"Roll!" Then a surge of bloodlight swiftly circled around the group of puppets, before roaring forth with a long cry, carrying its trailing afterimage directly after Han Li and the others. In an instant, it vanished completely. A moment later, the previously motionless puppets suddenly shattered into fragments and plummeted from the sky, each one completely dismembered, none remaining intact. Han Li, who had set up the great array above, clearly sensed this through his partial concentration. With a sense of regret, he hesitated not at all, and immediately summoned the others, then plunged straight downward into the small bamboo grove beneath. As Han Li and his companions descended, Yue Huang, slightly obstructed by the puppets behind, shot forward in pursuit, clearly seeing Han Li's entry into the bamboo grove. This unexpected development left Yue Huang both puzzled and deeply delighted. At the top of the bamboo grove, upon seeing Han Li and his companions showing no intention of emerging from the forest, he smiled faintly and immediately waved his hands. A section of the blood glow on his body split off forcefully. "Plush!" The detached glow flashed forward, shooting straight down toward the bamboo grove, where it swiftly grew in size upon encountering the wind. In moments, it had expanded into a vast canopy, completely enveloping the upper part of the bamboo grove and casting a deep red hue over the lower area, creating a most eerie scene. As the blood glow silently seeped into the wild bamboo grove, Yu Huang's expression grew increasingly satisfied. As long as his protective magical aura could firmly encase this bamboo grove, he could then activate another secret technique to dissolve everything within it completely, leaving not a single trace. With the others now trapped, it was entirely understandable that he had been both resolute and unyielding. After a flurry of rapid gestures with his hands, just as he was about to seal the hand seal and activate the secret technique, a shimmering screen of pale and green light suddenly emerged from the bamboo grove below, effortlessly lifting the gradually descending wave of crimson light. This unexpected development left Emperor Yue momentarily stunned and his expression turned cold. "Indeed, these people have a plan when they came here—they've clearly laid out a defensive array!" thought the Emperor, growing increasingly annoyed. "Still, this isn't such a big deal. A hastily constructed array can hardly be formidable. At worst, I'll simply absorb both the array and the people within it. After all, I must ensure none of these key individuals escape the imperial capital." With this resolve firmly settled, he promptly pressed the palm seal on his palm, immediately activating the secret technique. The radiant crimson light, now lifted, emitted a brilliant glow and then sank downward, momentarily halting its upward motion. But Yu Huang did not stop there. With a gentle flick of his fingers, he drew a slender arc across his body, and a fresh wave of bloodlight—no smaller than the previous one—descended and merged seamlessly into the lower glow. The entire blood-colored light curtain now deepened by a third, even emitting a faint, tangy scent of blood that made one feel nauseous. Witnessing this, Yu Huang, who had been channeling his spell, beamed with satisfaction. He rapidly flicked his fingers, launching a series of colorful spells that shot downward and merged into the curtain. As the spells entered, the blood curtain began to surge and ripple, then surged outward, swiftly enveloping the entire bamboo grove. The already deep crimson light pressed down heavily, yet the pale, silvery glow within still struggled to hold on, as if it might be overwhelmed at any moment. Only then did Yu Huang feel completely at ease. For him, eliminating Han Li and the others was now a matter of time—these individuals were truly trapped, wings or no wings. The real challenge, however, lay in the aftermath, which proved to be quite daunting. "It seems the Emperor of Yue can no longer hold on—he'll have to fade into obscurity and start anew!" Yue Emperor thought with a sense of regret. While floating in the air, contemplating his options, the group of Song Meng and his companions in the bamboo grove were filled with growing anxiety. Upon hearing Han Li's inner voice instructing them to retreat and follow closely behind, they all trusted his strength and acted accordingly. Yet, they had no idea they had ended up in this strange, small bamboo grove, now completely surrounded and trapped. Though the grove appeared to have a protective array in place, the bloodlight from the enemy now encircled them on all sides, the array fraying and trembling—threatening to collapse at any moment. How could they not be stunned and furious? "Brother Han, is this exactly the contingency you've prepared?" Song Meng murmured, hardly believing what he heard. "Yes. Is there any issue?" Han Li looked up at the scene above, his head never turning, and spoke calmly and simply. Song and Meng "brushed" their faces pale, while Zhong Wei-niang and Chen Qiao-qian, who had lost their sparring partners, also looked rather strained. Only Chen Qiao-qian, gazing steadily at Han Li's composed expression, caught a flicker of thoughtful surprise in her eyes. "Han Li," she said suddenly, with calm resolve, "if you have any other plans, please share them now. Don't leave us in the dark! I believe, with your track record of careful strategy, you wouldn't have only laid out this one move!" Upon hearing this, the other three members were momentarily startled, then quickly turned their attention to Han Li, clearly convinced that given his evident caution and meticulous planning in past encounters, such a clumsy move was unlikely. Han Li, hearing this, lowered his head slightly, surprised, and offered a gentle, quiet smile. "Rest assured," he said, "since I brought all of you here, I have a clear plan in mind." "He spoke calmly, then lightly tapped his storage bag, and a small flag of deep green and purple appeared in his hands. The flag was densely inscribed with intricate symbols and runes, clearly no ordinary artifact. "Is this an array flag?" Zhong Wei-niang exclaimed in surprise. Array discs and flags of this kind were indeed rare in the Yue State. "Sister, you're truly well-versed!" Han Li lightly praised his seventh sister, thus confirming her statement. This surprised Song Meng and the others greatly, and gave them a boost of confidence. It seemed that Han Li had indeed prepared something more than they expected. Under everyone's watchful eyes, Han Li placed the small flag between both hands and gave it a slight motion, causing it to instantly expand several times in size, its surface subtly glowing with a deep green and purple light. He then held the flag horizontally in both palms and softly chanted a few incantations, then loudly pronounced the character "Ji!" At once, the indigo-purple array flags shot off in one direction with a sudden "whoosh," vanishing without a trace. Then, from his storage pouch, Han Li successively drew out three more identical array flags, employing the same method and launching them in different directions, where they likewise disappeared. Only after completing these actions did Han Li coldly glance upward, now holding an additional flag of apricot-yellow in his hands. Though this array disc was dim and unremarkable, Han Li held it with solemn dignity, raised it high above his head, and gently shook it. Instantly, a thick yellow light beam surged upward, straightening toward the pale cyan light shield. At the same moment, golden, cyan, crimson, and blue light beams also shot forth from the other four directions, converging and entering the shield together. The originally wavering pale cyan light curtain instantly stabilized upon absorbing these five-colored beams, and a soft tidal sound began to resonate within it. The sound grew louder and faster, intensifying steadily until it became a continuous, thunderous roar overhead, shaking one's very soul and leaving one utterly overwhelmed. The originally pale protective light screen, gradually shifting in hue as the sound surged, now shimmered with a vibrant, five-colored dawn glow. Despite the relentless flickering and impacts of the outer red light, this inner glow remained as steady as a rock in a turbulent sea, unyielding in its strength. Witnessing this, Song Meng and the others breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that Han Li's array was far more sophisticated than they had imagined—his life-saving measures now seemed secure. Seeing the array undergo such a transformation, the figures above repeatedly summoned their magical powers in a desperate attempt to control the radiant hues, yet found themselves unable to stem the rising brilliance, sensing that matters had taken a serious turn. His face, initially clouded with hesitation under the cold aura, furrowed in concentration. Suddenly, he stomped his foot and extended his hand, and instantly, the blood glow beneath surged upward, flowing like a river reversing course, gradually shrinking in size until it converged upon his body. Without a moment's delay, he turned and transformed into a swirling mass of blood light, soaring skyward at a speed that even Han Li had to admire. Yet, though he departed swiftly, his return was even faster—unaccountably, after circling the heavens once, he always returned to his original spot. He stared at the scene, utterly astonished, and attempted to fly off again and again—several times over—each time only leaving the ground by a few dozen zhang before promptly circling once more in the sky and returning to his starting point. At this point, the expression on Yue Huang’s face shifted from surprise to one of deep apprehension. Seeing this scene, Han Li chuckled coldly, while Song Meng and the others were left stunned, Zhong Wei-niang even more excited, clenching her fists tightly until her long fingernails tore through the skin, drawing a continuous stream of blood—completely unaware. There was also a more complex expression in Chen Qiao-qian's face than simply surprise. Han Li had no time to explain the mysteries of the "Five Elements Reversal Array" to these people. Instead, he raised his hand, releasing the white phosphorus shield and turtle-shell artifact, which encircled him. With a steady voice, he said: "Everyone, now that you have your talismans and artifacts, take full advantage of this moment and activate them. Then, all of you strike together to eliminate this person at once. Once they're caught in this great array, they won't be able to escape for a while!" Han Li spoke with absolute confidence.