Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 98

Han Li, while blocking the black dragon’s attacks, glanced at the girl and secretly smiled wryly. Originally, he had been patiently waiting as planned.

He had been watching the battle between the Eomwol Sect disciples and the black dragon with interest. First, the black dragon’s metamorphosis had astonished him, and then the sudden blockage of the passage had forced him into a situation where he couldn’t remain idle.

If the passage was blocked, he would be trapped here regardless of who won! As the duel between the black dragon and the girl dragged on, the Eomwol Sect woman’s defeat became more apparent.

The ring-shaped magical artifact relentlessly attacked the black dragon, but the defense of the transformed demonic beast was beyond imagination. No matter how fiercely the ring artifact spewed flames or collided, it couldn’t inflict any noticeable wounds.

On the other hand, the black dragon’s counterattacks became even more ferocious, and its movements in pursuit of the girl became more savage. It had even managed to push the girl to the brink of death just a moment ago. Han Li was also gaining knowledge from the various mid-grade talismans possessed by the so-called Eomwol Sect master. Things he had never seen before in his life, such as Earth Evasion Talismans, Water Prison Talismans, and Fire Bird Talismans, were flying around one after another.

Whenever she seemed about to be hit by the demonic beast’s attacks, a talisman would be released, displaying a strange effect and helping her escape danger.

However, it seemed that she didn’t have any talismans with significant killing power, as she was barely holding on. It seemed difficult to face the black dragon with just those talismans.

As the battle between her and the black dragon intensified, Han Li’s mind also felt like it was about to explode. If the passage hadn’t been blocked, he wouldn’t have cared whether the Eomwol Sect master lived or died. But the fact that the passage had vanished as if by a ghost made his heart understandably troubled.

Judging by the fact that the Eomwol Sect master had shouted ‘Small Five Elements Sumeru Restriction’ [a type of powerful sealing formation] upon seeing the restriction that made the passage disappear, she must have known a lot about this restriction.

Han Li knew nothing about such restrictions, so the only hope for him to escape this place rested on that girl. However, he had been holding out until now, hoping that the girl might still have a hidden card and could defeat the black dragon in one go and release the restriction.

But seeing her desperately throwing talismans and showing signs of despair, he had no choice but to step in.

Seeing Han Li suddenly appear, the girl was both glad and resentful. He had been hiding all this time and only showed up now.

However, dealing with the rampaging black dragon was the priority for now. Without a word, she immediately used her magical artifact to attack the demonic beast. From the moment Han Li blocked the demonic beast’s attack, he had a look of distress. The power that didn’t seem so overwhelming when he watched the battle from afar felt terrifying when he experienced it firsthand.

The Golden Mother-Child Swords were exceptional even among top-grade magical artifacts. However, every time the golden light approached the black dragon, it was mercilessly deflected by its hook-like claws or tail.

Even when he managed to get one or two swords to reach the black dragon’s body by sheer numbers, they only left faint white marks and were useless.

Han Li was on high alert against all of the black dragon’s attacks. Whether it was claws or tails flying at him, or even jets of black water, Han Li flawlessly blocked them with his shield.

The magical artifact that had saved Han Li from many near-death experiences was being battered. He didn’t know how long it could last if things continued like this.

The power of the frequently used water jets was already this strong, so how powerful must the purple liquid, presumably poison, be!

The Eomwol Sect disciples who had died without being able to properly resist and their magical artifacts came to mind. Han Li, who had been constantly shocked whenever he faced the black dragon, relied entirely on his movement techniques to deflect the fierce attacks. The blades of the Golden Mother-Child Swords were of no help in blocking attacks.

There was a reason why the girl had hurriedly sent her disciples out. There were only a handful of Qi Refining stage disciples who could withstand the demonic beast’s attacks without having exceptional movement techniques like her.

At that moment, the girl’s Vermilion Bird Ring flew in, reducing the burden on Han Li. The black dragon, having been severely hurt by that magical artifact before, was wary of the Vermilion Bird Ring and avoided it.

“Why are you only coming out now! If you had come out a little earlier, we would have had a chance to defeat that beast!”

“I was afraid you might harm me.”

Even while controlling her magical artifact, the girl couldn’t help but shout in anger. Han Li’s honest answer left her speechless.

Although she looked like a young girl, she could be older than his own grandmother. It was better to be frank with such an experienced person than to try any shallow tricks.

The opponent was a Core Formation cultivator [a high level of cultivation], and there was a huge difference in their cultivation levels. However, now was the time to pretend not to notice such things. In any case, she, who had exhausted her magical power, didn’t seem that scary.

“A kid like you, scheming so much, I wonder how long you’ll survive!” The girl shouted, looking dejected and huffing. However, Han Li didn’t reply and only thought to himself,

‘If I had schemed even a little less, I would have died hundreds of times already!’

“If you have a way to injure that snake, don’t hesitate and speak!” After shouting a bit, she seemed to feel better and now tried to find a plan to deal with the black dragon. When their combined efforts didn’t seem to be enough to turn the situation around, the girl couldn’t help but shout.

“I do, but we need to restrain it for a moment. It must not be able to move at all!” He shouted urgently, running around non-stop while using his shield to block the black dragon’s water jets. He had barely managed to create some distance between himself and the black dragon.

“Alright. I can restrain it for a very short time using my last bit of magical power. But is that method of yours reliable?”

“I have a talisman with immense power. With that power, it can definitely break through the demonic beast’s defenses.”

Han Li spoke confidently, truly believing in the Golden Light Brick Talisman.

“A talisman?”

Unexpectedly, the Huangfeng Valley kid had such a rare item. She also had talismans, but their power didn’t match the Vermilion Bird Ring.

Judging by his tone, he seemed to have a talisman that could unleash tremendous power. Now that she knew his strategy, there was no time to hesitate.

She immediately chanted an incantation, making the Vermilion Bird Ring bind the demonic beast once again.

Naturally, the black dragon struggled, but Han Li protected himself with his shield and sat cross-legged, holding the Golden Light Brick Talisman.

As soon as he activated the Golden Light Brick Talisman, it turned into a golden brick about an inch in size and floated into the air. At the same time, the spiritual energy within Han Li’s body surged and was absorbed into the brick, instantly depleting a third of it. The golden light emitted by the talisman was now so brilliant that it was impossible to look at directly.

The girl, who was doing her best to restrain the black dragon, checked the floating Golden Light Brick and her doubts vanished. The Huangfeng Valley kid hadn’t exaggerated; that talisman was indeed powerful enough to break through the demonic beast’s defenses.

The black dragon, sensing the unusual power, thrashed its legs and struggled more fiercely to escape. The girl’s Vermilion Bird Ring was trembling, which was a bad sign.

“Hurry! It’s about to break free!”

At this, Han Li didn’t delay and flicked his finger towards the talisman. At the same time, the Golden Light Brick, which had begun to fly towards the black dragon, transformed into an enormous size, looking like a small hill moving.

Just as the Golden Light Brick was about to crush the black dragon with overwhelming force, the demonic beast opened its mouth and spewed the purple liquid that had made Han Li shudder. Surprisingly, the brick stopped in mid-air when the liquid was spewed.

Both the girl and Han Li were shocked, but he couldn’t do anything as he was busy controlling the Golden Light Brick. She bit her red lip and took out a yellow bead from her pocket, throwing it towards the demonic beast.

‘Bang!’

With a small sound, the bead exploded above the black dragon’s head, and a moment later, yellow mist enveloped the demonic beast’s head. The startled black dragon roared and simultaneously stopped spewing the purple liquid.

Without the interference of the purple liquid, the Golden Light Brick fell straight down, crushing the demonic beast’s head and creating a world-shaking sound.

After that, a huge light enveloped the entire underground world before disappearing in an instant, allowing them to regain their vision. The brick, now smaller again, turned golden and returned to Han Li.

Only the demonic beast, panting for breath, remained in the air. The black dragon’s head was completely crushed, one eye was gone, and blood was gushing from the remaining eye. It was a truly gruesome sight.

The girl excitedly took out a crystal bottle from her pocket. She chanted a spell and pointed the mouth of the crystal bottle towards the black dragon. A black aura emerged from it and enveloped the demonic beast’s entire body.

Soon, a small green snake, identical to the black dragon, was extracted from the black dragon’s body.

The snake struggled, trying to avoid entering the bottle, but eventually, it was slowly absorbed into the bottle.

She sealed the bottle tightly and looked at the trapped snake inside the transparent bottle, unable to hide her joy.

After smiling brightly, she looked at the completely lifeless body of the black dragon and took a deep breath. Han Li, who had been quietly watching her actions, didn’t know what the black dragon’s Nascent Soul [the core of a cultivator’s power] was used for, but he could tell from the girl’s expression that it was very valuable.

When she reached out and retrieved the Vermilion Bird Ring, the black dragon’s body fell right in front of Han Li.

“Since I’ve taken the Nascent Soul, I’ll leave the snake’s body to you. After all, we killed it together!” The girl said, as if bestowing a favor, making Han Li look at the black dragon’s corpse with a gloomy expression.

‘She’s good at talking. She knows how tough the demonic beast’s hide is, and she’s saying this. Is she trying to make me look bad?’

A cold aura emanated from Han Li’s hand, and a silver greatsword appeared in his hand. It was the magical artifact he had taken from the barefoot man.

Without saying a word, he swung the greatsword, and surprisingly, it deeply pierced the black dragon’s tough hide.

It was a meager result, but he had still managed to pierce the black dragon’s incredibly tough hide, which made the girl watching from the side speechless.

He liked her expression, so he chuckled inwardly and was about to continue his work.

“Wait! Let me see that sword for a moment.” The girl said leisurely, having regained her composure, making Han Li flinch.

“What are you worried about? There are hardly any treasures that I, a Core Formation cultivator, haven’t seen. I just want to take a look because it has a unique shape.” The girl said, glaring at him after noticing his suspicious gaze. Although she looked young, her expression and tone were dignified, which surprised him.

“It is indeed strange. I tried to activate the sword after obtaining it, but I couldn’t control it at all. If I could have, I would have used it effectively in the battle against the black dragon just now.” Han Li said, handing over the sword and asking about his own curiosity, since the girl had said so much.

Seeing her relaxed demeanor, it was clear that she had a plan to escape from here. Moreover, her lack of wariness towards him suggested that she was unlikely to attack him.

“Haha! It’s truly an extravagant item for you!” The girl said, examining the silver sword and muttering as if it was a pity.

“What do you mean?” Sensing something strange, Han Li couldn’t help but urge her to answer.

“It’s nothing much, but the reason why the silver sword is so sharp is because it’s made with a mix of silver essence, which is used when forging magical artifacts. Moreover, the ratio is not small, making it a material comparable to most magical artifacts.”

“Silver essence?”
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