Chapter 1180: An Unexpected Turn of Events

"It seems that the two True Spirit Kings, Rahu and the Kun Peng of the Heavens, still have no intention of returning to the Wildlands," Lichima sighed as he saw this.

"Why haven't these two seniors followed Senior Baize's example and stayed in the Wildlands?" Han Li asked.

"Senior Rahu and Senior Kun Peng of the Heavens both have a free-spirited nature, often traveling through the myriad worlds. I have never seen their true forms. Now that the Immortal Realm is in turmoil and the Wildlands are also in a troubled time, I hope they will return soon to join Father in revitalizing the Wildlands," Lichima said with a sigh.

Han Li nodded but remained silent.

As the phantom images of the five True Spirit Kings, including the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, condensed into form, Baize stopped channeling the Wildlands Fire. Several of his divided figures descended to the ground and merged into one.

"The bloodline power of the five True Spirit Kings has been summoned. Although it is not complete, it should be sufficient. Your five tribes should quickly select heirs to merge with the five True Spirit King bloodlines," Baize said.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your assistance!" The members of the Qing Yuan, Zou Wu, and other tribes all rose and bowed to Baize in gratitude.

Today's successful summoning of the five True Spirit King bloodlines was largely due to Baize's magical assistance; otherwise, the blood arrays they had set up would not have been able to spread far.

Baize casually waved his hand and walked toward the Hun Tun and Lei Peng tribes.

The five tribes had already chosen their heirs.

From the Qing Yuan, Zou Wu, and Ban Shan Yuan tribes, the celebrant, the white-haired youth, and the little white ape flew out, landed beside the True Spirit bloodlines, sat cross-legged in the air, and began to merge with the True Spirit bloodlines.

For the Mo Yan Pi Xiu tribe, only Xiao Bai was present, so there was no need for discussion.

Among the Celestial Fox tribe, Liu Le'er also stepped forward under the jealous gazes of other Celestial Fox youths, flew to the side of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox bloodline phantom, and was about to begin merging.

"Wait!" At that moment, a voice came from outside.

Before the voice faded, a gray-white light flashed, and a figure appeared beside the Celestial Fox tribe—a middle-aged man in a gray robe.

His features were quite gentle, but his expression was perpetually tinged with a cold, shadowy aura.

"Who is that?" The tribespeople were startled, and many shouted out.

Inheriting the bloodline of a True Spirit King was an extremely important matter for the Wildlands tribes.

The entire Eight Desolations Mountain was tightly surrounded by tribespeople, and the Asura Blood Gate was covered with net-like restrictions to prevent interference with the ceremony, so it was puzzling how this person had entered.

Han Li looked at the newcomer with surprise.

The face of the gray-robed middle-aged man was familiar—it was Liu Zizai.

"No, he's not Liu Zizai. The appearance is the same, but the temperament is different," Han Li's gaze flickered, and he quickly shook his head.

The gray-robed middle-aged man gave off a cold feeling, quite different from Liu Zizai.

Moreover, for some reason, this person gave Han Li a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen him somewhere before.

"It's him!" Lichima's gaze sharpened, as if he recognized the gray-robed middle-aged man.

The Celestial Fox tribespeople looked at the gray-robed middle-aged man with expressions of shock, as if they had seen a ghost.

"Fellow Daoists, I, Liu, am also a member of the Celestial Fox tribe. I have come today to compete for the inheritance of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox's True Spirit King bloodline, not to cause trouble. If I have caused any inconvenience, please forgive me," the gray-robed middle-aged man said, clasping his hands in a salute as he looked around. His body erupted with a dazzling gray-white light.

An extremely pure aura of the Celestial Fox bloodline burst forth from him, vast and immense, causing the space around him to tremble violently like disturbed water.

The Celestial Fox tribespeople's expressions changed drastically as they were forced back by the aura. Only Liu Qing and the two middle-aged men beside him—one tall and one short—could stand firm.

Liu Le'er, suspended in midair, was also knocked back by the aura, her face turning pale.

But at that moment, a figure flashed beside Liu Le'er—Han Li appeared, steadying her. He waved his hand, sending out a golden light that formed a golden shield in front of them, blocking the continuing surge of powerful aura.

Liu Le'er breathed a sigh of relief and thanked Han Li.

Han Li ignored Liu Le'er, his eyes fixed on the gray-robed middle-aged man, his pupils contracting.

This gray-robed middle-aged man's cultivation had reached the peak of the Great Luo realm, no weaker than the Black Heaven Demon Ancestor from before, and perhaps even slightly stronger.

"This person is too powerful for us to contend with. Let's retreat for now," Han Li transmitted to Liu Le'er as he made up his mind.

Liu Le'er naturally had no objection, so the two of them retreated.

As he retreated, Han Li turned his head to look toward the Hun Tun and Lei Peng tribes.

Baize was standing there, also looking at the gray-robed middle-aged man. However, he did not blame the man for intruding; he simply stood there watching, like an outsider.

The other tribes in the blood-colored space, including the tribal leaders, changed expressions upon sensing the gray-robed middle-aged man's aura. Those who had been shouting at him fell silent and quietly withdrew.

The Celestial Fox tribe quickly steadied themselves. Among the crowd, Liu Qing glanced sidelong at Baize.

Seeing Baize standing there unmoved, Liu Qing frowned slightly but quickly recovered. He waved for several people to go protect Liu Le'er from behind.

Liu Qing had seen Han Li protect Liu Le'er as they retreated. He had no doubt about Han Li's care for Liu Le'er, so he did not stop them.

Three Celestial Fox tribesmen flashed and appeared around Han Li and Liu Le'er—Hu San, Elder Mu, and a dark-faced old man at the peak of Tai Yi realm.

"Fellow Daoist Han, thank you for protecting Miss Le'er in that critical moment," Hu San said, cupping his hands in thanks.

The dark-faced old man also thanked him, and Elder Mu, though reluctant, also cupped his hands.

"Le'er is not an outsider to me; it is only right. Fellow Daoist Liu, there's no need to be polite," Han Li said, glancing at Elder Mu before ignoring him and nodding to Hu San.

"It hasn't been long since our last parting, but Fellow Daoist Han's strength has greatly improved. Especially now, facing so many experts, your spirit remains unaffected—truly admirable," Hu San said, looking Han Li up and down with a sigh.

Han Li's mind stirred as he glanced at Liu Le'er, Hu San, the dark-faced old man, and other Tai Yi cultivators from various tribes.

At this moment, many Great Luo cultivators in the blood-colored space were releasing their auras to contend with the gray-robed middle-aged man. The entire space was filled with the terrifying pressure of Great Luo-level beings. Although Liu Le'er, Hu San, and other Tai Yi cultivators managed to maintain calm on the surface, their souls were constantly trembling—one could even say they were shivering.

This was the powerful divine pressure of the Great Luo realm, a natural suppression of the Tai Yi realm.

Advancing from Tai Yi to Great Luo not only involved a breakthrough in cultivation but also a great transformation of the soul, which began to merge with the physical body.

Every move of a Great Luo cultivator carried this overwhelming divine soul power.

Thus, when facing a Great Luo cultivator, a Tai Yi cultivator often felt constrained, losing ninety percent of their ability before even fighting.

Previously, Han Li had also felt this suppression of divine will when facing Great Luo beings. However, because he had cultivated the Soul Refining Art, his soul was much stronger than that of an average Tai Yi cultivator, so the pressure was much less. This allowed him to contend with Great Luo cultivators and even win using the power of time laws.

But now, he seemed to feel no such suppression at all. That was why, when Liu Le'er was in danger, he was the first to shield her before the Celestial Fox tribe could react.

Han Li's brow twitched, but he quickly realized the reason.

During this period, although his cultivation had not increased, he had refined and mastered the Time Lamp, greatly increased his time law crystal threads, comprehended the Heaven-Piercing Sword Formation, and set up the time-difference space. His confidence had grown, and his spiritual realm had continuously matured.

Unconsciously, although his soul power had not increased, his soul realm had undergone a transformation. The powerful divine soul of a Great Luo cultivator could no longer suppress him.

Han Li sensed the change in his soul and was secretly pleased, but he did not show it.

"Fellow Daoist Liu flatters me. My strength is nothing compared to the Celestial Fox tribe. Let's see how Chief Liu Qing deals with the enemy," he said calmly.

A strange light flickered in Hu San's eyes, but he did not dwell on the matter and looked ahead.

The Celestial Fox tribe had recovered from their shock and now faced the gray-robed middle-aged man in a standoff.

"Liu Tianhao, after what you did back then, you still dare to set foot in this Asura Blood Gate? Quite bold!" Liu Qing stepped forward, his eyes flashing coldly.

"What I did back then? I wonder what Fellow Daoist Liu Qing is referring to. Please enlighten me," Liu Tianhao said with a faint smile, seemingly unconcerned by the killing intent in Liu Qing's words.

"Your memory seems poor. No matter—there will be plenty of time in the underworld for you to think!" Liu Qing said with a grim smile, raising his hand and waving.

The blood-colored space around Liu Tianhao vanished instantly, replaced by a pitch-black void filled with countless twinkling stars forming a massive river that spun rapidly.

He seemed to have been transported to the depths of the endless starry sky.

The massive star river suddenly expanded, filling the entire sky and spinning violently.

A terrifying force that seemed capable of crushing the stars emanated from the rotating river, engulfing Liu Tianhao and attempting to tear his body apart.

At the same time, meteors shot out from the river like lightning, striking Liu Tianhao and sending him flying, blood splattering.

"Hmm, you've cultivated your illusion domain quite well, reaching the level of随心所欲. But this level is not enough to trap me," Liu Tianhao said, ignoring his injuries. He raised an eyebrow and formed a hand seal with his right hand.

A gray-white light mark appeared on his brow.

Then the mark split open, revealing a gray-white vertical eye that emitted endless gray-white flames.

The gray-white flames exuded a pure illusion law. Wherever the flames burned, the starry sky immediately collapsed.

In an instant, the surrounding starry sky was completely annihilated, and they returned to the blood-colored space.

Liu Tianhao's injuries also vanished without a trace, leaving no mark behind.