Chapter 964: Entering the Array

"Well done! I must admit that I'm impressed. To think that even Shao Ying was no match for you!" E Kuai chuckled from within the array.

"You're far too kind, City Lord E. I was only able to come out on top thanks to some little tricks," Han Li replied with a smile as he began to make his way toward the statue beneath Chen Yang.

At this point, the four subsidiary city lords were all seated with their heads drooping down in despair, and it seemed like they didn't even have the energy to look up anymore. It was clear that they were about to perish soon.

In contrast, E Kuai's aura had swelled to unprecedented heights, and over a thousand profound acupoints had already opened up on his body. At this rate, it most likely wasn't going to be difficult for him to open all of the profound acupoints on his body.

"Truth be told, I could really use a man of your talents. Right now, I'm willing to give you another chance. If you do as I say, I'll let you off the hook for killing Shao Ying," E Kuai said with a smile.

"How generous of you, City Lord E. What would you like me to do for you?" Han Li asked as he gently poked the crimson light barrier with his finger.

"Get rid of those two eyesores for me, and you and Fellow Daoist Shi Kong can join my Profound City together to serve as my top-ranking elders. Of course, if you don't want to stay in Profound City, then you can go and serve as the city lord of any of the four other subsidiary cities, but only under the condition that you must follow my orders at all times," E Kuai declared.

"Don't believe him, Fellow Daoist Li! He's been deceiving us from the very beginning!" Xuanyuan Xing yelled in an alarmed manner, and Duan Tong also reflexively clenched his fists tightly upon hearing this.

Han Li took a glance at the two of them, then sighed, "It's very thoughtful of you to extend this olive branch to both myself and Fellow Daoist Shi, City Lord E. It's just a pity that I'm not from the Scalptia Spatial Domain. Otherwise, I really wouldn't be able to think of a good reason to turn down such an offer."

"Is that a no then? What a pity. In that case, I'll have to ask you to wait until I'm done here to continue our conversation," E Kuai replied in an indifferent manner.

"There's no need to wait, I'll come into the array to meet you right now, City Lord E," Han Li said with a smile.

E Kuai immediately burst into laughter upon hearing this, as if he had just been told a hilarious joke.

"I'll gladly welcome you into the array, Fellow Daoist Li. Let's see if you have what it takes to make it in here."

Han Li remained completely unfazed as he said, "I'll do my best."

He then made a hand seal while chanting a complex incantation, following which he raised a hand, and all of the profound acupoints on his arm lit up as he swung his hand down at the statue before him in a powerful chopping motion.

A burst of white starlight appeared over his hand, and it was able to exert immense pressure upon the crimson light barrier, creating a deep indentation on its surface.

E Kuai's brows furrowed slightly upon seeing this, and he seemed to be rather taken aback.

However, right as Han Li's hand was about to make contact with the statue beneath Chen Yang, the crimson light barrier suddenly brightened significantly, then sprang back to its original form to force back Han Li.

A faint smile appeared on E Kuai's face upon seeing this.

Shi Chuankong and the others had also previously made futile attempts to breach the light barrier, so they weren't surprised to see Han Li fail in the same endeavor.

Han Li wasn't disheartened by this at all, and he took a deep breath, then made his way over to the statue beneath Sun Tu before repeating the same process.

The outcome was identical, and he was only just barely able to touch the statue before he was repelled by a burst of invisible force.

He then moved onto the statue beneath Qin Yuan and did the same thing.

"You're just a human with fewer than three hundred profound acupoints opened, so there's simply no chance for you to break into the Weeping Blood Array through brute force. No matter how many times you try, it'll always end in failure," E Kuai scoffed with a disdainful shake of his head.

He then paid no further heed to Han Li as he closed his eyes and began absorbing the bloodline power within the Weeping Blood Array at an even faster rate than before.

Chen Yang and the others could sense their own bloodline power surging even more rapidly out of their bodies, and they let loose a collective cry of pain, but their voices weren't very loud due to how feeble they were.

Han Li remained completely unfazed as he carried out the same procedure on the statue beneath Fu Jian, then did the same thing with the statue beneath E Kuai.

All of the 263 profound acupoints on his body lit up in unison, and it was as if a bright sun had appeared over the palm of his hand as he chopped down onto the crimson light barrier.

Right as his hand came into contact with the statue before him, a secret rune that had been hidden up to this point appeared below each of the five statues in unison.

Immediately thereafter, a faint buzzing sound rang out, and the entire crimson light barrier shuddered violently as ripples surged over its surface.

E Kuai's eyes immediately sprang open upon sensing this disturbance, and he looked on with an astonished expression as Han Li stepped straight into the Weeping Blood Array, looking as if he had just made his way through a film of water.

Everyone was astonished to see this.

A faint smile appeared on Han Li's face as he sprang up to the very top of the light barrier, hovering in mid-air around ten feet above the five stone statues.

"This Weeping Blood Array truly is a miraculous creation! It feels like there's a vast sea of power swirling around me," Han Li praised.

"Impossible! Anyone inside the array without a Weeping Blood Star Diagram will be reduced to a sacrificial object! How are you able to remain unaffected?" E Kuai exclaimed in an incredulous manner.

"Is this what you're referring to, City Lord E?" Han Li asked with a smile as he extended a finger forward before drawing a circle in the air, and a crimson pentagram identical to ones on the five stone statues took shape beneath his feet.

Right at this moment, a dull thump suddenly rang out from down below.

Han Li looked down to discover that Duan Tong had also attempted to step into the array to save Fu Jian, only to be sent flying back by a burst of tremendous force, much to the amusement of Zhu Ziqing.

A spark of hope was reignited in the hearts of the four subsidiary city lords, and all of them raised their heads with great difficulty to look at Han Li with hopeful expressions.

"I've come to meet you in the array, City Lord E. Are you ready?" Han Li asked with a smile.

A serious look then appeared on his face as he began making a string of hand seals while chanting an urgent incantation, and a few moments later, a burst of dull rumbling suddenly rang out from deep within the array.

All five the statues shuddered in unison, following which a string of brand new runes appeared over each of them, and the operation of the entire array slowed down significantly, as if it were going to stop operating altogether.

However, immediately thereafter, the viscous crimson light at the bottom of the pond rose up once again, then passed through the crimson cocoons around the four subsidiary city lords one after another before surging into E Kuai's body.

E Kuai was rather puzzled to see this, but his befuddlement quickly turned to alarm as he discovered that the purified crimson light flowing into his body was flowing out again before surging into Han Li's body.

In the blink of an eye, Han Li's entire body was enveloped in a giant crimson cocoon consisting of countless thin crimson threads, and he had become the final destination for the crimson light within the array.

As this burst of tremendous power surged into his body, his expression instantly became twisted with agony. He felt as if his meridians were being torn apart from the inside, and he was clenching his teeth so tightly against the pain that they were on the verge of shattering.

He had thought that after being filtered and purified by the city lords, this burst of bloodline power wouldn't be so violent anymore, but the reality was that with only fewer then three hundred profound acupoints opened, his body was still too frail to withstand such tremendous power.

Thankfully, Han Li had developed an extraordinary pain tolerance over the course of his cultivation journey, so he was able to retain his lucidity.

Inside the crimson cocoon, over a thousand specks of white light appeared over his body, but of course, most of them were blurry and insubstantial.

"Impossible! How have you seized control of the Weeping Blood Array? Who are you?" E Kuai exclaimed in an incredulous manner.

Han Li paid no heed to him as he let loose a long roar and channeled his Heavenly Baleful Purgatory Arts with all his might, funneling the bloodline power surging into his body toward profound acupoints that he was still yet to open.

In the span of no more than twenty seconds, three profound acupoints had opened in rapid succession on his chest, while everyone else looked on in astonishment.

"How could this be, Big Brother? Could it be that this human has some ties with the Great Ruins?" Zhu Ziqing asked.

Shi Chuankong was also looking on with mixed emotions, completely stunned by the fact that Han Li seemed to have gained the upper hand over E Kuai in the Blood Weeping Array.

A cold look appeared in E Kuai's eyes upon seeing this, and he suddenly made a hand seal before tapping a finger against his own glabella.

A strange crimson rune instantly appeared on his glabella, and the crimson light emanating from him instantly brightened to intercept the bloodline power that was flowing out of his body.

As a result, the influx of bloodline power into Han Li's body slowed down, and he turned to E Kuai with a smile as he said, "You are only drawing upon the power of the Weeping Blood Array through illegitimate means, so there's no way you can hope to contend with me."