Chapter 457: Heavenbearing Devil Arts
Just as Han Li sat down, he heard a sonic boom from the distant sky. Wan Tianming and the other two Nascent Soul Righteous Dao cultivators appeared and descended onto the ground..
When they spotted Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi, they sneered and gathered at another location. They were whispering to each other, discussing some secret matters.
When Zenith Yin saw this, he snorted and soon closed his eyes shortly after.
It was impossible for Han Li to be as calm as Zenith Yin. Instead, he turned his eyes elsewhere as if he were observing something. However, if someone were to attentively examine Han Li, one would find that his gaze was unfocused and that he was completely inattentive.
In the time it took to finish a meal, six more cultivators arrived in succession.
The two white-clothed Star Palace elders had also rushed over. Now, there was only one Nascent Soul cultivator that had yet to arrive, Man Huzi.
In the next hour, Man Huzi had yet to appear, causing Wan Tianming and the other Righteous Dao cultivators to look at Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi with strange expressions. Despite this, they both still appeared calm.
As Han Li was closer to the two, he was able to see a trace of apprehension in their eyes. Man Huzi’s absence clearly worried the two Devil Dao eccentrics, as they would prove to be no match against the Righteous Dao without him.
As time slowly passed, Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi were no longer able to maintain their calm facades. Their expressions grew stern as they began to repeatedly gaze towards the sky.
Although the sky didn’t show any indication of time passing and was eternally bright, Han Li supposed that the day was about to come to an end.
‘Could it be that Man Huzi, the top figure of the Devil Dao, met with some mishap in the Heavenvoid Hall?’ Han Li wondered.
Under the circumstances, would this prove to be favorable or disadventageous for him?
With the Devil Dao cultivators growing uneasy, the Righteous Dao cultivators grew increasingly malicious. Soon, piercing whistles reached them from the distant sky. These whistles were extremely loud and became more frequent and shrill as time passed by, causing all the nearby cultivators to appear at a loss.
But when Zenith Yin and the Confucian-robed old man heard this, their expressions relaxed and they looked at each other with a smile.
The Confucian-robed old man smiled and softly said, “It seems that Man Huzi’s mood is quite good. He should’ve acquired an unexpected harvest.”
“Humph! What would be unexpected? At most, he would’ve plucked Genesis Fruit without any complications!” Zenith Yin shook his head and spoke without concern.
Layman Qing Yi smiled, but when he thought to say something, a sphere of yellow light flashed in the distant sky and streaked towards them like a shooting star. In an instant, everyone was gazing at the sky.
Han Li’s eyes formed a strange expression, containing hidden apprehension as he gazed at the sphere of light.
Han Li couldn’t help himself. The other cultivators that saw the might of the Heavenbearing Devil Arts for the first time also revealed expressions of shock.
Under the cover of the yellow light sphere, Man Huzi appeared extremely strange, resembling a terrifying demonic god. Not only was his body emitting a blinding golden light, but his skin was densely covered in coin-sized golden scales. The scales appeared as luminous as pure gold and shined with a grand, chilling light, leaving an impression of being eternally indestructible.
To Zenith Yin’s side, Wu Chou gasped and spoke in a daze, “That’s the Heavenbearing Devil Arts? It seems truly fearsome!” It seemed he was quite in awe of Man Huzi’s appearance.
Zenith Yin coldly glanced at Wu Chou and said with slight annoyance, “Humph! It’s merely a tortoise’s shell! When I have refined the Profound Yin Arts to perfection realm, it will be no weaker than the Heavenbearing Devil Art.”
This suddenly caused Wu Chou to recall that his own ancestor was on bad terms with Man Huzi. Wasn’t his praise of Man Huzi deliberately provoking Zenith Yin? He then repeatedly praised his master with an embarrassed appearance before keeping silent.
In the sky, Man Huzi swept his gaze past them and immediately caught sight of Zenith Yin and the others. He dropped down towards them, causing the nearby ground to tremble upon landing.
After landing, Man Huzi’s scales retracted from his body, and his golden light gradually faded away.
“It seems Brother Man had a very successful harvest! Why else would you be so happy?” The Confucian-robed old man cupped his hand towards him with a beaming smile.
Man Huzi excitement disappeared upon hearing the old man’s question. He answered without hesitation, “Hehe! I’ve made a few gains. I killed an Ice Striped Toad near the Genesis Fruit Tree. Its inner core will prove to be very beneficial towards my Heavenbearing Devil Arts.” Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi found this contrary to expectation. They looked at each other in dismay, not knowing whether he was speaking the truth.
After a moment’s pause, Layman Qing Yi’s previous smile was restored, and he said, “Then I must congratulate Fellow Daoist Man. If your Heavenbearing Devil Arts progresses, you will have the same strength as the Archsaint of the Six Paths and the Heavenly Star Sages.”
Afterwards, Zenith Yin also congratulated him with a calm expression.
Man Huzi chuckled and was about to say something, but he appeared slightly baffled when his eyes fell on Han Li. He remained slightly baffled before his eyes strangely glinted and released a trace of astonishing pressure.
Bearing the brunt of this pressure, Han Li instantly felt his body tense, incapable of moving as if each of his limbs were being weighed down by a thousand kilograms. But what was most shocking to Han Li was the feeling of Man Huzi’s icy gaze seeing past both his mind and body.
Han Li’s complexion became deathly pale, and he reacted by circulating the Great Development Technique. After a moment, his mind stabilized, returning a bit of blood to his face and restoring control of his body back to normal.
“Yi!” Man Huzi couldn’t help but be astonished. He soon revealed a trace of pleasant surprise, but when he thought to do something else, Zenith Yin blurred and appeared in front of Han Li.
Zenith Yin offsetted Man Huzi’s imposing pressure and calmly asked, “Brother Man, what are you doing? Why are you bullying my junior disciple?”
“Junior disciple?” Man Huzi blankly stared for a moment before appearing gloomy.
After disdainfully glancing at Wu Chou, he bluntly said, “Zenith Yin, are you making fun of me? Apart from that Youngster Wu Chou, what other disciples did you bring to the Heavenvoid Hall?” He appeared as if he planned to attack if he were to be corrected.
“Hehe, Man Huzi, you misunderstand. Young Friend Han Li has been taken in as a disciple by Fellow Daoist Wu just today. It’s no wonder why Fellow Daoist Man didn’t know of it.” Layman Qing Yi hastily gave an explanation from the side. Currently, Han Li was very important to them. It was natural for him to prevent any mishaps from occurring.
“Zenith Yin, did I hear correctly? You took in a disciple while here?” Man Huzi expressed shocked and sized up Han Li twice through.
“Although he is only an in-name disciple as I’ve yet to conduct a formal apprenticeship ceremony, Young Friend Han Li is now a member of Zenith Yin Island. I hope Brother Man won’t treat me too harshly!” Zenith Yin spoke with a slight smile.
Man Huzi blinked a few times, staring at Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi for a moment before turning his gaze towards Han Li. He then laughed and said, “Good, very good! This disciple of yours is quite good. Needless to say, his spiritual sense is several times greater than that grandson of yours. If you carefully foster him, he will have great prospects in the future! Hehe, great prospects indeed!” That last sentence of his seemed to possess a deeper meaning.
Zenith Yin and Layman Qing Yi were at a complete loss and looked at each other in confusion.
Zenith Yin frowned and slowly asked, “What does Brother Man mean?”
“There is no meaning. Your in-name disciple is quite good. Are you interested in giving him to me? I feel like this youngster is quite suitable for cultivating my Heavenbearing Devil Arts.” Man Huzi spoke without care, but those words greatly frightened his fellow Devil Dao cultivators.
Layman Qing Yi hastily changed the subject. “Brother Man must be joking! Young Friend Han has already become a disciple of Zenith Yin. How can he be so casually changed.”
Man Huzi grimly laughed and stroked his beard. He suddenly spoke with a cold tone, “Hehe! If you aren’t willing, then let’s forget about it. To tell the truth, accepting a disciple is far too troublesome for me! However, why did Fellow Daoist Qing grow so anxious for a disciple of Zenith Yin Island? Could it be that this youngster has something that can’t be revealed?”
After this was said, the old man’s expression momentarily changed before calmly glancing at Zenith Yin.