“What! It can activate on its own?” The young woman couldn’t help but cry out.
The person who placed the curse on them had used a living person to demonstrate what would happen after the blood curse was activated.
That scene she witnessed, seeing that person spit out chunks of his heart in a miserable fashion, was still fresh in her memory. It caused her to feel fear from the mere mention of the blood curse.
The other’s faces were also unsightly. How could they possibly gamble with their lives?
Han Li looked at them and then coldly laughed. When he thought to say something, the thin and tall Second Brother bravely raised his head and said, “Senior, please remove my curse! The same person put blood curses on all of us. If you can remove mine, then you are certain to remove all the others as well!”
These words caused the other three to open their eyes in surprise and blankly look at him.
“Second Brother, what are you doing? This is far too dangerous.” After the woman regained her bearing, she hastily persuaded them with anxiety.
Chapter 301: Poison Expulsion and Breaking Incantations
“Don’t say anything more, I’ve already decided!” The tall and thin Second Brother cried out in a resolute voice.
The young woman grew anxious and hastily turned her head toward the old man and the youth in a request for help.
After the two looked at each other, the youth remained silent. The old man sighed, saying, “Fifth sister, let Second Brother go! He is repenting for the previous matter! Only like this will he be able to feel more at ease!”
“However, Second Brother...” The woman still wanted to dispute it further but the Second Brother had already walked in front of Han Li said in a tranquil tone:
“Senior, please start! Use me as a test.”
These words were tragically moving. However, what happened next caused the four to feel dumbstruck as if cold water was being poured over their heads.
“Are you four misunderstanding something? When did I agree to remove the blood curse?”
Han Li said this with an icy bone chilling tone, causing the Five Friends of Meng Mountain to look at each other in dismay.
“If Senior didn’t intend to remove the blood curse, then why did you study the curse on Eldest Brother’s body!” Their second brother hastily asked after snapping out of his shock.
“Did I say that I would remove your blood curse after researching it? I was only curious!” Han Li expressionlessly said.
Seeing Han Li’s ice-cold appearance and hearing his ruthless words, this group was stunned!
“But doesn’t Senior wish to know about those people’s affairs? If you do not remove the blood curse, how can we reply to Senior’s questions?” the youth added with a bit of a stutter and a face filled with anxiousness. He absolutely did not his wish to see this opportunity escape from his very eyes.
After Han Li heard this, he gave him a slanted glance and then coldly laughed several times, wordlessly turning his head to the sky.
Being asked such an obvious question, Han Li felt it beneath him to answer.
“Fourth Brother, there is no need to ask. This Senior feels the information he can acquire from us is not worth exchanging for our lives. Thus, he is unwilling to act so easily!” The dark-faced old man proved his status as an elder with experience that was incomparable to the youth’s and dove straight to the core of the matter.
“What conditions does Senior want before he will take action? We only want the blood curse to be removed, so please list your demands. We definitely won’t object.” Soon after, the old man calmly continued.
“Good! Since you’ve said these words, there is no need to speak in circles.”
Han Li suddenly applauded with a slight laugh and then wore a beaming smile.
From the four’s gazes, they increasingly felt that Han Li was quite temperamental, causing the four to unconsciously feel more fearful towards him.
“My conditions are very simple! If you want to free yourselves from your ailment, not only will you have to tell me everything you know, you will also have to obey my commands for the time being and help me respond to this group’s attacks. I reckon that they won’t let me off so easily and will want to dispose of us all in the near future.”
“However, you don’t need to worry about being heavily outnumbered. I am a cultivator form Yellow Maple Valley; I only came to Yuejing to handle sect matters. So long as you help me for this period of time, I will be able to request reinforcements. At that time, you won’t need to be afraid of these scoundrels.”
Han Li listed his conditions in an amiable manner and hoisted the banner of his sect with no trace of politeness. With just this, he caused them to become steadfast.
“Senior is a cultivator from Yellow Maple Valley!”
Although the old man had long guessed that Han Li was probably a cultivator from the seven sects, hearing him acknowledge this from his own mouth caused his face to reveal a smile.
“Alright. In accordance with what Senior has said, we cannot stay uninvolved. After all, once our blood curse is removed, we will certainly become a target of their pursuit. We will be a bit safer by Senior’s side!” the dark-faced old man answered very frankly.
When the youth and woman heard the old man’s words, they smiled without refusing! Clearly they agreed with the old man’s actions.
The seven sects were much more powerful than the ones who had placed the blood curse restrictions. Naturally, they could be relied on.
That thin and tall Second Brother had a face of hesitation, however. He seemed to want to say something but hesitated once more.
“If Senior is truly capable of removing our blood curse, we still have another request. I hope Senior will agree.” After the dark-faced old man looked at the Second Brother, he suddenly raised this request with a respectful tone.
Han Li had been expecting this, so he indifferently said, “What is it? So long as it isn’t too troublesome, I will do my utmost to fulfill it.”
At this moment, Han Li seemed exceptionally easy to deal with from his words.
“This one’s Third Sister was left behind in a house in Yuejing. Since we’ve been captured by Senior, we don't know if something will happen to her. We hope Senior will go and save her when the time comes,” the old man said with a solemn appearance.
“Eldest Brother!”
When the tall and thin Second Brother heard these words, his face held a grateful expression.
“Fine. Since you all are following me for the time being, I will naturally save your companion. But I must urgently remove the severe poison that is within your bodies! Else, in less than an hour, your lives will be forfeit and there will be no curse left to break!”
After Han Li agreed, he changed the topic and said something that caused the four to become scared witless.
“What severe poison? We should only have the blood curse on our bodies!” The youth’s expression greatly changed as he asked this with panic and doubt.
When Han Li saw the youth doubt his words, he didn’t get angry. Instead he explained this with a stiff face, “When I examined the blood curse, I discovered that in addition to the blood curse, your Eldest Brother is harboring a severe poison. Not only is this poison’s extremely toxic, but it’s also very unstable. I reckon it will break out rather quickly. Fortunately, this one has quite of bit of experience in the Dao of detoxification and will only take slight effort in removing it. You don’t need to worry much about it. Naturally, if you don’t believe me, you only have to wait an hour more and see whether there truly is poison in your bodies!”
After Han Li said this, the four were convinced for the most part.
“So it was like that. That must be why the person who gives us our commands suddenly appeared and told us to drink a cup of wine with him. It turned out the wine was laced with poison. We believed that since we already had the blood curse on our bodies, they wouldn’t further act against us. Who would
have thought their methods are truly so cruel!” The Second Brother’s expression became extremely unsightly as he said this.
As the youth and the young woman came to a sudden realization, the old man’s face darkened. It seemed he had thought of this matter earlier.
Since Han Li had already decided to rope in the Five Friends of Meng Mountain to become his assistants, he naturally did not delay and have their poison flare out. He immediately took out a white and an azure porcelain bottle from his storage pouch and tossed them to the dark-faced old man.
“The medicine pills in each of the bottles can disperse a majority of the poison. The rest of the poison can be destroyed if you slowly circulate your Qi,” Han Li said very simply. The dark-faced old man immediately acted in accordance to his words and split the medicine pills with the other three. Then, without the slightest hesitation, he took the initiative to bite down on the medicine pills.
It seemed the old man clearly understood that if Han Li truly wanted to act against him, he simply wouldn’t trick them with an antidote. Knowing this, he swallowed it without worry.
Not long after they all took Han Li’s medicine pills, the group felt an intense stomach ache.
After the young woman’s face became red, she suddenly stamped her foot and flew to a small hill, barely able to fly on her magic tool. However, she was still within Han Li’s control as her flying speed was truly not fast.
When the other three saw this, they all awkwardly went to find a concealed location, their bodies wanting badly to excrete the poison from their bodies.
After a moment, the trio’s faces returned to Han Li’s side with embarrassed expressions.
That woman also returned with a trace of crimson still remaining on her face.
“Alright. Now I will start to remove the blood curse! Whose first?” Han Li didn’t delay and directly said this.
“Naturally, it’d be...”
Just as the Second Brother was about to say something, an incomparably shriveled hand pulled on his arm!
“Second Brother, you still have Third Sister! Since my old and weary body has no method to enter Foundation Establishment and I won’t live for much longer, I should go first. After all, Third Sister has a small child in her belly and needs someone to help her look after the child!” the dark-faced old man said serenely.
“Eldest Brother! This won’t do! How could I let...”
The tall and thin second elder brother appeared emotionally moved and shook his head as if he were beating a drum with it, wanting to disagree.
When the youth and the young woman saw this, they wanted to open their mouths and request that they first braved the danger!
“Don’t argue. I’ll have your Eldest Brother be first. After all, I tested his body just a moment ago, so I’ll have a slightly higher chance with him!”
Although the four had displayed a touching scene with their affections as sworn siblings, this was of no concern to Han Li, and he was disinclined from taking this to heart. As of now, he was impatiently wondering whether or not he could break the blood curse. If he couldn’t, everything he had just done would have been a waste and he would have to create another plan.
Once Han Li said this, the four didn’t have anything to further argue over. The old man walked over to Han Li with a solemn expression.
After the other three exchanged a mutual glance, they could only look on at the old man with a worried gaze.
Peng... Peng... A series of six or seven sounds rang out.
Han Li waved his hand, and several human-sized puppet soldiers wielding weapons appeared by Han Li’s side in a flash of white light.
“As I am breaking the blood curse, I won’t be able to meet an attack. These puppets are only a precaution. They will take the initiative to attack anyone who approaches within thirty meters of me! You had best go a bit farther away!” Without the slightest trace of politeness, Han Li indicated that he held absolutely no trust in them, causing the three to helplessly fall back.
Chapter 302: Countermeasures
In the evening, Qin Yan was repeatedly pacing back and forth in the Qin Residence’s guest hall; his face was somewhat anxious.
Earlier that day, the servant who was assigned to bring Han Li a meal reported that he wasn’t present. It seemed Han Li hadn’t returned during the night.
This caused this rarely worried person to become worried, not out of concern for Han Li’s safety but rather because his bodyguard suddenly disappeared without saying anything. How would his Qin Clan respond to any harm done by the Devil Dao?
“Qin Ping, please go and see whether Young Master Han has returned. Once there’s any news, please immediately come and tell me!” Qin Yan commanded somewhat anxiously.
“Yes, Lord.” Qin Ping responded with secret delight. Then, he ran out of the hall in an instant.
From his perspective, it seemed Qin Yan had become increasingly concerned for Young Master Han, further proving that he hadn’t chosen incorrectly. It seemed that his position was soon about to rise in the Qin Residence.
“But Lord, youths occasionally going out is a very ordinary matter. There is no need to be so worried or anxious!” Within the hall, although Qin Yan’s most favored Third Wife said a few exonerating words about Han Li, her voice contained an obviously sour tone.
This was no surprise. Ever since Han Li had arrived at the Qin Residence, Qin Yan had always kept Han Li close at his side. The Qin Clan young masters and madams who were originally doted on were no longer supported. The Third Wife’s children were also among them; she couldn’t help but feel greatly jealous.
“Humph. Woman, what do you know?” Naturally, Qin Yan heard the meaning in his third wife’s words. However, he was worrying about the life and death of his own clan while this woman was occupied with this small matter of jealousy. After he glared at her, he didn’t pay any further attention to her.
Qin Yan’s attitude naturally caused the Third Wife to feel wronged, but she knew that what her lord husband hated the most was a woman’s shrew bickering. She could only resist her urge to vent her complaints with difficulty. She said nothing further, worried she would become even more resentful toward Han Li.
But not long after, Qin Ping suddenly ran back with a delighted expression. Furthermore, once he entered, he loudly yelled, “Lord, Young Master Han has returned. Furthermore, he has brought back a few guests. Young Master Han hopes Lord will be able to arrange them a residence near his own.”
When Qin Yan heard this, his heart had finally relaxed. So long as this great Immortal didn’t suddenly disappear without word, even if he brought back ten, several tens, or even a hundred friends back, he wouldn’t have any complaints.
“Since it’s Honorable Nephew Han’s request, have them stay at the Clear Sound Courtyard. Also, do not neglect Han Li’s guests,” Qin Yan said without taking the time to think.This caused his third wife’s complexion to become increasingly unsightly.
“Yes, this one will carry this out!” Qin Ping energetically ran out again with a completely enthusiastic appearance.
“Lord, this is somewhat improper! Our Qin Residence is a great clan. To have these strangers suddenly come in, isn’t it a bit too imprudent?” The third wife couldn’t help but carefully mention this.
Her words weren’t aimed at Han Li at all. Rather, she was currently feeling uneasy.
When Qin Yan heard this, he was slightly surprised, but after a moment of hesitation, he waved his hand and said, “This is of no importance. Friends of Honorable Nephew Han will not prove to be any problem.”
Upon hearing Qin Yan speak such favorable words toward Han Li, the third wife was left speechless.
……
At this moment, Han Li was sitting in a chair at his residence. Five people were sitting in front of him, the Five Friends of Meng Mountain.
The youth in their ranks was currently talking nonstop about something. Occasionally, the others would add in a few comments. Han Li, on the other hand, rev
ealed a somewhat thoughtful expression.
In the wilderness outside of Yuejing, Han Li was actually capable of using his formidable spiritual sense to erasing the blood curse previously placed on the four. Soon after, he brought these people to infiltrate where a single middle-aged woman was staying.
Surprisingly, this matter was carried out without the slightest difficulty.
Although the smoothness of the operation was unexpected, Han Li still broke her blood curse and brought them all back to the Qin Residence.
In truth, having these people find a different residence was acceptable, but Han Li didn’t fully trust them.
If they weren’t under his watchful eye, he didn’t dare to guarantee that these Five Friends of Meng Mountains would truly and sincerely fight this great enemy alongside him, even with the favor of breaking their curse.
People’s hearts were truly hard to fathom!
Although they may be grateful to him today and were willing to risk their lives for him, tomorrow they might feel like their lives were worth more, becoming despicable and ungrateful. This was truly baffling to Han Li!
Furthermore, he didn’t share a part of their sworn brotherhood. It was quite likely that they would value their own lives more!
Naturally, if he were to make use of his own restrictions and poison, he would have absolute control over them. But if he did so, in their eyes he would be no different from their previous slave masters. Over a long period of time, he would be certain to suffer repercussions.
If he left them with a vile impression, Han Li wouldn’t be able to use them any further. Deep in his heart, Han Li had some other ideas in plan.
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