Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 96

With a look of disbelief, she stopped walking and immediately closed her eyes, spreading her senses widely. As a result, she was certain that there was no one around the basin except for the Eomwol Sect group.

However, when she turned her consciousness to the inside of the stone chamber, she felt it was blocked by some unknown force. Rather, joy filled her, and the girl smiled.

She was not surprised because she could tell at a glance that the stone chamber was under a restriction. She had passed by such restricted magic spells from time to time when she had previously traveled around and eliminated monsters, but they were nothing special.

However, this was the first time she had encountered a place with such a powerful restriction that blocked her senses.

The girl, clearly excited, no longer cared whether someone was there or not.

Even if one or two disciples from other sects were hiding nearby, they could not affect so many Eomwol Sect disciples and herself. The girl immediately led her disciples and walked towards the stone chamber.

At that time, Han Li was pacing back and forth inside the main hall of the stone chamber. Originally, he had intended to leave this place without any regrets.

Just before leaving, he had habitually spread his senses to look around, and he had immediately sensed that a group of cultivators had arrived at his location.

He was so surprised that he felt the blood in his whole body turn cold, and without thinking further, he fled into the stone chamber. No matter which sect the group he had just sensed belonged to, it was clear what would happen to him if he was caught.

In fact, if he hadn’t overworked his body so much over the past two days, he would have been able to shake off the cultivators and escape at full speed.

However, with his current physical strength, he could only use such a swift movement technique a few times, and he was not confident that he could escape far.

Now that he had hidden inside the stone chamber, he would be safe for a while, but the moment the group of cultivators entered, there would be no way to escape. Moreover, the structure of the stone chamber was too simple. If you walked straight along the winding corridor, you would immediately reach this main hall, and there was nowhere to hide in this vast main hall.

Judging by the direction of the cultivators outside, it was clear that they were aiming for this stone chamber. But the statement that there was nowhere to hide was not true.

In the very center of the main hall, there was a dark underground passage with a jade railing, and from the entrance, stairs began that led endlessly downwards, and a warm, humid wind blew in and out like waves, making it impossible to tell where it led.

However, no matter how positively he tried to think, it was unlikely to be connected to a normal place. Han Li was hesitant to go down, anticipating that it would be a dangerous place.

However, there was no place to hide in this stone chamber other than this underground passage. Cold sweat began to form on his forehead.

At that moment, the sound of several people’s footsteps was heard from the entrance of the stone chamber. It seemed that the group he had seen earlier had entered the stone chamber and would soon burst into this main hall.

Han Li sighed, gritted his teeth, and crossed the railing into the underground passage. As soon as he started going down the stairs, his vision went dark. Only after rummaging through his storage pouch and taking out a Moon Radiance Stone [a stone that emits light], did his surroundings become barely visible.

The passage, which seemed to be carved out of limestone, was just wide enough for one person to pass through.

He placed his hand on the stone wall of the passage and felt a damp and slippery sensation. He moved carefully, not wanting to delay in case the cultivators were chasing him from behind.

As he went down, after passing hundreds of steps, the narrow passage gradually began to widen, and now two people could walk down side by side comfortably.

However, the hot air gradually increased in heat, instantly making Han Li’s body drenched in sweat. As he went down more steps, the limestone passage disappeared, and a swamp appeared outside the exit.

This underground world was only about thirty feet high, but it was very wide. Han Li looked around and saw swamps with black bubbles rising in various places.

The hot air was formed in the upper part of this underground area and quickly escaped along the passage where Han Li had come from, drawing in relatively cool air and causing convection.

In various places in the swamp, mounds of earth were piled up, and in one of them, dozens of colorful, strange flowers and spiritual herbs emitting spiritual energy were in full bloom.

Among them were spiritual herbs that Han Li desperately needed, and there were plenty of them.

However, what caught Han Li’s attention more than anything was a white jade pavilion located in the center of the swamp.

Surprisingly, a huge golden chest was floating in the air. It was about ten feet long and five feet wide, and the golden light that pulsed from it was clearly extraordinary.

Han Li’s gaze immediately fell from the chest. It was more urgent to find a place to hide than to look at the golden chest. What good would it do to possess treasures after death?

Han Li held his breath and used a concealment technique, remaining motionless in a distant mound of earth.

Then, he naturally blended in with the earth, and Han Li’s figure disappeared. Not long after he had finished all his preparations, the girl’s figure appeared from the passage.

She calmly scanned the underground scenery, then her gaze fixed on the chest in the jade pavilion.

Then, her always calm face showed agitation, and a burning passion flashed in her eyes.

She had already heard about this golden chest from her disciples, but seeing it in person was a different feeling.

As the girl stepped out of the stairs and stood at the entrance with her beautiful figure, the male and female disciples of the Eomwol Sect followed her and stood in line behind her. Han Li, who was observing the scene from afar, became curious about the girl’s identity.

“This place is where the Black Scaled Python, a black striped serpent, resides.”

Her beautiful voice was filled with dignity.

“Reporting to the Sect Master, the giant serpent that lives here is notorious for having devoured more than a dozen disciples from various sects who came to take the chest. Among the disciples, it is already known as a forbidden place. Moreover, it is said to be stronger than other top-tier monsters, so please be careful, Sect Master.”

A female disciple bowed her head and spoke respectfully.

“Hmph! Do you think I can’t handle a first-class monster?”

The girl’s soft face hardened, and she made a mocking expression, causing the white-clothed female disciple to be surprised and make excuses, saying that was not what she meant.

“You may step back! Everyone, proceed as originally planned. No matter how great that serpent is, it cannot be a match for your Yin-Yang Entrapment Technique! At best, it’s just a first-class monster!”

At her firm order, which did not allow for any objections, the disciples all became alert.

After giving strict orders to her disciples, she turned her head again and looked around the swamp.

“It seems that it must be in that chest! I’ve been wandering around for nothing, picking up only trash.”

Her muttering was so small that no one but herself could hear it. The other disciples could not hide their excitement at the upcoming battle.

The Eomwol Sect disciples stood shoulder to shoulder with their cultivation partners according to the girl’s orders. And with a very skillful gesture, they grasped each other’s hands.

For a moment, strange blue and red lights appeared from their clasped hands and flowed through their arms into their entire bodies.

Among the six pairs of Eomwol Sect men and women, the men emitted a red light, creating a protective barrier, and the women emitted a blue light.

However, two women and one man had already lost their respective partners, and they were preparing for a normal battle by taking out their magical artifacts.

Han Li, who was hiding in the mound of earth, could not hear the girl’s muttering, but the title of Sect Master that the disciples used to call her was clearly audible. It was only natural that he was so surprised by her unexpected identity.

Even a novice like Han Li, who had not been in the cultivation world for long, knew well what the Eomwol Sect Master meant.

It meant that she was a master who had reached the Core Formation stage [a high level of cultivation], like this Sect Master of their sect. But how could such a master enter a forbidden area where even cultivators above the Foundation Establishment stage [a lower level of cultivation] could not enter?

At that time, the young girl, having confirmed that the disciples were ready, began to act as if she was satisfied.

Her red lips parted, and her magical artifact, the Vermilion Bird Ring, flowed out of her mouth. The Vermilion Bird Ring began to rotate leisurely in the air and quickly grew to the size of an average room.

Then, as the girl formed a hand seal and muttered something, a red light was emitted from her hand into the round ring.

The color of the round ring rapidly changed from pink to the color of burning flames, and sparks flew from inside the ring, revealing an increasingly large and bright appearance as time passed.

Before long, hundreds of flames were created, and the temperature of the underground area also increased.

Han Li, who was lying still and watching, was simply amazed. Seeing the young-looking girl handle her magical artifact, it was clear that she was a Core Formation stage cultivator.

However, no matter how much he thought about it, he could not find an answer as to how she had entered the forbidden area and how her magical power was only at the peak of the Qi Refining stage [the initial stage of cultivation].

Even though she had not yet started her attack, strange changes were occurring in the swamp. The mud began to writhe around a certain part of the swamp, and the range of this writhing continuously widened and gradually rose.

The momentum was so great that even the girl’s face showed a hint of doubt. In fact, the serpent in her memory was not this powerful.

However, since the monster was already about to reveal itself, there was no choice. With a hand gesture that resembled a flower blooming, she accelerated her magic. The Vermilion Bird Ring, which had already grown to a huge size, rotated at high speed in the air, blurring its outline, and became one with the hundreds of fire mouths inside, forming a sea of red.

“Go!”

The hand that had been forming the hand seal suddenly stopped. At the same time, the Vermilion Bird Ring also stopped rotating, and the center of the red sea turned into a pillar of fire, which was emitted with a fierce momentum.

The target was the swamp that was shaking! Even before the pillar of fire reached it, a black pillar of water rose from the mud and shot towards the fire. However, the thickness of the water pillar was only about the size of a large bowl.

‘Chwarrrr’

Shortly after, the fire and water met, emitting a huge amount of steam. The surroundings were so foggy that it was impossible to distinguish objects.

“It’s not a Black Scaled Python!”

What had been just a suspicion turned into a certainty when this jet-black stream of water appeared.

As if in response to her words, a sharp beastly cry echoed. At the same time, hot air surged, blowing away the surrounding steam, and the monster revealed its true form.

A snake-like monster covered in black armor appeared before their eyes. It looked like a snake but was not a snake. It was a monster whose body was only three or four feet long, not huge, but the faint black mist that covered its entire body was eerie.

Moreover, although its appearance was no different from a black serpent from head to tail, it was an exception that its entire body was covered in black scale armor.

“A Black Horned Dragon!”

The girl shouted after confirming the monster. Her face showed both concern and excitement at the same time.

The disciples standing behind her were all bewildered. How could a horned dragon appear when they had come to catch a serpent?

However, there was no time to resolve such questions. The monster, which had already risen from the ground, had found the culprits who had disturbed it and flashed its green eyes on both sides of its head.

At the same time, its mouth opened, and another black pillar of water was spewed out towards the Eomwol Sect disciples.

“How dare you, you beast!”

The horned dragon still looked young, so the girl, who was well aware of the monster’s power, could not relax her guard. She hurriedly used the Vermilion Bird Ring in the air to block the front, and the flames generated from the red light emitted from the center of the ring countered the horned dragon’s water stream.

“Rapid Binding Restraint Lock!”

Her hand formed the shape of a full moon, and she shouted with a solemn expression. As the five words echoed, the huge Vermilion Bird Ring rotated at high speed in the air and disappeared. Even the horned dragon seemed to blink its small green eyes, as if tracking its whereabouts.