Chapter 1046: Leading the Way

"Regardless of whether there's a metal forcefield inside, we have to proceed with caution. I suggest that we split up into two groups and enter this place one after another. What do we all think?" Jin Liu proposed.

"What sequence are we going to follow?" Yu Kuohai asked.

"Those among us who are using metal-attribute cultivation arts and are adept at breaking restrictions will go in first. If there really is a metal forcefield inside, then the first group will be responsible for disabling it, following which the rest of us will come through," Jin Liu replied.

"This is not a bad proposal, but I don't think it's particularly fair. All of us from the Worry Not Pavilion specialize in metal-attribute cultivation arts. Doesn't that mean that all of us will have to go in first to test the waters for everyone else?" Pavilion Master Zhao countered.

"How about this? Regardless of whether there's a metal forcefield or any restrictions inside, everyone in the first group gets to keep all of the treasures that they obtain. On top of that, the people in the second group won't just be standing around doing nothing. Instead, they'll be constantly ready to reinforce the first group should the need arise," Jin Liu proposed.

Pavilion Master Zhao contemplated this arrangement briefly, then nodded in response.

"That does seem like a reasonable course of action."

"In that case, it's decided. The first group will consist of cultivators using metal-attribute cultivation arts from Blazing Light City, the Worry Not Pavilion, and our Heavenly Water Sect, and they'll be accompanied by cultivators from the Spirit Heaven Sect, the Ink Fragrance Pavilion, and the Azure Lock Valley who are adept at breaking restrictions. What do we all think?" Jin Liu proposed.

Everyone found this to be a reasonable plan, and no one raised any objections.

Once again, Yu Kuohai turned to Han Li, clearly intent on taking as much advantage of him as possible, and Han Li was left feeling a little speechless.

Having said that, his original intention was to enter the hall with the first group anyway, so he readily heeded Yu Kuohai's call. However, what was rather surprising to him was that Yu Kuohai had also volunteered to be part of the first group.

Before long, the lineup for the first group was decided, consisting of fewer than a hundred cultivators.

"I was thinking that I would have to choose a leader for the first group, but my job has been made easy. Fellow Daoist Yu, Fellow Daoist Yang, Fellow Daoist Zhao, I didn't think all three of you would volunteer to be part of the first group," Jin Liu said with a smile.

"The majority of our Worry Not Pavilion's cultivators will be going in, so I certainly can't back down as the pavilion master," Pavilion Master Zhao declared in a righteous manner, drawing much admiration from the disciples of the Worry Not Pavilion.

"Quite a few of our Blazing Light City cultivators will also be going in, so I naturally have to accompany them," Elder Yang said.

"Our Spirit Heaven Sect doesn't specialize in metal-attribute cultivation arts, but I'm an exception, so I wanted to make a contribution on behalf of our sect," Yu Kuohai proclaimed.

Han Li couldn't help but sneer internally at their pretentious displays.

Ultimately, their goal was to seize the initiative and enter the hall first to claim the treasures inside. As for the possibility that there was a metal forcefield inside, perhaps they were merely hoping that this wasn't the case, or perhaps they were of the opinion that they could overcome such an obstacle.

At this moment, Han Li's attention was focused on the Lan siblings, who were also part of the first group.

Lan Yuanzi was conversing with Lan Yan when he suddenly felt an intrusive gaze, and his brows furrowed slightly as he turned around to determine the source of the scrutiny, only to discover that there was no one looking at him.

"What's wrong, Brother?" Lan Yan asked.

"Nothing, it was probably just my imagination," Lan Yuanzi replied with a smile.

"What should we do if there really are treasures inside?" Lan Yan asked through voice transmission.

"If there are treasures inside, then of course I'll be taking all of it for you," Lan Yuanzi replied with a smile.

"In that case, you focus on collecting the treasures, I'll kill everyone else that comes in with us," Lan Yan said with a wide smile.

"Don't be in a hurry to kill these people, they can still be used as cannon fodder," Lan Yuanzi said.

Lan Yan's face immediately puckered up with displeasure upon hearing this.

"But if I don't kill them, I'll have to continue wearing this hideous disguise!"

"If you kill them all, even if you revert back to your original appearance, there will be no one to see it," Lan Yuanzi chuckled.

"You'll get to see it, and that's enough! None of these scoundrels are worthy of laying eyes upon me anyway," Lan Yan giggled.

"It doesn't matter to me what you look like. In my eyes, you will always be the most beautiful woman in the world," Lan Yuanzi said in a gentle manner, and a deep blush immediately appeared on Lan Yan's face upon hearing this. [1]

After making some brief preparations, the first group arrived before the doorway.

"Rest assured, fellow daoists, all of us will be here to back you up if any unforeseen mishaps arise," Jin Liu assured.

Yu Kuohai exchanged a glance and a nod with Elder Yang, following which the two of them stepped in through the doorway, followed by everyone else in the first group.

As soon as they passed through the doorway, everyone immediately vanished into the radiant golden light up ahead, and their auras became undetectable.

Han Li was trailing along behind Yu Kuohai and Elder Yang, and as soon as he entered the space beyond the doorway, he immediately felt a burst of powerful restrictive force act upon him from all directions.

This type of restrictive force was different from the crushing weight of the earth attribute or the viscosity of the water attribute. Instead, it felt like being bound by countless extremely resilient metal threads while simultaneously being subjected to gusts of scathing, metallic wind that felt like tiny daggers scraping over one's skin.

Due to the pervasive golden light in the surrounding area, visibility was significantly impaired, and no one was able to see more than several hundred feet in any direction.

An alarmed look appeared on Pavilion Master Zhao's face as he exclaimed, "What's going on? Could it be..."

"It looks like Celestial Maiden Su was right, there really is a metal forcefield in here," Elder Yang said with a wry smile, then flipped a hand over to produce a golden bead, which he tucked down the front of his own robe, and it immediately released a burst of golden light to encompass his entire body.

Even with his cultivation base, he still had to call upon a protective treasure to withstand the effects of the metal forcefield in this place, and everyone else was naturally faring even worse, frantically summoning protective treasures of their own to shelter themselves.

Yu Kuohai made a hand seal as he channeled some type of cultivation art, and a series of golden patterns appeared over his body, allowing him to ward off the effects of the metal forcefield, but at the expense of rapidly accelerated immortal spiritual power expenditure.

"Have any of you ever seen such a formidable metal forcefield? It must be enhanced by some type of array. Go and track down the cores of the array and destroy them," Yu Kuohai ordered as he pointed at Han Li and a few others.

Han Li was also being affected by the metal forcefield, but given his physical constitution, he was barely feeling the strain at all. However, in order to fit in with everyone else, he was also hunched over while feigning an agonized expression.

"But Fellow Daoist Yu, I can barely even walk in this metal forcefield! It's not that I don't want to contribute, it's just that..."

Before Han Li had a chance to finish, he was cut off by Yu Kuohai, who snapped. "Shut up and go! If this array isn't deactivated, all of us are going to die here!"

Han Li feigned a resigned expression upon hearing this, then departed to explore the array.

Spiritual sense wasn't completely disabled within this metal forcefield, but it was severely hampered, and even with Han Li's spiritual sense, his sensory range had been cut down to no more than a thousand feet.

On top of that, his Infernal Devilish Eyes were also far less effective than usual, so he was still yet to catch a clear glimpse of the space that he was in.

After advancing for roughly a hundred meters, he spotted a thick, golden stone pillar up ahead with countless patterns engraved upon it, and it was constantly flashing with golden light while giving off bursts of peculiar energy fluctuations.

Could this be one of the cores of the array?

Han Li strode over to the pillar, then gently pressed his hand against it, and a burst of sharp power instantly shot up his arm.

His gaze traveled up along the stone pillar, and he discovered that the top section of the pillar was concealed within the golden light, but he could just barely make out a statue of a winged beast perched on top of the pillar.

Right as he was about to take a closer look, the winged beast revealed itself to be a living creature rather than a statue, and it came swooping down from above.

Han Li immediately shot back in retreat upon seeing this, and the winged beast just barely glanced past his body. The edges of its wings were extremely sharp, tearing large gashes into the surrounding space.

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Han Li took advantage of this opportunity to take a closer look at the winged creature, upon which he discovered that it was a metal beast. It wasn't particularly large, but the metal-attribute law powers in its body were extremely formidable.

This metal beast's aura was even more powerful than that of the two tiger-like metal beasts that Han Li had previously encountered, and when still, it blended in perfectly with the surrounding environment, so even Han Li wasn't able to detect anything amiss about it.

After missing Han Li with its first attack, it swept its wings horizontally through the air, releasing a streak of radiant golden light that sliced through the air while sweeping toward Han Li.

In response, Han Li summoned an Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword to ward off the streak of golden light, and the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword began trembling and buzzing upon impact, while half of the golden lightning around it was eradicated.

1. Sweet Home Alabama starts playing ☜