Meanwhile, Han Li was also becoming quite enraged by Eccentric Wind's relentless pursuit.
Ever since he had progressed to the late-Nascent Soul Stage, he hadn't yet unleashed his two Divine Spirit Treasures. On top of that, he had infused Auric Essence into all 72 of his flying swords, and even he didn't know how powerful his Aureate Sword Formation would be. However, he was confident that even a Deity Transformation cultivator wouldn't be able to remain unscathed if they were to be trapped in it.
In any case, he also had those two Immortal Vanquishing Beads as his trump cards.
Thus, after taking all of that into account, Han Li decided that he had the resources to engage his pursuer in battle. As such, when the massive yellow hand came hurtling toward him again, he didn't use his Thunderstorm Wings to evade any longer. Instead, piercing golden light flashed as a sword projection sliced the massive hand in half, instantly vanquishing it on the spot.
Han Li's retaliation came as a surprise to Eccentric Wind, and his eyes narrowed in contemplation.
He was already rather confounded by the fact that Han Li was no longer fleeing the scene, so the attack that he had just unleashed was merely something to test the waters with. Now that Han Li was actively retaliating, he immediately realized that this late-Nascent Soul cultivator seemed to have decided to face him in a direct battle.
Eccentric Wind's expression remained unchanged, but a sense of elation welled up in his heart.
If Han Li were to continue to flee, he'd have to reconsider whether it was worth sacrificing more of his lifespan to continue in his pursuit. However, now that Han Li had decided to face him in battle, he'd have an opportunity to kill him before taking his treasures.
As such, Eccentric Wind exhaled and wasted no further time with words as he laid a hand onto the top of his own head.
Blue light flashed, and a hexagonal jade plate appeared. It appeared to be an antiquated treasure with mysterious runes of different colors shimmering over its surface.
As soon as this treasure appeared, a sinister smile appeared on Eccentric Wind's face.
In order to end this battle as quickly as possible, he was naturally going to crush his opponent in one fell swoop, thereby minimizing the amount of lifespan he'd have to sacrifice. During his previous brief scuffles with Han Li, he knew that Han Li had some powerful abilities and treasures. As such, he didn't dare to underestimate Han Li, and immediately summoned his most powerful treasure.
The jade plate began to rotate in mid-air before rapidly expanding amid a loud ringing sound. In the blink of an eye, it had transformed into a massive plate that was several tens of feet in size before tipping over to face Han Li.
Piercing blue light flashed from the plate, and it appeared that something was about to reveal itself.
Han Li's heart stirred upon seeing this, and he immediately swept both sleeves through the air. Several tens of small golden swords shot forth from within, instantly transforming into 72 golden flying swords, all of which were around a foot in length.
He then made a hand seal, and the 72 flying swords swayed before manifesting hundreds of identical swords. These swords danced through the air before transforming into a vast expanse of golden light, creating a rather formidable sight to behold.
Eccentric Wind faltered slightly at the sight of the vast number of flying swords that Han Li had summoned, but a cold smile then appeared on his face as he said, "No matter how many flying swords you have, it'll be nowhere near the number of my flying sabers. Let me show you the might of my Myriad Blade Plate!"
Han Li's eyes flashed as he turned his gaze toward the hexagonal jade plate.
The runes on the plate flashed a blue pillar of light shot forth, then dispersed into several streaks of blue light. Those streaks of blue light then flashed before instantly transforming into shimmering blue flying sabers, each of which was several inches in length. Blue pillars of light were still erupting incessantly from the jade plate, creating countless flying sabers that hovered above Eccentric Wind's head like a mountain of blades.
It was quite an intimidating sight for anyone to behold!
Han Li's expression changed drastically upon seeing this.
There had to be more than 4,000 flying sabers lined up in the air before him.
Right at this moment, Eccentric Wind swept a sleeve toward Han Li, and all of the blue sabers began to emanate brilliant spiritual light.
They then shot forth toward Han Li as streaks of blue light, and due to the sheer number of blades, the entire sky was obscured by blue light, making it appear as if there were a vast lethal wall of blue blades rushing toward Han Li.
Han Li's golden flying swords created an impressive spectacle, but it was nothing compared to the oncoming mountain of blades.
Han Li took a deep breath as his expression returned to normal. At the same time, he let loose a loud cry, yet instead of unleashing his flying swords to clash with the oncoming sabers, he raised a hand instead, A ball of green light slipped out of his palm, within which a green wooden ruler could be seen.
It was none other than the Eight Spirit Ruler!
As soon as the ruler left his hand, it began to dance through the air of its own accord. The projection of a silver lotus flower appeared on the ruler, and following an injection of magic power from Han Li, it expanded further and further, and the silver light emanating from it also became more and more scintillating.
Moments later, the silver lotus flower had reached over 100 feet in size, completing shielding Han Li behind it.
"That's the Eight Spirit Ruler! You're that Han brat that appeared on the Kunwu Mountains!" Eccentric Wind immediately exclaimed as he identified the spirit treasure.
At the same time, the mountain of blue blades faltered in mid-air, and didn't immediately come crashing down toward the massive lotus flower.
"You recognize me?" Han Li asked with furrowed brows.
"I don't, but Fellow Daoist Xiang once mentioned you to me. I heard that you're very familiar with Devilish Concubine Ling Long of the Spirit Realm?" Eccentric Wind's eyes flashed with a contemplative light as he spoke.
"I wouldn't say that, but I am indeed acquainted with her. When you say Fellow Daoist Xiang, are you referring to Xiang Zhili?" A peculiar look had also appeared on Han Li's face.
"Hmph, who else could I be referring to? Setting that aside for now, let me ask you this; before Devilish Concubine Ling Long returned to the Spirit Realm, did she mention anything about the spatial node to you or leave you any shortcuts to the Spirit Realm?" Eccentric Wind asked with his gaze focused intently on Han Li.
"Why are you asking that? Didn't Fellow Daoist Ling Long already offer guidance in this area to Master Xiong of the Myriad Demon Valley? Seeing as you're familiar with Brother Xiang, there's no way you wouldn't be aware of this." Han Li's heart jolted with surprise, but his expression remained calm and collected.
Eccentric Wind didn't believe Han Li in the slightest as he said in a cold voice, "There's no need for you to try and play dumb. I did a lot of research on what happened at the time, and that Devilish Concubine Ling Long was clearly very close with you. There's no way that she wouldn't have left you with a shortcut to the Spirit Realm. Hand over what she gave you, and I can let bygones be bygones."
"Hmph! Setting aside whether I actually do have what you're looking for, do you really think a mere Myriad Blade Plate can bring me down?" Han Li retorted in a bullish manner.
He wasn't a three-year-old kid; he wouldn't be that easy to fool. If he were to admit to this, then even he could survive this ordeal, the other Deity Transformation cultivators of the human world would definitely try to track him down, and he'd be in a world of trouble then.
A vicious light appeared in Eccentric Wind's eyes upon hearing this. He immediately made a hand seal, seemingly as if he were going to activate the mountain of blue blades again.
Han Li's heart tightened as he also injected more power into the massive lotus flower around him.
A fierce battle appeared to be imminent. However, right at this moment, a gentle voice suddenly sounded in the ears of Eccentric Wind and Han Li at the same time.
"Brother Feng, Fellow Daoist Han, please wait."
Han Li faltered slightly upon hearing this familiar voice, following which a peculiar look appeared on his face.
Eccentric Wind also stopped what he was doing as a hint of surprise surfaced in his eyes. He then suddenly turned toward a certain direction and harrumphed coldly. "Hmph, you sure got here just in the nick of time, Old Bastard Xiang."
"Hehe, I just so happen to be in a nearby state, and I found my way here after receiving your message, but I didn't think that the person you're hunting down is Fellow Daoist Han. I must say, I'm not sure who I should side with in this situation." the owner of the voice chuckled.
A flash of yellow light then appeared in the distant sky, following which a streak of yellow shot forth toward them like lightning, reaching them in just a few flashes.
The light receded to reveal an elderly man with a set of wizened features. His eyes were quite small, and he wore a faint smile on his face. This man was none other than Xiang Zhili, whom Han Li had met on several occasions in the past.
"Senior Martial Brother Xiang!" Han Li immediately cupped his fist in salute.
"I was the Yellow Maple Valley of the Heavenly South Region for several years, so it's indeed not incorrect for you to be referring to me as Senior Martial Brother. However, you sure are full of surprises, Junior Martial Brother Han! I didn't think that mere Qi Condensation cultivator from back then would've cultivated to such staggering heights. It looks like even I can be susceptible to misjudging character from time to time. I wanted to have a good chat with you when we last met at the Kunwu Mountains, but the unexpected troubles that befell us at the time prevented me from being able to do so," Xiang Zhili said to Han Li with a benevolent expression.
"I also didn't think that I would meet you again, Senior Martial Brother Xiang," Han Li replied with a wry smile.
"Fellow Daoist Feng, can you do me a favor and spare Junior Martial Brother Han? After all, he merely killed a descendant of one of your juniors; it's not worth engaging Junior Martial Brother Han in a battle to the death over such a trifling matter. Your Myriad Blade Plate is indeed a spirit treasure replica, but it's still no match for a true Divine Spirit Treasure," Eccentric Wind mediated with a smile.
"Hmph! He's just a Nascent Soul cultivator. Even with a Divine Spirit Treasure in his possession, he wouldn't be capable of unleashing its full power; how is he going to be a match for me?" Eccentric Wind chuckled coldly in a disdainful manner.
"Indeed, with just a single spirit treasure, Junior Martial Brother Han would naturally be no match for Brother Feng, but what if he possesses two Divine Spirit Treasures and several spirit treasure replicas?" Xiang Zhili asked.
Eccentric Wind's expression finally changed upon hearing this.
