Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 861

Han Li remained calm as the massive demonic creature approached. He planned to activate the sword formation and kill it the moment it entered its range.

However, just then, a red flash appeared in the distance, followed by a sharp sound. Three streaks of blood-red light shot out from the darkness, flying directly toward him.

The dwarf’s expression changed drastically at this sight. He struck the giant tree demon’s head with his staff to halt its advance.

Thud!

The demon stopped right at the edge of the Great Azure Sword Formation’s range. Han Li narrowed his eyes slightly but otherwise showed no reaction, gazing into the distance.

The three streaks of blood-red light quickly arrived. As the light faded, they revealed small figures with skin as red as blood. These figures wore peculiar blood-red armor inscribed with magical characters.

The three pairs of expressionless eyes simultaneously stared down at Han Li. At that moment, Han Li felt a chill run down his spine.

“Blood Puppets! Those are Lord Zhi Xue’s avatar puppets!” the dwarf exclaimed, his face paling as he recognized the figures. He trembled with fear.

‘Blood Puppets? Zhi Xue?’ Han Li wondered, but the name didn’t ring a bell.

The three small figures scanned Han Li for a moment before their eyes suddenly flashed. They opened their mouths, and three pillars of blood-red light shot out, reaching Han Li’s face in the blink of an eye.

Although he was already on guard, Han Li was taken aback by the sudden attack. He immediately extended his arm, and a gray aura blocked the front, while a black aura flowed from his body, transforming into dark armor.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The blood-red light pillars seemed to possess a special power. They flickered a few times and pierced through the Yuan Magnetic Divine Light [a type of defensive energy], which was supposed to be the nemesis of the five elements.

The blood-red light pillars collided with the black armor, becoming even darker, but they eventually pierced through, leaving a large hole and shooting straight toward Han Li’s chest.

Lei Lan and the others’ faces turned pale, but they were dumbfounded by what happened next.

Boom!

A thunderous sound echoed from Han Li’s chest. The blood-red light pillars clashed with gold and silver lightning, ultimately being blocked by Han Li’s Thunder Pouch [a magical artifact] and disappearing.

Han Li was also shocked, and his expression darkened. However, he soon snorted and summoned black energy to restore the hole in his armor.

‘If the Fiend Armor hadn’t weakened the light pillars’ power, the Thunder Pouch wouldn’t have been able to completely block this attack,’ he thought.

Seeing that their attack had failed, the puppets immediately flashed with blood-red light from their backs. Crimson wings sprouted from the small figures’ backs, and they vanished the moment they flapped them.

Han Li, feeling a chill in his chest, looked around. A ripple appeared in the nearby void as the three small figures reappeared with a flash. They each drew blood-red sabers and glared at Han Li again.

The crimson blades did not seem to have any intention of attacking Lei Lan or the others.

This was because the Blood Puppets had their master’s consciousness within them, allowing them to distinguish the most threatening presence among the group. The rest could be dealt with after he was killed.

“Hmph!” Han Li let out a low sound and flapped his wings, disappearing. A flash of cyan-white lightning appeared in the sky, about twenty yards away from where he had been.

However, at the same time, blood-red flashes appeared in three places, and the small figures reappeared, sending six blood-red blades toward Han Li, just like before.

In response, Han Li’s entire body flashed with golden light, his skin covered in golden scales, and palm shadows extended from both hands.

Clang! Clang!

Sharp sounds echoed as the blood-red blades collided with the shadows. The six blood-red sabers were blocked by the black and white palm shadows and gradually shattered.

The three puppets were knocked back several yards by the immense force felt through the sabers. They steadied themselves and then flinched.

This was because Han Li, who had been in front of them, had completely disappeared. Han Li had already teleported back to the flying chariot. As the three small figures turned their heads to find him, Han Li gave a cold smile.

Han Li made hand seals with lightning-fast movements and chanted an incantation. Then, a clear sound echoed around them, and golden threads floated up, heading toward the three Blood Puppets.

It was the Great Azure Sword Formation that Han Li had prepared in advance. As Han Li’s cultivation had greatly increased, the power of the Great Azure Sword Formation had also greatly increased. The sword threads, which had been moving slowly, quickly swarmed in.

In response, the three Blood Puppets’ eyes flashed, and they flapped their wings, disappearing from their spots. They seemed to be using some kind of secret technique to escape outside the sword formation, but such a shallow trick was no match for the Great Azure Sword Formation’s mystical power.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

Vibrating sounds echoed from the sword formation, and hundreds of golden threads appeared simultaneously, slicing through the void. The small figures within the blood-red light were cut into countless pieces by the golden threads.

Bai Bi’s group and the dwarf demon, who were watching this, were so shocked that they couldn’t close their mouths. The dwarf demon also quietly moved the giant White Wood Demon beneath his feet backward without a sound.

The dwarf, who lived there, knew the power of the Blood Puppets best. Even though three Blood Puppets had attacked together, they were no match for him, so he no longer had the courage to demand the Spirit Beast.

But then, a strange thing happened inside the Great Azure Sword Formation. The fragments of the Blood Puppets, which had been cut like sawdust, took on a strong blood-red hue and turned into large blood-red beads.

Giving off a thick, bloody stench, the blood-red beads spun around, and arms, legs, and heads suddenly sprouted from them, beginning to return to their original forms.

However, Han Li was not surprised; instead, he extended his finger toward the sword formation with a strange expression.

Swish!

A silver firebird flew into the sword formation and exploded, turning into three silver flames that engulfed the blood-red beads. The silver flames burned fiercely even on the blood-red beads.

After a while, a burning smell filled the air, and horrific screams began to be heard. Strangely, the blood-red beads surrounded by silver flames began to thrash wildly within the sword formation. Han Li remained expressionless, but he was inwardly surprised.

The Blood Puppets were holding up very well against the power of the Spirit Severing Heavenly Flame [a powerful flame], which would turn anything into ashes with just a slight touch.

Of course, due to the Spirit Severing Heavenly Flame’s overbearing power, the horrific screams gradually subsided, and the blood-red beads scattered into ashes.

This time, the Blood Puppets had truly disappeared. Han Li gestured, and the three silver flames turned back into a silver firebird, returning to his sleeve.

Sensing something, Han Li turned his head to the side and saw that the giant tree demon had retreated hundreds of yards away. The dwarf on top of the White Wood Demon’s head felt Han Li’s gaze and his heart sank, so he immediately blew a whistle.

Whistle!

Upon hearing the sound, the White Wood Demon began to emit green light from its entire body and started to run away like crazy. The giant White Wood Demon had only taken a few steps, but it had already disappeared into the darkness.

“Where do you think you’re going!” Han Li opened his mouth and spat out a small cauldron enveloped in blue light.

It was the Void Sky Cauldron. But just then, a weak growling sound of an animal came from below the flying chariot.

At that sound, Han Li looked at the retreating tree demon and swallowed the small cauldron again. He left the flying chariot and descended to the ground where the white light was. The fragrance that the white light had been emitting was now gradually fading.

Han Li, who was faintly connected by consciousness, knew that the Spirit Beast was almost finished with its evolution and thought that he should help it overcome the final hurdle.

He took a deep breath and reached out to touch the small beast inside the white light. Then, pure spiritual power flowed into the beast’s body little by little, and blue spiritual light emanated from Han Li’s body.

Seeing this, Lei Lan, Bai Bi, and Jin Xiao all sighed deeply as if they had made a promise, and they looked at each other with relaxed faces.

As Han Li went down to help the beast’s evolution, they finally sat down on the flying chariot to rest.

Kuaaang!

An hour later, a white light flashed wildly from below, and a roar was heard. In response, Han Li’s expression changed, and he quickly retreated backward, leaving afterimages.

At the same time, a golden shadow leaped out of the white light, creating a giant demonic beast illusion about a dozen yards in size. It was a golden Qilin [a mythical creature], its entire body covered in golden scales.

The Qilin’s illusion raised its head and roared majestically, causing Han Li to be inwardly surprised and retreat backward. However, the Qilin’s illusion gradually crumbled and disappeared, leaving only the small beast.

The Spirit Beast was not much different from before, but it had golden spots on its fur, and the pupils of its eyes were sparkling silver. The Spirit Beast flashed and disappeared from its spot, already in Han Li’s arms.

The Spirit Beast rolled its eyes and licked the back of Han Li’s hand, treating him very affectionately. Han Li immediately checked the beast’s condition with his consciousness and was very pleased.

‘It has indeed succeeded in evolving and has gained the cultivation of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator!’

Its innate divine abilities were already superior to those of beasts of the same level, and now that its cultivation had increased, it would be of great help to him. The small beast yawned in Han Li’s arms.

It had consumed quite a bit of its original energy during its evolution.

Seeing this, Han Li turned his palm over and put a red pill into the beast’s mouth, then gently stroked it. The beast flashed with blue light and entered his spirit beast pouch, falling asleep.

The three people on the flying chariot also had changed expressions, having been surprised by the Qilin illusion. Although the Bi Ling Clan each revered different avian True Spirits, they could not fail to recognize a powerful True Spirit-level existence as famous as the Qilin.

At that moment, Han Li turned into a streak of blue light and circled around the area for hundreds of yards, retrieving the formation tools he had set up. Then, the ten bright red pillars of light and the formations on the ground collapsed.

“There isn’t much time, so let’s hurry to the third floor,” Han Li said calmly to Lei Lan and the others after reappearing on the flying chariot in a flash of blue light.

* * *

The moment the Blood Puppets were reduced to ashes by the Spirit Severing Heavenly Flame, the man in the blood-red robe, who had been sitting on a chair with his eyes closed, sensed something and opened his eyes wide.

“Hmph! Even the Blood Puppets were defeated. How could this be? Did someone interfere?” The man in the blood-red robe’s face hardened with a fierce expression.

“Forget it, it was just three Blood Puppets. I can’t personally step in just to deal with a few Spirit Master-level beings…” He stroked his chin and pondered. After a while, he flicked his sleeve and headed toward the bead he had used last time. As he made hand seals, a red light enveloped the bead, and it vibrated softly.

Buzz!

Soon, a cold woman’s voice was heard.

“Zhi Xue, what is it that you seek me for?”

“Hehe, I have a deal to make with Fellow Daoist Mu Qing, so I contacted you.”

“A deal?”

“I would like to borrow a High-Grade Spirit Serpent-level Blood Serpent under the command of the Immortal.”

Zhi Xue, wearing the blood-red robe, said as if it were nothing important.

“What do you need the Blood Serpent for? I also need it to find blood food for the ritual.”

“I want to kill a few Spirit Master-level Bi Ling people. They are on the second floor, and it’s a bit far for me to send puppets, and there are no teleportation formations that go directly there. So, I’m asking for the Immortal’s help.”

“…Hmph, you want to borrow the Blood Serpent to kill a few Spirit Master-level beings? Fine, I don’t care what your intentions are. But in exchange for borrowing the Blood Serpent, give me a bundle of Spirit Concealing Wood. Otherwise, this conversation is over,” Mu Qing calmly stated her condition after a moment of silence.

“Spirit Concealing Wood! Understood. However, I must have their souls, so you must bring them to me after killing them.”

“That’s fine. If you send me their appearances and locations, I’ll send it right away.”

“That’s how it should be. Fellow Daoist Mu, please wait a moment.” Zhi Xue placed his fingertip on the blood-red bead and slowly closed his eyes. Then, it was as if something was being transmitted through his consciousness.