The white fur on the arms of the Scattered Immortal only appeared for a fleeting moment before retracting into his skin, vanishing without a trace. He then continued discussing the plan to break through the barrier with Han Li and the others as if nothing had happened.
Han Li’s expression remained calm, his voice indifferent, yet no one noticed that a strand of his divine sense had quietly slipped into his spirit beast pouch, gently soothing the suddenly agitated and restless Soul-Crying Beast. At the same time, strange thoughts raced through his mind.
After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Han Li and the others had finalized their plan of action. Immediately, they each moved to their chosen positions, taking out their formation flags and disks to set up auxiliary arrays that would amplify the power of their attacks.
Han Li and the Xu youth, however, worked together to set up a large offensive formation called the “Windflame Dragon Rage Formation.” Though this formation couldn’t compare to the grand restrictive arrays of major sects, it was the most powerful offensive formation they could assemble on short notice.
Once activated, this formation would unleash an attack equivalent to a full-force strike from a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator wielding an ordinary treasure—undoubtedly a significant advantage.
Half a quarter-hour later, the formations were all in place. Gui Ling, the Silver-Winged Nightfiend, and the others had also entered their respective auxiliary arrays.
As for the “Windflame Dragon Rage Formation,” it was naturally jointly controlled by Han Li and the Xu youth.
It was almost laughable—Han Li and the Heavenly South Holy Palace had been mortal enemies, yet now they were forced into an uneasy alliance.
The Xu youth gazed at the grayish barrier not far ahead, then raised a hand and shot out a milky-white orb. It struck the barrier but didn’t explode, instead hovering on its surface, pulsing like a glaringly obvious target.
“Fellow Daoists, focus your attacks on this point!” the Xu youth declared without ceremony.
No one objected, tacitly agreeing to the plan.
Satisfied, the Xu youth turned his head slightly, giving Han Li a brief nod.
Han Li smiled faintly and, without a word, formed a series of hand seals, sending incantations flying in all directions. In an instant, the dozens of formation flags around them lit up with multicolored spiritual light, humming loudly.
The Xu youth took a deep breath, his hand glowing with fiery-red spiritual energy before pressing it firmly to the ground. Waves of red light radiated outward, transmitting energy to the formation disks buried beneath.
The ground trembled violently, followed by several muffled *pops* as over a dozen fiery-red pillars erupted from the formation, each as thick as a bowl and radiating scorching heat, as if igniting the very air around them.
Everyone felt their mouths go dry.
At that moment, Han Li flipped his palm, revealing a pale cyan formation disk. With a light tap, the disk shimmered with green light, and in response, countless points of spiritual light flickered within the formation. A few thunderous booms later, over a dozen azure wind dragons materialized, each locking onto a fire pillar before merging with it.
Wind and fire intertwined, transforming into a dozen windflame dragons—wind as their bodies, fire as their scales, the flames fanned by the wind, their power surging together.
“Now!”
The Xu youth’s face flashed with delight as he barked the command.
He opened his mouth, spitting out a cyan orb, while the Spiritual Peacock hovering above him flapped its wings, unleashing a torrent of five-colored spiritual light that wrapped around the orb and shot toward the barrier with terrifying momentum.
The Silver-Winged Nightfiend, Lin Yinping, and the others also activated their auxiliary formations, unleashing their divine abilities or treasures in a precise sequence, all converging on the barrier.
Deafening explosions erupted from the barrier as massive bursts of spiritual energy detonated one after another, shaking the entire space.
Han Li flicked his sleeve, sending dozens of golden flying swords soaring into the sky, multiplying into hundreds of sword beams so dazzling they nearly blotted out the heavens. The Xu youth and the others paled slightly at the sight, their wariness of Han Li deepening further.
But Han Li paid them no mind. With another incantation, the sword beams coalesced into a massive golden sword over thirty feet long, crackling with golden lightning as thunder roared.
Yet instead of immediately activating it, Han Li gave a low shout and hurled the formation disk into the air. With a few more hand seals, he directed several pulses of energy toward it.
The disk trembled violently before exploding with a muffled *bang*, releasing a vast wave of cyan light that cascaded downward, vanishing into the formation.
The surrounding flags absorbed the light, erupting with astonishing spiritual energy. The windflame dragons above writhed, their bodies swelling several times in size before roaring and lunging forward in unison.
One after another, the dragons slammed into the barrier with overwhelming force.
This time, the grayish barrier trembled violently, warping and distorting.
When the last dragon exploded against it, transforming into a colossal sphere of wind and flame, a streak of blood-red light flashed, morphing into a massive crimson blade that slashed at the same spot.
*Crack!*
A sound like shattering porcelain rang out.
A ten-foot-long fissure appeared in the barrier, though only a foot deep—not yet fully breached. Black light flickered over the gap as it began to mend, but the Xu youth and the Silver-Winged Nightfiend wasted no time, bombarding it with a relentless barrage of attacks to stall its recovery.
Then, Han Li struck.
The colossal sword, now crackling with golden lightning, transformed into a streak of golden lightning and cleaved into the fissure.
The explosion of golden arcs within the gap was like a miniature sun erupting, instantly dissolving and expanding the fissure several times over. The impact dwarfed all previous attacks combined.
Even Han Li himself was momentarily stunned.
*What’s going on?* It seemed the Divine Devilbane Lightning was particularly effective against this barrier. *Could the Black Wind Banner be a demonic treasure? If so, this reaction makes sense.*
As Han Li pondered, the golden light faded, revealing a thin layer of white light within the fissure—now barely holding.
Everyone’s spirits soared, but before they could attack again, a three-inch black dagger silently appeared before the fissure, vanishing just as quickly.
A soft *pop* sounded, and the last remnants of the barrier shattered into countless fragments, revealing a gaping hole several yards wide—beyond which lay a familiar landscape.
Overjoyed, everyone surged forward. A silver flash—Han Li’s humanoid puppet—was the first to dart through the opening.
The others, momentarily hesitant, panicked and scrambled after it, each using their fastest movement techniques to escape.
Han Li, however, didn’t immediately teleport. Instead, his eyes flickered with suspicion as he murmured something under his breath.
Gui Ling, who had transformed into a streak of black-and-white energy, paused abruptly at the barrier’s edge, her face twisting with doubt.
That brief hesitation allowed the Xu youth and the others to slip past her.
Then—
A blinding crimson light flashed outside the barrier, followed by countless black threads hissing through the air.
The Xu youth’s furious roar and Lin Yinping’s enraged shriek rang out simultaneously as explosions erupted beyond the hole, thick blood mist billowing forth—accompanied by the Scattered Immortal’s triumphant, sinister laughter.
“Go!”
Han Li didn’t hesitate. With a powerful flap of his Wind Lightning Wings, he transformed into a silver arc and shot through the opening.
Gui Ling, though bewildered, followed without question.
The moment Han Li emerged outside the barrier, a sea of blood surged toward him, but he was prepared. Golden lightning crackled around him as he teleported away, reappearing a hundred yards distant.
He turned back to the shrinking hole—and his pupils contracted.
Beyond it stretched a vast crimson sea, its bloody mist thick as liquid, churning violently. Floating above it were the Silver-Winged Nightfiend, the Lion Hawk Beast, and a towering, white-furred monstrosity clad in the Scattered Immortal’s robes.
The creature reeked of corpse energy, its face a withered, fanged bear’s visage with burning green eyes.
It was manipulating blood-red blades, pinning a half-crushed figure beneath the bloody waves—the Xu youth, missing an arm and a leg, desperately fending off the assault with his cyan orb and silver hook.
Nearby, the Spiritual Peacock was trapped in purple mist by the Lion Hawk Beast, barely holding on.
Lin Yinping fared no better, harried by countless soul-devouring threads from the Silver-Winged Nightfiend. Only the silver silk from her brocade handkerchief kept her from being overwhelmed—though defeat was inevitable.
Gui Ling, who had teleported out beside Han Li, gasped in shock.
“It’s *him*!” she cried, staring at the white-furred monster.
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