"Evil-Repelling Divine Lightning!" The black-robed woman, originally in a fury and about to unleash a dark arts secret technique, let out a startled cry.
Before she could say another word, Han Li spread both hands, and a sheet of golden net rumbled downward to envelop her from above.
Horror flashed in the woman's eyes. Her body dissolved into a wisp of pale smoke and shot backward, barely escaping the golden net's encirclement by the skin of her teeth.
Han Li's expression remained flat. Behind him, the Wind Thunder Wings snapped open, and he vanished from where he stood in an instant.
Seeing this, the black-robed woman immediately recalled the rumors about Han Li. She hastily formed hand seals with both hands, and her figure wavered slightly.
Her silhouette blurred, and seven or eight identical copies of her materialized side by side. Each woman looked exactly like the original, moving in perfect unison — then they scattered in all directions, streaking away as trails of yellow light.
Every single one had transformed into a flickering afterimage, making it impossible to tell which was the real black-robed woman!
Silver lightning flashed, and Han Li materialized at the spot where the woman had originally stood, accompanied by a faint peal of thunder.
He gazed at the scattered lights fleeing in every direction, yet he showed not the slightest hint of panic. Instead, a cold smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.
He channeled spiritual energy into his eyes with a surge, and a deep blue glow flickered within his pupils — the power of the Clear Bright Spiritual Eye activated.
Han Li raised his head and looked into the distance.
Every trail of yellow light was dim and thin, its spiritual energy wispy and faint. They were all phantoms.
Startled, Han Li quickly glanced left and right — only to discover, with a jolt, a wisp of smoke so faint it was nearly invisible, silently gliding toward his back.
The woman had used those illusions to divert his attention. Instead of fleeing with the decoys, her real body had concealed itself nearby, lying in wait to ambush him.
The woman was truly audacious, her skill matching her nerve.
Had he not possessed the Clear Bright Spiritual Eye, his spiritual sense alone would never have detected her. Her movement technique was extraordinary — probably no less impressive than Silver Moon's.
A chill ran through Han Li's heart, but he said nothing. He turned around and flew straight toward the giant ape, as though he had no intention of chasing the black-robed woman any further.
The wisp of smoke had already reached a few zhang behind him. It paused for just a moment, then the woman's figure materialized without a sound. A palm shimmering with inch-long yellow light thrust like lightning straight at Han Li's back.
The angle was both precise and vicious — aimed directly at his heart. If her claw landed true, his heart would be crushed to pulp, and his body would be finished.
But at the very instant the woman struck, Han Li's body swayed almost casually. Then, at a speed invisible to the naked eye, he spun around to face her head-on.
His mouth opened slightly, and a golden glow surged forth from within.
"Ah!" The black-robed woman's face drained of all color. She twisted her body sideways in a desperate attempt to dodge.
But it was too late. At such close range, there was nowhere to hide.
With a muffled boom, a bolt of golden lightning erupted from Han Li's mouth and struck the woman squarely on the shoulder.
A smell of scorched flesh wafted immediately through the air. The woman screamed in agony and plummeted from the sky.
Behind Han Li, the twin wings spread once more, and he vanished in a crack of thunder — only to reappear in a flash of light behind the falling woman. A palm wreathed in ghostly blue flame pressed gently against the back of her neck.
A hissing sound rang out, and a thick layer of blue ice encased her entire body.
The black-robed woman felt a wave of cold sweep through her, and then she lost all sensation. Her entire form turned into a frozen statue and plummeted straight from the sky.
Han Li hovered motionless in midair. His other hand, which had been prepared all along, swept forward, and countless slender arcs of electricity reached out, wrapping the ice figure in a golden net.
A flash of grim coldness crossed Han Li's face. Brilliant golden light erupted from the frozen statue, and amid a series of cracking sounds, the black-robed woman's body shattered into motes of icy light that vanished without a trace.
The only thing remaining in the electric net was a female cultivator's Nascent Soul, delicate and exquisitely beautiful. The Nascent Soul's face was deathly pale. She clearly understood the dread power of the Evil-Repelling Divine Lightning, and terror was written across every feature.
Han Li's eyes flickered. He gave the golden arcs in his hand a flick, about to destroy the Nascent Soul then and there — But the black-robed woman's Nascent Soul suddenly let out a shrill, wailing scream: "You can't kill me! I am the partner of the Sect Master of the Yin Luo Sect of the Jin Kingdom! If you kill me, my sect will pursue you to the death — there will be no end to it!"
" The Sect Master of the Yin Luo Sect's partner!" Hearing this, Han Li stared coldly at the Nascent Soul for a moment. Then, without a word, he loosened the golden net in his hand, turned, and walked away.
The woman's Nascent Soul froze in disbelief for an instant, then burst into elation and darted toward the gap in the net, eager to escape. In her heart, her mind was already brimming with vicious thoughts of how she would exact her revenge on Han Li once she got away.
But at that moment, from a dozen-odd zhang away, Han Li gave a slight mental command to his spell.
The golden net, which had appeared to loosen, suddenly constricted with savage force, wrapping tightly around the female cultivator's Nascent Soul. The arcs of lightning crackled, and with a roar of thunder, the net detonated.
The black-robed woman's Nascent Soul didn't even have time to let out a final wail before it was obliterated into nothingness.
" I've already destroyed your physical body — you really think I'd let you go back for revenge? " Han Li muttered with a hint of resignation, letting out a deep sigh.
Then, without looking back, he flew toward the giant ape.
From the moment the black-robed woman appeared to the instant Han Li annihilated her with the Evil-Repelling Divine Lightning, the whole sequence seemed complex — yet it all happened in the span of a single breath.