Chapter 195: Conflict

With a bang, the two top-grade magical artifacts only managed to create two small nicks on the tentacles before being crisply bounced away, leaving Han Li astonished.

"How incredibly tough! It's almost comparable to the texture of a mid-grade artifact!" Han Li secretly felt fortunate. If he hadn't employed some minor tricks, subduing this giant centipede would have truly required significant effort.

Realizing his flying knife and golden bowl weren't very effective, Han Li promptly retrieved them.

Although the creature had sustained fatal injuries, its vitality was so robust that it continued to writhe incessantly, showing no signs of expiring anytime soon. Frowning, Han Li decided to unleash his movement technique, swiftly flashing past the beast's head. He no longer concerned himself with its fate and returned directly to the stone hall through the cave passage.

Inside the stone hall, the several green "Purple Monkey Flowers" remained undisturbed, filling Han Li with delight.

He retrieved several identical jade boxes from his storage bag and placed them on the ground. Then, he activated his flying knife, meticulously excising the "Purple Monkey Flowers" along with the small purple stones beneath their roots. He then used the flying knife to gently transport them back to his hand, where he carefully sealed them within the jade boxes.

Once Han Li had meticulously harvested and securely stored all the spiritual herbs, he let out a long sigh of relief, his mind finally at ease.

He stretched and casually scanned the stone hall one last time, ensuring nothing had been overlooked, before unhurriedly exiting the area.

As Han Li passed the spot where the giant centipede had been gravely injured, he saw the creature lying motionless on the ground, completely dead. A large pool of black poisonous blood had flowed from beneath it, filling that section of the cave with a nauseating stench. Han Li felt a wave of dizziness and a throbbing head from the smell.

Startled, Han Li realized this was due to the poisonous blood's toxins spreading into the air. He quickly ingested some "Qingling Powder," which caused the discomfort to recede.

He stopped about seventy or eighty feet from the centipede's corpse. He then released his flying knife and poked its body seven or eight times. Only after confirming it remained completely motionless did he finally relax and proceed.

However, after only a few steps, Han Li paused. He bent down and pulled a black, murky short blade from the ground. With two fingers, he gently wiped away the black mud from the blade's edge, and the short blade immediately began to gleam with golden light, revealing it to be a magnificent Golden Blade.

It turned out that the reason Han Li could so easily cut open the centipede beast's abdomen was that, during the time he had vanished, he had been using his Golden Blade to laboriously cut through the centipede's dorsal shell.

Not long after, Han Li forcibly cut off several pieces of tough shell, each several feet in size, and carefully placed them into his storage bag. These materials, capable of withstanding the full force of a top-grade magical artifact, were exceptionally rare and valuable. If fashioned into simple inner armor, they would undoubtedly prove immensely useful to him.

In truth, Han Li's original intention was to cut off and take all of the centipede's outer shell. However, that would have been too time-consuming, and time was an extremely precious commodity for him at that moment.

Therefore, Han Li, with a hint of regret, exited the cave and immediately headed towards the next pre-planned harvesting location, where he expected to find some immature "Heavenly Spirit Fruits."

While Han Li was ceaselessly collecting various immature spiritual herbs according to his plan, significant conflicts erupted among elite disciples in other known locations where spiritual herbs were maturing. After all, there were only a few places where the ripening of spiritual herbs could be accurately predicted, making a major confrontation among "experts" from various sects unavoidable.

In a quiet valley southeast of Han Li's location, three individuals were locked in a stalemate over two "Purple Monkey Flowers"—the very same type Han Li had just obtained.

These two particular Purple Monkey Flowers, however, were no longer pale green, but a dazzling, vibrant purple, emitting a rich, unusual fragrance. In front of these two extraordinary purple blossoms, a strange deer with a fiery red horn lay decapitated in a pool of blood, having been dead for some time.

Not far from the strange beast's corpse, three individuals, each dressed differently, stood in a triangular formation. None of them made a move, apparently greatly wary of the other two.

"What exactly do you two intend? I killed this Fiery-Horned Deer myself, so the spiritual herbs should rightfully be mine!" one person finally declared, his face contorted with anger.

The speaker was a blue-robed youth in his early twenties, with a handsome, refined face and a slender physique. In one hand, he held a green flying fork, and in the other, a yellow pearl. Both items radiated dazzling spiritual light, clearly identifying them as top-grade magical artifacts. It was no wonder he could single-handedly slay the seemingly formidable high-level demonic beast.

"Fellow Daoist, I didn't expect us to meet again this year. We truly share a profound destiny!" This time, the speaker was a common old man in a green robe, leaning on a staff. He appeared benevolent and kind-faced, but completely disregarded the youth's question, instead addressing the other middle-aged Daoist priest.

"Indeed, I also didn't expect to encounter Benefactor Li again this year!" the Daoist priest said calmly, a simple sheathed longsword strapped to his back, likewise not sparing the youth a glance.

The youth from Tianque Fortress was enraged. He had possessed extraordinary talent since childhood, hailed from a prominent family, and was both handsome and refined. Wherever he went, he was always the center of attention. Now, to be so thoroughly humiliated by these two individuals, how could he not feel a surge of intense hatred?

However, before he could utter another word, the next few sentences from the old man and the Daoist priest immediately caused his expression to change drastically, and he became flustered.

"Let's not dwell on past matters. There are two spiritual herbs here; it would be perfect for the two of us to split them evenly, one each. What do you say?" The old man wasted no words, extending an invitation to the Daoist priest from Qingxu Valley to jointly divide the spiritual herbs.

The middle-aged Daoist priest showed no surprise upon hearing this. After a brief deliberation, he nodded in agreement, saying:

"Very well. Our strengths are similar, and a fight would only result in both sides being injured. Let's do it this way. I have no objections!"

The youth overheard the conversation between the two clearly, feeling both shocked and enraged!

With the two of them allied, although he was confident in the immense power of his magical artifacts, he knew he was absolutely no match. However, to simply abandon the spiritual herbs that were almost within his grasp was something he was utterly unwilling to do!

After a rapid series of thoughts, the youth suddenly shot backward, making a direct dash for the two spiritual herbs. He intended to snatch them and immediately flee.

"You're seeking death!"

The moment the youth moved, the green-robed old man's expression darkened. With a flick of his hand, he threw his staff, which transformed into a streak of green light hurtling directly towards the youth. This green light, formed from the staff, was incredibly fast; it merely flashed, yet it appeared before the youth, blocking his path, despite having been cast later.

The youth was greatly startled. What kind of magical artifact was this, to be so incredibly fast? With no time for further thought, he raised his hand, and the green flying fork in his grip moved to intercept it. His body, however, continued to rush forward without the slightest pause. It seemed he would not give up until he had obtained the spiritual herbs!

"Young friend, it's already too late! It would be wise to depart swiftly. Do not compel this humble Daoist to unleash a massacre today!" The youth hadn't even taken two steps when the Daoist priest's calm, unhurried voice came from directly behind him, startling the youth out of his wits!

The youth, his face ashen, turned his head. Indeed, the Daoist priest stood only ten feet away, watching him with a faint smile!

The pale-faced youth said no more. He immediately turned and bolted wildly out of the valley, not daring to glance back. He knew in his heart that the disparity in strength between himself and these two was too great, and further pursuing the spiritual herbs would simply be courting death. That they had spared him was already incredible.

"Hehe! Fellow Daoist's Spirit Fox Steps are even more formidable than before; truly superb!" The old man, surprised that the Daoist priest had spared the youth, did not intervene but instead praised him.

"It's nothing, merely a minor trick!" The Daoist priest said slowly, casting an indifferent gaze at the youth's disappearing figure.