The Xiao-family woman, immersed in a shimmering five-colored aura while discussing something with Han Li, immediately grew pale upon hearing the strange howling cries. She suddenly pressed her palms together in a series of gestures, and the brilliance of the five-colored aura instantly intensified, boosting their flight speed by three to four times. Han Li remained still, his eyes slightly narrowed as he sensed something, allowing the woman to carry him forward. Despite the significant increase in her flight speed, the cries behind them grew clearer only after they had traveled several hundred miles. At the same time, Han Li softly spoke: "Two entities are now within three hundred miles of us, moving much faster than they are now. At their current pace, we won't be able to delay them much longer. The point of engagement should be as far as possible from the two Night King monarchs. I'll lend you my support." As he spoke, a slight tremor passed through his shoulders. From one of the two feathered wings behind him, a sudden flash appeared, and a vivid, large blue-predator spirit instantly emerged, fully merging into the surrounding five-colored light aura. The collective glow suddenly surged with a tremendous tremor, then the speed of their flight increased dramatically, transforming completely into a faint, ethereal silhouette that flashed and vanished swiftly. "Thank you so much, Brother Han!" the woman with the Xiao surname exclaimed, deeply relieved. "This kind of spell is extremely draining of magical energy. I can't sustain it for long, and I also can't escape too far—otherwise the two Night-Fox Kings might intervene." Han shook his head. "Of course. Brother Han should conserve his energy to defend against the attacks." The woman nodded in agreement. Han smiled faintly at this, and said nothing further. Honestly, even if the ruffian were particularly formidable, he could manage to release hundreds of Golden-Biting Insects, sustaining significant damage to his spirit awareness, and drive back or eliminate one of them. But with two such ruffians and two Night-Fox Kings observing from a distance, how could he possibly take such a bold risk? With Han Li's assistance, the two rampant servants, though swift in their evasions, could not close the distance significantly. In a matter of moments, they had surged ahead by several thousand li. When Han Li deemed it sufficient, he withdrew the azure great phoenix silhouette, bringing both himself and the Xiao-family woman to a halt in their flight. A short while later, the two stood motionless in the air, gazing steadily toward the distant sky without blinking. Suddenly, a blaze erupted on the horizon, and two massive blood-clouds, each several zhang in diameter, surged forth with thunderous roars, racing toward them at incredible speed. Upon seeing this, Han Li immediately cupped his hands and then extended them, sending forth two thunderclaps. Two golden lightning bolts, each as thick as a serving bowl, shot out and struck the two blood-clouds. The blood-clouds, as though composed of an intangible substance, moved with exceptional agility—skimming past the lightning arcs with a mere flick of their forms—yet continued straight toward Han Li without the slightest pause. Han Li's face darkened as he swiftly pressed two hand seals. Two golden arcs suddenly flickered, then bent like a serpent, darting back with unexpected speed and striking the blood clouds. Two deep, resonant thuds echoed, yet a moment that weighed heavily on Han Li's heart unfolded. The thick golden arcs, striking the blood clouds with such force, sank in as if they had vanished without a trace—no ripple, no reaction at all. Han Li's expression turned grave. The two blood clouds, having shifted slightly, now hovered ten to fifteen zhang ahead of them, their rich, pungent blood scent clearly perceptible. Yet strangely, Han Li remained motionless, unmoved. It was only the woman beside him whose eyes flashed with cold brilliance as she subtly accelerated her internal spell. Together with the radiant glow before Han Li, two great dragon heads, each measuring a zhang in height, emerged from the midst. With their long necks extended, they lunged forward and each swallowed half of the two blood clouds in a single bite. The remaining blood clouds also dispersed and vanished in a shower of splashes. Seeing this, the woman with the Xiao surname was overjoyed and had just turned to rush toward Han Li to say something. Yet Han Li's pupils suddenly narrowed, and with a cold flash of blue light, he suddenly said, "Be careful—these two are moving very swiftly. Don't let their movements deceive you." "What?" the woman with the Xiao surname stared, then quickly followed Han Li's gaze. Only then did she realize that, high in the sky, some distance away from them, two blood-red creatures resembling wolves and apes had appeared without her noticing. At the very instant the blood clouds were destroyed, these two creatures had used their astonishing speed to slip out of the cloud before anyone could react. Their movements were so swift and silent that the woman hadn't immediately recognized them, while Han Li, who had activated his Qing Ming spiritual sight, had spotted them instantly. Two monstrous beings stood silently at either side, high up, with the body of a monkey, the limbs of a wolf, and bat-like wings. Their bodies were vividly crimson, dripping with blood, and within their long, sharp-toothed mouths, snake-like cores constantly rose and fell. Yet in their twin red, eerie eyes, a gaze of cruel cunning flickered. Clearly, these were beings of exceptional intelligence. These were indeed the so-called "Chang Nu." Although the woman of the Xiao family had heard of their reputation long before, seeing them in person now left her quite chilled. "My Divine-Defending Thunder, which should have repelled such beings, appears completely ineffective. It seems they are not formed through the ritual consecration of evil spirits. Likely, any techniques rooted in the most yang and protective principles will prove of little use—only direct, head-on confrontation will work." Han Li said calmly. Suddenly, he brushed his hand against the back of his head, and a gray glow surged forth, spreading out in a sweeping wave. Then, instantly, a translucent, hazy light shield enveloped his entire front. At the same time, a small black mountain swirled subtly within the glow, appearing and disappearing as The woman of Xiao surname maintained a serious expression, murmuring to herself, and at once the void before her surged violently. The three additional dragon heads and the five sinuous dragon bodies appeared in succession, now several times larger than before. As if embodying their essences, the five heads swayed and moved in unison toward the two rampant servants hovering above, emitting low growls that conveyed a clear sense of threat. At that moment, one of the two rampant servants launched itself first. With only one vivid crimson bat-wing extending from its back, it flickered and instantly transformed into a streak of blood, then vanished again. A brilliant glow of blood spread out, and the servant materialized directly above Han Li and his companion, immediately plunging downward without hesitation. The five massive dragon heads of the five sinuous dragons met it head-on, swallowing it whole without ceremony. The servant flickered once, its form dissolving like liquid, and then disappeared entirely—yet all five dragon heads found only empty space where it had been. Before he could fully comprehend what was happening, fine, delicate streaks of blood suddenly appeared mysteriously across his body, dense and intricate, then vanished as swiftly as they had appeared. Immediately thereafter, the five heads of the five-colored serpentine dragon, along with its massive body, disintegrated into countless fragments without any prior warning, dispersing and vanishing completely. The dragon's last trace of spirit had been shattered by the attack of Chang Nu. A flash of blood light appeared in the void, and countless new streaks of blood materialized, rushing directly toward the Xiao family woman and enveloping her. Han Li emitted a cold hum, extending his gray aura before him, instantly shielding the woman beneath it. His black mountain-like form then flashed and materialized directly above her head. The blood streaks suddenly glowed brilliantly, slicing through the gray aura with a series of sharp rushing sounds, cutting it cleanly in two without any hindrance, and then striking solidly upon the black mountain. At the same moment, a faint ripple of blood shadow emerged from the space where Han Li stood. Two sharp claws extended silently, seizing without a single ripple of wind. Within the blood-shadow, a pair of cunning eyes flashed. It seemed another rampant servant had crept up beside Han Li at an unexpected moment, launching a sudden assault while Han Li was distracted by the other. Despite Han Li's exceptionally strong awareness, he had not sensed this at all until the claws made contact with the protective gray aura surrounding him—by then, any attempt at evasion was futile. The claws merely flickered and glinted, slicing cleanly through the gray light, then swiftly grasped Han Li's back with lightning speed. Only now did Han Li realize what was happening behind him, and he suddenly roared, a long, silken robe of gold and silver materializing over his body. As thunder rolled, dense streaks of golden and silver lightning erupted across the robe. The claws immediately caught hold of the fabric. A thunderous roar erupted! In the dual arc discharge of silver and gold, the crimson arms suddenly burst forth with plumes of green smoke, yet the two claws, like divine weapons, merely moved their fingers and effortlessly pierced through the thunder cannons, firmly grasping onto Han Li's back. At that moment, however, Han Li's back suddenly manifested four blurry golden arms, which, with a calm and unassuming strike against the two claws, unexpectedly countered the attack—despite the surprise, they successfully blocked the pair of sharp claws and emitted an odd, metallic scraping sound. The blood glimmers on the claws flashed briefly, and the golden arms instantly crumbled into fragments. Yet due to this brief delay, Han Li twisted his body and shot out like a streak of white silk. A flash of light twenty-two zhang away revealed him reappearing, coldly gazing at the daring servant who had launched the surprise attack, his expression dark and serious. The servant, having failed to land the blow, seemed equally astonished, standing there with his eyes darting around in confusion. On the other side, the woman of Xiao surname, leveraging Han Li's Yuanmagnetic Divine Mountain to deflect the dense stream of blood threads, also instantaneously transported herself to a distance of several dozen zhang. The blood threads coalesced toward the center and resumed their original form—a creature with a monkey's head and a wolf's body—now glaring at the woman with fierce eyes. Clearly, the two rogue servants had settled on their targets, each now fixated on Han Li and this woman respectively. "Proceed according to plan," Han Li suddenly said to the woman. "Agreed!" The woman nodded without hesitation, then flipped her hand once, suddenly producing a set of talismans in her grasp. With the other hand, she flashed a beam of white light and struck the talisman firmly. A series of "puff" sounds erupted, and suddenly, at the center of the two rogue servants, thirty-six small banners of varying colors rose up from the distance of over a hundred zhang. When each banner first emerged from the void, only a few inches in size, they rapidly expanded under the woman's spellwork, soon growing into towering structures of over ten zhang in height. Each banner now shimmered with swirling characters and exuded a At the same time, Han Li pressed his palms together in a series of gestures, and suddenly, a series of shimmering golden threads emerged within the banners, gradually encircling the two defiant servants at the center with a firm and unyielding presence. (Second update) ------------ Need your monthly subscription by the end of the month!