After the blood mist dispersed, all of the devilish beings had been slain, and the human cultivators began to look around with shock and bewilderment in their eyes.
The late-Deity Transformation Stage elderly man was the first to return to his senses, and he hurriedly extended a respectful bow toward the azure figure up above. "Which senior has stepped in to assist us? I am Jian Feitian of the Pegasus Sect; thank you for your kindness!"
The other cultivators also quickly returned to their senses and extended deep bows toward Han Li as well.
"We're all humans, so I naturally couldn't just stand by idly and watch. Head toward the west; there are no devilish beings there, so it's safe for now; that's all the assistance I'll be able to give you," Han Li said as he swept a sleeve through the air, and all of the streaks of azure sword Qi flew back up his sleeve.
The elderly man was trying his best to see the appearance of the humanoid figure within the azure light, but to no avail. Thus, he immediately extended another respectful bow, and said, "May I ask your esteemed name, Senior? Our Pegasus Sect will be sure to pledge our allegiance to you as thanks for your kindness!"
"Hehe, my surname is Han. There's no need for you to go out of your way to repay me; I just so happened to be passing by. Alright, I have to go now; best of luck to all of you," Han Li chuckled and flew away as a streak of azure light before the elderly man could say anything further.
After just a few flashes, he vanished into the distance, traveling at an incredible speed.
The elderly man was quite startled by Han Li's speed, and he was rooted to the spot for a long while before gradually returning to his senses.
"Master, do you know which senior that was?" a Nascent Soul Stage male cultivator asked in a cautious manner.
"There's no way that a Spatial Tempering cultivator would be able to kill so many high-grade devilish beings at once; even the average Body Integration cultivator would struggle to do what he just did. According to my knowledge, there are only two Body Integration Stage seniors with the Han surname in our human race; one of them is Senior Han Qing, who recently pledged his allegiance to the Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign, while the other is Senior Han Li of Deep Heaven City. As for exactly which one it is, we'll have to verify that once we get to a safer place. He saved our lives, and that is something that we cannot simply forget," the elderly man replied.
"Yes, Master. Seeing as devilish beings have appeared here, this place is no longer safe. According to our original plan, we were going to travel to the sect hidden within the Black Water Mountain Range, but that Senior Han is telling us to go west. From what I know, the west is comprised of a vast expanse of bleak and barren plains where there won't be many places for us to hide," the middle-aged man said in a cautious voice.
"The Black Water Mountain Range isn't too far away from this place, so it's most likely no longer a safe place, either. As such, we should place our trust in Senior Han. So what if the west is filled with flat plains? Do you think we'll be able to escape the spiritual sense detection of the high-grade devilish beings if we hide in a mountain range? If we can find a secluded place, then burrow deep underground and set up a formation, there's a chance that we'll be able to survive this devilish tribulation. After all, the Elder Devil Race can't scour the entirety of our human territory," the elderly man said with a cold smile.
The middle-aged man thought about this for a moment before nodding in response. "We'll do as you say, Master."
"Oh, by the way, collect the storage treasures from these devilish beings. These are all devilish elites, so I'm sure they'll be carrying some valuable things. That Senior Han didn't bother to take them, but they could be of great assistance to our Pegasus Sect," the elderly man instructed.
The middle-aged man naturally gave an affirmative response before relaying the elderly man's instructions to everyone else.
Thus, not long after that, the group of human cultivators flew toward the west as Han Li had suggested. As for the devilish beings that had been slain, they most likely wouldn't be discovered by the Elder Devil Race for quite a while.
Along his journey, Han Li had encountered similar scenarios several times, and upon verifying that there weren't any devilish lords present, he had slain all of the devilish beings that he had encountered without any hesitation.
Unless he were to encounter a devilish army with several devilish lords among their ranks, he really didn't have much to fear.
Half a month later, a primitive forest appeared up ahead. The trees here were extremely tall and lush, and the dense canopy up above cast eerie shadows over the dense undergrowth.
Han Li stopped at the edge of the forest, then peered deep into it.
In the extremely far distance, there was a small mountain range comprised of seven mountains of different sizes.
Han Li withdrew his gaze before flying directly toward the mountain range again as a streak of azure light. He was traveling toward the second tallest of the seven mountains, and after just a few flashes, he reached its summit.
However, as he inspected his surroundings, a hint of surprise immediately appeared on his face.
There were two human cultivators on the same mountain summit, one of whom was a rotund monk in a purple kasaya who was sitting in front of what appeared to be a volcanic crater. As for his companion, this was an extremely thin and hideous elderly man with dark skin that resembled tree bark.
Both of them were also at the mid-Body Integration Stage, and they had used some type of aura concealment method that had led to Han Li failing to detect their presence in advance.
The two immediately turned toward Han Li in unison, and the rotund monk faltered initially before a hint of recognition flashed through his eyes. "Ah, greetings, Fellow Daoist Han."
This was none other than Buddhist Master Tian Chan, who was one of the Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign's subordinates, and had met Han Li once in the past.
"Greetings to you too, Buddhist Master Tian Chan." Han Li was quite surprised, but his expression remained unchanged as he clasped his fist in a salute from afar.
The hideous elderly man had also identified Han Li's mid-Body Integration Stage cultivation base, and his expression changed slightly as he asked in a coarse and raspy voice, "Do you recognize him, Tian Chan?"
"Hehe, it's no wonder that you don't recognize Fellow Daoist Han; he only reached the Body Integration Stage several centuries ago. You've constantly been in seclusion during this time, so there's naturally no way you two could've met," the Buddhist Master replied with a smile.
"Several centuries? If I'm not mistaken, Fellow Daoist Han is already at the mid-Body Integration Stage, is he not?" the elderly man asked as a hint of astonishment flashed through his eyes.
"I've only just reached the mid-Body Integration Stage not long. May I ask your name, Fellow Daoist?" Han Li asked as he returned the elderly man's salute.
"I am Yu Xiaotian; people call me Master Black Rain. Tsk tsk, it's extremely remarkable that you were able to make a Body Integration Stage breakthrough in just several centuries; even on the holy island, I haven't met anyone with aptitude that can match yours," the elderly man said with undisguised astonishment in his voice.
"Holy island? Are you a holy island envoy, Brother Yu?" Han Li was quite startled to hear this.
"I wouldn't dare to proclaim myself to be a holy island envoy, but I do indeed currently reside on the holy island," the elderly man replied in a modest manner.
"I've heard much about the holy island; it's a pity that I've never had a chance to visit it. Please do tell me about it when you get some spare time, Brother Yu," Han Li said with a smile as the shock on his face faded.
"Hehe, under normal circumstances, the holy island extends invitations to Body Integration Stage cultivators once every 1,000 years, and some are even able to remain on the island to cultivate. If it weren't for this devilish tribulation, perhaps you would've already been invited to the island, Brother Han," Master Black Rain chuckled.
"I see. This is the first time I've heard of this; please forgive me for my lack of knowledge on this matter," Han Li replied with a nod.
"Not at all, the holy island has always been a very secretive place, so it's no surprise that you haven't heard much about it," Master Black Rain chuckled.
"Benefactor Han, I heard that you moved to Deep Heaven City following the commencement of the devilish tribulation; what's the situation like in Deep Heaven City now?" Buddhist Master Tian Chan asked.
"I am indeed currently residing in Deep Heaven City, and I'm technically a guest elder in the city. Unfortunately, Deep Heaven City is currently in quite a precarious situation; all of the large human settlements around the city have been conquered," Han Li replied with a grim expression.
"Is the situation that bad already? I've heard that the large settlements around Deep Heaven City all have Body Integration cultivators among their ranks; how were they conquered so quickly?" Buddhist Master Tian Chan asked in a stunned manner.
"That's quite a long story that I'll tell you about later. For now, would you be able to disclose to me why you and Brother Yu have come here?" Han Li asked with a curious look in his eyes.
