At that same moment...
Bang!
Three meters to Han Yi's right, a flame shield shattered after blocking seven or eight crimson blade qi attacks.
The Blood God Sect cultivator wielding the blade surged with murderous intent, his aura like a raging storm. He cleaved through a dagger hurtling through the air, then leaped nimbly upward, gripping his blade with both hands, ready to unleash a ferocious downward strike.
His wide eyes blazed with savage, bloodthirsty madness.
This Sixth Layer Qi Refining cultivator from the Profound Pill Sect was undeniably strong—shockingly so.
Yet...
To briefly withstand his attacks, manipulate a dagger for counterattacks, and simultaneously engage two opponents while eliminating one of his allies—this was nothing short of a heaven-defying feat. Even within the Blood God Sect, he had never seen a Seventh Layer Qi Refining cultivator achieve such terrifying prowess, let alone someone at the Sixth Layer.
But...
This was the end.
What could the Profound Pill Sect cultivator possibly use to withstand his next full-power strike?
As he hovered in mid-air, his blade radiating an earth-shattering cold light and surging with crimson energy, ready to descend, he suddenly sensed something and abruptly whirled around.
Something was hurtling toward him.
So fast!
Before he could fully turn, a sudden, piercing pain exploded in his skull, freezing his thoughts mid-motion. He plummeted from the sky.
The blood-red blade trembled slightly, its crimson glow fading into nothingness.
Anyone approaching the fallen cultivator would discover a gruesome sight: his skull had been pierced from back to front by some kind of weapon.
With his head destroyed, death was absolute.
A hundred meters away, Cui Xingchen skidded to a halt, his face etched with shock. Four words flashed through his mind: Utter annihilation.
In mere moments, the Blood God Sect cultivators on the right and in the center had perished.
This... this...
Could Junior Brother Han Yi, the Sixth Layer Qi Refining cultivator, have been telling the truth?
Cui Xingchen wasn't alone in his disbelief. Luo Yunzhou and Tao Shouhua shared the same absurd sense of unreality.
Under the moonlight, the figure before them seemed to have transformed into someone entirely different, shaking them to their core.
Meanwhile, Han Yi casually waved his hand, and a dagger materialized before him, hovering until he grasped its hilt.
Earlier, he had launched two daggers. The one openly displayed had been shattered by the Blood God Sect cultivator's blade—after all, his opponent wielded a mid-grade weapon. That dagger had served as a deliberate distraction, forcing a direct clash to draw attention while its hidden counterpart slipped into the shadows.
Han Yi turned to glance behind him.
Just a few dozen meters away, Han Yi spotted the Blood God Sect cultivator in his crimson robes. Behind him, at roughly the same distance, stood the three Profound Pill Sect disciples he recognized.
But the trio stood frozen, their pupils constricted and faces etched with shock.
In an instant, Han Yi understood what had happened.
His brow furrowed slightly, then relaxed.
Given the circumstances, fleeing was the natural reaction. He would have done the same; there was no fault in it.
Meanwhile, the Blood God Sect cultivator on the left, whom Han Yi had just forced back, also wore a stunned expression. When he saw Han Yi's gaze, cold sweat erupted across his face.
A suffocating sense of danger washed over him.
Even though the cultivator before him emanated only the aura of the Sixth Layer of Qi Refining, he couldn't help but take a half-step back.
That half-step marked the beginning of his retreat.
Without hesitation, his face twisting in terror, he whirled around and fled sideways.
There's a killing god in front and three Profound Pill Sect disciples behind. If I get pinned down for even a moment, I'm done for.
Sideways offered the best chance of escape.
To his immense relief, the killing god who had butchered two of his Seventh Layer Qi Refining comrades in the blink of an eye didn't pursue him.
Suddenly, he realized that not all Profound Pill Sect disciples were lambs—some were tigers. He would need to tread carefully from now on.
Han Yi decided to leave the ferocious, tiger-like cultivator to the Senior Brothers at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining. He simply wanted to distance himself from the area.
Meanwhile, Han Yi watched the Blood God Sect cultivator flee without giving chase. For him, killing wasn't the objective. Besides, the surge of frantic attacks had dissipated the nameless anger that had been burning within him.
Most importantly, his mana reserves were severely depleted. Pursuing the fleeing cultivator would risk encountering more Blood God Sect disciples and being overwhelmed—a losing proposition. It was better to seize this opportunity to escape again and find a secluded spot to conceal himself using the Turtle Breath Technique.
He refused to believe he could be so unlucky as to be repeatedly caught in the crossfire and forced out of hiding.
"Junior Brother Han, hurry and chase him down! Finish him off!" Cui Xingchen urged from nearby, his voice tense. Now was the perfect chance to eliminate the lone cultivator.
But Han Yi shook his head. "Senior Brother Cui, I gave it my all to kill the first two. I simply don't have the strength to take on this third one."
"Senior Brothers, seize this opportunity and flee immediately! Farewell!" Han Yi spoke rapidly, turning and fleeing before the trio could react.
Before departing, he casually snatched the Magic Artifacts and Storage Pouches from the corpses of the two Blood God Sect cultivators he had slain.
After all, these were his spoils of war, and he had to claim them.
"Junior Brother Han, wait!"
"Don't leave yet, Han Yi!"
"You..."
Han Yi was moving too fast, deliberately distancing himself and completely ignoring their calls.
In an instant, the small battlefield was deserted except for the three of them.
"Oh, right, Senior Brother Li is still over there," Tao Shouhua remembered. In their desperate escape, they had completely forgotten about their Inner Peak senior brother, whose fate remained unknown.
Now that there were no surviving Blood God Sect cultivators, they had to check on him. Senior Brother Li, who had fought alongside them and been critically injured, lay motionless on the ground, having crashed through the perimeter wall. Both morality and reason dictated that they investigate. If he was still alive, they had to rescue him.
Luo Yunzhou, thinking the same thing, took the lead in examining the fallen senior brother. After a moment, he stood up, shook his head, and his face twisted with grief and indignation.
"Senior Brother Li is dead."
"The stench of blood here is overwhelming. It's bound to attract more Blood God Sect cultivators. Senior Brother Cui, Junior Brother Tao, we need to leave this place immediately."
The three exchanged glances, their resolve solidified. Deliberately, they fled in the direction Han Yi had vanished.
After all, Han Yi's display of power earlier had been utterly astonishing. Following the direction of his escape gave the trio a sliver of security. If they were to encounter members of the Blood God Sect and Han Yi happened to be nearby, they were confident he wouldn't stand idly by.
Unfortunately, they didn't realize that Han Yi's retreat was a deliberate decision. He intended to find a secluded spot, activate his Turtle Breath Technique, and lie low until the next day.
To Han Yi's great annoyance, however, before he could even find a suitable hiding place, he was being targeted again.
Moreover, this time, the person tailing him was someone he dared not underestimate.
"Profound Pill Sect cultivator," the youth said, his face as cold as ice, blocking Han Yi's path with a golden shuttle in his hand. "Your murderous aura is thick. Have you slaughtered my Blood God Sect disciples?"
Han Yi's gaze locked onto the golden shuttle, his expression grave.
A Top-Grade Magic Artifact: the Golden Light Shuttle.
Cui Xingchen had barely escaped death from this weapon. Han Yi knew that if it struck him, he wouldn't survive.
"Damn it, what kind of cursed day is this? Why am I so unlucky?" Han Yi's face twisted with bitterness, his mood foul beyond measure.