Han Yi turned towards the voice, raising an eyebrow. He recognized the speaker as Liu Heng, the Patriarch of the Liu Clan, whom he had defeated the previous day.
"It's you."
Han Yi shifted his gaze from Liu Heng's face, twisted with resentment, to the other twelve figures. A faint golden light flickered in his eyes as he activated his Qi Observation Technique, instantly perceiving their auras with perfect clarity.
Among the twelve, four were at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement. One of them possessed an aura noticeably stronger than Liu Heng's, though not yet at the Peak Ninth Layer. The other three Ninth Layer cultivators were merely ordinary practitioners. The remaining eight were at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refinement.
It was a formidable lineup.
Unlike Liu Heng, the other twelve exuded a distinct aura—one that Han Yi recognized from his encounter with robber cultivators years ago at the Outer Peak market. Combined with the current situation, the answer was self-evident.
Robber Cultivators.
These eleven individuals were a professional band of robber cultivators.
"Liu Heng, is this the brat who ruined your plans?"
"He looks like he's only at the Seventh Layer of Qi Refinement. Are you trying to pull one over on us?"
One of the twelve robber cultivators, a burly man with a fierce countenance and domineering eyes, glared disdainfully at Liu Heng. The patriarch's face paled instantly, his heart pounding with fear.
The burly man was the cultivator among the twelve whose aura surpassed even Liu Heng's by a considerable margin.
"Brother Zheng, how could I possibly deceive you?" Liu Heng pleaded, his face pale with fear. "This fellow must possess a Magic Artifact to conceal his true aura. Though he appears to be at the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining, he's undoubtedly at the Ninth Layer. Otherwise, how could he have killed Tang Xiangyu?" He knew that cooperating with these Robber Cultivators was akin to plotting with a tiger for its skin, but the Luo Clan's Spirit Field was too important. If its secrets hadn't been discovered, he might have turned a blind eye. But now that they had been uncovered, ignoring them would be more unbearable than death itself.
"A Magic Artifact that conceals one's aura? To hide it so thoroughly is rare indeed."
"Still, no matter how well he hides his aura, this brat couldn't possibly be at the Foundation Establishment stage," the burly cultivator said, his thick facial muscles twitching. "Liu Heng, didn't you say you hired a master cultivator to protect us? Why did we still lose? Is there something you're not telling us?" He cast a probing glance at Liu Heng, a look that sent shivers down the man's spine.
These Robber Cultivators weren't ordinary thugs; they belonged to a tightly organized group rumored to even have Foundation Establishment members.
For the sake of the Luo Clan's Spirit Field, Liu Heng had spent a fortune and risked everything to forge this dangerous alliance. Now, even if he regretted his choices, it was too late to turn back.
"Brother Zheng, absolutely not! I swear to Heaven, I did hire a skilled cultivator. But that Heaven's Will Sect member just went through the motions. I was so furious, I wanted to kill him myself!"
Liu Heng gritted his teeth, the memory still fueling his rage.
"Hahaha! A Heaven's Will Sect cultivator? That's hilarious, Liu Heng! You actually hired one of them? Did he keep rambling about how 'Heaven's Will prevails' or some other nonsense?"
The Fierce Hanzi turned away, roaring with laughter. But his eyes, now wide open, held no amusement—only a dangerous glint that made Liu Heng's face pale. Before Liu Heng could explain further, the Hanzi turned back.
"Still, I trust you. You wouldn't dare deceive me."
"Let's deal with this meddler first. If Luo Zhiguang could escape my grasp, I doubt this brat has the same trick up his sleeve."
Meanwhile, Han Yi had been watching intently since the group's arrival, remaining still and alert. The information revealed in Liu Heng and the Fierce Hanzi's conversation sent shockwaves through his mind, intensifying his wariness.
"That Liu Heng actually hired these Robber Cultivators to ambush Luo Zhiguang, the Patriarch of the Luo Clan, all to seize their Spirit Field."
"Afterward, the Liu Clan began pressuring the Luo Clan. During this time, the Tang Clan, having learned of the situation, also tried to intervene."
"Subsequently, the Great Qian Imperial Observatory stepped in to arbitrate. As the three clans prepared for a martial duel, Luo Yunzhou invited me to assist. Liu Heng, taking no chances, somehow managed to enlist Zhao Li of the Heaven's Will Sect. The Tang Clan, confident in their victory and being a relatively young family founded by Qi Refining Rogue Cultivators with shallow foundations, didn't bother seeking external assistance."
"In the end, I killed Tang Xiangyu. Zhao Li of the Heaven's Will Sect, deeply believing in Heaven's Will, merely struck a single blow and then drifted away, much to everyone's surprise."
All the above deductions, combined with Liu Heng's words, fit perfectly. This must be the truth.
However, Han Yi had no interest in the feuds between the Luo, Liu, and Tang Clans, or their Spirit Fields.
His most precious resource was time. He only wanted to hurry back to Azure Dragon Peak to continue cultivating, grind his skills to the next level, and advance his cultivation realm to the Eighth Layer of Qi Refinement.
Having learned enough, the Fierce Hanzi turned toward him, his gaze settling on Han Yi.
Han Yi no longer hesitated.
Han Yi quickly realized that the formation enveloping the hundred-meter area was a shielding formation, similar to a Spirit Concealing Formation but larger and of a higher grade. He surmised it was a First-Tier High-Grade Auxiliary Formation.
His attitude toward Robber Cultivators remained unwavering: they deserved to die. Wasting no time, he struck first.
This time, there was no strategy involved—just overwhelming force.
Hmph!
None of his opponents had even reached the peak of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement. What was there to fear? Moreover, being inside the formation, he couldn't risk any unexpected changes. He had to eliminate them all swiftly.
Since facing the burly cultivator wielding a halberd in the Myriad Demon Mountain Range, this was the first time Han Yi unleashed his full power. And this time, he also possessed a Top-Grade Peak Magic Artifact: the Chengying Sword.
Yet he didn't draw the sword immediately.
With a flick of his wrist, four daggers rose into the air. A faint crimson flame aura flickered around them, blurring their edges and tinting the blades with a bloody hue.
As the daggers hovered aloft,
"Bold move!" the Fierce Hanzi snarled, his eyes widening like lanterns, a glint of scarlet flashing within. "Kill him!"
No sooner had the words left his lips than a dagger vanished from twenty meters away. In the blink of an eye, it reappeared, seemingly teleporting to a spot just a meter in front of him.
The crimson fury hadn't yet faded from the Fierce Hanzi's eyes, but a flicker of shock suddenly arose within them.
"So fast..."
Years as a Robber Cultivator had honed his skills in combat and self-preservation above all else. Though the dagger moved with blinding speed, it was still a fraction slower than his divine sense.
In the temporal dimension, a kshana was equivalent to a single thought. Twenty thoughts formed an instant, and twenty instants equaled a finger snap. Thus, a single finger snap spanned four hundred kshanas, four hundred thoughts—each thought fleeting and momentary.
By the time the dagger had closed the final meter with near-instantaneous speed, the Fierce Hanzi had not only believed Liu Heng's words but also felt their truth etched into his bones.
At the critical moment, his divine sense surged. Instantly, a dark, profound light erupted from the black bracer on his arm, enveloping his entire body.