Han Li drew a deep breath! The battle unfolding before him clearly surpassed the Yuan'ing stage. At once, a flurry of thoughts raced through his mind; his lips moved slightly. Behind him, Gui Ling's eyes flashed with brilliance, hesitated briefly, then shimmered into a yellow glow and vanished into the ground. Han Li then scanned the surroundings with his eyes, shifting them back and forth, until suddenly his gaze settled on a specific spot across from him. There, within the spacious area behind the two demons, a black teleportation array appeared intact in a corner, still covered by a set of array flags. "This is..." Han Li recalled instantly the other identical-colored teleportation array he had seen in the original stone chamber. A surge of joy surged through him. Yet, as his gaze shifted slightly, it coincided perfectly with the young man named Xu, who was now looking directly at him. Both were momentarily startled, then quickly turned away, each harboring a secret thought. Clearly, the celestial master from Tianlan Grassland had also noticed that this appeared to be the only way out of the current situation. At that moment, a black-robed woman from the Black Wind Banner was summoned, clearly unwilling to delay any further. She immediately stepped forward, holding the banner single-handedly and strode steadily toward the palace within the magical array. Ancient Magic also produced four ordinary treasures from her person and followed closely behind. This behavior of the two demons naturally triggered the powerful restrictions of the Nine True Subduing Demons Array. Instantly, a surge of even more astonishing golden light surged from the sky, pressing down with great force. The black woman sneered, then rubbed her hands together, causing the small flags in her hands to flash with black light. Immediately, a layer of murky, dark glow emerged, forming a protective shield that encompassed both her and Ancient Magic. A strange phenomenon unfolded! As this powerful golden light made contact with the black shield, it vanished as if it had sunk into the sea—completely disappearing without a trace. Not a single ripple stirred on the surface of the shield; the golden light had done nothing at all to harm it. With the shield in place, the black-robed woman swiftly advanced and entered the inner circle of the Nine True Subduing Demons Array within moments. Nine massive blades trembled simultaneously, suddenly emitting clear, resonant tones. Mystical characters flickered and emerged, and the blades rapidly contracted and shrank, transforming within a moment into nine golden knives each about a foot long. Though the knives had shrunk in size, the luminous radiance they emitted was dazzling and intense, as if nine golden suns had suddenly appeared within the space, making it impossible to look directly at them. The black-robed woman’s expression changed; her previously composed face now showed a touch of seriousness. The black light shield instantly expanded by nearly a factor of two, its surface growing increasingly glossy and dark. At that moment, the nine golden knives floated upward, their tips rotating smoothly before aligning precisely toward the black-robed woman. A flash of sharp light passed through, and nine slender golden filaments shot out, then vanished instantly. Almost simultaneously, nine clusters of golden light burst forth from the light shield formed by the black wind banner, radiating brilliantly, and within a breath, the brilliant golden light completely submerged the shield beneath. To everyone's surprise, such a powerful assault made not a single sound—everything unfolded silently, leaving them utterly bewildered! Han Li seized the opportunity to glance at the others. When he saw that everyone had been captivated by the scene before them, a subtle expression of surprise flashed across his face. With a swift motion of his hand, a spirit-animal satchel quietly slipped into the sleeve of his robe. Without a word, he arched his arms back, and golden flowers cascaded from his sleeves, landing on the ground and instantly sinking into it, vanishing completely within moments. In a flash, the entire bag containing several thousand gold-devouring insects was fully absorbed into the earth, leaving no trace. For a while, no one seemed to notice anything at all. Seeing this, Han Li felt a great sense of relief. At that very moment, a soft "receive" was suddenly uttered by the woman in black within the Jiuzhen Fumagong array. The golden light shimmered, and a large, dark hole—about one zhang in diameter—emerged and floated in the midst. When this cavern first manifested, the golden light was instantly drawn in as if a thousand rivers converged into one sea, leaving not a single trace behind. After a soft sigh, the black hole shook violently before dissolving and dispersing, revealing the figure of the black-robed woman and the ancient demon. Holding the black wind banner in one hand, the woman observed the nine golden swords at a distance, their golden glimmers pulsing once more as they prepared to advance again. Suddenly, she raised both brows toward the palace and said, "Lóngmèng, do not rely on the Nine True Subduing Demon Array to drain my magical energy—consider your next move. You must know that the Black Wind Banner is a rare spatial artifact among the celestial and heavenly treasures. Even if your attacks are sharp, unless they pierce the spatial essence, they will do little to harm me. If you wish to be wise, simply come out and face me. Should I reach inside, I shall no longer be so accommodating." "What purpose is there in calling me out? Have you changed your mind and now think that merging with me would be better?" "The palace echoed with Long Meng's delicate laughter, as if completely unconcerned about the failure of the Jiuzhen Fumagong Array. "Indeed, my holy ancestor truly intends to re-fuse our two spirits once more!" The black-robed woman replied with surprising composure, utterly unexpected. "What did you just say? Old demon—do you think I'm a child of three years old? Will I believe you?" Long Meng was clearly startled, then scoffed, clearly disbelieving. "Of course not the same as before—there must be certain seals I impose first, to ensure that after the fusion, it is my spirit that takes the lead," the black-robed woman said calmly, gently shaking her black chess piece, effortlessly transforming it into a vast black hole that effortlessly devoured the golden filaments shot out by the nine golden swords. Yet, since her steps momentarily halted, the swords did not yet unleash any further powerful effects. "Have you not even woken up? How could I agree to such a ridiculous proposal—having your spirit take the lead? That's truly something you've thought of!" You have already claimed my body entirely—why then do you need to go through the trouble of merging once again? State your intentions plainly!" Long Meng said, expressing her surprise. "Indeed, there are plans at play. Each time our essences have merged, you must have noticed that, whether we occupy this body separately or jointly, neither of us can fully unleash its greatest potential. Yet after merging, we are able to effortlessly cast the incoming Shangshen-period cultivator into the magnificent, ever-shifting celestial realm. Therefore, if we wish to avoid being jointly sealed by other cultivators from the Human Realm once we step out, it would be wise to merge our essences once more." The woman in black spoke coldly. "Hah! I never thought the once-dominant Ancient Demon Commander of the Human Realm would be so afraid of just a few Shangshen-period cultivators—what a joke!" Long Meng remained silent for a moment before chuckling softly and then laughing outright. "Back then, when the Celestial Realm and the Human Realm could communicate freely, our Celestial Clan could return at any time to replenish the lost spiritual energy, allowing us to freely employ all sorts of great powers. But now the channel has been sealed once again, and the Human Realm itself has undergone profound changes in its elemental and cosmic energies. Even though I once possessed extraordinary powers, I can now only muster a fraction of them. It's no wonder that I'm cautious of these Fu Hua Shen-period cultivators. You're no different! Though you were originally a Shen-stage late-period spirit-bound creature from the Spirit Realm, you can hardly unleash even a fraction of your current capabilities now." The black-robed woman spoke calmly. "With your spirit as the main focus, you'll surely dazzle me with your eloquence. Yet I simply won't agree. Otherwise, even if you manage to free yourself, what difference would it make compared to before? Don't think I'm unaware that while infusing magical energy into the Black Wind Banner enables you to temporarily command your spiritual artifacts, it only allows you to harness at most half of their full potential. As for whether you can even enter the palace—well, that remains to be seen! You may "Otherwise, it's off!" Longmeng said firmly. Upon hearing this, the cloaked woman's graceful features darkened with a sharp, stern expression. "It seems you truly have confidence in the Nine True Subduing Demons Array and the Eight Spirit Rulers. Very well—since you're not willing to agree, then I shall personally come and subdue you. I'll seize your spiritual essence, extract your vital soul force, and then reduce you to nothing. Though this method falls short of ideal, it will still greatly enhance my own powers." With these words, the cloaked woman cast two glances toward Han Li before suddenly turning to the ancient demon and whispering a few instructions. The four-armed, dual-headed magical creature nodded repeatedly, then flashed into motion, retreating swiftly. In moments, she had stepped outside the array's influence, drifting silently near the black teleportation array, hovering motionless above it. This sudden development left Han Li and his companions stunned, and all of them immediately began muttering curses. With this development, their original plan—to quietly approach, then find an opportunity to escape—had completely come to naught. Compared to the Xu-family youth and the silver-winged yin-fox, Han Li had already taken several preemptive measures and had made some strategic arrangements in his mind. Yet, as he glanced around, he noticed that both the silver-winged yin-fox and the lion-fowl beast suddenly blurred in form and then vanished entirely, leaving only a streak of green light behind. Han Li furrowed his brow. Meanwhile, the Xu-family youth and the Tianlan Saint Maiden were constantly moving their lips, clearly engaged in intense, though visibly somber, discussions. The several cultivators from the Ye family, on the other hand, gathered around the white-robed scholar, standing quietly together, neither speaking nor showing any unusual movements. Han Li frowned, his gaze shifting to the scholar’s expressionless face, and suddenly sensed something was amiss. After a brief thought, blue light flashed sharply in his pupils as he activated his Qing-Ming Ling-Mu divination ability. Upon inspection, Han Li immediately noticed that the white-robed scholar among the Ye family cultivators was entirely shimmering—no more than a mere aura of spiritual energy, a phantom form. A surge of alertness passed through Han Li, who hurriedly scanned the area around him first. Finding no abnormalities, he then began to search for the true form of the Ye family's senior elder. At the same moment, the black-robed woman, who had manifested as a spirit of the Yuan Shaka Saint Patriarch, after withstanding a wave of golden blade attacks that sprayed golden filaments, suddenly unfurled her Black Wind Banner and threw it high into the air. She then pressed her palms together in a series of gestures and uttered a strange, unusual chant. A thunderous boom echoed, and instantly, a vortex of black wind emerged on the banner. This wind began small and fine, then grew steadily in size and thickness, transforming within moments into a towering, awe-inspiring gale. Almost at the same time the gale took shape, a deep rumbling thunder sounded from above, and numerous dense, murky yellow clouds rose into the sky. Across these clouds, silver arcs of varying thickness leaped and flickered, as if ready to descend at any moment to strike. Under the yellow clouds, near the black gale, the wind roared like a tide, and countless wind blades began to coalesce and take shape, causing the entire space to be filled with swirling sand and stones, with thunderous crashes echoing everywhere. Han Li's body shimmered with a vivid green glow, already radiating a thick, protective aura that shielded him and the silver moon within. Yet even so, the entire area visible to his eyes was shrouded in strange, yellowish gusts, and the protective aura itself trembled with a constant hum, as if a small boat in the midst of a great storm. Han Li's lips pressed tightly together, and his face grew unusually pale. Under the urging of the Yuansha Sage Ancestor's embodiment, the Black Wind Banner finally began to reveal the terrifying power of its celestial treasure.