Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 568

The gray-robed cultivator’s face was hidden by a gray aura, but his white hair and beard clearly marked him as quite old.

It was none other than Old Man Geon, who had unexpectedly emerged from his avatar. This sudden appearance put Han Li, Old Man Bu, and Baeyao Yi on high alert, their eyes fixed on the Great Elder of the Yin Fiend Sect.

Without a word, Old Man Geon reached to his waist, pulled out a small, jet-black flag, and lightly waved it towards the three cultivators.

Old Man Bu was startled, clutching something in his hand, while Baeyao Yi released a chilling aura to form a protective barrier.

Han Li, on the other hand, merely raised an eyebrow, taking no other action.

“Strange. This is strange…”

Old Man Geon’s expression turned peculiar as the black flag flashed but produced no reaction.

“Brother Geon, what is the meaning of this? To suddenly pull out the Ghost Flag, are you trying to start a fight? Are you saying you don’t care if a war breaks out between the Yin Fiend Sect and the Guryu Sect?”

Old Man Bu was wary of Old Man Geon’s power, but with two mid-Nascent Soul cultivators by his side and having witnessed Han Li’s abilities, he spoke with confidence.

“A war with the Guryu Sect… I have no intention of that. However, I have a matter to settle with Fellow Daoist Han, so if the two of you leave, I won’t stop you.”

Old Man Geon scanned the three cultivators and spoke calmly.

“Fellow Daoist Geon, you think the same as I do! I’ve heard rumors about the Five Phase Heart Demons [a powerful demonic technique] for a long time, and I’ve been wanting to test my skills against them.”

Han Li smiled, unexpectedly accepting the challenge. Old Man Bu and Baeyao Yi exchanged glances at his words.

Old Man Geon was also surprised, his cold gaze fixed on Han Li.

“That’s… Brother Geon! I don’t know what’s between you and Fellow Daoist Han, but it’s not right to do this here. Aren’t you going to explore this place first?”

Old Man Bu frowned.

It wasn’t so much to protect Han Li, but rather because he knew that Mount Konoh was a dangerous place, and he didn’t want to lose a powerful ally. He also didn’t have the confidence to face Old Man Geon alone if he lost Han Li and Old Man Geon changed his mind.

“Of course, we should explore this mountain. However, Fellow Daoist Han is someone my sect has been pursuing for a long time, so I cannot let this go. Why would Brother Bu interfere in this matter?”

“If you want to settle your grudges with Fellow Daoist Han after we leave this place, we won’t interfere. But we have already agreed to work together to get out of here, so we cannot stand aside now.”

This time, Baeyao Yi stepped forward resolutely. She, too, did not want to be isolated in this dangerous place after losing Han Li.

Moreover, having witnessed Han Li’s abilities with Old Man Bu, she had no fear of even a late-Nascent Soul cultivator.

Unexpectedly, Old Man Bu and Baeyao Yi were adamant, and the gray-robed cultivator’s gaze turned cold. It was as if he was about to attack the three of them.

However, although Old Man Bu and Baeyao Yi were inwardly surprised, they showed no signs of backing down.

“…Very well. For the sake of your faces, I can step back this time. However, I cannot stand by and watch my sect’s treasure remain in the hands of another! If you don’t hand over the treasure, I will have no choice but to fight you three, even if it greatly damages my vital energy.”

Old Man Geon withdrew his cold aura and spoke calmly.

“Are you referring to the Ghost Flag as the treasure?”

Han Li asked directly with a smile.

“That’s right. Didn’t you take the Ghost Flag from my sect’s fourth elder, whom you killed in Tiannan? If you hand over the treasure, I might spare your life for a while.”

“Spare my life for a while… Hmm, you’re very confident. I can return the Ghost Flag, but I have one condition.”

“A condition? You killed my sect’s elder and stole our treasure, and now you dare to negotiate with me! Do you really think I can’t do anything to you?”

Old Man Geon was furious and laughed in disbelief. Then, the five shadows behind him simultaneously leaped forward, standing before Old Man Geon.

A heavy tension filled the air. Old Man Bu, who was listening nearby, was also startled and looked at Han Li.

The fact that the Yin Fiend Sect’s fourth elder had suddenly disappeared was known even in the Guryu Sect. But it was the first time they had heard that the renowned Yin Fiend Sect elder had been killed by Han Li and that the Ghost Flag had been taken. It was understandable why Old Man Geon would start a fight here.

Moreover, Han Li had been hiding his origins and had been claiming to be an overseas cultivator until now.

“Hmph! It seems you don’t know that your sect’s elder suddenly appeared in Tiannan and ambushed my companion? In this situation, do you think I would just hand over the Ghost Flag?”

Han Li’s face hardened as he spoke grimly.

“I don’t want to know or care why the fourth elder went to Tiannan and was killed by you. I only want to retrieve my sect’s treasure. Otherwise, the Yin Fiend Sect’s reputation will be tarnished, won’t it?”

“So, you’re not going to listen to my condition?”

“If you were a Great Elder of a Ten Great Sect, I might have listened to your condition, but do you think you have the right to do so as a mere Tiannan cultivator?”

Old Man Geon raised his head and laughed, then released a dense killing intent and disappeared into the white shadows.

From the five white shadows, a gray light burst forth, and the ten lifeless eyes revealed a madness like bloodthirsty beasts.

“Oh no, I forgot. This is the Reverse Emotion Severing Heaven Great Art [a ruthless cultivation technique] that Old Man Geon has cultivated. It’s a technique famous for its ruthless attacks. It seems Old Man Geon is quite enraged by what we said.”

Seeing the changed aura of the fiends, Old Man Bu regretted his words, and Baeyao Yi frowned, releasing ice daggers from her mouth.

Han Li quietly held the Three-Flame Fan in his sleeve, and his other hand was on the Storage Pouch, concentrating his mind to activate the human-shaped puppet at any moment.

The plan was to attack the opponent with all his might the moment the battle began, taking advantage of the distraction caused by Old Man Bu and Baeyao Yi’s attacks.

Even if he couldn’t kill the opponent here, injuring him would make it much easier to face the Great Elder of the Yin Fiend Sect later.

He had to find a way to release the Soul Sealing Pearl to save Nangong Wan. Once he found a way to break the curse, he wouldn’t regret having to face the pursuit of the Yin Fiend Sect cultivators day and night.

At that moment, the five fiends were also muttering something, and their forms were changing. From a distance, they looked like they were swaying and lengthening like smoke, and they seemed ready to rush towards them.

Kukwakwang!

But at that very moment, a tremendous explosion occurred in the void where the white shadows had emerged, and a dazzling silver light burst forth.

Pat! Pat! Papapat!

Before Han Li and his group could figure out what was happening, ten colorful streaks of light shot out from within and circled in the void.

“Why do you all look so surprised?”

Old Man Geon asked the newly appeared cultivators, returning the white shadows that were about to attack to their original positions.

The cultivators who flew in through the light barrier looked terrible, but they were all Nascent Soul cultivators, so even Old Man Geon couldn’t take them lightly. Moreover, the ominous feeling from the explosion before their appearance was unsettling.

“So, Brother Geon, you arrived here one step ahead of us. Oh, isn’t that Fellow Daoist Bu of the Guryu Sect? And the others…”

They were the four elders of the Poison Sect and five rogue cultivators. Daoist Sasan was subtly mixed among the others, but when Hwacheon Gi saw Han Li’s group, he immediately asked with a puzzled expression.

“Brother Hwa, it’s a surprise to see you here. But what was that explosion just now?”

Old Man Bu was also concerned about the explosion and hurriedly asked.

“That’s what we want to ask. Since you arrived here before us, isn’t the illusion array outside your doing? And the fact that the illusion array exploded on its own and blocked the passage, was that also something you prepared in advance?”

A burly giant among the rogue cultivators scoffed. At his words, the others’ expressions changed, and they looked at Han Li’s group with clear hostility.

“That’s a big misunderstanding. When we arrived here, there was already another group of cultivators, and the illusion array has nothing to do with us. Are you going to make up baseless stories and take your anger out on us for no reason?”

Old Man Bu’s expression hardened as he retorted. In this situation, if they were looked down upon, they would be swept away by the atmosphere.

“There were other cultivators?”

At those words, even the four elders of the Poison Sect and Old Man Geon were startled.

“We were just accidentally transported here by an ancient teleportation array. We were trapped by other restrictions for several days, and we only managed to reach this place after hearing the sound of restrictions being broken from the upper part of the mountain. Now that I think about it, the illusion array that the cultivators are talking about might be related to them.”

Old Man Bu’s eloquence was not to be underestimated, and he managed to summarize most of the situation in a few words.

“Is that so?”

The burly giant hesitated, and the other cultivators began to doubt.

“Fellow Daoist Bu, who is the enforcement elder of the Guryu Sect, wouldn’t lie to us about something that would be easily exposed! Besides, if the Guryu Sect had broken the sealing restrictions, wouldn’t it be strange that a Guryu Sect high cultivator isn’t here?”

Hwacheon Gi’s expression softened, and he seemed to believe Old Man Bu’s words.

“That’s… true.”

“But when we came in, the atmosphere between you three and Brother Geon was strange. Is there something going on between you and Brother Geon?”

Hwacheon Gi suddenly changed the subject. Old Man Bu hesitated for a moment, wondering how to answer.

* * *

At the same time, in a huge palace located on Mount Konoh.

A large-headed giant shook a golden bell, and silver-white lightning shot out, smashing a stone tiger puppet.

The Ye Family cultivators behind him were also attacking the stone puppets using their magical treasures.

The puppets all had the forms of beasts or birds, but their bodies were extremely hard, and they could use simple spells, making them very dangerous. Moreover, puppets were constantly pouring out from all over the palace.

However, the Ye Family cultivators all had calm expressions as they killed the puppets using their magical treasures or spells. After a while, a loud noise was heard from afar, and one of the passages was blocked, preventing any more puppets from rushing in.

The Ye Family cultivators showed signs of relief.

Soon after, the other passages also collapsed with a series of thuds. With no new puppets entering, it was only a matter of time before the rest were destroyed.

“They seem different from ordinary puppets.”

The Ye Family cultivators were relieved and took out spirit stones, sitting down in a cross-legged position. It wasn’t a particularly dangerous moment, but they had consumed a lot of their magical power after using their magical treasures to fight the puppets for so long.

From the last collapsed passage, a beam of light flew out, piercing through the debris. When the light faded, a scholar in white robes appeared.

“It’s as Elder Han said! There was a side hall at the end of each passage, and that’s where the puppets were coming from. As the cultivator said, breaking the restrictions and destroying the side halls themselves solved the problem.”

The scholar smiled and said to one of the cultivators.

“I recognized it because I saw a similar puppet grand formation [a large-scale formation using puppets] in an ancient scripture. If we had continued to kill only the puppets, we would have exhausted all our magical power and found it difficult to escape this place.”

“It was a good decision to bring Elder Han for this task. We look forward to your continued assistance.”

“Since the Great Elder has said so, I will do my best to help.”

At the scholar’s words, Goma raised the corners of his mouth. Then, the large-headed giant next to him laughed and interjected.

“Judging by the time, the next measure we planted in the illusion array must have been activated. If we’re lucky, it will buy us a little more time!”

“That’s right. By now, someone must have entered the illusion array, so it should have exploded soon. However, the temporarily blocked passages will only last for about 5 or 6 days. If not, the seal itself will weaken soon.”

“Even though the sealing barrier has begun to weaken, it will still take a long time to completely collapse, won’t it? We’ll have plenty of time to seize the treasure, so don’t worry. I don’t know where we are now, but we must be close to reaching the center.”

“That’s probably right. The fact that there are more and more restrictions means we are getting closer to the key area of Mount Konoh.”

“But there’s one thing that bothers me. Why is that sinister monster, Eunshiyacha, following us? Could it be that he’s planning to ambush us when we’re off guard?”

The large-headed giant said this and glanced at another entrance of the palace. The others also turned their gaze at his words, but there was nothing there.

However, not far away, Eunshiyacha was using stealth techniques to follow them. It was indeed a matter of concern.

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