When night fell and everything was quiet, Han Li slipped out of the house without greeting anyone. Alone, he flew toward the imperial city on his magic tool.
Standing on the Divine Wind Ship, Han Li looked at the massive, pitch-black silhouette of the grand imperial city gate and smiled faintly. He then flew directly over it.
For Han Li, the ban from the Seven Sects, forbidding any disciple from stepping into the imperial city, was nonsense. He only followed rules that benefited him. Otherwise, trying to restrict him with mere empty words was utterly ridiculous!
He had never been one to blindly obey.
While Han Li sneered inwardly, he had already flown to a point over a hundred zhang above the palace grounds.
Using the cover of the dark night, Han Li silently scanned his surroundings, his gaze searching for remote, inconspicuous spots.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he flew toward a royal garden filled with green bamboo.
Upon reaching the space above the bamboo forest, Han Li cautiously looked around. Only then did he suppress the spiritual energy around him and slowly descended.
Han Li knew that although the Black Fiend Religion controlled the entire palace, they couldn't have posted sentries everywhere. Moreover, even with so many guard posts, he had mastered the Nameless Breath Concealment Technique to its fullest, so he wasn't afraid of being discovered by the Black Fiend Religion.
Furthermore, he had already learned the usual sentry arrangements of the Black Fiend Religion from the little prince. Even if things had changed now, as long as he didn't rashly intrude into heavily guarded key areas, Han Li felt quite at ease!
This area was clearly a forgotten corner of the palace. Not only was the bamboo forest filled with dead branches and rotting leaves that gave off a faint smell of decay, but the foliage, untrimmed and wild, was incredibly dense and lush.
Looking at this bamboo grove, about an acre in size, Han Li showed a look of satisfaction.
He formed hand seals with his fingers, releasing a sound-dampening barrier that enveloped the entire bamboo forest. Only then did he solemnly take out a set of formation flags and disks from his storage pouch—the "Inverted Five Elements Formation" given to him by Qi Yunxiao.
"With this Inverted Five Elements Formation, even if the Black Fiend Religion leader is incredibly powerful, I should be able to hold an unassailable position!" Han Li muttered to himself, gazing at the set of magic tools in his hands.
Then, gathering his spirits, he stepped into the pitch-black bamboo forest.
Two hours later, Han Li walked out with a tired look on his face. Due to time constraints, he could only set up a small portion, but it should be enough. Han Li observed his surroundings and, seeing that no one had come, finally felt relieved. He dispelled the sound-dampening barrier, summoned the Divine Wind Ship, and flew away on it.
Han Li's solitary journey deep into the palace to set up the grand formation went unnoticed, without alerting a single member of the Black Fiend Religion.
The four great Blood Servants, acting under the orders of the Black Fiend Religion leader, were extremely vigilant. But just as Han Li had guessed, they had only set up dense sentry posts around the cold palace where the Black Fiend Religion leader was in secluded cultivation. Other areas were, in fact, more lax than before. This was one of the reasons Han Li could enter and exit so smoothly.
When he flew back to the Qin residence, dawn had not yet broken. Han Li decided not to sleep and instead sat in meditation on his bed, resting his mind until daybreak.
In the morning, he walked out of the room as if nothing had happened and joined everyone else in a large hall. As usual, they talked and laughed, discussing the impending great battle, without Han Li mentioning anything about the "Inverted Five Elements Formation."
In Han Li's mind, such a life-saving trump card naturally needed to be known by as few people as possible.
If this formation could help them win without being used, that would make him even happier. The "Inverted Five Elements Formation" could still serve as his hidden killing move.
Liu Jing and the other Yellow Maple Valley fellow disciples, of course, didn't know what Han Li was thinking. But when the evening battle was mentioned, everyone showed expressions of eagerness, their faces tinged with excitement.
Apart from Liu Jing and two or three others, most of them had no experience fighting Foundation Establishment cultivators. This was the main reason Han Li was not optimistic about this operation.
Han Li had always believed that cultivators who hadn't undergone the baptism of blood, even if their cultivation was high, would certainly suffer greatly when facing experienced opponents. It wouldn't be strange if they lost their lives in the process. So, as he watched these people talking and laughing, an occasional look of bewilderment flashed in his eyes.
After all, which cultivator who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage hadn't endured untold hardships to achieve their current level of power? But after tonight's battle, many of them might very well be buried here. Thinking about it, it was truly a great pity!
"Junior Brother Han, could you walk with me for a bit?" Chen Qiaoqian, who had been chatting with Sister Zhong Weiniang, suddenly invited him when she glanced at Han Li's face a moment ago.
This single sentence left not only Han Li stunned, but also several of Chen Qiaoqian's fellow disciples, who stared with mouths agape.