Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 801

If things went wrong, the last person left to take the Zhi Dragon Fruit could be attacked by the combined forces of the Nascent Soul stage monsters. It was extremely dangerous, but if things went smoothly and they succeeded, there was also the possibility of running away with the fruit.

“If the others are okay with it, I will stay behind at the end,” Han Li suddenly said with a smile.

“Fellow Daoist Han? With your cultivation at the mid-Nascent Soul stage, isn’t that too dangerous?”

“That’s right. It’s too much for Brother Han’s cultivation,” Nong Dong said, raising his eyebrows in opposition, while Cultivator Lee also shook his head, looking Han Li up and down.

“It’s true that my cultivation is lacking. However, I possess a top-grade instant-movement treasure of the Spirit Treasure level, and I have mastered a special technique that gives me confidence in preserving my life,” Han Li said, smiling and not paying attention to their reactions.

“Oh, if you’re that confident, then it’s fine to leave it to you, Fellow Daoist. Then, how will you assure us that you won’t run away with the spiritual fruit, Brother Han?” Nong Dong asked, his voice slightly subdued.

“I don’t know about that. If you’re worried about me staying behind, someone else can stay. I don’t mind,” Han Li said with a smile, taking an indifferent attitude. Everyone was dumbfounded by his words. Honestly, they wanted the spiritual fruit, but stealing the Zhi Dragon Fruit from between two Nascent Soul stage monsters was no different from snatching meat from a tiger’s mouth.

“Can I place a restriction on Brother Han?” Ye Ying was the first to voice her opinion.

“Then I don’t think I’ll have any objections either,” Xiao Hong, who had been observing Han Li, also expressed her agreement after Ye Ying spoke first. Soon, Nong Dong and Cultivator Lee met each other’s eyes and looked at Han Li.

“A restriction on my body? That’s possible. However, if you do that, I will also have to place restrictions on the rest of you,” Han Li’s expression subtly changed at the word ‘restriction,’ and he sneered.

“If that happens, and you fail to obtain the treasure and something happens to you, wouldn’t we all be in trouble?” Cultivator Lee frowned, showing his displeasure.

“Isn’t that exactly what I want?” Han Li retorted coldly without giving way. The memory of placing a mutual restriction with Bing Feng and ending up destroying his own Nascent Soul was still vivid, so there was no way he would make the same mistake again.

His words made the entire group force a bitter smile.

“How about this? Instead, if you leave a mark on an item that can serve as collateral, allowing us to track your whereabouts, wouldn’t that ease our worries?” Ye Ying blinked her dark eyes and suggested another alternative.

“Entrusting a natal magic treasure [a magic treasure that is connected to the user’s life force] and placing a mark to track my whereabouts. That’s possible. But it would be better to place it on each other, not just me. That way, we can locate each other even after using stealth techniques. Besides, if Brother Nong’s Silver Puppet does its job without a hitch, there’s no need for me to step in anyway,” Han Li pondered for a moment, then nodded with a more relaxed expression.

Placing marks on each other? Nong Dong and Xiao Hong seemed interested and slowly nodded. There were various discussions, but since Han Li had the lowest cultivation among the group at the mid-Nascent Soul stage, they didn’t really think he could run away.

After the discussion, the cultivators began to formulate a concrete plan.

First, Han Li opened his mouth and released four golden lights, each several inches long. The golden lights transformed into small, brilliant golden swords and flew towards the group.

The others did not hesitate to cast secret techniques or attach talismans to bind his natal magic treasure, then placed them in their respective storage pouches.

Afterwards, the four of them flashed various colored lights, pointing them at Han Li’s body.

*Paa!*

Han Li confirmed that the points of light were pure spiritual power before accepting them into his body. Then, he also cast a spell on the others, injecting four blue points of light into them.

This way, they could all feel a little more at ease. After finishing their discussion, they scattered and flew away. Han Li also flew thousands of miles as a streak of blue light before returning to his original form.

Floating in the air, he surveyed his surroundings and lightly closed his eyes, spreading his consciousness. After confirming that no one was monitoring him, he opened his eyes and formed a hand seal.

*Kwagwang!*

A small thunderclap sounded behind him, and cyan-white wings appeared. Then, he flipped his palm, and a purple talisman, the ‘Taiyi Azure Talisman,’ appeared in his hand. To steal a treasure from right under the noses of Nascent Soul stage monsters, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

As he attached the talisman to his body, purple and silver magic characters flashed, and Han Li disappeared from the spot. Having vanished into thin air, he retraced his path. Although he wasn’t as fast as when he came, he was able to reach the original spot in no time.

The giant lizard and the Thousand-Eyed Giant were still facing each other in place.

The other cultivators were already out of sight, and when he used his consciousness to activate the marks, he could sense that they were scattered around. Two were above the giant lizard, and the other two were behind the Thousand-Eyed Giant.

They were all using extraordinary stealth techniques; if he hadn’t left the marks, Han Li would have had difficulty finding them even with his consciousness. Furthermore, the Silver Puppets that Nong Dong had mentioned were nowhere to be seen.

Either the Resonance Talisman was truly miraculous, or they hadn’t been released yet. Han Li quickly grasped the movements of the people around him, then stared down without blinking.

Everything seemed peaceful, but he knew it was just the calm before the storm. A full hour had passed, but nothing had happened yet.

Han Li maintained a blank expression on the surface, but he was growing increasingly tense as the agreed time approached. Just then, the giant lizard briefly lifted one of its massive front paws before placing it back down.

At that moment, a silver flash appeared from the soil beneath the massive front paw, and a sharp bundle of silver threads shot out, rushing towards the Thousand-Eyed Giant. It looked as if the giant lizard had attacked.

The giant, who had been resting his chin on one hand, was startled and let out an angry roar. A black light flashed in front of the giant’s body, and he swatted away the silver threads with one hand.

At the same time, something shot out from below the Thousand-Eyed Giant. A silver pillar of light, as thick as a bowl, shot out into the air, aiming for the lizard’s head at an extremely fast speed.

In response, the lizard rolled its dark eyes, and a light flashed from the red horn on its head, emitting a bright red pillar of fire.

A loud boom echoed as the pillars of light collided and disappeared.

*Kwaak!*

Finally, the giant lizard raised its head and let out an earth-shattering roar as it stood up. It bared its sharp teeth, glaring at the Thousand-Eyed Giant.

Seeing this, the giant’s face twisted into a ferocious expression, and he grabbed the black club that was slung over his shoulder. As his eyes blinked, his entire body flashed with light.

The sight of so many eyes moving simultaneously was a chilling spectacle that sent shivers down one’s spine. Han Li, floating in the air, watched this with a look of joy.

‘If the two monsters start fighting, the rest will be easier.’

*Pung!*

The lizard opened its mouth and released a red shadow, and the next moment, a silver light exploded from the ground beneath its massive foot. After the red shadow returned, something strangely shaped was lying face down in the hole.

Han Li was startled and examined it, discovering it was a silver puppet with the head of a dragon and the body of a human. The puppet had been fatally wounded by the lizard’s tongue and was lying in pieces, half of its body blown apart.

It seemed that the lizard had noticed the puppet’s movements the moment it moved.

The Thousand-Eyed Giant, though not very intelligent, stopped abruptly upon seeing this. However, his eyes all over his body moved frantically, and countless black threads shot out from his eyes.

Once again, a loud explosion was heard, and this time, the puppet hidden beneath the giant was pulled out, pierced by the black threads. The identity of the black threads was unknown, but the giant puppet was instantly torn to pieces.

At this sight, Han Li sucked in a breath and rolled his eyes. The danger of this situation was exceeding his expectations. However, the Zhi Dragon Fruit was the source of a Nascent Soul stage elixir, so it was worth trying at least once, no matter how dangerous it was.

If he could get his hands on the seed of the elixir, he could cultivate it indefinitely, making it an even better opportunity. Having made his decision, Han Li calmed his mind.

The giant snorted as if warning them and pounded his shoulder with his fist, while the giant lizard glanced at the excited giant with a blank expression before slowly lying back down.

The two giant creatures had returned to their original state. However, Han Li continued to stare down, not letting his guard down.

Since the method of provoking each other with puppets had failed, it was now time for the others to distract the giant and the giant lizard, as they had agreed, to buy him time.

After a while, the pleasant sound of a pipa [a four-stringed Chinese musical instrument] echoed from above the giant lizard’s head, and yellow sound wave rings appeared in succession. At the same time, a white light flashed, and two platinum-colored hand axes appeared, rushing forward like giant dragons.

Ye Ying and Nong Dong had begun to move from high above the lizard. Ye Ying played a replica of a Spirit Treasure, the pipa, with one hand, while Nong Dong focused his consciousness to control the two treasures.

*Kwak!*

The giant lizard, despite its massive body, was agile in its movements. The moment it was attacked, it roared and stood up, a light flashing from its red horn. A bright red aura flowed out, blocking the yellow sound wave rings and the two streaks of white light.

Then, a green light flashed on the lizard’s back, and with a *puddeuk* sound, hard hairs, each a foot long, grew and flew out. And when it struck the ground with its massive tail, the tail left afterimages as it disappeared somewhere.

The next moment, the massive tail, twenty feet long, appeared beside Ye Ying and Nong Dong without warning, trying to strike them.

As expected of a mutated beast, it launched a counterattack like a storm when attacked. Although they had expected it to be difficult to deal with, it was a situation that made Ye Ying and Nong Dong jump in surprise.

Fortunately, they had no intention of holding on. The girl took out a golden talisman, and she was immediately enveloped in golden light, disappearing like a ghost and reappearing strangely thirty feet away.

Nong Dong also let out a strange cry, and yellow armor appeared all over his body. The armor, made of metallic scales, protected his entire body, even his head, and he even had massive bronze wings on his back.

As he flapped his wings, he left afterimages in succession and retreated. From a distance, it looked as if countless figures were densely filling the sky.

The green hairs and the massive tail that had been flying densely only cut through the air due to their strange escape techniques. However, the lizard did not delay at all. The green hairs chased after them as if they had intelligence, and the massive tail also turned translucent and flew towards them like the wind.

The giant lizard, while dealing with the two of them, was still watching the Thousand-Eyed Giant’s actions. It was worried that the opponent might take the spiritual fruit and run away in the meantime. However, the giant lizard was relieved after glancing at the other side.

It turned out that two figures had also appeared near the giant, drawing his attention. When one figure clapped his hands together, black fireballs flew out like a swarm of bees. When another figure grabbed the air, a large, black, glossy fingernail appeared, aiming for the giant’s head.

*Kwakwakwang!*

The giant seemed to have slow reaction speed, and the fireballs fell directly onto his body, while the giant fingernail fell onto his head. Xiao Hong and Cultivator Lee were overjoyed, but their smiles vanished at what happened next.

*Heuaaaak!*

The giant let out an angry roar from within the black flames, and the silver-white eyes all over his body moved, creating an invisible force. The black flames around him were all absorbed by the eyes and disappeared without a trace.

The giant fingernail that Cultivator Lee had created did not inflict any damage on the giant, and the giant did not seem to care much, casually wiping it away with one hand.