Published: August 27, 2025
Chapter 315: Backup Plan, Suspicion
Late at night, when everything was quiet, Han Li quietly slipped out of his room without saying a word to anyone and flew alone toward the Imperial City on his Divine Wind Boat.
Standing on the boat, Han Li gazed at the immense, pitch-black structure before him—the massive gates of the Imperial City. A faint smile appeared on his lips as he swiftly flew past.
To Han Li, the prohibition imposed by the Seven Sects forbidding any disciple from setting foot in the Imperial City was simply meaningless. He only obeyed rules that benefited him; otherwise, trying to restrict his movements with empty words was utterly absurd!
He was never someone to meekly obey orders.
With a cold sneer in his heart, Han Li had already flown more than a hundred zhang above the Imperial Palace.
Under the cover of the dark night, Han Li silently scanned his surroundings, his gaze drifting toward the more secluded and unnoticed places.
Suddenly, his eyes brightened as he headed toward a garden filled with green bamboo.
Hovering above the bamboo grove, Han Li cautiously looked around before suppressing his spiritual energy and slowly descending.
Han Li was well aware that although the Black Death Cult controlled the entire palace, they could not possibly have placed spies everywhere. Moreover, even if there were numerous sentries, with his perfected nameless qi-concealing formula, he was not afraid of being discovered before they could find him.
Besides, from that young prince's words, Han Li had already learned in detail about the usual guard arrangements of the Black Death Cult. Even if there had been changes recently, as long as he avoided heavily guarded key areas, he felt quite at ease.
And this place was clearly a forgotten corner within the palace. Not only was the bamboo forest full of withered branches and fallen leaves, faintly emitting a rotting smell, but the foliage was also extremely dense and overgrown due to neglect.
Looking at the bamboo grove spanning about an acre, Han Li was satisfied.
He formed hand seals and released a soundproof barrier, enveloping the entire grove. Then, solemnly, he took out a stack of formation flags and a formation array from his storage pouch—the improved “Inverted Five Elements Formation” Qi Yunxiao had gifted him.
"With this Inverted Five Elements Formation, even if the Black Death Cult Leader is powerful, he should be invincible!" Han Li murmured softly, staring at the magical artifact in his hands.
He then gathered his spirit, stepping into the dark bamboo grove.
Two hours later, Han Li emerged, looking exhausted. Time was tight, so he had only finished setting up a small part of the formation, but that should be enough.
After checking the surroundings and seeing no signs of anyone passing by, he felt reassured. He withdrew the soundproof barrier, summoned the Divine Wind Boat, and flew away.
Han Li’s solo mission to install the grand formation deep within the palace was quiet and undetected by any Black Death Cult members.
Under the Black Death Cult Leader’s orders, the four powerful blood attendants remained extremely vigilant. But just as Han Li had suspected, they only densely guarded the secluded Cold Palace where the leader was in seclusion. Other areas had become much more lax than before, which was one of the reasons Han Li was able to come and go so smoothly.
By the time he returned to the Qin Estate, it was still before dawn. Han Li decided not to sleep and instead sat in meditation on his bed, restoring his energy until daylight.
The next morning, he casually stepped out and joined the others in the main hall, chatting and laughing as usual, discussing the impending battle without mentioning the “Inverted Five Elements Formation” at all.
In Han Li’s mind, the fewer people who knew about this life-saving backup plan, the better.
If they could win decisively without using the formation, that would be even better. This Inverted Five Elements Formation would remain his secret trump card.