Chapter 976: Plucking the Heart

Shi Zhanfeng seemed to have been on guard, not moving his body, but simply flipping one hand over to produce a golden orb, which he tossed upward.

A surge of light rippled over the golden orb, accompanied by the sound of mechanical whirring, and then the orb burst into a mass of golden light, engulfing his figure.

The golden light faded in the blink of an eye, and the golden orb had vanished, replaced by a golden cage several dozen feet in size, shielding Shi Zhanfeng within.

The winged puppet flew up to him, its four wings on its back flapping forward simultaneously, shooting out white light blades like feathers in a storm, hurtling toward Shi Zhanfeng.

Where the light blades passed, they tore the void to shreds, leaving fleeting black lines in their wake.

On the other side, the beast puppet had also rushed over, its maiden-like head suddenly tilting, a stream of white light surging from its mouth, transforming into a string of silver lightning that struck forth.

In an instant, lightning and sparks engulfed the entire golden cage, the sounds of clashing blades and thunderous roars rising and falling, unceasing.

Han Li stared at the golden cage, his brow suddenly lifting.

When the lightning and sparks receded, the golden cage, though covered in many scars and marks, showed no signs of breaking apart.

Inside the cage, Shi Zhanfeng was unharmed, holding a crystal orb with a solemn expression, blood dripping from the index finger of his other hand as he traced lines on the crystal orb, seemingly trying to remove the crystal seal.

Han Li frowned, hesitating whether to snatch it away.

He could clearly sense that the aura within the bright red heart sealed in the crystal orb was extraordinary, clearly a treasure comparable to the earlier Blood Weeping Grand Formation, and closely related to the corpse of the "Demon Lord" lying in the crystal coffin.

Although he had little interest in whether Sha Xin could successfully revive the "Demon Lord," he suspected it might be connected to the Crab Immortal, and letting Shi Zhanfeng take the treasure for nothing seemed a pity.

But if he made a move to seize it now, he would be seen as someone trying to reap the spoils, and if E Kuai and Sha Xin joined forces against him, he had no confidence in handling them, let alone escaping.

While Han Li hesitated, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that Shi Chuankong, who had been lying motionless on the ground, suddenly gave an almost imperceptible shrug of his shoulder.

Raising an eyebrow, Han Li sent a voice transmission to Shi Chuankong: "Brother Shi, are you alright?"

Shi Chuankong's shoulder moved again, and Lady Liuhua, standing beside him, couldn't help but glance at him, but said nothing and did nothing, turning her gaze away.

After a moment, Shi Chuankong's voice came through Han Li's mind:

"Brother Li, I'm fine... Can you... do me a favor?"

"Bear with it a little longer; once their fight intensifies, I'll find a way to free you," Han Li transmitted.

"No, don't save me yet... Please, take that heart from Shi Zhanfeng... no matter what, don't let him devour it, or the consequences will be dire..." Shi Chuankong's voice came in fragments, whether due to severe injuries or the restraints.

"Brother Shi, what exactly is the function of that heart? Why is Shi Zhanfeng so desperate to obtain it?" Han Li asked, frowning, without immediately agreeing.

"I don't fully know its function... but it's extremely important to Shi Zhanfeng... even a key treasure to help him cross the Da Luo threshold. Once he swallows and refines it... you and I need not return to the Holy Domain..." Shi Chuankong's tone grew more urgent.

Han Li's mind stirred, and he was about to speak when his expression suddenly changed.

From within the golden cage, an immensely rich blood energy and vibrant life force surged forth.

Shi Zhanfeng had already broken the seal on the crystal orb, holding the "thump-thumping" heart in his hands, his eyes filled with fanaticism.

"Not good..."

Sha Xin's eyes blazed with fury, her face turning extremely ugly. She wanted to send a clone to retrieve the heart but feared E Kuai would steal the holy remains. Hesitating between the two, her control over the puppets slowed.

With a thunderous roar, E Kuai seized the opening, his figure flashing behind the vajra puppet, his arms swinging like a tide of fists, smashing into its lower back.

Though Sha Xin's thoughts were lightning fast, the vajra puppet's head turned abruptly, its eight arms spinning like wind-fire wheels to meet the vajra fist shadows, but it was a beat too slow.

Before the eight arms could defend, thousands of fists slammed heavily into its lower back. The already battered vajra puppet exploded, snapping in two at the waist.

"Little Zi" frowned deeply, her hands forming seals, controlling the two puppets with all her might, their attacks growing more狂暴, and the golden cage was clearly on the verge of collapse.

But time was ultimately too short.

"Ants, after this prince undergoes nirvana, I'll come back to crush you," Shi Zhanfeng said calmly, raising the bright red heart to his mouth.

His nose twitched slightly, as if he had already caught a whiff of a sweet, bloody scent.

At that moment, a thunderous roar exploded, and a blurry figure shot across from the opposite shore of the blood lake, the wind it kicked up raising ten-zhang-high blood waves, forming a trembling spatial tunnel in the middle.

Before Shi Zhanfeng could react, the golden cage shielding him burst apart with a loud crash.

Even the two puppets controlled by "Little Zi" were blown away by the gale.

Han Li shot through the exploding mass of silver lightning, landing a solid uppercut on Shi Zhanfeng's chest.

"Pfft..."

A stream of condensed starlight white energy burst through his chest, blasting a round bloody hole, and a spray of bright red blood scattered like rain.

Shi Zhanfeng's body flew backward from the force, crashing into the dome.

With a thunderous roar!

The dome of the underground space exploded, and not a single piece of rubble fell; all were blasted through the ground by the violent energy, leaving only Shi Zhanfeng's body falling back from the hole in the dome.

A huge wave of blood splashed in the blood pool, and Shi Zhanfeng slowly stood up from the blood.

He didn't even look at his bloody chest, but stared at his empty hands, letting out a heart-wrenching roar:

"No..."

On the opposite shore of the blood lake, Han Li stood still.

He held a "thump-thumping" heart in his hands, a thoughtful expression on his face.

The others were startled, and even Sha Xin was taken aback.

E Kuai, however, paid no attention to Han Li or Shi Zhanfeng; the moment Sha Xin was distracted, his figure turned into a wisp of green smoke, flashing past her.

Sha Xin, alarmed, tried to block him but was too late.

E Kuai slipped past Sha Xin, appearing beside the crystal coffin in a flash, his eyes blazing as he grabbed for the corpse inside.

At that moment, a white bone spear suddenly thrust from the side, emitting a piercing shriek, and struck E Kuai's wrist, deflecting it again—it was Kun Yu.

"You're asking for death!"

Blocked twice by Kun Yu, E Kuai's eyes flashed coldly; he turned his palm into a fist, swinging his arm back to hammer the spearhead, a muffled thunderclap erupting from his fist.

Bang!

The white bone spearhead was sent flying, turning into a white shadow that pierced Kun Yu's chest with incredible speed.

Kun Yu, completely unprepared, was sent flying.

Having punched Kun Yu away, E Kuai swung his other arm back, again grabbing lightning-fast for the corpse in the coffin.

At that moment, a dazzling golden beam descended from above, distorting the void as it passed, emitting a piercing shriek, aimed at E Kuai's head.

E Kuai snorted, the fist that had just sent Kun Yu flying shot upward to meet the golden light, while his grabbing hand did not stop.

The golden beam collided with E Kuai's fist, producing a thunderous roar, and rolling golden waves of light exploded outward in all directions.

E Kuai's entire body paused, his feet sinking half a foot into the ground with a crack, surprise on his face.

Before he could adjust, a four-to-five-zhang-long, millstone-thick golden tail whipped out from the light waves, striking E Kuai with lightning speed.

With a loud bang, E Kuai was sent flying.

The golden light in the air dissipated instantly, revealing a twenty-to-thirty-zhang-long golden dragon-shaped puppet.

Its dragon head shone with golden light, as if forged from pure gold, with a pair of coral-like dragon horns, its body covered in dense golden scales, its long, powerful tail, and thick, fierce dragon claws—all exuding the immense power of this puppet.

Beside the crystal coffin, dazzling golden light flashed repeatedly, revealing a golden giant tiger, a golden mystic turtle, and a golden giant bird—three more puppets.

These three puppets were in no way inferior to the golden dragon puppet in appearance and might, and the auras of all four puppets were interconnected, indistinguishable from each other.

Sha Xin flew onto the back of the golden giant bird, crystal threads shooting from her ten fingers into the four puppets.

Though her wounds had disappeared, her face was deathly pale, and a trail of blood hung from the corner of her mouth, stark against her pale lips.

E Kuai, caught off guard, was sent flying over a hundred zhang, but he steadied himself immediately, seemingly unharmed.

Sha Xin moved her ten fingers, and the four puppets shot forward, lining up between E Kuai and the crystal coffin.

"The Heavenly Gang Four Symbols War Puppets are indeed extraordinary. If City Lord Sha were uninjured, I might be wary of you. But now that you are severely wounded, your puppet control technique is greatly affected. How much of the Four Symbols War Puppets' power can you unleash?" E Kuai sneered, seemingly unconcerned.

As his words fell, his figure blurred and charged forward again.