"Brother Gu, you must have a dedicated venue for sparring competitions here. I'm afraid I'll need to borrow it." Han Li turned around and addressed the gray-robed old man.
"Of course. Doyuan Pavilion has a private space opened up through a spatial rift. Inside, even battles between Integration stage cultivators won't affect the outside world. If you two Daoist friends wish to spar, there's naturally no problem at all." The old man surnamed Gu was momentarily taken aback, then promptly replied.
Zen Master Jin Yue watched as Han Li settled the "three strikes" agreement with just a few casual words, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Although all the elders had learned from Fairy Silver Light that Han Li's abilities far exceeded those of ordinary cultivators of the same rank — that he had even killed several Demon Lords in succession — if it was only three attacks, Lord Azure Dragon should surely be able to withstand them.
Otherwise, this Nine Star Sect elder who had recently joined Heavenly Abyss City could only be said to be undeserving of his reputation. It would seem the Elder Council would have no reason to continue sheltering him at the risk of offending Han Li.
Zen Master Jin Yue quickly worked through all the implications in his mind. He offered a few more words of persuasion, but seeing they had no effect, he could only smile bitterly and say nothing more.
As for Fairy Silver Light and the old man surnamed Gu, one was already somewhat inclined toward Han Li, and the other wished to avoid offending either side and remain onlookers, so neither voiced any objection.
And so the group followed the old man surnamed Gu toward the exit.
However, just as they reached the outer door, Han Li suddenly turned his head and swept a glance over Xiao Hong and the others, saying casually: "Tomorrow at this time, if I don't see you lot at my residence... heh heh, you can figure out the consequences for yourselves."
After saying this, he paid them no further attention and walked straight out through the door.
Xiao Hong and the others shuddered inwardly, but none dared make a sound.
Zen Master Jin Yue and the others acted as if they hadn't heard, departing without so much as a glance at the group.
Lord Azure Dragon looked back at them with an expressionless face, but ultimately said nothing and walked out of the great hall as well.
"Fairy Xiao, what are we supposed to do? Lord Azure Dragon doesn't seem to have any intention of standing up for us! What are we going to do!" An unnamed demon cultivator with thick black fur covering his face immediately asked Xiao Hong with a mournful expression the moment Han Li and the others disappeared from sight beyond the gate.
"That's right — this is nothing like what you told us, Fairy! When you came to persuade us on Lord Azure Dragon's behalf, you guaranteed that Senior Han had already perished. And even if he did return to the city unharmed, Lord Azure Dragon would handle everything and it would never implicate us. Now you have to give us an explanation!" another human cultivator added urgently.
The others said nothing, but all fixed their gazes on Xiao Hong, as though she had always been their leader.
"Hmph, did you think I could stay out of this? Back then, Lord Azure Dragon used these exact same words to reassure me. I merely passed along what he said. How was I to know that, as an Integration stage cultivator himself, he would be so wary of this person that he didn't even have the nerve to shield us? Fortunately, we all have some standing and background. Even if that man's abilities are formidable, he can hardly slaughter us all with a single palm strike. But tomorrow, we're certainly in for a rough time." Xiao Hong's complexion recovered somewhat. Hearing everyone's accusations, her lovely face darkened, and she replied irritably.
"So we really do have to go to Senior Han's cave dwelling tomorrow?" one person asked, his expression shifting between dark and light, hesitant.
"Hmph, I'd advise you not to even think about fleeing. If you do, that man will have every reason to show us no mercy. When that happens, even our elders probably won't be able to protect us." Xiao Hong snorted, still trying to warn them.
"Fairy Xiao speaks truly. Since he let us leave so freely, our bodies have surely been marked with his spiritual sense without our knowledge. Trying to escape would simply be seeking our own deaths. Besides, Heavenly Abyss City has already been completely surrounded by the demon army. Even if we wanted to leave, where would we go? Tomorrow, we should just go and bear the punishment with a sincere apology. I need to inform an elder about this matter, so I'll take my leave first." A more experienced-looking cultivator sighed deeply, cupped his fists, and departed with a worried expression.
The remaining few exchanged uneasy glances and realized there was no other path available to them. They too left, one after another, weighed down with anxiety.
In the blink of an eye, Xiao Hong was the only one left standing alone in the great hall.
She stood rooted to the spot for a long while, her expression alternating between gritted teeth and fear. In the end, she stamped her foot and left, having no other choice.
As for what these people would do upon returning — whether they would prepare lavish gifts or seek intermediaries to plead on their behalf — each naturally had their own plans.
...
By now, Han Li and his party, led by the gray-robed old man, had arrived at a larger hall on the uppermost floor of the pavilion.
Gazing at the small spell formation set up in the center of the hall, Han Li's eyes flickered slightly.
The old man surnamed Gu walked up to the formation without hesitation. He formed seals with both hands and released several successive waves of profound spiritual power into it.
The spiritual light from the seals flashed and vanished into the formation.
The next moment, a loud hum resounded as the entire spell formation activated.
The old man surnamed Gu then turned around and smiled at the group: "Through this teleportation formation, you can be sent directly to the sparring grounds. All of you, please step on. This formation is more than capable of transporting all of us into the space at once."
"In that case, I won't stand on ceremony." Han Li smiled faintly, and his figure flickered — in the blink of an eye, he was standing eerily at the center of the formation.