"Regardless of who he is, now that a Grand Ascension Stage being has appeared, it looks like we won't be able to hide this any longer; we may as well spread the word and recruit their assistance to make a gamble. Surely that would be better than missing our opportunity and ending up with nothing." Having made up his mind, the masked man swept a sleeve through the air and instantly vanished on the spot.
At this moment, Han Li was walking along a street, having visited a few of the larger shops to replenish his supplies.
After that, he went to a slightly secluded inn and rented a small independent courtyard, where he stayed and began to meditate.
Three days later, Han Li returned to the plaza, where Patriarch Hua Shi and Zhu Guo'er were already waiting for him, and the three returned to the inn together.
Han Li then informed the two of them that he had suddenly made a breakthrough in a secret technique, so he would have to go into seclusion for some time and set the search for the ancient altar aside for now.
He also instructed the two to stay in the courtyard and cultivate in the meantime, and to not go out unless it was necessary.
Patriarch Hua Shi and Zhu Guo'er naturally accepted this arrangement.
Thus, for the next month or so, the three of them cultivated in the courtyard without leaving even once.
On this day, Han Li was in the process of meditating when he suddenly opened his eyes, seemingly having sensed something.
His expression then darkened slightly as golden light erupted from his body, and he shot out of the room as a streak of golden light.
Almost at the exact same moment, an earth-shattering boom rang out, and a massive fireball exploded above the inn akin to a scorching sun.
Powerful shockwaves surged forth in all directions, toppling all of the surrounding buildings, and the majority of the people near the site of the explosion instantly exploded into clouds of blood mist, while only a minority of beings with advanced cultivation bases were able to rush out of the affected area before looking up with alarmed expressions.
Patriarch Hua Shi and Zhu Guo'er were naturally among the latter group.
Due to the flight restrictions, no one was able to rise up into the air, but they could still see everything clearly from down below.
At the site of the explosion, there were two humanoid figures facing each from afar while hovering in mid-air.
One of them was a young man in a set of daoist robes, while the other was a wrinkly old woman with ahead of white hair, and both of them were giving off astonishing auras.
It was clear that those were responsible for the explosion.
"Those must be Grand Ascension Stage beings! Even Body Integration Stage beings can't rise too high up into the air with the potent flight restrictions in place in this city," someone immediately exclaimed.
Some of the people who had survived the explosion were looking up with enraged expressions, but all of them drew a sharp breath upon hearing this before quickly scattering and fleeing into the distance.
This was a clash between two Grand Ascension Stage beings; it would be nothing short of suicide to stay here!
As for seeking an explanation or compensation, that was something that they didn't even dare to consider.
The fact that two Grand Ascension Stage beings had suddenly appeared was enough to shake the entire city.
Patriarch Hua Shi and Zhu Guo'er were a little perplexed as they couldn't see Han Li anywhere, but they weren't concerned and remained standing calmly on the spot.
Right at this moment, a cold male voice suddenly rang out up above.
"How dare you attack this city in such a blatant manner? Do you have no regard for the Blood Bone Sect?"
Faint spatial fluctuations erupted, and a burst of white light suddenly flashed between the young man and the elderly woman, following which a man wearing a white mask emerged.
The mask had several silver spirit patterns etched onto its surface, and it concealed the man's entire face aside from a pair of black eyes.
"You've finally come out, Xiao Ming. This is what you get for avoiding us. Hmph, if you had continued to hide from us, I would've destroyed this entire city!" the elderly woman harrumphed coldly.
"Please forgive us, Fellow Daoist Xiao; Mistress Wan Hua and I only resorted to this as we had no choice. It's a good thing that we intentionally restricted the scope of the explosion so not much damage was caused to your city," the young daoist priest said in an apologetic manner, creating a stark contrast with the elderly woman's cold demeanor.
"Not much damage was caused? There were close to 1,000 people living in this area, yet less than 100 managed to escape! Most importantly, during the few centuries I've been the lord of this city, no one has dared to do something like this; I'm not going to let things slide unless you give me a satisfactory explanation!" the masked man replied in a cold voice.
"What explanation do you want? So what if a few hundred low-grade beings died? It's not a big deal. Are you trying to issue a challenge to me?" the elderly woman asked as a dangerous gleam flashed through her eyes.
The young daoist priest's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this, but he didn't say anything in the end.
"I know why you two came to find me, but if you want to discuss this matter, you and Mistress Wan Hua will each have to endure three attacks from me at an arena. Regardless Of the outcome, I'll be willing to let things slide," the masked man said.
"Three attacks? No problem! I can take 30, even 300 if you want," the elderly woman guffawed.
"Good, I'll be able to give everyone in the city an explanation now. By the way, there's something I forgot to mention; you two aren't the first Grand Ascension Stage fellow daoists to arrive at my Blood Crane City," the masked man said.
Both the elderly woman and young daoist priest were quite surprised to hear this, and the latter asked, "Someone arrived here before us? Which fellow daoist was it that managed to catch wind of this so quickly?"
Instead of providing a reply, the masked man turned toward a certain direction, and said, "You've been spectating for quite some time now, Fellow Daoist; why don't you come out and meet us?"
"Oh? I didn't think you'd be able to see through my concealment technique. In that case, I guess I'll have to show myself." A male voice suddenly rang out from that direction, following which Han Li emerged amid a flash of azure light with a hint of a smile on his face.
"So it really is you. Don't be surprised that I was able to see through your concealment technique; most of the restrictions in this city were set up by me, so anyone else unleashing abilities of this nature would also fail to escape my detection," Xiao Ming said with a smile.
"So you're a formation master; no wonder you were able to see right through me. May I ask why you decided to call me out?" Han Li asked.
"I must say, I truly admire your willpower, Fellow Daoist. You clearly already know that that thing is about to open, but instead of seeking me out after arriving in Blood Crane City, you've made no effort to approach me at all. If Fellow Daoist Qing Ping and Fellow Daoist Wan Hua hadn't arrived, you would've most likely continued to wait. I also didn't think that the two of them would decide to strike on the street where you're living; life is truly full of coincidences," Xiao Ming chuckled.
The daoist priest exchanged a glance with the elderly woman before the former said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Wan Hua and I were unaware that a fellow daoist of the same cultivation base as ourselves was living on this street. We had briefly inspected the area with our spiritual sense and decided to strike as the population density in this area was quite low. Having said that, it's very impressive that you were able to conceal your cultivation base so convincingly that you even managed to fool both of us. I don't recall ever seeing you before; may I ask your name, Fellow Daoist?"
"My surname is Han, and it's no surprise that you haven't seen me before; I'm not from the Blood Sky Continent. I just so happen to be passing through this place, and I have no interest in getting involved with whatever you're planning. However, if I hadn't acted quickly, I would've been caught up in that explosion as well, so I believe you two also owe me an explanation," Han Li replied with a cold expression.
Xiao Ming faltered slightly upon hearing this, then turned to Daoist Qing Ping's duo with an amused look in his eyes.
Daoist Qing Ping's brows furrowed slightly as he appraised Han Li, as if he were trying to figure out whether Han Li was telling the truth.
His smile then faded as he replied, "So you're a fellow daoist from another continent. We were indeed a little rash with our prior actions, but what kind of explanation do you want from us? Do you want us to face three attacks from you as well?"
"There's no need for three attacks; the two of you can take one attack from me each," Han Li replied in an expressionless manner.
The elderly woman seemed to be very short-tempered, and she immediately flared up with rage upon hearing this. "Sure, one attack each it is! Let me see what gives you the confidence to be so arrogant."
A wry smile appeared on Daoist Qing Ping's face, and he asked, "Are you really just passing through this city and not pursuing the same thing as we are?"
"I don't even know what you're referring to; how could I possibly be pursuing it? Rest assured, fellow daoists, I have other important matters to attend to. As long as you don't get in my way, I won't pose any hindrance to you, either," Han Li said in a calm manner.
Daoist Qing Ping was ecstatic to hear this, and Mistress Wan Hua's expression also eased slightly.
As for Xiao Ming, his expression remained calm as he said, "Regardless of what your objective is, as the city lord, I must welcome you to our city. I hope you can all do me the honor of paying my cave abode a visit once we finish our sparring matches in the arena."
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