This crimson-armored woman was naturally none other than the blood spirit clone of Fairy Ice Soul, and after being separated from the rest of the Xu Family entourage by the devilish army, she had flown all the way here before making short work of these three high-grade devilish beings.
It was quite clear that she had led her pursuers into this underground cave for a specific purpose, rather than just as a panicked snap decision.
After summoning the Heavenvoid Cauldron, Blood Spirit began to chant something while flicking her fingers toward the cauldron in quick succession.
Several azure incantation seals shot forth before vanishing into the cauldron one after another, and a loud buzzing sound instantly rang out from the treasure. The lid of the cauldron tremored slightly before flying up into the air and vanishing into space, following which several azure runes emerged from the cauldron amid a flash of azure light.
These runes quickly swelled in size before lining up next to one another, then flew directly toward the stone wall up ahead.
A dull rumbling boom rang out, and as soon as the azure runes came into contact with the stone wall, the latter crumbled away into dust to reveal an ancient copper gate, which had several shimmering silver restriction talismans plastered to its surface.
The cold look in Blood Spirit's eyes eased slightly upon seeing this, and she murmured to herself in an elated manner, "Thank heavens it's still intact! It seems that no one has discovered this place. My true body really made a wise decision by setting up this backup measure."
She then flicked a finger again, and a gust of fierce wind struck the cauldron from the side. The cauldron immediately let loose a clear ringing sound before expelling a burst of azure light that swept toward the copper gate.
In the face of the azure light, the silver runes on the gate were silently stripped away, and the gate slowly opened on its own.
Blood Spirit immediately flew in through the gate as a streak of crimson light, and in the instant she passed by the azure cauldron, it abruptly vanished amid a flash of azure light.
Beyond the gate was a slightly dim hall that was around several acres in area. The entire hall was empty aside from a square stone table, upon which sat another small cauldron.
This cauldron was also shimmering with azure light and had intricate patterns all over its surface; it bore a strong resemblance to the Heavenvoid Cauldron!
The crimson light receded, and Blood Spirit appeared in front of the stone table before making a grabbing motion toward the small cauldron, which rose up into the air and flew into her grasp as a ball of azure light.
A hint of elation appeared on Blood Spirit's face as she appraised the small cauldron.
"Heavenvoid Cauldron, Voidspirit Cauldron, and Void Emperor Cauldron! Hmph, I bet those bastards aren't aware that I just so happened to replicate another cauldron treasure before I set off back then. This Void Emperor Cauldron is far more powerful than even the other two cauldrons. Now that I've secured it, I have the key to access that place again. Once the devilish tribulation concludes, I'll be able to set off for the Thunder Continent!" Blood Spirit murmured to herself, and the small azure cauldron in her hand vanished amid a flash of spiritual light.
After that, she didn't remain in the hall any longer. She rubbed her hands together before raising them up into the air, and a loud thunderclap rang out as countless bolts of crimson lightning erupted out of her palms in a frenzy to strike walls of the hall around her.
The entire hall was inundated by crimson lightning in the blink of an eye, and all of its walls were shattered. Seconds after Blood Spirit shot forth out of the hall as a streak of crimson light, the entire hall completely crumbled.
Not long after that, the crimson streak of light appeared in the air above an extremely bleak and barren plain, then set off toward a certain direction. In that direction lay the small city where Xu Qianyu's trio was situated.
...
A month later, Han Li hovered high up in the air and appraised the battle down below with a frosty expression.
Over 10,000 feet below him, there were over 100 purple-armored devilish beings with peculiar devilish patterns on their faces, and they launched ferocious attacks toward a group of a dozen or so human cultivators.
Even the devilish beings with the lowest cultivation base among them were at the Nascent Soul Stage, and they were led by a pair of mid-Deity Transformation Stage devilish beings; this was an elite devilish force!
As for the human cultivators who were being attacked, they all wore similar attire, but there was great diversity in their age and cultivation bases. There were a few little girls among them who were only at the Foundation Establishment Stage, while the most powerful being among their ranks was a late-Deity Transformation Stage elderly man.
This was clearly a sect or a cultivation family.
The majority of these human cultivators were at the Core Formation Stage, so even though the elderly man was doing everything in his power to set up everyone in a profound formation, they were still in an extremely perilous situation.
The elderly man was controlling a large seal treasure, but his eyes were filled with despair as he appraised the current situation. In the face of so many devilish elites, even if he could escape with his life, all of these juniors of his would undoubtedly be killed.
With that in mind, a hint of ferocity appeared in the elderly man's eyes, and he expelled a large mouthful of blood essence toward the seal before pointing a finger at it. The sound of howling wind and rumbling thunder instantly rang out from the seal, and a white wyrm emerged from it before pouncing directly toward the two mid-Deity Transformation Stage devilish beings.
The two high-grade devilish beings knew that the elderly man was making a final stand, and they cackled in a sinister manner as a giant devilish bird projection appeared behind each of their backs. The projections depicted a pair of devilish creatures with deer heads and bat bodies, presenting quite a harrowing sight to behold.
As soon as the two projections emerged, they immediately flapped their wings and shot forth to clash with the white wyrm projection. The two sides seemed to be evenly matched, and right at this moment, the formation formed by the human cultivators was finally beginning to crumble in the face of the devilish beings' torrential barrage of attacks.
All of the human cultivators' faces turned deathly pale upon seeing this, and the elderly man let loose a loud cry as he laid a hand onto his own head, preparing to release his Nascent Soul to truly make a final stand.
Right at this moment, a cold harrumph rang out in the air above. The voice wasn't very loud, but it struck the listener with a bone-chilling sensation. All of the human and devilish beings down below felt as if thunderclaps had erupted right within their minds, and they swayed unsteadily in response.
Immediately thereafter, a ball of azure light emerged, within which a humanoid figure could be seen.
The humanoid figure swept a sleeve downward, and over 100 streaks of azure light shot forth before transforming into several hundred streaks of sword Qi.
The sword Qi revolved through the air before hurtling downward, but in the next instant, all of them vanished into thin air as if they were nothing more than projections.
Spatial fluctuations then erupted in the air above the devilish beings, and a series of azure flying swords shot forth out of space before whizzing through the air. A string of anguished howls rang out as all of the devilish beings were completely inundated by azure light, and their bodies were sliced into countless pieces; even their Nascent Souls had been shredded into nothingness.
A vast expanse of blood mist permeated throughout the entire area alongside the overwhelming odor of blood and gore.
Chapter 1943: Master Black Rain
After the blood mist dispersed, all of the devilish beings had been slain, and the human cultivators began to look around with shock and bewilderment in their eyes.
The late-Deity Transformation Stage elderly man was the first to return to his senses
, and he hurriedly extended a respectful bow toward the azure figure up above. "Which senior has stepped in to assist us? I am Jian Feitian of the Pegasus Sect; thank you for your kindness!"
The other cultivators also quickly returned to their senses and extended deep bows toward Han Li as well.
"We're all humans, so I naturally couldn't just stand by idly and watch. Head toward the west; there are no devilish beings there, so it's safe for now; that's all the assistance I'll be able to give you," Han Li said as he swept a sleeve through the air, and all of the streaks of azure sword Qi flew back up his sleeve.
The elderly man was trying his best to see the appearance of the humanoid figure within the azure light, but to no avail. Thus, he immediately extended another respectful bow, and said, "May I ask your esteemed name, Senior? Our Pegasus Sect will be sure to pledge our allegiance to you as thanks for your kindness!"
"Hehe, my surname is Han. There's no need for you to go out of your way to repay me; I just so happened to be passing by. Alright, I have to go now; best of luck to all of you," Han Li chuckled and flew away as a streak of azure light before the elderly man could say anything further.
After just a few flashes, he vanished into the distance, traveling at an incredible speed.
The elderly man was quite startled by Han Li's speed, and he was rooted to the spot for a long while before gradually returning to his senses.
"Master, do you know which senior that was?" a Nascent Soul Stage male cultivator asked in a cautious manner.
"There's no way that a Spatial Tempering cultivator would be able to kill so many high-grade devilish beings at once; even the average Body Integration cultivator would struggle to do what he just did. According to my knowledge, there are only two Body Integration Stage seniors with the Han surname in our human race; one of them is Senior Han Qing, who recently pledged his allegiance to the Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign, while the other is Senior Han Li of Deep Heaven City. As for exactly which one it is, we'll have to verify that once we get to a safer place. He saved our lives, and that is something that we cannot simply forget," the elderly man replied.
"Yes, Master. Seeing as devilish beings have appeared here, this place is no longer safe. According to our original plan, we were going to travel to the sect hidden within the Black Water Mountain Range, but that Senior Han is telling us to go west. From what I know, the west is comprised of a vast expanse of bleak and barren plains where there won't be many places for us to hide," the middle-aged man said in a cautious voice.
"The Black Water Mountain Range isn't too far away from this place, so it's most likely no longer a safe place, either. As such, we should place our trust in Senior Han. So what if the west is filled with flat plains? Do you think we'll be able to escape the spiritual sense detection of the high-grade devilish beings if we hide in a mountain range? If we can find a secluded place, then burrow deep underground and set up a formation, there's a chance that we'll be able to survive this devilish tribulation. After all, the Elder Devil Race can't scour the entirety of our human territory," the elderly man said with a cold smile.
The middle-aged man thought about this for a moment before nodding in response. "We'll do as you say, Master."
"Oh, by the way, collect the storage treasures from these devilish beings. These are all devilish elites, so I'm sure they'll be carrying some valuable things. That Senior Han didn't bother to take them, but they could be of great assistance to our Pegasus Sect," the elderly man instructed.
The middle-aged man naturally gave an affirmative response before relaying the elderly man's instructions to everyone else.
Thus, not long after that, the group of human cultivators flew toward the west as Han Li had suggested. As for the devilish beings that had been slain, they most likely wouldn't be discovered by the Elder Devil Race for quite a while.
Along his journey, Han Li had encountered similar scenarios several times, and upon verifying that there weren't any devilish lords present, he had slain all of the devilish beings that he had encountered without any hesitation.
Unless he were to encounter a devilish army with several devilish lords among their ranks, he really didn't have much to fear.
Half a month later, a primitive forest appeared up ahead. The trees here were extremely tall and lush, and the dense canopy up above cast eerie shadows over the dense undergrowth.
Han Li stopped at the edge of the forest, then peered deep into it.
In the extremely far distance, there was a small mountain range comprised of seven mountains of different sizes.
Han Li withdrew his gaze before flying directly toward the mountain range again as a streak of azure light. He was traveling toward the second tallest of the seven mountains, and after just a few flashes, he reached its summit.
However, as he inspected his surroundings, a hint of surprise immediately appeared on his face.
There were two human cultivators on the same mountain summit, one of whom was a rotund monk in a purple kasaya who was sitting in front of what appeared to be a volcanic crater. As for his companion, this was an extremely thin and hideous elderly man with dark skin that resembled tree bark.
Both of them were also at the mid-Body Integration Stage, and they had used some type of aura concealment method that had led to Han Li failing to detect their presence in advance.
The two immediately turned toward Han Li in unison, and the rotund monk faltered initially before a hint of recognition flashed through his eyes. "Ah, greetings, Fellow Daoist Han."
This was none other than Buddhist Master Tian Chan, who was one of the Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign's subordinates, and had met Han Li once in the past.
"Greetings to you too, Buddhist Master Tian Chan." Han Li was quite surprised, but his expression remained unchanged as he clasped his fist in a salute from afar.
The hideous elderly man had also identified Han Li's mid-Body Integration Stage cultivation base, and his expression changed slightly as he asked in a coarse and raspy voice, "Do you recognize him, Tian Chan?"
"Hehe, it's no wonder that you don't recognize Fellow Daoist Han; he only reached the Body Integration Stage several centuries ago. You've constantly been in seclusion during this time, so there's naturally no way you two could've met," the Buddhist Master replied with a smile.
"Several centuries? If I'm not mistaken, Fellow Daoist Han is already at the mid-Body Integration Stage, is he not?" the elderly man asked as a hint of astonishment flashed through his eyes.
"I've only just reached the mid-Body Integration Stage not long ago. May I ask your name, Fellow Daoist?" Han Li asked as he returned the elderly man's salute.
"I am Yu Xiaotian; people call me Master Black Rain. Tsk tsk, it's extremely remarkable that you were able to make a Body Integration Stage breakthrough in just several centuries; even on the holy island, I haven't met anyone with aptitude that can match yours," the elderly man said with undisguised astonishment in his voice.
"Holy island? Are you a holy island envoy, Brother Yu?" Han Li was quite startled to hear this.
"I wouldn't dare to proclaim myself to be a holy island envoy, but I do indeed currently reside on the holy island," the elderly man replied in a modest manner.
"I've heard much about the holy island; it's a pity that I've never had a chance to visit it. Please do tell me about it when you get some spare time, Brother Yu," Han Li said with a smile as the shock on his face faded.
"Hehe, under normal circumstances, the holy island extends invitations to Body Integration Stage cultivators once every 1,000 years, and some are even able to remain on the island to cultivate. If it weren't for this devilish tribulation, perhaps you would've already been invited to the island, Brother Han," Master Black Rain chuckled.
"I see. This is the first time I've heard of this; please forgive me for my lack of knowledge on this matter," Han Li replied with a nod.
"Not at all, the holy island has always been a very secretive place, so it's no surprise that you haven't h
eard much about it," Master Black Rain chuckled.
"Benefactor Han, I heard that you moved to Deep Heaven City following the commencement of the devilish tribulation; what's the situation like in Deep Heaven City now?" Buddhist Master Tian Chan asked.
"I am indeed currently residing in Deep Heaven City, and I'm technically a guest elder in the city. Unfortunately, Deep Heaven City is currently in quite a precarious situation; all of the large human settlements around the city have been conquered," Han Li replied with a grim expression.
"Is the situation that bad already? I've heard that the large settlements around Deep Heaven City all have Body Integration cultivators among their ranks; how were they conquered so quickly?" Buddhist Master Tian Chan asked in a stunned manner.
"That's quite a long story that I'll tell you about later. For now, would you be able to disclose to me why you and Brother Yu have come here?" Han Li asked with a curious look in his eyes.
Chapter 1944: Earthly Hellish Flames
"Well..." Buddhist Master Tian Chan turned to Master Black Rain with a rather hesitant expression.
Master Black Rain pondered the situation for a moment before making a decision. "Brother Han is one of the most powerful beings in our human race, so he'll be a great ally for us. I think the two of us may not have that great a chance of completing our objective, but if Fellow Daoist Han were to assist us, then we'll have a much greater chance."
Han Li was even more intrigued upon hearing this, but he merely waited in silence. Sure enough, after receiving Master Black Rain's approval, Buddhist Master Tian Chan nodded with a smile, and said, "I was thinking the same thing. In that case, allow me to explain the situation to you, Benefactor Han. I hope you'll be willing to lend us your assistance."
Han Li considered this for a moment before giving a conditional reply. "I'll be sure to do so if it benefits the state of our human race."
"We were actually instructed by the holy island to come here for the Earthly Hellish Flames," Buddhist Master Tian Chan revealed.
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