Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 598

As a tremendous light erupted from the formation, the dozen or so flood dragons in the void writhed madly, their bodies swelling several times as they lunged forward.

Kwakwakwakwang!

The dozen or so flood dragons threw themselves at the space barrier one by one. The gray barrier shook violently, and finally, its form began to distort.

When the last flood dragon exploded against the barrier, turning into a massive gust of wind and a ball of fire, a crimson flash appeared, and a blood-red blade cleaved through the same spot.

Clang!

A deafeningly loud reverberation echoed. A crack had formed in the barrier. However, no hole was made, and the barrier immediately emitted a black light, trying to fill the gap. The young man surnamed Seo and Eun Si-yacha unleashed a barrage of attacks, barely slowing down the rate at which the gap was closing.

At that moment, Han Li stepped forward.

The great sword he had prepared beforehand flashed with golden lightning, fiercely cleaving through the gap in the space barrier. The golden lightning and light flashed, making the surroundings as bright as if a small sun had risen, and the one-zhang [about 3.3 meters]-long gap melted away in an instant, growing several times larger.

At the sight, not only the other cultivators but also Han Li was dumbfounded.

‘What in the world is going on?’

It was as if the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning was the natural enemy of the barrier. Could it be that the Black Wind Flag was a treasure of the demonic path?

As the golden light faded, a faint light filtered in from outside the barrier. Just as the others were about to activate their treasures to attack, a short black flying dagger silently sliced through the crack and disappeared.

The last remaining thin membrane shattered with a bang, revealing a hole several zhang [about 3.3 meters] in size. And beyond it, a familiar landscape appeared.

Everyone was delighted at the sight, but then a silver flash appeared, and someone appeared in front of the barrier, passing through the hole first. It was none other than Han Li’s puppet.

Then, after hesitating for a moment, the other cultivators also hurriedly used various escape techniques to fly into the exit.

Han Li also spread his silver wings on his back, his lips moving.

“……?”

Gyuryeong, who had already turned into black and white energy and reached the front of the barrier, stopped in her tracks with a puzzled expression. Because of her hesitation, the young man surnamed Seo and the other demon beasts passed through first.

However, a moment later, a sharp crimson flash suddenly appeared from outside the barrier, and the young man surnamed Seo’s scream and Im Eun-byeong’s urgent cry echoed simultaneously.

And from outside the cave, the thick stench of blood and Sasan Jin-in’s laughter flowed in.

“Let’s go!”

Only then did Han Li flap his silver wings, turning into silver lightning and passing through the hole. Although his mind was still full of questions, Gyuryeong immediately followed behind him.

The moment Han Li appeared outside the barrier, countless crimson energies rushed at him from all directions. However, having already prepared for this, he did not stop, repeatedly flashing silver light and moving to escape the range of the crimson energies.

Stopping his movements and looking at the entrance he had come out of, his gaze sharpened.

The outside of the hole had already turned into a sea of blood. Something was floating leisurely in the dense energy, and it was none other than Eun Si-yacha, Sa Geum-soo, and a huge monster covered in pure white fur.

The monster was wearing Sasan Jin-in’s clothes, but its corpse energy soared into the sky, and it had the face of a withered polar bear with green eyes and ferocious teeth.

The monster was driving someone into a corner with a blood-red blade, and it was none other than the Great Celestial of the Heavenly Orchid Plains, the young man surnamed Seo. Even after losing an arm and a leg, he was using a blue bead and a silver hook treasure to block the crimson energies that were attacking from all directions.

Not far from him, the Spirit Vulture was enveloped in the purple mist that Sa Geum-soo had transformed into, barely clinging to life.

Im Eun-byeong’s situation was no better, as she was helplessly succumbing to the Soul-Slaying Threads released by Eun Si-yacha. If it weren’t for the incredible power of the silver-embroidered handkerchief, she would have already suffered a fatal injury.

In any case, it was obvious that the Heavenly Orchid cultivators were going to lose.

“That is!”

Gyuryeong, who had escaped danger thanks to Han Li, stared at the white-furred monster, her eyes wide.

“Is that a corpse refinement?”

“You could say that.”

After hesitating for a moment about how to answer, Gyuryeong told the truth.

“What do you mean?”

“Before it became a corpse refinement, I had a slight acquaintance with it when it was just an ordinary spirit beast. Its master was also a human cultivator who came down from the Spirit World. I haven’t seen it since it was sealed in Mount Kunwu, but I never expected it to become a corpse refinement.”

“So, that being’s body was originally a spirit beast from the Spirit World.”

“That’s right. Just as cultivators who come down from the Spirit World have limitations in their cultivation, the same is true for spirit beasts. They lose their previous memories when they descend to the Mortal World.”

Gyuryeong explained with a sigh.

“If their memories are erased, does that mean they can’t remember anything at all?”

Han Li was surprised and a little disappointed. He had planned to ask Gyuryeong about the Spirit World when he had the time.

“They can’t remember anything except that they are from the Spirit World.”

Gyuryeong was also regretful. Han Li was silent for a moment, then suddenly thought of Yin Yue. Yin Yue had a special identity, so her situation must be different. However, now was not the time to think about such things.

He suddenly looked around. Although they had escaped the sealed space, this place was also strange. It was completely empty, and neither the Eight Spirit Ruler above the palace nor the Black Wind Flag of the Goma Saint Ancestor that they had been fighting was visible.

It seemed too easy to escape the space seal, and there was a reason for it.

There were huge pits and deep ravines everywhere, as if a giant demon beast had wreaked havoc with its claws, and half of the palace was destroyed, turning into ruins.

He scanned the palace ruins with his divine sense, but the restriction that cut off energy was still activated, so he couldn’t find out anything.

This meant that he could relax. In fact, the Origin-Slaying Saint Ancestor was too much of a burden to face as an enemy.

However, the only exit, the teleportation array, was blocked by the space created by the Black Wind Flag, so it seemed that they would have to find another way. Han Li’s eyes gleamed as he began to ponder what to do.

“Cultivator Han, if you save me and Brother Seo, I will not hold you accountable for our past conflicts. In the name of the Heavenly Orchid Saintess, I will declare that the grudges between the Heavenly Orchid Plains and the cultivators are nullified!”

At that moment, Im Eun-byeong’s exhausted voice was heard. She was urgently asking Han Li for help.

“We have been chased by the Dolols for so long, how can we just nullify our grudges? I have no intention of helping you at all.”

Han Li refused flatly with an expressionless face.

“Brother Han, have you forgotten why we came to the Great Jin? If I and Fellow Daoist Seo lose our lives here, do you think the other Great Celestials will leave the cultivators alone!”

Han Li chuckled at Im Eun-byeong’s threat and looked towards the sea of blood.

The silver light from her handkerchief was intensifying, momentarily pushing back the Soul-Slaying Threads, but her pale complexion suggested that she was using a secret technique to forcibly draw out her magical power.

The young man surnamed Seo was in the most precarious situation, as he had been ambushed first and trapped in the sea of blood, looking as if he would collapse at any moment. The only one who was in a slightly better situation was the Spirit Vulture, whose entire body was emitting a five-colored light.

The ancient spirit beast was unable to escape the purple mist, but conversely, Sa Geum-soo was also trapped because of it. Sa Geum-soo’s most powerful ability, the golden shockwave, was unable to penetrate the five-colored light.

“No matter what Fellow Daoist Im says, I have no intention of helping you. In fact, if the two of you barely manage to escape this crisis, I might even step in to finish you off. And as for the three Great Celestials, I will deal with them when they come.”

Han Li replied calmly. He was confident that with the help of his human puppet and Gyuryeong, he would not be at a disadvantage even if three late-Nascent Soul cultivators attacked him.

Besides, the Great Celestials of the Heavenly Orchid Plains would not be so foolish as to all fly to find him. If they knew that the Great Celestials were not guarding the Heavenly Orchid Plains, the Morans might immediately annihilate the Dolols.

It was obvious what choice they would make between the fate of their clan and revenge. Knowing this, Han Li did not consider the Heavenly Orchid Saintess’s threats or requests to be worth his time.

The corpse refinement, who had been listening to their conversation, laughed madly as soon as Han Li finished speaking.

“As expected, Cultivator Han is well-versed in the ways of the world. I didn’t attack Brother Han, so there’s no reason for you to step in! You guys should just obediently give up your lives.”

Han Li sneered inwardly as he watched the corpse refinement shout at the young man surnamed Seo and Im Eun-byeong.

The moment Sasan Jin-in revealed his true identity using a secret technique inside the space barrier, the soul within the spirit beast immediately recognized it.

He was startled and looked around, discovering that Sasan Jin-in was secretly communicating with Eun Si-yacha through telepathy. Han Li possessed a divine sense far stronger than most late-Nascent Soul cultivators, so he was able to eavesdrop on their conversation.

The white-furred corpse refinement was unexpectedly telling Eun Si-yacha to attack the human cultivators as soon as they left the seal. However, they had not decided who to attack, and the young man surnamed Seo and Im Eun-byeong had been unlucky enough to be the first to come out.

Therefore, Han Li also harbored some antipathy towards the corpse refinement.

Although it was the first time he had seen the corpse refinement, if it was a corpse refinement demon with such an appearance and late-Nascent Soul cultivation, then it was definitely the Ten-Thousand-Year Corpse Bear of the Myriad Demon Valley.

No one knew how long the Ten-Thousand-Year Corpse Bear had lived, but it was a famous demon among the Great Jin demon race. Moreover, the Myriad Demon Valley was a huge force in the Great Jin, on par with the Taiyi Sect and the Heavenly Demon Sect, so there must be a reason why the deputy valley master had personally appeared here.

However, he could not tell whether the cultivator named Sasan Jin-in had originally existed and was dealt with, with the demon taking his place, or if the Ten-Thousand-Year Corpse Bear had created a transformation body.

The concealment technique that the demon had cultivated was so special that even Han Li could not discern its true identity. Han Li stared blankly at the Ten-Thousand-Year Corpse Bear, which was emitting corpse energy all over its body, as he looked at the sea of blood in the distance.

Although he had no intention of saving the Heavenly Orchid Sacred Hall cultivators, he could not allow the blood-red blade to devour the flesh and blood of late-Nascent Soul cultivators and increase its power.

The moment the young man surnamed Seo died, he planned to step in and retrieve the blood-red blade. Such an evil object could be encountered as an enemy at any time, so it was better to have it in his possession.

His lips moved as he observed with a cold gaze. Gyuryeong, who was beside him, merely shone her eyes, but nothing else changed.

“Brother Han, if you help us, I will tell you the secret to raising the Gold Devouring Beetles to adulthood. Surely this condition will be tempting to a cultivator.”

The young man surnamed Seo, who had been fighting silently, let out a long breath and shouted at Han Li.

“The Gold Devouring Beetles, you say?”

“No! The method to make the Gold Devouring Beetles reach adulthood is a secret technique of our Sacred Hall, how can you reveal it to an outsider so carelessly!”

Im Eun-byeong’s face turned pale as she objected to his words.

“What use is a secret technique when our lives are about to be taken! Do you want to be absorbed by that blade and die without even being able to reincarnate? Moreover, if we die here, the Morans will soon invade the plains when they hear the news. Between a secret technique that is barely passed down and the rise and fall of our clan, what should we choose?”

Im Eun-byeong’s face turned as white as a sheet of paper at those words, but she did not open her mouth again. The Ten-Thousand-Year Corpse Bear, seeing Han Li’s face as he pondered, realized that the situation was turning ominous.