Chapter 590: Final Preparations

Above the green mountain peak, the white light cluster flickered violently, and countless white runes shot out from it.

With a dull thud, the massive light cluster suddenly burst apart, scattering into countless white spiritual lights that drifted away.

The golden beetle's massive body wobbled in midair before stabilizing again. Its dazed eyes slowly regained clarity, the white vortex deep in its pupils gradually faded, and it looked around in astonishment.

"What's going on? Wasn't I already back in the insect race and had advanced to the Daluo realm? Why am I here..." The golden beetle roared in shock and fury.

At that moment, its expression froze, and it abruptly turned to look ahead.

It instantly sensed the presence of that same kind, still alive and well, seemingly even stronger than before.

"Could I have been under an illusion..." The shock and anger in the golden beetle's eyes receded like a tide, and it turned to look around.

All around was calm, with warm breezes blowing over the green mountain peak, nothing unusual.

The golden beetle soon withdrew its gaze, its expression uncertain.

It raised a front claw and pointed into the void. Suddenly, the golden light on its body rippled and quickly gathered before it, forming a golden circular array.

The circular formation spun rapidly, with countless golden runes leaping within it, flickering on and off as if some secret technique was being performed.

The golden beetle's movements suddenly froze, and a hint of shock appeared in its eyes.

"So twenty years have already passed..."

Its expression now looked extremely grim, with a faint trace of fear as well.

Having long resided in the wildlands and being extremely powerful, the golden beetle knew far more about the situation here than the Insect Clan, Beast Clan, and others, and much more than an outsider like Han Li.

The Insect Clan, Beast Clan, and other groups were merely small tribes on the fringes of the wildlands, insignificant; the rulers of the wildlands were the four great royal clans in the depths.

The four great royal clans possessed immense power, each occupying vast territories, carving up the truly spiritually rich regions deep within the wildlands.

The four great royal clans were teeming with experts, not to mention Golden Immortals, but even Taiyi beings were numerous; each of the four clans had a Daluo ancestor presiding over them, and the four were collectively known as the 'Four Saints.'

The golden beetle was extremely powerful, having reached the late Taiyi stage, and its original form was the formidable Devouring Gold Immortal; although the four great royal clans of the wildlands were strong, it did not take them very seriously.

But the only thing it feared were the Four Saints of the wildlands.

This place was already considered the territory of the four great royal clans, specifically the domain of the Heaven-Piercing Rat Clan among them.

The golden beetle had been frantically chasing Han Li earlier, wanting to intercept him before he entered here, but had unknowingly been trapped in place by an illusion for a full twenty years.

Twenty years was but a snap of the fingers to it, yet the one who could trap it here was worth pondering...

Golden light flickered in its eyes as it remained silent.

In the Barren Wasteland, only the Four Saints of the Barren could trap it.

The Gushen Ancestor of the Tongtian Rat Clan was said to be rarely in the Barren, his whereabouts elusive, and there was no word of his mastery of illusion arts; rather, the Tianhu Clan, whose territory bordered the Tongtian Rat Clan, specialized in illusionary divine abilities.

Could it be that the Daluo Ancestor of the Tianhu Clan had made a move? But why... Was it a warning not to set foot in the territories of the four royal clans?

Countless thoughts raced through the golden beetle's mind, its gaze shifting.

After a moment, greed still prevailed. Its body blazed with golden light, transforming into a massive golden orb that shot forward like lightning.

...

On a cliff platform above the dark abyss, two orbs—one gold, one white—hovered, radiating powerful pressure.

Within the orbs, two figures could be seen: Jintong and the Pixiu.

Though their strength had greatly increased, they still could not adapt to the dense baleful qi at the bottom of the abyss, so they had come above to cultivate.

At that moment, the golden orb flickered and dispersed, revealing Jintong, who gazed in a certain direction with a solemn expression.

At the bottom of the abyss, Han Li sat cross-legged on a clean large stone, silently circulating his immortal spiritual power, sensing the dense baleful qi within his body.

Not far away, Móguāng controlled the Taiyi Gray Immortal, who sat cross-legged, black light flickering around him as he continued to absorb the surrounding dense baleful qi.

Though he had successfully taken control of this body, his foundation was unstable and still required constant reinforcement.

At this moment, the corpse appeared more 'full,' its flesh plump, skin clean and smooth, clad in a black robe, almost indistinguishable from an ordinary person.

Han Li's expression shifted slightly as he opened his eyes.

"Uncle, something's wrong. That guy has woken up and is heading this way," Jintong's voice sounded in his mind.

Han Li raised an eyebrow and stood up, but did not act immediately. Instead, he calculated with his fingers.

"Exactly twenty years. It seems that voice did not deceive me."

Han Li murmured to himself, glanced at 'Móguāng' beside him, and seeing that he was cultivating, did not disturb him. His form flickered, transforming into a mass of green light that flew upward.

At that moment, 'Móguāng' opened his eyes, gazing at Han Li's departing figure, a gray light flickering in his gaze.

Han Li soon appeared on the cliff platform where Jintong had been earlier, with the Pixiu and Jintong standing beside him.

"Uncle..." Jin Tong looked at Han Li, seeming to have something to say but hesitating.

"Jin Tong, do you Devouring Gold Immortals fear the baleful aura here?" Han Li suddenly asked, gazing at the rolling black baleful aura in the abyss.

"It's not exactly fear, but we Devouring Gold Immortals indeed don't like this baleful aura." Jin Tong seemed to realize something and said.

"If we could escape, we would have fled from that Devouring Gold Immortal years ago. Since it's chasing us so relentlessly, we might as well wait at our ease and give it a proper welcome here!" Han Li was silent for a moment, then suddenly broke into a smile.

"Uncle, your cultivation has greatly advanced, and I've reached the Taiyi realm too. With that sycophant Mo Guang and all of us working together, we might just be able to kill that bastard!" Jin Tong's eyes lit up at the words, and he said with hatred.

"Boss, there's me too..." Pi Xiu sidled over and said weakly.

"Mm, and Xiao Bai, at least he can block... half a blow." Jin Tong patted Pi Xiu's head and nodded.

"Although our strength has greatly increased, the opponent is after all a late-Taiyi Devouring Gold Immortal. We must not be careless. Jin Tong, estimate how much longer?" Han Li said with a grave expression.

"At its current speed, if nothing unexpected happens, it will arrive in a month." Jin Tong closed his eyes to sense, then opened them and said.

"A month, that's enough." Han Li murmured to himself upon hearing this.

Jin Tong and Pi Xiu exchanged a glance, not understanding.

"During this time, continue cultivating here. Jin Tong, keep a constant watch on that Devouring Gold Immortal's movements, and inform me immediately of any developments." Han Li instructed.

"Uncle, leave it to me!" Jin Tong agreed.

After giving his instructions, Han Li turned and flew toward the bottom of the abyss, soon reaching it.

"Mo Guang" had stopped cultivating at some point. Seeing Han Li descend, he stood up and cupped his hands in salute.

Han Li didn't say much and directly informed Mo Guang about the pursuing Devouring Gold Immortal.

"Fellow Daoist Mo Guang, when the time comes, I will need your strength." Han Li said finally.

"No problem. I'll start regulating my energy now. During the battle, I can't promise more, but I should be able to maintain combat power at the Taiyi level for the duration of an incense stick." Mo Guang agreed without hesitation.

"That's good." Han Li's expression relaxed, and a smile appeared.

After saying this, Mo Guang walked aside and sat down cross-legged again.

Han Li looked thoughtful. After a moment, he waved his hand, and a large stack of various colored array flags and plates materialized.

At the same time, a golden light flashed beside him, and the figure of Crab Daoist appeared out of thin air.

"Fellow Daoist Crab, help me set up these formations here." Han Li said to Crab Daoist.

The Crab Daoist nodded, took some of the array tools from Han Li, and the two of them busied themselves in various parts of the abyss floor.

They were fully occupied for over ten days before finally stopping.

At this moment, Han Li hovered in midair, muttered incantations under his breath, and waved his hand to send out a spell seal.

Suddenly, specks of light emerged in various places across the abyss, flickering intermittently and resonating with one another.

Strands of formidable power materialized out of thin air—some extremely hard, others soft and tough, each different—and under their mutual resonance, the baleful qi here churned and surged.

But then, the lights immediately faded, and the fluctuations of those powers vanished as well, disappearing completely into the dense baleful qi without leaving a trace, and the roiling baleful qi soon calmed down.

Seeing this, Han Li nodded, a hint of satisfaction appearing on his face.

He then descended to the abyss floor, sat down cross-legged, and waved his hand.

Light flickered around him as one immortal artifact after another materialized, emitting dazzling spiritual light of various colors, interwoven with fluctuations of laws—a magnificent sight.

Han Li picked up these immortal artifacts and inspected them one by one, making final preparations for the impending great battle.

He had already done all the preparations he could, but his opponent was, after all, a Devourer Immortal at the late Taiyi stage, and he had no certainty at all, leaving no room for the slightest mistake.

Han Li carefully examined each immortal artifact, then stored them into his body.

Soon, he had inspected all the immortal artifacts and put them away.

At this moment, only an emerald green gourd remained on the ground—it was the Profound Heavenly Treasure.

Han Li studied the gourd for a moment, then picked it up, his gaze falling on the mouth of the gourd.

The dim area was still there, but now it had deepened considerably, drawing closer to the rest of the surface.

The entire gourd emitted a brighter emerald glow, and it seemed to have shrunk slightly.

Han Li smiled faintly at the sight.

In previous years, while evading the pursuit of that Devouring Gold Immortal, he had not stopped watering the gourd with the green liquid—it seemed to have indeed been effective.

If he continued to hasten its ripening with the green liquid, he estimated that in less than a hundred years, this emerald-green gourd should be fully mature.

Han Li looked at the gourd in his hand, then suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a stream of green light that vanished into the gourd.

The emerald green gourd immediately shimmered with a layer of green fluorescence, while tiny runes emerged and flowed continuously like trickling water.

A wave of law fluctuations radiated outward, driving back all the baleful qi within several zhang around.