Chapter 1959: Fleeing Far Away

However, gritting his teeth, he took the risk of sending out both his spiritual body and golden body, and decisively used this talisman.

As expected, the incarnations of the Blood Light Saint Ancestor and others failed to see through the deception in time, allowing him to slip past this hurdle.

Of course, this approach not only carried risks for him but also placed his spiritual body and second Nascent Soul in even greater peril.

Fortunately, the spiritual body was transformed from the Immortal Mushroom, and the one controlling it, Qu’er, was also a spiritual entity shaped from heaven and earth. As long as they seized the right moment to revert to their original forms and conceal themselves, they could likely evade detection.

As for the second Nascent Soul, he had given it another Taiyi Transformation Talisman. Moreover, due to cultivating a secret demonic technique, the demonic Nascent Soul could transform its demonic energy into wings, enabling it to master the Blood Shadow Escape technique.

With these two backup plans, the demonic Nascent Soul was not without a chance to escape. After all, once Blood Light and the others realized they were chasing a decoy rather than his true body, they would likely not persist in pursuit.

This was also why, as soon as he deemed the timing right, he immediately revealed his true identity and began slaughtering numerous demons.

By now, news of his true body’s appearance should have reached Blood Light and his allies. Naturally, he had no intention of being entangled by them again, forcing him to abandon Sky Abyss City and seek another escape route.

With these thoughts in mind, Han Li hesitated no longer. He immediately activated his escape light and turned to flee in another direction.

Over the next two months, Han Li began darting unpredictably east and west, making his movements erratic.

At first, this indeed made it impossible for Blood Light to catch up, relying only on sporadic reports from demons who spotted Han Li to hastily redirect his pursuit.

Such efforts naturally stood no real chance of tracking Han Li. By the time they arrived in the vicinity, Han Li had long since vanished.

Strangely, the woman suspected to be Yuan Sha did not appear alongside Blood Light’s three incarnations, leaving her whereabouts unknown.

Han Li was pleased with this development. Were it not for his dwindling spiritual energy, he might have even seized the opportunity to severely wound Blood Light’s incarnations.

But under the current circumstances, he had no choice but to continue fleeing.

After repeated failed pursuits, Blood Light’s three incarnations gritted their teeth and summoned a large number of reinforcements, spreading them like a net across controlled territories to act as eyes and ears.

Additionally, the demon could utilize the teleportation arrays already under the demon army’s control, keeping relentless pressure on Han Li’s trail.

Han Li grew wary and dared not relax.

Often, as soon as he recovered a fraction of his spiritual energy, he would immediately flee thousands of miles away without lingering.

Even so, he was nearly cornered by Blood Light’s trio several times.

Fortunately, relying on an inexplicable premonition, whenever he felt uneasy, he would halt to meditate and recover his energy before fleeing again, narrowly escaping disaster each time.

After several close calls, Han Li became even more cautious. He abandoned his original plans to seek refuge in human strongholds like the Holy Emperor City or the four True Spirit families, opting instead to flee to remote regions.

The demon presence in other directions was significantly reduced, and the intervals between encounters with Blood Light’s trio gradually lengthened.

This gave Han Li some respite, allowing him more time to rest and recover, gradually replenishing his spiritual energy.

But this reprieve was short-lived. Three months later, Han Li suddenly discovered that the woman suspected to be Yuan Sha had joined the pursuit alongside Blood Light’s three incarnations.

From the moment she appeared, the four demons pursued him relentlessly, giving him no chance to rest.

Often, within two or three hours of beginning meditation, the demoness would appear with Blood Light’s trio in tow.

Fortunately, the surrounding areas were sparsely populated by demons, allowing Han Li to escape with relative ease.

Yet over the following month, no matter how Han Li changed his route or direction, the four demons always reappeared behind him like shadows.

Alarmed, Han Li finally realized something was amiss—the four demons seemed capable of tracking his general location. Though the method was imprecise, it was enough to prevent him from shaking them off.

Clearly, this tracking ability was newly acquired by the demoness, as she hadn’t possessed it earlier when he had managed to escape.

Frustrated and chilled, Han Li tried various methods and schemes to evade detection, but none worked. He dared not flee toward demon-heavy areas and instead headed for the most desolate regions.

This ensured that even if he couldn’t shake Blood Light’s group, the demons would have fewer reinforcements to rely on.

Thus, the chase continued day after day, gradually leading them to the fringes of human territory.

This borderland, adjacent to the untamed wilderness, was frequently breached by ancient beasts that broke through barriers, making it uninhabitable for humans. It was the most desolate region in human territory.

With no human settlements, there were naturally no demon armies stationed there either.

Given Han Li’s speed, only a handful of high-ranking demons could keep up, and even they had to be carried within Blood Light’s massive jade disk to follow this far.

Han Li, his face grim, streaked through the sky as a green streak of light.

With his spiritual energy depleted, he could no longer maintain his giant roc form and had to rely on ordinary flight.

Nearly a year had passed since his escape. Though his constant changes in direction prevented the four demons from catching up, the prolonged chase had exhausted even his iron will.

Yet, rather than recklessly turning to fight, Han Li hardened his resolve to outlast them.

He refused to believe the four demons would chase him to the ends of the earth.

After all, their relentless pursuit must have drained their energy just as much as his, leaving them little time to recover.

Millions of miles behind Han Li, two streaks of white light—a stone palace and a giant disk—raced through the sky.

Within the jade disk’s space, Blood Light’s three incarnations stood side by side on a crystal wall, conversing with Yuan Sha, whose image was projected before them.

“So, Fellow Daoist Yuan Sha still refuses to enter the Qiankun Disk. You must realize that maintaining separate treasures consumes significant energy. I arrived hastily and didn’t bring many energy-restoring pills. Though I requisitioned some from subordinates, they’ve nearly run out after this prolonged chase. If we continue like this, we’ll have to rely solely on our own reserves. I can’t guarantee we’ll outlast that human brat—he seems to have an endless supply of recovery pills! You can’t have brought many either. Our only option is to share a treasure and take turns resting,” the central Blood Light incarnation urged.

“I don’t oppose taking turns to rest. But why don’t the three of you join me in the Stone Demon Palace instead of insisting on your Qiankun Disk?” The blue-robed woman narrowed her eyes, unmoved.

“Hmph, you know full well why. Our Blood Light Art conflicts with the Stone Demon Clan’s innate stone qi. Meditating in your palace would be ineffective. It’s far safer for you to join us in the disk,” Blood Light retorted.

“Is that so? I’m more concerned that entering your disk might give you the chance to activate its powers and end my life. The Blood Light Art excels at devouring others’ essence and energy—something you’ve done before,” Yuan Sha sneered.

“You’re overly suspicious. Both of us are mere incarnations here. If I harmed you, your true self would never let me off,” another Blood Light incarnation sighed.

“Who’s to say? Even if your logic holds, I won’t take the risk. Perhaps my incarnation’s essence alone wouldn’t tempt you, but add the Chaos Qi and the Demon Lock in that Han brat’s possession, and even I might be tempted,” Yuan Sha mocked.

“Chaos Qi? Demon Lock? I’ve no idea what you’re talking about,” the central Blood Light incarnation feigned ignorance, though all three exchanged glances.

“Enough games, Blood Light. I saw that brat collect the Chaos Qi and Demon Lock in the Netherworld Flame. Rumor had it you once possessed the Demon Lock, but it seems you lost it to a human junior. No wonder you sent three incarnations—you’re after the Chaos Qi too,” the woman scoffed.

“Since you witnessed it, I won’t deny it. What do you want? To inform Six Extremes and the others?” Blood Light’s voice turned icy.

“The Chaos Qi is too valuable to share. My terms are simple: you can have the Demon Lock and half the Chaos Qi, but the rest, along with the human and his treasures, belong to me,” Yuan Sha stated.

“Your appetite is vast. Other conditions aside, my Violet Word Cauldron is in his hands—I must reclaim it,” Blood Light countered after a pause.

“The Violet Word Cauldron? That’s unexpected. Very well, you may have it back,” Yuan Sha conceded.

“Then it’s settled. Since we’re allies now, shouldn’t you share how you’ve been tracking him?” another Blood Light incarnation asked slyly.