Yuan Yao and Yan Li, upon seeing this beautiful woman, instantly grew pale. "It's no wonder we've been unable to break through the seal—two half-ghosts indeed! I never thought it possible!" The purple-armored warrior, whose origins remained unclear, glanced at the two women several times and quickly discerned their true nature, then lost interest. His gaze then shifted to Han Li. In an instant, Han Li felt a chilling sense of divine awareness sweep over him, as if the warrior were intent on fully penetrating his very being. Han Li furrowed his brow, and with a slight adjustment of the Daxian Sect's internal technique, he instantly blocked most of that awareness outside his body. Then, he sent his own awareness back to scan the warrior. At that moment, as the warrior murmured a soft "Ah!" of surprise, Han Li himself was also momentarily struck by a sense of realization. The warrior's body was unusually cold, not composed of ordinary flesh and blood, yet within him there was no trace of ghostly or阴 energy. After sweeping his gaze toward the other two warriors and the ranks of armored soldiers, all of them appeared lifeless—no different from the strange beasts pulling the carts. "Puppets!" A flash of recognition flashed through Han Li's mind, identifying the identities of the purple-armored warriors and others, his face expressing utter astonishment. Observing their demeanor, it seemed clear that these puppets had already mastered the ghostly beings of the Yinhe region; otherwise, how could they have spoken such words moments ago? The blood-red armored soldiers behind the three warriors were not mentioned, but the three warrior puppets each exuded distinct energies—clearly each one was inhabited by a master of great spiritual prowess. Mu Qing and the beautiful woman did not immediately launch an attack, indicating that the puppets' strength did not surpass theirs or the shadow troops. Otherwise, the current standoff would have already been resolved, with the two women effortlessly eliminating them through their grand feats of power. As for the six-limbed and the earth-blooded elder monsters, neither was present here. Combined with the fierce cries of ghostly roars emanating from the steel structures within the mist, it seemed both were still trapped within the mist and had not "Come this way!" Mu Qing suddenly waved to Han Li. Even though Han Li had already mastered the ability to move at the speed of a hundred and twenty steps without losing his form, he still had to gather his courage and fly over with the light of his body trailing behind. "Respectfully, I bow to the two senior masters!" As soon as Han Li reached Mu Qing and the other, he bowed deeply and respectfully. "Han, where is Jin Ling? Has she not been with you?" Surprisingly, Mu Qing did not inquire about Han Li's group's escape from the ghost mist, but instead asked about the golden ape. "I don't know either. When Jin Ling and I were suddenly pushed by ghost creatures within the mist, we lost contact and she disappeared." Han Li answered honestly, with no need to conceal anything. "Disappeared!" Mu Qing frowned slightly. "Senior Master Mu, who are those people across there? Are those ghost mists laid by them?" Han Li glanced at the figures across the way and asked slowly. "I and Blue have only just broken through this mist. We originally intended to cast spells to completely dissolve the seal, but we were caught by these things and haven't yet had time to investigate thoroughly." But last time we came here, we hadn't seen anything like this. It seems likely that we're just as much outsiders—people who've come from beyond to enter the realm of the River of the Underworld.” Mu Qing also seemed puzzled. “Outsiders!” Han Li's expression brightened. “I believe you've already noticed, Mu brother, that the forces across the way are composed of a large army of puppets. Yet they are far from insignificant. Those three leading puppets are no ordinary beings—indeed, even with our direct intervention, we haven't been able to truly eliminate them.” Mu Qing spoke with a more serious tone, gazing toward the opposite side. "This time, you won't be leaving this place," the purple-armored warrior said, his voice cold and stern. "The Fu-You clan!" The white-haired woman's face paled, and Mu Qing also felt a sudden jolt in her heart. Han Li, however, furrowed his brow, with no records of this foreign clan at all in his mind. "You know our clan? That's good. If you remain calm and surrender peacefully, perhaps we can spare your lives. Otherwise, even if you manage to escape this time, our clan will send agents to erase you completely from the spiritual realm." The purple-armored warrior was somewhat surprised, yet quickly adopted a stern tone. Hearing the warrior's threats, the white-haired woman and Mu Qing exchanged glances, their expressions now serious. Then, they whispered to each other in quiet conversation. The purple-armored warrior merely smiled coldly, saying nothing to interrupt. As the conversation unfolded, the white-haired woman's expression shifted between concern and uncertainty, while Mu Qing's delicate brows remained tightly furrowed, her gaze darting back and forth, as though she were also struggling to make a decision. "You claim this place is the holy site of the Moss-Flies—well, that will have to be believed by someone!" the white-haired lady countered with a tone of skepticism. "When exactly did the Moss-Flies evolve the power of the shadow spirits?" "The details of that, you needn't know!" the purple-armored warrior replied with a calm, matter-of-fact tone. "Do you really think the river of冥river that encircles this space appeared out of nowhere?" The lady and Mu Qing exchanged a subtle shift in expression, their trust in the other's words deepening slightly. "Hmph. Who knows—perhaps you're not even genuine Moss-Flies, just pretending. Even if you are, only the true Masters of the Heavenly Moss-Flies would personally appear here to command our respect. Right now, you've only sent some mere body-phantoms. How dare you claim we're helpless!" With a brief pause, the white-haired lady flashed a sharp look of displeasure. Mu Qing remained silent, offering no objection, yet a faint shade of green shimmered across his face. The purple-armored warrior, upon hearing these words, had a flash of red light in his eyes behind the mask, then fell silent, suddenly slapping the strange beast seated before him with one hand—resembling a rhinoceros. At once, the beast lifted its head and drew in a deep breath. "Whoosh!" The air around them seemed to be sucked entirely, and as it opened its mouth, a low roar erupted, followed by a burst of a shimmering, vividly luminous blue sphere, aimed directly at the graceful woman and her companions. A thunderous roar surged forth from within the blue sphere! The woman's face darkened; she pressed her palms together in a gesture, and a flash of gray light behind her revealed a towering ghostly figure, its form swelling several times in size. With a single breath, it expelled a dark orb of similar shape. As the two spheres made contact, a tremendous, earth-shaking roar rang out! Under the interweaving glow of blue and black light, a massive, mushroom-shaped cloud formed between the two groups, surging skyward with a deep, resonant thunder. Seeing this, the woman's eyes flashed with fierce intensity, and she let At once, thousands of ghost soldiers, led by eight ghost kings, transformed into swirling sheets of dark, chilling wind and surged toward the opposing forces. The purple-armored warrior coldly exhaled, his shoulders shifting slightly as the two golden hammers hanging at his back trembled and vanished—appearing instantly in his hands. "Though only a puppet body, I believe I can still exert half of my strength," he murmured softly, then gave his arms a gentle shake. The two golden hammers shot upward with a sudden *whoosh*, spinning rapidly and radiating countless streaks of golden light, forming hundreds of phantom hammers in midair that struck the descending dark wind with silent precision. Eight long cries erupted simultaneously from the wind, followed by a flash of darkness—eight ghost kings in dark armor materialized in the lower sky, some hurling their weapons to create streaks of black light, others wildly striking the air with both hands, and still others opening their mouths to unleash cascades of black mist. Various streams of black luminescence dispersed and coalesced into a single layer of black luminous curtain. As the golden hammer shadow entered, it seemed as though a fish had been caught in a net, unable to break free. "Merely a petty technique!" the purple-armored warrior said with a沉 tone, showing clear disdain. With a subtle incantation in his mind, the golden hammer shadow suddenly burst into fragments throughout the curtain. The black curtain was torn to shreds by the golden light, and then, as the golden orbs descended, they began to submerge the eight ghost kings. Yet at this moment, Mu Qing stepped in. With a single hand motion, she reached upward into the void. Suddenly, a rich, unusual fragrance filled the air beneath the golden glow, followed by a burst of vibrant hues—countless giant floral specters materialized in mid-air. A thunderous roar echoed, and the floral shadows lifted the golden orbs, holding them firmly in mid-air. Meanwhile, the shadowy winds formed by the yin-armored ghost troops had already surged toward the opposite side. The purple-armored warrior said nothing, merely raising his hand. At once, the row of blood-armored automata equipped with bows and crossbows advanced uniformly forward, drawing and firing simultaneously. A continuous series of sharp, piercing sounds erupted as countless crimson arrows rained down into the wind. Waves of bloodlight burst out in the wind, fading swiftly, and several indistinct ghostly figures drifted down from the sky. Yet within that brief instant, the wind, led by eight Ghost Kings, plunged directly into the ranks of the blood-armored automata. Immediately, the cries and battle cries of the ghosts rose to a thunderous roar. Neither the eight Ghost Kings nor the ordinary Yin-armored Xuan Ghosts dared to engage the three warrior automata. The three automata, in turn, paid no attention to these ghost troops, their entire focus fixed on the white-haired beauty and the wood-toned maiden on the other side. As for the two women—Han Li and Yuan Yao—their graceful presence was naturally overlooked. And both women, in turn, regarded the three automata with serious attention. Besides the purple-armored puppets, two other warrior-dressed puppets appeared notably unusual. One stood nearly five to four zhang tall, with three eyes on its head, each hand wielding a massive axe, clad in an odd jade-green armor covered in black, sharp spines that gleamed with a striking brilliance, causing onlookers to shiver. The other was only about two zhang high, wearing a vibrant crimson armor, with two heads and four arms, each holding a different weapon—swords, spears, halberds, and glaives. Their mounts, however, were identical—unfamiliar red-beast creatures resembling water buffalos. Throughout the battle, from the moment it began, these two puppets had remained silent, as though all decisions had been entrusted entirely to the purple-armored ones. Yet at this very moment, the three-eyed puppet suddenly spoke: "We need not engage these outsiders directly. Simply hold them off for a brief while—already I have notified the others. Once they assist the spectral beings in eliminating the next wave of intruders, they will come to support us."