The insectoid bald giant gently tapped a finger.

With a soft "poof," six translucent wings suddenly sprouted from the white, clay-like substance, rapidly flapping and carrying it towards the bone-white light curtain.

It appeared to be a bizarre spirit insect!

As it passed, spiral white ice crystals rippled through the nearby void, radiating an aura of extreme cold. It felt as if even one's soul would be completely frozen upon approaching.

Its body also inflated like a balloon, swelling to a size a thousand times greater than before. Upon touching the bone-white light curtain, it silently burst open, transforming into a layer of misty white fog that enveloped the entire surface.

A layer of white ice immediately spread across the light curtain, and the flow of white light within slowed dramatically, as if frozen.

At the same time, the two insectoid women in golden robes wordlessly flicked their sleeves, and two streams of golden clouds surged forth – countless tiny golden insects.

The insects resembled ants, with wings on their backs and mouths full of sharp, blade-like teeth, making them look incredibly ferocious.

These golden flying ants landed on the white ice layer and rapidly devoured it, quickly creating holes in the ice before continuing to gnaw at the bone-white light curtain.

In a short while, the bone-white light curtain was riddled with small pits, becoming riddled with holes.

Although the bone-white light curtain continued to absorb surrounding corpses and bones to fill these holes, the speed was noticeably slower.

The sound of rushing wind intensified, and the yellow-robed old man's golden flying sword arrived with a roar, slashing down fiercely.

With a deafening "boom," the flying sword collided with the light curtain, erupting in a dazzling golden and white light. Several cracks appeared on the already scarred white light curtain, seemingly on the verge of shattering.

The beastkin masked woman and the other two's expressions changed drastically. They spat out several mouthfuls of essence blood in quick succession. Disregarding their pale faces, they hastily chanted incantations, causing the essence blood to sink into the white bone treasures above their heads.

The originally somewhat dim light of the three treasures blazed brightly, causing the sluggish white light flow on the bone-white light curtain below to increase slightly once more.

However, the beastkin masked woman and the other two knew in their hearts that even so, they wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.

...

Far away from the battlefield, high in the sky, a golden lightning bolt and a yellow phantom chased each other, both as fast as lightning. It was Han Li and the sand beast.

The sand beast's originally massive body had shrunk a thousandfold at some point, making it much faster than before.

Han Li had already summoned the Wind and Thunder Wings and was fully utilizing the Thunder Escape technique, but he still couldn't shake off the shrunken sand beast.

A large part of the reason was that he was still carrying Nuo Yifan. After all, carrying another person would naturally increase the burden several times over.

Just as the two were only a few dozen miles apart, a sudden change occurred!

A yellow light sphere descended from the sky, enveloping Han Li from above. A vast force of law emanated from the sphere, which was the sand beast's domain.

Han Li's expression flickered slightly. The golden thunderlight on the Wind and Thunder Wings on his back blazed brightly, instantly enveloping his entire body.

With a thunderous roar, the two figures vanished just as they were about to be enveloped by the spiritual domain, reappearing hundreds of miles away.

Without pausing, the thunderlight on his body blazed even brighter, and he vanished again, reappearing above a forest.

After two consecutive Thunder Escapes, he finally shook off the sand beast temporarily.

"Nuo, take advantage of this opportunity to leave first. The sand beast's target is me; it shouldn't chase after you," Han Li quickly said to Nuo Yifan. His body flashed with thunderlight, transforming into a golden arc of electricity and fleeing into the distance.

"Senior Li, take care!"

Nuo Yifan's face was pale, but her mind remained calm. She bowed towards Han Li's disappearing figure before transforming into a streak of light and flying towards the canyon.

In the distant sky, a yellow shadow flashed, and the sand beast's figure blurred as it shot over.

Sensing the approaching aura behind her, Nuo Yifan's face paled. The light around her body immediately intensified, and she sped forward.

The sand beast turned its head and 'looked' at the direction of Han Li's thunderbolt in the distance, but did not immediately chase after him. Instead, its figure swayed and pounced towards Nuo Yifan.

Nuo Yifan's speed was far inferior to the sand beast's, and the distance between them rapidly decreased.

"Not good!"

Hundreds of miles away, Han Li's expression changed upon seeing this. He hadn't expected the sand beast's intelligence to reach such a level.

The main reason he hadn't wanted to abandon this woman was that he still had reasons to stay here. If she were killed because of him, he would probably have to leave immediately.

However, he was currently too far away to help, and he couldn't help but cry out "miscalculation" in his heart.

The Wind and Thunder Wings on his back suddenly expanded, and his figure abruptly stopped. Then, he turned around like lightning, using the Thunder Escape technique to rush towards Nuo Yifan with all his might.

Sensing the terrifying beast rapidly approaching behind her, the color drained from Nuo Yifan's delicate face. She quickly flipped her hand, revealing a white jade talisman in her palm, and crushed it.

With a "bang," a ball of white spiritual light flew out of the jade talisman and merged into her body.

White light blazed around Nuo Yifan, and a pair of white crane wings several dozen feet in size appeared behind her, instantly increasing her speed several times over.

Although her speed had increased significantly, it was still inferior to the sand beast's, and the distance between them continued to close.

Just as the two were less than a hundred miles apart, the sand beast opened its mouth wide, and a rope-like yellow light shot out from its mouth, coiling towards Nuo Yifan.

At that moment, a thick silver lightning bolt descended from the sky, striking the sand beast on the head.

Rumble!

A giant silver lightning ball appeared, enveloping the sand beast's head. Silver arcs of electricity crackled, and the nearby void trembled.

Next to Nuo Yifan, silver lightning flashed, and a figure emerged – the scarred man.

"Elder Ketun!" Nuo Yifan was overjoyed to see this person.

"Young Mistress, leave quickly!"

The scarred man swiftly grabbed Nuo Yifan with one hand, while the other held a silver thunder hammer. A lightning pattern was engraved on the hammerhead, radiating a force of thunder law.

Silver arcs of electricity emerged from the silver thunder hammer, enveloping the two as they were about to flee.

"Whoosh!"

A bowl-sized yellow light shot out from the silver lightning ball behind them, moving with incredible speed and piercing through the scarred man's body in a flash.

The silver lightning ball behind them fluctuated before quickly dissipating, revealing the figure of the giant sand beast. Its head was slightly charred, but that was all.

The yellow light had shot out from the sand beast's forehead.

The sand beast 'looked' at the scarred man, its mouth wide open, revealing a circle of sharp teeth.

The expression on the scarred man's face froze. He looked down at the yellow light on his chest, and the silver lightning around him quickly dimmed and disappeared.

The yellow light suddenly trembled before exploding.

The scarred man's body shattered, transforming into countless pieces of flesh that fell downwards.

But at that moment, the silver thunder hammer in the scarred man's hand suddenly shot out towards the sand beast, appearing in front of it in a blur.

A tiny Nascent Soul could be faintly seen attached to the hammer.

"Explode!" A low shout came from within the thunder hammer.

With a deafening roar!

The silver thunder hammer transformed into a giant silver light sphere, radiating a terrifying aura. The nearby void trembled madly, and a hurricane swept outwards.

The giant sand beast was submerged in the silver light, its silhouette temporarily lost, but its roar of surprise and anger could be faintly heard.

Nuo Yifan was pushed away by the hurricane, flying far forward.

She looked back at the silver light, tears welling up in her eyes, but her expression quickly hardened. She transformed into a streak of white light, shooting forward and disappearing into the distance.

A few breaths later, the giant sand beast's figure shot out from the silver light, covered in wounds. Its head, in particular, was charred, indicating that it had suffered significant damage.

The sand beast roared angrily to the sky, and its massive body suddenly turned, flying downwards.

A layer of yellow light appeared on its body. As if it were a fish in water, it burrowed into the ground before quickly emerging from another location.

A bizarre scene unfolded!

The sand beast's wounds had vanished without a trace, though its aura had weakened slightly.

It twisted its body, transforming into a yellow phantom, and sped towards the direction Nuo Yifan had fled.

A flash of golden lightning, and Han Li's figure appeared, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

He immediately formed a hand seal, and the golden lightning around him flashed. His figure disappeared.

...

Far away at the entrance of Darkstar Canyon, Nuo Qinglin suddenly turned and flew back, landing on the castle at the canyon's entrance.

Two grey-robed High Priests were already waiting there. Upon seeing the clan leader land, they immediately greeted him, saying, "Clan Leader, everything is ready."

Nuo Qinglin's face was stern. He nodded, and with a wave of his hand, a wide purple robe with gold silk patterns depicting intricate star patterns appeared around him.

The three quickly arrived at a spacious altar in the center of the castle, each occupying a corner of the altar in a triangular formation. They each took out a green wooden staff and struck the strange array patterns on the ground.

The other two High Priests remained silent. Only Nuo Qinglin recited the True Spirit language in rhythm with the staff's strikes.

After a moment, he stopped his staff and struck the ground heavily.

The staff pierced the stone altar floor, and the other two High Priests also thrust their staffs into the ground.

Then, Nuo Qinglin raised a hand and slashed across his palm, creating a deep, bone-revealing gash. A large amount of purple blood poured out, dripping onto the ground.

The falling blood made a soft "drip" sound and did not splatter. Instead, it merged like a dark purple snake, writhing and extending forward.

As it snaked, it quickly covered the entire altar array.

"Activate," Nuo Qinglin's pale blue face turned even paler. He grit his teeth and let out a low growl.

With a "buzz," the entire altar erupted in a sky-shattering purple light. A huge purple light array with intricate patterns appeared, with tiny firefly-like specks of light scattered within. From it, a huge shadow like a small mountain solidified.