“Boom!” The corpse erupted in a burst of crimson light as it collapsed, exploding into countless bloody fragments that scattered like a storm across the sky, accompanied by the piercing sound of tearing air.
Amid the blood rain, a faint shadow flickered and darted toward the nearby snow-white bell like a ghost—it was the fleeing Spirit Infant of the young man!
He was acutely aware that without his physical body, his Spirit Infant alone stood no chance against Han Li’s ruthless pursuit. Instead, he sought to attach his Spirit Infant to the silver bell, hoping to leverage its mystical power to escape.
The giant ape showed no fear of the incoming blood arrows, its face twisting into a fierce expression as it took a deep breath and let out a thunderous roar.
The roar, like divine thunder from the heavens, reverberated through the sky, distorting the very fabric of space ahead into a web of white fissures.
Han Li’s transformed ape had shattered the void with a single roar, demonstrating its terrifying might.
The blood rain vanished instantly, and the shadow, caught within the roar’s range, let out a final scream before dissipating into nothingness.
Unexpectedly, the snow-white bell emitted a sharp hum the moment the young man’s Spirit Infant was destroyed, exploding in a flash of light.
However, the explosion released no destructive force—merely dissolving into a cluster of white light before vanishing into countless specks.
The giant ape’s eyes flashed with blue light, but without hesitation, it vanished into thin air. The next moment, it reappeared above the six-legged lizard still entangled with the white serpent, raining down a furious barrage of punches.
The poor lizard, despite its mid-stage Void Refinement cultivation, was reduced to pulp under the ape’s assault, its demon core forcibly ripped out.
The fleeing demon soul was swallowed whole by the white serpent, utterly annihilated.
With the last enemy slain, golden light shimmered across the ape’s body as it rapidly shrank back to human form.
Han Li, now restored, turned his gaze to where the snow-white bell had disappeared, his eyes flickering with deep thought.
…
At the same time the bell self-destructed in the Moon Realm, a startled cry echoed from the highest floor of a heavily restricted pavilion in a mysterious palace far away in the Spirit Realm.
“How is this possible?” The voice was filled with shock and fury.
Several golden-armored guards stood motionless at the entrance, their faces expressionless as if deaf to the commotion inside.
Within the pavilion, three horned beings of varying appearances stared solemnly at a massive snow-white bell enshrined on an emerald jade table. The one who had cried out was a beautiful middle-aged woman in her thirties, her forehead adorned with a pair of small green horns, her delicate hand covering her mouth in anger.
The bell on the table stood ten feet tall, identical in shape and color to the one wielded by the golden-horned youth. Beneath the table, five miniature golden arrays were inscribed on the ground.
Four of the arrays were empty, but the one closest to the bell held a floating orb of white light, pulsing in harmony with the bell.
“An Empyrean Treasure has been destroyed, and the spirit of the Divine Bell has returned. The disciple who wielded it must have perished in the Moon Realm,” the woman murmured.
“This is hardly surprising. The Moon Realm is teeming with powerful factions. It’s entirely possible he encountered formidable foes or fell prey to native beasts,” remarked an elderly man in white robes, a green mark between his brows, stroking his beard dismissively.
“Brother Shixin, that’s not quite accurate. With a replicated Mystic Heaven Bell, even a Saint-tier opponent shouldn’t have posed a threat. Moreover, all teams were strictly ordered to stick together. It’s baffling how a core disciple with such protection could perish,” countered a clean-shaven, blue-robed middle-aged man with a faint smile.
The elder fell silent, deep in thought.
“Regardless of how he died, losing the Empyrean Treasure means losing our chance to obtain that item. This greatly impacts our clan’s grand plan,” the woman said coldly, having regained her composure.
“No matter. The item was divided into five parts. As long as the other four teams succeed, our plan remains intact for the next Moon Realm opening,” the middle-aged man reassured.
“But what if the other teams also fail? Losing one part is manageable, but losing more would be disastrous,” the elder mused gravely.
“Such coincidences are unlikely. If it happens, it simply means our clan’s rise isn’t fated yet,” the middle-aged man replied with a smile.
“True, but we expended rare materials and even borrowed the Mystic Heaven Bell to forge these temporary Empyrean Treasures. If this yields no results, we’ll have a hard time explaining to the elders,” the elder frowned.
“No need for explanations. Remember, our plan has multiple layers. Even if the Moon Realm fails, our primary objective in this realm is almost certain to succeed,” the woman said, her eyes glinting coldly.
“Indeed. It’s time to conclude our battle with the Tianyun people,” the middle-aged man and the elder exchanged glances and chuckled.
The woman said no more, pointing a finger at the white orb in the golden array. With a melodious chime, the orb floated into the giant bell, which then hummed, its surface shimmering with silver runes.
…
Unbeknownst to Han Li, his slaying of the golden-horned youth had inadvertently thwarted a major scheme of the Horned Race.
At that moment, his mind was wholly absorbed in the profound realization of the overwhelming power he had wielded as the giant ape.
Clearly, the might of the Awakening Art scaled with the cultivator’s realm. Unlike his previous transformation, his current late-stage Void Refinement cultivation had fully unleashed the technique’s terrifying potential.
The enhancement to his physique and strength in ape form had nearly tempted him to challenge a Body Integration cultivator.
Fortunately, the tempering of his mind through the illusory eons within the Star Map had rendered him more composed, allowing him to maintain balance and avoid losing control.
Still, he deeply regretted the inexplicable disappearance of the snow-white bell.
Had he obtained this likely Empyrean Treasure, his strength would have soared.
But with the bell gone, he could only resign himself, collecting the youth’s remaining treasures before departing as a streak of azure light.
Moments later, he was tens of thousands of miles away, contemplating his next steps.
Though he had already assisted Liu Shui’er and Duan Tianren in retrieving the items sought by Duan Tianren and Cai Liuying, he still owed the Stone Cocoon Clan certain forging materials.
While Duan Tianren had dismissed this obligation, Han Li refused to give the Stone Cocoon Clan any pretext to obstruct his use of the super teleportation array.
Calculating the location of the mining site and the remaining time, he deemed it feasible to make the trip—but first, he needed to recover his depleted spiritual power.
The Moon Realm was fraught with peril, and despite his advancement, he dared not let his guard down.
Having made his decision, Han Li adjusted his course and sped off.
Half a day later, he halted above an ordinary-looking grove, scanning the area with his blue-lit eyes before descending into the dense foliage.
Finding a massive tree with a hollow at its base, he entered and deployed several formation flags to conceal the entrance with a simple stealth array.
With a flick of his sleeve, a yellow light emerged—a furry little beast landed on the ground: the Leopard-Qilin Beast!
Having devoured the demon cores of the Three-Eyed Dark Beast, it had been dormant in the spirit beast ring until recently awakening.
Though it had refined the cores, its appearance remained largely unchanged, save for additional black patterns and an aura that now carried a faint sense of danger, prompting Han Li to study it closely.
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