However, right at this moment, Han Li suddenly vanished on the spot, then reappeared beside the detached hand amid a burst of spatial fluctuations.
As soon as he emerged, he raised a hand to lay a finger on the massive hand without any hesitation, upon which it instantly exploded into a cloud of blood mist.
"I'm going to tear you to pieces!" The Black Owl Monarch's eyed reddened with fury upon seeing this, and he let loose a thunderous roar as five silver claws sprang out of his fingertips, each of which was several feet in length.
The claws were then slashed downward like five sharp blades, in response to which Han Li casually lashed out again as a faint smile appeared on his face.
Countless silver patterns instantly surfaced over his body alongside a purplish-golden light barrier, and as soon as the five sharp claws struck his body, they were immediately snapped like twigs bursts of piercing purplish-golden light.
"Argh!"
The Black Owl Monarch could hardly believe what he was seeing!
Yaksha beings were renowned for their powerful physical bodies, and having just unleashed a secret technique, his Grand Ascension Stage body was naturally powerful to the extreme. On top of that, his five claws had been specially refined, making them as powerful as spirit treasures, but they had been snapped by Han Li's physical body alone!
The Black Owl Monarch was immediately struck by a sense of foreboding, but it was already too late for him to withdraw his hand.
Han Li's arm extended by several feet amid an explosive boom, and he lashed out with a seemingly gentle punch to strike the opposing mountainous hand.
A burst of scintillating light erupted alongside another thunderous roar of fury, and Han Li merely chuckled as he casually flew back to several hundred feet away, then steadied himself as a mocking smile appeared on his face.
At the same time, the scintillating light faded, revealing an extremely encouraging scene to all of the cultivators on the plaza.
As it turned out, most of the Black Owl Monarch's arm had disappeared, and what remained of it was nothing more than a mangled mass of broken flesh and bones.
"You progressed to the Grand Ascension Stage while primarily using a body refinement secret technique!" the Black Owl Monarch exclaimed with incredulity as a hint of wariness appeared in his eyes for the first time.
"I guess you can say that. Seeing as you've already come here, why don't you stay for a few days in our human race before you go, Fellow Daoist Black Owl," Han Li replied with an ambiguous smile.
"Hmph, don't think that these trivial injuries will hinder me; the show has only just begun. I was only caught off guard by your attack; there's no way a rookie Grand Ascension Stage being like you could be a match for me," the Black Owl Monarch said in a vicious manner as bursts of black Qi surged out of his body to instantly inundate the entirety of his massive frame.
A string of loud cracks and pops rang out incessantly from within the black Qi, and a hint of surprise appeared on Han Li's face upon seeing this.
In the next instant, the black Qi dissipated, and it was revealed that the Black Owl Monarch had fully regenerated from all of his injuries.
"So you've cultivated an immortal body; it's no wonder that you dare to fight me directly with your physical body," Han Li mused as he appraised the Black Owl Monarch.
"Hmph, I'll concede that your physical body is more powerful than mine, but how about this? Reversing Heaven and Earth!" The Black Owl Monarch's body expanded even further in size, and it swept an arm through the air, sending a burst of indescribable energy fluctuations spreading in all directions.
"You're using the power of laws!" Han Li murmured to himself as his pupils contracted slightly.
"That's right, there's no way a rookie Grand Ascension Stage being like you could have much of an understanding of the laws of heaven and earth," the Black Owl Monarch guffawed as a thin black line suddenly appeared in the air before him.
Immediately thereafter, the line blurred, and heaven and earth suddenly flipped as the sky became inky-black, while the earth abruptly became bright and clear.
Chapter 2209: Crushing a Grand Ascension Stage Being
All of the cultivators were horrified to find that they had suddenly become completely immobilized, as if their bodies were being crushed under giant mountains.
In contrast, a cold smile appeared on Han Li's face as he swept his spiritual sense through this black and white world, following which the Provenance Golden Body rose up into the air as a streak of purplish-golden light, then surged into Han Li's body.
A resounding boom rang out as Han Li transformed into a giant purplish-golden ape with three heads and six arms.
The giant ape thumped its own chest violently with its six fists, then swelled drastically in size to around 8,000 feet tall as countless silver spirit patterns revolved around its body.
The silver spirit patterns then fused as one to form silver formations all over the giant ape's body, as if they were a natural appendage.
The Black Owl Monarch's heart jolted upon seeing this, and he immediately drew a circle downward with his finger.
A resounding boom rang out within the black and white world, and a giant black and white ring with a diameter of around 10,000 feet appeared around the giant ape, then shrank to bind around the massive ape's body like a torture device.
The giant ape looked down at the restrictive black and white ring with a cold expression, and a derisive sneer appeared on its three faces as all of its purplish-golden fur suddenly stood up on end.
Immediately thereafter, the silver patterns became extremely bright, and a burst of enormous invisible power surged forth in a frenzy, striking the massive ring with a devastating impact.
The black and white ring tremored violently before being forced open, following which the massive ape grabbed onto the ring with its six giant hands, then crushed it into countless fragments amid an explosive boom.
An unnatural flush immediately appeared on the Black Owl Monarch's face, and he couldn't help but throw up two mouthfuls of silver blood.
The Black Owl Monarch frantically attempted to repress the backlash from the power of laws in a panicked manner while considering how he was going to target Han Li next, but right at this moment, Han Li took the initiative to attack first.
He raised his six giant arms up into the air, and a dozen or so silver formations took shape on each of his fists, then instantly fused as one.
Scintillating light immediately erupted from his six massive fists, and he let loose a thunderous roar as he unleashed a barrage of countless fist projections upward.
The fist projections then transformed into countless silver threads of light that struck the inky-black sky with immense power, forcibly tearing it apart.
The entire black and white world flashed violently a few times before completely crumbling away, returning the plaza to its former state.
The immobilized cultivators down below immediately recovered their freedom, and they all looked up with elation in their eyes.
Right at this moment, all of the silver threads up above converged to form a massive silver hand that was over 1,000 feet in length, which lashed out violently toward the Black Owl Monarch down below.
A hint of fear flashed through the Black Owl Monarch's eyes upon seeing this, but he then made a grabbing motion to draw the jade fan into his grasp again before unleashing another burst of powerful seven-colored light.
At the same time, he opened his mouth to expel an inky-black treasure that was rectangular in shape, and it instantly swelled to become a giant brick that was several hundred feet in length.
The seven-colored light and massive black brick struck the giant hand almost at the exact same moment, and the entire sky tremored violently amid an earth-shattering boom.
The huge silver hand was able to pulverize the black brick with ease, and the seven-colored light was also instantly torn apart, following which the massive silver hand abruptly appeared right abov
e the Black Owl Monarch before crushing downward without any hesitation.
The Black Owl Monarch was horrified by the sight of his two treasures being crushed so easily, and he immediately fled the scene, vanishing into thin air in a flash.
Han Li harrumphed coldly upon seeing this before lashing out viciously with a giant furry fist, and a silver fist projection instantly shot forth before disappearing in the blink of an eye.
In the next instant, the Black Owl Monarch re-emerged several hundred feet away, but almost at the exact same moment, the silver fist projection also appeared behind him amid a burst of spatial fluctuations.
The Black Owl Monarch was extremely alarmed by this, but it was already too late for him to evade.
A resounding boom rang out as his suit of black armor was shattered by the silver fist projection, and he was sent flying through the air. Due to the ferocious impact, he was no longer able to maintain his giant form, and reverted back to his original size in a flash.
Upon steadying himself, the Black Owl Monarch immediately threw up another mouthful of blood essence, and his aura was significantly debilitated.
His suit of black armor was a supreme defensive treasure that had been refined using 49 types of precious materials over the span of several centuries, yet it couldn't even withstand a single attack from Han Li!
This was extremely astonishing to the Black Owl Monarch, and he immediately realized that he was no match for Han Li.
As such, he rose up into the air without any hesitation to flee into the distance as a streak of black light, covering a distance of several thousand feet in the span of just a single breath.
"You think you can just come and go from my ceremony as you please? Sword Observation Art, slash!" Han Li roared, and as soon as his voice trailed off, his three glabellas split open in unison, revealing three inky-black vertical eyes.
Each of the vertical demonic eyes released a pillar of black light, which instantly transformed into three small translucent swords that vanished into thin air.
In the next instant, the Black Owl Monarch was just about to unleash a secret technique to speed up in his escape when his expression changed drastically, and he immediately took evasive measures.
Right at this moment, three streaks of translucent sword Qi shot forth out of the nearby space like lightning.
The Black Owl Monarch was able to evade two of them, but his body was sliced cleanly in half by the last one.
A howl of anguish rang out as silver blood rained down from above, but what would've surely been a lethal wound for a normal cultivator wasn't enough to kill a Grand Ascension Stage being like the Black Owl Monarch.
A black shadow flew out of the top half of his body, then transformed into a miniature humanoid figure that was completely identical to the Black Owl Monarch.
The miniature figure released a gust of black wind to sweep up the two halves of the body, then continued to flee into the distance.
"I'll remember this! Next time, I'm going to repay you a hundredfold!" The Black Owl Monarch's enraged voice rang out from the distance.
"Next time? Let's see if you can escape my spirit insects first." Han Li reverted back to his human form amid a flash of purplish-golden light, then swept a sleeve through the air to release three golden flowers, which transformed into three massive golden beetles with sinister purple patterns all over their bodies.
As soon as they appeared, the three giant beetles flew away like three golden shooting stars, and it seemed that their speed wasn't inferior in the slightest compared to that of the Black Owl Monarch.
These three faux Gold Devouring Beetles Monarchs possessed late-Body Integration Stage power and virtually indestructible bodies, as well as stamina that struck fear into the hearts of even Grand Ascension Stage beings, so they were perfect for hunting down the severely wounded Black Owl Monarch.
Han Li was confident that even if the Black Owl Monarch could escape, he would definitely sustain even further wounds, rendering him unable to regenerate during his return journey.
As such, even in the best-case scenario for the Black Owl Monarch, he would have to rest for centuries to recover to his former level of power.
All of the cultivators on the plaza were stunned by Han Li's extraordinary display of power, and now that the Black Owl Monarch had been forced to flee in such an embarrassing manner, everyone immediately erupted into a frenzy.
"Senior Han's powers are truly unmatched!" Countless human and demon cultivators were yelling at the top of their lungs with fervent looks in their eyes.
Han Li had only just progressed to the Grand Ascension Stage, yet he had just defeated a veteran Grand Ascension Stage being with ease, and this extraordinary display filled the human and demon cultivators present with immense confidence that he would lead the two races to greater heights.
Raucous cheers erupted into the heavens, piercing through the restrictions to be audible throughout the entire city.
Those who were ineligible to attend the ceremony had no idea what had happened, but the excited and fervent cheers were contagious, and they all erupted into cheers as well.
Thus, the entire Deep Heaven City was instantly transformed into a sea of excitement and celebration.
In contrast, the foreign representatives present at the ceremony were both in awe and feeling extremely wary after witnessing the battle that had just taken place.
The emergence of such a powerful Grand Ascension cultivator in the human race was not necessarily a good thing for the neighboring races, and the foreign envoys had decided that the first thing they were going to do following their return was to report this matter to their higher-ups as soon as possible.
Chapter 2210: News About the Blood Soul
A faint smile appeared on Han Li's face, and as the raucous cheers subsided a little, he waved a hand through the air, upon which countless azure threads converged beneath his feet to form the giant azure lotus flower above the pagoda again.
"The unwelcome guest has already been dealt with! According to past conventions, I will be retelling my cultivation journey for seven days and seven nights from now on. As for how much you can benefit from my retelling, that will be up to you. However, in contrast with past ceremonies of this nature, I will be removing the restrictions so anyone can come to the mountain and listen if they wish to do so," Han Li said.
His voice wasn't very loud, but it spread in all directions and was audible throughout the entirety of Deep Heaven City.
All of the cultivators faltered initially upon hearing this, following which joyful cheers erupted once again.
Immediately thereafter, everyone began to converge toward the giant three-colored mountain in a frenzy, and even the armored guards responsible for maintaining order had abandoned their posts to rush toward the mountain themselves.
Meanwhile, Han Li had already sat down onto the azure lotus flower and begun to retell his experiences and insights starting from the Qi Condensation Stage.
All of the cultivators on the plaza immediately began to listen intently with solemn expressions.
A Dao retelling from a Grand Ascension Stage being was a massive opportunity for anyone, so everyone was listening with rapt focus, even though the retelling had commenced from such a low cultivation base.
As Han Li began his retelling, more and more cultivators flocked onto the mountain, and all of the space around the plaza was quickly packed to the rafters.
As such, the people that arrived thereafter could only gather elsewhere on the mountain.
Several hours later, the entire top half of the giant mountain was completely full, and there were still more people gathering on the bottom half.
Regardless of where one stood, as long as they were situated on the mountain, Han Li's voice would immediately become clearly audible to them.
Many people wanted to scale even further up the mountain, but they would often involuntarily stop in their tracks as they listened to Han Li's Dao retelling, falling into
a special state of enlightenment.
A day and a night later, virtually every single inch of the mountain was occupied, and everyone was completely silent with only Han Li's voice ringing out audibly from the mountain's summit...
Six days and six nights later, rainbow light suddenly appeared in the sky, and a flurry of flower petals rained down from above once again.
Han Li's voice drew to an abrupt halt, and all of the enraptured listeners were instantly brought back to reality.
Many people were immediately able to return to their senses, but they still appeared to be slightly disoriented, as if they had just awoken from a dream.
Moments later, Han Li's voice rang out once again.
"Thank you for attending my Grand Ascension Stage celebratory ceremony. The ceremony has concluded; you may all go now."
For many cultivators, Han Li had only just reached the critical juncture of his Dao retelling, so they were naturally very reluctant to leave, but in their eyes, Han Li was currently like a god, so they didn't dare to oppose his instructions.
Thus, everyone extended respectful bows toward the mountain summit before departing, and only then did the ceremony truly conclude.
Half a day later, the three-colored giant mountain vanished amid a rumbling boom, and the remaining armored guards near the plaza extended respectful bows once again before departing in an orderly fashion.
In the hall on the first floor of the stone pagoda, Han Li was already situated on the main seat.
On either side of the hall stood Qi Lingzi, Hai Yuetian, and the elders of Deep Heaven City.
Bai Guo'er had also returned, and she was standing next to Zhu Guo'er, who was of a similar age, and they really did look as if they were sisters.
Bai Guo'er had managed to return just before the commencement of the ceremony, and she was currently at the mid-Deity Transformation Stage.
As for the elders of Deep Heaven City, the respectful expressions in their eyes had become far more genuine compared to prior to the ceremony; it was quite clear that they had been completely won over by Han Li's dismantling of the Black Owl Monarch.
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