"Hmph! This woman took the young master's cultivation manuals as well all those years ago. It's hardly surprising she has such abilities. Once I break this formation, I'll trouble you all to lend a hand." A flash of anger crossed the elder's face, though he quickly composed himself as he spoke.
"Rest assured. Even if this sorceress had three heads and six arms, she won't escape this time." The skull cackled carelessly, a dismissive look on its face.
The elder felt reassured hearing this. Without further hesitation, he rubbed both hands together vigorously, and a blinding yellow radiance suddenly surged from his palms.
"Break!" The elder bellowed low, and the yellow light in his hands transformed into a dazzling streak that shot toward the surface of the rocky mountain.
A deep, rumbling boom echoed out. The stone mountain before them was like a massive boulder hurled into still water — the previously static landscape instantly rippled with white light. The scenery then shifted entirely, and a lush green mountain wreathed in dense spiritual energy and gorgeous vistas materialized out of thin air.
"What is this?!" The skull and the fierce-looking man gaped wide-eyed at the sudden transformation, utterly stunned.
"Heh heh. This is our sect's secret formation — the Spirit Restricting Formation. It's one of the rare formations in the world capable of concealing spiritual energy. That sorceress's cultivation is insufficient; she can only mask a portion of the spiritual energy. If our sect's founder had set this formation personally, concealing even a single wisp of spiritual energy would have been child's play." The elder surnamed Ding swept his gaze over the other two, speaking with a hint of pride.
Han Li was also quite surprised. Upon hearing the elder's explanation, his mind stirred slightly.
If he could obtain the method for setting up this Spirit Restricting Formation, his own cave dwelling would be far more secure in the future.
At that moment, as the illusory landscape before them vanished, a stone gate emanating a hazy green glow appeared halfway up the mountainside. This had to be the entrance to Yuan Yao's cave dwelling.
"Let's move." The elder's eyes flashed with a vicious light.
The skull nodded, opened its mouth, and spat out a strange black blade — half saber, half sword, an exceedingly peculiar weapon. The fierce man gave a low shout, and a cold-gleaming mountain-cleaving halberd flew from his hand, startling Han Li beside him. Using such a massive weapon as a treasure was something he had seldom seen.
"Fellow Daoist, why aren't you—" The elder himself also spat out a white flying sword, but when he noticed Han Li had not moved at all, he couldn't help but feel puzzled.
Han Li smiled faintly and was about to offer some casual excuse when the stone gate suddenly swung open of its own accord, and a streak of green light shot out from within.
The elder abandoned whatever he was about to say and immediately whipped his gaze toward it along with the others.
After circling once, the green light dimmed and descended not far from the gate, revealing a stunningly beautiful woman dressed entirely in black — black robes, black skirt — with skin like freshly fallen snow.
She smiled sweetly, her shimmering gaze sweeping about, every expression and movement brimming with captivating allure.
It was none other than Yuan Yao, from whom Han Li had parted ways at the Void Heaven Hall.
After all these years apart, not only had her appearance remained unchanged, she had gained an even more heart-rending charm.
However, the moment her eyes swept over the group and landed on the Qingyang Gate elder, her beautiful face changed drastically. A layer of frost descended over her features, turning her expression cold as ice.
"Esteemed Fellow Daoists have come to my humble dwelling — is there some matter you wish to discuss?" She seemed to understand that her charm techniques were useless against these cultivators, and spoke in a cold tone, her expression less than welcoming. She ignored the elder entirely.
The elder surnamed Ding was furious at this. But he was a man of deep cunning, and outwardly he did not show his anger. Instead, he let out a sinister chuckle.
"Sorceress! At this point, feigning ignorance will do you no good. You harmed our young master and stole our sect's treasures — did you truly think you could escape today?"
Yuan Yao said nothing in response. Instead, her luminous eyes flickered as she carefully assessed the cultivation of each person before her.
Her heart sank.
The elder and the fierce man were no real threat — they were only early-stage Core Formation cultivators, roughly on par with her. But the skull-like man in black and the plain-faced young man in green robes beside him were mid-stage and late-stage Core Formation respectively. She could not deal with them easily at all.
If these four joined hands, then despite the several formidable treasures she possessed for protection and the secret techniques she had cultivated over the years, her chances of survival would still be dire.
The skull and the fierce man, for their part, had also been momentarily stunned by Yuan Yao's breathtaking beauty. But then they exchanged a glance tinged with regret.
If not for the fact that this woman had offended the Qingyang Gate's Three Yang Old Devil, she would have been the perfect dual-cultivation partner. What a waste!
Faced with mortal peril, Yuan Yao instead grew perfectly calm.
With a cold laugh, she turned her slender hand over, and a white formation disk appeared in her palm. With a gentle stroke, brilliant white light burst forth.
Massive billows of thick green and yellow mist immediately surged outward, shrouding the entire small mountain within them. The elder let out a low shout, and the flying sword before him vanished in a flash, slashing toward Yuan Yao at tremendous speed.
But Yuan Yao chuckled lightly, and without another word her figure flickered as she retreated into the thick mist.
"Hmph! A mere illusion formation, and you dare show it off!" The elder frowned, but then raised his hands in a disdainful seal, pointing a finger at the flying sword.