Chapter 1188: Capturing the Nascent Soul
"Activate the formation!" Kui Huan and the women were focusing intently on the seal, and they were able to react immediately as soon as the second Nascent Soul threatened to escape.
The 36 Drifting Cloud Sect disciples tossed their formation plates and formation flags into the air in unison.
Brilliant spiritual light immediately radiated from those formation tools as layers of five-colored light emerged before sweeping downward.
The ball of black light was completely caught off guard and before it knew it, it had been ensnared within the light.
It was naturally none other than the second Nascent Soul that was situated within the black light.
When it had been engulfed by the flames of the Triflame Fan, it had unconsciously expelled all of the devilish it had absorbed into its body as a defensive measure to save itself. As such, the devilish Qi was reduced to nothingness by the flames and even more of the devil corpse had been incinerated. As a result, however, the Nascent Soul was able to unintentionally reverse its devilfication and return to its senses.
With Han Li's memories to guide it, it immediately detonated the devilish tool, the Crimson Blood Sword, to break through the three-colored flames. At the sight of Han Li unleashing his Thunderstorm Wings, the second Nascent Soul could only grit its teeth and detonate the Ghost Sifting Banner as well.
As expected, the detonation of these two treasures worked extremely well and due to the fact that Han Li was taken by surprise, the second Nascent Soul really was able to sneak away.
However, it knew that these tactics wouldn't be able to impede Han Li for very long, so it had already made up its mind; as soon as it escaped from the devilish abyss, it was going to unleash its Nascent Soul teleportation technique and escape to one of the Seven Spirit Islands.
In preparation for this exact situation, it had set up an obscure hiding spot on that island well in advance. It had even used several special treasures to set up an extremely advanced formation that would conceal its aura, and it was confident that the formation would be undetectable to Han Li's spiritual sense.
However, never would the second Nascent Soul have thought that the lone wolf, Han Li, would recruit the assistance of others on this occasion. Even though the formation outside had only been set up by low-grade cultivators, the formation itself was extremely powerful, and it had run right into the trap!
The second Nascent Soul was ensnared within the light, and was naturally extremely shocked and enraged.
It swung its little arms wildly at the light around it, unleashing streaks of black sword Qi that fanned out around it.
However, this five-colored light was very troublesome in that it would be torn apart easily by the sword Qi, but those gashes would seal over extremely quickly, affording the second Nascent Soul no opportunity for escape. The second Nascent Soul's expression changed drastically upon making this discovery, and it abruptly rubbed its hands together before flinging them outward at the same time.
Two pillars of black light immediately erupted forth before transforming into two massive swords that were each over 10 feet in length, both of which came crashing downward with devastating might.
The cultivators that were desperately holding the formation together were finally unable to withstand the assault any longer.
Following two rumbling booms, a hole that was several feet in diameters was blasted into the five-colored light. Spiritual light flashed around the hole as it attempted to seal itself over again, but the hole was simply too large and there was insufficient magic power flowing into the formation from all of the cultivators, so it wasn't able to immediately close.
The second Nascent Soul was ecstatic upon seeing this, and its body swayed as it immediately disappeared after unleashing its teleportation technique.
In the next instant, black light flashed and the green Nascent Soul had appeared outside the five-colored light.
It aimed a vicious glare at the cultivators around it before making a hand seal to teleport away from this place.
However, right at this moment, a gentle breeze suddenly blew past it, following which a humanoid figure appeared.
"Crap!" The second Nascent Soul immediately teleported away without any hesitation.
The humanoid figure that had appeared was naturally none other than Han Li, who had just emerged from the devilish abyss with his Thunderstorm Wings spread wide open.
His expression darkened as the second Nascent Soul attempted to flee, and a cold harrumph escaped from his mouth.
A thin gash suddenly appeared on his glabella, following which a cloud of black Qi rapidly billowed out from within. The black Qi then materialized into an unsettling pitch-black eyeball that was staring into the distance.
A streak of black light shot forth, striking a certain spot in the air over 200 feet away in a flash. The black light then exploded, and the stumbling figure of the second Nascent Soul appeared out of thin air. It raised its head to look up at Han Li, and there was incredulity and horror etched all over its little face.
Han Li chuckled coldly as he opened his mouth to expel a small azure cauldron. The cauldron was clasped in his hand, following which the white and azure wings on his back flapped gently, and his entire body disappeared like a mild breeze.
The second Nascent Soul knew that it was in a heap of trouble upon seeing this, and it immediately attempted to flee the scene as a streak of black light.
However, right at this moment, a clump of azure threads suddenly shot from thin air, as if they had been waiting for the second Nascent Soul this entire time, and the second Nascent Soul was immediately bound in a tight azure cocoon.
The second Nascent Soul was greatly startled by this development, and it unleashed countless streaks of black sword Qi from all over its body to try and escape its cocoon.
However, following a string of explosions and flashing black light, those azure threads remained completely unscathed.
The second Nascent Soul was truly horrified now. Just as it was about to unleash another secret technique to try and escape, an azure arc of lightning flashed, and Han Li appeared out of thin air with the small cauldron hovering over his palm.
The sight of the second Nascent Soul's desperate attempts to escape brought a cold expression onto his face, and he gently flicked a finger toward the small cauldron.
A faint sound rang out as the cauldron's lid flew off on its own, and a burst of azure light erupted into the sky.
The azure light resonated with the azure threads that had bound the second Nascent Soul, and those threads also began to emanate intense light. As they did so, the second Nascent Soul felt the cocoon tighten around its body, following which it was rendered completely unable to use its spiritual power.
Following another flash of azure light, the azure cocoon shot forth and swept the powerless Nascent Soul into the small cauldron in the blink of an eye. Han Li then pointed at the cauldron and the lid came flying down as a streak of azure light, sealing up the cauldron's opening again.
Han Li heaved an internal sigh of relief upon seeing this, and a smile finally appeared on his face.
Even a late-Nascent Soul great cultivator wouldn't be able to escape from within the Heavenvoid Cauldron.
"Congratulations on completing your objective, Martial Uncle Han!"
Kui Huan and the women immediately approached Han Li to offer congratulatory words with fawning expressions on their faces.
Han Li smiled and patted the storage pouch hanging from his waist to produce two white jade vials. He tossed the vials to Kui Huan, and cautioned, "Hehe, you guys also contributed quite significantly during this process. There are some pills in this vial that'll be very helpful to your cultivation. Take them and split them up among yourself. Also, the security around the entrance of this devilish abyss must be tightened up. Otherwise, other devils could also sneak into it in the future."Kui Huan was ecstatic after catching the jade vials, and he offered, "Yes, I'll be sure to discuss this matter with the other sects and dedicate more effort into guarding this place. Martial Uncle, would you like to rest on Spirit Turtle Island for a couple of days before returning to the sect?"
"There's no need for that. This place isn't very far away from the sect and I have other matters to attend to, so I won't remain here any longer." Han Li shook his head before stowing his small cauldron away, then flying into the distance as a streak of azure light.
Kui Huan and the woman bowed toward the direction that Han Li had departed in, and only after a long while did they stand up straight again."What kind of pills did Senior Han leave for you two? Any pills left behind by Senior Han must be quite potent, right?" The red-robed cultivator approached them with his accompanying sect disciples, and he was looking at the jade vials in Kui Huan's hands with an envious expression on his face. "I'm not sure of that myself, but I'm sure these pills are indeed quite extraordinary. I think we should focus on fortifying the seal here." Kui Huan gave a dry chuckle as white light flashed from his hand, and the two vials were stowed away. He was clearly unwilling to speak much about this matter.
Even though the massive gash inflicted on the seal had been repaired, the spiritual light shimmering over its surface had clearly dimmed slightly.
As such, the Drifting Cloud Sect cultivators immediately flew toward the nearby stone pillars to fortify the seal again.
The red-robed cultivator really wanted to know what pills were in those vials, yet he knew that it wouldn't be smart to press the issue. As such, he merely chuckled and also instructed the disciples behind him to assist in fortifying the seal as well.
A ringing sound rang out from the dozen or so stone pillars in unison, and a layer of white spiritual light appeared over the surface of the seal as part of a gradual fortification process. Around half a month later, Han Li returned to the Dreamcloud Mountains.
However, he didn't immediately return to the Drifting Cloud Sect. Instead, he returned directly to the interconnected peaks.
However, when he opened the restriction and landed in front of the cave abode on the main peak, there was already a woman standing outside, waiting for him.
Han Li faltered slightly upon seeing this white-robed woman.
"Liu Yu pays her respects to her master!" The beautiful woman extended a respectful bow toward him with a serious look on her face. This woman was none other than his in-name disciple, Liu Yu.
Han Li's brows furrowed as he asked, "You've been here this entire time?"
Liu Yu cast a surreptitious glance at Han Li as she replied, "I'm not the only one here. Senior Martial Sister Song and Senior Martial Sister Mu are also here. We were slightly concerned about you, so we decided to take shifts waiting here for your return. My senior martial sisters are currently with my junior martial sister in her cave abode."
"Hehe, it's just capturing my second Nascent Soul. With my current cultivation base, there's nothing to be concerned about. Does that mean all of you have met Qin'er already?" Han Li asked in a seemingly casual manner.
"Yes, we've all met Junior Martial Sister Tian. She's a very clever girl; it's no wonder that you would decide to take her under your wing, Master," Liu Yu replied with a dainty smile.
Han Li raised an eyebrow, and said in a nonchalant manner, "Qin'er isn't the same as you three. She possesses the Dragon Cry Physique, so she doesn't have much of a future in cultivation. I made her my disciple for another reason, and there's no need for you to try and probe me for answers."
"I wouldn't dare to do that, Master!" Liu Yu was elated to hear this, but an awkward expression appeared on her face from having her ploy exposed. Han Li stroked his chin, and suddenly instructed in a serious voice, "Seeing as you're all here, gather the other three and come to my cave abode. I have something to say to all of you."
"Yes, Master!" Liu Yu's heart stirred slightly in response.
Han Li nodded before waving a sleeve through the air, sending a burst of azure light sweeping toward the closed gate of his cave abode.
A loud rumbling erupted as the stone gate slowly rose up, and Han Li's body swayed before he entered the cave abode.
Meanwhile, Liu Yu transformed into a streak of white light and headed straight for Tian Qin'er's cave abode.