Han Li was startled. Just as he was about to plummet from a height of several dozen zhang onto a pile of jagged rocks below, he twisted his body abruptly, bending his waist at an eerie angle. Simultaneously, he tapped the back of one foot against the other, propelling himself with a “whoosh” toward a nearby tree, where he landed steadily on a branch.
Only then did cold sweat break out on Han Li’s forehead. Fortunately, the Misty Steps technique he had learned in the past didn’t require any spiritual power or mana. Otherwise, a Core Formation cultivator like him being crushed to death by a fall would have become a laughingstock in the cultivation world! However, those Foundation Establishment cultivators probably wouldn’t be as lucky as him—many were likely to perish.
He steadied his mind slightly, but before he could take any further action, a series of “clanging” sounds came from nearby. Han Li’s expression shifted as he hurriedly looked over. Sure enough, the two sets of Emerald Swarm Swords that hadn’t been stored in his body had fallen to the ground with crisp metallic sounds. Not far from them lay the eight golden mirrors, the ancient treasure flower basket, and the small silver bell. At this moment, all of them appeared dull and lifeless, as if their spiritual energy had been completely drained.
A chill ran down Han Li’s spine. He immediately tried to release a wisp of divine sense to inspect these treasures, but as soon as he attempted to move his spiritual consciousness, his heart turned ice-cold. His once-powerful divine sense now lay motionless within his body, utterly incapable of extending outward even slightly.
Han Li sucked in a sharp breath. With both his mana and divine sense rendered useless, he was now no different from an ordinary mortal. Forget about casting spells—he couldn’t even open his storage pouch or spirit beast pouch.
Turning his head, Han Li glanced at the towering black mist that was now clearly visible. His face paled.
Given the speed of this ghostly mist, his mortal body stood no chance of escaping. After a brief, grim contemplation, Han Li gritted his teeth and abruptly swayed, landing beside the scattered treasures. He then frantically scooped them up with both hands, gathering them all into his grasp.
Since his storage pouch was unusable, he could only stuff the treasures into his robes. Fortunately, none of them were too large, or he wouldn’t have been able to carry them all.
Just as Han Li finished collecting the treasures, the boundless black mist, hundreds of zhang high, surged onto the island in an instant.
As Han Li stood up, he felt an immense suction force pulling him toward the ghostly mist. Before he could even comprehend what was happening, he was yanked into the air.
Panic surged through Han Li. He tried several times to twist his body, intending to use Misty Steps to break free, but it was utterly futile. Moments later, he was sucked into the pitch-black mist. Countless black lightning bolts intertwined, instantly enveloping him.
A low, rumbling sound echoed as Han Li vanished amidst the flickering black light, disappearing without a trace from within the ghostly mist.
Han Li’s ears rang with chaotic noises as bizarre sounds flooded his mind. His entire world spun violently, making it impossible to see anything—only darkness filled his vision.
Suddenly, Han Li felt his body jerk to a stop before plummeting downward with nothing to support him.
A dull “thud” sounded as his body landed heavily on something soft and thick, sparing him from injury. The tension in Han Li’s heart finally eased.
His surroundings remained pitch-black, but a strong, fishy odor assaulted his nostrils.
Without a word, Han Li reached down and felt something slippery and sticky, with small creatures wriggling beneath him. He was lying in a pile of fish and shrimp, all still alive and thrashing.
Frowning, Han Li tried to slowly rise, but a splitting headache struck him instantly. His limbs weakened, and a wave of dizziness surged inexplicably from within.
Han Li inwardly cursed, realizing this was the consequence of being forcibly teleported without the protection of his mana. It seemed he wouldn’t be able to stand for quite some time.
Resigned to this, Han Li lay motionless among the fish and shrimp, conserving his strength while waiting for his limbs to recover.
But just then, a cluster of black lightning appeared several zhang above his head.
In the faint light, Han Li glimpsed jagged, bizarre rocks overhead—this seemed to be an underground cavern. The eerie lightning also appeared to contain something.
Han Li’s heart stirred. After several violent flashes, the black lightning vanished again, dropping a dark object straight toward him.
Startled, Han Li tried to dodge, but his body was too weak. He could only watch helplessly as the object fell.
A muffled feminine groan sounded, followed by a warm, fragrant body pressing tightly against Han Li’s. It was a woman, also teleported here.
The woman, flustered and unaware of Han Li beneath her, struggled to rise, accidentally grabbing his hair in the process.
Han Li winced in pain, letting out a soft exhale.
“Who’s there?” The woman finally realized there was someone beneath her—a strange man, no less—and let out a startled cry, hurriedly straightening up. But her body swayed weakly, and she collapsed again.
This time, she landed squarely on Han Li’s chest, her bright, fearful eyes meeting his. She didn’t seem very old.
“Who are you?” the woman asked, her voice trembling. Her heart pounded loudly, echoing starkly in the silent darkness.
“A man!”
Though the woman’s voice was pleasant, she was undoubtedly a stranger. Perhaps because he couldn’t see her face clearly, Han Li found himself teasing her on a whim.
“You—?” The woman’s eyes flashed with indignation as she glared fiercely at Han Li. But with her limbs still weak, she could only barely lift her neck, trying to distance her face from his—a futile effort.
Her warm, fragrant breath brushed against Han Li’s face, stirring an odd sensation within him. At the same time, his body registered the softness and surprising elasticity of her form, and certain parts of him began to stir involuntarily.
“What are you doing?” the woman immediately sensed the change in Han Li’s body. Her eyes grew even more embarrassed and furious as she glared at him, though Han Li found a hint of cuteness in her expression.
“It’s not that I want to do anything. But with my mana and divine sense gone, even if I wanted to be a gentleman like Liu Xia, I couldn’t. I’m just a normal man—this reaction is unavoidable under these circumstances,” Han Li muttered with a bitter smile.
The woman snorted but didn’t retort, seemingly accepting his explanation. Since Han Li was equally immobilized, she could only endure her embarrassment and anger.
For a moment, silence enveloped the darkness, broken only by the alternating rhythm of their pounding heartbeats.
Han Li reflected that this experience was truly unprecedented—lying atop a squirming pile of fish and shrimp while a strange, fragrant woman lay on his chest. It was utterly absurd!
“Were you among those who entered the island earlier?” the woman asked after a while.
“You could say that,” Han Li replied, recalling the dozen or so foreign cultivators who had rushed onto the island. It seemed this woman was one of them.
“Hmph! What do you mean, ‘you could say that’?” Suspicion flickered in the woman’s bright eyes as she questioned him.
Han Li smiled faintly, about to offer a vague response, when the sound of hurried footsteps suddenly echoed from afar. Several torches appeared in the distance, bobbing as they approached, their light revealing shadowy figures beneath.
Han Li’s heart tightened. There were others here—and they didn’t seem to be fellow cultivators swallowed by the ghostly mist.
In moments, the torches had covered most of the distance, drawing near.
Han Li narrowed his eyes, finally making out the figures beneath the torches—four or five unusually tall men, each standing a head and a half taller than Han Li, all in their prime at thirty or forty years old.
They wore green robes, carried pale, sword-like weapons in one hand, and bore large leather sacks on their backs as they hurried toward them.
Han Li was puzzled, silently speculating about their origins, when a strand of the woman’s hair brushed his face. She had also turned to look at the approaching strangers, her body trembling slightly with unease.
Frowning, Han Li flexed his fingers slightly—they seemed to have regained some strength. It appeared his body was recovering faster than expected.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage