Chapter 181 Battle with the Colored Butterflies
"Hmph! They think too highly of themselves!"
"They don't even bother to think! For us brothers to be able to teleport together this time, we've already had great luck.
At least our chances of survival are much better than others.
It's just lucky if we manage to kill this person.
Do they really think they're so capable, trying to play such a foolish trick of waiting for the rabbit to die?
Aren't they afraid of encountering a formidable opponent who might crush us and send us straight to the gates of death?
Moreover, how could anyone come to such a ghostly place?
It's better to head to the central area early and fish in troubled waters. That's the best strategy!"
The older of the two Spirit Beast Mountain disciples was obviously much stronger and more cunning than the younger one. He lectured his companion while vigilantly scanning the surrounding dense forest.
Seeing this, Han Li became even more cautious, pushing his concealment technique to the limit, completely concealing his breath without revealing a trace. As for the foolish idea of facing the two of them alone, Han Li had never considered it, nor would he be foolish enough to do so.
These two men, one at the twelfth-level initial stage of cultivation and the other at the twelfth-level advanced stage, would surely overpower him if they joined forces. Han Li didn't possess the ability to contend against dozens of opponents at once.
Therefore, Han Li could only watch helplessly as the two men plucked the last few Cold Smoke Grasses by the edge of the pool, then burned the body of the Heaven's Peak Fortress disciple to ashes.
Finally, the two of them put the Frost Toads into a red pouch and disappeared into the dense forest on the other side.
After the two men left, Han Li didn't immediately get up. Instead, he waited for some time before shaking off the fallen leaves from his body, straightening up, and pondering the direction the two men had disappeared in.
It seemed that many others shared his thoughts.
This was not surprising. Since those who dared to participate in the Blood Trial were all thinking about obtaining the spiritual treasures in the central area, clashes were inevitable!
After all, the number of spiritual treasures generated and matured each time was very limited, far from enough to be distributed to everyone.
With a gloomy expression, Han Li stood still for a while before bitter thoughts arose.
To witness someone as cautious and meticulous as the man in blue disappearing from the world without a trace made Han Li doubt his chances of success even more!
He couldn't help but wonder if this trip to the forbidden area was right or wrong. Perhaps, simply by taking those two Foundation Establishment Pills, he could successfully establish his foundation without the need to risk such dangers.
Feeling disheartened, Han Li thought bitterly. The confidence he had in achieving his goal wavered significantly when the shadow of death truly loomed over his head, causing him to feel anxious and troubled.
Several hours later, Han Li left the area. Judging by his direction, he was still heading towards the center of the forbidden area.
After some contemplation, Han Li's rationality prevailed. He knew that the cautious thoughts he had just now were just excuses for his own cowardice. So, he forced himself to regain his composure and set off once again.
Han Li didn't follow directly behind the two men from Spirit Beast Mountain but took a detour.
Although their route was the closest and fastest, Han Li was not worried about them detecting him with their own abilities.
Instead, he was wary of the peculiar methods of beast control used by Spirit Beast Mountain disciples.
He didn't know if they had any special means to detect him through other means, so it was best to keep a safe distance.
After all, he remembered how he once used a young Cloudwing Bird to track and monitor certain specific individuals from a long distance.
He speculated that the beast control methods of Spirit Beast Mountain disciples were likely even more concealed and mysterious, as they were cultivators and their methods were beyond those of ordinary people!
Thinking of the Cloudwing Bird, Han Li felt some regret. When he entered the Huang Feng Valley, in order not to attract attention, he released the Cloudwing Bird into the Taiyue Mountain Range to let it roam freely.
At first, the bird would often come back to find its master, asking for some of its favorite "Yellow Chestnut Pills."
But as time went on, its visits became less frequent. When Han Li realized his mistake, the bird had already completely flown away. This left Han Li extremely heartbroken, as the bird could have been very useful in this trip to the forbidden area.
Han Li had no idea that this decision to take a detour had actually saved him from disaster.
After leaving the Wulong Pool together, the two men from Spirit Beast Mountain each released large numbers of colorful butterflies from some pocket or another.
As soon as these gorgeous insects flew out, they scattered in all directions, gradually blending their colors with the surrounding scenery, making it difficult to detect them unless one looked closely.
Moreover, even if some observant individuals noticed the butterflies, they would probably assume they were natural creatures native to the forbidden area and not raise any suspicions.
In this way, these colored butterflies became natural sentinels for the two men. As soon as anyone approached their alert range, the two men would immediately be informed and could prepare countermeasures in advance.
This living alert network composed of numerous insects was truly flawless in its ability to raise alarms, and it was a specialty of Spirit Beast Mountain disciples.
Even if disciples from other sects were aware of this beforehand, they would still be powerless against these insects and could not sneak attack past them.
In fact, Han Li had a stroke of luck while at the Wulong Pool. The two men from Spirit Beast Mountain had not released the colored butterflies at the water's edge. Instead, they started after they left. Otherwise, Han Li wouldn't have been able to evade their search.
This wasn't due to the two men's negligence or forgetfulness, but rather because these butterflies naturally feared the cold. With the extremely cold temperature of the Wulong Pool, they wouldn't dare to fly out and seek death.
The water of the Wulong Pool, naturally heterogeneous and extremely cold, made a large area near the pool feel like winter. In such circumstances, how could they dare to release colorful moths to seek death?
Han Li was completely unaware of his narrow escape as he stood beneath a peculiar cliff, silently gazing at the two pitiful corpses at his feet.
One of the corpses, dressed in a black tight-fitting suit, had a sturdy physique with large hands. A thin, deep red bloodline encircled his neck. His eyes were wide open, filled with resentment, seemingly unwilling to accept his fate. It appeared to be a disciple of the Giant Sword Sect.
The other corpse, of medium build, was covered in blurred flesh and blood.
Most importantly, its face had been completely obliterated, with a giant sword inserted from the front of the face straight into the back of the head, pinning the entire person to the ground.
Brain matter and blood flowed all over. However, its curled right hand's ring finger was wrapped in strange transparent threads, faintly shimmering in the sunlight.
Han Li carefully examined the corpse of the Giant Sword Sect disciple for a while before suddenly raising the tip of his foot and lightly kicking the head with the red line around its neck. As a result, the large head immediately rolled aside effortlessly.
This person had long been split in two.
Han Li sighed, then glanced at the other corpse, whose identity was unmistakable even without facial features. Although its face was gone, the yellow shirt it wore was identical to Han Li's. It was unclear which senior brother from Huang Feng Valley had perished!
It was obvious that the two had met their demise together!
Han Li raised his head, looking at the motionless cliff top. Although silent, he had already reached a conclusion in his heart, and in his mind, he imagined most of the scene from the moment the two men encountered each other and engaged in a fierce battle.
From various indications, it could be inferred that the disciple of the Giant Sword Sect was slightly stronger than Han Li's senior brother.
The blurred flesh and blood on the yellow-shirted corpse, as well as the expression of resentment on the head of the black-clothed man, all indicated this.
It's clear that both of them met their end together!
Han Li lifted his head, gazing at the unmoving peak of the cliff. However, he had already reached a conclusion in his mind, vividly imagining the scene where the two men met and engaged in a fierce battle from the moment they encountered each other.
Based on various signs, it can be inferred that the individual from the Giant Sword Sect was likely more powerful than Han Li's fellow disciple.
The blurred flesh and accumulated injuries on the yellow-shirted corpse, along with the resentful expression on the head of the black-clothed individual, all indicate the nature of this incident.
The unnamed fellow disciple, though seemingly at a disadvantage, evidently possessed a cunning nature.
Surprisingly, he wielded a transparent silk thread as his weapon.
He certainly exploited the overconfidence of his opponent, who was on the brink of victory, by launching a sneak attack at the critical moment, resulting in the decapitation of the member of the Giant Sword Sect.
However, he clearly didn't anticipate that, for reasons unknown, the black-clad individual, in his final moments, still had the strength to wield his massive sword.
With one swing, he either dealt a fatal blow due to an injury too severe to evade, or perhaps, driven by the illusion of victory, met the same fate as his Yellow Robe Sect counterpart, nailed to the ground.
This resulted in a harrowing battle with no winner.