Chapter 1538: Leaving

**Volume 7: Traversing the Human World – Volume 9: Hundred Races of the Spirit World**

Two days passed in a flash. In the grayish-white mountain range, atop an unnamed massive mountain, a huge magic formation, a hundred zhang in circumference, had been set up.

At the edge of this formation, eight high platforms stood, each with a tall, towering banner inserted into it. Gold and silver runes flickered faintly on the banners.

At the center of the formation, Han Li stood motionless.

Standing outside the formation were only a few people: the elderly man surnamed Jiang, along with the two women, Yuan Yao and Yan Li.

The sky was misty.

High in the sky, a huge white mark, over a hundred zhang long, floated faintly, appearing and disappearing.

“Fellow Daoist Han,” the old man said to Han Li after a moment, lowering his head, “although I can use the spatial rift in the Land of the Nether River to teleport you outside with the power of this formation, I cannot guarantee your exact destination in the outside world. But rest assured, you definitely won't be teleported to another continent; most likely, you'll still be in the vicinity of the Feathered Spirit Race.”

“Thank you for the guidance, Senior. This junior understands,” Han Li replied respectfully, his heart tensing.

“Very well, it's almost time,” the old man said. “I will now cast the spell to send you away from the Land of the Nether River. Oh, and keep this item safe. When you gather enough resources and wish to enter this place again, you can use the method described on it to re-enter the Land of the Nether River. I only have this one piece of this item, and it's a single-use consumable.” As he spoke, the old man raised his hand, and two items shot out.

Han Li quickly raised his hand to catch them. He focused his gaze on them, then gasped in surprise:

“Senior, you actually possess a Reverse Star Bowl?”

In his hand were a round basin glowing with white light and a blue jade slip.

“Oh, you know this item? That's quite rare,” the old man said, a hint of surprise flashing across his face before he spoke nonchalantly. “However, this isn't the true Reverse Star Plate; it's merely a replica. But the materials for refining this item are extremely hard to find. I originally crafted a few pieces, but most have been used up. Now, only this one remains. The jade slip contains the method for you to use this item to enter the Land of the Nether River. You can examine it carefully later. Also, the Gold Devouring Beetles you used for scouting that day, take them back as well.” He then flicked his sleeve again.

Immediately, a shimmering green treasure flew out from his sleeve: a verdant wooden pagoda, seemingly dripping with life.

As the treasure spun lightly, two golden flowers immediately shot out from its base.

These were precisely the Gold Devouring Beetles the old man had taken previously.

Han Li was delighted to see this. He immediately extended his hand and beckoned, and the two Gold Devouring Beetles instantly spread their wings and shot back towards him.

“Fellow Daoist Han, that you can cultivate mature Gold Devouring Beetles is truly an extraordinary stroke of luck,” the old man said, chuckling softly as he advised. “However, let me offer you some advice. While mature Gold Devouring Beetles are indeed terrifying, they are, after all, a gregarious type of spirit insect, only able to unleash their true power when they reach a certain number. A mere few of them can easily be countered by high-level cultivators using wood or stone-type treasures, and can only be used for surprise attacks. Instead of devoting so much effort to these Gold Devouring Beetles, Fellow Daoist, you would do better to focus more on your own cultivation. Of course, if you could cultivate thousands of mature Gold Devouring Beetles and command them as if they were your own limbs, then you could traverse most of the Spirit World at will. Ordinary wood or stone-type treasures wouldn't be able to trap so many mature Gold Devouring Beetles. However, with so many Gold Devouring Beetles, the mental energy consumption alone would be unbearable even for Grand Ascension cultivators like us. Heh heh, if you could cultivate the legendary Gold Devouring Beetle King, not to mention Grand Ascension cultivators like myself, even True Immortals from the heavens would likely retreat three paces upon seeing it.”

“Gold Devouring Beetle King?” Han Li was stunned. He had truly never heard of this name before.

“What, you don't know?” the old man chuckled. “Oh, right. Only a few heteromorphic races, like the Mayfly Tribe, who have a strong connection with insects, know about the Gold Devouring Beetle King, so it's not surprising you don't. I won't say much more about this. If you have the chance, you can look for relevant information yourself. This Beetle King is just a rumor that has circulated for an unknown period; I've never heard of anyone actually cultivating one. You don't need to overthink it.” Deciding not to say more, he performed a hand sign. With a resounding "rumble" and a bolt of lightning in the clear sky, the nearby heavens suddenly became overcast with dark clouds, and strong winds began to rage.

In the wind, intermittent incantations escaped from the old man's mouth. Although the sound was not loud, it was exceptionally clear.

A terrifying scene unfolded.

Without any further action from the old man, the eight giant banners on the high platforms simultaneously shook. As the banners swayed in the wind, the entire formation began to hum.

Multicolored spiritual threads emerged near the formation, transforming into streams of light and mist that swept towards the eight giant banners.

Amidst flickering spiritual light, the eight giant banners gradually emitted countless rays of light and mist. Bursts of astonishing spiritual pressure subtly permeated the area, and various parts of the formation also lit up one by one as runes popped out from within, one after another.

Han Li, standing at the very center of the formation, could clearly feel the terrifying power contained within these runes.

If the runes were to explode simultaneously, even with his current iron bones and bronze sinews, he would absolutely be unable to resist.

Han Li's expression subtly changed, and he took a deep breath.

Outside the formation, Yuan Yao's expression also changed as she watched this scene, and a hint of worry flashed in her eyes as she looked at Han Li.

The eight giant banners spun lightly, simultaneously radiating eight light beams, each as thick as a bowl, which vanished into the sky in a flash.

Immediately, the white mark in the sky brightened considerably, becoming several times clearer than before.

Seeing this, the old man swept his sleeve towards the sky.

A muffled sound echoed above the formation, immediately followed by dazzling, piercing green light as a shimmering green light sword, several zhang long, appeared.

“Cleave!” the old man commanded sternly, his face devoid of expression. He extended two fingers and lightly pointed at the light sword.

The green light sword instantly stood upright and slashed through the air towards the white mark in the sky.

A sudden loud buzzing resonated in the nearby air, which tightened, as if all the surrounding Heaven and Earth spiritual energy had been sucked dry by this sword.

The giant green sword, in the instant it slashed, expanded wildly by countless times, seemingly becoming a sky-piercing divine weapon that obscured most of the sky.

With a "rip," a tearing sound echoed throughout the sky.

The giant green sword actually cleaved open the white mark.

Within the white mark, a dark, slender rift leaped into appearance.

The old man waved a hand, and the giant sword immediately dissipated and vanished.

At the same time, eight massive runes appeared near the black rift. Each was the size of a house, shimmering with golden light and rotating continuously.

Han Li felt the surrounding air tighten, then the runes from the formation beneath his feet simultaneously floated towards his body.

His heart jolted. Just as a chill crept up his spine, the runes instantly transformed into multicolored light, swirling rapidly around Han Li.

He only felt a slight blur around him, and then his entire world spun.

After a strange shriek, a five-colored light pillar shot up from the center of the formation and vanished into the black rift in a flash.

At the same time, the entire formation's light dimmed, and it ceased operation.

The center of the formation was empty; Han Li was nowhere to be seen.

“Master, was Brother Han truly sent out?” Yuan Yao, having witnessed all of this, no longer concealed her concern and couldn't help but ask the old man.

“Yao'er, there's no need to worry,” the elderly man surnamed Jiang replied with a chuckle. “This spell was very successful; he should now be back in the Spirit World. If fate allows, he will naturally return to the Land of the Nether River, perhaps in a few hundred years, or over a thousand. You will certainly have a chance to meet him again.”

It seemed the old man had discerned something, as there was a slight teasing tone in his words. Yuan Yao's face flushed slightly. She didn't try to explain anything, but couldn't help but glance up at the sky again.

She saw that the black rift high in the sky was now gradually closing, transforming back into a white mark, which then gradually blurred.

“Junior Sister, let's go back,” Yan Li said with a smile, coming over and resting her fair wrist on Yuan Yao's shoulder. “Didn't Senior Jiang say that if fate allows, you'll meet again? Don't look at how your cultivation and abilities are far inferior to Fellow Daoist Han's right now. But with Senior Jiang as your master, I believe that after a century, your cultivation realm will definitely not be beneath his.”

“Heh heh, what this girl says isn't wrong,” the elderly man surnamed Jiang said with extreme confidence. “Even if that Han boy seems somewhat extraordinary, with my personal assistance, Yao'er entering the Void Refinement stage is almost a certainty. Even for you to enter the Integration stage, I have a forty to fifty percent certainty.”

“Master, with such great kindness, Yao'er will certainly cultivate wholeheartedly.” Yuan Yao, after all, was no ordinary woman. Upon hearing this, she composed herself and bowed deeply to the old man, her face full of gratitude.

Just as Han Li was being sent away from the Land of the Nether River by the elderly man surnamed Jiang, through a spatial breach, in a vast wilderness countless miles away from the grayish-white mountain range, Six-Legs, the white-haired beautiful woman, the blood-robed figure, and the Purple Blood Puppet were trapped in a sea of insects, struggling to hold on.

All around them, whether in the sky or on the ground, monstrous insects, resembling centipedes but with wings on their backs and hooked tails, were swarming and attacking them from all directions.

Each of these monstrous insects was three to four feet in size, extraordinarily ferocious and malevolent, and utterly fearless of death.

At this moment, Six-Legs had also transformed into a giant black insect. Countless black rays continuously shot out from its body, piercing through and dispersing the attacking insects.

As for the Purple Blood Puppet, under the blood-robed figure's activation, its body grew a thousandfold in size, golden arcs crackled around it, and its six eyes continuously spewed out crimson light beams.

The white-haired beautiful woman had once again donned black battle armor, and the strange hammer she furiously wielded above her head transformed the area around her into a sea of green flames, keeping the monstrous insects at bay.

Six-Legs and the others clearly had the upper hand, yet all three of them looked exasperated.

Because no matter how many they killed, the monstrous insects swarming from all directions were endless, seemingly inexhaustible.

More than ten miles away from the battle, a human-faced monstrous insect resembling a mantis floated in mid-air. Its cold eyes stared at the battle involving Six-Legs and the others, flickering with an extremely sinister cold light.

And above this insect, a semi-circular object, a hundred zhang in diameter, hovered. With its silver light flickering, countless monstrous insects surged out from it, continuously swarming towards Six-Legs and the others in the distance.