"Oh! Go then. If you happen to meet my rivals along the way, don't linger—just keep moving and shake them off quickly." Han Li nodded, drawing his puppet back. The two of them then launched into the air, riding their incantation light toward the palace gate. With their level of cultivation, they reached the edge of the Northern Primordial Light almost instantly, where the sky-bound barrier activated once more. To conserve their inner energy, they had to reduce their flight speed and instead rely on light-footed movement. A sweeping awareness of the area revealed that there were no guards stationed outside the Northern Primordial Light—this brought Han Li both great relief and surprise. He called out to Gui Ling, then, with one hand gripping his Yuan Gang shield and the other holding his San Yan fan, stepped steadily out of the Northern Primordial Light. He scanned the surroundings carefully, confirming that no hidden ambush had been set. Only then did Han Li slowly emerge from Kunwu Hall. Outside, the scene remained still and quiet, yet the sight before him caused a subtle shift in his expression. To the great square outside, apart from the two rows of golden magnetic spirit trees lying fallen on either side, the ground was littered with craters and scattered stones, as though it had been the scene of an exceptionally fierce struggle—far beyond just a few combatants. The earlier group of cultivators—he had only seen one middle-aged man with a square face—and yet this man managed to hold his own against the nearly equal power of the Qian Elder Demon, simply relying on a single treasure. This clearly demonstrated the exceptional strength of this faction. Han Li's curiosity was piqued, and he naturally asked further questions. "Those two cultivators were no ordinary figures; how could I dare approach them closely? I could only manage a brief scan with my spiritual awareness." Gui Ling shook her head. Upon hearing this, Han Li felt somewhat disappointed. He had hoped to determine whether the ancient demon, this monstrous creature, was among the first group of cultivators, and then find a way to recover those two flying swords. Now that he had secured Gui Ling and the humanoid automaton, he felt confident enough to compete with the opponents on equal footing, no longer needing to retreat as he had in the past. "Let's go! It may not be difficult to defeat these opponents with their current levels of cultivation, but to completely eliminate them—well, that will certainly not be easy. I suspect they have already moved on to other areas." Han Li's eyes flickered several times, and he spoke with a slight pause. Though he said so aloud, he was well aware that something unusual must have definitely transpired. Otherwise, how could the Yin Luo Sect cultivators have so easily departed, let alone the ones from the Tian Lan Grassland? They had followed the trail from the grasslands all the way here, clearly determined to secure their presence. Could it be that the initial wave of cultivators truly proved so formidable, forcing all the others to retreat? Yet that didn't quite make sense. If the initial wave had gained the upper hand, wouldn't they have held firm at the hall's entrance, waiting to seize the treasures? As his thoughts raced through the scenario, Han Li couldn't come up with a clear explanation. After stroking his chin, he simply decided to let it go. Regardless of what had happened, his primary objectives for this journey had now been fully achieved. What remained was to calmly extricate himself from this growing vortex. The two flying swords in the ancient demon's hands could be handled later. After weighing the pros and cons, Han Li made his decision immediately. "Come on, Gui! Let's go to the place you mentioned first—don't worry about the others anymore. In a few days, who knows how many cultivators will pour in!" Han Li sneered, leading the way down to the stone platform. Gui Ling only smiled sadly and followed Han Li. "The struggle seems to be far more intense than anticipated," murmured the voice of Yin Yue in Han Li's mind. "Perhaps so! But what does it have to do with me?" Han Li replied indifferently. Then, with a slight tap of his foot, he floated directly across the vast chasm. Gui Ling followed close behind. As soon as Han Li's feet touched the ground, his expression changed, and he turned sharply toward a large boulder on one side, his eyes flashing with cold determination. "Which of you there—step forward!" Han Li said, his voice firm and commanding. Immediately, a mass of black mist surged forth from behind the boulder, encasing within it a figure resembling a Yuan'ing stage. "Hm!" Han Li was surprised, yet he couldn't allow the figure to slip away unnoticed. After all, it seemed that every cultivator on this mountain was an adversary of his, and there was no need for formalities. A thunderous sound echoed behind him, and then the figure vanished completely from sight. Moments later, a silver arc materialized, and Han Li appeared directly in front of the black mist. Floating motionless in the air, he extended his hand forward, palm open and empty. A crisp "crack" sounded, and a large, jade-colored hand materialized out of thin air, then plunged downward to grasp. The Yuan Ying gasped in surprise, his black aura swelling and surging, preparing to instant-transfer and escape. This was because he had been severely wounded during his earlier battle with others—otherwise, he would have fled immediately. Han Li, having repeatedly defeated Yuan Ying cultivators, had long mastered the art of trapping them. Even as he first cast his spell, a faint smirk played at the corner of his mouth. A thunderclap rolled, and the five fingers of the jade hand flashed with golden light, launching five thick golden arcs that burst instantly, forming a vast golden net that instantly enveloped the area below. At the same time, the Yuan Ying's form blurred slightly, then collided directly with the divine, purifying lightning. A tremendous "boom" echoed, the golden arcs exploding outward, scattering most of the Yuan Ying's protective black aura. The Yuan Ying himself staggered, his form wavering and growing unsteady. Under these circumstances, a large hand flashed out, seizing the Yuan婴 firmly and swiftly returning it to韩立 before him. Upon briefly examining the Yuan婴,韩立 smiled gently at the latter's startled gaze, then transformed into a streak of jade-green light, shooting downward and landing on the ground. The hand that had been holding the Yuan婴 followed closely, settling beside韩立. "Is this the one?"圭灵 also glanced at the Yuan婴, his expression slightly surprised. Though lacking a physical form, the Yuan婴's features clearly matched one of the two black-robed elders from the Yin Luo Sect. This elder had apparently fallen victim to an unknown assailant, only managing to escape and take refuge behind the massive stone. "Master, I have no grudge against you at all. We have never had any personal disputes, nor have I been involved in your pursuit!" The Yuan婴, his face pale, spoke softly as the hand slightly loosened its grip, immediately pleading for mercy. "Heh, friend, why are you so alarmed? When did I say I intended to attack you?" Now I'd like to ask you, what exactly has happened outside? Why haven't you and the people from Tianlan Grassland remained stationed outside the hall? By the way, have you also seen the two female figures who came out of the hall, and the two silver-winged yin-xia creatures? Han Li asked calmly and composedly. Seeing Han Li's gentle demeanor, the Yuan-ling cultivator slightly relaxed, and, mindful not to offend, quickly replied, "Shortly after your group arrived, the Ye family cultivators suddenly arrived. The Grand Elder of the Ye family was among them. As soon as they saw us, they immediately launched an attack. Under the leadership of Xu, we had to hastily respond. Though we managed to hold them off for a while, at that very moment, the镇魔 tower suddenly began to tremble, and then half of its mountain peaks collapsed suddenly." It seemed as though the entire great tower had sunk deep into the mountain's core, and...” Here, Yuan Ying's voice paused slightly, but under the steady gaze of Han Li, a chill passed through him as he quickly continued: “Moreover, a brilliant radiance emanated from the Town of the Demons, accompanied by an astonishing Buddhist chant, so powerful that even we on this side could hear it clearly. As a result, someone suddenly cried out, “Heavenly Spiritual Treasure,” and everyone immediately turned their attention to the Town of the Demons, disregarding everything else. The two nuns from Hua Yin Sect and the two divine night demons, who had just emerged, also witnessed this phenomenon and joined the others. As for myself, I deliberately stayed behind to inform the Grand Elder of what had happened.” “Indeed, the Heavenly Spiritual Treasure has manifested! Is that truly the case? And how was my body destroyed?” Han Li was deeply astonished. “I don’t know whether it is indeed the Heavenly Spiritual Treasure. But the phenomenon certainly was no ordinary treasure could produce. Moreover, since Xu Dao-you and the senior elder of Ye family, along with other late-stage cultivators, have all gone without hesitation, they surely won't make any pretense. As for my physical form—it was stolen by this rogue cultivator. This thief had apparently materialized near me at an unexpected moment, suddenly slashing me with a blood-red long blade, which immediately absorbed all the essence and vital energy within my body. That magical blade is truly formidable! If I hadn't decisively abandoned my physical form and instantly teleported away, even my prenatal stage might have been compromised. The prenatal stage said this with gritted teeth. "What kind of blade could be so powerful?" Han Li raised an eyebrow, expressing surprise, as though he didn't quite believe it. "I don't know—this is the first time I've encountered such a treasure. Aside from the color, the appearance of this blood blade seems to bear about seven or eight parts of resemblance to the legendary Dragon-Slayer Blade. Its power also seems somewhat similar, yet if it truly were the Dragon-Slayer Blade, how could I have had any chance to escape?" The prenatal stage silently opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, then replied with some hesitation. The Dragon Blade! Upon hearing this, Han Li's face could not help but pale. (Second chapter update!