Suddenly, black qi surged around Han Li, countless black runes flashing forth from his armor. Upon contact with the seemingly strange blood glow, it collided with the black qi and burst outward with a "thud," propelled away as the runes shimmered. The blood shadow staggered, then rolled back, revealing its true form. Han Li's eyes flashed blue, and finally, he clearly saw the blood shadow's appearance. Though he had weathered countless storms, his face could not help but pale. At first glance, the blood shadow's face appeared to be a fierce, toothed ghostly visage. But as it flickered, the ghostly face instantly transformed into Xiang ZhiLi's features, then blurred into another man's face. This man, Han Li recognized—none other than Hu, the old demon, who had entered the spatial node alongside Xiang ZhiLi. The blood shadow's face swiftly shifted between these three appearances, flowing like water, utterly unstable. "The Heavens' Demon Armor? Impossible! How could you possibly possess such a divine armor, something only the Heavens' Demon could wield?" The Xue Ying's figure swayed several times before finally steadying itself at a distance, his voice filled with shock and fury—somewhat resembling Xiang Zhi Li, yet still giving Han Li a strange, unfamiliar sensation. Han Li emitted a cold snort, and his skin instantly glowed with a brilliant golden hue, as if forged from pure yellow gold, with golden scales gradually emerging across his body. "Do you think merely donning the Tian Mo armor will protect you from me!" Upon seeing this, Xue Ying's face underwent several rapid transformations, and then he emitted an odd, resonant cry, his form spinning swiftly. In an instant, a blood-colored gale surged upward from his body, soaring several dozen feet high. Within the gale, thunderous roars echoed, with blood-colored electric arcs flashing wildly, creating an overwhelming spectacle. Then, as Xue Ying uttered a series of strange incantations, the gale shifted and swiftly contracted, eventually shrinking into a blood-tinged symbol the size of a human head, which gently hovered before him. Han Li slightly sensed the violent ripple emanating from the faintly glowing runes, and his face tightened instantly. A thunderclap! The crimson runes spun swiftly, then transformed into a streak of blood-red lightning that surged forward. "Boom!" As the lightning touched the black runes, the light flashed violently and instantly shattered the black runes, striking solidly against the black magical armor. A deep thud followed, and the crimson lightning vanished into nothing, leaving behind a single, thin palm-sized hole in the armor. The blood shadow grew more fierce, and with a strange laugh, it transformed again into a streak of blood-colored light, shooting out at incredible speed. In a single flash, it reached Han Li's presence and plunged directly into the hole in the armor. Yet at that very moment, a ripple of energy surged through the nearby space, and a golden hand materialized right at the hole. With a simple spread of fingers, it swiftly caught the blood streak mid-flight, ensnaring it. As the blood glow dispersed, the blood shadow reappeared before Jin's hand, pale with fear. Yet, suddenly opening his mouth, a surge of blood flame shot straight toward Han Li's face. This move was indeed treacherous! Han Li now could not move an inch, and given the close proximity, it should have struck him surely. Yet, with a slight movement of his lips, Han Li radiated a cold smile. A black glow flashed across his brow, and suddenly, a dark, vertical eye opened wide. As the black glow surged, a streak of deep black light erupted with such suddenness that it struck and absorbed the blood flame precisely. A sharp "pffft" sounded, and the space around them twisted momentarily—both forces interlaced and vanished into the surrounding void, leaving no trace. Startled, the blood shadow emitted a brilliant glow of blood light, eager to summon another spell, but found itself without further opportunity. Suddenly, a layer of silver flame erupted from the tips of Jin's five fingers. With a single roll of his hand, the blood shadow was completely engulfed within the radiant silver flame. A piercing, desperate cry suddenly erupted from within the silver flame. The blood-shaped figure struggled fiercely, its form stretching and thickening like it had no bones, constantly shifting and transforming. Yet no matter how it changed, the golden hand clung to it with relentless grip, utterly preventing it from escaping control. Within a few breaths, the cry ceased abruptly! The blood-shaped figure vanished completely into the flame. In truth, it was rather unfortunate for this blood-shaped entity. Though its intangible form was generally immune to ordinary treasures and divine powers, this golden hand—formed from the Buddha-Saint's golden body—had gained extraordinary strength through Han Li's profound cultivation and repeated refining processes, enabling it to effortlessly seize and hold the formless body of the blood shadow. Furthermore, the Spirit-Eating True Fire, naturally adept at consuming celestial and terrestrial energies, had even further enhanced its effectiveness against demonic and chaotic energies after absorbing several other flames. Thus, this once-significant blood shadow was easily reduced to ashes. Han Li watched all this, his expression relaxing instantly, the fading resolve in his brows gradually closing and vanishing. As he spoke softly to himself, golden light rippled over his body. With a single breath, he expelled a luminous orb, about the size of a clenched fist. The orb was encased in a layer of golden light, within which shimmered a tangled mass of gray-white filaments. The foreign substances that had just entered his body were now forcibly gathered and stabilized by his true energy, and expelled outward. This feat was only possible now that his cultivation had advanced significantly, and the Fàn Shèng Zhēn Mó功 was nearing completion—otherwise, he could not have achieved it. Once the gray-white orb was expelled, his body naturally returned to its normal state. Without a word, Han Li pointed at the silver flame. Instantly, the Shì Lín True Fire surged upward, coiled around the golden hand, and swiftly enclosed the orb within. The golden hand then flashed with light and dissolved into nothingness. After a few flickers within the silver flame, the luminous orb vanished entirely. At that moment, Han Li turned his gaze toward the lifeless remains scattered several dozen paces away, their flesh torn and mangled, and sighed softly. Though he still hadn't fully grasped the calamity that had befallen Xiang ZhiLi—how the blood-shadow creature had taken root within him—he had no doubt that the physical form was indeed his. Moreover, the strange transformations in the blood-shadow's facial features seemed to suggest that it had already assimilated both Xiang ZhiLi's and Hu Lao Mo's spiritual essences, merging them into one. Had it not been for the sudden restlessness and agitation of Ti Hun, which had been awake when Han Li first encountered Xiang ZhiLi in Yun City, stirring his initial alertness, he might never have noticed the anomaly in Xiang ZhiLi. Even if Xiang ZhiLi had indeed been flawed, Han Li would have simply left him alone, unless he posed a direct threat. But Xiang ZhiLi, in both of their encounters, had consistently displayed an air of patience and tolerance, as though harboring ill intentions. Han Li's resolve to act naturally solidified, and thus he had come precisely on time to fulfill his appointment. However, since he wasn't absolutely certain that the "rites of homage" were truly flawed, he had waited for the other party to raise an objection first. With heightened awareness, Han Li, after his profound cultivation in the Guanghan Realm, now felt confident that he would not be betrayed by the blood shadow. In fact, even without summoning his golden body or the Spirit-Consuming True Fire, he had several alternative methods to have easily overcome the crisis and eliminated the malevolent entity at that moment. After all, the physical body of Xiang Zhi-li, which had been possessed, was significantly inferior to Han Li's in terms of cultivation level. Even if the blood shadow had exploded the body of Xiang Zhi-li and drawn off half of its vital essence, it could only exert limited power. Han Li stood silently in place, his mind swirling with emotions. How could it be that such a towering figure among humanity in the human realm had ended up in such a situation—truly a source of deep admiration and regret. He didn't know whether Xiang Zhi-li and Hū Lǎo Mò had truly perished at the spatial node, or whether they had only suffered the blood shadow's invasion of their bodies after entering the spiritual If it were the latter, then one could only sigh in deep regret. Han Li exhaled softly, gently shaking his sleeve against the ground. Instantly, a surge of crimson flame erupted, and wherever the light reached, the flesh and bone remains were instantly vaporized into wisps of mist. As for the so-called "Giant Spirit Scroll," it had already turned to ash and dispersed simultaneously with the vanishing of the blood shadows. Originally, Han Li had been impressed by the pale, luminous filaments and had intended to study them further, but now he had to settle for that. Without lingering any longer, he moved on, briefly reaching out into the void above the surrounding peaks. A subtle ripple of energy rippled through the air, and from the sky, a dozen beams of varying colors shot forth, flashing briefly before vanishing into his sleeve. These were precisely the dozen array flags he had released earlier. The simple array they had formed was merely a basic configuration, responsive only to the natural fluctuations of true spiritual energy. At the very moment "Xiangzhi Li" reached the peak, he had secretly activated this array, effectively concealing the intense aura of the recent battle. Otherwise, despite being a full hundred li away from Fuzhao City, the combat would have been clearly visible to several key entities within the city. Now, with this array providing a slight veil, while the traces of the conflict cannot be entirely erased, higher-level beings can hardly perceive them clearly. As soon as the light of Xiangzhi Li spread, Han Li transformed into a streak of azure light and ascended into the sky, circling once above the peak before vanishing into the city in a burst of speed. Not long after, a group of patrol soldiers arrived from another direction, but after thoroughly searching the mountain, found little of significance and departed with growing frustration. Upon returning to Fuzhao City, Han Li immediately retreated to his residence and stayed there, rarely venturing out. Over the following十余 days, the three others—Qianji Zi and his companions—finally delivered the remaining materials to Han Li in a steady and consistent manner, truly fulfilling their promises. Han Li naturally accepted everything without hesitation. A month later, Han Li finally stepped out of his dwelling and headed straight for the highest mountain peak of Fuzhao City. It was said that this mountain peak housed the city's most important buildings and concealed several secret facilities unknown to outsiders. Half a day later, the entire mountain suddenly trembled, and a massive beam of light erupted from somewhere within its mountain body, soaring straight into the heavens. However, after a few flashes, the brilliant light vanished as if it had never been there. Although this event stirred some excitement among nearby ethnic groups and prompted curious discussions for some time, eventually everyone grew indifferent and resumed their daily activities. Meanwhile, on a distant continent far beyond the Leiming Continent, in a hidden location, a similar beam of light rose into the sky, and shortly thereafter, a figure emerged from the light, appearing at the center of a vast array.