The next moment, golden light flickered across Han Li’s body. With a low shout, his figure suddenly expanded, and golden fur sprouted from his skin. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a massive golden-furred ape!
He had actually activated the *Jingzhe Jue* and morphed into a Mountain Giant Ape!
Without hesitation, the giant ape swung its two arms violently, hurling the two Extreme Mountains in its hands with a deafening roar. The mountains shot through the air and instantly reached the stone gate, smashing into it with tremendous force.
Two earth-shaking explosions erupted.
A layer of golden light emerged on the stone gate, followed by two blinding sun-like bursts of light exploding with a thunderous boom.
The golden barrier shattered almost instantly.
Under this terrifying force, the stone gate itself silently disintegrated into dust.
Han Li’s face paled slightly, but his spirit remained strong. As a golden mist swirled in his hand, the seemingly profound restriction was utterly obliterated by the brute force of the giant ape and the devastating power of the two Extreme Mountains.
Seeing this, the giant ape stomped the ground and surged forward like a hurricane, charging through the ruined gate.
*Whoosh!*
A massive silver fist materialized from the void ahead, striking toward the giant ape with overwhelming force.
Before the fist even connected, an invisible wave of crushing pressure enveloped the ape.
Still unsteady, Han Li was startled but showed no fear. With a roar, he raised his arm and met the attack with his own massive, fur-covered hand.
Golden light shimmered at the tips of his fingers, and his entire hand instantly turned metallic.
*Crack!*
The silver and golden fists collided.
With a crisp sound, countless cracks spread across the silver fist, shattering it into pieces under the ape’s strike!
But at that moment, a gust of wind surged above the ape’s head—another silver claw descended to grab it.
Without hesitation, the ape swung its other arm, slapping it away with a golden palm.
The silver claw exploded into fragments with a thunderous boom.
Yet the giant ape showed no signs of stopping. Its eyes flashed with blue light, and suddenly, it opened its mouth and spat out a beam of azure radiance.
The beam pierced through the air, striking a spot over ten zhang away.
With a loud explosion, a silver figure staggered out of the void and crashed to the ground—a silver puppet with broken arms.
Standing two zhang tall, its body was covered in mysterious black runes!
The giant ape reached out toward the puppet, and with a sharp *whoosh*, ten streaks of cyan sword light interwove and slashed toward it.
The silver puppet was instantly torn apart!
But at that moment, the surrounding space rippled, and *whoosh-whoosh* sounds echoed continuously.
Seven or eight identical silver puppets emerged from the void.
Han Li was slightly startled, but the puppets wasted no time, transforming into streaks of silver light as they lunged at him.
Half an hour later, the golden-furred ape let out a long roar and hurled the two towering mountains in its hands.
With two thunderous booms, two silver puppets were blasted apart mid-air.
The two Extreme Mountains flickered and vanished, only to reappear in the ape’s hands moments later before disappearing again with a flip of its palm.
Meanwhile, over a dozen purple-striped beetles swarmed around the remaining puppets, circling them rapidly.
The silver puppets fell silently one by one, leaving none standing.
Seeing this, the giant ape formed a hand seal, and the golden light around its body dimmed as it shrank back to human form.
The stone floor below was littered with shattered silver puppet remains—over twenty in total.
Han Li swept his gaze across the wreckage, frowned briefly, then turned his attention to a distant point in the void, his eyes flashing with wariness.
Though each of these silver puppets only had the strength of an early-stage Deity Transformation cultivator, their numbers in this layer were staggering.
From the outside, the first floor of the pagoda didn’t seem large, yet he had flown for quite some time before reaching this point.
Along the way, he had already destroyed over a hundred of these silver puppets.
If not for his Mountain Giant Ape transformation—which allowed him to crush them with brute force—and the aid of his thirteen spirit insects, dealing with them would have taken much longer.
Even so, Han Li no longer underestimated the challenge ahead.
After all, this was only the first floor!
With these thoughts in mind, he glanced upward.
About sixty to seventy zhang above the ground, a layer of gray mist obscured everything.
Earlier, he had considered taking a shortcut—breaking through the barrier to reach the second floor directly. But fearing that forcibly disrupting the hidden spatial node might cause unforeseen consequences, he abandoned the idea.
If the node had already merged with the pagoda’s restrictions, recklessness could prove disastrous.
Lost in thought, Han Li didn’t linger. Activating his escape light, he shot toward the staircase ahead.
The thirteen purple beetles buzzed and followed closely.
After a few flashes, the cyan light vanished without a trace.
A short while later, in the seemingly empty space, a golden light flickered, and a graceful figure silently appeared.
Clad in a pink palace dress, her eyes like water, it was the middle-aged beauty from the Yin-Yang Twin Fiends.
Gazing at the staircase where Han Li had disappeared, her face revealed a trace of apprehension.
“This man truly has some tricks up his sleeve—he can perform a true spirit transformation and command such formidable spirit insects! Fortunately, I followed him. Otherwise, with his abilities, stopping him from escaping would have been impossible.”
Muttering to herself, she raised a hand, summoning a silver array disk. It spun in her palm, releasing a silver radiance that enveloped her.
Amid the shimmering light, her figure blurred and vanished like a wisp of wind.
On the second floor, a streak of cyan sword light flashed!
Two silver puppets, slightly larger than those on the first floor, were engulfed in rolling sword light and reduced to scrap metal.
These puppets resembled those from the first floor but possessed strength comparable to mid-stage Deity Transformation human cultivators.
Han Li mused silently as he flew forward, leaving behind a trail of shattered puppets, his expression indifferent.
On the third floor, at the staircase, over a dozen puppets—each at the peak of late-stage Deity Transformation—surrounded Han Li, charging at him expressionlessly.
Fourth floor…
Sixth floor. Han Li drifted forward steadily, a faint trace of puzzlement crossing his face.
The puppets on the fourth floor had turned crimson-gold, each wielding early-stage Void Refinement power, though their numbers had dwindled.
On the fifth and sixth floors, the golden puppets grew progressively stronger, reaching mid and late-stage Void Refinement levels.
The sixth-floor puppets were far more troublesome. Even Han Li had to exert considerable effort, employing several powerful techniques to break through.
Given the pattern so far, the guardians of this floor should logically possess Body Integration-level strength.
Han Li steeled himself, preparing for a tough battle.
Yet, upon entering, he encountered no resistance whatsoever.
Though puzzled, he remained vigilant.
Fortunately, his *Pomie Famu* technique confirmed that the spatial node lay on the seventh floor—just ahead.
This brought him a flicker of relief.
Suddenly, the thirteen spirit insects behind him let out sharp cries, fluttering around him erratically.
Han Li’s heart tightened. He halted abruptly, his eyes flashing with blue light as he stared intently in one direction.
There, the void rippled with multicolored radiance as two towering figures emerged, bathed in dazzling seven-colored light.
These were two nearly translucent, crystalline puppets—their bodies smooth as glass, their faces indistinct.
The moment they appeared, an overwhelming pressure bore down on Han Li.
“Interesting. But two early-stage Body Integration puppets, devoid of sentience, think they can stop me? How delusional!”
After a quick assessment, Han Li sneered.
With a flick of his sleeve, he hurled the two Extreme Mountains. The thirteen purple-striped beetles spread their wings and shot toward the puppets.
At the same time, he flipped his hand, summoning a silver ruler. With a flick of his wrist, it transformed into a ten-zhang-long silver streak, sweeping forward with unstoppable force.
Though his words were dismissive, his attacks were relentless—he had no intention of wasting time.
The two crystalline puppets reacted swiftly. Their four eyes gleamed with seven-colored light as they suddenly moved together, pressing their four palms against each other.
*Poof!*
Two bursts of seven-colored radiance erupted between their hands, twisting into a glowing orb that rapidly expanded.
Starting the size of a head, it swelled into a seven-colored barrier, engulfing them in a dazzling aura.
A low hum resonated as the barrier vibrated at an imperceptible frequency, countless runes swirling across its surface.
*Bang!*
The silver streak arrived first, slashing down with incredible speed.
Yet, half a chi from the barrier, the space around it distorted. The silver streak trembled, unable to advance further.
Moments later, it let out a mournful cry, reverting to its original form before being violently repelled!
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage