The giant roc transformed into a streak of cyan light in the sky, its wings flapping once to propel it over a hundred feet away, its speed as swift as lightning and thunder.
However, Han Li, now in the form of the roc, was frantically circulating the Great Development Art within his body, using his immense spiritual sense to forcibly envelop the four demon king imprints.
Yet these imprints were simply too powerful. Even after employing several secret techniques from the Great Development True Scripture and simultaneously borrowing the power of the transformed roc, he could only temporarily seal them. He estimated that at most within a day and night, the imprints would break free and reappear.
Han Li did this to make the demon kings like Six-Legged and others believe he had perished, thus facilitating his next moves.
His immediate task was to quickly rescue Yuan Yao and the other woman from the Ghost Granny’s grasp, then find an extremely yin location for them to help expel the imprints.
Only then could he completely rid himself of this looming threat.
Under normal circumstances, Han Li would never be able to accomplish this. But with the Netherworld Thunder Beast as cover, it was a different story.
Calculating the time he had bought from the demon kings, it wasn’t too long—they should have just entered the so-called “Divine Pool Land” not long ago. Even if they knew the beast had returned, given their obsession with the Netherworld Divine Milk, they would never abandon their efforts and retreat hastily.
By the time the Netherworld Thunder Beast broke free from the Nine Palaces Heavenly Qian Talisman and returned to its lair in fury, it would likely intercept these demon kings.
With the disaster diverted eastward, as long as Han Li didn’t directly confront Six-Legged, Wood Spirit, and the others, he still had a great chance to rescue Yuan Yao and the other woman.
Han Li’s thoughts raced as the transformed roc flew back at breakneck speed along the original path.
Just as he re-entered the gray mountain range, a faint muffled sound suddenly came from the roc’s body.
With a flash of cyan light, the roc transformed back into human form.
Han Li flicked his sleeve, and a white jade token shot out, hovering briefly before landing in his hand.
The token bore an enormous Nine Palaces diagram, but now it was shattered into countless fragments from the center.
Han Li’s expression changed. He instinctively glanced behind him, then immediately stored the token. With his other hand, he brushed his storage bracelet, and amid flashes of spiritual light, a purple talisman inscribed with mysterious runes appeared in his grasp.
It was the Taichi Etherealization Talisman!
Without hesitation, Han Li waved the talisman lightly before him and released it.
The purple talisman exploded, and several silver runes emerged, swirling around Han Li.
With a few soft pops, the runes transformed into wisps of silver mist, enveloping him in the blink of an eye.
Moments later, the mist dissipated, leaving no trace of anyone behind.
Han Li had etherealized his body and slowly descended, hiding beneath a large tree before silently gazing at the sky.
After what felt like the time it took to finish a meal, faint thunder rumbled from the horizon.
Soon, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky as the Netherworld Thunder Beast, wrapped in arcs of electricity, swept past the nearby air without noticing Han Li concealed in the mountains below.
After a few more flashes, the silver arcs vanished without a trace at the horizon.
Han Li’s eyes flickered, but he remained motionless under the tree, maintaining his hidden state.
After another quarter-hour, Han Li seemed to decide the time was right. With a shake of his shoulders and a flash of silver light, his figure gradually reappeared.
Silver runes flew out from his body, gathering in the low air to reform the purple talisman, which drifted down gently.
Han Li beckoned with one hand, and the purple talisman turned into a streak of purple light, disappearing into his sleeve.
Then, with a surge of cyan light, he transformed into a cyan rainbow again, flying toward the horizon—in the same direction the Netherworld Thunder Beast had taken!
It didn’t take long before Han Li returned to the original black light barrier.
As his light dimmed and he hovered in the air nearby, scanning below, his expression shifted slightly.
Below, the stench of scorched earth filled the air. Thousands of ghost corpses littered the ground, most charred black as if ravaged by thunder. Rolling yin winds surrounded the area, and remnants of extremely potent restriction fluctuations lingered, as if someone had forcibly disrupted a half-completed formation.
A look of surprise flashed across Han Li’s face, followed by suspicion.
Naturally, he didn’t know about the ambush by the Blood-Armored Puppet and his group. After the Soul Devourer consumed the white-robed ghost woman, the remaining ghosts, unaware of the Netherworld Thunder Beast’s swift return, had no time to hide or disguise themselves. Thus, they were reduced to ashes by the beast’s furious thunder strikes.
Had the Blood-Armored Puppet known his backup outside had been wiped out, he would have cursed in rage. If the white-robed ghost woman had been alive, she could have warned the ghosts in advance with a long-range talisman, allowing them to evade the Netherworld Thunder Beast and continue setting up the yin formation. The high-ranking ghost he had secretly assigned to track Han Li and the beast had been part of this plan.
But unexpectedly, Han Li had ruined it.
Han Li circled the area at low altitude but found no surviving ghosts. Whether they had all been annihilated or the remnants had fled, he couldn’t tell.
He didn’t dwell on it. After pausing briefly, his gaze settled on the glowing blue passage.
Han Li stroked his chin, deep in thought. Then, with a flick of his sleeve, a stack of silver talismans flew out—another set of Nine Palaces Heavenly Qian Talismans.
Due to the difficulty in crafting them, Han Li had only made two sets. Having already used one, this was his last.
With hand seals, he cast a series of spells toward the talismans.
An incredible scene unfolded.
Under Han Li’s guidance, the silver talismans shot toward the passage entrance but vanished into thin air nearby, as if concealed by some secret technique.
Satisfied, Han Li stopped his incantations and examined the hidden talismans with glowing blue eyes.
Then, as if remembering something, he flipped his palm to produce two more silver talismans.
These were vastly different from the Nine Palaces Heavenly Qian Talismans. Instead of runes, they bore faint human figures clad in golden armor, their features blurred.
One figure held a golden spear, while the other wielded twin blades. Strangely, the figures moved slowly on the talismans, swinging their weapons as if alive.
Han Li pressed the two talismans together, and with flashes of silver light, they exploded. Two golden phantoms shot out, circled briefly, then dove into Han Li’s shadow on the ground.
Though Han Li floated only slightly above the ground, his shadow was faint. Yet the golden phantoms merged into it seamlessly, disappearing without a trace.
These were the “Armor Origin Talismans,” another type of talisman Han Li had crafted from the jade slip remnants. He had only succeeded in making three, and now he had used two, underscoring the importance he placed on this mission.
This was no surprise, given that the beings inside the black light barrier were all terrifying existences at the Integration Stage or above. None were foes he could handle directly, so he had to prepare thoroughly for contingencies.
Still not done, Han Li opened his mouth and spat out a silver fireball, which spun and transformed into a growing Spirit Devouring Firebird.
With a wave of his hand, over a dozen cyan thunder pearls shot out, all swallowed by the firebird in one gulp.
The firebird circled once before plunging into a towering tree nearby, vanishing from sight.
After completing these preparations, Han Li exhaled deeply, steadied his mind, and produced another purple talisman. With a shake, his body dissolved into mist and vanished.
Han Li drifted silently toward the blue entrance, which seemed like a dragon’s den or tiger’s lair, and slipped inside unnoticed.
Upon emerging from the black light barrier, Han Li scanned his surroundings and frowned.
It was pitch black, with only faintly glowing green stones scattered at varying distances, making him feel as if he had returned to the abyss.
But with his spiritual eyes, this darkness posed no issue.
Narrowing his eyes, he took in the barren landscape—nothing but rocks of varying sizes, with no other features in sight. Even in the distance, no tall trees were visible, only sparse, low shrubs.
Breathing deeply, Han Li sensed the unusually rich spiritual energy in the air, finding it peculiar.
Still, he didn’t linger at the entrance and flew forward instead.
Though he didn’t know the exact location of the Divine Pool, heading toward the center of the restrictions was usually a safe bet.
Even in his ethereal state, Han Li’s speed was considerable. In moments, he had covered over ten miles.
Ahead, a palace-like structure loomed in the darkness.
The building wasn’t particularly tall—only a few dozen feet—and appeared to be crudely constructed from ordinary stone blocks. But its presence confirmed he was on the right track.
Han Li accelerated toward the palace.
The entrance was a square gate over thirty feet tall, with a wide-open black stone door.
Instinctively, Han Li swept the area with his spiritual sense and abruptly halted.
On either side of the gate, faint yin energy pulsed, suggesting the presence of two high-ranking ghosts lying in wait.
Startled at first, Han Li quickly recalled the thousands of ghosts annihilated at the entrance and understood.
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