But that brief moment of hesitation cost the turtle demon its life.
A ripple of spatial fluctuation appeared several zhang to one side, and Han Li materialized with flickering purple flames. Without a word, he swept his sleeve toward the turtle demon.
Immediately, thirty-six small swords flashed out from his sleeve. In a blink they multiplied into over a hundred streaks of golden sword-light, filling the air with a deafening roar as a dense net of swords descended upon the turtle demon.
"You?!"
The turtle demon twisted its head and finally caught sight of Han Li's true face. It let out a shrill scream as though it had seen a ghost, recognizing Han Li in an instant. But the moment it saw so many streaks of sword-light slashing toward it, its face drained of all color in a heartbeat.
It had watched from afar as Han Li had effortlessly slain another eighth-grade demon beast of equal standing with a single golden sword-light — one whose treasured artifact had been utterly unable to put up even the slightest resistance.
Terror gripping its heart, the turtle demon let out several desperate roars and violently tore off the long robe it wore, transforming it into a dark cloud that surged directly toward the sword net. Meanwhile, its own body shrouded itself in coiling black demonic energy as it prepared to execute an escape technique. But at that very moment, a bone-chilling hum escaped Han Li's lips.
In an instant, the turtle demon felt a tearing agony lance through its spiritual consciousness. It clutched its head with both hands and screamed in anguish as streams of black blood poured simultaneously from its ears and nose.
The demon plummeted from midair.
When the dark cloud met the golden sword-light, the interweaving sword energy sliced it into countless fragments. The remnants of the cloud instantly scattered into turtle shell pieces no larger than fingernails, raining downward.
Amid a blinding golden radiance, the sword net swept downward without pause and enveloped the falling turtle demon.
The turtle demon had just barely recovered from the agony of its torn spiritual consciousness, but now there was nowhere to flee — the sword net had trapped it completely.
In desperation, the demon gritted its teeth and screamed at the top of its lungs:
"Brother Jin, he is that surnamed Li from back—"
Before the words could leave its mouth entirely, Han Li's expression darkened to one side as he vigorously channeled his sword incantation.
The sword net constricted violently. Countless golden lights flashed across the turtle demon's body, slicing it into innumerable pieces. Even the green flame of the demon's soul was swallowed up by the roaring sword-light in a single flash, vanishing without a trace.
Slaying the turtle demon had cost no more than a few breaths. Han Li's figure flickered, transforming once more into a blinding streak of escape-light that pierced the sky, arriving hundreds of zhang away in the blink of an eye.
A point of cyan light flickered several times at the horizon, and the azure rainbow vanished completely.
The Flood Dragon King was naturally unwilling to give up and pursued Han Li all the way off Biliing Island. But seeing that catching up was utterly hopeless — and acknowledging he had no confidence in defeating Han Li in single combat — he had no choice but to abandon the chase and turn back toward the stone peak. His expression, needless to say, was extremely grim.
"Surnamed Li…" When the Flood Dragon King returned to the air above the stone peak, something flickered in his gaze, and he murmured the words under his breath.
By now, the other transformed demon beasts had gathered around him, their expressions equally unpleasant.
"Brother Jin, who is that late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator? His voice and appearance don't match the rumored Li Sixdao, and the Heavenly Star Twin Sages cannot leave Star City, so they're naturally out of the question. Could it be a newly ascended great cultivator among the humans?" One demon cultivator shrouded entirely in flames, its true form hidden, was the first to speak up.
"I'm not entirely sure. Although we didn't exchange blows, this person's artifacts and techniques are both completely unfamiliar. It seems none of the famous Nascent Soul cultivators of the Scattered Star Seas match him," the Flood Dragon King replied in a low voice.
"That person's abilities are truly terrifying. Fellow Daoist Lan and Fellow Daoist Wu couldn't last even a single exchange against him. His magical power must be even greater than Li Sixdao's or the Twin Sages'." Another green-robed demon cultivator spoke with lingering fear, and most of the other demon cultivators had a trace of dread hidden on their faces.
After all, most of the demon beasts present were eighth-grade — they knew their cultivation was no significantly stronger than that of the two turtles. If Han Li had been able to slay both demons so effortlessly, then encountering him would mean nothing more than standing by and waiting for death. Quite a few demon cultivators made up their minds on the spot: should they ever run into Han Li again, fleeing would be their only option.
"I once fought Li Sixdao years ago. This man seems at least a touch more formidable than he was. At the very least, Li Sixdao would never have been able to dispatch our sea-clan transformed brethren so cleanly under a surprise attack. However, there is no need for all of you to overestimate this person. This was our first encounter with him, and our unfamiliarity with his abilities gave him an easy opening. Otherwise, this human cultivator would not have succeeded so readily." The Flood Dragon King spoke calmly.
Hearing this, some of the other demon cultivators looked enlightened, while others remained silent.