Meanwhile, his body combined as one with the Provenance True Devil Projection, and he conjured up a weapon for each of the four additional arms that he gained to oppose the giant ape's fists.
At the same time, the two Gold Devouring Beetles struggled and thrashed with all their might to try and escape from the grasp of the giant ape.
Following their mutation, the Gold Devouring Beetles had attained enormous strength, and they really were able to free themselves before immediately setting off in pursuit of the purple blade segment.
Upon seeing this, the devilish ape swung its massive fists at Han Li and engaged him in melee combat.
With Han Li's current immensely powerful body, he certainly wasn't going to back down from a physical brawl, and thus, the result of all that was the current situation.
The devilish ape's armor and that purple blade segment were extremely powerful, but the fearsome aspect about it was its insane strength.
Even though Han Li was using all six arms and activating his Provenance True Devil Arts to its maximal extent, he was still being forced onto the back foot.
However, perhaps the devilish ape didn't want to aggravate its existing injuries or perhaps it had decided that its current attacks would be enough to take care of Han Li. In any case, it didn't unleash any additional abilities, and only used its fists to attack him.
As such, after growing accustomed to the giant ape's startling speed, Han Li was able to deal with its attacks in a composed manner.
However, his treasures didn't do much to the devilish ape's purple armor, either, only leaving a few marks here and there.
This suit of strange purple armor was like an indestructible turtle shell that encapsulated the giant ape's entire body, and even Han Li was finding it to be quite difficult to deal with.
It appeared that he would have to devise some other type of strategy.
Han Li's expression remained completely unchanged, but countless thoughts were racing through his mind.
All of a sudden, he took a deep breath before extending a hand that was as pristine white as jade out of his sleeve.
Five white skulls then emerged from his fingertip before opening their mouths in unison to send a wave of five-colored glacial flames surging toward the devilish ape.
Immediately thereafter, Han Li opened his mouth to expel a small azure cauldron, and countless azure threads shot forth from within the cauldron, hurtling directly toward his opponent.
Meanwhile, a loud thunderclap erupted from behind Han Li, following which a pair of wings appeared on his back.
He flapped those wings gently, and his body shot forth toward the exit of the hall as an arc of azure and white lightning.
He was planning to unleash these opportunities to keep this devilish ape at bay for now, then fly back to open up some distance between them.
After that, he was going to lure the devilish ape into the passageway, where the Spring Dawn Sword Formation had been set up earlier.
Only with the power of the sword formation would he be able to trap and kill this devilish beast.
However, an extremely alarming turn of events suddenly unfolded.
Azure and white lightning flashed, following which Han Li appeared before the only exit, only for a burst of crimson light to flash right beside him in the same instant.
Immediately thereafter, a crimson object that was several tens of feet in length appeared out of thin air, then crashed down toward him with devastating might.
It was none other than the crimson bed that the devilish ape had been lying on before!
Han Li was naturally quite startled by the sudden emergence of this crimson bed, and he cast his gaze toward it to find that the entire bed was radiating brilliant crimson light. At the same time, runes of different sizes were surging from the bed in a frenzy, giving it quite a menacing appearance.
Han Li naturally didn't dare to take the bed lightly, and he let loose a low cry almost in a reflexive manner. His four golden arms all swung their weapons upward in unison to form a barricade, while his two hands, one black and one white, also sent countless fist projections hurtling toward the bed.
The treasure had appeared far too abruptly for him to be able to unleash any other abilities, so he could only oppose it with his body alone. Even so, he was confident that the combined powers of his six arms would be enough to send this bed flying.
Thus, golden light flashed as the four weapons struck the crimson bed, and golden and crimson light intertwined amid a resounding boom.
However, the bed only faltered for an instant before slowly continuing on its descent.
Han Li's expression darkened, and the fist projections he'd unleashed suddenly converged to form a pair of massive head-sized fists, one black and one white, both of which also flew up toward the crimson bed.
However, right at this moment, Han Li was suddenly struck by a bone-chilling sensation, and goosebumps appeared all over his body without any warning.
He didn't know what kind of dangers were present, but he'd always been extremely confident in his instincts. As such, he immediately withdrew his two hands before pointing toward the crystalline shield up ahead. The shield had already shrunk down to its original size, and he was trying to activate it against while making a hand seal to summon some other incantation seal.
However, it already seemed to be too late.
All of a sudden, a thin white line appeared directly behind Han Li, and a crimson arm with sharp hook-like fingers reached out from within.
The shimmering golden layer of protective spiritual light and Han Li's immensely powerful body were punctured like mere papier-mâché structures before the arm emerged out the front of his chest.
Han Li stared at the arm protruding out of his chest, and his facial muscles spasmed as a glazed-over look appeared in his eyes, as if he were unable to believe what had just happened to him.
The giant ape's cackling reverberated throughout the entire hall again, but the voice wasn't coming from the devilish ape within the suit of purple armor. Instead, it was emanating from the spatial rift behind Han Li, so it was clearly coming from the owner of the crimson arm.
"You dare to try and kill me, little brat? You're asking to be killed! I can see you have some very pure magic power in your body; you'll be perfect sustenance for me." A crimson shadow emerged from the spatial rift while chortling with glee.
Immediately thereafter, the arm that had punctured through Han Li's chest drew back, and it opened its mouth to bite off Han Li's head.
However, right at this moment, an incredible turn of events abruptly unfolded.
Han Li's body was suddenly enshrouded within a ball of green spiritual light before disappearing as specks of green light. What remained around the crimson arm was nothing more than a punctured green talisman.
As such, the giant ape's mouth naturally chomped down onto thin air, and it was quite startled by this development before immediately turning toward the exit of the hall.
Within the devilish Qi outside the exit, green light flashed, and Han Li appeared with a slightly pale complexion.
The crimson shadow turned its attention to his chest and was surprised to find that it was completely unscathed.
If it weren't for the fact that a large hole had been torn into his azure robes there, the crimson shadow would've been led into thinking that it had fallen under the effects of an illusionary technique.
The crimson shadow then turned toward its own arm to find that a shimmering green talisman had been punctured in Han Li's place.
Its expression changed slightly as it reached out toward the talisman with its other arm, but right at this moment, Han Li harrumphed coldly before uttering the word "return".
The green talisman swayed before transforming into a streak of green light, which then disappeared into Han Li's body in a flash.
This talisman was naturally none other than the Spiritform Talisman that Han Li had been nurturing day and night within his body ever s
ince he'd arrived in the Spirit Realm.
Taking into account Han Li's current cultivation base and the fact that the talisman had been nurtured for several hundred years, it was naturally far more potent than it was back in the human world.
As such, in the instant that the crimson shadow's claws were about to puncture his body, he activated the Spiritform Talisman so it could take that lethal attack in his stead.
If it weren't for his quick thinking, even if he could've escaped from that surprise attack alive due to his powerful body, he would've definitely sustained severe wounds. However, he wouldn't be able to use this Spiritform Talisman anytime soon; it would have to be nurtured within his body again for at least a century.
At present, Han Li was more concerned about just what this crimson shadow was, and why it had appeared here in this place of slumber for this devilish ape. From what it had just said earlier, it was referring to itself as the same being, so could it be an avatar of the devilish ape's?
Han Li wore a rather bewildered expression, and he cast his gaze toward the crimson shadow with blue light flashing through his eyes.
Even though the crimson shadow was enshrouded within a layer of crimson light, thereby making its body appear rather blurry and indistinct, Han Li was able to see just what it was with great clarity through the use of his spirit eye ability.
The sight that he was greeted by immediately made his pupils contract drastically as he discovered that aside from the fact that the crimson shadow appeared to possess no substantial body, it was completely identical in appearance to the devilish ape within the suit of purple armor.
It had the same three horns, the same mouthful of sharp fangs, and the same pair of extremely long arms that extended past its knees.
Seeing as Han Li was standing rooted to the spot with a hesitant look on his face, the crimson shadow turned to him with a sinister smile before waving a hand toward the armored devilish ape from afar.
The giant ape immediately strode toward the crimson shadow, which disappeared into the ape's body as a streak of crimson light.
A burst of black and red devilish Qi swept forth from within the purple suit of armor, following which a burst of unfathomable spiritual pressure erupted directly into the heavens.
Spiritual pressure of such astonishing potency was certainly not something that should belong to a severely wounded Body Integration Stage being, and Han Li's expression changed drastically as he took several steps backward. At the same time, a thought suddenly occurred to him, and he recalled a devilish secret technique that was recorded in the Heavenbearing Devil Arts. "You're using the Body and Soul Division Technique!"
"Hmm? How do you know the name of this secret technique? Indeed, I am using this technique to aid in my recovery. Splitting up my body and soul incurs a certain level of risk, but it speeds up my recovery by twofold. Come to think of it, you're a rather strange being. You're clearly a Spirit Realm being, yet you've mastered the top-rate devilish arts of our Elder Devil Realm. Even though it's been heavily adjusted to suit a being like you, much of its power has still been retained," the devilish ape mused in a cold voice.
"Does that mean you're close to a full recovery already?" Han Li's expression instantly darkened significantly.
"Haha! My body is recovering a little slowly, but my soul is almost fully recovered. If you know what's good for you, you'll come over here and let me suck away your blood. Perhaps if I'm pleased with the taste, I'll release a wisp of your soul so you can reincarnate yourself in the next life," the devilish ape cackled with mirth.
Chapter 1634: Demonic Ape Spirit Eyes
Han Li contemplated the devilish ape's words for only a brief moment before he chuckled coldly as he said, "Your soul is almost fully recovered? Do you really think I'll believe that? You're a mid-holy race being, yet you're using your body to attack me while using your soul to unleash a sneak attack. If your soul really were almost fully recovered, why would you resort to such sneaky tactics? Your soul may be recovering at a faster rate than your body, but it's certainly nowhere near fully recovered. I may not be a match for you in your current state, but if I gather a couple of helpers to oppose you together, we'll be able to kill you with ease."
The giant ape's cackling drew to an abrupt halt upon hearing this, and it suddenly made a grabbing motion as two balls of crimson light flashed from its suit of armor.
The purple blade segment that was battling the two Gold Devouring Beetles immediately disappeared, and in the next instant, it appeared in the devilish ape's hand, following which it swelled to become a giant purple sword that was around 10 feet in length.
The giant ape slashed the sword toward Han Li several times in quick succession, and seven or eight thick purple streaks instantly hurtled toward him.
However, Han Li was already prepared in advance, so he certainly wasn't going to fall prey to this attack.
The crystalline shield before him radiated bright spiritual light, and it swelled drastically in size to form a translucent light barrier before him.
The purple streaks struck the crystalline light barrier amid a string of resounding booms, and most of their powers were nullified by the light barrier. However, a small portion of its power still managed to bypass the light barrier before crashing directly into Han Li's body.
Han Li made no effort to ward off the residual power of the purple sword streaks, and as such, his body was blasted into the devilish Qi behind him like a cannonball.
"You sure dare to talk big! You think you can threaten me with your pathetic powers? Where do you think you're going?" the devilish ape initially cackled in a derisive manner. However, after waiting for a short while for Han Li to re-emerge from the black mist to no avail, it finally realized something, and it also rushed into the devilish Qi as a gust of devilish winds.
However, as soon as the devilish ape entered the black Qi, a small mountain that was around 10 feet tall suddenly came crashing down toward it.
The devilish ape faltered slightly before merely raising a fist in a nonchalant manner to combat the oncoming small mountain. A burst of enormous power was instantly sent hurtling upward, and the devilish beast paid no further heed to the small mountain as it cast its gaze directly up ahead.
To normal beings, there was zero visibility within this inky-black devilish Qi passageway, but for a holy-grade devilish beast, it was as clear as day.
As such, it immediately caught sight of Han Li, who was standing on the spot several hundred feet away. He was making a series of hand seals that was causing the surrounding devilish Qi to tumble and surge violently, as if he were preparing to unleash some kind of extremely powerful ability.
Despite the fact that it had caught sight of Han Li, the devilish ape didn't immediately rush toward him. Instead, it cast its gaze toward the area around him, acting in a rather cautious manner.
However, in the next instant, an unexpected turn of events unfolded above its head.
The immensely powerful force it had unleashed with its punch earlier had only caused the small mountain to wobble slightly, rather than knocking the mountain away as he'd expected. Immediately thereafter, the small mountain suddenly sped up in its descent. At the same time, it swelled rapidly to several times its original size, crashing down toward the devilish ape's head in a flash.
The giant ape faltered slightly upon seeing this, but it then immediately let loose a cold harrumph before slashing its huge purple sword through the air.
Several purple streaks instantly took shape before converging to form a thick sword streak. The devilish ape was preparing to slice this small mountain in half in one fell swoop.
However, it had reacted too late, and grey light suddenly flashed from the small mountain before it vanished on the spot.
As such, the purple sword streak naturally missed its target, and the devilish ape was left feeling rather bemused as it pondered just what Han Li's intentions were.
However, in the next instant, it suddenly seemed to
have sensed something as it hurriedly lowered its head to cast its gaze up ahead again.
There, he discovered that countless thin arcs of golden lightning had appeared and were revolving around his body.
These arcs of lightning then gradually thickened before erupting in all directions, slowly forming an astonishing spherical net of electricity.
At the same time, a series of shimmering golden runes rushed out of Han Li's hands in quick succession, then disappeared into the arcs of lightning around him.
In the instant that these runes disappeared into the arcs of lightning, the latter shattered soundlessly in unison to form a shimmering golden halo with a diameter of several tens of feet.
Han Li's body became quite blurry and indistinct as he stood within the halo, but his chanting didn't cease for even a single moment.
The golden halo began to revolve around him, and the golden runes churned erratically while releasing a faint ringing sound that was gradually becoming extremely sharp and piercing.
Following an earth-shattering thunderclap, the halo abruptly vanished amid a flash of brilliant golden light, and Han Li reappeared with a ball that appeared to have been forged from pure gold hovering around a foot above one of his hands.
The surface of the ball was riddled with runes, but it was completely dull and lusterless, releasing no spiritual pressure whatsoever, as if it were just an ordinary metal ball.
However, the devilish ape immediately shuddered at the sight of the ball, and it exclaimed, "That's a Devilbane Lightning Bead!"
Immediately thereafter, it rushed toward Han Li as a gust of black and red devilish winds, seemingly desperate to get to Han Li before he could unleash the power of the golden ball.
However, even after the devilish ape had rushed over 100 feet toward Han Li, he still remained completely motionless and displayed no reaction. All of a sudden, golden light flashed from the ground below, and two swords surfaced from the ground alongside a saber.
The three weapons slashed through the air, sending two sword projections and a saber projection flying directly toward the giant ape.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 931