were suddenly struck by an indescribable sense of pressure.

They hurriedly examined themselves, and were relieved to find that this pressure wasnt affecting them in any substantial way.

At this moment, countless grey runes had appeared around Bao Hua, and they quickly enveloped her, leaving only a blurry silhouette of her body visible from the outside.

Strangely enough, as soon as the grey runes surrounded Bao Hua, her aura completely vanished.

She was still standing on the same spot, but she was completely undetectable through spiritual sense, as if she had fused as one with this entire space.

The power of the ancient seal has completely concealed my aura, so no matter how close I get to the Stemborer Queen, it wont be able to detect me. Im going to attack now, please get ready, everyone, Bao Hua said.

The elderly man nodded before summoning a white jade badge, which appeared amid a flash of spiritual light.

The surface of the badge was extremely intricate with countless spirit beast images engraved onto its surface.

Thats the Myriad Beast Badge! According to legends, this is a treasure that fell from the True Immortal Realm in ancient times. Back then, many Grand Ascension Stage beings had fought over this treasure, I didnt think that it would be in your possession, the black-robed woman exclaimed.

Hehe, I was quite fortunate to have obtained this treasure, the elderly man said in a slightly smug manner.

A hint of envy appeared in the red-faced mans eyes, while Han Li was appraising the badge with an intrigued expression.

With this Myriad Beast Badge, our chances of success will be boosted even further, Bao Hua said in an elated manner.

At this point, the black-robed woman and red-faced man had also summoned their treasures. The woman had opened her mouth to release an inky-black spear, while the man had conjured up a giant white bone blade with countless crimson spirit patterns engraved onto its surface.

The spiritual light being released by the two treasures had been forcibly repressed by them, but the fearsome auras they were giving off clearly indicated that they were both extremely powerful treasures.

Brother Xie, give this everything you have, Han Li said to Daoist Xie through voice transmission.

Daoist Xie nodded in an expressionless manner, then raised a hand to summon a silver bead.

A dull thump rang out, and countless arcs of lightning erupted out of the bead before forming a ball of lightning.

Initially, the ball of lightning was only around the size of a human head, but as it slowly rose up into the air, it swelled to the size of a house.

After that, Daoist Xie carried the lightning ball with one hand and remained still on the spot.

Meanwhile, Han Li made a hand seal, and his Provenance True Devil Projection appeared amid a flash of golden light, then transformed into the golden body before fusing as one with Han Li.

Bright purplish-golden light radiated forth, and Han Lis body turned a shimmering golden color.

At the same time, countless silver spirit patterns appeared all over his skin before forming a series of silver formations.

After that, Han Li made a grabbing motion, and a green longsword that was around three feet long appeared in his grasp.

With nothing more than a light flick of his wrist, a buzzing sound rang out, and even the worlds origin Qi was being swayed by the sword.

This was none other than the Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword.

In the face of a creature as fearsome as the Stemborer Queen, Han Li didnt dare to hold back and was releasing his ultimate trump card right away.

Bao Hua had seen Han Li use the Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword before, so she wasnt surprised to see it again. However, everyone elses attention was immediately drawn to the sword, and it was clear that they had already guessed what it was.

However, before any of them had a chance to ask any questions, Bao Hua suddenly made a hand seal before vanishing on the spot.

In the next instant, Bao Hua re-emerged less than 200 feet away, then raised the giant nail up with both hands.

Everyone else immediately turned their attention away from Han Lis sword and focused on the task at hand, beginning to inject their power into the treasures they had summoned.

All of them were preparing to strike in the instant that the Earth Emperor Nail pierced into the Stemborer Queens body.

At this moment, the mountainous Stemborer Queen was still in a completely oblivious slumber.

Faint silver light flashed through Bao Huas eyes as she stared intently at the Stemborer Queen, and all of a sudden, a fierce look appeared in her eyes as the Earth Emperor Nail shot forth as a streak of yellow light.

The nail pierced through the black formation with ease, then plunged into the Stemborer Queens body before reverting back to its original form.

Yellow light erupted from the giant nail in all directions, and these strands of yellow light blurred before vanishing into the Stemborer Queens body.

Everyone, what are you waiting for?! Bao Hua was elated as she let loose a loud cry, a massive floral tree projection appeared behind her before exploding into countless pink flower petals that surged toward the Stemborer Queen.

At the same time, Han Li and the others had also sprung into action.

The elderly man hurled his jade badge high up into the air, and it transformed into a white jade gate, from within which countless beastly projections rushed out.

Meanwhile, the black-robed woman uttered an incantation, and her black spear immediately shot forth as a streak of black lightning.

As for the red-faced man, he swept his giant bone blade through the air, and spatial fluctuations erupted above the Stemborer Queen, following which a massive blade projection over 10,000 feet in length emerged before crashing down with devastating might.

A burst of enormous invisible power descended alongside the blade projection, and a giant ball of lightning also appeared beside it at the exact same moment.

The ball of lightning then transformed into a massive silver lightning net that enshrouded the entire body of the Stemborer Queen down below.

These attacks were truly extraordinarily fast, but they had still been unleashed marginally slower than Han Li.

The silver formations all over Han Lis body emitted a faint buzzing sound as he slashed his Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword through the air, releasing a green thread that instantly vanished into thin air.

In the next instant, the worlds origin Qi above the Stemborer Queen tremored, and the green line descended to slice its mountainous body in half.

Immediately thereafter, the giant blade projection, silver lightning net, storm of flower petals, black lightning, and spirit beast projections also arrived.

A string of earth-shattering explosions rang out, and the inky-black formation was instantly torn apart.

Countless flower petal projections surged through the air like sharp blades, and beyond those were the countless spirit beast projections, which surrounded the Stemborer Queen before self-detonating in rapid succession.

Powerful shockwaves surged forth in all directions, and a series of halos proliferated outward.

The barrage of attacks instantly inundated the Stemborer Queens entire body, and it remained completely still throughout the entire process, as if it really had been slain in its slumber.

However, not only were Han Li and the others not elated to see this, their faces instantly paled significantly.

All of these Grand Ascension Stage beings had an extensive wealth of battle experience, and even though they were very confident in their own attacks, they definitely wouldnt be naive enough to believe that the vastly renowned Stemborer Queen would be killed so easily.

After the dust settled, the giant Stemborer Queens body had vanished, leaving only a fist-sized black crystal hovering in mid-air.

A rusty nail was embedded deep into the crystal, and everyone was struck by a bone-chilling sensation upon seeing this.

Somethings wrong! We have to get out of here, Bao Hua yelled in a decisive manner as she turned her hand over to produce a formation plate, which she immediately crushed.

Im giving these treasures to you all as gifts, so Im naturally not going to take them back, Bao Hua said with a smile.

With these treasures in our possession and the Profound Heavenly Treasure capable of suppressing insects, Im sure well be able to handle the Stemborer Queen, Ill come as well, the elderly man said.

The black-robed woman also gave a slight nod after a brief moment of contemplation.

Bao Hua was ecstatic to see this, but Han Li was the one that she held in the highest regard here. What about you, Brother Han?

I certainly cant back down now that everyone else has agreed to go, Han Li replied as he stowed his formation plate away.

With his current powers and collection of treasures, he would be able to ensure self-preservation even against a true immortal, let alone a severely debilitated Stemborer Queen.

Alright, Ill get the spirit of the ancient seal to teleport us there right away. Our two fellow daoists from the Black Night Realm should also be in that area, and their inclusion will even further increase our chance of success, Bao Hua said with a smile. freweovel.co

Immediately thereafter, she cast an incantation seal into the grey mist up ahead, and the mist parted to reveal a path.

Bao Hua drifted into the path without any hesitation, and everyone else hurriedly followed along as well.

Shortly thereafter, everyone emerged into a spacious area with a grey teleportation formation on the ground.

A voice could be heard coming from all directions, as if someone were saying something to them, but only Bao Hua seemed to be able to understand what was being said as she nodded before making her way into the formation with a solemn expression.

Everyone else hesitated momentarily before walking into the formation as well.

Once everyone had entered the formation, it was activated on its own, and the entire group vanished amid a flash of spiritual light.

……

Meanwhile, the inky-black bowl on the sacrificial altar within the mysterious stone forest suddenly tremored slightly, and a faint male voice rang out.

So those people are planning to target that Stemborer Queen. Hehe, how foolish! Theyve completely overestimated themselves. I have to keep that brat alive somehow, so it looks like Ill have no choice but to use that thing…

A forlorn sigh then rang out, as if an important sacrifice were being made.

A metallic clang then sounded in the air, and eight thin silver chains appeared above the altar.

One end of each chain was connected to the edge of the bowl, while the other ends were connected to the lamps atop the eight copper pillars.

A burst of unintelligible chanting rang out from within the bowl, and the chain that was connected to the only lit lamp began to tremor slightly.

All of a sudden, countless tiny golden runes emerged on the lamp before being rapidly funneled over to the altar along the chain, then disappeared into the black bowl.

The black mist around the bowl began to become denser, and an extremely fearsome aura that was only becoming more powerful abruptly erupted forth.

……

So this is where the Stemborer Queen is residing, Han Li mused as he inspected his surroundings with a surprised expression.

All of the other Grand Ascension Stage beings aside from Bao Hua were also quite stunned by what they were seeing.

They were currently situated on a boundless ocean that stretched as far as the eyes could see in all directions.

This isnt an illusion! Whats going on? Is this a place in the underground palace? the elderly man asked with furrowed brows.

Of course not, the underground palace is nowhere near large enough to contain such a massive body of water, Bao Hua replied with a shake of her head.

Then what is this place? Have we been teleported out of the original sealed site? the red-faced man asked.

I dont think so. Otherwise, our spiritual sense would no longer be restricted, the black-robed woman said, clearly having already tried out her spiritual power here.

All of a sudden, Han Li said in a calm manner, Everyone, please look up.

Up? I already had a look, there doesnt seem to be anything amiss, the elderly man said as he looked up at the grey sky again.

The black-robed woman and red-faced man also looked up with perplexed expressions.

However, a hint of enlightenment appeared in Bao Huas eye as she looked up into the sky, and right at this moment, Han Li swept a finger upward, releasing an azure sword projection that was several thousand feet in length.

The grey light in the entire sky began to surge violently, and a piercing screech suddenly rang out.

It was as if the azure sword projection were threatening to cleave the entire sky apart, but after the azure light faded, the sky remained intact, but an inky-black formation that encompassed virtually the entire sky had appeared up above.

The formation was comprised of countless black runes of different sizes, and at the center of the formation was a motionless white insect that was the size of a mountain.

The insect had a pristine and flawless white body, and its head was buried deep into its own body, making it impossible to glean its appearance. However, with its rotund frame, it was looking like a massive silkworm.

Strangely enough, even though the giant insect seemed to be in a deep slumber, there were golden runes surging slowly around its body.

Thats the Stemborer Queen! the black-robed woman exclaimed.

The red-haired man and elderly man were also very alarmed to see this, and they immediately adopted defensive stances.

In contrast, Bao Hua was very calm as she said, Theres no need to be alarmed, fellow daoists, itll still take some time for this insect to awaken, so we wont alert it as long as we dont do anything rash. Looks like this is a spatial rift that the Stemborer Queen opened up, so our fellow daoists from the Black Night Realm wont be able to join us here.

With the Stemborer Queens power, it would indeed be able to open up a spatial rift. That explains why this place is still affected by the power of the seal, the elderly man said as his expression eased slightly.

Without the assistance of our fellow daoists from the Black Night Realm, I feel like were a little short on numbers. How about we find the exit of this place and bring those two fellow daoists in as well? the black-robed woman suggested.

That wont do. The Stemborer Queen is about to awaken, if we enter and exit this space so recklessly, itll most likely awaken right away. Im sure thats why our fellow daoists from the Black Night Realm refrained from entering this space. After all, they dont have the advantage of being able to teleport themselves into this space using the power of the ancient seal like we do, Bao Hua said.

Right at this moment, Han Li suddenly said, Lets cut the chatter and make haste while the Stemborer Queen is still in its slumber. If we can severely wound it here, that would be the best outcome.

Are you looking down on us, Fellow Daoist Han? If we combine our powers, even a true immortal would most likely be felled if they were caught off guard, the black-robed woman said with a hint of displeasure in her eyes.

Hmph, if the Stemborer Queen were that easy to kill, the true immortals wouldve already killed it rather than sealed it away, I always prepare for the worst in everything that I do, Han Li replied in a cold voice.

The black-robed womans expression darkened upon hearing this, and she was just about to respond again when Bao Hua interjected, Lets not argue among ourselves, fellow daoists. All we can do is attack with all our might, and the rest will be down to luck. Having said that, its better to be safe than sorry, so not only do we have to all attack at once, Im going to use that Profound Heavenly Treasure that I borrowed as well. If any of you have any powerful trump cards up your sleeves, now would be the time to use them, perhaps the Stemborer Queen will only give us this one opportunity.

Youre right, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua, the elderly man said as he nodded in agreement.

No one else had any objections, either.

Thus, Bao Hua took a deep breath before making a hand seal, and a massive pink floral tree projection appeared behind her amid a flash of pink light.

At the same time, she slowly raised a hand, then parted her fingers to summon a huge rusty yellow nail.

The nail was only around half a foot in length, and its surface was riddled with pits and bumps, as well as some indistinct spirit patterns.

Judging from how dilapidated it appeared, it looked as if it had been buried in the ground for countless years.

However, Bao Hua was holding the object in a very careful manner, and she said in a solemn voice, This Earth Emperor Nail contains the power of the laws of earth of a realm. Anyone struck by this nail would be unable to use any earth-attribute abilities, and if I recall correctly, the Stemborer Queens essential power is of the earth attribute. If I successfully strike the Stemborer Queen with this nail, itll be unable to use most of its powers.

Xie Lian and L Shi exchanged a glance, and the latter asked, What should we do, Fellow Daoist Xie Lian? Should we follow them?

Brother Han is right, somethings clearly gone wrong, so it would be unwise to stay here. Lets get out of here and find out whats going on first, Xie Lian said.

She then swept a sleeve through the air and flew away as a floral projection.

L Shi could only heave a faint sigh and follow along.

At this point, Han Li and Daoist Xie were flying along a narrow passageway, heading toward the direction where the tremors were the strongest.

Even though the flight restriction was still in place, Han Li was still able to fly at quite a high speed at the expense of additional magic power expenditure.

Han Li swept his spiritual sense around the passageway, and his brows immediately furrowed slightly.

Countless cracks had appeared within the smooth-looking walls of the passageway, and the number of cracks was quickly increasing.

It seemed that this underground palace wouldnt be able to hold itself together for much longer.

Right at this moment, the tremors up ahead became even more violent, and it looked as if the entire palace could collapse at any moment.

All of a sudden, a crossroads appeared up ahead, and Han Li turned into a new passageway without any hesitation.

He was immediately greeted by two black human-faced stemborers that pounced directly toward him, and it seemed that these two stemborers had been waiting there for quite some time.

Han Li harrumphed coldly upon seeing this, and a green sword mark suddenly appeared on his forearm, following which a green longsword that was around three feet in length instantly appeared in his hand before being slashed toward the pair of oncoming stemborers.

The worlds origin Qi in the surrounding area was immediately stirred up into a frenzy, and a burst of enormous power of laws descended upon the passageway.

Peculiar energy fluctuations erupted around the two human-faced stemborers, and they were immediately immobilized, then sliced in half before they even knew what had happened.

Han Li appeared behind the two human-faced stemborers in a flash, following which the stemborers dismembered bodies abruptly burst into flames.

Han Li didnt want to be stalled here, so he had used his Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword to kill the two human-faced stemborers right away.

At his current cultivation base, he was able to use a part of the Profound Heavenly Treasures power even without unleashing his Holy Nirvana Physique.

Daoist Xies expression changed slightly upon seeing this, but he remained silent as he continued to follow along behind Han Li.

After that, the two of them didnt encounter any stemborers, and after a long while, they finally emerged from the passageway into a massive underground cave.

There was a layer of fine silver sand spread over the floor of the cave, but the roof of the cave was lined with razor-sharp stalactites.

Not far away from the opening of the passageway was a cloud of grey mist that was giving off a faint sandalwood aroma, and there were several humanoid figures currently hovering before the sea of mist, one of whom was none other than Bao Hua.

She was currently appraising the grey mist with a hint of bewilderment in her eyes, and there was an indistinct face within the mist that seemed to be communicating with Bao Hua through voice transmission.

Behind Bao Hua stood Heie and several other Grand Ascension Stage beings.

All of them were immediately alerted by Han Li and Daoist Xies arrival, but their expressions quickly eased upon realizing that more allies had arrived.

Whats going on? Where are all our other fellow daoists? Han Li asked as he swept his spiritual sense toward the cloud of grey mist.

Were not too sure whats happened, either. Bao Hua is currently communicating with the spirit of the ancient seal to find out whats happening. As for everyone else, you two are the first to arrive, an ordinary-looking elderly man replied with a grim expression.

Is that the spirit of the ancient seal? Han Li asked as he cast a contemplative gaze toward the face within the mist.

Right at this moment, Bao Hua seemed to have concluded her communication with the face in the mist, and the latter quickly dissipated.

Im glad youre here, Brother Han, Fellow Daoist Xie, please lend me your assistance, Bao Hua said with a serious expression.

You still havent told me whats going on here, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua, Han Li said as he peered into the sea of mist.

The power of the ancient seal has gone out of control. Both the power of the seal restricting the Stemborer Queen and the power trapping Fellow Daoist Yuan Yan and the others suddenly waned significantly, and not only is the awakening of the Stemborer Queen imminent, all of our trapped fellow daoists are also in great peril. The first thing that the Stemborer Queen is going to do after its awakening would definitely be to kill Yuan Yan and the others. Having lost so much energy, the ancient seal is about to fall apart, and the underground palace is also on the verge of collapse, Bao Hua sighed.

What? How did this happen? We havent done anything yet. Could it be that one of the groups of fellow daoists made an error while repairing their restriction? a red-faced man asked with an alarmed expression.

Did you find out what happened from the spirit of the ancient seal, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua? It should be aware of what led to this, the elderly man asked.

I asked the spirit of the ancient seal about this, but it doesnt know whats going on, either, it could only sense that its power had been drawn away by something or someone. However, its already agreed to teleport us to where the Stemborer Queen is residing so we can attack it before it awakens. In doing so, well be able to stall it and buy our other fellow daoists more time to save everyone thats been trapped. It looks like well have to abandon our original plan, Bao Hua said with a wry smile.

What? Youre saying we should go and attack the Stemborer Queen? Are you being serious, Fellow Daoist Bao Hua? a black-robed woman exclaimed.

Everyone elses expressions also changed slightly upon hearing this.

Rest assured, everyone, Im proposing this for a reason. I learned from the spirit of the ancient seal that the Stemborer Queen had to pay a heavy price to trap Yuan Yan and the others. On top of that, its being forced to awaken on this occasion, so it wouldnt have been able to recover much of its powers, and itll be nowhere near as formidable as it would normally be. The spirit of the ancient seal has also promised me that it would use all of its remaining power to assist us. Additionally, prior to making this trip, I borrowed a Profound Heavenly Treasure thats particularly effective against insects, so theres a very good chance that well succeed, Bao Hua explained.

Everyones concerns were slightly eased upon hearing this. However, this was a matter of life and death, so they were still quite hesitant to agree to this plan.

Bao Hua could see the concern in everyones eyes, and she was forced to make a decision.

I know youre all unwilling to take this risk, but you have to think of all of your trapped brethren. Fellow Daoist Copper Crow and the others are right near the place where Yuan Yan and the others have been trapped, even if we cant kill the Stemborer Queen, we can buy them some time to rescue everyone. On top of that, I have something for all of you. With these things in our possession, even if we turn out to be no match for the Stemborer Queen, well still be able to get away.

As soon as her voice trailed off, she raised a sleeve to send a streak of red light flying toward each of her companions.

Everyone reflexively caught the streaks of red light to discover that these were crimson formation plates with complex designs etched onto their surfaces.

Han Li could sense spatial fluctuations emanating from the formation plate in his hand, and after turning the plate over, he discovered that there was an extremely intricate and life-like feather pattern on the back.

These are Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plates that can instantly teleport one hundreds of thousands of kilometers away! You mustve been very fortunate to have obtained these treasures, the elderly man exclaimed as his eyes lit up with elation.

Are these really Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plates? Ive heard that they can only be refined using true heavenly phoenix feathers. Theyre capable of teleporting through all restrictions and formations, and theyre essentially equivalent to extra lives! the black-robed woman exclaimed.

Theres no mistaking it, I saw a Treasured Phoenix Spirit Plate once during an auction, and its appearance and aura were both identical to these ones, the elderly man confirmed.

Alright, seeing as Fellow Daoist Bao Hua is willing to offer such precious treasures, Ill agree to this plan. Even if I dont end up using it, Im not going to return it! the red-faced man said as a hint of greed flashed through his eyes.

Han Li cast his gaze toward the damaged weapons, and his brows suddenly furrowed slightly as he made a grabbing motion.

A shimmering fragment of a sword blade immediately flew into his hand, and he began to carefully inspect it.

There was a deep claw mark on the surface of the blade fragment, and it was as if it had been intentionally carved into the blade.

Han Li exerted more force with his index finger and thumb to squeeze onto the blade fragment while also releasing a burst of golden light into it through his fingertips.

As a result, a finger indentation that was about as deep as the claw mark also appeared on the fragment.

Have you discovered something, Fellow Daoist Han? Xie Lian asked in an intrigued manner.

Take a look for yourself, Han Li said as he tossed the blade fragment toward her.

Xie Lian raised a hand to catch the object, and after only a brief inspection, she suddenly exclaimed, High Zenith Platinum! This weapon was refined from High Zenith Platinum!

High Zenith Platinum? Thats an extremely renowned material across all realms, and there arent many materials more resolute than it. The owner of this blade mustve been quite fortunate to have obtained such a large piece, L Shi said in a stunned voice.

Hmph, Im not sure they were all that fortunate considering theyve been slain by these stemborers. Setting that aside for now, your physical body must be extremely powerful to have left such a deep indentation on such a material. How much of your strength did you use just now, Fellow Daoist Han? Xie Lian said as she also squeezed the fragment between her fingertips, yet was only able to leave a very light indentation.

As for L Shi, he could only shake his head with a wry smile, clearly conceding his inferiority.

I naturally had to use a significant amount of my strength. Otherwise, theres no way I wouldve been able to leave such a deep indentation on this material. I wonder what kind of stemborer couldve possessed a body powerful enough to shatter this weapon. At the very least, thats definitely not something one of the human-faced stemborers we encountered earlier wouldve been capable of, Han Li said with a serious expression.

Those human-faced stemborers were inferior to us in power, so theres definitely no way they couldve done this. Could it be that the Stemborer Queen was the one that did this? L Shis face paled slightly as this thought occurred to him.

Most likely not. With the Stemborer Queens incredible powers, theres no way itd fight a group of guards in person, Xie Lian said with a shake of her head.

So there must be stemborers even more powerful than those human-faced ones in this underground palace, Han Li mused.

It looks like it, Xie Lian sighed in a resigned manner.

Theres no need to be overly concerned, fellow daoists. Even if stemborers of that caliber exist, surely there wouldnt be too much. There are over 40 fellow daoist who have entered this earth palace in total, thatll definitely be enough to handle all of these stemborers, L Shi said in an optimistic manner.

Those stemborers must indeed be extremely rare. Otherwise, theres no way that Bao Hua and Yuan Yan wouldve been unable to collect any information on them, perhaps there are only a handful of them, Xie Lian agreed.

In that case, theres nothing to fear. Lets examine the damaged restrictions here first, fellow daoists, Han Li said.

After that, he and Daoist Xie led the way deeper into the hall.

Xie Lian and L Shi exchanged a glance before also following along.

A short while later, Han Li and the others were situated within a room at the center of the hall, discussing something as they stood around a formation that spanned the entire room.

The giant formation appeared to be extremely complex and profound, but it was clear that a portion of it had been forcibly altered not long ago.

There was also another part that had been completely destroyed, so the entire formation was looking unrecognizable.

Fellow Daoist Xie Lian, do you think youll be able to repair this formation? L Shi asked with tightly furrowed brows.

I have the blueprint for this formation, but I didnt think that it wouldve been altered significantly. Given enough time, I would be able to return it to its original state, but Bao Hua didnt give us that much time, Xie Lian replied with a wry smile.

Were in some trouble then. Im not an expert in formations, so I wont be of any help here, L Shi sighed.

If we have the original blueprint, then I can lend you a hand. Fellow Daoist Bao Hua only asked us to repair the restriction to the best of our abilities, let me take a look at the blueprint and see if we can somehow make the restriction temporarily work without fully repairing it, Han Li said.

Are you familiar with formations as well, Brother Han? It would be fantastic if we could do that, Xie Lian said in an elated manner.

She flipped a hand over as she spoke, then tossed a translucent jade shard toward Han Li.

Han Li caught the jade shard before injecting his spiritual sense into it, and sure enough, there was an extremely complex formation blueprint within it.

Thus, Han Li and Xie Lian began to devise a repair plan, while Daoist Xie and L Shi stood on guard duty outside the hall.

With Han Lis expertise in formations and the blueprint available, it only took him less than half a day to think of a repair plan.

Xie Lian listened to his plan and carefully mulled it over, then nodded with an elated expression upon determining that it was a sound plan.

She immediately pulled some materials out of her storage bracelet and began to repair the giant formation together with Han Li.

Throughout the entire repair process, both of them were extremely careful and cautious.

After all, even the slightest mistake could activate all of the restrictions in the underground palace and even awaken the Stemborer Queen.

In the end, it took the two of them a day and a night to finally repair the formation.

Xie Lian cast an incantation seal toward the formation, upon which a buzzing sound rang out across the entire hall, while layers of gentle white light also emerged. At the same time, a burst of profound energy fluctuations proliferated through the room before vanishing without a trace.

Its done! Your plan really was feasible, Brother Han, Xie Lian said as she turned to Han Li with a smile.

Seeing as there are no issues, well just have to wait for a message from Bao Hua before we completely activate the restriction. I wonder if our other fellow daoists will be able to complete their missions in time as well, Han Li said with a smile.

According to Bao Huas plan, we should be receiving a message from her in half a day at the latest. Lets meditate and recover some energy for now, we could be facing a fierce battle soon.

Han Li nodded as he raised a hand to release a message talisman, informing Daoist Xie and L Shi of what was happening, then strode over to a corner of the hall before sitting down to meditate.

Xie Lian also did the same, and moments later, two streaks of light, one azure and one silver, flew into the room before also sitting down to meditate.

Thus, several hours flew by in a flash, and right at this moment, Han Li suddenly opened his eyes, as did everyone else in the room.

The ground suddenly began to tremor without any warning, and a pillar of white light suddenly erupted out of the formation on the ground before vanishing into the ceiling in a flash.

……

At the same time, the entire underground palace began to tremor and quake, and within a certain secluded area of the underground palace, a series of tall stone pillars erupted out of the ground to form a massive stone forest.

Looking down from above, one would be able to tell that the stone forest was arranged to form a rectangular formation.

At the center of the formation were eight copper pillars, and not only were these pillars riddled with rust, there was also indecipherable ancient text inscribed on their surfaces, as well as a ball of light hovering atop each pillar.

Within each of these balls of light was a crimson lamp, and seven of the lamps had already been snuffed out, while the final still contained a faint yellow flame.

At the center of the area surrounded by the eight copper pillars was a crimson sacrificial altar that was over 100 feet tall.

Atop the altar sat an inky-black bowl with black Qi revolving all around it, striking one with an unsettling sensation.

A burst of sinister cackling suddenly rang out from within the bowl.

……

Whats going on? We didnt activate the formation yet, how was it activated on its own? Xie Lian yelled as her face immediately paled.

L Shi and Han Lis expressions had also darkened significantly.

They didnt know what had happened, but it was clear that something had gone wrong.

Lets get out of here. We cant rely on the original plan anymore, we have to reunite with everyone else as quickly as possible, Han Li decided.

He then waved a hand toward Daoist Xie before flying away as a streak of azure light, and Daoist Xie followed along close behind him as a streak of silver light.