12: Xiaoshan Sacrifice to Heaven

That evening, the two arrived at a rather secluded mountain forest.

As dusk approached, Han Li's stomach rumbled once more.

"Brother Xiaoshan, the usual spot…" Han Li said with a bitter expression, pointing to the dense forest not far away.

Wan Xiaoshan waved his hand helplessly, "Go, go. Hurry back. I'll wait for you here. I'm really fed up with you."

Han Li, as if granted a great pardon, rushed into the depths of the forest.

Wan Xiaoshan found a clean stone to sit on, took out a water skin and a piece of dry food from his Storage Pouch, and began to eat.

As he was eating, he suddenly heard faint footsteps behind him.

"Brother Han, so soon… Eh?" Wan Xiaoshan turned his head and saw two masked men and a female Cultivator Daoist priestess emerge from the forest.

All three of them were dressed as Daoists, and their cultivation was roughly at the eighth or ninth level of Qi Refining. Their eyes held a hint of greed, and they were looking him over with ill intent.

Wan Xiaoshan's heart tightened. He thought, 'This isn't good,' and quickly stood up, cautiously saying, "What can I do for you, Fellow Daoists?"

The leader, a big man with only nine fingers, chuckled, "Nothing much, just saw you here alone, brother, and wanted to borrow some Spirit Stones to spend."

"Fellow Daoist, you must be joking. I am merely a Loose Cultivator with nothing to my name," Wan Xiaoshan said, feigning composure.

"We'll know if you have anything after we search you!" another female Cultivator Daoist priestess sneered. "Stop wasting time with him, attack!"

Before her words finished, the three simultaneously launched their attacks. Several Spell incantations flickered with spiritual light, striking towards Wan Xiaoshan.

Wan Xiaoshan paled in shock. With his cultivation only at the sixth level of Qi Refining, how could he be a match for these three?

He hurriedly conjured a Medium Grade defensive Magical Artifact, a bronze mirror, to block, while shouting for help, "Brother Han!"

"Bang! Bang!"

The bronze mirror only held for a few breaths before its spiritual light dimmed, and it was sent flying by a fire ball Spell.

"Pfft!"

Wan Xiaoshan's chest was slashed by a wind blade. Blood spurted out, and he screamed, falling backward.

"Brother Han… run… quickly…" He used his last ounce of strength to utter a few difficult words, then his head slumped, and he died.

Deep in the dense forest, Han Li had just finished his "big business." As he was pulling up his pants, he heard Wan Xiaoshan's cries for help and the sounds of fighting.

His heart jolted, sensing something amiss. He didn't care what was happening, pulled up his pants, and rushed out.

After only a few steps, he saw Wan Xiaoshan lying in a pool of blood, while the three Cultivators were sneeringly rummaging through Wan Xiaoshan's Storage Pouch.

"Brother Xiaoshan!" Han Li's eyes were bloodshot.

Although he hadn't spent much time with Wan Xiaoshan, they had traveled together for several days, and he was his first friend in the cultivation world, so there was some camaraderie between them.

Furthermore, having been humiliated by Lin Feng in front of so many people at the Mo Estate not long ago, Han Li was currently seething with anger.

Now, seeing his newly acquainted companion die tragically, a surge of fury rushed to his head.

The three Cultivators also noticed Han Li. Seeing that he was only at the ninth level of Qi Refining (after the cold poison was removed, his cultivation had slightly improved, but due to continuous diarrhea, his aura was somewhat unstable), and that his lower garments were disheveled and he looked a mess, they couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Oh, another one coming to his death!"

"Look at him, so pathetic, his pants aren't even pulled up properly, hahahaha!"

"Big brother, this kid has fair skin and tender flesh, he must have a lot of good stuff on him!"

At this moment, Han Li no longer cared about his image.

His eyes were bloodshot, and he roared, "You're courting death!"

He slapped his Storage Pouch fiercely, and several Talismans shot out!

Fireball Talismans! Fireball Talismans! Still Fireball Talismans!

For a moment, the explosion of fireballs enveloped the three Cultivators.

The three had originally not taken Han Li seriously, but seeing him conjure so many Talismans at once, they were also startled.

"This kid has a lot of Talismans, let's deal with him first!" the leading green-robed Daoist said with a grim face.

The three immediately split, two blocking the Talismans, and one attacking Han Li.

The spiritual light of the Swiftness Talisman under Han Li's feet flashed, and his figure became erratic, narrowly dodging an incoming earth spike.

At this moment, he had only one thought: kill them, avenge Wan Xiaoshan!

He once again pulled out a handful of Talismans from his Storage Pouch and threw them at the three as if they were worthless.

Most of these Talismans were found in the Storage Pouch (Yu Zitong's) among Ink Residence's belongings after he killed him that year.

Normally, he used them sparingly, but today, he was not stingy at all.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Explosions erupted one after another, and firelight shot out in all directions.

Although the three Loose Cultivators had higher cultivation than Wan Xiaoshan, their combat experience seemed not very rich. Facing Han Li's cost-no-object Talisman bombardment, they were temporarily overwhelmed and each sustained some injuries.

"Damn it, is this kid a Talisman vendor?"

"Big brother, I can't hold on!"

The nine-fingered man failed to dodge and was hit squarely in the chest by an Exploding Flame Talisman. He screamed and turned into a charred corpse.

The green-robed Daoist and the female Cultivator Daoist priestess were greatly alarmed at the sight.

They never expected that this seemingly disheveled kid would be so troublesome!

"Retreat!" The green-robed Daoist made a decisive decision and turned to flee.

"Trying to run?" A cold glint flashed in Han Li's eyes.

He activated the Swiftness Talisman under his feet, his speed surged, and at the same time, he held two of his trump card, low-level Advanced Talismans—Golden Blade Talismans.

"Go!"

Two golden blades, several feet long, with a sharp whooshing sound, slashed left and right towards the fleeing individuals.

"Ah!"

The female Cultivator Daoist priestess failed to dodge and was cut in half at the waist by a golden blade. Blood and internal organs spilled everywhere.

The green-robed Daoist also took a hit in the thigh, bleeding profusely, and screamed, but he ultimately escaped from Han Li's hands, just as in the original story.

The battle ended, and the forest was filled with a strong smell of blood and char.

Han Li gasped for breath, looking at the mess on the ground and the two disfigured corpses. His stomach churned.

He walked to Wan Xiaoshan's corpse and silently looked at his wide-open eyes, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

"Brother Xiaoshan, it was I… who implicated you."

If he hadn't frequently needed to "relieve himself," Wan Xiaoshan might not have been left alone and would not have encountered such an unexpected disaster.

He silently dug a pit nearby, buried Wan Xiaoshan's body, and simply piled up a mound of earth as a grave.

After doing all this, Han Li finally felt a chill in his lower body.

He looked down and realized that his pants weren't fully pulled up, and he had even… forgotten to wipe his butt.

A wave of disgust washed over him.

He quickly tidied his clothes and used a Spell to clean the filth from his body.

After this battle, Han Li's caution deepened even further.

The Immortal Realm, indeed, was full of dangers at every step.

He inventoried the Storage Pouches of the two corpses. There wasn't much inside, only some scattered Spirit Stones, a few low-level Magical Artifacts, and some miscellaneous Materials, which he estimated were not even worth the value of those two Golden Blade Talismans.

Han Li felt a bit annoyed. He threw out two fireballs to destroy the two corpses.

It was completely dark now.

Han Li dared not linger here. He identified the direction and rushed towards Tai Nan Valley overnight.

However, his steps were heavier than before, and his eyes were more vigilant.

And his stomach, perhaps due to the intense exercise and mental tension just now, began to ache faintly again.

"Damn fusion yang pill!" Han Li cursed under his breath and quickened his pace.

He had to reach the Tai Nan Small Meet as soon as possible.