Chapter 184: Out Action

Han Li’s mouth twitched, and he cursed inwardly, but his tightly closed eyes reluctantly opened.

Though his magical power was still a little short of being fully replenished, someone was approaching. He dared not continue meditating so openly, especially when he didn’t know the newcomer's intentions.

“Which Senior Brother is here? Please save me!”

A yellow-robed woman stumbled out of the nearby woods and ran to the tree where Han Li was. With a panicked expression, she looked up and shouted for help, seemingly convinced that her savior was surely above. Not far behind her, a white figure leisurely approached, a stark contrast to the woman’s panic, appearing completely at ease.

Seeing all this, Han Li rolled his eyes, highly displeased with the female disciple’s tendency to attract trouble. He wasn't surprised that she had found his hiding spot.

Before setting out, all Yellow Maple Valley disciples had been subjected to a unique tracking spell cast by Sect Leader Zhong Lingdao. This spell allowed disciples to sense the location of their fellow sect members within a certain range. Of course, this was time-limited, only effective for ten days. Its purpose was to encourage disciples to support each other, greatly increasing their chances of victory.

It was said that disciples from other sects were also blessed with similar spells.

Feeling helpless, Han Li glanced at the woman.

He recognized her as a fellow disciple who had been with Junior Sister Chen. Aside from her appealing figure, her appearance was quite ordinary.

Han Li coldly observed the woman's desperate plea but did not hastily jump down from the tree. Instead, he peered through tiny gaps in the leaves, carefully scrutinizing the white figure following behind.

Whether to save her or not, he first wanted to gauge the newcomer's magical power. He wasn’t willing to risk his life for a stranger.

If the white figure’s magical power was ordinary, Han Li would naturally strike without hesitation and kill them, performing a “hero saves the beauty” act. But if their magical power was profound and astonishing, Han Li would have to consider whether to team up with the fellow disciple below to repel the enemy or to immediately flee.

Just in case, he placed his hand on his storage bag, retrieved his magic tool “Golden Cicada Mother-Child Blades” and a defensive talisman, and deftly wrapped the nameless silk thread around his finger.

“Tsk tsk, what an unsightly run! Are all Yellow Maple Valley female disciples so useless? After running such a long way, you come specifically to seek help from other smelly men. Is the one in the tree your lover?”

The white figure gradually approached, revealing her true identity: a beautiful young woman in flowing white robes. Her face had some charm, but her eyebrows were slightly raised, and her expression was filled with hostility.

Although she spoke to the yellow-robed woman below, her murderous eyes constantly flickered towards the tree. Clearly, she wasn't as arrogant as she sounded; she still had some reservations about Han Li, who remained hidden.

"Twelfth-level cultivation.”

After easily discerning the opponent's power level, Han Li sighed in relief.

However, he was still somewhat confused. The female disciple below also appeared to be at the twelfth level of cultivation, so why was she being pursued so miserably? Did her pursuer have some special techniques or powerful magic tools?

While Han Li was pondering this, the white-robed woman snorted coldly. Suddenly, she flicked both sleeves, and two streaks of white light shot out, heading directly towards the yellow-robed woman.

“Senior Brother, save me! All my magic tools are destroyed; I can’t defend myself!” The yellow-robed woman’s face paled, and she cried out urgently.

No sooner had she spoken than two streaks of golden light shot down from the treetop, intercepting the white light mid-air and engaging in a struggle. It was Han Li who had activated his “Golden Cicada Mother-Child Blades,” and the two golden lights were merely two of the child blades.

The yellow-robed woman's face lit up with joy, and she finally calmed down.

Han Li chose to act for two reasons. Firstly, he felt the white-robed woman was not very formidable, and he could handle her. Secondly, he wanted to find a helper for the journey ahead, to avoid being too alone when facing enemies. After all, a fellow disciple at the twelfth level of cultivation could surely play some role in future conflicts!

“So, you’re finally willing to act! I thought you’d continue to play deaf and dumb!” The white-robed woman scoffed, showing no surprise on her face. With a raise of her hand, a large fireball flew directly towards the treetop.

With a thunderous crash, the upper part of the tree glowed fiercely red and instantly turned to ash. Yet, there was still no sign of anyone appearing, which momentarily stunned the white-robed woman.

“What a powerful Great Fireball Talisman, you’re quite generous, young lady!” Han Li’s figure suddenly emerged from behind the half-burnt tree trunk, a faint smile playing on his lips.

“Eleventh level?”

The white-robed woman was first surprised, then a look of disdain appeared on her face.

The yellow-robed woman, who had just begun to relax, immediately panicked again, inwardly cursing her misfortune. She had thought it was a high-level Senior Brother from their sect, but it turned out to be a rookie Junior Brother whose magical power was even weaker than her own.

“If you had just stayed hidden and watched the show, I might have been in a good enough mood to let you off. But since you’ve intervened, then the two of you can become a pair of ill-fated lovers!” The white-robed woman’s eyebrows rose even more sharply, and she spoke in a sinister tone, making her otherwise somewhat pretty face look distorted.

Han Li smiled faintly, silently directing the golden blades in their struggle, while casually walking towards the woman.

“Stop, what are you doing?”

The white-robed woman sharply exclaimed, raising her hand to slap a defensive spell onto herself, raising a protective light shield.

At this point, Han Li was only twenty-odd feet away from her! This made him feel a great pity!

Ever since he had easily killed the Heavenly Palace Fortress disciple using the transparent silk thread, Han Li had become very interested in this tactic. When he saw the white-robed woman not activating a defensive spell while still in the tree, a sudden idea struck him, and he naturally wanted to recreate that scene.

But unfortunately, his opponent was incredibly vigilant; she realized something was amiss early on and patched up this loophole. This made Han Li sigh deeply, acknowledging that women are indeed much more cautious than men!

Since trickery wouldn't work, only a direct assault remained.

After his disappointment, Han Li stopped wasting words. After activating his defensive spell, he gently shook the mother blade in his hand, and six identical golden blades flew out from his storage bag, fiercely lunging at the opponent.

When the yellow-robed woman saw that Han Li’s magic tools seemed extraordinary, her almost despairing heart revived. She immediately threw out a talisman, which transformed into a long fiery snake and shot forward.

The white-robed woman sneered, lightly raising her jade hand. A palm-sized small mirror appeared in her grasp.

She aimed the mirror, and a beam of green light shot out, enveloping the incoming golden blades and fire snake. It caused them to spin helplessly in mid-air, unable to descend, as if they had been enchanted and immobilized.

Han Li's eyes widened! What kind of magic tool was this? How could it be so powerful? It could actually immobilize other people's magic tools and spells. How was he supposed to fight?

“Junior Brother, don’t worry. Her magic tool can only immobilize a small area at a time, and only for half an hour. After that, it will have to be retracted and will lose its effect!” The yellow-robed woman noticed Han Li’s shock and immediately offered reassurance.

Upon hearing this, Han Li felt relieved, but the next sentence from the female disciple immediately made Han Li’s heart clench again.

“However, this wicked woman is a descendant of an elder from the Moon-Veil Sect. She has many strange magic tools bestowed upon her, so Junior Brother should be extra careful!”

Han Li was speechless.

“No wonder this Senior Sister, also at the twelfth level, was defeated so miserably. It turns out the opponent is a walking treasure trove! If only I had known, I wouldn’t have jumped out to play the hero!” Han Li was filled with regret, feeling that he would likely have to fight for his life again.