"You truly are clever, Fellow Daoist. This is indeed the Fallen Cloud Sect of the Heavenly Dao Alliance. You should go on ahead — my master is still waiting!" Silver Moon's eyes rippled with a subtle light as she urged the woman forward without so much as blinking.
"Very well! This little lady would also like to meet this senior. I'll trouble you to lead the way." The white-robed woman was no ordinary cultivator, and she recovered her composure remarkably quickly.
Silver Moon offered a faint smile, then glided out of the chamber on delicate steps. The white-robed woman followed silently behind her.
Moments later, the two women arrived one after the other in the main hall.
Han Li was seated in a stone chair, his clear gaze fixed on an enormous sphere of light in the center of the hall. Inside, a spirit beast was furiously ramming its head against the barrier wall, but the earth-attribute restriction didn't budge in the slightest — the deep yellow wall of the barrier was as unyielding as bedrock.
Liu Yu studied the spirit beast carefully. The creature resembled a blue ox, with scales running along its back and four hooves tinged faint silver. It was a rare Iron Rhino Beast.
While this type of spirit beast was not some ancient exotic strain, it was still an exceptionally rare find in the cultivation world. The Fu clan of Yuanwu, which had only recently been wiped out, had supposedly possessed one such ancestral Iron Rhino Beast. It was said to be capable of fighting a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator without falling behind. Could this be that very beast?
If that was the case, then it truly was this person before her who had annihilated the entire Fu clan and seized this spirit beast.
Liu Yu felt a secret chill at Han Li's ruthlessness. Falling into the hands of a Nascent Soul cultivator like this — her chances were grim indeed!
At the same time, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of surprise at how young Han Li appeared.
After all, very few male cultivators practiced techniques with age-preservation effects. Upon reaching the Nascent Soul stage, most had already taken on the appearance of a middle-aged man. Of course, "middle-aged" here meant the normal look of a male cultivator in his three or four hundred years. The higher one's realm grew, the more slowly a cultivator aged.
So in the cultivation world, it was perfectly common for white-haired elders to address middle-aged cultivators as "Grand-Uncle" or "Great-Grand-Uncle." There was nothing strange about it at all.
At this moment, Silver Moon stood before Han Li and spoke with a respectful air:
"Master, the fellow cultivator from the Spirit Beast Mountain has arrived."
"Mm. You may withdraw for now." Han Li nodded and said casually.
"Yes, Master!" Silver Moon knew that her transformation couldn't be maintained for long, which was why Han Li had spoken so readily. A faint smile crossed her face as she quietly withdrew.
Liu Yu approached Han Li with evident unease, offered him a light curtsy, then stood to the side with a delicate, docile expression — the very picture of meek compliance.
But Han Li merely swept a cold glance over her before turning back to the Iron Rhino Beast within the light barrier, flicking a finger.
A slender arc of lightning shot from his fingertip, pierced straight through the barrier, and struck the spirit beast's body.
Electricity crackled across the Iron Rhino Beast's entire form. With a pitiful cry, it toppled over with a heavy thud, all four hooves twitching uncontrollably, unable to rise.
Seeing Han Li casually bring down such a formidable spirit beast with a single strike, the delicate, pitiful look on Liu Yu's face wavered for just an instant before she feigned nonchalance once more. But with his spiritual sense, Han Li picked up the sound clearly enough — her heartbeat had quickened by a fraction.
Only then did Han Li turn his gaze back to the white-robed woman and ask in a calm voice:
"What is your name, and why were you following me? It would be perfectly normal for cultivators from the Ghost Spirit Sect or the Devil Flame Sect to come looking for me. But your Spirit Beast Mountain — I don't recall ever having crossed paths with you."
At Han Li's words, Liu Yu was momentarily stunned, and her expression turned somewhat unnatural. But after lightly biting her red lip, she answered in a soft voice.