Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 410

Gul-yo’s expression shifted as he pointed at the dragon. The enormous dragon immediately unleashed a fiery red pillar, targeting the scroll. However, the scroll only paused for a moment before continuing its descent as if nothing had happened.

Gul-yo, his face paling, rubbed his hands together, and countless fireballs erupted, densely filling the sky.

Han Li focused his attention on this spectacle.

It wasn’t a fire spell cast by throwing talismans to create a large-scale attack, but rather the simultaneous creation of numerous fireballs through the mage’s own cultivation. It seemed that the magic of mages was indeed very different from the Five Elements Taoist techniques of cultivators.

As Han Li pondered this, the scroll, undeterred by the barrage of fireballs, did not slow down at all and trapped Gul-yo and the red dragon as if in a small fortress.

Both the cultivators and the mages could now only see the enormous scroll; Gul-yo, the target, was no longer visible.

Despite the successful attack, Old Man Ma did not celebrate. He immediately sat in a lotus position, circulating a milky white aura throughout his body and forming hand seals.

Thump! Boom!

At the same time, the light of the scroll expanded greatly, and thunderous explosions erupted from within. The light of the Bagua diagram [Eight Trigrams diagram, a fundamental concept in Taoism] flickered.

“Elder Cheon-gol, will something happen to Commander Gul! If he is truly in danger, we must rescue him immediately, regardless of the one-on-one rules. I never imagined that this Nascent Soul [a high level of cultivation in this context] cultivator would possess such a bizarre ancient treasure!”

A gaunt cultivator asked the black-clad man anxiously and respectfully.

“Don’t worry. Although the Tai Xuan Bagua Diagram [Supreme Mystery Eight Trigrams Diagram] refined by the ancient cultivator is a powerful ancient treasure, the cultivator using it is not fully utilizing its power. He is merely forcibly drawing out the treasure’s powerful spiritual energy to trap the enemy.

Using the ancient treasure so foolishly will consume a considerable amount of his own magical power. What a truly foolish person! Well, I doubt there would be anyone in this remote place who could properly use such a rare ancient treasure.”

The black-clad man chuckled softly, his words laced with malice towards the cultivators of Cheonnam.

Slightly reassured by his words, the gaunt mage immediately postponed his plan to have the other mages launch an attack.

The cultivators on the side of the haggard giant also had mixed feelings.

They were initially pleased when the Bagua diagram trapped the opposing mage, but they were disappointed by the explosions coming from within and the dark expression on Old Man Ma’s face.

Old Man Ma had only used this against Core Formation cultivators before, and once trapped in the Bagua diagram, they could not resist and were killed by the restrictions.

However, Gul-yo was not only blocking the lightning with his own power while trapped inside the Bagua diagram, but he was also relentlessly attacking with the giant dragon.

The fierce battle in the void temporarily subsided, and except for the faint explosions coming from within the Bagua diagram, it became very quiet.

The cultivators’ worries deepened.

Only Han Li stood expressionless, conversing with Eun-wol in his mind.

“Master Ma is wasting an incredible treasure like a pebble. If he could only unleash the true power of the Tai Xuan Bagua Diagram, it would be an ancient treasure comparable to the Ziyun Dou [Purple Cloud Bucket, a powerful magical artifact].”

Eun-wol clicked her tongue, her disappointment evident.

“Tai Xuan Bagua Diagram? Do you know about this ancient treasure?”

Han Li asked internally, showing interest in her words.

“Of course. That scroll is a failed product of a rather famous ancient treasure from ancient times. If it were a proper treasure, it could have trapped and killed the opponent even without fully utilizing its power. Using the true Tai Xuan Bagua Diagram would not result in such a massive loss of magical power.”

“A failed product is already this powerful; I wonder what the true Tai Xuan Bagua Diagram is capable of. But if its power is similar to the Ziyun Dou, does it also have a special method of operation?”

“The Ziyun Dou doesn’t have a separate method of operation. You just need to inject spiritual power. You only need to understand the restrictions engraved on the surface and how to handle the flames.”

After hearing her answer, Han Li fell silent again, looking up at the void with wavering eyes.

‘This is bad.’

Soon, a tremendous explosion that shook the heavens and earth was heard from within the scroll.

Boom! Boom!

The Bagua diagram in the void twisted, and countless pillars of light burst out. As a result, the once intact scroll was now riddled with holes.

As the onlookers watched in shock, another explosion was heard from the end of the scroll.

A fierce heat surged, and Gul-yo, his face as red as blood, appeared from within, along with his dragon, which had returned to its original size. Both looked like they had suffered greatly.

However, the problem was that Old Man Ma’s appearance was no less haggard. His face was pale, and his eyes lacked strength.

Still, the old man gritted his teeth and reached out towards the scroll. The damaged Bagua diagram flashed, soared into the sky, and then rolled up and fell back down.

Old Man Ma’s already bad complexion turned even paler as he looked at the scroll. The state of the scroll that had fallen into his hand was a mess.

“What a pity! If Commander Gul-yo had endured a little longer, that cultivator would have run out of magical power first and retrieved the scroll. Now that things have turned out this way, Commander Gul-yo’s vital energy has been greatly damaged, and he is unlikely to achieve an overwhelming victory.”

The gaunt mage was surprised by the black-clad man’s words and examined Gul-yo’s condition.

Old Man Ma, his face flushed, put the tattered scroll into his storage pouch and glared at Gul-yo.

Gul-yo snorted at the old man’s gaze and wrapped the fire-attribute dragon around his body again.

“Commander Gul, please wait! How about we call this match a draw? Both of you have consumed a lot of magical power, and continuing to fight might lead to undesirable results.”

The gaunt mage suddenly shouted, stopping Gul-yo’s actions, and then immediately spoke to the haggard giant and the other Cheonnam cultivators.

The giant looked slightly surprised, met eyes with Gok Ssang-po, and nodded.

“Very well. Let’s end this match here.”

Old Man Ma was not pleased with their conversation, but he had no choice but to stop the fight and return. Gul-yo, also with a bad complexion, retrieved the red serpent at his feet and returned fiercely to his own camp.

As the haggard giant was comforting Old Man Ma with a few words, the black-clad man, who had been muttering quietly, stepped forward.

He came to the place where the battle had just taken place and looked down at the cultivators with a sinister gaze.

“I’m next. I’ll make it clear before the match, the next battle will not end until one of us is dead, so don’t expect the same luck as this time.”

The rough voice revealed his contempt for the cultivators.

The haggard giant and Gok Ssang-po were immediately enraged by the black-clad man’s words, but they did not rashly step forward.

They knew that the two Nascent Soul cultivators who had died before had both been defeated by such mages.

“Let me face him.”

Suddenly, Han Li, who had been silent, spoke up.

“Hmm? Does the cultivator want to go out? You must be careful. If things go wrong, the three of us will step in.”

The haggard giant was surprised when Han Li volunteered, but he was also relieved inside. Han Li simply smiled in response and transformed into a streak of blue light, flying into the sky.

The blue light dissipated not far from the black-clad man, and Han Li, with his hands behind his back, appeared expressionlessly.

Up close, the black-clad man’s eyes were closer to green than black, and a sinister aura flowed from them.

Han Li suddenly asked,

“Are you a ghost or a demon?”

“Ha! Does it seem like I am not human?”

The black-clad man did not seem angry at Han Li’s question and smiled coldly. At the same time, black auras began to rise from his body, and ghostly wails grew louder.

“It’s good that you’re human. You’re just a heretical cultivator who has learned demonic arts related to demons.”

“Hmph! You are a talkative young cultivator. You’re about to die!”

With the black-clad man’s turbid voice, a black aura exploded, and he disappeared into the darkness.

“Die!”

Soon, a sinister laughter was heard, and within the black aura, the black-clad man’s body transformed into a giant about two times his original size. Although it was difficult to see clearly in the darkness, glimpses of two horns growing on his head and sharp fangs could be seen.

‘So that’s why everyone suspected they weren’t human.’

Han Li’s pupils flickered with a blue light, and he recalled something upon seeing the shape of the black-clad man’s fangs.

‘This is?’

The appearance of the black-clad man transforming into a demon was identical to the illusion in the Six Extremes True Demon Art [a powerful demonic cultivation technique] that the successor of the Six Paths had displayed before.

“What is your relationship with the Six Paths Extremes?”

“What are you talking about? You want to buy time, but just die!”

The black-clad man, who had unknowingly paused, shouted fiercely and swung his giant hand, imbued with black energy. Something black flew out and disappeared midway.

Han Li’s face darkened as he saw it, and he quickly retreated several feet. As he retreated, a giant monster claw appeared where he had been standing, tearing through the void.

“Huh!”

The black-clad man, who had transformed into a demon, was slightly puzzled when his attack failed.

“I see. You didn’t learn ghost cultivation techniques, but rather some kind of demonic art, yet your attack method is similar to that of a ghost cultivator. Those who thought you were a ghost cultivator must have been troubled.”

Han Li calmly made his judgment, and the black-clad man flinched, looking at him coldly. Then, Han Li slightly frowned and moved his body about ten feet. As a result, a green monster claw silently slashed through the void.

This time, even the black-clad man in the ghostly aura could not help but ask,

“You’ve dodged the Ghost Yin Claw attacks repeatedly, did you perhaps encounter a real ghost cultivator before?”

The black-clad man finally began to show interest in Han Li.

“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to dodge like this.”

“Hmph! I see you have a wide range of knowledge, but what can you do about it? My Heavenly Fiend True Demon Art [a powerful demonic cultivation technique] has already reached the tenth level, you’re going to die anyway!”

As if he no longer wanted to talk, the black-clad man howled towards the sky. The sharp noise pierced the ears, sounding like it could pierce through stone.

The black aura began to spin rapidly, and a powerful demonic energy exploded. Shadow-like figures emerged from within and flew towards Han Li.

Han Li’s expression turned serious as he watched this.

The black shadows crossed their arms and swung their cyan monster claws, making it seem like Han Li would be torn to pieces immediately.

However, Han Li took a deep breath and crossed his hands without dodging.

Clang!

A faint golden net of lightning appeared in front of Han Li, fearlessly blocking the ghostly claws. The black-clad man hesitated when he saw this, but then swung his claws again with malice.

He believed in the power of his Heavenly Fiend True Demon Art and thought that his opponent could not block his attacks with mere lightning. Then, the young cultivator who pretended to know something and made him uncomfortable would soon go to the other world.

But for some reason, his sharp claws suddenly became hot, and an indescribable pain surged through him.

The golden light expanded greatly, and the net formed by lightning covered the monster claws in the shadows.

“Golden lightning? I feel like I’ve heard of it somewhere… Could it be!”

The black-clad man remembered the things the elder who had taught him this demonic art had repeatedly warned him about. He trembled in tension.

No matter what, he couldn’t just stand there and be defeated. He roared, and his giant body shrank again, instantly turning into a three-foot-tall dwarf, buying time to break contact with the golden net.

And during the time he had bought, a strange sound of ‘pop’ echoed.

The body that had turned into a dwarf shrank and expanded before bursting into countless black lights.

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