A hint of surprise flashed through Bi Ying's eyes upon hearing this, and after a brief pause, he replied, "You're correct, what perished was just a clone of Fellow Daoist Xue Sha, not his true body. I only recently received news that Fellow Daoist Xue Sha encountered some unforeseen circumstances during an adventure, and even though he's safe now, he's sustained some injuries, which is why he sent this clone to participate in this match in his stead. This clone was refined by Fellow Daoist Xue Sha for tens of thousands of years; I still don't know how I'm going to answer to him now that it's been destroyed in this battle."

"At the very least, this is still much better than having Fellow Daoist Xue Sha's true body perish; I'm sure you'll be able to smooth things over by offering some extra compensation to Brother Xue Sha," the silver-armored man said as the silver lightning around him faded, and he rose to his feet.

At this moment, his complexion was looking far better than it had previously.

"I certainly hope so. Are you really alright, Brother Lei? Do you require any assistance from me?" Bi Ying asked in a concerned manner as he glanced at the black ghostly heads that were still clinging firmly to the silver-armored man's shoulders.

"I'm fine. It's just that these ghostly heads can't be removed right away; I'll just have to take some time to refine them using my bonded true flame when I get back. Having said that, I did lose a few vital life-saving treasures during the battle," the silver-armored man replied with a wry smile.

"Fellow Daoist Lei, what abilities did your opponent possess to reduce you to such a sorry state?" Han Li asked.

"That woman's other abilities aren't that remarkable, but she possesses a secret technique that can allow her to manipulate ghostly shadows, and it's extremely troublesome. Those ghostly shadows possess no form or substance, and they can instantly adhere to her body to grant her the same properties, thereby preventing her from sustaining any damage from my attacks. I did everything in my power to counter this secret technique, all to no avail, so I could only concede," the silver-armored man replied in an indignant manner.

"It seems like these cultivation arts of the Infernal Realm really are quite unique. It's understandable that you were defeated seeing as you're only facing these strange abilities for the first time, Brother Lei," Wen Xinfeng consoled in a gentle voice.

The silver-armored man merely shook his head in silence.

"Now that the outcome has been decided, there's no need for us to remain here any longer; let's return to the stronghold. In the coming days, we'll be able to see whether those ghostly beings are actually going to abide by the agreement," Bi Ying said as he stowed the Go board away, then rose up into the air, followed closely by everyone else.

......

A month later, the calm surface of an extremely secluded lake suddenly parted, and a giant black ark emerged from within it. After just a few flashes, the ark vanished into the distant sky.

A series of armed puppets were patrolling the ark from one end to another, and within a secret chamber that was riddled with restrictions on the bottom level of the ark, Han Li was seated on a futon, appraising a silver jade slip in his hand in silence.

Shortly after the conclusion of the match against the Infernal Realm, Bi Ying had fulfilled his promise, taking Han Li to the trade guild headquarters' tome library and allowing him to pick an immortal secret technique.

Han Li had chosen the "Origin Astral Barrier", and the decision had been made following an introduction of the secret technique delivered by Bi Ying.

With his Provenance True Devil Arts and Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword, Han Li was confident in his own offensive prowess, so he wasn't very interested in the offensive immortal secret techniques available. The name of the Origin Astral Barrier sounded like quite a simple one, but it was actually a special secret technique that allowed one to form a protective barrier using the world's origin Qi.

He didn't know how powerful it was going to be, but it was an immortal secret technique, so it was definitely no ordinary cultivation art.

However, there was a slight problem.

Han Li raised the jade slip before pointing a finger at it, and a faint buzzing sound rang out as the jade slip released a series of golden runes, which quickly formed a panel of text.

These golden runes were flashing incessantly as if they possessed a certain degree of spiritual nature, and they were none other than golden seal text runes.

Han Li inspected the body of text through narrowed eyes for a while before shaking his head with furrowed brows.

Even though he recognized all of the runes, the collective body of text was very difficult to decipher, so this was definitely not something that he could completely interpret in a short time.

With that in mind, Han Li pointed a finger at the jade slip again, and the body of golden text disappeared.

After a moment of contemplation, Han Li flipped a hand over to summon another crimson jade slip, which he gently stroked with a hint of elation in his eyes.

This was the jade slip he had obtained from the Heavenly Cauldron Palace as part of Daoist Tian Ding's inheritance.

He had only intended to replicate a copy of the jade slip, but Fairy Ice Soul had given the jade slip to him outright as a gesture of gratitude.

This jade slip contained the lightning refinement secret technique that Daoist Tian Ding had used during his time in the Spirit Realm.

Han Li possessed Divine Devilbane Lightning, which was a type of top-tier lightning, so this secret technique was perfect for him.

In comparison with the Origin Astral Barrier, this cultivation art was far easier to comprehend.

Thus, Han Li pressed the jade slip against his own forehead and began to study it in silence.

During the past year or so, he had already interpreted most of the secret technique. By his estimates, he would reach complete mastery in about half a year, by which time he could begin refining his Divine Devilbane Lightning.

As he studied the secret technique, the black ark began to fly toward a predetermined direction.

......

Meanwhile, Bi Ying was seated on a chair in a hall at the bottom of the giant lake, pondering something with a contemplative expression.

There were four trade guild elders standing before him, including Wen Xinfeng, who said, "The Blood Bone Sect must've acted quite quickly, considering they've already tracked down the culprit."

"Indeed. I heard that several major sects, led by the Blood Bone Sect, assembled a group of 12 Grand Ascension Stage beings, and they're preparing to set up a devil trapping formation on the route that the culprit is traveling. They plan to lure the culprit into that formation before slaying him together. For some reason, they sent an invitation to me to participate in their plan. By the way, I heard that Fellow Daoist He of the Skyfall Valley and Mistress Ling Yun of the Myriad Curse Mountain have also been invited," Bi Ying said.

"Hmph, their objective is obvious: the Blood Dao sects have always been quite wary of our trade guild, so they most likely want to make a display of power to our trade guild during the battle. Otherwise, why would they invite you even after Elder Jun has already been sent to join them?" a green-robed elderly man harrumphed coldly.

"In any case, the major Blood Dao sects are the premier powers on our continent, so we can't just turn them down. Brother Mu, how have the Skyfall Valley and Myriad Curse Mountain reacted to these invitations?" Wen Xinfeng asked with furrowed brows.

"According to my sources, both Fellow Daoist He and Mistress Ling Yun have accepted their invitation," the green-robed elderly man replied.

"In that case, I'm obligated to accept as well. Otherwise, the reputation of our trade guild will be affected. Prepare a teleportation formation; I'll set off in the next few days. I'm also curious to see what powers the culprit possesses to have enabled him to perform a blood sacrifice of such enormous proportions," Bi Ying finally decided after a moment of contemplation.

"In that case, we'll defer to your better judgment, Brother Bi, but be careful," Wen Xinfeng cautioned with a serious expression.

"Rest assured, I prepared some life-saving measures for the match against the Infernal Realm. Seeing as I didn't get a chance to use them, they should be enough to keep me safe no matter what perils I encounter there," Bi Ying replied with a smile.

Wen Xinfeng and the others were greatly reassured upon hearing this.

Thus, Bi Ying and the elders discussed some matters regarding the usage of the resources from that small world before everyone else departed, leaving Bi Ying to sit alone in the hall.

As soon as everyone left, Bi Ying's smile immediately faded and was replaced by a brooding expression.

"The formation plate was shattered, so I should be facing a stern tribulation soon. I had thought that the tribulation would definitely have been the match against the Infernal Realm, but I've already emerged from that event unscathed. Is the tribulation still yet to come or has it already been resolved through the precautionary measures I took?" Bi Ying murmured to himself as he fell into deep thought again.

......

Half a month later, Han Li appeared in the air above a stretch of wilderness, overseeing a group of puppets, which were carefully cleaning a dilapidated altar that had been buried deep underground.

At the same time, Bi Ying arrived in a massive city on the other side of the Blood Sky Continent, accompanied by several guards from the trade guild.

In the belly of a small mountain situated in a mountain range not far away from the city, the Six-winged Frost Centipede and the Ice Phoenix were seated on a pair of futons, meditating to recover their energy.

Every once in a while, the Six-winged Frost Centipede would pull out a small vial to drip a drop of unknown liquid into his mouth, then close his eyes again to refine the medicinal power within the spirit liquid.

The two of them were completely unscathed, but the exhaustion on their faces was very apparent.

It was no wonder that they were looking so worse for wear; anyone would be severely depleted in both magic power and spiritual sense after being pursued by an insurmountable enemy for so long.

"How much longer do you think we'll be able to last, Fellow Daoist?" the Ice Phoenix suddenly asked as she opened her eyes.