Chapter 866: Sinister Plot

Only after returning to his room in the ninth area did Han Li heave a faint sigh of relief.

After taking a moment to compose himself, he closed his eyes and began channeling the Wingform Ascension Arts to refine the Tiger Scaled Beast Core in his body.

There were many ways through which one could store the starpower in a beast core in their body for relatively long periods of time, but some of the starpower would inevitably fade away over time, and it was not an easy task to obtain fresh beast cores.

Even though he had ultimately managed to win this battle, the process had been far too close for comfort.

If he wanted to survive, then he would have to elevate his own powers as quickly as possible, and only by constantly growing stronger would he have a chance of leaving this place alive.

The Tiger Scaled Beast Core gradually melted into a ball of starpower in his body.

As a C tier scaled beast, the Tiger Scaled Beast's core contained a sizable amount of starpower, several times that of the Tarot Beast Cores that he had purchased. However, just like the Tarot Beast Cores, the starpower in the Tiger Scaled Beast Cores was also very chaotic, and it immediately began rampaging within his body.

However, even as the starpower began to seep out of his body, he remained completely unconcerned, and sure enough, it didn't take long before a burst of suction force emerged from the opening of the Heaven Controlling Vial to suck in the dissipating starpower again.

Having already consumed several Tarot Beast Cores, Han Li had discovered that the Heaven Controlling Vial's absorption and purification of starpower was rather similar to its absorption of moonlight, but the difference was that this process was taking place within his body, while its absorption of starlight took place outside his body.

It appeared that starpower and the energy in moonlight had to be similar in certain areas.

If it weren't for the Heaven Controlling Vial, Han Li estimated that he wouldn't even have been able to absorb 0.1% of the starpower in the Tarot Beast Cores, and he would perhaps have fared a little better with the Tiger Scaled Beast Core, but even then, he would've only been able to absorb 1% to 2% of its starpower at the very most.

𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

In contrast, with the Heaven Controlling Vial, he was able to absorb close to all of the starpower in the beast cores, and the difference was night and day.

Perhaps this was why consuming scaled beast cores had a far more pronounced effect on him than for Shi Chuankong.

Han Li continued to channel his Wingform Ascension Arts, directing the starpower toward the third profound acupoint.

Several days later, another speck of bright starlight appeared on his calf, and this third acupoint also began to open with the tremendous influx of starpower.

Han Li's eyes remained shut as he continued to cultivate, and the rays of white starlight emanating from the white tree root up above were also shining down upon him.

Right at this moment, three tiny white insects descended from the white tree root.

The insects were as thin as strands of hair, and they had translucent white bodies, making them almost indiscernible from the white starlight around them.

The three insects remained completely still as they drifted toward Han Li, who was focused entirely on his cultivation at this moment, so he remained completely oblivious to the insects.

The three insects quickly descended onto his shoulder, and as soon as they came into contact with his skin, they immediately fused into his body.

Upon entering Han Li's body, the insects suddenly seemed to have come to life, and they began rapidly burrowing their way toward his heart.

Han Li detected the insects as soon as they came into contact with his body, and his eyes instantly sprang open as an alarmed look appeared on his face.

Right at this moment, the Black Tribulation Centipede clinging to his heart suddenly stirred ever so slightly, and a faint black gleam appeared in its eyes, as if it had woken up.

At the moment, the Black Tribulation Centipede posed a direct threat to his life, so he had to keep it in check at all cost.

With that in mind, all of the muscles, tendons, and bones in his body began to vibrate at his behest, sending bursts of vibrational force coursing through his entire body.

As a result, the three white insects were slowed down significantly, but they were still squirming toward his heart.

A grim look appeared in Han Li's eyes upon sensing this, and he immediately tapped his right middle and index fingers against his own chest three times in rapid succession, sending three bursts of force penetrating into his own body to strike the three white insects.

The three insects instantly stiffened momentarily, but they were able to remain largely unharmed, and they continued in their advance after a brief moment of immobilization.

At this point, they were already quite close to Han Li's heart, and the Black Tribulation Centipede was becoming more and more active by the second.

An urgent look appeared on Han Li's face as a burst of bright translucent light flashed over his glabella, and three tiny translucent swords shot forth before piercing into his chest.

The translucent swords were substantial objects that pierced three holes into Han Li's skin, but he paid no heed to the injuries as he guided the three swords with his spiritual sense, sending them burrowing into his own body to strike the three white insects.

The three insects possessed remarkably resilient bodies, but they stood no chance against the tiny swords manifested by Han Li's Sword Observation Arts, and they were sliced into pieces before falling completely still.

As soon as the three white insects were killed, the Black Tribulation Centipede instantly settled down again, much to Han Li's relief.

Right at this moment, his brows suddenly furrowed slightly as he threw up a small mouthful of blood.

In the process of killing the three white insects, the Spiritual Sense Swords had inflicted quite a bit of damage onto his body.

However, instead of tending to his internal injuries, three translucent chains shot out of Han Li's glabella, then burrowed their way into his wounds to drag out the dismembered bodies of the three white insects.

In the process, the wounds on his chest were opened up even further, and they were bleeding profusely.

Han Li channeled his Great Universe Origin Arts momentarily, and specks of white starlight immediately converged toward the wounds on his chest, sealing them in the blink of an eye.

Meanwhile, Han Li was staring intently at the bodies of the white insects with a cold look in his eyes.

If he hadn't reacted in time and used his Sword Observation Arts to slay the three insects, they would've most likely already burrowed their way to his heart by now, and judging from how restless the Black Tribulation Centipede had become, the outcome certainly wouldn't have been pretty.

It was clear that these white insects were naturally found in the arena, so Han Li immediately began to suspect that someone was plotting against him, and the prime suspect was none other than Scarface.

After taking a deep breath to compose himself, Han Li cleaned the blood from his body, then emerged from his room.

At this moment, there were quite a few gladiators gathered in the cave, and Scarface was among them.

Everyone extended warm greetings to Han Li upon catching sight of him, while a slightly unnatural look flashed through Scarface's eyes as he turned his head to the side in silence.

Han Li returned everyone's greetings, then took a subtle glance at Scarface before making his way toward Chen Lin's room.

He knocked on the stone door of Chen Lin's room a few times, and shortly thereafter, the door swung open to reveal Chen Lin.

"Fellow Daoist Li? What brings you here today?" Chen Lin asked as a slightly surprised smile appeared on his face.

"Can I come in, Fellow Daoist Chen?" Han Li asked with a solemn expression.

"Of course," Chen Lin replied as he stepped to the side and made an inviting hand gesture.

After Han Li entered the room, the stone door swung shut again.

Chen Lin invited Han Li to take a seat at the stone table, then asked, "Did something happen, Fellow Daoist Li? You don't appear to be in a very good mood."

Han Li immediately gave Chen Lin a recount of what had just happened to him in his room.

After hearing Han Li's recount, Chen Lin sprang to his feet as he exclaimed in a stunned voice, "You managed to survive that? That's incredible!"

"Why do you say that, Fellow Daoist Chen?" Han Li asked.

"If I'm mistaken, the white insects that you just described are Heart Pitting Insects, creatures that can only be found in the Heart Devouring Valley. These things are sworn enemies of Black Tribulation Centipedes, and if they run into each other, a fight to the death is sure to ensue. If you had allowed them to reach your heart, then your fate would've been sealed," Chen Lin replied with tightly furrowed brows.

"It sounds like I was very fortunate to have survived then," Han Li mused with a wry smile.

"Was it Scarface?" Chen Lin asked.

"Who else could it have been?" Han Li sighed.

"Under normal circumstances, gladiators aren't permitted from leaving their respective areas, so he's the only one in our ninth area capable of getting his hands on Heart Pitting Insects," Chen Lin mused.

"Oh? Does he have some type of special privilege?" Han Li asked.

"I wouldn't quite go that far, it's just that he has a relative who's working as an administrator in the city lord's manor, and through that connection, he's able to bring in some things from outside the arena to trade with other gladiators. On top of that, as I mentioned last time, he's on very good terms with Toxic Dragon, so everyone generally stays out of his way, and that's why he's become more and more arrogant over time," Chen Lin explained.

Han Li nodded in response with a contemplative expression.

Prior to this, he hadn't seen Scarface as a threat, but it seemed that he would have to be on his guard.