After Han Li withdrew his gaze, he lightly tapped a single foot, and the flying carriage immediately began to descend.
Given the enormous size of the azure flying carriage, the Azure Guard patrols below naturally spotted them at once. A wave of spiritual sense swept over them without delay.
Han Li brushed his sleeve, a flash of green light flickered, and the flying carriage vanished in an instant.
The five of them moved simultaneously and landed one after another near the teleportation formation.
"Oh, Captain!" A cry of surprise suddenly burst from the mouth of one of the Azure Guards.
Hearing this, Han Li paused briefly, then swept his gaze over the group and spotted a big man with emerald eyes among the Azure Guards — a face that was remarkably familiar.
The big man was none other than one of the ten Black Guards he had once led in Skyreach City: "Zhuo Chong."
In the time since, Zhuo Chong had advanced from late Nascent Soul to early Deity Transformation, and he was now staring at Han Li with an expression of complete shock.
"So it's Fellow Daoist Zhuo! Congratulations on becoming an Azure Guard yourself." A smile surfaced on Han Li's face, and he spoke in a measured tone.
"It really is the Captain! Oh — Captain, have you perhaps advanced to the Spatial Tempering realm?" As soon as Zhuo Chong confirmed it was truly Han Li, he was first elated, then startled, and the question tumbled out of him.
His spiritual sense had swept over Han Li without the slightest ability to gauge the man's true cultivation depth, so it was only natural for him to jump to that conclusion.
"I wandered around outside for a good while and did indeed enter the Spatial Tempering realm. I hadn't expected to run into Fellow Daoist Zhuo before even making it into the city. How are the other comrades from the old team doing these days?" Han Li asked with a smile.
"Hard to say. Shortly after you left, the alien races attacked the Great Skyreach City. More than half of them perished in that battle. Of the survivors, some chose to leave Skyreach City. Now only I and Fellow Daoist Xu are still here." Zhuo Chong gave his account.
"Fellow Daoist Xu is still in the city?" Han Li's eyes flickered with a flash of interest at these words.
This woman was a descendant of Ice Soul Fairy, and she was precisely the lead he needed to complete the task assigned to him by the youth surnamed Weng of the Heavenly Cloud Races — so naturally, he was quite concerned.
"Fellow Daoist Xu also advanced to the Deity Transformation stage, and has even reached the mid-stage. She currently leads a team of Black Guards. Oh, and she has mentioned the Captain many times. She always says that without the Captain's guidance back then, she would never have reached her current level." Zhuo Chong grinned knowingly.
It was as though he believed there was some undisclosed connection between Han Li and the woman.
"Heh, I merely offered a casual word or two back then — hardly what one would call guidance. Fellow Daoist Xu's current achievements are entirely due to her own outstanding talent." Han Li shook his head and replied evenly.
Zhuo Chong smiled and let the matter drop.
The four cultivators — the scholar and his companions — seeing that Han Li actually knew this Azure Guard named Zhuo Chong, felt the last thread of worry in their hearts finally loosen.
It seemed that the story he had told about his origins in Skyreach City was true in every detail. There was no need to worry that he might be an alien race in disguise, hoping to approach them and infiltrate the city.
Such incidents had been far from rare in the past.
The scholar also recognized Zhuo Chong. His eyes shifted slightly, and he cupped his fists in a salute toward the man.
"So Senior Han and Brother Zhuo are acquainted — that is wonderful news. We owe our lives to Senior Han's intervention, and that is why we are able to return here."
"What happened? Were you four in danger?" Zhuo Chong asked, somewhat surprised.
"Danger? We were on the brink of death at the jaws of a Spatial Tempering-level Stone Source Turtle," the scholar said with a bitter smile.
"Heh heh, back in the day our Captain could slay Spatial Tempering-level alien races with nothing but Deity Transformation cultivation. Killing a mere Stone Source Turtle is no trouble at all now." Zhuo Chong chuckled.
Hearing Zhuo Chong's words, the scholar and the others nodded repeatedly in agreement.
"We'll have another chance to chat with Fellow Daoist Zhuo later. I have some pressing matters to attend to, so I'll be heading into the city now," Han Li said with a half-smile.
"Yes, yes — it was my oversight. The Captain must have traveled an extraordinary distance to reach this place and must be quite weary by now." Only then did Zhuo Chong seem to realize his lapse. He hastily stepped aside, clearing the path to the teleportation formation behind him.
Han Li gave Zhuo Chong a slight nod and entered the formation without further ceremony.
A flash of light, and he vanished in an instant.
The scholar and his companions naturally followed close behind, and with a low hum from the formation, they too disappeared without a trace.
Zhuo Chong stared at the now-empty formation, a wistful expression settling over his face.
"Brother Zhuo, do you really know that Senior Han?"
"He was truly your captain back then? And he could slay Spatial Tempering-level existences with Deity Transformation cultivation?"
"How is it that none of us could see through his cultivation level? Could he have cultivated some special technique?"
The other Azure Guards who had been standing silently off to the side could no longer hold back, and one by one they began to ask their questions.
"Of course it's true. Captain Han's reputation among the Azure Guards was absolutely formidable back in the day. His techniques were such that even ordinary Celestial Guards might not necessarily be his match. Serving under him benefited me enormously — I might not have succeeded in advancing to Deity Transformation otherwise. Now, after such a long time apart, he has indeed reached the Spatial Tempering realm, and his abilities are naturally more unfathomable than ever. It's no surprise at all that you couldn't read his magical power," Zhuo Chong replied, even as he silently speculated in his heart about where Han Li had been all these years.