Just as the gray shadow was about to pierce through the black-robed man, a dazzling white light suddenly erupted between them. The gray shadow let out a strange cry and shot backward, seemingly terrified of the white light.
The black-robed man, who had narrowly escaped death, was momentarily stunned but soon overwhelmed with relief and joy. Without a second thought, he swiftly flew away and eventually reappeared beside Han Li in a flash of red light.
Han Li glanced at the black-robed man with some surprise. He had clearly seen that within the white light, something resembling a giant bird had flashed by, startling the gray shadow. This piqued Han Li’s curiosity.
The black-robed man, however, was in no mood to be pleasant. Having just escaped death, he was still trembling with fear and deeply regretted ignoring others’ warnings and recklessly venturing into the Void Heaven Hall.
But as he recalled the white light that had saved him, he seemed to remember something. He hastily reached into his robes and pulled out an ancient, weathered bronze mirror.
Han Li cast a curious sidelong glance at it.
The mirror had a peculiar design and faint spiritual energy emanated from it. Could it be another ancient treasure?
As Han Li pondered this, a cracking sound was heard.
The surface of the ancient mirror, without any warning, split into seven or eight pieces. The spiritual energy it once contained vanished without a trace, rendering the mirror utterly useless.
At the sight, the black-robed man’s eyes filled with regret. He sighed, reluctantly storing the broken mirror away.
Then, raising his head, he caught Han Li’s gaze and immediately recalled how Han Li had deliberately withheld assistance earlier. Annoyed, he snorted coldly and turned his head away.
Seeing this, Han Li was momentarily taken aback but soon understood and simply smiled faintly, choosing not to engage. Instead, he turned his attention to the ghostly creatures across from them.
Fairy Zi Ling also watched the black-robed man’s movements with a thoughtful expression.
By now, the Soul Cry Beast had already scurried over and perched obediently on the black-robed man’s shoulder, sitting perfectly still.
On the other side, near the black ghostly figure, the gray shadow flickered faintly into view. With several soft “puff” sounds, seven or eight identical spectral demons emerged from the surrounding mist.
Han Li recognized them at once—they were a type of fierce ghost known as “Wei Wu.”
Normally, the appearance of even one such ghost in the mortal world would cause significant unrest. Yet here, an entire group had appeared, causing Han Li’s expression to darken.
These horned, sharp-clawed evil spirits, though far less powerful than the two ghostly figures, were still comparable to late Foundation Establishment cultivators. They now coldly crouched nearby, encircling Han Li and the others.
Realizing a fierce battle was unavoidable, Han Li spoke sternly, “You two handle the Wei Wu ghosts. I’ll deal with the two spectral figures. Buy me as much time as possible!”
His voice was low and solemn. Though the black-robed man was full of resentment toward Han Li, he understood the gravity of the situation and had no choice but to grudgingly accept the order.
After all, he knew he stood no chance against the two spectral figures. If Han Li was willing to take them on, it was exactly what he wanted.
No sooner had Han Li spoken than the fierce ghosts revealed their malevolent auras. Without hesitation, Han Li summoned his spirit beast pouch, releasing a cloud of Gold Devouring Beetles that transformed into a golden-silver mist hovering in the air.
At that moment, the surrounding demons, as if receiving a command, simultaneously lunged viciously at the three, spewing dark ghostfire. The black-robed man and Fairy Zi Ling immediately summoned their magical treasures and artifacts to block the assault.
The Soul Cry Beast proved even more formidable. With a sweep of the radiant light from its nostrils, it directly sucked one of the nearby demons into its belly. However, that was all it could manage, as the two green-haired yakshas once again brandished their bone forks, engaging it in combat.
Han Li paid no attention to the Wei Wu ghosts. Instead, he transformed into a green streak of light, shooting toward the two spectral figures in the distance. The Gold Devouring Beetles buzzed closely behind.
Seeing Han Li approach, the black spectral figure’s eyes flashed with green light. It opened its mouth and spat out the green glowing pearl, directing it straight toward Han Li’s green streak. Meanwhile, the gray figure flickered several times before vanishing on the spot.
Frowning, Han Li halted mid-air without approaching. With a flick of his finger, two Emerald Swarm Swords shot out as crossing green beams.
Simultaneously, the Gold Devouring Beetles dispersed at his mental command, hovering around him without straying further.
With a “bang,” the two green beams clashed with the pearl. The ghost pearl rapidly emitted vast amounts of Profound Yin cold energy, swiftly enveloping the two flying swords in an impenetrable shroud of dark energy.
A cold glint flashed in Han Li’s eyes as he formed a sword seal with his hands. Instantly, the two flying swords expanded several times, transforming into two azure dragons several zhang long. They thrashed and twisted, breaking free from the dark energy and turning to fiercely strike the green ghost pearl.
Witnessing this, the spectral figure’s icy eyes revealed a trace of surprise.
This green ghost pearl, though originally an ordinary protective treasure of a fallen cultivator, had been refined by the demon ghost for centuries with Profound Yin ghost energy. It had become incredibly mystical, its emitted Profound Yin energy specifically damaging the spirituality of magical treasures. Once entangled, even a thread of this energy would endlessly trap the treasure, making escape impossible.
Yet, for some reason, Han Li’s two flying swords showed no fear of the Profound Yin energy. The azure dragons they transformed into simply tore through the dark energy, rendering it incapable of nearing the swords themselves.
This unnerved the spectral figure, which had developed intelligence over the centuries. In all its years of sentience, it had never encountered such a situation.
Hesitating for a moment, it raised a ghostly claw and pointed vaguely at the green pearl. The pearl’s radiance intensified, shooting back several zhang before spinning mid-air. After a few rotations, it shuddered and transformed into a massive black demon tiger.
The tiger was enormous, with eyes like bells, and it roared, spewing blackish-green phosphorescent fire, appearing extremely fierce.
What was most astonishing was that, unlike the illusory forms of Han Li’s sword-dragons, this giant tiger seemed completely solid and tangible, radiating formidable power.
“A weapon spirit?” Han Li murmured in slight astonishment, narrowing his eyes.
A “weapon spirit” referred to the opportunity each magical treasure had, upon its creation, to seal the essence soul of a demon beast or ghost into itself. In battle, the treasure could merge with this essence, significantly enhancing its power and taking the form of the spirit’s original appearance, possessing its former abilities. It was a shortcut to rapidly boost a treasure’s potency.
However, for reasons unknown, whether the sealing succeeded or not, a treasure could only attempt to seal a spirit once in its lifetime—from creation to destruction. If it failed, the treasure would never have another chance, as it would reject any further essence souls.
This made cultivators extremely cautious. Unless urgently needing to enhance their treasure’s power, they typically waited until they found a suitable target and felt confident before attempting the sealing ritual.
Back in the Crimson Blood Forbidden Ground, when Nangong Wan captured the Black Flood Dragon’s essence soul, it was likely intended for sealing a weapon spirit.
After all, though the flood dragon was young and low-ranked, it still belonged to the dragon lineage, making it exceptionally rare. Hence, Nangong Wan had been thrilled upon obtaining it.
Even after eliminating numerous demons of various ranks in the Chaotic Star Sea, Han Li had yet to encounter a single spiritual flood dragon. This had frustrated him for a long time, as he too desired a flood dragon spirit for his weapon.
However, the success rate of sealing a weapon spirit was notoriously unpredictable, almost without any discernible pattern. One certainty was that the stronger the essence soul, the lower the chance of success. Yet, if the spirit was too weak, the enhancement to the treasure’s power would be unsatisfactory. Thus, most cultivators’ treasures ultimately lacked weapon spirits—either they never found a suitable target, or their attempts to seal overly powerful spirits ended in failure.
Therefore, Han Li was startled to see the ghost pearl possessed a weapon spirit. But he quickly composed himself, licking his slightly dry lips before pointing at the two Emerald Swarm Swords. They transformed back into azure dragons, charging directly at the demon tiger.
His flying swords had no weapon spirits; their draconic forms were mere illusions, lacking the true abilities of flood dragons. Nevertheless, Han Li wanted to test the power of this demon tiger weapon spirit first.
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