Chapter 99: Admission of Identity
Looking at the immobilized figure within the massive ball of ice, both Patriarch Lu Kun and Mistress Gu Gu heaved an internal sigh of relief.
Even though the battle had only lasted less than 20 seconds, the incredible strength displayed by Han Li had been downright astonishing to them. Thankfully, with their combined efforts, they were finally able to trap him.
In contrast, the members of the Luo Clan on Dark Veil Island were greatly alarmed to see this, and horrified expressions had appeared on most of their faces.
"Senior Liu!" Luo Feng let loose a despairing gry, and a hopeless look appeared on his face.
This was what he had been most afraid of.
Han Li was the only one that their Luo Clan could rely on, and now that he had fallen, he didn't even dare to imagine what was going to become of the Luo Clan.
"I must thank you again for your efforts, fellow daoists. I'll admit that I didn't anticipate for this man to be able to oppose our powers of laws with his brute strength alone. If it weren't for your assistance, I would've been in a great deal of trouble here," Han Qiu said with a pleased smile.
"I suggest you put an end to this right now. The longer you delay, the more potential for unforeseen circumstances to arise," Mistress Gu Gu said.
"Indeed, Fellow Daoist Gu Gu."
A cold gleam flashed through Han Qiu's eyes as he spoke, and a burst of white light appeared in one of his hands as he casually swiped it in the direction of the ball of ice up ahead.
A burst of white light flashed through the air, and a crescent-shaped white blade with a dragon engraved onto its surface appeared alongside a burst of law fluctuations.
The white blade shuddered as it sped through the air as a streak of white light, cutting into the ball of ice in a flash before hurtling directly toward Han Li without slowing down in the slightest.
However, right at this moment, an unexpected turn of events began to unfold.
Han Li was previously completely immobilized within the ball of ice, but all of a sudden, his eyes moved ever so slightly.
Immediately thereafter, countless bursts of golden light erupted from his body, illuminating the entire ball of ice, giving it the appearance of a scintillating golden sun that was hanging in the sky.
A loud crack rang out, and the entire ball of ice shuddered as a series of large cracks appeared on its surface, following which the entire ball of ice exploded violently, sending countless chunks of ice flying in all directions alongside a cloud of glacial mist.
A giant golden ape that was over 300 feet tall sprang out from within, and its entire body was glowing with dazzling golden radiance, while the crescent-shaped white blade had been caught in its furry grasp.
The white blade was trembling violently as it attempted to break free by slicing viciously into the giant ape's palm, sending sparks flying in all directions, but it wasn't even able to leave the slightest mark on the True Extreme Membrane on the surface of the ape's palm.
The trio of Ancestral Gods were greatly alarmed by this abrupt turn of events, and all of the members of the Luo Clan were also completely rooted to the spot.
However, unlike everyone else, there was a hint of elation flashing through Luo Feng's eyes.
The giant golden ape let loose a thunderous, beastly roar, then closed its fingers around the crescent-shaped white blade with all its might.
A dull thump rang out as the blade was pulverized in its grasp, having been crushed into a pile of translucent powder.
Han Qiu shuddered violently, and his aura instantly waned significantly in the wake of the destruction of his bonded treasure.
Mistress Gu Gu and Patriarch Lu Kun exchanged a glance, and both of them could see their own astonishment mirrored in one another's eyes.
Meanwhile, the blue water giant sprang into action once again, charging toward the giant golden ape as it lashed out with its fists.
Bright blue light erupted from its fists as a pair of massive blue fist projections were launched through the air, causing the space in its wake to shudder violently.
Instead of retaliating with its own fists, the giant golden ape took a deep breath, causing its chest to swell appreciably before it opened its mouth to let loose an explosive roar.
A burst of transparent soundwaves swept through the air, causing the space in its wake to twist and warp violently, creating a series of ripples that were visible to the naked eye and even a clusters of black spatial rifts.
In the instant that the pair of blue fist projections came into contact with the burst of soundwaves, the former was instantly destroyed.
In the next instant, the transparent soundwaves swept over the blue water giant's entire body, causing it tremble and warp violently.
Blue light began to flash erratically all over its body, and large pillars of blue light were erupting out of its body before spraying in all directions.
Patriarch Lu Kun's expression changed drastically upon seeing this, and he made a rapid string of hand seals, releasing several bursts of blue light that vanished into the giant's body.
However, his efforts appeared to be completely futile, and the water giant's condition was worsening by the second. Finally, a loud thump rang out as the giant exploded into countless tiny droplets of water, which then quickly disintegrated into water vapor in the face of the destructive soundwaves.
Patriarch Lu Kun immediately gave a muffled groan as the blue light radiating from his body dimmed significantly.
After letting loose that thunderous roar, the giant golden ape sprang up toward the dark cloud up above, then thrust its arm upward violently as scintillating golden light erupted from its fist.
An earth-shattering boom rang out as a mountainous golden fist projection erupted into the heavens before plunging straight into the dark cloud, releasing a burst of indescribably powerful force to form a series of golden hurricanes that tore through the air in all directions.
Mistress Gu Gu was greatly alarmed to see this, but it was too late for her to do anything.
A string of loud cracks and pops rang out as the dark cloud in the sky was brutally torn apart before exploding violently, quickly disintegrating into nothingness.
Mistress Gu Gu let loose a muffled groan as she stumbled back a step, and her aura fluctuated in an unstable manner while the black light radiating from her body also dimmed significantly.
After laying waste to the dark cloud, the giant golden ape swept its gaze over the three Ancestral Gods before settling its attention on Han Qiu, upon which a burst of cold killing intent appeared in its eyes.
Immediately thereafter, its enormous body transformed into a golden shadow as it pounced on the trio of Ancestral Gods.
Whether it was intentional or not, both Patriarch Lu Kun and Mistress Gu Gu sprang away in opposite directions to distance themselves from Han Qiu.
Despite this, the giant golden ape didn't alter its trajectory in the slightest. Instead, it sped up even further as it continued on its original course.
Han Qiu made a rapid string of hand seals while hurriedly staging a retreat, and dazzling white light erupted from his body, forming a white light barrier that enveloped him from head to toe.
Bursts of powerful law fluctuations emanated from the white light barrier, which was also releasing countless white runes that drifted through the air.
Immediately thereafter, he opened his mouth to release a translucent white ice crystal, which began to revolve on the spot, and all of the white runes instantly converged toward it. In the blink of an eye, the combination of the ice crystal and the white runes transformed into a white ice dragon that was over 100 feet in length before launching itself at the oncoming golden ape.
The giant golden ape gave a cold harrumph as it thrust its fist through the air, and a ball of dazzling golden light erupted from its fist amid a burst of dull rumbling. The ball of golden light then transformed into a mountainous golden fist projection in a flash as it continued to hurtle toward the white ice dragon.
The ice dragon opened its mouth to release a thick pillar of white light in retaliation, and waves of white glacial qi swept through the air in all directions in a frenzy, leaving large patches of frost in their wake.
The fist projection clashed with the pillar of light with an earth-shattering boom, and the latter was instantly destroyed.
The golden fist projection was only slowed down slightly before crashing into the white ice dragon's body.
The ice dragon also met the same fate as the pillar of light, exploding into countless ice crystals, while a burst of powerful shockwaves erupted into the heavens.
At this point, the layer of white light around Han Qiu's body was only as thin as a sheet of paper, and he was sent flying back by the devastating shockwaves, hurtling through the sky like an asteroid before crashing into the sea down below with an enormous splash.
The giant golden ape was just about to continue to give chase when a male voice suddenly rang out up above.
"Hold on, Fellow Daoist Liu! Let's be civilized!"
The giant golden ape stopped in its tracks as it raised its head to look up.
Patriarch Lu Kun and Mistress Gu Gu were approaching it, and they stopped a short distance away.
"Your powers are truly incredible, Fellow Daoist Liu. I am genuinely in awe!" Patriarch Lu Kun said with a friendly smile as he cupped his fist in a salute.
"Given your incredible power, we're willing to concede ownership of Dark Veil Island to you. This battle is entirely the result of a misunderstanding, and it wouldn't do any of us any good to continue, so why don't we stop here?" Mistress Gu Gu suggested.
The giant golden ape's eyes narrowed slightly as a hint of blue light flashed through its pupils, and it remained silent as its brows furrowed slightly.
All of a sudden, Han Qiu flew out of the sea in the distance with a loud splash, and his aura was severely diminished, indicating that he had suffered severe injuries.
"Now that you've had a taste of Fellow Daoist Liu's power, I'm sure you're no longer opposed to granting him control of Dark Veil Island, right, Fellow Daoist Han?" Patriarch Lu Kun asked as he turned to Han Qiu.
Han Qiu was silent for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. "Indeed, I am truly in awe and admiration of your powers, Fellow Daoist Liu. I have no objections if you wish to take over Dark Veil Island."
The giant golden ape's gaze lingered on Han Qiu for a while longer before it quickly reverted back into its human form amid a flash of golden light.
"I already declared earlier that I have no intention of battling any of you. If you wish to leave, then please go ahead," Han Li said with a faint smile.
With that, the tension in the air was instantly alleviated significantly.
"Fellow Daoist Liu, this may have been a rough introduction, but it's an introduction nonetheless, and I'm pleased to have made your acquaintance. All of the powers in the Black Wind Sea are constantly at war with one another, so given how close our islands are, we need to rely on one another to ward off external enemies. Now that you've taken over Dark Veil Island, you should come and visit us when you get the chance," Patriarch Lu Kun said with a faint smile.
"Indeed. Ancestral Gods like us have no powerful backers or mentors, so we can only cultivate on our own, and it would be invaluable for us to exchange our cultivation insights and experiences with one another. In light of that, all of us gather together every once in a while to discuss cultivation, or exchange resources with each other.
“Given the lofty heights that you've already reached at such a young age, there's a very good chance that you'll be able to advance to the Golden Immortal Stage in the future, so it's very important that you learn more about the powers of laws," Han Qiu chimed in with a nod, and there was a slightly sycophantic tone to his voice as he spoke.
"I'll be sure to visit all of you if I have some spare time in the future," Han Li replied with a nod.