Several "Han Li" figures flickered, then shot off in every direction simultaneously.
"Hmph, a mere parlor trick, and you dare show it off in front of this lord?" One of the Blood Light Avatars darkened his expression and let out a cold snort.
He formed a single-handed seal, and a flash of gray light erupted behind him. A massive, pitch-black demonic shadow materialized in an instant.
The shadow bore two horns on its head, with several enormous tentails thrashing wildly behind it. After releasing a heart-chilling roar, a burst of blood-colored light flashed across its chest, and a colossal vertical eye appeared.
The eye occupied nearly half the chest area, its pupil glowing with an eerie green light that sent chills down one's spine at a single glance.
The Blood Light Avatar bellowed!
A beam of green light immediately shot forth from the enormous eye, vanishing in a blink as it plunged into the crystal wall and disappeared without a trace.
The next instant, the Blood Light Avatar closed his eyes, a green light flickering ceaselessly across his face.
"Two real, six false — one of them should be his avatar. The real bodies have changed course and fled toward the flanks." After a brief moment, he spoke with certainty.
"It seems he's caught on to our intentions and wants to go into hiding again. Increase the Heaven and Earth Disc's speed — we cannot let him escape!" Another Blood Shadow spoke in a sinister tone.
"Naturally. However —"
Another Blood Light Avatar nodded, but before he could say anything further, the image on the crystal wall suddenly switched to show Yuan Cha sitting upright in a stone chair.
"Two real bodies — one for each of you. Once you locate the true body, notify the other immediately!" Her expression was stone-cold. The moment the connection with the three was established, she spoke without preamble.
"Very well — we'll handle it as you say!" One of the Blood Light Avatars agreed without hesitation.
Yuan Cha gave a slight nod, waved her sleeve, and the crystal wall instantly turned a blinding white.
At nearly the same moment, the stone hall emitted a deep hum as countless runes poured out from within, forming an enormous teleportation array beneath it.
The stone hall sat at the array's center, spun once, then vanished in a flash.
"Let's go as well," one of the Blood Light Avatars said flatly.
All three formed seals in unison, and the blood-colored light radiating from their bodies blazed with intensity.
The next instant, the enormous jade disc released a blinding white light, emitted a piercing shriek as it tore through the void, and its speed more than doubled.
On the other side, the several "Han Li" figures — some soaring through the sky, others riding magical artifacts at tremendous speed — had scattered from their original positions and vanished completely within the span of a few breaths.
A mere few hundred thousand li away, over a thousand elite demon warriors had been lying in ambush in perfect silence. Upon receiving a single command moments later, they sprang into action like a swarm of bees, splitting into two groups that raced off in pursuit along two different paths.
As for the spot where Han Li had originally stood — whether it was the demon warriors, Yuan Cha, or the Blood Light Avatars, none had the slightest interest in glancing back at it.
After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, in the void above where the "Han Li" clones had scattered, behind an unremarkable chunk of cyan stone rising from the ground, a wisp of purple mist flickered — and a silver humanoid figure materialized with eerie grace.
It was yet another "Han Li."
This "Han Li" gave off no hint of aura whatsoever. The very instant he appeared, he shut his eyes tight and sent his divine sense sweeping outward, scanning several thousand li in every direction. Only after confirming that not a single Demon Lord was present did a hint of joy surface on his face.
Without a word, he flipped his palm, and a thin, skin-like object suddenly appeared in his hand. He tossed it over his body, then rolled once on the ground — and in an instant, he transformed into an unremarkable gray wolf. With a powerful push of all four limbs, he shot forward as a faint streak of gray light.
His heading was unmistakably the same as before — still racing toward Heavenly Abyss City.
……
Half an hour later, above a dense forest, one of the "Han Li" figures was streaking through the sky as a streak of azure light.
Barely several li behind him, a stone hall pursued with relentless menace.
Ahead, a colossal mountain suddenly materialized — fully ten thousand zhang tall, blanketed in lush green vegetation, with scenery of breathtaking beauty.
The "Han Li" ahead caught sight of the mountain and his eyes immediately lit up. Rather than dodging, he plunged straight toward it at full speed.
After a few flickers, he vanished mysteriously midway up the mountainside.
With a deafening roar, the stone hall shuddered and appeared atop the giant peak. It simply rotated slowly above the summit as multicolored runes surged forth and instantly coalesced into a massive five-colored light formation.
The formation hummed the moment it took shape. At its center, the five-colored radiance condensed further, forming an enormous sphere of light dozens of zhang in diameter.