Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 525

The Howling Yang Bird wasn’t very large, about the size of a sheet, but its tail feathers were long and flowing. From a distance, it could be mistaken for a large peacock, but no peacock would have such vibrant colors in its feathers.

The spirit beast, excited to be free of the Evil Yang Palace’s restrictions, flapped its bright red wings. Bang Jeo followed behind, but the bird was completely unaware of his presence.

It wouldn’t have been possible to deceive the Howling Yang Bird’s senses through ordinary means, but it was possible thanks to a talisman that concealed his aura, which the palace had refined for him.

As usual, Bang Jeo smiled, watching the spirit beast enjoy its outing and chirp merrily. However, the Howling Yang Bird, which was expected to circle the Evil Yang Palace for about a hundred miles and then return, suddenly flew thirty miles away and began to act strangely.

The Howling Yang Bird suddenly stopped flapping its wings, and its chirping turned sharp.

Bang Jeo, who had been following behind, was momentarily flustered and tried to assess the situation. In that moment, the Howling Yang Bird spread its wings, fiercely ignited flames, and suddenly changed direction, flying away.

After a few flashes of light, it had transformed into a huge fireball and flown hundreds of feet away.

Bang Jeo was so shocked that he was speechless. When he regained his senses, he took out a jade pendant from his pocket and infused it with spiritual power. Then, he tried to summon the Howling Yang Bird with a strange sound like a bird’s chirp.

However, the Howling Yang Bird, which was flying far away, hesitated for a moment at the command to return, but then made a strange sound and flew further into the sky without looking back. Bang Jeo’s face turned pale at the sight.

Not knowing what to do, he gathered his thoughts and took out a sound transmission talisman from his pocket. He shouted something into it, threw it towards the Evil Yang Palace, and then gritted his teeth and flew in the direction the Howling Yang Bird had disappeared.

Whether he could catch up or not, it was clear that he would be severely punished if he waited in place. As he flew, other spirit beasts in the Cheonak Mountain Range also became agitated.

Below the mountain range, disciples of the Evil Yang Palace were desperately pulling on ropes tied to eagle-shaped spirit beasts. While they were sweating profusely, the spirit beasts struggled to fly towards a certain direction.

In a deep cave somewhere in the mountain range, a masked cultivator wearing a light green robe was holding a black spider with a huge hand that emitted a green light. He looked puzzled at the sight of the rampaging spirit beast.

Inside a secret pavilion filled with restrictions of the Evil Yang Palace on the Southern Peak, a white-haired old woman in a purple robe was stroking a prostrate Howling Yang Bird. She had quickly cast a spell to stabilize it, or else it would have already broken out of the pavilion and flown away.

* * *

Bang Jeo flew, using his magical power without restraint, but he couldn’t catch up to the Howling Yang Bird.

He landed in the forest for a moment to catch his breath and discovered something surprising. The lower-level demon beasts were coming out of various caves and pits, flying with all their might in the same direction as the Howling Yang Bird.

They were forming a wave of demon beasts and moving forward. Seeing this, Bang Jeo became even more anxious.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of miles away in a secluded mountain valley, Han Li was sitting cross-legged behind the Expected Grass, which was covered by a red protective barrier. Six leaves had already unfurled, and the flow of spiritual energy was tremendous.

Han Li was not looking at the Expected Grass but at a certain point in the forest.

Outside the barrier, dozens of lower-level demon beasts that had been living nearby were gathered, trying to break in and devour the Expected Grass.

According to his calculations, the Expected Grass was now enough to lure a seventh-level demon beast. Considering the speed of the Howling Yang Bird, which was faster than ordinary magical treasures, it was clear that it would arrive soon.

However, after a while, Han Li’s expression changed slightly. He quickly formed hand seals and sent out magic seals, activating an illusion array outside.

A white mist appeared, obscuring the surroundings, and within it, the roars of wild beasts could be heard echoing.

A large ball of light and a bright red flame the size of a human head were flying towards the mountain valley where Han Li was sitting from different directions.

“Hmm?”

The form of an avian spirit beast could be faintly seen within the fireball.

It was a grotesque-looking demon beast, shaped like a large ball, with yellowish, wrinkled skin and a long tail growing out of it, making it look like a giant rat.

“What is that? It seems to be a seventh-level beast flying in from outside the mountain range.”

“That’s an Earth Armor Dragon. It’s a very rare demon beast. It’s famous for its ability to not only defend but also to search for treasures of heaven and earth. It’s like a gourd vine rolling in!” [A gourd vine is a plant that grows along the ground, often used as a metaphor for something that rolls or moves in a winding path.]

Daeyun Divine Lord replied in surprise as Han Li looked puzzled.

“Such a demon beast exists? Now that I hear it, it seems familiar.”

While he was figuring out the identity of the demon beast, the two demon beasts had already rushed into the white mist of the mountain valley. Their target was, of course, the Expected Grass below.

Han Li flipped his palm and took out a green formation disc. He struck the disc, and a bright light of spiritual energy spread out, causing the outermost restriction to flash. Surprisingly, it instantly trapped only the Howling Yang Bird that had entered first and blocked the Earth Armor Dragon in the yellow light.

The Earth Armor Dragon became greatly agitated and increased its yellow aura. Then, it put its hands, feet, and head inside its body and charged at the restriction like a gray-white armored insect.

Bang!

A huge vibration shook the outermost restriction. But that was enough to buy time.

As soon as the Howling Yang Bird entered the restriction, it flapped its wings, almost blowing away the mist with red flames. When the forest full of flowers revealed itself, the spirit beast immediately spotted Han Li sitting under a tree and the Expected Grass emitting a strange fragrance on the red coral.

The bird’s consciousness was not fully formed yet, but it instinctively trembled with fear at the feeling of Han Li’s mid-Nascent Soul cultivation [a high level of cultivation in this world]. However, it couldn’t dare to attack or run away, with the alluring Expected Grass in front of it.

Meanwhile, Han Li expressionlessly threw a black talisman. A black light flashed, and a dark red ghostly claw appeared, rushing to grab the Howling Yang Bird.

The Howling Yang Bird flapped its wings in surprise, and thirty fist-sized fireballs erupted from within, attacking the ghostly claw.

Pow pow pow pow!

Explosions rang out in succession, and black light and red flames clashed, but unexpectedly, the giant hand couldn’t move forward.

“…”

Han Li, surprised, formed a hand seal and summoned silver wings behind his back.

Whoosh!

He disappeared from his spot and reappeared a few feet above the bird’s head, shimmering in silver light. With a cool expression, he put his hands together and stretched them forward. Then, two thick golden lightning bolts appeared, exploding and forming a huge net.

The Howling Yang Bird, which was busy fighting the black ghostly claw, was caught in the golden net. The panicked bird shook its body, and red feathers fell out, attacking the net.

Pow pow!

“Capture it.”

Han Li gestured and shouted.

The net woven with golden lightning flashed wildly and instantly contracted, tightly binding the rampaging Howling Yang Bird. Unable to move, the Howling Yang Bird cried out pitifully.

The moment a look of joy crossed Han Li’s face, he suddenly felt a ‘thud’ vibration above his head.

He quickly looked up and saw that the outermost restriction was being shattered by the Earth Armor Dragon’s attack. The restriction, which had been created on the spot using formation flags, was not enough to hold back a seventh-level demon beast for long.

The Earth Armor Dragon, which had returned to its original form, passed through the white mist and past the Howling Yang Bird trapped in the net and Han Li.

Seeing its bright green eyes, Han Li realized that the Earth Armor Dragon was quite intelligent. At that moment, the Earth Armor Dragon discovered the Expected Grass and greatly increased its yellow aura.

“Block it! It’s using earth escape, so once it goes into the ground, we won’t be able to find it.”

“I have something prepared in advance.”

Despite Daeyun Divine Lord’s warning, Han Li showed a surprisingly calm smile. The Earth Armor Dragon, after confirming that no one was on the ground, tried to swallow the Expected Grass.

At that moment, a series of ‘thump’ sounds were heard near the Expected Grass, and twelve transparent cold energies flew in without any warning.

The cold energy was already close, and the Earth Armor Dragon couldn’t avoid it, immediately freezing into a white ice sculpture. On the ground, ten small centipedes were crawling around, emitting cold energy from their mouths, shining with white light.

“I was worried for nothing, not knowing that you had laid down the Six-Winged Frost Centipedes.”

Daeyun Divine Lord seemed pleased that the Earth Armor Dragon had been subdued. The Earth Armor Dragon’s skin was very thick, but it was helpless against the cold energy shot out by the twelve centipedes.

“I released them just in case, but I didn’t expect the Earth Armor Dragon to break through the barrier and attack.”

Han Li briefly explained to Daeyun Divine Lord and then flew towards the Howling Yang Bird, opening his mouth.

“I know that even if your intelligence isn’t high, you can understand human words to some extent. I don’t intend to hurt you, so drop your tail feathers yourself. It’s better than me forcibly pulling them out.”

The Howling Yang Bird in the net trembled, as if it really understood Han Li’s words, and chirped sharply with a startled look.

Han Li’s expression darkened, and he snorted, raising a blue aura in one hand. Then, the bird, looking fearful, immediately shook its tail and plucked out a few feathers.

A blue light flashed, and Han Li gathered all the red feathers. He put the feathers in a jade box that he had prepared in advance and carefully placed it inside his storage pouch.

After finishing his work, he gently stroked the Howling Yang Bird’s head, sending spiritual energy into it. This made the spirit beast fall asleep. He smiled lightly and then walked towards the Earth Armor Dragon, which was sealed in ice.

Fear was evident in the eyes of the Earth Armor Dragon as it looked at Han Li, trapped in the ice. Soon, Han Li turned into a blue streak of light and flew away.

* * *

A moment later, a golden streak of light appeared like lightning and arrived in the valley. When the golden light faded, the old woman in the purple robe from the secret pavilion of the Evil Yang Palace appeared.

And next to her, Bang Jeo was standing, barely able to breathe.

All the restrictions in the forest had already disappeared, and only the Howling Yang Bird, with a few fewer tail feathers, was lying down, unconscious.

The old woman was startled by the sight of the Howling Yang Bird and quickly examined the bird. She was relieved to find that it was not injured, only slightly weakened.

However, she couldn’t help but feel angry every time her eyes went to the sparse tail of the Howling Yang Bird.

“Check the condition of the spirit bird and wake it up.”

The old woman ordered in a low voice, and Bang Jeo, hearing this, quickly descended on a magical artifact. He wouldn’t have been able to arrive here so quickly if he hadn’t met the Evil Yang Palace’s controller on the way.

At that moment, the old woman looked around and closed her eyes. She was trying to find the person who had done this by spreading her consciousness. The old woman’s expression changed, and she gave Bang Jeo a few instructions before turning into a golden streak of light and flying away quickly.

* * *

Shortly after, in the void a few hundred miles away, she stopped a cultivator who was trying to leave the mountain range.

“Are you not Cultivator Ma of the Demon Eye Sect? Instead of sitting still and focusing on cultivation, what are you doing coming all the way to our Cheonak Mountain Range? Was the recent rampage of demon beasts also your doing?”

The old woman questioned, glaring at the other party with suspicion. The other party was a masked cultivator wearing a light green robe, and their exposed eyes were golden, which was very bizarre.