Han Li only felt his inner qi as if it had turned to solidified matter—clearly, the subtle ethereal threads were binding his true energy. He couldn't help but feel a surge of astonishment, quickly concentrating to examine these black lines closely. The lines were densely woven throughout his body, dark and lustrous, radiating a faint negative aura—undeniably strange and malevolent. Subconsciously, Han Li's facial muscles twitched. When he first received the golden net, he hadn't been entirely unconvinced that the other party had subtly manipulated it. However, after carefully inspecting it repeatedly, he found no anomalies. He hadn't carried any other pure gold artifacts, so he had had to proceed with it despite his reservations. When he actually used the net to capture the spirit of the Ling Shan in its transformed form, he had temporarily set aside his doubts. Yet now, just as he had turned against the other party, the very same net had betrayed him, silently striking him and rendering his inner energy and true power momentarily immobile. But Han Li's pale complexion stabilized within a moment and quickly returned to normal. Because he immediately realized that now there was a protective formation outside, and the opponent couldn't do much against him for the moment—enough time for him to carry out his plans to break free. As this thought formed, Han Li sneered and was about to call upon the swarm of golden-feeding insects hovering above him when a soft "pffft" sound came from behind. This sound was extremely subtle; had it not been for Han Li's expanded awareness, already fully spread across the entire formation, he likely wouldn't have noticed the anomaly at all. Han Li's hairs stood on end as he instinctively spun around sharply, simultaneously emitting a sharp cry, causing the golden-feeding insects to surge in a massive wave toward the back. A tremendous "thunderous" crash echoed from behind, darkening Han Li's expression. He saw that the swarm of insects was now blocking the path of a strangely green, ethereal figure, relentlessly pressing against the figure. Though the figure's face was blurred and filled with ghostly aura, his hands had transformed into two massive emerald green serpents, swirling wildly and continuously driving all the approaching gold-devouring insects aside, preventing them from coming within half a step of his body. The swarm of insects momentarily failed to make any headway. Although the two green serpents of Lüying managed to drive the golden-devouring insects flying away, they were still bitten by several of the armored insects upon contact, their scattered green glimmers swallowed into their bodies—thus explaining the other party's astonishment. Yet, just moments ago, the serpent had been speaking calmly in the clouds. How had it silently slipped behind him and launched a sudden attack? Han Li found himself utterly puzzled. Nevertheless, this question flashed through his mind only briefly, for now was not the time to dwell on it. He had no intention of engaging in conversation with the opponent. His sharp, piercing cry rose once more, and instantly, a portion of the golden-devouring insects broke away from the fray, darting toward him and swiftly climbing his body, greedily tearing at the black filaments. With his magical energy depleted, Han Li could only issue commands through his voice. He had to escape before the opponent discovered a way to counter the golden-devouring insects. After all, he still remembered how the gold-devouring insects had been severely shaken, even injured, by a sudden roar from the ghost mist. He was deeply concerned that the other party might do the same. That would indeed be disastrous. At that moment, the protective barrier around them seemed to have been struck by a heavy object, flickering with yellow light before beginning to tremble. Han Li, cold and composed, turned his head slightly to observe. It turned out that the pygmy bones floating in midair, responding to the movements of the green light, had launched an attack at this very moment—projecting one after another massive black gas spheres, each several zhang in diameter, which struck the light barrier with great force. It was clear the spell would not last much longer. As his eyes flashed with sudden insight, Han Li no longer looked away. He turned his gaze to the swirling green shadows now dancing several dozen zhang away, shielded by the gold-devouring insects, his lips pressed tightly together, his expression impassive. In that brief instant, the strands of shadow-silk on his body had already been torn and severed by the insects' relentless bites. Han Li had already sensed his true energy and spiritual power stirring, and a subtle smile of satisfaction played upon his lips. As long as his power could be restored, he would have numerous means at his disposal. Yet at that moment, the green light roared once and suddenly spun around like a massive, rapidly rotating flywheel, plunging headlong into the swarm of insects ahead and emerging several zhang farther away, now closer to Han Li. Thousands of golden-devouring insects surged forward in succession. Though most were swiftly flung aside by the spinning wheel, a small number clung to its surface. This caused the wheel’s speed to noticeably slow. The other flying insects, seeing this, immediately surged in and pressed their attack without hesitation. Soon, the green figure was completely covered by the insects, unable to turn at all, and seemed poised to repeat the scene in the ghost mist where the insects devoured the spirits. Yet Han Li was astonished. Facing this near-suicidal display of the green ghost, he was not only unimpressed—he felt deeply uneasy. And what followed immediately confirmed Han Li's intuition. The green silhouette, draped heavily with the gold-devouring insects, swelled suddenly—within just one breath—into a plump, round sphere, radiating a brilliant green glow. "Not good!" Han Li murmured, reaching out to summon the insects back. But before he could speak, a thunderous "pop" echoed as the sphere burst apart. A profoundly cold aura surged forth, engulfing all the flying insects. At the very center of the explosion, where the green light was most intense, a faint green line flashed briefly, cutting through the noise of the blast, and swiftly reached Han Li, who still remained bound by residual black filaments. "Your body has been taken by me!" With a booming laugh, the green line flickered once and suddenly transformed into a monstrous, several feet tall ghost's head, charging straight at him. Xuan Gu observed this scene from above, a gentle smile playing on his face, and immediately halted his attack. Though the shield would have been shattered with just a few more strikes. Han Li stared intently at the ghost-headed creature charging toward him, his expression cold and unwavering. Yet, as the creature closed in to just a few zhang away, a sudden flash of fierce intensity passed through his eyes, and a powerful surge of malevolent energy erupted from his body—so intense it seemed tangible, causing the ghost-headed creature to pause, startled and momentarily stunned. Han Li then opened his mouth wide, and a massive golden electric arc surged forth, blasting straight through the ghost's face, which was now mere steps away and completely unable to evade. The ghost cried out in agony, instantly disintegrating into a swirl of green mist, then howling in shock and panic as it fled backward in desperate retreat. Yet how could Han Li allow it to escape so easily now? At that moment, a surge of pale golden arcs erupted around him, and the black lines upon his body instantly shattered and vanished. Without hesitation, Han Li shifted his form, and after a few blurred silhouettes, he had already caught up to the green mist ahead. Then, with a composed gesture, he raised his hand and firmly grasped forward. Pale golden arcs instantly surged across his five fingers, dispersing the green mist completely. A jade-green crystal orb appeared in his hand, glowing with an eerie light, as if alive. Han Li merely glanced at it coldly and then closed his fingers firmly. "Crack!" The crystal orb shattered into fine powder under the impact of the arcs. Han Li, who could freely summon the Divine-Exorcising Thunder, could dispatch even a ghost-king-level green shadow in an instant—especially when that shadow had no physical form. The ease with which he accomplished this even surprised Han Li himself. But at that moment, Han Li raised his head, gazing steadily at the Xuan Gu in the air, and said with an unflinching expression, "Hand me over the Ji Qu Ling Shan. Then I shall treat as if nothing has happened and continue our cooperation. Otherwise, either you or I will perish!" Han Li's voice was calm, yet the cold resolve in it made the Xuan Gu in the air look visibly uneasy. "Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!" The Xuan Gu person stared straight at Han Li, and after a long pause, simply uttered the three words without hesitation. This caused Han Li to narrow his eyes, fixing his gaze firmly upon the figure. "Since he failed to take over my body, and though his abilities may be lacking, I shall naturally align myself with the victor. Take the Ji Qu Ling Shan." The Xuan Gu gathered the dark clouds around him and revealed his form. Then, with a gesture of his hand, a golden box shot straight down from the sky toward Han Li. (There will be another chapter tonight, but it will be posted a bit later. Just wake up tomorrow morning and check it out!)