The young man smirked coldly when he saw this.
"Well, since I've already taken your attacks, isn't it my turn to strike back now?" As he spoke, he lowered his shield and brought his hands together, suddenly pulling them apart to reveal a massive crescent-shaped arc of azure light between his palms.
"Try my Azure Arc Slash!" the young man said ominously, and the light blade whistled toward the two figures opposite him.
His attack drew gasps from the onlookers. Everyone could see that the Murong brothers were completely spent and had no strength left for magic, let alone defense.
The youths panicked and, after a frantic glance in all directions, split apart and fled toward the crowds on either side.
"Break!" the young man barked.
The flying azure arc split in two mid-air at his command, and with a wave of his hand, both pieces continued chasing their respective targets.
As it happened, one of the youths had noticed that Han Li's magic power was relatively strong among the onlookers, so without hesitation, he dashed straight toward him, giving Han Li quite a fright.
Han Li had no intention of getting involved. He knew that no matter how arrogant this young man was, he wouldn't dare openly harm the Murong brothers—he'd only be trying to scare them. There was no way Han Li was going to be the hero.
Besides, this youth was cunningly using him as a human shield. Han Li wasn't about to let him have his way. With a slight sway of his body, he vanished from his spot, causing the youth to crash into empty air. The young man cursed furiously before scrambling away.
With a thunderous rumble, the ground trembled in the direction the other youth had fled, sending dust billowing up along with the curses of a man—clearly, someone else hadn't been as wise as Han Li and had failed to escape the role of living shield.
When the dust settled, a massive earthen wall several zhang high stood before them, bearing a half-moon shaped gouge several chi long. Behind it stood a stocky young man in his twenties, a strange wooden crutch strapped to his back, one hand pressed against the wall as he shouted curses. Directly behind him, grinning from ear to ear, was the other Murong youth.
"Lu! What's your meaning? Can't you see there's someone else here? Are you trying to cut me down too?" the stocky young man demanded in alarm and anger.
Senior Brother Lu snorted, ignoring the stocky youth's reproach. With a dark expression, he focused on controlling the remaining half of the azure arc, suddenly accelerating it to pursue the youth near Han Li. From the arc's trajectory, it looked like he intended to leave a real mark on the boy.
"Stop!" a young woman's sharp cry rang from the heavens. Immediately after, a blazing firebird descended from the sky, its maw swallowing the azure arc behind the youth whole before dissolving into a burst of flames that vanished without a trace.
"Who? Who broke my technique?" the Lu surnamed youth roared, looking up at the sky.
There, hovering above them all, was a woman in blue robes whose skin was like congealed cream and whose beauty rivaled a celestial. Her slender willow waist, graceful jade neck, and elaborate palace dress with a high coiled bun gave her an ethereal, untouchable aura.
"So it's Senior Sister Nie! No wonder someone has such powerful magic!" The previously furious Lu youth's demeanor instantly shifted to refined courtesy upon seeing the woman, though it was more crimson robes he addressed.
"Senior Brother Lu, for my sake, why don't we call this contest here?" the palace-robed woman said coldly, her feet planted on a magic artifact.
"Heh, since it's Senior Sister Nie's wish, of course I'll comply," the young man replied with a broad smile.
The palace-robed woman nodded, said nothing more, and descended from the sky, walking toward the Murong brothers.
"Senior Sister Nie, your timing was perfect! Otherwise we'd have been in real trouble!" The youth who'd just escaped disaster beamed as he ran toward her. The other one grinned too, circling around the earthen wall.
"When we get back, you'll face the wall and reflect on your failings. You're not allowed to leave until you've mastered the ninth-level technique," the woman said calmly, her voice devoid of any emotional fluctuation.
The Murong brothers drooped in defeat, heads hanging as they agreed.
After dealing with the brothers, the blue-robed woman turned to the stocky young man and suddenly smiled radiantly, making everything around them seem to pale in comparison. Her delicate lips parted: "Thank you for your aid, Senior Brother. If anything had happened to Junior Brother Murong, I would have failed in my duty to the sect."
"N-No... nothing at all..."
The stocky young man was so stunned by her incomparable beauty that he could only stammer and grin foolishly.
The men around them looked on with envy, cursing themselves for not having been the ones to act. Their jealous gazes could have burned holes through him.
The Lu youth's eyes flashed with malice, though he quickly masked it, maintaining his refined exterior. Only his female companion and Han Li, watching coldly from the sidelines, caught the change.
Though his companion, Senior Sister Chen, was also beautiful as a flower, she paled considerably next to the woman surnamed Nie. The moment the blue-robed woman appeared, Senior Sister Chen had rushed to Senior Brother Lu's side, clutched his arm, and glared at the newcomer with hostility.
The blue-robed woman naturally sensed the hostility but paid it no mind. As she turned to leave with the Murong brothers, she cast a faint glance at Han Li. Immediately, her pleasant voice echoed in his ears.
"Though your magic power is nothing to scoff at, I cannot approve of this self-serving behavior. I hope next time we meet, you'll have changed."
Han Li frowned slightly after hearing her words. It seemed his dodging had been completely transparent to her, leaving a poor impression—perhaps even a bad one.
But he was no saint. If he knowingly let himself be used, wouldn't he be a fool? The stocky young man hadn't kept to himself, and now he'd caught the attention of that Lu fellow—there was no telling when he might end up dead. Would this beautiful woman avenge him then? Han Li scoffed at the thought.
For some reason, Han Li had little interest in this kind of peerless beauty, finding the delicate, modest type far more appealing. What impression he'd left on Senior Sister Nie meant nothing to him; he just wished she'd pay him less attention.
By now, the blue-robed woman and her companions had vanished. After shooting a venomous glare at the stocky youth, Senior Brother Lu departed with his own companion. The remaining spectators, seeing there was nothing more to watch, scattered.
Han Li also departed on his magic artifact, flying straight back to the Hundred Medicine Garden.
Once inside his dwelling, he impatiently took out the two jade slips, selected the copy containing the Foundation Establishment Pill's refinement method, and began reading it word by word.
Though his mind raced, his expression remained perfectly still. Several hours passed before he finally exhaled and set the jade slip down. But he immediately fell into deep thought, brow furrowed in concentration.
After a long while, he stood up with a start and stroked into the herb garden, scanning the flowers and grass while muttering to himself:
"Thirty-one auxiliary ingredients like Thousand-Link Blossoms, Black Peony Grass, and Golden Essence Ginseng aren't a problem—they're all in this garden, just requiring a few hundred years of maturity. But the main ingredients—Jade Marrow Fungus, Purple Ape Blossom, and Heavenly Spirit Fruit—are going to be troublesome! There isn't a single one here, and I've never even heard of them."
Han Li hesitated for a long while before deciding to ask someone. Naturally, that someone had to be the little old man who was well-versed in pharmacology!