391: Chapter 35 Yuan Tao

"Oh? Tell me about it."

Meng Li said, "I hope to stay at Longhu Mountain for a few more days, so that I may seek guidance from Senior Lu regarding the Heavenly Scroll."

Zhang Zhiwei's gaze shifted slightly, and he smiled as he agreed, "That is a small matter, no problem."

After saying this, he looked at Zhang Chulan, "Since the Bai boy has chosen the Heavenly Scroll, then this position of Celestial Master is yours, Chu Lan."

"Prepare yourself; tonight I will personally perform the transmission for you."

Chu Lan nodded, "Understood, Grandmaster."

With this, the Luotian Grand Ritual came to a complete end.

Zhang Zhiwei said a few more polite words, then began to see his guests off.

This matter had nothing to do with Meng Li, so he did not participate. After exchanging simple greetings, he returned to his room to study the Heavenly Scroll Secret Manual.

As for seeking guidance from Lu Jin, he did not mention it for the time being.

Because Lu Jin was seeing off the guests with Zhang Zhiwei.

At the same time, Meng Li knew that Lu Jin had secretly discussed with Xu San, Xu Si, and others to deal with the incoming Quansheng members together; there would be plenty to keep them busy. If nothing went wrong, the other side would even reenact the famous scene of "I killed the Old Celestial Master."

Under these circumstances, it would naturally be inappropriate for him to cause trouble for Lu Jin.

By evening, Meng Li had finished reading the Heavenly Scroll Secret Manual and switched to reading the Talisman Encyclopedia.

Halfway through, he suddenly sensed someone approaching, and not just one person.

Meng Li narrowed his eyes, put the Heavenly Scroll Secret Manual and the Talisman Encyclopedia into his storage ring, stood up, and opened the door to walk out of the room.

Looking at the empty surroundings, he chuckled softly, took out the Liu Mai Sword Box to fiddle with it in his hands, and then said leisurely, "Since you are all here, stop hiding. Come out and show yourselves."

As soon as he finished speaking, several figures leaped out from the shadows, surrounding Meng Li.

The group had various appearances, vaguely led by a hunchbacked, thin old man.

The thin old man was wearing a green military uniform with a very vintage feel. Meng Li had some impression of him; he vaguely remembered him as an old-timer among the Quansheng members, named Yuan Tao.

Yuan Tao was an Artifact Refiner, and the Magical Artifact he refined was nine magical beads, collectively called the "Nine Dragon Sons."

The Nine Dragon Sons, like Meng Li's Liu Mai Sword Box, were a set of Magical Artifacts capable of both offense and defense.

To the left and right of Yuan Tao stood a man and a woman, both tall and thin.

The man wore a bamboo hat, had long hair, wore coarse linen clothes, and held a mourning staff; one look told you he often dealt with the dead.

The woman had a ponytail and wore a red suit with shorts; nothing could be determined about her for now.

Standing behind Yuan Tao was a big man carrying a schoolbag, dressed like an elementary school student, who looked not very bright at first glance. There was also a young man with short, spiky hair.

Upon seeing this lineup, Meng Li instantly understood; these were the people who had blocked Zhang Lingyu in the original plot.

Their goal was simple—the Heavenly Scroll!

Now that the Heavenly Scroll had been obtained by Meng Li, they had come looking for him.

Knowing this in his heart, Meng Li still feigned ignorance on the surface, "Who are you all?"

Yuan Tao said sinisterly, "Quansheng."

He then got straight to the point, "We have come only for the Heavenly Scroll and have no intention of making an enemy of Your Excellency. You only need to leave a copy, and we will leave immediately."

Unexpectedly, just as he finished speaking, the young man with short, spiky hair raised an objection.

He said in a flippant tone, "Old Yuan, don't make decisions on your own. If he really agrees, we won't have a chance to seek advice."

After speaking, he flashed toward Meng Li and struck directly at his face with his palm.

Seeing this, Meng Li did not dodge or avoid it. The Liu Mai Sword Box lit up with white light, forming a light barrier that automatically protected its master.

The young man with short, spiky hair struck the white light barrier with one palm, only creating a ripple that subsided in an instant.

Meng Li took a look and, seeing the other's palm was faintly dark red, immediately said, "Cinnabar Palm? You must have practiced it for more than a decade, but your proficiency is lacking."

Hearing this, the young man with short, spiky hair was ashamed and angry, and hurriedly struck again, each palm blow heavy, yet unable to shake the light barrier in the slightest.

Not far away, Yuan Tao's expression was grave.

Before coming, he had heard from Quansheng members who had watched the Luotian Grand Ritual that Meng Li had several powerful Magical Artifacts and was suspected to be an Artifact Refiner, not an ordinary Sword Immortal.

This made Yuan Tao even more interested.

In the current Realm of Extraordinary People, Artifact Refiners were extremely rare. Having finally met a peer, he naturally wanted to test him.

Not to mention that Meng Li also possessed the Heavenly Scroll, one of the targets of Quansheng's operation.

Now seeing the protective light barrier of the Liu Mai Sword Box, Yuan Tao immediately understood that the power of Meng Li's Magical Artifact was no less than his own Nine Dragon Sons.

This made him both excited by the hunt and a bit troubled.

As a fellow Artifact Refiner, Yuan Tao understood too well how much a powerful Magical Artifact enhanced an Artifact Refiner.

Meng Li was a tough nut to crack!

At this moment, Meng Li made his move.

Watching the young man with short, spiky hair who kept striking the light barrier in vain, he shook his head with a sigh, opened the Liu Mai Sword Box, and flicked his finger.

Seeing this, the young man with short, spiky hair felt a chill in his heart, alarm bells rang, and he subconsciously stopped his actions, wanting to leap away.

However, just as he leaped into the air, a Flying Sword arrived first despite starting later.

In an instant, his head flew up, and the consciousness of the young man with short, spiky hair dissipated in astonishment.

This scene of the Flying Sword taking a head left Yuan Tao and the others stunned.

Lu Jin and Lu Linglong, who had arrived in secret, were also taken aback.

Afterward, Yuan Tao said with a gloomy expression, "Taking a life as soon as you strike, Your Excellency has quite a murderous nature!"

"I have a heavy murderous nature?" Meng Li laughed, then said, "His round of Cinnabar Palm just now showed no mercy. Had I not had the Sword Box to protect my body, my fate would likely have been no better. Furthermore, knowing one is outmatched yet not retreating after one blow is tantamount to seeking one's own death."

"Since that is the case, I granted his wish."

"However, having said that, I actually don't like killing people."

"So, I will give you a chance: leave behind the Secret Manuals of your signature special abilities, then leave, and I will not kill you."

Yuan Tao's face darkened, and he sneered, "How arrogant, junior! I heard you have no sect or affiliation. Today, this old man will teach you how to respect your Seniors."

After saying this, he flicked his wrist, slid the Nine Dragon Sons, which were woven into a string and hidden in his sleeves, into his hands, skillfully unbuckled them, and flicked with his thumb.

A magical bead immediately flew out and smashed heavily against the white light barrier in front of Meng Li.

The white light barrier swayed, then returned to its original state.

Yuan Tao's expression showed shock upon seeing this.

His decades of cultivation were basically invested in this set of Nine Dragon Sons Magical Artifacts.

These nine magical beads were named after the legendary nine sons of the Dragon, each with its own miraculous quality.

The magical bead just flicked was called "Baxia," and its miraculous quality could be summed up in three words—heavy power!

Extremely heavy power combined with the small size of the magical bead made it most suitable for attacking a point to break a surface, dealing with physically trained extraordinary people, and breaking protective shields.

Yuan Tao had experimented before; a full-strength strike from him using Baxia could easily pierce through several centimeters of steel plate.

And now it couldn't pierce the protective light barrier of that Sword Box?

Almost instantly, he concluded that the quality of the Liu Mai Sword Box was above his Nine Dragon Sons, and he couldn't help but feel a touch of greed.

And Meng Li, looking at the Baxia magical bead that had shaken his own protective light barrier, also developed a bit of interest.

Therefore, he took out the Treasure-Swallowing Gourd.