A Name Shakes the Region — The Spirit-Fused Serpent

Chapter 746: A Name Shakes the Region — The Spirit-Fused Serpent

Seeing the burly man’s confidence in the restriction, Han Li’s eyes flickered, but he said nothing.

The old man surnamed Ma shared the same concern and, after hearing this, also knitted his brows.

“Honestly, this matter is somewhat troublesome, but there’s no need for us to be overly worried,” Han Li said with an unexpected smile, his tone casual.

“Oh? What do you mean, Brother Han?” The burly man, naturally no longer daring to disregard Han Li’s words, hesitated slightly.

The old man surnamed Ma also looked at Han Li with surprise.

“It’s impossible that the leaders of your alliance are completely unaware that Moulan spies have infiltrated the Heavenly South. I imagine they’ve captured some before. The trouble is that a high-level cultivator like this being a spy makes it hard to explain to the Imperial Spirit Sect. But the three of us belong to different factions—no one would believe we’re deliberately trying to frame a single sect. We just need to explain the situation clearly and send back what we overheard about the Moulans. Let them verify it. That should prevent any major incident. I suspect the Imperial Spirit Sect itself may have had its doubts about Elder Gu all along. That he never once slipped up over so many years—I don’t believe it. Even if they never suspected him before, re-examining his past behavior now would still reveal suspicious points.” Han Li stroked his chin, speaking unhurriedly.

“What Fellow Daoist Han says carries some weight. I’ve also used a secret technique to record our entire conversation into a jade slip. That can serve as evidence,” the bald-browed man said, his brow relaxing. He suddenly shook a white jade slip that had somehow appeared in his hand, a strange expression on his face.

“That should be enough. It’s a pity Fellow Daoist Bu is in seclusion for his injuries. If we could bring him out to testify, there’d be even less issue,” the old man surnamed Ma said, visibly relieved by Han Li’s words and the jade slip in the other man’s hand.

Below them, the three exchanged a few more details about the matter, when a strange hissing sound suddenly came from within the silver light barrier.

The three were greatly startled and exchanged uneasy glances.

Just as the bald-browed man was about to act, a thunderous boom rang out. A green claw suddenly shot out from the thunderfire, striking the light barrier before them with lightning speed. The entire silver barrier trembled violently.

“What is this? He still has the strength to shake the restriction?” the bald-browed man exclaimed in shock.

Han Li and the old man surnamed Ma were also momentarily stunned.

The burly man then grimly formed a hand seal and sent a beam of white light into the barrier.

The dense thunderfire inside the barrier immediately stopped, revealing the scene within.

“Hiss!” Both the bald-browed man and the old man surnamed Ma drew in a sharp breath. Han Li’s expression also darkened.

Gu Shuangpu was nowhere to be seen. In his place stood a half-human, half-demon serpent.

This creature—neither fully human nor fully beast—wore Gu Shuangpu’s robes. The exposed skin on its face, arms, and legs was covered in jade-green scales. Its eyes were cold and sinister, its fingers long and sharp, and two several-foot-long snake tails tapped lightly against the ground behind it.

Looking at the face among the scales, it was clearly Gu Shuangpu himself, but when its lips parted, a purple-black snake tongue flicked out, accompanied by a chilling hiss.

“This is the Spirit Fusion Art! He’s fused with a Double-Tailed Jade Snake!” the old man surnamed Ma cried out, his face turning pale with alarm.

“The Spirit Fusion Art? Isn’t that a lost secret technique? Using it—doesn’t he fear being barred from the cycle of reincarnation?” The bald-browed man had clearly heard the bloody rumors surrounding the Spirit Fusion Art. At the elder’s words, his face also contorted with shock and anger.

He then acted as if facing a great enemy, his eyes locked tightly onto the serpentine monster, his hand quickly slapping his storage pouch.

A flash of light, and the silver, dazzling restriction token appeared in his hand.

The burly man breathed a stream of refined essence onto the token, tossed it above his head, and began chanting rapidly.

At that moment, the monster within the barrier also acted.

It swept its cold gaze over the three men outside the barrier, its snake tongue flicking out and retracting twice. Its mouth suddenly split open to the back of its jaw, and a stream of purple-black liquid shot out, heading straight for where Han Li and the others stood.

Seeing this, the bald-browed man stopped his chant and pointed at the token in haste.

The token blazed with silver light, sending over a dozen silver spell seals flying into the barrier and vanishing.

A low dragon-like hum sounded. The light barrier flashed silver several times, then became three times thicker and more solid. At the same time, countless silver thunderbolts, even larger than before, began to gather at the top of the barrier.

With a “pfft,” the purple-black liquid struck the barrier wall.

A small section of the silver, shimmering wall instantly turned pitch black, the blackness spreading rapidly. In moments, an area the size of a zhang had been stained a different color.

A ferocious expression flashed across the monster’s face. Its twin tails struck the ground behind it simultaneously, and it transformed into a streak of green light, shooting forward.

In the span of a single breath, the serpent monster reached the blackened section of the barrier. Its shoulder moved, and its jade-green claw struck without hesitation.

With a “bang,” the previously unyielding light wall was torn open like paper, revealing a large hole.

Overjoyed, the monster shook itself, preparing to slip through the opening.

The bald-browed man’s face showed terror. He quickly opened his mouth and spat out a white, hazy, staff-like magic treasure. It transformed into a curtain of light, shielding his entire body.

The old man surnamed Ma reacted similarly. With a tense expression, he also spat out his ruler-shaped magic treasure. After a flash of brilliant light, a multicolored glow rose, forming a barrier before him.

Both of them knew well the terror of an early Nascent Soul cultivator using the Spirit Fusion Art.

Leaving aside the techniques themselves, the user’s combat power could instantly rival that of a mid-stage cultivator.

Seeing the monster break free, they immediately prepared for a protracted battle, prioritizing defense over offense.

But at that moment, a helpless sigh came from the side. Han Li had taken the initiative to act.

He was originally the closest to the torn opening. With a slight movement of his feet, he was already standing directly in front of the gap.

The serpent monster had just charged forward, its upper body already half out of the hole. Seeing Han Li blocking its path, a venomous light flashed in its eyes. Without any warning, it opened its mouth and sprayed another stream of purple-black venom.

“Watch out!”

“Dodge, Brother!”

The bald-browed man and the old man, having just witnessed the venom’s power, changed color and cried out in alarm.

This was not because either of them had any deep friendship with Han Li, but because they now faced a common foe, and a sense of shared resistance had arisen. Moreover, with the Moulan army yet to formally assault the grand formation, neither wanted to lose another high-ranking companion.

Hearing their cries, Han Li’s gaze was fixed on the oncoming purple-black liquid. A strange light flickered in his eyes.

His hand rose—slowly in appearance, yet swift in action—and his five fingers curled. His entire palm was suddenly covered in a layer of eerie blue flame, which he extended directly toward the venom.

This startled the bald-browed man and the old man greatly. The spirit-fused monster, momentarily stunned, did not hesitate to spray another mouthful.

A faint, almost imperceptible cold smile curled at the corner of Han Li’s mouth. A dazzling, blinding blue radiance erupted between him and the monster.

A crackling sound rose sharply. The brilliant light flashed several times before instantly fading.

The bald-browed man and the old man surnamed Ma quickly blinked, their eyes readjusting as they looked again in shock.

What they saw left them dumbfounded.

The spirit-fused monster, resembling a snake demon, had just managed to emerge fully from the barrier, its twisted face filled with ecstasy. But now, its entire body shimmered with a crystalline light, frozen solid into a lifelike blue ice statue. The purple venom it had spat was now a long, thin icicle, extending bizarrely several feet from its mouth.

Han Li, meanwhile, had somehow appeared behind the monster. One hand, wreathed in blue demonic flame, was just slowly withdrawing from the monster’s neck.

“As I thought, a monster born from a first-time fusion. Its intelligence isn’t low, but its combat experience is far too lacking. Nothing to fear,” Han Li remarked calmly, staring at the ice statue.

He then raised his other hand. A thick golden lightning arc shot out from his palm and struck the ice statue, instantly transforming into a fine golden net that enveloped it.

Blue light and golden light interwove and flickered together. A cracking sound followed, and the ice statue shattered into pieces.

Amidst the scattered ice crystals and blue light, a fist-sized sphere of purple-black matter suddenly appeared and immediately shot outward. But it crashed headlong into the golden net that had already been prepared, letting out a sharp, inhuman screech.

A fierce expression flashed across Han Li’s face. The fingers of the hand emitting the golden lightning arc clenched together.

The golden net instantly contracted and tightened, then violently exploded.

A blinding golden light rose, swallowing the purple-black sphere completely.