Han Li stowed away the centipedes and contemplated the situation in silence with a dark expression on his face.
"It appears I'll have to use that method to track them. I attained this secret technique after it went missing, so there's no way for it to take measures against this technique. It's just that I'm going to have to expend some blood essence now," Han Li murmured to himself reluctantly, seemingly rather unwilling to resort to this method.
However, he still patted the storage pouch hanging from his waist in the end, upon which a white jade plate and a small crimson flag appeared in his hands at the same time. He tossed the two items into the air and they flew upward as two streaks of light, one white and one red, before hovering in front of him.
Han Li then opened his mouth and a ball of azure light enshrouded the formation plate. He then slit a finger over the wrist of his other arm, inflicting a thin gash following a flash of azure light. A few drops of blood essence then flowed out of the gash on his wrist.
Han Li blew on the drops of blood essence, and they immediately disappeared into the white jade plate.
Han Li then pointed a finger toward the small crimson flag, and it flew directly above the formation plate at his behest. The flag then tremored slightly before transforming into a ball of crimson mist that enshrouded the jade plate within.
Han Li began to chant something, and the jade plate also began to glow with a crimson light, following which bursts of crimson mist materialized from his blood essence began to emerge. The crimson mist then merged to form a single cloud of blood mist in the air.
At this point, Han Li suddenly let loose a low cry and azure light flashed from his eyes as he pointed a finger toward the jade plate.
Brilliant crimson light immediately radiated from the jade plate, giving it the appearance of a crimson full moon, and in just a few flashes, it had absorbed all of the blood mist wafting around it.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Han Li let loose a low cry as he stabbed his finger toward the jade plate again.
A pillar of green light then shot forth from his fingertip before disappearing into the center of the jade plate in a flash.
A loud ringing sound rang out from the blood moon and it began to tremor violently, as if it were going to rise into the air and fly away.
The light in Han Li's eyes dimmed slightly as a wry smile appeared on his face.
"This is the first time I'm using the Blood Moon Spirit Seeking secret technique from the Great Development Treasure Scriptures; I wonder if it's actually going to be as effective as the scriptures proclaim it to be. Only one way to find out, I guess. If it weren't for the fact that I kept a few drops of Mu Peiling's blood essence when I was setting up the spirit restriction in her, I wouldn't even be able to unleash this secret technique," Han Li murmured to himself as he swallowed a pill before sitting down on the spot with his legs crossed.
When Han Li opened his eyes again an hour later, he was back to his prime condition.
He immediately cast an incantation seal toward the jade plate, upon which the blood moon transformed into a piercing streak of crimson light as it flew into the distance.
Han Li's body swayed and his body also transformed into an azure streak of light, flying behind the crimson light in hot pursuit.
Within the blink of an eye, the two streaks of light had completely disappeared from view.
The crimson ball of light flew along at an even pace, and Han Li also followed closely behind it.
After flying for close to half a day, Han Li was led by the crimson ball of light into an extremely barren and secluded basin.
A burst of scorching heat immediately came rushing toward him.
Han Li's expression changed slightly, and he discovered that everything within the basin was either black or red. On the outskirts of the basin were spherical black rocks, while a crimson lake of lava was situated at its center. The scorching temperatures emanating from the lava lake was making even the air above the basin shimmer and warp, creating a rather twisted and ethereal scene to behold.
The ball of crimson light was revolving in the air above the lava lake, emitting a sharp screeching sound at the same time, looking as if it wanted to descend, but it didn't dare to do so.
Han Li stroked his chin and looked at the lava down below as a cold smile suddenly appeared on his face. "Hehe, it really does know how to find good hiding places. If it weren't for the guidance of the secret technique, I really wouldn't have been able to find this place. However, now that I know this is where they are, some lava isn't going to be able to stop me."
Chapter 1184: Rescue
Han Li raised a hand, and the crimson ball of light immediately whizzed through the air toward him before landing obediently in the center of his palm.
Han Li raised his other hand, and a spluttering sound erupted as purple flames instantly surfaced along his entire arm, quickly encompassing his whole body.
Thus, a massive purple fireball came tumbling down directly from above.
The fireball that Han Li had transformed into was able to completely disregard the scorching crimson lava down below, landing with a loud thump before disappearing into the lava lake. A massive splash erupted over the surface of the lake, but it soon reverted back to its peaceful and tranquil state, as if nothing had ever happened.
At this point, Han Li had already reached a depth of over 100 feet down into the lava, and he continued to descend even further.
Even though he had been completely submerged in lava, his Purple Apex Flames, which were a glacial flame, were able to easily keep the scorching temperatures at bay.
After diving down for over 2,000 feet, Han Li finally reached the lakebed, and his feet landed on the ground, which was lined with solid black rocks.
He looked around and was unable to see anything aside from vast expanses of crimson in all directions.
Han Li's brows furrowed as he injected his spiritual power into his eyes, upon which a blue light flashed within the depths of his pupils. He had unleashed his Brightsight Spirit Eyes.
After surveying his surroundings once again, Han Li raised the crimson jade plate in his hand. The jade plate swayed before rattling incessantly toward a certain direction, as if it were attempting to break free from his grasp.
Han Li immediately flew toward that direction, and after flying for a certain distance, the jade plate suddenly stopped rattling, abruptly plummeting downward instead.
Han Li was able to react in time and caught the jade plate again. Only then was he able to prevent it from escaping the protective cocoon formed by the purple flames. At the same time, he also cast his gaze directly below himself.
His expression changed slightly as he raised a hand, upon which a piercing burst of golden light shot forth, heading directly toward the lakebed.
Following a resounding boom, a massive rift around 70 to 80 feet in length was sliced into the seemingly normal lakebed.
Blue light immediately radiated from within the rift, warding off all of the scorching lava.
There was a light barrier restriction beneath this lakebed.
Han Li was ecstatic upon seeing this, and he immediately dove toward the light barrier without any hesitation.
The blue light barrier clearly wasn't an extremely sophisticated restriction as his Purple Apex Flames were able to easily burn a large hole of around 10 feet in diameter into its surface.
Han Li immediately flashed through that hole and appeared on the other side of the light barrier.
The blue light barrier immediately sealed over, keeping the lava at bay again.
Han Li paid this no heed as he began to survey his surroundings again.
At this moment, he found himself in a secret underground tunnel. The ground and all of the walls were extremely bumpy and uneven, making it appear as if it were a naturally-forming tunnel rather than one that had been artificially created.
Han Li immediately tossed out his jade plate again.
The
jade plate revolved in the air before transforming into a crimson moon again and hurtling deeper into the tunnel.
Han Li rose up into the air expressionlessly and followed closely behind the blood moon.
After flying for around two to three kilometers, the tunnel began to gradually slope upward. After advancing for a further 1,000 feet or so, Han Li finally saw light up ahead, indicating that he had arrived at the exit.
The blood moon immediately flew toward the light without any hesitation.
However, Han Li wore a rather wary expression as he flapped his sleeve soundlessly to summon a ball of three-colored flames. This was none other than his Triflame Fan.
Han Li grasped the fan in his hand and his body swayed, taking him to the exit of the tunnel in the next instant, where he stood, examining his surroundings cautiously.
His surroundings were very dark and dim, yet everything was extremely clear to his Brightsight Spirit Eyes.
This was a natural underground cave, and it appeared to be completely devoid of human presence.
Han Li raised an eyebrow as his gaze fell upon an exit at the end of the cave, which seemed to be leading to another cave.
At this moment, the blood moon was flying directly toward that exit. However, its momentum was arrested as soon as it reached the opening, and it began to emit a sharp buzzing sound.
A crisp crack then rang out and a dozen or so thin black cracks appeared over the surface of the blood moon. Following one final flash, the crimson moon disintegrated into specks of light.
As opposed to being alarmed upon seeing this, Han Li was, instead, ecstatic.
It only took him a few steps to reach the other cave connected to this one, and he found himself situated within an even larger cave than the previous one.
However, when he focused his gaze and looked around him, he faltered slightly at the sight that he beheld.
The entire cave was filled with tumbling pitch-black mist that encompassed almost every single inch of space within the area. However, as soon as some of this mist reached the exit of the cave, they were completely unable to progress any further, seemingly having been halted by an invisible barrier.
With his Brightsight Spirit Eyes to enhance his vision, the pitch-black cave that would render normal cultivators completely blind was as clear as air to Han Li. Thus, he was able to immediately catch sight of the three women lying completely stationary at the center of the cave.
They were none other than Mu Peiling's trio!
Beneath the three of them, there was a strange formation spell that was shimmering with faint spiritual light, and the black mist was being expelled incessantly from that formation.
Han Li didn't immediately rush in to save the three women. Instead, he examined every single inch of the cave with his spiritual sense and after verifying that his second Nascent Soul wasn't lurking in the shadows somewhere, he decisively feigned a grabbing motion toward the air at the opening of the cave.
Golden light flashed and the sound of something being ruptured rang out. The dense black mist immediately came surging out from within the other cave and tumbling straight toward Han Li.
However, Han Li merely made a hand seal, and a loud thunderclap erupted as a layer of golden lightning arcs surfaced over his body.
All of the black mist that came into contact with the arcs of lightning were immediately reduced to nothingness.
Han Li strode forward and waded directly into the black mist.
The golden arcs of lightning danced around him amid bursts of erratic crackling, keeping all of the black mist firmly at bay. However, the black mist seemingly possessed intelligence as it converged to form a dozen or so black snakes of different sizes in the blink of an eye. The snakes circled around Han Li in a menacing manner, wanting to throw themselves at him, but not daring to do so.
Han Li's expression darkened upon seeing this, and the Triflame Fan in his hand disappeared in a flash. At the same time, the arcs of lightning that had surfaced over his body became even more dazzling.
He swept his sleeves through the air and two golden lightning wyrms shot forth, tearing through the black snakes with ease and reducing them to nothingness in the blink of an eye.
The two lightning wyrms then continued their assault, sweeping through the surrounding black mist with reckless abandon. Amid a series of rumbling booms, the black mist was completely eradicated, and Han Li was able to access the formation without any further impediment.
After taking just cursory glance at this formation, Han Li could already tell that this was merely an extremely simple illusionary formation.
It appeared that the three women's magic power must've been restricted. Otherwise, a formation of this caliber was nowhere near sufficient to trap three Core Formation cultivators.
With that in mind, Han Li immediately flicked his 10 fingers toward the formation in quick succession. A dozen or so burst of golden sword Qi struck the formation almost with complete synchronicity.
The formation was immediately destroyed as a result.
Almost at the exact same moment, within the Myriad Depth Devilish Abyss on the Seven Spirit Islands, a tall and broad shadowy humanoid figure abruptly opened its eyes. The humanoid figure was seated on the platform that Han Li had used many years ago, and its entire body was enshrouded under devilish Qi as an extremely surprised look surfaced on its face.
It suddenly thrust its hand into its sleeve, and a blue bead immediately appeared over his palm.
However, there was a clear crack running right down the center of the bead’s smooth surface.
"Impossible! The restriction was broken; how did that man manage to find that palace so quickly? If I were in his shoes, I would be completely powerless to do anything," the humanoid figure murmured in a coarse voice that was tinged with incredulity and a hint of dejection.
"So be it. I wasn't counting on those three to do much for me anyway. However, I can't stay in this place for much longer. I have to complete this process of injecting devilish Qi into my body, then find another obscure location to cultivate in," the humanoid figure murmured to itself before closing its eyes again, seemingly having managed to quickly compose itself.
At this moment, Han Li had already pulled out a green jade vial from his storage pouch and poured three fragrant pills out onto his palm. He fed the three women a pill each before standing silently off to the side with his hands clasped behind his back.
Only roughly 10 minutes had passed before Song Yu awakened first.
"Looks like your cultivation base has improved quite significantly, Martial Niece Song; you managed to wake up sooner than I expected." Before she had completely regained her consciousness, a familiar male voice suddenly sounded in her ears.
Song Yu shuddered as she immediately came to her senses. She opened her eyes, and the first thing that she saw was Han Li appraising her with a hint of a smile on his face.
"Martial Uncle Han! Wait, no, are you really Martial Uncle Han?" Song Yu exclaimed.
"Hehe, you're pretty alert, aren't you, Martial Niece Song. I had to go through quite a bit of trouble to find this place. As for whether I'm the real Han Li or not, do you think I'm an imposter?" Han Li chuckled calmly.
"So you really are Martial Uncle Han!" Song Yu was still slightly conflicted. She was around 70% sure that this was indeed the real Han Li, but she still didn't dare to completely trust her judgment.
Han Li smiled and didn't say anything. Instead, he merely waved a hand toward Song Yu.
A dozen of so silver needles suddenly shot forth from various locations all over Song Yu's body, and the needles all flew into Han Li's grasp.
Almost at the exact same moment, Song Yu could feel the magic power in her body resume free circulation.
An ecstatic expression immediately appeared on her face.
Right at this moment, Mu Peiling and Liu Yu also woke up one after the other.
They were also startled by the sight of Han Li.
However, Mu
Peiling was able to immediately verify Han Li's identity through the use of the restriction in her spiritual sense, and she hurriedly rose to her feet before extending an elated curtsey toward Han Li.
Upon seeing this, Liu Yu and Song Yu were convinced that this was the real Han Li, and they also rose to their feet to extend respectful curtseys.
"Was it my missing second Nascent Soul who captured the three of you?" Han Li asked.
"Master, have you already encountered the Nascent Soul?" Liu Yu blurted out upon hearing this.
"If I'd encountered it already, would I still be asking you this question?" Han Li said in a calm voice as he also extracted the silver needles from Liu Yu and Mu Peiling's bodies.
Chapter 1185: Returning to the Seven Spirit Islands
Han Li's statement was rather perplexing to Mu Peiling's trio.
If he hadn't encountered the black-robed figure from before, then how was he able to immediately identify the second Nascent Soul as the culprit?
In the end, Liu Yu repressed her confusion, and replied, "The one who captured us was indeed your missing second Nascent Soul, Master. Also, the Nascent Soul has possessed a body and possesses a mid-Nascent Soul Stage cultivation base."
A reminiscent look appeared on her face as she spoke.
"It possessed a body? Tell me what that body looks like." Han Li seemed to have been intrigued upon hearing this.
At this point, the two golden lightning wyrms had already cleared out the surrounding black mist, and they shot forth through the air before disappearing into Han Li's body.
The three women were stunned by Han Li's proficient mastery in manipulating lightning.
At their Core Formation Stage cultivation bases, they were already able to manifest their techniques into different forms. However, they were far from being able to manipulate those techniques as if it were second nature, as was clearly the case with Han Li.
After calming her emotions, Liu Yu began to describe the physical appearance of the black-robed figure.
Han Li only had to listen for a brief while to determine that the second Nascent Soul really had possessed that Sovereign Devil Corpse.
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