Han Li swiftly pulled a blue talisman from his storage pouch and pressed it gently against the wound.
A flash of white light, and the bleeding stopped immediately.
Han Li cast a sideways glance at it. Seeing the injury was temporarily under control, he felt somewhat relieved.
But when he turned his head and fixed his gaze on "Qu Hun," his eyes turned ice cold. He said nothing, but a cyan glow several zhang tall abruptly erupted from his body, with nine emerald streaks spiraling and undulating within it — an extremely eye-catching sight.
Han Li had made up his mind. If he wasn't walking out of here alive, he would absolutely not recall his "Azure Bamboo Bee Cloud Swords." He refused to be ambushed again by this old monster who knew how many years had passed.
To be honest, since he had begun Cultivating Immortality, the encounter just now had been the most heart-stopping moment he'd ever experienced.
If his reaction had been even slightly slower, a hole would have immediately appeared in his heart.
If not for his spiritual sense and agility far surpassing those of an ordinary cultivator, after Qu Hun's sneak attack just now, he would certainly have been dead for sure.
The Blood Spirit Drill was truly insidious to the extreme — utterly impossible to guard against!
However, Han Li no longer needed to worry about the Blood Spirit Drill's viciousness. The one just now had been the last one Qu Hun had previously refined.
But Han Li was still extremely frustrated!
According to the cultivation method for "External Avatar," he had clearly already refined the separated spiritual sense and Qu Hun's physical body to the point of perfect unity between god and form. So how had he still been controlled by that old ghost on the other side without even noticing?
Not even a single warning wisp of spiritual sense had made it through in time.
If he hadn't reacted quickly and hastily retracted that portion of spiritual sense, the other side would likely have devoured it using that opening.
That was when his trouble would have truly been immense.
But the fact that the other party could possess someone also proved that the green shadow was indeed not human, but some sort of spirit entity akin to a ghost or Primordial Spirit.
Possessing Qu Hun's body might not necessarily be a bad thing — it could even give him an opportunity to destroy the opponent.
With that thought, Han Li flipped his palm, and a small, exquisitely crafted brass bell appeared in his hand. It was the Soul-Calling Bell that had been sitting idle for quite some time.
This bell contained the vital blood essence of Qu Hun's physical body. He wasn't counting on it alone to subdue the opponent, but at least it could create some openings for him!
At that moment, the "Qu Hun" across from him was casually flexing his limbs, as if adapting to this body.
Upon seeing Han Li's actions, he let out a cold, sneering laugh, looking utterly confident and unconcerned.
Han Li's expression darkened at the sight. Without further hesitation, he struck the small bell in his hand.
A clear series of "dong… dong…" rang out. Across from him, the red light in Qu Hun's eyes flickered a few times, but his figure remained completely motionless — not showing any sign of discomfort whatsoever.
Han Li's heart sank.
"No matter what little tricks you've planted on this Evil Core Avatar, now that I've become the master of this body, do you really think those petty restrictions can still work?" Qu Hun's hoarse voice drifted over, his face full of mockery.
"You know about the Evil Core Avatar?" Han Li's expression shifted, somewhat surprised.
"Heh heh! This Evil Core and the Avatar technique were originally passed down to those two rebellious disciples of mine. You think I wouldn't recognize it? You've got some nerve using an avatar right in front of me! Don't you know that any avatar created with this secret technique can be easily controlled by me? Didn't your master warn you about that?" Qu Hun twisted his neck from side to side, then crossed his arms and said flatly.
Han Li felt a jolt of alarm and doubt, but his expression looked somewhat peculiar.
"What master? I obtained this avatar method from a jade slip. I fail to see how it has any connection to you," Han Li replied. He had no intention of taking the blame for that Patriarch Ji Yin, and regardless of whether the other party's words were true or false, he gave a simple explanation.
"A jade slip? Kid, do you think that by refusing to admit you're a disciple of those two rebellious ones, I'll let you go? Once I capture you, I'll extract your soul and refine your spirit — I'll still get everything I want to know." Qu Hun seemed not to believe Han Li at all, speaking with a blank expression.
And without the slightest hesitation after those words, he waved his hand toward the pile of white bones not far away. The scattered bones rose into the air of their own accord and instantly reassembled into a complete skeleton, which then shot toward Qu Hun in a flash of white light.
Though Han Li didn't know what the other party intended, he would never let him complete the process unhindered.
Without a moment's thought, he flicked his fingers lightly several times. Three streaks of hazy cyan sword light shot from his hand and flew straight at the skeleton.
They were Azure Origin Sword Beams!
"A grain of rice dares to shine so boldly?" Qu Hun said with sinister coldness.