In the next moment, a flash of silver and black light appeared before Han Li, and the black miniature mountain and the silver firebird both shrank to tiny sizes before being swept into his sleeves and vanishing without a trace.
The hundred or so green sword lights that had been entangled with the artifacts of the old man surnamed Yan let out a clear chime and swiftly retreated.
With a flicker in the void, these flying swords instantly returned to Han Li’s side, shrinking to the size of small fish before merging into his body.
Even the small yellow cauldron, which had lost its master and was floating motionless in mid-air, was grabbed and pulled into his hand.
After collecting all his treasures, Han Li flapped the wings on his back and transformed into a streak of blue-white lightning, darting away. After a few flashes, he disappeared without a trace at the horizon.
Only the old man surnamed Yan and the woman enveloped in bloodlight remained in the distance, exchanging bewildered glances.
Having witnessed Han Li’s earlier method of killing the green-haired foreigner, the two were indeed deeply wary and dared not recklessly pursue him.
No matter how valuable the treasures were, one needed to be alive to claim them.
However, after exchanging cautious glances, the old man and the woman reacted very differently when they noticed the ominous black water and fiery clouds approaching menacingly from afar.
The woman, still enveloped in bloodlight, remained motionless, seemingly indifferent to the strange phenomena in the distance. The old man, however, darkened his expression and suddenly pointed at his white cloud-like artifact.
With a tremble, the artifact transformed into a bright white radiance that wrapped around him, carrying him swiftly away in another direction.
His speed was astonishingly fast, almost matching Han Li’s Thunder Escape technique.
Thus, only the woman in the blood-colored palace attire remained.
She frowned deeply, staring at the approaching fiery clouds and black water, lost in thought.
Moments later, the fiery clouds and black water arrived with a deafening roar, stopping abruptly above her.
“Xue Ying, you little brat, did the Immortal Mushroom fall into your hands?” A rumbling voice emerged from the fiery clouds as a massive head, over ten zhang in size, appeared—none other than the giant toad’s enormous visage.
The demonic beast’s skin was now fiery red, its eyes tightly shut, with a fist-sized gray orb embedded in the center of its forehead, emitting an eerie glow.
“Uncle Tie, you jest. Surely you can tell at a glance whether I have the Immortal Mushroom or not. If I had obtained it, I would have fled long ago. Why would I wait here for you?” the palace-attired woman replied respectfully, though without fear.
“Hmph, you and that old man Xue Bi are the same—outwardly honest but cunning at heart. If I didn’t ask, how could I leave with peace of mind? But if you’re lying to me, you know the consequences,” the giant toad snorted coldly, its voice filled with menace.
It seemed the giant toad was now possessed by its master, the Iron-Winged Demon.
“Enough chatter. We must hurry and chase the Immortal Mushroom. You promised me the Li Water Pearl if I helped you capture it,” a dark, sinister head emerged from the black water, its mouth grotesquely long and wide, filled with sharp fangs.
“Demon Crocodile, you’ve only just advanced to the Saint rank and haven’t even stabilized your cultivation. Mind your tone. Even if this is just an avatar of mine, it’s enough to send you back to your original form,” the giant toad retorted coldly.
“Oh? I’d like to see if you still possess such power,” the Demon Crocodile replied defiantly, its eyes gleaming with malice.
The giant toad’s expression darkened, and the gray orb on its forehead flashed, causing the surrounding fiery clouds to surge violently.
In response, the Demon Crocodile opened its maw, and the black water around it churned fiercely. It seemed the two were on the verge of another violent clash.
“Fine, out of respect for your former master, I won’t argue with you. As long as we retrieve the Immortal Mushroom, I’ll give you the Li Water Pearl. Surely you don’t doubt my word?” The giant toad suppressed its anger, though its voice remained icy.
“You’re a Saint-rank existence among our kind. I suppose you wouldn’t go back on your word. Let’s pursue them. If the Immortal Mushroom isn’t with this girl, it must be with the fleeing outsider. Should we question her?” the Demon Crocodile cackled.
“Question her? Even if she doesn’t have it, do you think she or Xue Bi would want it to fall into my hands? There are only two targets. We’ll split up—one chases each. That way, neither can escape,” the giant toad said indifferently.
“Agreed. I’ll chase the other one. If I find the Immortal Mushroom, I’ll return here to exchange for the Li Water Pearl,” the Demon Crocodile roared with laughter before retracting its head into the black water.
With a thunderous rumble, the black water surged toward the direction the old man surnamed Yan had fled.
The giant toad in the fiery clouds also ceased speaking, its clouds rolling toward the other direction—precisely where Han Li had gone.
In an instant, only the palace-attired woman remained, her expression shifting uncertainly.
Watching the fiery clouds and black water vanish into the horizon, she let out a bitter laugh and murmured, “I never expected that Demon Crocodile to advance to the Saint rank. I must report this to Father immediately. As for the Immortal Mushroom, I can only hope that outsider surnamed Han manages to escape with it.”
With that, she transformed into a streak of bloodlight and shot away.
Thousands of miles away, Han Li continued his lightning-fast escape, the sound of thunder accompanying his flight.
Behind him, the sky was dyed red as a massive fiery cloud pursued relentlessly.
Han Li sighed.
His reserves of Evil-Suppressing Divine Lightning were limited, and he couldn’t sustain the Wind Thunder Wings for much longer. Judging by the aura of his pursuer, this was no ordinary foe. It seemed he wouldn’t escape without a fight.
Still, he had no intention of stopping immediately. He planned to lure his pursuer further away before engaging, to prevent any reinforcements from joining the battle.
After traversing over a hundred thousand miles in flashes of lightning, Han Li arrived above a cluster of towering peaks.
Deeming the distance sufficient, he halted abruptly, the arcs of lightning dissipating as he revealed himself.
Glancing back at the crimson horizon, he took a deep breath and spun like a top. Countless streaks of blue light shot from his body, vanishing into the void as they concealed themselves.
Knowing his pursuer was no ordinary opponent, Han Li wasted no time in deploying the Spring Dawn Sword Formation.
With this formation, unless his foe was at the Body Integration stage, he stood a good chance of victory.
No sooner had the formation been set than the thunderous roar of the approaching fiery clouds filled the sky, flames flickering ominously within.
“Hand over the Immortal Mushroom, and I’ll spare your life,” a booming voice echoed from the clouds like a thunderclap.
From the fiery depths emerged a colossal figure resembling a mountain—a gigantic toad with crimson skin and a pair of pitch-black wings on its back.
The wings seemed insubstantial, wreathed in dark mist with faint golden runes flickering within, exuding an air of profound mystery.
The toad’s enormous head, the size of a pavilion, bore tightly shut eyes, while a gray orb embedded in its forehead pulsed with eerie light.
Han Li narrowed his eyes slightly at the bizarre sight but replied calmly, “The Immortal Mushroom is indeed in my possession. If you want it, trade me your demon core.”
“Hahaha! You dare speak to me like this? It’s been countless millennia since anyone has uttered such words to me. For making me laugh, I’ll savor your soul slowly,” the giant toad roared with laughter, as if hearing the most absurd joke.
Before its laughter subsided, a red streak shot from its mouth, appearing before Han Li in an instant, aimed straight at his chest.
An ordinary cultivator would have been impaled before they could react, but Han Li was no ordinary foe. His battle instincts were sharp, and his azure pupils glowed faintly—his Spirit Eye technique already active.
To others, the red streak would have been a blur, but Han Li saw it clearly: the toad’s thick, whip-like tongue.
With a dull thud, the tongue rebounded off a black miniature mountain that had materialized before Han Li, unmovable as a shield.
No matter how powerful the toad’s tongue was, it couldn’t budge the current Magnetic Divine Mountain.
Surprised by the failed ambush, the toad snorted coldly and flapped its black wings.
Instantly, the fiery clouds in the sky surged toward the demonic beast as if drawn by an invisible force.
The toad itself seemed like a bottomless abyss, absorbing the endless flames without any visible strain.
Witnessing this spectacle, Han Li’s expression turned grave for the first time, his eyes filled with solemnity.
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