Han Yi didn't recognize the middle-aged Confucian scholar at all, confirming that he had never seen him before.
If he had glanced back in Heavenfall City, like Tao Shouhua had, he would have noticed that this was the same cultivator who had slain Lu Su.
"Senior Brother Shi, he was the one who killed Kang Feiyang and Huang Tao back in Heavenfall City. He's incredibly strong, so we need to be cautious," the first youth warned, his gaze fixed on Han Yi. His expression was grave, and his mana was already surging, poised to strike.
"Oh? He killed two Seventh Layer cultivators in Heavenfall City and now Junior Brother Zhou as well? It seems we'll indeed need to exert some effort," Shi Heng, the refined middle-aged scholar, replied, his eyes narrowing at Han Yi. Though his words sounded casual, he was inwardly on high alert.
The moment he finished speaking, Shi Heng moved without warning.
His figure blurred into motion, lightning-fast. He crossed ten meters in a flash, closing to within three meters of Han Yi, and flicked open his silver folding fan.
The fan spun, scattering concentric rings of shimmering silver light that obscured even the faint moonlight. The display was breathtakingly beautiful, yet concealed deadly peril.
Han Yi sensed imminent danger. This middle-aged man was immensely powerful, far surpassing the Eighth Layer Qi Refinement cultivator he had just slain. He wasn't merely an ordinary Eighth Layer cultivator; he was among the most elite.
He retreated explosively, the Light Body Technique instantly pulling him back ten meters and three meters to the side.
Whoosh!
A silent flash of silver light streaked past Han Yi's former position, followed by a faint tearing sound ten meters behind where he had stood.
Han Yi turned toward the sound, his pupils constricting involuntarily.
A dozen massive trees, each five to six meters in diameter, slowly began to topple. The silver light had cleanly severed their trunks, yet the sound had been barely audible.
Han Yi's gaze shifted to the silver folding fan hovering in mid-air, his heart growing heavy.
This Magic Artifact was undoubtedly a High-Grade one, and likely among the finest of its kind.
"Hmm?"
The scholarly middle-aged cultivator seemed surprised that Han Yi had evaded his sudden assassination attempt. Though his face remained calm, his caution deepened.
"Kill," the middle-aged cultivator commanded. With a wave of his hands, the Silver Scale Fan, which had been hovering and spinning before him, abruptly transformed. Instead of opening into a semicircle, it stretched further outward, forming a complete circle. The fan leaves flattened, turning the folding fan into a silver disc.
The Silver Scale Fan, a High-Grade Magic Artifact, had entered its second form.
"Go!"
The disc vanished instantly, teleporting to appear before Han Yi. Unfazed, Han Yi had already sidestepped, having anticipated its power.
A shield of flames materialized instantly.
Boom!
The flames shattered, the shield crumbled, and the disc faltered momentarily.
Han Yi's expression remained unchanged. Pressing his index, middle, and ring fingers against his thumb, he flicked his hand sideways. Three beams of Spirit Light erupted, instantly bridging the four-meter gap to collide with another Magic Artifact—the Blood Soul Banner, a crimson flag-like artifact familiar to him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Spirit Void Fingers detonated in rapid succession, blasting half of the Mid-Grade Magic Artifact into ruin and sending it flying.
Three meters behind the disrupted banner, another figure materialized—the same cultivator Han Yi had allowed to escape from Heavenfall City.
The cultivator's face twisted in pain as he reluctantly caught the Blood Soul Banner and retreated swiftly.
He instantly realized this battle was beyond his capabilities.
Han Yi hadn't forgotten that his enemies weren't limited to the middle-aged scholar; there was also another cultivator at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refinement.
However, this Eighth Layer cultivator was only a recent initiate, posing no real threat to Han Yi in his current state.
After casually flicking out three Spirit Void Fingers, Han Yi ignored the man and swiftly turned his attention back to the main confrontation.
The shattered remnants of the Fire Shield Technique still lingered in the air, and the spinning disc, momentarily stalled, had yet to resume its attack.
This fleeting hesitation was precisely what Han Yi had been waiting for.
His moment had come.
Clang!
Two daggers materialized abruptly on either side of him.
Unlike their usual form, these daggers vibrated gently, their surfaces glowing with faint crimson auras.
Li Fire Sword Manual.
Using the Sword Control Technique to wield the Wind Demon Daggers and unleash the Li Fire Sword Manual, enhanced by the daggers' inherent wind attribute, Han Yi channeled nearly half of his full power into this strike.
"Go!" Han Yi hissed, pressing two fingers together and slashing downward.
The middle-aged scholar, standing over ten meters away, suddenly paled.
He knew the power of the Silver Scale Fan well. He had dodged the first strike, but the second, after its transformation, was blocked—a development he hadn't anticipated.
The moment Han Yi's two daggers appeared like twin streaks of light, they were already within three meters. Every hair on his body stood on end. Without hesitation, he surged his mana, conjuring a shimmering wall of light before him—the defensive spell, Light Wall Technique.
As the Light Wall solidified, his other hand flipped open, revealing two Spirit Talismans. Without hesitation, he slapped them onto his body.
Two azure glows erupted from the talismans, instantly expanding to form an elliptical protective barrier around him. The barrier pulsed with rapidly flickering blue light.
First-Tier High-Grade Spirit Talismans: two Body Protection Talismans.
An inexperienced combatant might have reacted step-by-step to Han Yi's attack. But this middle-aged scholar was a seasoned veteran of life-or-death battles. In that split second, he grasped the lethal nature of Han Yi's strike—a terrifying trump card. Without hesitation, he summoned the mana-infused Light Wall and then, sparing no expense, activated two valuable First-Tier High-Grade Spirit Talismans, leaving no room for error.
If he died, the Spirit Talismans would only benefit his opponent. In a life-or-death struggle, survival was paramount.
Unfortunately, he had underestimated both the power of Han Yi's daggers and the young man's combat experience.
Whoosh!
The two daggers didn't fly side by side, but in tandem, one slightly ahead of the other, forming a seamless, point-focused attack.
Bang!
The Light Wall shattered instantly, unable to withstand even a fraction of a second.
Pfft!
Like a blade piercing through cloth, the azure barrier formed by the first Body Protection Talisman shattered instantly. The first dagger faltered slightly, its faint crimson aura dimming by half.
Then, the dagger pierced through the second azure barrier before finally losing momentum and falling to the ground.
But the second dagger, following close behind, suddenly accelerated. After slicing through the second barrier, it flashed past and pierced through the side of the middle-aged cultivator, who had attempted to dodge sideways but failed to completely evade.
Boom!!
His right arm exploded at the shoulder.
The middle-aged cultivator's face twisted in horror as he instantly produced a third Spirit Talisman, ready to slap it onto his mangled arm.
Just then, a black light suddenly filled his vision.
"What's that?!" The middle-aged scholar gasped in shock, but his hand continued moving toward his arm.