Chapter 1041: Blood Knife

"Never mind. Even if that demon is powerful, after being suppressed for so many years, it's probably weakened significantly. Besides, many late-stage cultivators have gone down; they should be able to handle anything," Han Li calmly stated, gazing deeply at the bottom of the cliff.

With a gesture to Gui Ling, the two of them floated gently downwards into the abyss.

This descent was unfathomably deep. They floated down for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, yet still couldn't see the bottom.

Han Li was not only puzzled but also a little startled.

By now, their surroundings had grown dim and indistinct. It was pitch black all around, making it impossible to see very far. Looking up, however, the faint white light from above was still visible.

An ordinary cultivator, in a place where spiritual sense was restricted, would only be able to detect activity within a few dozen yards. But Han Li, activating his Brightsight Spiritual Eyes, made his pupils flash with blue light, bringing everything within several hundred yards under his control.

After an unknown duration of descent, Gui Ling suddenly whispered a reminder: "Fellow Daoist Han, we've reached the bottom!"

Han Li stirred at the sound and looked. Sure enough, a few points of light flickered not far below, faintly outlining a tall structure.

His expression changed several times. Just as he was about to get a clear look, his peripheral vision caught a flash from the side. A crimson streak silently shot out from the darkness.

Han Li was instantly hit by a pungent, bloody stench that made him want to vomit.

True Man Sisan! Han Li almost instantly recognized the person. His heart tightened.

The bloody light was as fast as lightning, appearing before him in a flash. If Han Li hadn't been highly vigilant, he would have been caught off guard and left with no choice but to wait for death.

Without hesitation, he raised his hand, unleashing a shimmering silver shield. It was precisely the Primal Adamant Shield!

The shield rapidly expanded, and a layer of white light emerged from it, enveloping Han Li.

In an instant, the bloody light swirled over, engulfing Han Li. With a ripping sound, a fearsome, ten-foot-long blade suddenly appeared within the blood light and fiercely struck the protective barrier.

The blade had an unusual design, no wider than two fingers, impossibly thin like paper, and shimmering with an eerie crimson glow.

After a tremor, the barrier shattered inch by inch. The blood blade then directly struck the main body of the Primal Adamant Shield.

A flash of light emanated from the shield, its surface becoming as smooth as a mirror. Immediately, the crimson light and silver shield intertwined in a flash, locking in a stalemate.

Han Li's expression softened slightly, and he was about to relax when the blood blade, without any warning, curved like a venomous snake, bypassing the shield and thrusting from the side. Its movement was so strange and nimble it was almost unbelievable.

Han Li reacted as if bitten by a viper, his body shooting backward abruptly while his ten fingers continuously flicked, targeting the blade.

"Bang," "bang" sounds echoed consecutively as more than ten streaks of azure sword qi shot out. However, they were all split apart by the incredibly sharp blood blade without any pause, reaching Han Li's front.

Han Li's face paled as he opened his mouth, and a sphere of green light, encapsulating an object, flew out. With a crisp "clang," the blood blade failed to cleave through the object within the green light and was finally blocked.

Enveloped in the light was the slowly rotating Void Sky Cauldron!

"Oh!" an unexpected voice came from the darkness afar.

Seizing this opportunity, Han Li manifested his Wind-Thunder Wings on his back. With a flap, he instantly appeared a dozen yards away amidst flashes of lightning. His face was pale as he raised a hand, causing the Primal Adamant Shield and the Void Sky Cauldron to immediately fly before him.

At that moment, large swathes of bloody light from all directions surged towards Han Li without mercy, their pungent odor so thick it was almost suffocating.

Han Li coldly snorted and performed a hand seal. A loud thunderous rumble erupted from his body, and a layer of golden electric arcs instantly appeared around him. Wherever the wildly flashing arcs passed, the bloody light dispersed, preventing it from approaching him in the slightest.

"Evil-repelling Divine Lightning!" The person in the darkness was even more surprised by this sight, realizing they had encountered a formidable opponent.

"True Man Sisan?" Han Li gazed at the figure in the distance and spoke coldly.

The figure gave no reply. The blood blade hummed, then suddenly, enveloped in bloody light, it shot back the way it came. The figure in the darkness flickered, transforming into a startling rainbow that sped downwards. Moments later, it vanished into a huge dark silhouette below.

"Are you alright, Fellow Daoist?" The sneak attack had happened in an instant, and Gui Ling seemed greatly surprised and hadn't had time to react. Now, she nervously approached and asked, worried that Han Li might blame her.

"I'm fine," Han Li calmly replied. "It truly is somewhat like the Demonic Dragon Blade. If my shield couldn't neutralize and deflect some of the attacks, an ordinary treasure would have been cut in half long ago." He raised his hand and grasped the Primal Adamant Shield, then turned it over to examine its surface.

A thin blade mark was deeply etched into the shield's surface!

Han Li's eye twitched involuntarily, and his gaze darkened.

He vigorously channeled spiritual power into the shield. Silver light flowed across its surface, and the blade mark gradually faded within the spiritual glow. Han Li then put the shield away with a flick of his wrist and opened his mouth, drawing the Void Sky Cauldron back inside.

"Brother Han, did you get a clear look at that person?" Gui Ling couldn't help but ask.

"No, their entire body was obscured by spiritual light, so I couldn't see through it to confirm if it was indeed True Man Sisan," Han Li slowly replied. "However, their cultivation certainly didn't seem very high." He then lowered his gaze to the massive, dark structure below, narrowing his eyes in thought.

Gui Ling didn't know what Han Li was pondering. Although she wanted to descend immediately, she could only wait quietly beside him.

"Fellow Daoist Gui," Han Li said faintly, without raising his head, "I'll consider this hesitation a first offense and overlook it. I hope next time, when it's time to act, you won't have any other thoughts in mind." Without waiting for Gui Ling to respond, he transformed into a streak of green light and sped directly downwards.

The ugly woman was first alarmed but then relieved when she saw that Han Li showed no intention of harming her. However, she remained rooted to the spot, her face alternately flushing and paling. She knew that her recent ill intentions had finally been sensed by Han Li, due to the portion of her soul attached to the vital tablet.

After a long moment, the ugly woman gave a wry smile, then reluctantly transformed into a streak of light and chased after Han Li.

By this time, Han Li had landed on a massive, square platform and was calmly observing his surroundings. Other than a dark stone staircase leading downwards not far in front of him, there were no other entrances.

"Demon Suppression Pagoda? This doesn't look like a pagoda at all!" Han Li muttered. Just then, Gui Ling landed behind him. Hearing Han Li's words, she quickly stepped forward to explain: "Fellow Daoist, you might not know, but this Demon Suppression Pagoda is different from ordinary pagodas. Ancient cultivators built it upside down. The tip is at the bottom, and the base is at the top. The more powerful the demons and monsters, the deeper they are confined."

"So that's how it is!" Han Li nodded in understanding. He then looked around again, seemingly unfazed by his earlier warning to Gui Ling or by her nature as a demon.

This, in turn, made Gui Ling even more wary of Han Li.

Raising his hand, Han Li tossed out a Moonstone, which floated above his head. He then motioned to Gui Ling, and the two entered the stone staircase, finally stepping into the demonic pagoda.

The first few levels of the Demon Suppression Pagoda were vast and remarkably peaceful, with not even a single specter present. Clearly, the cultivators who entered earlier had completely eradicated everything.

However, signs of combat suddenly became more frequent. It seemed the cultivators' struggles had intensified as they tried to prevent others from reaching the lower levels first.

Upon entering the third level, a charred corpse, still bearing a protective talisman, was found beside a stone pillar. Han Li stood by, examining it for a while, eventually confirming he didn't recognize the person. It appeared to be one of the so-called Ye Family cultivators. However, the person's skull was split open, and their Nascent Soul had escaped the body. It was unclear whether it had successfully fled or been destroyed in the chaos.

There were no unexpected discoveries on the fourth level. However, on the fifth level, two more bodies were found. One was entirely green, clearly the victim of some strange poison, its swollen face beyond recognition. The other was surprisingly the burly man among the rogue cultivators whom Han Li had noticed earlier. His massive head lay to one side, and his torso had been severed into seven or eight pieces by a flying sword.

Seeing the burly man's disbelieving expression, it seemed he couldn't believe he would die in this place even until his last breath.

Although Han Li's heart was heavy, he did not stop. After casually turning the corpse into ash, he soberly led Gui Ling into the sixth level.

This time, however, he unexpectedly found a living person: a woman in palace attire sealed within a massive block of ice. It was Bai Yaoyi.

The woman's hands were in a spell-casting gesture, holding a crystal-clear flying sword, her eyes lightly closed.

If it weren't for the faint spiritual energy fluctuations he could sense through the ice, Han Li would have almost thought she was dead, given her unusually pale face.

He didn't rush to unseal her. Instead, he first swept the entire level with his spiritual sense. Only after confirming there were no other presences did he lightly press his single raised hand onto the massive ice block.

With a "fwoosh," a layer of purple flame enveloped his palm. Then, the immense, originally white ice block instantly had its cold energy absorbed by the ice flame.

In moments, the massive ice block rapidly shrank, becoming smaller and smaller. A short while later, Bai Yaoyi was finally freed from the ice.

As the last layer of ice vanished from her body, Bai Yaoyi's eyelashes fluttered slightly, and she opened her eyes.

Her gaze immediately fell upon Han Li, who stood before her.

Her previously somewhat tense jade-like face instantly relaxed.

"So it's Brother Han," she said with a weak smile. "I thought it was someone else!" Her vital energy seemed to have been significantly depleted.

"If I'm not mistaken, Fellow Daoist Bai cultivates ice-attributed techniques. Did you perhaps seal yourself in ice just now?" Han Li furrowed his brow, his gaze briefly sweeping over her beautiful face before he slowly asked.