Han Li felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He had been so careful, so cautious, yet he was still ambushed by others, and in the worst possible situation—facing multiple enemies alone!
At this moment, the place he was in was what the资料 called "the Narrow Path," an extremely treacherous area. Without flying on magical tools, this small path was the only route that led to the central area.
On either side of the path were steep, towering peaks. Even someone like Han Li, who possessed martial arts skills and was light on his feet, wouldn't dare attempt to climb them rashly!
As for flying over them directly on magical tools, that was out of the question—it was an act of suicide, openly making oneself a target for attack. Unless absolutely necessary, no disciple from any sect would commit such a foolish act! Moreover, the painful experiences of their predecessors had taught them this: flying on magical tools was strictly forbidden within the Forbidden Lands, or one would only end up as a corpse.
When Han Li entered this area, he hesitated for a long while, but ultimately didn't dare take a shortcut over the peaks. He had no choice but to slowly walk along the small path.
Of course, given the danger here, Han Li was extremely cautious, keeping his nerves taut the entire journey. But even so, the moment he stepped out of the entrance, before he could even let out a breath of relief, without any warning whatsoever, these two blocked his front and rear escape routes.
Han Li saw the fierce expression on the bearded man's face and knew that trying to talk his way out now would be useless! He first cast a defensive water shield on himself, then released his Flying Sky Shield, and clutched in his hand the magical treasure "Gold Coin Mother-and-Child Blades" and one of the few high-grade beginner talismans he had—the "Earth Prison technique."
The bearded man and the one behind him watched Han Li's every move with cold eyes, showing no intention of stopping or attacking preemptively. They both looked confident, believing they had more than enough to deal with Han Li, which was why they were so composed.
This was no surprise! The one behind was already at the peak of the twelfth layer, let alone the bearded man with his thirteenth-layer cultivation. Facing Han Li, an eleventh-layer rookie, they naturally felt it was a sure thing, a trivial matter!
Seeing this, Han Li licked his slightly dry lips and sneered inwardly. Since the opponents were so overconfident, he would naturally take full advantage of that.
Without a change in expression, Han Li subtly shifted his position, placing himself at an angle to the two, avoiding being attacked from both front and back. Sure enough, the two didn't seize this opportunity to attack.
Facing the strongest enemies he had encountered since entering the cultivation world, Han Li didn't feel particularly afraid.
After all, although he tried hard to avoid direct fights with others, that didn't mean he had no confidence in himself. Han Li figured that while his spiritual power was lacking by a large margin, making prolonged battles unfavorable, the top-grade magical treasures and talisman treasures he possessed could more than compensate for this gap.
If things really went badly, he could bring out the "Heaven Thunderbolt" and eliminate one of them—that would be a piece of cake.
The only question was whether he was willing to use it.
However, Han Li also found it puzzling—why hadn't the bearded man and the Celestial Gate Fortress disciple fought each other? Instead, they had joined forces. For fellow disciples of the same sect, that would be normal, but these two were clearly not from the same sect!
"Kid, you've got some nerve! Outside the Forbidden Lands, you dared to mock me and make eyes with that cheap woman. Now, pay with your life!" the bearded man snarled ferociously.
Then he turned his head and said to the Celestial Gate Fortress disciple:
"Brother Yan, this kid has a grudge with me. Leave him to me—I'll give him a proper welcome. I want him to know that the cultivation world isn't so easy to get by in! Next time, before offending someone, wipe your eyes clean!"
The Celestial Gate Fortress disciple shrugged, unconcerned.
"Up to you. I'll keep an eye on things from the side. But don't end up capsizing in the gutter like last time! Otherwise, you'll owe me another life-saving favor!"
"Haha, that was absolutely an accident! Now, against this rookie, I can handle him with half my strength and still have plenty to spare!" The bearded man flushed slightly, then curled his lip contemptuously.
"Ah, you'd better be careful! I don't want to hear bad news about you because of this one day. After all, we've been drinking buddies for years—finding another with a compatible temperament isn't easy!"
The Celestial Gate Fortress disciple shook his head, seeming quite exasperated by the bearded man's arrogance. Still, he didn't think the opponent in front of them posed any threat to his old friend. Besides, he was watching from the side!
Han Li, standing nearby, heard their conversation without any attempt at discretion. From their words, he gathered some clues and resolved his doubts.
These two were actually old friends, and seemed to be on good terms.
This was troublesome! The two of them would certainly be coordinated in fighting together, much harder to deal with than ordinary临时 alliances. Judging by their tone, they seemed to have cooperated more than once!
Han Li couldn't help but feel quite frustrated!
"It seems I have to use a decisive move and take out one first—then the remaining one will be much easier to handle! But this is just too bizarre! The disciples of various sects are supposed to be randomly teleported, yet they managed to end up together in the same place. It's just unfair!" Han Li thought resentfully, filled with suspicion and indignation at their incredible luck.
What Han Li didn't know was that the Celestial Gate Fortress disciple was also smugly thinking about this very matter.
As he watched the bearded man approach Han Li, his mind wandered to the greatest contributor to their reunion—the "Spirit-Fusing Talisman."
"The high-grade Spirit-Fusing Talisman is truly useful. As long as you use it on yourself and a friend just before stepping into the Forbidden Lands, it can temporarily link your spiritual energies, causing the transportation restrictions to send you to the same place. Although I've heard the success rate is only about fifty-fifty, and the price is ridiculously high—far above ordinary high-grade beginner talismans—they did succeed, and they lay in ambush here, joining forces to eliminate several disciples from various sects who passed through, reaping a great harvest!"
"Besides, he, Yan, wasn't stupid! Spending a fortune and taking great risks to come to the Forbidden Lands wasn't for the spiritual herbs that so many were coveting—it was to openly kill and seize treasures here, making a fortune without any consequences. He believed that as long as the two of them joined forces and avoided those who looked tough, they could easily achieve their goal. Then, when the time was right, they would stop, find a place to hide, and stay there until the time was up, walking out safely! It was a truly perfect plan—only he could have come up with it!"
The Celestial Gate Fortress disciple's mind drifted to the bright future after leaving, feeling quite self-satisfied, his attention naturally not on the imminent battle.
At this moment, the bearded man took off a green leather pouch and approached Han Li with a sinister grin, seemingly about to attack.
However, whether it was due to his friend's reminder, halfway there, he still used a talisman to erect a green light shield around himself, strengthening his defense.
Seeing this, Han Li frowned, feeling somewhat troubled!
He had been wary of Spirit Beast Mountain's methods and had planned to take advantage of the man's carelessness to eliminate him first. But now that the opponent had cast his defensive spell, it wouldn't be something that could be done in a short while.
Of course, if he brought out the "Heaven Thunderbolt," no matter how many tricks the man had, it would be useless. But that was a one-time consumable—unless it was a life-or-death situation, a critical moment, Han Li didn't intend to use it!
Since this man wasn't an option, Han Li naturally turned his attention to the Celestial Gate Fortress disciple on the other side.
Seeing that the man had his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky, seemingly lost in thought and paying no attention to what was happening here, Han Li was delighted, knowing this was his chance!
Without hesitation, he suddenly threw the "Earth Prison technique" talisman he held toward the bearded man.
The talisman turned into a beam of yellow light in midair, shooting toward the opponent, and formed a larger yellow shield outside the bearded man's green defensive shield, trapping him firmly inside, unable to move forward even a single inch.