Chapter 1677: Mysterious Heavenly Ruyi Blade

Hearing the woman's confident words, the three devils found it difficult to offer further advice. They could only ask her to consider her decision more carefully.

"There's nothing to think about," the woman said, shaking her head. Her mind was clearly made up. "If I don't go out, my injuries will never fully recover. What if my powerful enemies from the Sacred Realm also break through and pursue me? I would be utterly defenseless then. Besides, I'm leaving you here with other arrangements, which will also be quite demanding."

"Grand Ancestor, please tell us your commands," the Multi-Eyed Devil respectfully asked, and the other two devils also became solemn.

"During my sleep, was the dimensional passage to the Sacred Realm ever reopened?" the woman suddenly asked.

"Nothing happened for many years, but just recently, faint fluctuations came from the passage. Although very slight, it seems there's some activity from the Sacred Realm," the Multi-Eyed Devil answered honestly. The Iron-Winged Devil and the Blood-Armed Devil's expressions also darkened upon hearing this.

"Hmm," the woman said calmly. "Counting the days, they should have fully recovered by now and are likely planning their next move. I will leave you with a method to set up a giant magic array. This array can temporarily increase the dimensional power of the passage by several times. With this, even if someone from that side tries to force their way through, it won't be easy. However, this array requires immense manpower and resources, so the three of you must supervise separately to complete it as quickly as possible. During my absence, focus solely on this matter."

"Yes, we will obey your sacred command, Grand Ancestor!" the three devils replied, delighted, and bowed their heads in unison.

"Oh, and while I was sleeping, were there any other important events? Report them to me as well," the woman added casually, as if remembering something.

After the three devils exchanged glances, the Iron-Winged Devil hesitantly began, "Over the years, some things have happened in the mountain range. Most were minor issues that we three subordinates could handle. However, there are two significant matters that we must report to the Grand Ancestor."

"Oh, tell me," the white-robed woman said dismissively.

"Firstly, before you fell asleep, you entrusted us with the shattered fragments of the Heavenly Ruyi Blade. One of the fragments I was guarding was stolen by a Saint-level demonic ape. It escaped the mountain range, and its current whereabouts are unknown," the Iron-Winged Devil mumbled, bracing himself after a moment of hesitation.

"A fragment of the Ruyi Blade was stolen? What is the origin of this demonic ape, and how did it end up in the mountain range?" the woman's voice fluctuated slightly.

"This demonic ape was likely one of the pursuers who were accidentally swept in when you broke open the dimensional passage back then. It already possessed Saint-level cultivation but concealed itself so well that it evaded our notice for many years. Finally, it seized an opportunity when I was away and stole the Ruyi Blade fragment stored in the secret chamber. I have lost a precious treasure, and I humbly ask for your punishment, Grand Ancestor," the Iron-Winged Devil said, bowing his head and confessing his guilt to the woman.

After a moment of silence, the white-robed woman chuckled softly, seemingly unconcerned. "Hehe, after the Ruyi Blade was destroyed, most of its power was already lost. Furthermore, it was split into three pieces. Even I cannot restore this treasure. Such a ruined Heavenly fragment is impossible to repair, so it's no big deal if it's lost. What's the other matter?"

"Thank you for your grace, Grand Ancestor, for not punishing me." The Iron-Winged Devil let out a silent breath, feeling much more at ease as he spoke of the next matter. "The other thing is, Lord Underworld's mount from back then, the Evil-Headed Black Abyss Crocodile, has just successfully advanced and become a Saint-level being. In that case, it wouldn't be good to let it roam freely in the mountain range unsupervised. We're not sure what your intentions are..."

"Oh, that little demonic crocodile has also advanced to Saint-level? That's an unexpected pleasant surprise. Since that's the case, I happen to need an errand runner, so let him accompany me when I go out," the white-robed woman said, smiling sweetly upon hearing this.

Her laughter was captivating and pleasant, like a celestial melody, ensnaring anyone who heard it and making them unable to extricate themselves for a moment.

The three devils naturally had no objections and all nodded in agreement.

"Lord, the Ruyi Blade fragments in our possession..." the blood-robed figure asked cautiously.

"That thing isn't of much use to me anymore. You can keep it for self-defense," the woman said casually, waving her hand.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Grand Ancestor!" The blood-robed figure and the Multi-Eyed Devil were overjoyed and bowed in gratitude upon hearing this.

With this Heavenly Treasure fragment protecting them, their divine abilities would increase by a significant margin. The Iron-Winged Devil, standing by, naturally looked envious. However, he suddenly remembered something and bowed again to report, "Oh, Grand Ancestor, a Spirit Ganoderma has appeared in the mountain range. It's an existence on par with a Transformed Demonic Ape. I wonder if you are interested in it, Master?"

"A Spirit Ganoderma! A Transformed Demonic Ape? We have something like that in our mountain range?" The woman was a little surprised but immediately shook her head, not taking it to heart. "This is an excellent item for cultivating an external avatar and attaching a nascent soul. However, it requires a great deal of effort to refine. Given my current situation, I don't have the energy to focus on it. The three of you should go and collect it."

Hearing the woman's words, the silver-robed elder was first startled, then a hint of joy flashed across his face. The Iron-Winged Devil and the Blood-Armed Devil exchanged glances, seeming to want to say something but ultimately remaining silent.

"Alright. I've just woken up and will meditate for about a month before leaving the mountain range. You can continue to handle all matters, big or small, within the range yourselves. There's no need to report anything further to me." Seeing that the three had finished speaking, the woman gave a command, and her white robe fluttered behind her as she turned away without looking back.

The three devils felt a surge of shimmering light around them. The next moment, they suddenly found themselves in the grand hall outside the stone gate, as if they hadn't moved an inch from the start. A feeling of awe and alarm filled their hearts.

"It seems that although the Grand Ancestor's cultivation has not yet fully recovered, this ability to shift stars and cross boundaries has become even more unfathomable," the Iron-Winged Devil exhaled deeply, as if finally at ease. "If that's the case, then there truly won't be any issues with her going out."

"Indeed," the Blood-Armed Devil mused. "Moreover, the Grand Ancestor's mind is set. How could we stop her? Let's just do as she commanded."

The silver-robed elder narrowed his eyes and nodded, but then immediately said with a fake smile:

"So that Spirit Ganoderma is an existence on par with a Transformed Demonic Ape. No wonder the two of you were so keen on it. Now that the Grand Ancestor has indicated this item is for us, it's up to each of us to see who can acquire this spiritual object. In that case, I'll be taking the lead!" As soon as he finished speaking, the Multi-Eyed Devil, without waiting for the other two's reply, formed a hand seal. A surge of dark demonic wind erupted from his body, and with a whoosh, he shot out of the grand hall and disappeared.

"This old fellow is quite impatient," the Iron-Winged Devil said with a disdainful curl of his lip.

"Heh heh, Brother Multi-Eyed felt that he was already behind in his arrangements, so naturally, he had to send people to set things up immediately. However, I fear that Spirit Ganoderma hasn't fallen into either of our hands, otherwise, we would have heard about it by now. Plus, Brother Iron's parasitic avatar was also destroyed, so that item has likely fallen into the hands of an outsider. It seems the outsiders who entered the mountain range this time are rather unusual." The Blood-Armed Devil said slowly after a flash of bloody light in his eyes.

"It's hard to say if it truly fell into an outsider's hands. But it's probably too late for Multi-Eyed to make arrangements now. After all, outsiders can only stay in our mountain range for a month at most, and they are likely already not far from the exit. Even if we were to depart personally now, we wouldn't be able to catch up. If only we had known, we should have sent more people earlier." A hint of regret flashed across the Iron-Winged Devil's face.

"Haha, it's not that Brother Iron was unwilling to deploy more subordinates, but rather that you were afraid deploying too many people would attract my and Multi-Eyed's attention, weren't you?" the blood-robed figure said with a chuckle.

"Think whatever you like, Brother Blood-Armed. I'll take my leave too and go back to wait for news." The Titanium-Winged Devil chuckled faintly, appearing unconcerned.

Then, the devil's figure swayed, sliding a dozen yards away, and after two flashes, it disappeared at the entrance of the grand hall.

The blood-robed figure stared expressionlessly at the hall entrance for a while. After a long moment, he let out a cold laugh. His body suddenly dispersed into a bloody light, melting and dissolving as if a candle flame, turning into a pool of blood that seeped into the ground. In an instant, the entire grand hall was empty again.

Han Li transformed into a shadowy figure, almost imperceptible, hiding within a seemingly ordinary black cloud.

He gazed at the exit of the Demonic Gold Mountain Range, dozens of miles away. A faint blue glow flickered in his narrowed eyes, and his face was full of contemplation.

The so-called exit was merely a stretch of empty void, no more than a few miles long. To leave the Demonic Gold Mountain Range, one had to pass through this area to be drawn out by the external array's power.

Although the void outside appeared empty, under Han Li's Clarity Spirit Eye ability, he could see hundreds of gray shadows and black auras, filling the air, all appearing menacing and watchful.

Han Li stroked his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face. After observing for a moment longer, he suddenly flipped his hand, and a pale purple talisman appeared in his palm.

He affixed the talisman to his body, and immediately, a cloud of purple mist spread out, with silver runes swirling within.

His figure instantly became completely ethereal, leaving no trace.

Han Li's etherealized body then rose into the air, flying out from the cloud and drifting lightly forward. He had already confirmed that there were no Saint-level beings nearby, so he wasn't too worried about being detected by any magical beasts and prepared to fly directly across in a swaggering manner.

The magical beasts ambushing around showed no abnormality at all, remaining motionless in their hidden positions.

Han Li felt a surge of joy. In just a few moments, he was only about a hundred yards from the void of the exit.

But just then, a small beast, seemingly only a few feet in size, suddenly flashed on its surface without any warning. A burst of brilliant, colorful glint erupted from it, instantly enveloping everything within a thousand yards.

Han Li felt a sudden heat on his body; his previously etherealized form instantly returned to normal. The effectiveness of his Grand Unity Cleansing Talisman was surprisingly broken.