Chapter 51: A Notorious Reputation (Part 7)

"Senior Brother Cui, you're here! Kill him from behind!" Han Yi's expression suddenly shifted from dismay to delighted surprise as he shouted towards the cold youth's back.

"Hmm?" The cold youth whirled around, his Golden Light Shuttle gleaming with golden light.

In an instant, his face contorted with fury, his eyes blazing with murderous intent. He spun around to find Han Yi already a hundred meters away, his rapidly shrinking figure the only remaining trace of him.

"How dare you trick me!"

"You'll pay with your life!"

The cold youth couldn't remember the last time he had been subjected to such a lowly insult.

How dare he?

How dare anyone humiliate me like this?

His rage erupted, instantly reaching a boiling point.

Crush him.

Crush him.

I will crush him utterly.

Without hesitation, he flipped his other hand over, revealing a pale golden Spirit Talisman. He slapped the talisman onto his chest, instantly enveloping himself in a faint golden light.

With a light step forward, his figure vanished from the spot. A golden flash appeared fifty meters away, vanished, and reappeared a hundred meters further on.

Divine Speed Talisman.

Just as Medicinal Pills are divided into six tiers, Spirit Talismans in the Cultivation World are also classified into six tiers, ranging from First-Tier to Sixth-Tier without any specialized subdivisions. Each tier is further divided into four grades: Low-Grade, Mid-Grade, High-Grade, and Top-Grade.

Typically, cultivators in the Qi Refining Stage use First-Tier Spirit Talismans.

The Divine Speed Talisman affixed to the enraged Cold Youth was a Top-Grade First-Tier talisman. Within the Qi Refining Stage, its power rivaled that of a cultivator at the Peak Qi Refining Stage.

In other words, activating the Divine Speed Talisman had boosted his speed to the level of a Peak Qi Refining cultivator.

Two hundred meters away, Han Yi sensed something amiss. He turned around, his face paling as his soul nearly leaped from his body.

A figure enveloped in golden light flashed across the distance, closing to within a hundred meters in an instant. At this speed, the youth would catch up in the blink of an eye.

What to do?

The thought flashed through Han Yi's mind, and he instantly knew what he had to do:

Go all out.

His only means of escape was the Light Body Technique at the Perfected Purity level. By his calculations, even an Eighth Layer Qi Refining cultivator would struggle to overtake him.

Yet, inexplicably, despite being only at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining, his opponent was terrifyingly fast, easily closing the distance.

Continuing to flee would only expose Han Yi's back to the enemy. Rather than be cornered, he decided to risk it all.

When warriors clash on a narrow path, the brave prevail. Han Yi had never lacked the courage to fight to the death.

He took a deep breath. The dagger at his waist leaped into the air, trembling slightly as it emitted a low, piercing whistle, darting horizontally back and forth before him.

Meanwhile, the dagger concealed at his ankle remained pressed close to the ground, moving silently with a silent, forceful energy.

The first dagger's whistle served to mask the second's stealthy approach.

Killing tactics aren't about repetition, but effectiveness.

This dual-dagger approach, combining a conspicuous threat with a hidden one, had proven shockingly efficient, already claiming the lives of two Qi Refining Seventh Layer cultivators.

Han Yi attempted to repeat his strategy.

But the cold youth, now within fifty meters, shattered all his tactics with a single move.

Sometimes, overwhelming force trumps all cunning.

"Die!"

A golden light erupted from the cold youth's hand, soaring into the air to reveal the form of the Top-Grade Magic Artifact, the Golden Light Shuttle.

The Golden Light Shuttle surged into motion, leaving a golden streak in its wake as a sonic boom shattered the air.

Boom!

Fifty meters away, Han Yi's expression twisted in alarm.

The silent, low-flying dagger he had hurled had only traveled five meters before he forcibly recalled it. In the face of danger, survival outweighed killing the enemy. Besides, he had another trick up his sleeve.

Whoosh!

The first dagger, slicing horizontally across his vision, charged straight at the Golden Light Shuttle.

Clang!

The dagger grazed the shuttle, barely hindering its momentum. It shattered into countless fragments that rained forward like metallic shavings.

A fierce glint flashed in Han Yi's eyes. The second dagger, already recalled, surged forward in pursuit. Simultaneously, he flicked three fingers. Three streams of Spirit Light trailed behind the dagger.

In the instant before the dagger collided with the golden light, the Spirit Light caught up and detonated the final remaining blade.

Boom!

The terrifying thrust generated by detonating a Low-Grade Magic Artifact with the Spirit Void Finger finally brought the golden light to a halt.

But it wasn't enough.

Even after his efforts, the Golden Light Shuttle remained partially intact, though its speed had been reduced by more than half—a result Han Yi had anticipated.

Next, he rapidly flicked his fingers, unleashing the Spirit Void Finger technique. A torrent of Spirit Light surged forth, crashing into the approaching Golden Light Shuttle from a distance of ten meters.

Explosions echoed continuously, but they failed to bring the shuttle to a complete halt.

As the Golden Light Shuttle closed to within three meters, Han Yi extended his hand, conjuring a dense Fire Shield Technique to form a final defensive barrier.

Boom!

The Fire Shield shattered instantly upon impact, but this last-ditch defense slowed the shuttle to a manageable speed.

For the first time, Han Yi drew the Shadowless Sword from its sheath at his waist. This Mid-Grade Magic Artifact was not yet fully refined and could not be wielded as a flying sword; he could only grasp its hilt and wield it like an ordinary blade.

With a fierce downward slash, Han Yi struck the slowed Golden Light Shuttle head-on.

To his astonishment, despite its reduced speed—now roughly matching his own mobility—the shuttle's power still far exceeded his expectations.

The moment the Shadowless Sword cleaved through the Golden Light Shuttle, a terrifying force surged through the blade and into his body.

First, Han Yi's arm went numb. Then, his entire body trembled violently as he was hurled backward, crashing into the wall of a nearby building and leaving a human-shaped dent.

Pfft!

Han Yi spat out a mouthful of blood, his face paling.

"Hmm?"

"He blocked it?"

A hundred meters away, the cold youth's expression flickered. His previous strike, fueled by rage, was even more powerful than the one that had obliterated Cui Xingchen—so strong that even a typical Ninth Layer Qi Refinement cultivator wouldn't dare face it head-on. Yet this mere Sixth Layer Qi Refinement cultivator had not only dared to confront it directly but had somehow miraculously succeeded in blocking it.

With a casual gesture, the Golden Light Shuttle that Han Yi had deflected returned to his hand. Though temporarily unusable, the cold youth was unconcerned. If Han Yi had exhausted all his strength to block the shuttle, crushing him with his Eighth Layer Qi Refinement power would be child's play.

Just then, the injured Han Yi's face suddenly lit up as he shouted:

"Senior Brother Cui, Senior Brother Luo, Senior Brother Tao! You're here! Quick, flank him and finish him off!"

The cold youth's inner fury reached a boiling point. Trying to trick me again?

You're dead!

Hmm?

Last time, Han Yi had tricked him by shouting, causing him to instinctively turn his head.

This time, even as Han Yi yelled loudly, the Cold Youth remained focused forward. However, his heightened combat instincts compelled him to cautiously sense behind him, and to his surprise, he detected several unfamiliar presences approaching.

Confirming the pursuers, he whirled around. Though he couldn't activate the Golden Light Shuttle in his hand, he flipped his wrist, summoning three silver orbs that materialized instantly.

"Go!"

The orbs shot into the air and streaked forward.

Just as the Cold Youth turned, the three disciples who had followed Han Yi's earlier path arrived. They witnessed firsthand Han Yi's desperate struggle to parry the youth's Golden Light Shuttle, and their faces paled.

Cui Xingchen, in particular, felt his heart seize with terror. Without a second thought, he spun around and fled.