Chapter 164: The Hidden Powerhouse

An immense aura emanated from the giant iron lizard ahead, actually reaching the level of the Fusion Stage!

"Roar!"

Before anyone could react, another tremendous roar came from behind.

As the ground burst open, a giant lizard similar in size to the previous black-backed iron lizard of the Fusion Stage emerged from underground, equally ferocious and hideous, with bright red patterns on its back and a pair of dark red horns on its head.

The aura emanating from this red-patterned giant lizard was also at the Fusion Stage!

"This is the Iron Lizard King! No wonder so many iron lizards have been mobilized..." Liu, the family retainer, narrowed his eyes, drew in a cold breath, and muttered to himself.

"As they say, to catch the bandits, first catch the king. If this Iron Lizard King dies, will this battle for dominance end?" The man surnamed Kou's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

"That may be so, but the two are evenly matched; it's unlikely a quick resolution can be reached. Under normal circumstances, with both of us using all our means, we might be able to kill these two Iron Lizard Kings, but now..." The retainer surnamed Qi glanced at the overwhelming tide of iron lizards fighting fiercely all around, shook his head, and sighed.

As he spoke, the two Iron Lizard Kings, after staring at each other for a moment, simultaneously leaped forward, their movements as swift as lightning.

Boom!

The two massive bodies collided in midair not far from the flying boat, emitting a huge dull sound, and then began to fight wildly.

Explosive roars erupted, intertwining together!

Violent air waves swept in all directions, mixed with dazzling black and red lights.

Nearby small iron lizards were directly blasted away, some even torn apart by the air waves and light.

The white flying boat was affected by the violent air waves, its protective barrier trembling violently, and amidst the increasingly fierce battle of iron lizards around it, it staggered backward a great distance.

"No good, the flying boat can't hold on! Senior Liu, two retainers, think of something quickly!" The man surnamed Kou looked at the gradually dimming and thinning protective light curtain and said urgently.

However, the two Fusion Stage retainers could only use their techniques to kill the surging iron lizards as much as possible, but even that was becoming increasingly difficult, and they were obviously unable to do anything else.

At that moment, Han Li suddenly raised one hand and flicked his finger.

Hum!

A dazzling white light burst out from somewhere, filling everyone's vision and making them unable to open their eyes.

Within the white light, an inexplicable fluctuation emerged, and the divine sense of everyone present seemed to be imprisoned.

The next moment, a silver electric light flashed on Han Li's body, and he disappeared from his spot, reappearing in midair above the two giant lizards hundreds of feet away.

A golden light flashed on his fists, turning them golden yellow, and he struck down fiercely, smashing onto the heads of the two giant lizards.

The two giant lizards had no time to react.

Crack!

Their heads burst like eggs, with white brain matter mixed with blood splattering in all directions.

Boom!

Without even a chance to cry out, the two giant lizards turned into two massive corpses, falling from midair and crashing heavily to the ground.

A silver electric light flashed on Han Li's body, and his figure vanished from the spot, reappearing on the flying boat the next moment.

The entire process took no more than a breath. The white light that had filled the surroundings vanished without a trace, as if it had never appeared.

Everyone on the flying boat was stunned.

"That... what was that white light?" someone couldn't help asking.

No one answered. Even the two Fusion Stage retainers were at a loss.

"Eh, these iron lizards..." one of the Fusion Stage retainers exclaimed in surprise.

The iron lizards that had been covering the sky and biting incessantly suddenly stopped fighting. The fierce, bloodthirsty light in their eyes disappeared, replaced by a look of panic.

The next moment, several high-pitched cries rang out from the iron lizard swarm. The two groups separated and then receded like a tide to both sides, quickly burrowing into the ground as they had appeared. In the blink of an eye, most of the iron lizards in the sky were gone.

This scene was like clouds parting to reveal the sun.

"Look, the two Iron Lizard Kings have been killed!"

Someone with sharp eyes pointed at the two Iron Lizard King corpses on the ground hundreds of feet away, which were being carried by several slightly smaller iron lizards as they burrowed underground.

The others were shocked. The two Fusion Stage retainers exchanged glances, their expressions changing.

"Fellow Daoist Kou, whatever happened, in my opinion, we should leave this place first!" Han Li said slowly at this moment.

"Right, right, let's go quickly!" The man surnamed Kou nodded repeatedly and turned away.

The white flying boat shone brightly and sped off in the direction they were heading, quickly leaving the area.

Seeing that the iron lizards did not pursue, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"What just happened?"

"I don't know. After the white light flashed, the two Iron Lizard Kings were killed."

"I think there must be a hidden great cultivator on this flying boat. He just killed the two Iron Lizard Kings but didn't want to be known, so he used the white light to cover it up."

"Stop joking! How is that possible? I think it was probably done by a passing immortal. To kill two Fusion Stage demon beasts in an instant—how could an ordinary person do that!"

"If it were a passing expert, there would be no need to release that white light to cover up!"

The people on the flying boat gathered in groups, whispering to each other through divine sense, and the atmosphere became somewhat strange.

The two Integration Stage attendants stood on the flying boat, their gazes occasionally sweeping over the surrounding crowd, as if trying to discern who the expert from earlier was.

However, they dared not probe too deeply.

From the way that person had killed two Iron Lizard Kings, he was surely at least a Mahayana Stage cultivator, possibly even a legendary True Immortal. They dared not provoke him.

Han Li, meanwhile, sat cross-legged on the flying boat, minding his own business. Occasionally, gazes fell on him, but he paid them no heed.

The remainder of the journey went smoothly. They flew out of the Black Rock Gobi by dusk without any further attacks, allowing everyone to finally relax their tense hearts.

After crossing the Black Rock Gobi, a vast, boundless grassland appeared ahead.

Time passed slowly as they continued their journey.

The curiosity about the mysterious expert gradually faded, and the flying boat soon returned to its previous state.

In the blink of an eye, over half a year had passed.

The white flying boat sped across a desolate desert sky.

Their destination, Mingqiu City, was close; they only needed to cross this desert to arrive.

The journey had been relatively smooth. Though they encountered some dangers, none were as life-threatening as the situation in the Black Rock Gobi.

At this moment, Han Li sat cross-legged in his room.

His ten fingers moved like wheels as he formed hand seals, and between his hands, a shimmering interplay of water and lightning slowly merged together.

A black orb materialized—a Heavy Water Patterned Thunder.

A hint of joy appeared on his face, and he flipped his hand to store it away.

Throughout the journey, Han Li had spent every spare moment refining these Heavy Water Patterned Thunders, consuming nearly half of his heavy water. He now had over thirty of them.

He patted his clothes, stood up, and went outside, gazing down at the yellow sea of sand below.

This desert below was called the Boundless Sand Sea, vast in area, but with few and weak demon beasts, making it a relatively safe region.

The two Integration Stage attendants were not on guard duty at the moment.

Han Li let out a light breath. This journey had indeed taken a lot of time.

But once they reached Mingqiu City and used the teleportation array, the rest of the trip would be fast.

"Senior Liu." The man surnamed Kou happened to be patrolling nearby and, seeing Han Li come out, walked over.

Han Li turned around and nodded slightly at him.

"Senior, we'll reach Mingqiu City soon, about half a day's journey. Thank you for your trouble along the way." The man surnamed Kou looked quite excited and expressed his gratitude.

"Fellow Daoist Kou, you flatter me. Since Liu has accepted this task, it is only natural that I fulfill my duties with dedication." Han Li chuckled lightly and said.

"May I ask what plans Senior Liu has after arriving at Mingqiu City?" the man surnamed Kou inquired.

"I..." Han Li's words suddenly halted as he abruptly looked to the right.

Several dark specks appeared on the distant horizon, and a faint whirring sound came from that direction.

He extended his spiritual sense, and his expression immediately turned serious.

"Senior Liu, what is it... It's a gale disaster! Hurry! Stop the flying boat, dig a cave, and hide the boat inside!" The man surnamed Kou followed Han Li's gaze, extended his spiritual sense as well, then his face changed dramatically as he shouted.

Han Li was unfamiliar with the term 'gale disaster'; he had not come across it in any texts before. Judging by the man surnamed Kou's expression, it was clearly no trivial matter.

Chaos broke out among the people on the flying boat. Soon, some noticed the changes on the distant horizon, and those familiar with the local climate immediately turned pale.

The white flying boat slowly came to a halt.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two figures shot out—they were the two Integration Stage attendants.

The attendant surnamed Qi wore a grave expression. Without a word, he flipped his hand and produced a large yellow banner. With a spell incantation, the banner's surface suddenly expanded dozens of times, emitting a dazzling yellow radiance.

With a wave of his arm, a thick beam of yellow light shot out and landed in the sea of sand below.

Boom!

The ground within dozens of li began to shake violently, then suddenly split open, moving apart to both sides.

After a few breaths, a huge black fissure emerged, like a dark abyss, hundreds of zhang deep.

At this moment, the black dots on the distant horizon had drawn near, revealing themselves to be massive black clouds, roaring loudly.

A fierce wind swept over the flying boat, kicking up a storm of sand.

"Hurry!" urged the man surnamed Kou, pressing for speed.

The white flying boat immediately descended into the great fissure and soon vanished into it.

The retainer surnamed Qi waved his large banner, and the split ground rumbled and closed again.

The white flying boat came to a halt in a huge underground cavern.

At this moment, massive yellow gales swept across the surface above, like enormous wind dragons roaring, blotting out the sky and covering the sun.

The sand sea on the ground was churned up, mixing into the gale, turning the entire world into a murky chaos.

The gale lashed the ground like a giant's whip, producing a thunderous roar.

Although deep underground, hundreds of zhang below, the people on the flying boat could clearly hear the sounds above.