Chapter 907: Heaven-Piercing Spirit Treasure — The Golden Flame Stone

But Han Li's gaze did not rest on the bat. Instead, it fell upon the group of cultivators standing atop the giant creature's back.

Though they were still far away, with the blue glow flickering in his pupils, he had already made out their appearances clearly. He couldn't help but feel a jolt of surprise.

The group numbered eight — four men and four women. The men wore brocade robes with jade belts, their attire splendid. The women wore white robes, went barefoot, and had gold sashes wound around their waists. None of them were dressed in Tuyuhun fashion.

Han Li grew somewhat wary.

What put him at ease, however, was that apart from the two leaders who were at the Core Formation stage, the rest were merely Foundation Establishment cultivators. It didn't seem like they had come for him.

Just as these thoughts flashed through Han Li's mind, the giant bat — a full five or six zhang across — had already flown directly above the caravan. With several violent beats of its enormous wings, it came to a sudden stop.

A furious gale bore down on the caravan, and several carts caught directly in its path were instantly overturned. Leather sacks, crates, and other items were flung from the carts and burst open, scattering minerals, herbs, and all manner of goods across the ground.

As for the mortals blown off their feet by the wind — there were plenty of them too.

At this, the Tuyuhun Immortal Masters, whose expressions had already begun to shift, were struck with even greater dread. They exchanged panicked glances.

"Which one of you is in charge? Step forward and speak." A man in his forties atop the giant bat swept his gaze over the caravan below and spoke in the Tuyuhun tongue, his voice cold as ice. He was one of the two Core Formation cultivators. The other was a young woman in white, barely into her twenties — somewhat pretty, perhaps, but with a face as cold as frost.

At these words, Ying Lu's heart lurched. He immediately stepped out from the crowd, bowed, and was about to speak.

"I wasn't talking about mortals. I meant you — you Immortal Masters." The man's expression darkened, his tone turning impatient. The giant bat beneath his feet suddenly swept one wing, and another blast of wind surged forward, sending Ying Lu stumbling backward until he nearly fell flat on his back.

The remaining Tuyuhun Immortal Masters saw this and felt their fear deepen.

The newcomers clearly did not come with friendly intentions.

And so, in the very next moment, every one of them turned their gaze toward Han Li.

After all, in the cultivation world, the strongest naturally became the leader — that was only to be expected.

Seeing this, Han Li felt a wave of exasperation.

But he also noticed something.

Even now, Feng Yue and another Tuyuhun cultivator still had not come out of their carts.

Feng Yue's absence was understandable. With his death sentence looming, he had clearly adopted an attitude of resigned defiance and no longer cared about offending powerful cultivators. But the other person — that Tuyuhun cultivator Han Li had once been curious about, who was also only at the Foundation Establishment stage — was similarly refusing to come out. That was highly suspicious!

"Could these people be here for that one?" Han Li thought to himself.

"I wonder what business brings you seniors and fellow Daoists here? Are you looking for someone or something, or do you have other instructions? We juniors will certainly do our utmost to cooperate." With no better option, Han Li stepped forward and spoke in a calm, measured tone.

Hearing such composed and respectful words, the middle-aged man's eyes flashed coldly. His gaze circled the cloak covering Han Li's head once, and then he said abruptly, his face expressionless:

"Remove your cloak before you speak to me. I want to see your face first."

Han Li felt a twinge of annoyance. But he reflected that he had never shown his true face during his past battles with Tuyuhun Immortal Masters, so it was no great matter. Without further comment, he removed his cloak, revealing his thoroughly ordinary features.

The men and women atop the giant bat all fixed their gazes on Han Li's face at the same time. Han Li even felt waves of spiritual power emanating from the man's eyes — he was apparently using some secret technique to scrutinize him.

"That's his real face. He's not the traitor," the man said after a moment, the cold gleam in his eyes fading. He turned to the Core Formation woman beside him.

She nodded, then swept her gaze across the remaining Tuyuhun cultivators before shaking her head as well.

Only then did the man turn back to Han Li and say flatly:

"Call all your companions out. We're looking for someone, and we suspect they may have slipped into your caravan. Once we find them, we'll leave. We won't do anything to you."

Though the man spoke these words, he immediately sent a low-voiced voice transmission, then waved his hand.

The six remaining Foundation Establishment cultivators shot off the bat at once, hovering above the carts where Feng Yue and the other hidden Tuyuhun cultivator were located. They had clearly identified their targets.

But both carriages remained utterly silent.

The rest of the group witnessing this didn't dare breathe too loudly.

The big man surnamed Ba and the tribal chief who had hired the other cultivator turned deathly pale in an instant.

Han Li furrowed his brow but said nothing.

Seeing no movement from within the carts, the man atop the bat let out a cold snort. He flipped his palm upward, and several fist-sized fireballs materialized out of thin air.