A Name Shakes the Region; The Grand Dharma Warrior

Chapter 699: A Name Shakes the Region; The Grand Dharma Warrior

The others heard these words but showed no sign of panic.

Everyone seemed to understand a simple truth: if these Dharma Warriors had only dared to trap them with a restriction, it meant there were indeed very few high-ranking Dharma Warriors present. Otherwise, they would have swarmed in by now.

Still, they could not afford to be trapped for long. Once the Moulan reinforcements arrived, the trouble would become truly serious.

Thus, the old woman and the others let multi-colored light flicker around their bodies. Ceasing all pretense, they each began to display their abilities, assaulting the surrounding restriction.

Han Li, with an airy flick of his finger, sent three streaks of azure light shooting from his hand. They swelled in the wind, transforming in an instant into three azure rainbows that swept toward the nearby yellow sand.

A ripple, like the surface of a disturbed lake, suddenly appeared under the combined assault.

Then, a flash of yellow light, and the restriction tore apart like thin paper under their collective attack, shredding into nothingness.

Seeing such an easy success, the others froze for a moment in surprise. Han Li, however, showed no change in expression. He transformed into a streak of azure light and shot out through the breach without hesitation.

A hastily arranged restriction—what power could it possibly possess? Being broken in a single strike was perfectly normal. There was nothing to hesitate about.

Seeing Han Li’s decisive move, the other elders were startled for a moment, then immediately understood. They followed suit, shooting out of the trap.

Once outside, the flying sand was just as fierce, but the oppressive feeling of being inside the restriction was gone. This let Han Li relax slightly. He swept his spiritual sense across the area, intending to get his bearings before deciding on a direction to move.

But just then, Han Li’s expression shifted slightly. He narrowed his eyes, staring at a particular patch of yellow sand, and floated motionless in the air.

At this moment, a faint blue light flickered deep within his pupils, giving him an eerie appearance. His face, however, remained calm and indifferent, revealing nothing of his thoughts.

“Fellow Daoist Han, what are you doing here?” Nan Longhou, who had just caught up from behind, saw Han Li’s still, staring posture. Growing suspicious, he swept his own spiritual sense in the same direction, but found nothing amiss. He could not help but ask, puzzled.

“Nothing. I was just trying to gauge which direction we should take,” Han Li replied, turning his head with a perfectly composed expression.

“These blasted wind-sands make spiritual sense useless. How can you see anything with just your eyes? I happen to have a precious treasure called the ‘Star-Fixing Plate.’ It’s perfect for this kind of situation.” Nan Longhou said with a dismissive air. He reached into his waist and pulled out a pale-red jade plate, flat and round.

Nan Longhou held the treasure in one hand while forming hand seals with the other. A cryptic incantation left his lips. Then, from the center of his seal-forming hand, a beam of golden light shot out, striking a flowing rune on the plate’s surface.

A brilliant light, gold and red, blazed forth from the plate.

His curiosity piqued, Han Li took a closer look at the treasure.

On the plate’s surface, golden specks of light appeared, forming a strange diagram that seemed to contain celestial phenomena like stars, moons, and suns—an extraordinarily peculiar sight.

Han Li observed, fascinated, while the white-robed old man and the others also gathered around with curiosity.

Nan Longhou ignored them all, focusing entirely on the pattern on the plate. After a moment, he flipped his hand, causing the treasure to disappear, and gave a curt instruction:

“Follow me.”

With that, Nan Longhou transformed into a ball of golden light and shot off at an angle.

The old woman, the cold-faced cultivator, and the others followed without a word. They clearly trusted the judgment of this mid-Nascent Soul cultivator.

Wang Tiangu’s body flickered with black light, wrapping Wang Chan and Yan Ruyan in it once more as he flew after them.

But as he passed Han Li, this Ghost Spirit Sect elder cast a glance at him—a glance that was neither here nor there—before brushing past as if nothing had happened.

The corners of Han Li’s mouth lifted slightly. He looked back with an ambiguous smile.

Through the black light, he could vaguely see Wang Chan, head lowered, not daring to look his way. He seemed extraordinarily well-behaved. Yan Ruyan, on the other hand, the great beauty, let her eyes flicker. Her calm gaze lingered on Han Li for a moment before she turned her head away.

Realizing he was about to be left behind, Han Li let out an indifferent chuckle. A flash of azure light surrounded him, and he prepared to fly off.

But just before leaving, he instinctively glanced back at the spot he had been staring at earlier. A strange expression flickered across his face, and after a faint, cold chuckle, he shot away through the air.

In the blink of an eye, Han Li’s figure vanished completely into the wind and sand.

The area immediately fell into a profound stillness.

But only a moment later, a blinding yellow light flared up from the exact spot Han Li had been staring at. A gaping, pitch-black hole appeared without any warning, and from it crawled a jet-black, glossy demonic insect.

This insect was monstrous. It was about six zhang long and four zhang wide, with a flat, oval body.

What was even more terrifying was its triangular head. Besides over a dozen dull yellow compound eyes, it also had several long, slender antennae and a pair of massive, razor-sharp fangs that glistened with a cold, menacing light. Four transparent, delicate wings on its back buzzed softly.

And standing on the back of this terrifying insect were three figures of varying heights. One was covered in a dazzling white light that was hard to look at directly; one was shrouded in a strange, emerald-green mist, his form appearing and disappearing; and the last had pale-blue electric arcs dancing all over his body, as if he were a god of thunder descending to the mortal world.

“Grand Dharma Warrior, are we just going to let them leave like this? That hardly seems ideal,” said the figure wrapped in white light, staring in the direction where Han Li and the others had vanished. His words carried a hint of concern.

“Hmph! Let them leave? And what would you suggest? That a single illusion array could truly trap them? Don’t forget, most of these people are Nascent Soul-stage old monsters, existences on the same level as myself. Even the two weakest among them are late Core Formation cultivators. To think our Yellow Sands Tribe could detain them single-handedly is a delusion!” the figure in the green mist snorted coldly, speaking in a harsh tone. He was clearly in a bad mood.

“But what about Grand Dharma Warrior Mu of the Heavenly Wind Tribe? He personally sent word telling us to do everything in our power to trap this group. The vanguard tribes are all under his temporary command. He has gone to contact the Grand Dharma Warriors of the other tribes. If we were to activate our tribe’s sacred artifact, the ‘Demon Dust Banner,’ we might not be able to seriously injure these Nascent Soul cultivators, but we could at least trap them for a short while,” the figure in white light suggested, still not giving up.

“Nonsense! The Thirty-Six Demon Dust Banners are not to be used lightly! The ancestors of our Yellow Sands Tribe have instructed through the generations that these sacred banners are never to be deployed unless the tribe faces extinction. Furthermore, even if we did manage to trap them for a moment, if the backlash damages even a few banners, how would we deal with that? Without our tribe’s sacred artifact, how could we hold our position as one of the ten great tribes of the alliance? We might even become a target for the smaller tribes. The threat of extinction would not be out of the question!” the figure in the green mist roared in fury, his reprimand unsparing.

“Your disciple was reckless. Thank you for the reminder, Grand Dharma Warrior!” The Dharma Warrior in the white light broke out in a cold sweat and quickly apologized.

“I will overlook it, given that you have only recently become a Dharma Warrior. But do not let it happen again. It is not as if we did nothing. These people’s abilities were simply too great. We could not hold them. That Grand Dharma Warrior Mu has quite the plan. He wants our Yellow Sands Tribe to use our resources and strength to trap the enemy for him. Then, when both sides are exhausted, he will arrive with the others to pick up the spoils. Naturally, he will take the lion’s share of the credit and the spoils. Otherwise, why would the Heavenly Wind Tribe not use their own sacred artifact to block the enemy? I suspect he has ulterior motives, using this as an excuse to settle old scores with our Yellow Sands Tribe!” the ‘Grand Dharma Warrior’ in the green mist said coldly, apparently having a very poor impression of that Grand Dharma Warrior Mu.

“That Grand Dharma Warrior Mu probably did intend exactly that. After all, our two tribes have never been on the best of terms. But we are only an alliance now, not truly in a superior-subordinate relationship. There is no need for us to take such a serious approach, sacrificing our own strength for someone else’s benefit. Besides, with the terrifying speed of the Heavenly Wind Tribe’s treasure, the ‘Wind Chariot,’ they may still be able to catch these people. Heh, when that time comes, who will win and who will lose is still uncertain. However, if they can just stall these people until the main force arrives, that would be a great victory in itself,” the Moulan Dharma Warrior wreathed in electric arcs analyzed calmly.

“That Wind Chariot may be incredibly fast, but if they wait long enough to gather enough people before setting out, it may already be too late,” the ‘Grand Dharma Warrior’ in the green mist disagreed.

“Whether they catch up or not has little to do with us anymore. What I am puzzled about is the young man who broke the formation first. He seemed to have detected us hiding in the Spatial Rift. That is a bit strange. This ‘Space-Rending Worm’ of mine is one of the ancient world’s famous strange insects. Although its combat power is weak, it is naturally gifted with the ability to temporarily tear open spatial rifts, making it exceptionally skilled at hiding in place. Even though it is still a larva, and its ability to tear space and time is extremely limited, the fact that two mid-Nascent Soul cultivators missed the existence of the Spatial Rift, while one early Nascent Soul cultivator sensed it... That young man is no ordinary person. Either he cultivates some special secret technique, or he possesses an extremely powerful detection treasure!” The ‘Grand Dharma Warrior’ muttered to himself after a moment of deep thought. A trace of lingering doubt remained on his face.