Since he had already been exposed, there was no point in staying hidden behind the rock.
Han Li took a deep breath, with his dazzling protective barrier still shimmering around him, and stepped out from behind the rock with a weapon gripped in each hand.
"It's you!"
Upon getting a clear look at Han Li's face, "Senior Brother Lu" called out in surprise—he actually recognized Han Li.
Han Li's heart sank slightly at the other man's exclamation.
This "Senior Brother Lu" had only seen him once on that small hill, and that was in the midst of a chaotic battle. Yet now, after several months had passed, the man could still identify him at a glance. That meant this person either possessed an extraordinary memory with total recall, or he was exceptionally meticulous and calculating.
Either way, it was anything but good news for Han Li.
He had already vaguely sensed that the "Senior Brother Lu" before him was, in a certain sense, the same kind of person as himself—equally adept at scheming, equally ruthless when striking. That arrogant demeanor he put on in front of others was absolutely nothing more than a smokescreen, just like Han Li's low profile. The only difference was that Han Li didn't want to attract anyone's attention, while "Senior Brother Lu" deliberately invited contempt to conceal his true nature.
Still, Han Li knew he could never be as shameless as this man, nor as cold-blooded and vicious. He simply followed the middle path of minding his own affairs.
Just as Han Li's thoughts turned grim, "Senior Brother Lu" also adopted a solemn expression, as though something had occurred to him. His gaze toward Han Li turned openly murderous, making no effort to conceal his killing intent.
Han Li sighed. He had originally considered trying to talk his way through this, to see if he could somehow bluster his way out. But now, judging from the other man's expression and accounting for his cunning, there was absolutely no room for maneuver. One of them would have to die—there was no other way. No sense wasting breath; striking first was the better move.
With that thought, Han Li said nothing more. He raised his left hand and a fine steel ring let out an eerie whistle as it shot straight toward "Senior Brother Lu." Then he revealed his right hand, which now held the dark cyan gourd. Five or six pitch-black spheres burst from its mouth, trailing right behind the steel ring.
But Han Li didn't stop there. His freed left hand traced a few gestures in empty air, and in an instant several red fireballs materialized. His sleeve flickered slightly, sweeping them up, and then he flung them hard toward "Senior Brother Lu," muttering a quiet "Go!"
Immediately, trailing waves of scorching heat, the fireballs scattered in every direction, plummeting toward Senior Brother Lu from multiple angles.
With this barrage, Han Li had essentially deployed every offensive technique he had before acquiring his new treasures—everything except the talisman treasure. The final move in particular, the simultaneous instant-cast volley, was a technique Han Li had spent considerable effort learning from Wu Feng, specifically to catch his opponent off guard and finish the fight in one devastating blow.
Truthfully, had he felt more confident wielding his new artifacts, Han Li would have thrown everything at his opponent at once without hesitation. After all, the new treasures were far more powerful than the old ones.
But almost simultaneously with Han Li's attack, "Senior Brother Lu" was far from idle. He flipped both hands, and a massive green banner roughly ten meters long appeared in his grasp. Green light shimmered across its surface, upon which was embroidered a ferocious azure dragon with bared fangs and unsheathed claws.
Only now did "Senior Brother Lu" register the full extent of Han Li's relentless assault, and his face twisted with fury.
He had brought out his most powerful artifact—the Azure Dragon Banner—first because he intended to do the same as Han Li: unleash his killing strike immediately and silence the witness.
Yet he had never expected that the moment Han Li revealed himself, he would attack without so much as a single word, launching a ferocious assault with vicious, merciless force that screamed no quarter would be given.
Left with no choice, "Senior Brother Lu" abandoned his own offensive. He switched the banner to his right hand, while his left hand groped at his waist and pulled a yellow talisman from his storage pouch.
He cast one reluctant glance at the high-grade talisman, then gritted his teeth and gently tossed it in front of him, rapidly chanting under his breath.
And in that same instant, Han Li's steel ring, glowing faintly with yellow light, had already closed to within striking distance of "Senior Brother Lu," about to crash into him.