Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 359

Suddenly, laughter echoed through the mountains.

“Hahaha! How amusing! I just lay down for a nap and I’m seeing all sorts of strange things! Two of you are plotting to kill a cultivator and steal their treasures? But what a pity, you’re just two Foundation Establishment cultivators trying to take on a Nascent Soul cultivator. Am I still dreaming?”

It was the voice of a giggling young girl, but the content was far from what a child would say. At the same time, Han Li’s expression turned subtle, and the two cultivators’ faces lost all color as if struck by lightning.

“A, a Nascent Soul cultivator?”

The fat cultivator shrieked, staring intently at the disheveled cultivator. He looked as if he had seen a ghost.

“Impossible! There’s no way he’s a Nascent Soul cultivator. He’s probably just a lackey trying to deceive us!”

The bald cultivator, already pale with fright, tried to reassure himself. However, his legs were slowly moving backward, and his eyes darted around, searching for the girl, revealing his anxiety.

He felt that if he could just see the girl, he would regain his courage, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t sense any presence.

At that moment, Han Li was just as surprised as the two cultivators. For some reason, the moment he heard the voice, his whole body broke out in goosebumps. His Nascent Soul [a core of spiritual energy], dormant in his dantian [an energy center in the body], had opened its eyes in tense alertness, looking fearful.

What was even stranger was that even after using his consciousness to search the surrounding ten miles, there was no trace of her. She was clearly hiding nearby, but to evade the consciousness of a Nascent Soul cultivator who had even mastered the Great衍 Technique [a powerful divination technique], she must have either mastered a special technique or be an incredibly powerful cultivator.

Han Li raised his vigilance to the highest level.

“Who is it! Who is trying to play such tricks! Do you think we’ll fall for such a shallow ploy!”

The fat cultivator’s face, which had lost all color, began to regain its hue. It seemed he had decided that the bald cultivator’s words made sense.

There was no reason for a Nascent Soul cultivator to deceive them after spending so much time with them. A yellowish light emanated from his body, and a black shield formed in front of him.

“Hehe! If this old one were so easily discovered by you, I might as well bash my head against a rock and die. But you, the Nascent Soul cultivator’s consciousness is indeed powerful. If it were just a little stronger, you might have found this old one’s location.”

Han Li’s expression darkened at the child’s voice, which seemed to have a strong sense of self. The moment he heard the voice, he had spread his consciousness with even more force, but he still couldn’t find any trace of her.

“Hmm, I was feeling a bit peckish anyway. It would be nice to fill my belly with the three of you! Hmm, it’s been too long since I tasted a Nascent Soul cultivator. You look so delicious.”

The content was horrifying. At the child’s words, which revealed her true nature, Han Li released his hidden cultivation.

Blue light flashed all over his body, and an astonishing aura of spiritual energy surged forth. Soon, dozens of blue lights shot out, and a total of 72 Azure Bamboo Cloud Swords swirled around him, protecting him.

“R, really a Nascent Soul cultivator! Eek, Senior, please spare us!! We were foolish and didn’t recognize Mount Tai before us [a metaphor for failing to recognize someone powerful], we almost committed a grave sin! What are you doing? It’s not like you can run away now!”

The fat cultivator, seeing Han Li’s true cultivation and magical treasures, was almost scared out of his wits. He immediately knelt and kowtowed, not even caring that blood was gushing from his knees and forehead.

On the other hand, the bald giant, acting on instinct, quickly took out a golden talisman and stuck it to his body, turning into a streak of light and trying to escape.

“Trying to run away? Do you think you can escape with just a Golden Escape Talisman?”

A sneer flashed across Han Li’s face, and with just a flick of his finger, one of his flying swords let out a clear cry. The flying sword, turned into a streak of blue light, chased after the golden streak that had just taken off, its speed incredible.

A blue light flashed, and the bald giant’s dying scream echoed in the air. The golden light in the air turned to ashes along with the giant and disappeared.

“Tsk, tsk. What a waste of a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s nascent soul. It wouldn’t have been bad to whet my appetite. Since I woke up, I’ve only devoured about six or seven Foundation Establishment cultivators.”

The girl’s voice expressed resentment towards Han Li.

“How long are you going to play hide-and-seek? You’re just a Nascent Soul cultivator yourself, so stop talking and show yourself.”

Han Li ignored the fat cultivator, who was still prostrate on the ground, and shot a glance at a small tree nearby. A dark blue aura surged in his eyes.

The girl’s voice was filled with surprise.

“How did you find me? The Illusory Light Transformation Technique can never be detected by a Nascent Soul cultivator…”

“If you don’t show yourself right now, I’ll really think you’re a tree and chop you to pieces.”

Han Li appeared relaxed on the outside, but he was sweating cold on the inside.

‘Thank goodness!’

In his haste, he had unknowingly tried out his incomplete Spirit Eye Technique, and surprisingly, as soon as the dark blue light appeared in his eyes, a small tree behind the bald cultivator appeared strangely distorted.

He wasn’t sure, so he had tested the opponent, and luckily, that tree was the right one.

“Just a Nascent Soul cultivator… you talk big. I’m already drooling at the thought of chewing up your Nascent Soul!”

The girl’s voice turned sinister, and a green light flashed from the small tree, which began to shrink and change shape. Then, a tiny figure, barely half a foot tall, appeared. It was a young girl with a delicate face and long hair, though small in size.

“Nascent Soul?”

Han Li immediately thought of ‘Nascent Soul’ when he saw the small child’s form, but soon became skeptical.

“Nascent Soul! Hehehe! It’s not wrong to call me that. I don’t know if you’re unlucky to meet me or if I’m lucky!”

The small figure flashed and instantly appeared behind the fat cultivator.

“I’ll have to satisfy my hunger with your soul first. Is that okay?”

“Eek! N, no! Please spare me!”

The cultivator, realizing that the monster in the form of a child was a being comparable to a Nascent Soul cultivator, was so shocked that he curled up into a ball and tried to run away.

However, a vicious light flashed across the small figure’s face, and she turned into a streak of green light, shooting into the cultivator’s body and then returning. The only difference was that she was holding a thumb-sized green light ball in her small hand, which was already flickering ominously.

Without a word, the girl took the green light ball to her mouth and swallowed it, and the green light surrounding her body became a little more intense.

“What are you? How dare you swallow a living soul like that!”

This time, Han Li was also enraged, his lips curling up as he roared. Clearly, the spiritual energy in that small figure’s body was only at the early stage of Nascent Soul, just like his. But after eating a soul, her cultivation had suddenly increased.

It was an extraordinary thing that a technique existed that could increase cultivation by directly devouring the souls of living cultivators without any processing or spells.

“I’ve whetted my appetite, and now I’m looking forward to the main course. If I swallow your Nascent Soul, old one will reach the mid-stage of Nascent Soul!”

The small figure, glowing with green light, did not answer Han Li’s question and immediately rushed towards Han Li’s dantian. Her face was full of gluttony, as if she could see through Han Li’s Nascent Soul.

“I don’t know if you can digest my Nascent Soul even if you swallow it.”

Han Li chuckled rather than getting angry and clasped his hands together. Then, a thick golden lightning appeared between his palms.

Crackle!

After reaching the Nascent Soul stage, Han Li could accumulate Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning in his body, and even though seventy-two flying swords were protecting him outside his body, there was no restriction on summoning the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning.

“Golden lightning? I’ve heard of it somewhere, what was it?”

The green figure tilted her head, staring at Han Li’s palms.

“You’ll find out soon enough!”

Han Li’s eyebrows shot up, and a golden serpent emerged from between his palms, engulfing the small figure.

But the small figure was not frightened by the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning in the form of a golden serpent; instead, she was giggling with delight. It was hard to believe that the small girl’s face, which looked like she was about to be devoured by the serpent, was so calm.

Golden light exploded violently around the small figure, and the sound of thunder echoed. Han Li narrowed his eyes, observing the situation, and his expression darkened.

Judging by the opponent’s attitude, she must have already prepared a defense, and it seemed unlikely that he could kill her in one blow. Indeed, even after the golden light dissipated, the girl’s giggling laughter did not stop.

“Ah, I remember! This is the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning? Tsk, tsk, it’s amazing that a mere early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator possesses such a treasure of heaven and earth. But to think you’d use this on me, did you think I had mastered some demonic or ghostly technique? Hehe, it’s like trying to cut the sky with a sword!”

The green figure mocked Han Li, unharmed by the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning.

“Don’t be so happy yet. If you could swallow my Nascent Soul, why would you just talk? I guess you can only swallow the souls of low-level cultivators. If you swallowed a Nascent Soul, you wouldn’t be safe either. Or maybe you had that ability before, but you don’t have the strength now. Stop with the useless banter and try to block my flying swords!”

The small figure’s expression changed drastically at Han Li’s cold words, and she glared at him with vicious eyes. At that moment, Han Li gestured towards the flying swords that were circling around him, and twelve flying swords turned into streaks of blue light and shot out.

Swoosh!

The green figure’s face turned grim, and she didn’t move from her spot. Soon, she was sliced into pieces by the twelve streaks of blue light, and the pieces of the green figure, faintly glowing, fluttered in the air.

Han Li also paused for a moment when he saw that.

But then, a strange giggling laughter was heard again, and the small figure’s torn body began to reassemble. The same green figure reappeared.

“Tsk, tsk, your skills are excellent! These flying swords must be refined from Golden Thunder Bamboo. I don’t know how you got so much Golden Thunder Bamboo, but it’s impossible to kill me with this. You’ll find out if this old one is just a smooth-talking swindler or not.”

It seemed that she was a little shaken by Han Li’s words earlier. After the small figure’s sinister voice, her small hands formed a hand seal, and a dazzling green light erupted as she tried to unleash some kind of spell.

However, before the spell could be executed, twelve flying swords merged above the small figure’s head, flashing like lightning. It was as if a giant net made of golden threads had been woven from the small flying swords, aiming for the black girl’s head.

“Hmph! Still not giving up. I told you, Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning can’t harm me. What, what are you trying to do!”

The voice that had been so confident at first eventually turned into a flustered one.

The wall of golden net did not explode towards her but instead began to envelop the small figure and contract relentlessly.

Feeling a bad premonition, she tried to escape, flashing green light, but failed and was instantly trapped inside a large golden sphere. Han Li smiled coldly as he watched.
# 361