Chapter 422: Old Trick

"Six li ahead along this street, in the first alley there is an old mansion. In the first courtyard of the mansion there is an old well, and at the bottom of the well lies a formation node..." Han Li led Cold Flame Ancestor and Lu Yuqing, beginning to search for formation nodes one by one.

Cold Flame Ancestor listened intently to Han Li's account, nodding or shaking his head from time to time, judging the authenticity of each formation node based on his memories from that year. The three of them wandered through the bustling city together.

In reality, the white stone square where the three stood was not large, but the area within the illusion array was immeasurable. Starting from the old well in the alley's old mansion, they passed through a low tavern and a brothel, twisted and turned, and arrived at the backyard of a government office.

After that, they stepped on a white stone millstone in the backyard, climbed over a wall less than seven feet high, and entered a deep alley where ordinary people lived.

Exiting the alley, they crossed seven or eight more streets and finally arrived before a school.

During this time, Lu Yuqing's eyes gradually grew dazed at the bustling crowds around her. Fortunately, under Han Li's reminder through a divine sense secret technique, she did not sink into it.

Inside the school, a teacher seemed to be giving a lesson, and the clear, melodious sound of children reciting texts came from within, full of rhythm.

Outside the school gate stood an old elm tree over a hundred years old. It was not very tall but extremely thick, appearing to be as wide as four people embracing it.

At that moment, Han Li and the others were standing in the shade of the old elm tree.

"The exit of the last illusion array was the skeletal remains of a wild beast, completely different from this time, so I am not entirely certain..." Cold Flame Ancestor looked at the old elm tree, somewhat uncertainly.

"The flow of spiritual power here is quite different from what we encountered before. I think this should be the place..." Han Li said slowly, examining the elm tree through his true vision.

With that, he raised his hand, formed a hand seal, and struck it toward the old elm tree.

At that moment, the golden eye suspended above his head trembled slightly, and a golden ripple spread from it. When it touched the old elm tree, it suddenly brightened.

Amidst the golden light, a blue vortex over one person in height appeared, within which a narrow passage extending backward could be faintly seen.

Cold Flame Ancestor stepped forward, examined it carefully, then nodded to Han Li and said, "It should be correct. The situation inside the passage is almost identical to last time."

"Then let's go. We've already wasted a lot of time," Han Li said.

As he spoke, the light above his head flickered, the golden light of the true vision dissipated, and he absorbed it into his body.

Cold Flame Ancestor paused slightly, then bent down and stepped into the blue vortex, walking toward the depths of the passage.

Lu Yuqing followed closely, and Han Li entered last.

About half a quarter of an hour later, a strange fluctuation rippled in the void above the other end of the white stone square, and the figures of Han Li, Cold Flame Ancestor, and Lu Yuqing fell from the air.

After steadying himself, Cold Flame Ancestor scanned the surroundings but did not see Xiong Shan.

"No need to look. He is a formation master, skilled in this art, and having experienced breaking the array before, he must have come out earlier. He should have already gone toward the main hall," Han Li said slowly, glancing in the direction of the palace.

With that, a blue light flashed in his eyes, and he looked again toward the center of the square.

There, the mist churned violently, and chaotic fluctuations of spiritual power emanated from within, indicating that Xue Han had also entered the illusion array.

"Let's go. While that bastard Xue Han is trapped in the array, take me to the place where the Great Cycle Star Origin Art is stored," Han Li said, withdrawing his gaze and addressing Cold Flame Ancestor.

Cold Flame Ancestor nodded and led the way toward the three main halls.

The central one of the three halls was closest to Han Li and his companions. It was a double-eaved hall, much taller than the other two.

In front of the hall stood eighteen large golden pillars, densely engraved with incised runes, looking very ancient.

The main gate of the hall was over ten zhang high, made entirely of purple gold, also covered with runes. However, the left door leaf was slightly ajar, its surface pitch-black, showing clear signs of scorching by flames.

"This hall is nothing but a trap. Inside, there are only two puppets and nothing else," Cold Flame Ancestor said, glancing at the door as he bypassed the hall and headed toward the one on the right rear.

"Were the restrictions of that hall destroyed when you entered last time?" Lu Yuqing suddenly asked.

"Remember I said there were four of us who walked out of the illusion array together? The other two died in that hall," Cold Flame Ancestor said without turning back.

Lu Yuqing's face paled slightly upon hearing this.

The three fell silent and soon arrived before the hall on the right.

This hall appeared slightly smaller than the previous one, but the building materials were the same, and the architectural style was basically identical. The only difference was that its doors were tightly closed, and the inscribed runes were still intact.

"Fellow Daoist Han, the stone slab recording the first half of the Great Cycle Star Origin Art that I obtained came from the rear hall of this building. The remaining half should also be there," Cold Flame Ancestor said, looking at Han Li.

"You couldn't take out the complete功法 at once back then. I suppose there was something unusual inside the hall?" Han Li nodded and asked.

"Indeed. Inside the hall, there is a bronze puppet with the strength of a Golden Immortal guarding it," Cold Flame Ancestor nodded.

Han Li was startled at first, then a hint of doubt appeared on his face.

"Forgive my frankness. If there is a Golden Immortal puppet guarding inside, with your strength before cultivating the Great Cycle Star Origin Art, it would have been impossible to steal half of the功法," he said, looking directly at Cold Flame Ancestor.

"You are right, Fellow Daoist Han. At that time, I couldn't even withstand one of its attacks. So I didn't fight it. Instead, I released several puppets I carried to distract it, then used a concealed treasure to hide my aura and sneaked into the rear hall, barely succeeding," Cold Flame Ancestor sighed lightly.

Upon hearing this, a look of understanding appeared on Han Li's face.

Puppets, except for some special types or those with intelligence like Crab Daoist, are generally not good at detection and perception. If one hides their aura well and times it cleverly, there is a certain chance of sneaking in to steal treasures.

"However, as soon as I took the stone slab inscribed with the first half of the Great Cycle Star Origin Art, the Golden Immortal puppet immediately detected it. I only took one punch from it and was severely injured. Fortunately, for some reason, it did not chase me out of the hall, and I barely escaped with my life. Thinking back now, it was truly a narrow escape," Cold Flame Ancestor recalled the scene, still shuddering.

"Based on your last experience, what do you think of the puppet's intelligence?" Han Li asked again.

"Although I only fought it briefly last time, I could tell that while its killing power was immense, its intelligence seemed low. Otherwise, it wouldn't have failed to see through my decoy trick," Cold Flame Ancestor pondered for a moment and said.

"If that's the case, the reason it didn't chase out of the hall is likely because its original master restricted its range of action, ordering it not to leave the hall and to guard the功法. This makes it much easier for us to obtain the second half," Han Li said, his eyes flickering.

"Fellow Daoist Han means we should use my previous method to steal the功法 again?" Cold Flame Ancestor asked hesitantly.

"Exactly, that's my intention. But for the specific operation, I will need your cooperation, Fellow Daoist Cold Flame," Han Li said, glancing at him.

"Please speak freely, Fellow Daoist," Cold Flame Ancestor made a gesture of invitation.

Han Li then explained his plan to him. Cold Flame Ancestor listened in silence until the end, then finally said, "This plan is feasible."

"Brother Han, why am I not included in your arrangement? Do you think I am too weak to help?" Lu Yuqing, who had been standing nearby and heard Han Li's entire plan, hesitated and asked.

"Not at all. Our plan is to steal, not to seize, so fewer people are better. Moreover, the treasure hidden here is only a功法 that the two of us cultivate, which is of no use to you. Why should you take the risk?" Han Li shook his head and explained.

"In that case, I won't add unnecessary complications," Lu Yuqing said, nodding and no longer insisting.

Han Li and Cold Flame Ancestor each took a pill, rested for a moment, and then stepped onto the stone steps before the hall.

The runes on the hall door were intact, and spiritual power fluctuations came from them from time to time, indicating that the sealing array was still functioning. After a brief inspection, Han Li found that it was not a profound restriction difficult to破解.

So he raised his hand, and five silver, dazzling thunderballs appeared on his five fingers simultaneously. He slammed them violently against the hall door.

With a loud "bang!"

The two purple-gold door leaves of the hall burst open inward. Where Han Li's palm struck, a deep pit was dented, with five black scorch marks on the surface, and the runes were burned beyond recognition.

In the center of the hall, a yellow bronze puppet, originally sitting cross-legged and over one zhang tall, suddenly opened its eyes, silver light shining within. Its face, seemingly carved with a knife and axe, instantly showed fury, and it let out a roar like metal clashing:

"Death to intruders..."

With this sound, the bronze puppet's arms, which had been folded across its chest, dropped abruptly. It stood up, lifted its heavy feet, and charged toward the entrance, making a series of "clang, clang, clang" sounds.

Han Li glanced inside, extended five fingers, and flicked them rapidly toward the hall several times.

Streams of green-yellow light flew from his hand, suddenly enlarging inside the hall. Amid a series of "crackling" sounds, they transformed into seven or eight giant ape puppets.

However, after appearing, these puppet giant apes did not jointly attack the dark-gold bronze puppet. Instead, they spread their arms and fled in all directions toward every corner of the hall.