The corners of Han Li's mouth twitched, and he cursed inwardly, but his tightly shut eyes still had no choice but to open.
His magical power was almost fully replenished, but now that someone was approaching, he didn't dare to continue meditating so openly — especially when he had no idea who it was!
"Which senior brother is here? Please help me!"
A woman in a yellow robe stumbled out of the nearby woods and ran to the base of the tree where Han Li was hiding. Looking up in panic, she cried out for help, apparently certain that there was a savior in the branches above. Not far behind her, a figure in white strolled along leisurely — a stark contrast to the woman's frantic state, as if she had all the time in the world.
Seeing all this, Han Li rolled his eyes, greatly annoyed by this female fellow disciple's talent for attracting trouble. As for her ability to find his hiding spot, he wasn't particularly surprised.
Before all the Yellow Maple Valley disciples had set out, the sect leader Zhong Lingdao had cast a tracking technique on them, allowing these disciples to sense each other's positions within a certain range. Of course, this had a time limit — it only worked for ten days. The purpose was for fellow disciples to support one another, greatly increasing their chances of victory.
It was said that disciples from other sects had been given similar enchantments.
With no other choice, Han Li glanced at the woman.
He actually recognized her — she was a female fellow disciple he had seen with Junior Sister Chen. Aside from a rather alluring figure, her appearance was quite ordinary.
After observing her desperate pleading expression with cold eyes, Han Li didn't rashly jump down from the tree. Instead, he peered through the tiny gaps between the leaves and carefully examined the white figure following behind her.
Whether he was going to help or not, he wanted to assess the newcomer's level of cultivation first. He wasn't about to risk his own life for a woman he'd never met.
If the white figure's cultivation was mediocre, Han Li would naturally not hesitate to strike her down and play the part of the "hero rescuing the beauty." But if her cultivation was formidable, he'd need to consider whether to join forces with his fellow disciple below or simply flee immediately.
Still, as a precaution, he placed his hand on his storage pouch and took out the magical tool "Golden Cicada Mother-Child Blades" along with defensive talismans, while deftly wrapping the nameless silk thread around his fingers.
"Tsk tsk, what an ugly escape! Are all the female disciples of Yellow Maple Valley this useless? Running all this way just to beg some other smelly man for help — is the one up in the tree your sweetheart?"
The white figure drew closer, revealing her true form — a young woman in flowing white robes. Her face was rather attractive, though her two eyebrows were slightly raised, giving her an air of menace.
Though she spoke to the yellow-robed woman below the tree, her murderous gaze kept darting up into the branches, showing that she was not as confident as her words suggested — she was clearly wary of whoever was hiding up there.
"Twelfth-level technique."
Having easily discerned the depth of her cultivation, Han Li felt somewhat relieved.
But he was puzzled — the female fellow disciple below the tree also appeared to be at the twelfth level, so how had she been chased into such a desperate state? Did her pursuer have some special means or particularly powerful magical tools?
While Han Li was mulling this over, the woman in white let out a cold snort. Suddenly, she flicked both sleeves, and two streaks of white light shot out from them, hurtling straight toward the yellow-robed woman.
"Senior brother, help me! All my magical tools have been destroyed — I can't defend myself!" The yellow-rooked woman's face went pale as she cried out in alarm.
The moment the words left her mouth, two streaks of golden light shot down from the treetop, intercepting the white light mid-flight and engaging in a fierce exchange. Han Li had activated the "Golden Cicada Mother-Child Blades" — the two golden streaks were merely a pair of the subsidiary blades.
The yellow-rooked woman's face lit up with joy, and she finally calmed down.
Han Li had intervened for two reasons. First, he felt the woman in white wasn't particularly threatening and that he could handle her. Second, he wanted to pick up an ally for the journey ahead — it would be better than facing enemies alone. After all, a fellow disciple at the twelfth level should at least be of some use in the fights to come.
"Finally willing to show yourself! I thought you were going to keep playing deaf and dumb forever!" the woman in white taunted with a sneer, her face showing not the slightest hint of surprise. She raised her hand, and a massive ball of fire shot straight toward the treetop.