Chapter 2380: The Five Monarchs of the Netherworld
Chapter 2380: The Five Monarchs of the Netherworld
Two months passed by in the blink of an eye, and on this day, Han Li was meditating in his secret chamber when Zhu Guo'er's respectful voice sounded outside the secret chamber.
"Senior Han, Master Bi Ying is inviting you to go and see him, and the messenger says that the match is about to commence soon."
Han Li opened his eyes, and replied calmly, "Alright, I'll be there right away. This could be a dangerous trip, so you and Hua Shi can stay here for now."
Immediately thereafter, he rose up as a streak of azure light and vanished through the door of the secret chamber in a flash.
Around an hour later, Han Li arrived at a hall at the center of the stronghold, which was also the largest building in the entire stronghold.
There, he met Bi Ying, Wen Xinfeng, and a silver-armored man with a cold expression.
"This is Brother Lei Yuan, the manager of our trade guild on the Thunder Continent, so his status is identical to mine on the Blood Sky Continent. Fellow Daoist Xue Sha encountered some trouble during his trip here, but he should be here tomorrow at the latest. For now, we'll be going on ahead; does anyone have any objections?" Bi Ying asked after introducing the silver-armored man to Han Li.
"You're responsible for this match, so I won't intervene in any way," the silver-armored man replied in an expressionless manner.
Han Li and Wen Xinfeng didn't have any objections, either.
Thus, after a brief discussion, the group made their way out of the hall, where orderly rows of armored warriors were already waiting for them.
Furthermore, there were around a dozen giant flat flying treasures above the stronghold that resembled a series of islands, and following an order from Bi Ying, all of the armored warriors immediately rose up into these "islands".
"That's all the troops we're taking with us?" the silver-armored man asked as his brows furrowed slightly.
"Of course not; these are only the troops we're presenting on the surface. As for all of the other troops, they've already been sent to a predetermined location half a month ago. If those ghostly beings are harboring any ulterior motives, we'll make sure they don't get away alive," Bi Ying replied.
The silver-armored man nodded in response upon hearing this.
Only after all of the armored warriors had entered the giant flying treasures did Han Li and the others fly into the largest of the "islands".
In the next instant, all of the flying treasures were activated and set off toward the distance.
Half a day later, the group of flying treasures arrived above a peculiar mountain range.
There seemed to be an invisible line running along the entire mountain range, with the area on one side of the line resembling a lush green paradise, while the other was filled with surging black Qi and gusts of Yin winds.
The giant islands drew to a halt over 100 kilometers away from this imaginary line, following which groups of armored warriors began to exit the flying treasures. They immediately sprang into action, releasing all types of formation tools to begin constructing a giant super formation down below.
There were also some who were hurling balls of light of different colors up into the air, and large sections of city walls, as well as buildings of different descriptions began to descend from above, forming a small stronghold in the blink of an eye.
At the same time, a series of armed puppets were released from the storage bracelets of the armored puppets, and they immediately began to patrol the city walls.
Meanwhile, Han Li and the others had emerged from their giant island and were appraising the imaginary divisive line from afar.
"Those five mountains that resemble fingers will be the venue for our match. Once the match begins, each of us will go to a mountain, and once everyone is in place, the formation masters from both sides will activate the two protective restrictions set up in advance. Only when one side concedes or has perished will the two protective restrictions be deactivated," Bi Ying explained with a serious expression.
"Could those ghostly beings have tampered with the restrictions in any way?" Wen Xinfeng asked.
"Rest assured, both the restrictions are identical and quite simple. After they're set up, the formation masters from both sides will cross-examine the restrictions to ensure that nothing is amiss," Bi Ying explained with a smile.
"If one battle concludes very early, will the victor be allowed to participate in other battles?" Han Li asked.
"This wasn't discussed, but this match was set up to fight for ownership over this realm, so it should naturally be a reflection of both sides' overall power," Bi Ying replied in a meaningful voice.
Even though the response was rather vague, a knowing smile appeared on Han Li's face as he replied, "I understand."
"There are no rules for this match; you can use whatever means available to kill or defeat your opponent. Of course, at our level, defeating an opponent of the same caliber may not be that difficult, but it would most likely be very hard to actually kill an opponent. On top of that, our opponents are going to be very powerful, and their cultivation arts and secret techniques are all very different from ones that we normally see, so do be careful," Bi Ying cautioned.
"Rest assured, Brother Bi; it's not like I haven't faced these ghostly beings in the past. I've already specifically prepared several treasures that'll suppress their abilities, and I'm sure these treasures will be effective even if our opponents are more powerful than normal ghostly beings," Wen Xinfeng replied with a smile as she stroked the small beast in her arms.
Bi Ying was ecstatic to hear this. "Your abilities already have a suppressive effect on those ghostly beings; now that you've also prepared some special treasures, I'm sure your chances of securing victory will be very high."
"I wouldn't be so sure of that. I've heard that the 10 Monarchs of the Netherworld are the most powerful ghostly beings in the entire Infernal Realm; they're definitely going to present very stern opposition," Wen Xinfeng replied with a shake of her head.
"Haha, you're far too modest, Fairy Wen. Our opponents are no ordinary beings, but neither are we; I'm sure the outcome of the match will be in our favor. You can all go and rest for now; I'll send out some people to set up the restrictions on the five mountains once Fellow Daoist Xue Sha arrives. I'm sure those ghostly beings have also arrived on the other side," Bi Ying said as he cast his gaze toward the surging black Qi on the other side of the divisive line.
At the same time, there were close to 100 white "mountains" that were each over 10,000 feet tall hovering in the sky several hundred kilometers within the vast expanse of black Qi.
The mountains were surrounded by countless ghostly shadows and Yin souls.
Someone with a spirit eye ability would be able to see through these Yin winds to identify that these white "mountains" were piles of countless white bones with flames burning all over their surfaces.
There were also some openings on the mountains, through which powerful ghostly beings were entering and exiting incessantly.
In contrast with all of the other mountains, the bone mountain at the very center had thousands of armed ghostly beings patrolling around it.
Within a crimson hall at the very center of the bone mountain were several indistinct black shadows discussing something while seated on black chairs.
"Why have the five of us been made to come all this way just for a small world? Aren't we overestimating them? Just give me an army of 1,000,000 troops and I'll raze their entire stronghold to the ground; there's no need for this farcical match," a tall and broad figure said in a cold voice.
"Hmph, don't underestimate them; if they were that easy to deal with, then the ghostly monarchs overseeing this matter wouldn't have sustained injuries during their battles against the powerful beings of the other side, and our forces wouldn't have been prevented from being able to progress beyond this point. They're definitely going to be sending out the most powerful beings among their ranks as well, so don't get complacent. If we lose here, we'll become laughing stocks to the others, and we'll have to answer to Brother Ming Xiong," a slender black shadow retorted.
"That suits me just fine! My Five Yin Lockheart Hammer just so happens to be missing the soul of a powerful being as a tool spirit; if I can kill one of them, then that issue will be resolved," the first figure replied in a nonchalant manner.
"It's a pity that Brother Ming Xiong is in the midst of a battle against the Night Ghost Race over another Yin realm and can't make it today. Otherwise, with his powers, our opponents wouldn't have any chances," a third shadow sighed.
"The Night Ghost Race is very powerful, and it's said that their chieftain possesses unfathomable powers, so only Brother Ming Xiong can oppose him. In contrast with this small world, which will require many years of evolution before it becomes truly valuable to us, that Yin realm is naturally more important," the slender figure replied.
"Seeing as we're all here, all of us will be participating in the match in a few days. With our powers, our chances of victory should be at least 70% to 80%. The main issue is whether the other side will abide by the agreement and hand over their territory to us after we win. Have you prepared all of our backup measures, Seven Orifices Monarch?" another black shadow spoke for the first time in a sinister voice.
The other black shadows reflexively sat up straighter and fell silent upon hearing this voice.