The Wrong Man’s Mission

Chapter 570: Storms Stir Beyond the Seas – A Strange Misrecognition

Feng Xi caught sight of Han Li inside the teleportation array, and his expression shifted dramatically. He had been suspicious of Han Li’s choice to flee toward the island, a path that seemed suicidal, but he had never imagined there would be a teleportation array hidden there.

Watching Han Li spit out a mouthful of Essence Blood and form a spell seal,不惜大耗真元的瞬间催动起了传送阵, a rumbling hum filled the hall.

“No!” The demon roared in shock and fury. Without a second thought, he opened his mouth wide, and a ball of green light shot toward one corner of the array. If he could destroy the teleportation circle, Han Li would be firmly in his grasp once more.

Even as he attacked, the demon cultivator’s form blurred, his face twisting with naked ferocity as he charged toward the array like a whirlwind, intent on interrupting Han Li’s escape.

But his actions were already a step too late.

Han Li flicked out more than a dozen sword beams at the green sphere, briefly delaying its approach, but he showed no sign of dodging the ferocious Wind Tear Beast bearing down on him. He had no need to. The formation had already erupted in a milky white light, engulfing his figure.

By the time Feng Xi arrived at the array’s edge, Han Li’s form had flickered in the light and vanished.

The hall was left with the raging Wind Tear Beast. He had no idea where the array led, nor did he have a teleportation talisman on him, so he dared not rush into the light to give chase.

Just then, Miao He rode his white crane in through the shattered roof, arriving only in time to see the array’s fading white light. A look of stunned frustration crossed his face.

Feng Xi whipped his head around, his red-rimmed eyes fixed on the Daoist priest, a killing intent flashing coldly across his face.

“Every single human here dies,” the Wind Tear Beast snarled. The fact that Han Li had slipped through his grasp had driven him into a frenzied rage, and with Miao He charging in, he redirected all his pent-up violence onto this new target.

A brilliant green light erupted from the demon’s body, and in an instant, he transformed into a green rainbow, hurtling toward Miao He with terrifying momentum.

Miao He’s expression darkened. Without time to think, he offered up his ancient mirror and jade hammer almost simultaneously. Beams of colored light clashed in the air above them…

…

A month later, rumors spread through the human cultivators of the nearby seas. The Nascent Soul cultivator Miao He, it was said, had been driven to the point of physical destruction by a rank-nine demon beast. He had used every trick he had just to let his nascent soul escape back to his cave.

For a time, humans were once again terrified by the sheer ferocity of the demon beasts. What they did not yet realize was that this was only the beginning.

A mere few months later, the Flood Dragon clan from the deep abyss suddenly dispatched large numbers of their high-ranking members. They flew out from the deep sea, launching attacks across the region, hunting down any human cultivator above Core Formation.

Though the assault lasted only a few years, the casualties among high-level cultivators rivaled those of a full-scale beast tide. Two other Nascent Soul elders were caught in the crossfire, surrounded and attacked by several rank-eight and rank-nine flood dragons. Both ended up heavily injured.

From that point on, cultivators throughout the nearby seas trembled at the mere mention of flood dragons. No one dared to leave their caves lightly. This state of affairs persisted for over a decade before gradually returning to normal.

Yet one detail puzzled the cultivators who had managed to escape: every time the demon beasts attacked, they would first ask if any of the cultivators present were surnamed Li. If no one answered, they would attack without mercy.

The cultivators pieced together the obvious conclusion: this flood dragon offensive had almost certainly been provoked by some cultivator surnamed Li. They had no idea how this person had managed to enrage the entire Flood Dragon clan.

As word spread, the Li surnamed cultivator was universally cursed as a disaster-magnet. If anyone could have found this Li, they probably would have tied him up and handed him over to the flood dragons to appease their wrath.

What baffled them, though, was that despite the heavy casualties among high-level cultivators, not a single one of the dead or wounded was actually surnamed Li. Even if they had wanted to exact revenge, they could not find the true culprit.

…

Meanwhile, the man who was being cursed by tens of thousands of people simultaneously—Han Li—appeared in an unfamiliar place amid a flash of white light, the Great Teleportation Token clutched in his hand.

Given his cautious nature, he had prepared for the possibility of enemies waiting for him on the other side. He had already altered his appearance to that of a complete stranger.

But before the dizziness from the teleportation had even fully passed, a lazy voice drifted from the side.

“Well now. Looks like our friend here is an impatient one. The two of us are the earliest arrivals. The others haven’t shown up yet.”

Han Li’s heart tightened at the sound. But his mind raced, and he let out a noncommittal “Mm” before turning to look.

Not far from the teleportation array beneath him, a man in black robes was sitting cross-legged on a blue stone, his head lowered. When he saw Han Li looking his way, he lifted his head and grinned, revealing a row of gleaming white teeth.

But when Han Li got a proper look at the man’s face, he was jolted. The man’s features were horrifying—his face was withered and bony, like a living skull. And when he smiled, his eyes glowed with a faint blue light.

Despite the shock, Han Li did not dare underestimate the man. A single sweep told him this was a mid Core Formation cultivator—already a rare high-level figure in the Chaotic Star Sea.

The skull-faced man, in turn, seemed to recognize Han Li’s late Core Formation cultivation level. Surprise flickered in his eyes, and his tone became noticeably more respectful.

“Brother, rest for a while here. The others should be arriving soon. With this operation, we should all be able to claim some nice spoils,” the skeleton man said with a chuckle.

Han Li felt a flicker of confusion, but he kept his expression neutral and nodded calmly, betraying nothing.

Now that he had taken in his surroundings, his nerves relaxed slightly. The place appeared to be a cave-like hall, roughly twenty zhang in each direction. Apart from the ancient teleportation array he had stepped off, there were two other arrays nearby.

Everything matched the description Madam Fan had given him of the teleportation hub on Huangming Island. He had not encountered any accident during the transfer—he was truly back in the Inner Star Seas.

He remembered how uneasy he had felt when the Sublime Sound Sect disciple told him the array had never been tested. Now, it seemed his luck had held.

Just as the skull-faced man was speaking to him, another array flickered with yellow light. A tall silhouette began to materialize in the glow.

The black-robed man’s eyes lit up, and he immediately rose to his feet, striding over.

Taking advantage of the moment, Han Li extended a thin blade of cyan sword qi from his foot without a sound, carving an almost invisible crack into the teleportation array beneath him. This rendered the ancient array useless, so he would not have to worry about Miao He or the Wind Tear Beast somehow following him with a teleportation talisman.

Han Li’s small sabotage was hidden perfectly. Neither the black-robed man nor the fierce-looking large man who had just emerged from the second array noticed anything amiss. The two seemed to know each other, exchanging jokes and curses like old friends.

Seeing this, Han Li stepped off the array without a sound and walked toward the cave entrance. But he had only taken a few steps when the skeleton man’s slightly surprised voice came from behind him.

“Brother, the others haven’t arrived yet. The notice I received said it was a group of five. The person delivering the orders and one other party member still haven’t shown. It’s best we wait here in the cave for now. If we don’t, it might be hard to explain later. You’re not used to these operations, are you? I must say your face does look a bit unfamiliar.” The black-robed man began with some surprise, but ended up shrugging it off as if he had solved his own confusion.

For some reason, he had never once doubted Han Li’s identity.

Han Li’s brow furrowed slightly, but he quickly forced a tone of mild complaint into his voice. “So much trouble. No one mentioned these rules when I was coming here.”

“Hehe, it’s probably because you’re too high in cultivation, Brother. The ones who relay the orders naturally wouldn’t dare nag you. But just bear with it. Once the task is done, you’ll have plenty of time to roam again.” The skull-faced man clicked his tongue, letting out a strange, ambiguous laugh.

By now, Han Li had pieced together about seventy or eighty percent of what was going on. His eyes flickered. He was just about to probe for more information when another array flashed. This time, two figures appeared at once—an ashen-robed elder with white hair and beard, and a lean, capable-looking man.

Han Li’s gaze sharpened. He noticed that the elder’s wide sleeves each bore a green flame emblem, lifelike and faintly shimmering with spiritual energy—clearly no ordinary mark.

With these two arrivals, the cave now held a full team of five. Among them, Han Li was at late Core Formation, the skull-faced man was at mid Core Formation, the large man and the elder were at early Core Formation, and the lean man was merely at late Foundation Establishment.