Shock and Suspicion

Chapter 346: Shock and Suspicion

Holding his breath, Han Li watched the giant mantis as it made several sweeps over an area of several li. Suddenly, it shot straight toward his hiding spot.

Han Li’s face turned ashen.

His expression cold, he gripped the Blood Spirit Diamond tightly and began to channel spiritual power into it. The artifact immediately began to grow warm.

Expressionless as he watched the demonic beast descending, Han Li had already decided to release the artifact only when the creature was relatively close. Only by doing so could he maximize his certainty of wounding or killing it.

Of course, the price of such a tactic was that the danger would increase exponentially. But at this point, Han Li no longer cared.

Fifty zhang. Forty zhang. Thirty zhang…

Han Li’s heart pounded violently. He took a deep breath and was just about to flick his wrist and release the Blood Spirit Diamond.

But the scene that unfolded left him utterly dumbfounded.

At a distance of twenty zhang above his head, the mantis suddenly executed a sharp turn, changing direction to angle toward a spot not far from Han Li’s hiding place. After a couple of miserable beastly roars, the giant mantis emerged from the forest again, carrying a massive wild boar impaled on its forelegs. Without hesitation, it flew off in the direction from which it had come.

Only after the demonic beast’s figure had completely vanished from sight did Han Li let out a long breath. He collapsed onto the ground, abandoning all pretense of a cultivator’s composure.

That had been a close call!

If he hadn’t intended to attack only at close range, he would likely have ended up as the beast’s meal, just like that wild boar.

Escaping unscathed this time was sheer luck!

Han Li felt a wave of relief, for the first time thinking that his fortune wasn’t so bad after all.

After calming himself somewhat, his thoughts turned to the root cause of this whole ordeal—the cultivator from the Spirit Beast Sect who had seized Qu Hun’s body. A surge of rage flooded through him.

It was obvious now: the letter in the cave had been a trap set by that man.

No matter how cautious he had been, he was still outwitted by that old fox, who had set him up thoroughly and nearly cost him his life.

“Fine. Very good. Since I’m still alive, you’d better watch your back!” Han Li muttered bitterly as he sat resting, his anger palpable for the first time.

In his mind, that “Qu Hun” had pasted three Spirit-Fixing Talismans on himself. There was no way he could have broken free through his own cultivation. As soon as Han Li returned, he would easily take that man’s life.

Once he felt his stamina and spiritual power had fully recovered, Han Li immediately took flight on his artifact, heading back in the same direction.

But this time, he no longer dared to fly openly at high altitudes. Instead, he kept to a cautious low altitude of about ten zhang above the ground, terrified of drawing the mantis’s attention again.

As he flew back, the cold night air helped to extinguish much of his raging fire. His mind cleared, and he began to re-examine the entire sequence of interactions between himself and “Qu Hun.”

After considering the man’s words and actions, along with the terror of the mantis beast, he grew suspicious of the man’s original identity as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

A bug-type demonic beast of this caliber appearing within a hundred li of Jiayuan City could hardly be a wild specimen.

Given the man’s identity as a cultivator of the Spirit Beast Sect, there was a ninety percent chance that the giant mantis was one of his trained spirit beasts.

A spirit beast this fearsome—Han Li found it hard to believe that a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator could have trained it. In his judgment, that mantis alone could handle three or four late-Foundation Establishment cultivators. Its strength was simply absurd.

“Could it be that ‘Qu Hun’ was never just a Foundation Establishment cultivator, but a Core Formation…” he began to speculate.

Han Li was startled by his own conjecture.

As he neared the original small hill, he halted mid-flight, floating in the air as he sank into deep thought.

How could a Core Formation cultivator end up in the miserable state of a destroyed physical body and an expelled primordial soul? If he encountered a fellow Core Formation cultivator, even if he couldn’t win, he should have been able to escape—unless he had run into an Nascent Soul old monster from Yue.

But the Nascent Soul cultivators of the Seven Sects had long ceased to involve themselves in worldly affairs. Some two or three of them didn’t even seem to be in Yue anymore. Even during the recent clashes between the demonic path and the Seven Sects, Han Li had never heard of any Nascent Soul cultivators making a move.

He found it hard to imagine what kind of cataclysmic destruction would ensue if such beings truly fought.

Still, Han Li was somewhat dissatisfied with the way these Nascent Soul cultivators sat idly by while low-level cultivators fought and died, watching coldly from the sidelines. He had silently cursed them more than once. What exactly were these high-level cultivators on both sides up to?

“Could it really be that coincidental—that this man, who might be a Core Formation cultivator, ran into one of those old monsters?” Han Li speculated.

If the one who had seized Qu Hun’s body really was a Core Formation cultivator, then it all made perfect sense—his extensive knowledge of the demonic path’s invasion secrets, and his possession of such a powerful spirit beast as the mantis.

After some deliberation, Han Li had to admit that the probability of “Qu Hun” being a Core Formation cultivator was as high as sixty or seventy percent. This realization sent a chill down his spine, and a strange expression crossed his face.

There was both fear and a trace of excitement.

“Could he be playing the fool? Deliberately pretending to have such low cultivation, just toying with me all along?” Han Li’s mind raced, trying to gauge the worst-case scenario.

“No. He’s definitely not deliberately feigning weakness.” After a moment of further contemplation, Han Li reached a confident conclusion.

For one thing, there was no doubt that the man had only seized Qu Hun’s body a few years ago. As a result, his originally unfathomable cultivation would naturally have been lost, just as he had claimed.

Even though his primordial soul remained intact, meaning he would face no bottlenecks in re-cultivation, his current level of power was entirely consistent with his apparent state.

Moreover, Han Li could tell that the man was no longer able to control the mantis spirit beast. Otherwise, why wouldn’t he keep such a powerful bodyguard by his side?

At this moment, the man was at his weakest. What he needed most was strong protection. Having lost that, he had no choice but to lure Han Li to the cave, hoping the out-of-control mantis would kill him.

Han Li was exceptionally sharp-minded. Once he pieced the whole situation together, he understood roughly seventy or eighty percent of the truth. His courage swelled again.

This wasn’t about Han Li taking advantage of a vulnerable enemy to gain some cheap benefit. It was about the fact that he and this Spirit Beast Sect cultivator were now sworn enemies.

If the man managed to escape, once he recovered his Core Formation strength, he would surely tear Han Li into pieces.

Therefore, Han Li absolutely could not allow him to leave this place alive.

Clearly understanding the stakes, Han Li no longer hesitated. He urged his flying artifact forward, heading straight for the small hill.

In an instant, he reached the summit. His eyes immediately fell upon “Qu Hun,” who was still obediently rooted to the spot, the talismans still intact on his body.

Overjoyed, Han Li landed about ten zhang away from the man, keeping two artifacts ready in his hands.

Seeing Han Li descend from the sky, “Qu Hun’s” face registered shock, as if he had never expected Han Li to survive.

He forced a smile and opened his mouth as if to say something.

But Han Li took only a few steps forward before raising his hand without any hesitation. Two streaks of black light shot out with a piercing screech, flying straight at him.

Since he had resolved to finish this, Han Li had no interest in exchanging pleasantries with a dead man.

As the Black Dragon Harpoons hurtled toward him with fierce momentum, “Qu Hun’s” expression twisted in alarm.

Just as Han Li expected to see him torn to pieces, “Qu Hun” suddenly twisted his body, leaping several zhang to the side and dodging the attack.

“What are you doing? Have you forgotten the poisonous oath you swore?” the Spirit Beast Sect cultivator shouted in panic and anger.

Clearly, he hadn’t expected such a vicious assault the moment Han Li appeared.

Han Li paid no attention to his words. Instead, his gaze locked onto the three Spirit-Fixing Talismans on the man’s body, hardly believing his eyes.

“The talismans haven’t been removed—how can he move?” Han Li was filled with suspicion.

But this was no time for questions or delays. With a cold snort, Han Li said nothing more. He pointed at the Black Dragon Harpoons, and the artifacts immediately swelled several times in size, transforming into two thick beams of black light that flashed toward the opponent in the blink of an eye.

He had made up his mind. Even if it meant sacrificing Qu Hun’s corpse, he would annihilate this Core Formation cultivator’s primordial soul down to the very last shred.

“Qu Hun” seemed to read Han Li’s intent of all-out warfare. Seeing the Black Dragon Harpoons pressing down on him with deadly force, he opened his mouth wide in desperation. A stream of green light shot out, meeting the harpoons head-on and barely holding them back.