Han Shuo knew that reconciliation was impossible. Even if Han Shuo and Rose escaped from Hushveil City, Hofs would not let the matter rest and would continue to hunt for them. But if Han Shuo could kill Hofs, the power structure in Hushveil City would likely be reshuffled, and the House of Hofley might lose its dominance over the city.
In order to eliminate the threat that Hushveil City might pose to him, Han Shuo wanted to kill Hofs here in this mountain range. Moreover, Han Shuo wanted to test the full power of his Avici Godslaying Sword Formation against a Late-stage Highgod. Therefore, this was an opportunity and a challenge that Han Shuo did not want to pass up.
Rose was clearly shocked by Han Shuo's decision. From her point of view, it wasn't anything wise to fight against Hofs. Even if Han Shuo could defeat Hofs, the noise of their battle would surely attract the experts of Hushveil City to him. If Han Shuo was too busy to fight Hofs when the Hushveil City forces arrived, Han Shuo would be in a very bad situation.
But Rose knew that she could not change Han Shuo's mind. She could only sigh helplessly as she mentally grumbled about Han Shuo's daring behaviour. "Alright then, I will help you hold back the others."
As a Mid-stage Highgod cultivating in the energy of darkness, Rose was aware that she was no match for Hofs. The only thing she could help with was to eliminate as many lesser threats around Han Shuo as possible.
"You just need to wait for me nearby. I would know about approaching enemies better than you. You don't need to worry - Hofs won't be able to stop me," Han Shuo said confidently. Hofs' mind was filled with rage at this moment. Han Shuo, on the other hand, was incredibly calm and collected. It was this clear advantage he had over Hofs that gave him this confidence.
Rose forced a smile after hearing these words. She suddenly felt that there wasn't much she could do for Han Shuo in critical moments. As a Highgod, Rose had rarely been in a situation where she could not help. This filled her heart with a strange, indescribable feeling.
Han Shuo did not explain any further and started to travel towards Hofs. The several dozen demon generals around him had gone ahead and positioned themselves around Hofs, studying the area in great detail.
Every rock, every tree, every leaf in the area was in Han Shuo's mind. Before he even approached the region, he had mastered the terrain there as if it were his own backyard. Han Shuo could use this information to masterfully dodge attacks or launch an attack.
Unlike all the gods who had fallen to Han Shuo's Avici Godslaying Sword Formation, Hofs was a Late-stage Highgod. Moreover, he had rich experience in battle. From the ferocious dark divine energy contained in that dark spear, Han Shuo realised that Hofs was a formidable opponent. He knew that he had to use every advantage he could get over Hofs to defeat him.
Gradually, Han Shuo reached the region where Hofs was. At this moment, Hofs was still screaming wildly in anger. His voice carried a ferocious energy of darkness, causing the atmosphere to ripple like water. The bushes near him shattered as if sharp blades had sliced through them.
"Stay here and don't go any further," Han Shuo said to Rose after he suddenly stopped moving forward. He took a deep breath and adjusted his mind to the optimal state.
Rose, who was close behind him, nodded. She knew that her strength was below Hof's and if she got too close, her presence would be detected. If that happened, Han Shuo's arrival would also be known to Hofs and Han Shuo wouldn't be able to make a surprise entry.
Rose looked worried. After stammering for a bit, she said softly, "Be careful!"
"Don't worry, everything will be fine," Han Shuo replied with a calm smile. Then his eyes gradually turned hard and cold, while his face became callous and apathetic, as if he could not feel any emotions. His mind had entered a state of absolute calmness that was best suited for combat.
Next, Han Shuo's figure became blurred. Rose watched as Han Shuo moved further and further into the distance until his figure completely disappeared. His aura completely vanished. It was as if he was not there. She couldn't detect any trace of Han Shuo's aura with her divine soul.
Rose was once again stunned. She grimaced and shook her head, muttering to herself, "How many secrets do you have?"
*** Hofs was getting further and further away from his search party. He had not stopped shouting for a moment.
But suddenly Hofs became completely silent. His eyes, filled with madness, looked around while his eyebrows furrowed slightly. He had a feeling that something was amiss. He felt as though a savage beast was stalking him from somewhere he could not see.
This feeling came very abruptly and Hofs automatically grew cautious. Could it be that the two have come? thought Hofs, his mind becoming even more alert. He, in fact, felt that Han Shuo and Rose would likely had ignored him instead of answering his crazed scream.
However, that sensation of being stalked felt all so real. Hofs knew from his countless years of past experiences that it was no misperception. Before he went screaming about like a lunatic, he had ordered all his men and experts under his family clan to stay away from him. Therefore, whoever that was secretly observing him cannot be from Hushveil City.
It was this uncomfortable feeling that made Hofs suddenly so quiet. His eyes were still filled with madness as he scanned all around. He also tried to sense for abnormality in his surroundings using his divine soul. Strands of thin dark smoke flew out from his body and wandered through the bushes and ancient tall trees around him.
A few moments later, Hofs turned rather puzzled. The dark divine energy he had sent out to probe his surroundings had found no sign of any living creature. However, the uneasy feeling had never left him. This made Hofs more and more restless and uneasy.
Once again, Hofs unleashed his dark divine energy. He jumped high into the air and began to survey the land from above. Despite his best efforts, he still could not locate the stalker!
"Stop being such a wimp, show yourself!" yelled Hofs. He seemed rather impatient.
Suddenly, a figure appeared beside an old tree. It raised its head to look at Hofs with a smile and said, "You hurt me. I have come to return the favour!"
"It is indeed you!" Hofs laughed maniacally before suddenly falling from the air. The Dark Domain of Divinity instantly formed around him. The element of darkness and the divine energy of darkness filled his dark spear in an instant as he shot at Han Shuo from above Han Shuo's head. Strange buzzing noises sounded from the spear that appeared as though a dark lightning bolt. The spear was accelerated to such an extreme speed that its shape could not be clearly seen.
Boundless darkness came covering down at Han Shuo from the sky. The region abruptly sank into absolute darkness as though everything was consumed by the Void. Immense darkness divine energy wrapped on the spear and caused it to melt into the absolute darkness.
Rumbles…
A world-shaking explosion sounded. Following that, an enormous and deep crater was revealed. All the trees, vegetations, and rocks were swept away.
Han Shuo's figure, however, was nowhere to be seen!
Inside the absolute darkness, Hofs descended. He landed in the huge crater and stood proudly with a fierce face. The dark spear returned to his hand. His eyes glistened as he looked around for the figure that had vanished into thin air.
Needless to say, Hofs' vision wasn't affected by the absolute darkness he had created. He realised that his last blow had been ineffective. He became even more cautious, truly believing Han Shuo to be an equal opponent.
"My turn!" A sneer suddenly echoed through the absolute darkness. Seven blurry figures appeared out of nowhere and shot at Hofs from all directions. The figures all took on Han Shuo's appearance, and they all emitted extraordinary auras.
Hofs suspected that they were just illusions, so he used his divine soul to carefully examine the figures. However, to his surprise, each and every one of them appeared to be real and alive, and each of them possessed a Highgod aura. This immediately confused Hofs.
Not understanding the situation, Hofs did not risk attacking any of the figures. Instead, he took defensive measures. With one wave of the spear in his hand, layers upon layers of defensive barriers rapidly formed. Intense aura of darkness gushed towards Hofs and shrouded him.
Every figure Hofs saw was made using the highest rank demon generals. These demon generals refined from Highgod souls were extraordinary in strength. His senses were correct – the figures were alive and could pose him threat. Hofs' decision of taking defensive measures was also correct.
However, Hofs' taking defensive measures played right into Han Shuo's hand!
Only when Hofs was in defensive position that Han Shuo could fully focus on maneuvering the seventeen flying swords and envelop Hofs in Avici Godslaying Sword Formation. Once that happens, Han Shuo could fully focus on boldly attacking. He need not to worry about anything else.
The seventeen flying swords whooshed out but Han Shuo's figures transformed from demon generals vanished. Only the real Han Shuo remained, standing proudly before Hofs.
They are illusions! Hofs was stunned. After seeing the Han Shuos transformed from demon generals disappear, Hofs started doubting his senses as he was misled into thinking that the demon generals were nothing but illusions.
The seventeen flying swords maneuvered by Han Shuo went whooshing at Hofs shrouded by intense aura of darkness. The flying swords seemed to had struck on the toughest cotton ball. The seventeen flying swords failed to pierce through Hofs' defenses made using darkness divine energy.
A Late-stage Highgod is indeed formidable! exclaimed Han Shuo in his mind. Then, in his consciousness, Han Shuo said to Cauldron Spirit, "Assemble your energy. It seems that I must borrow your energy in order to defeat him!"
Cauldron Spirit wasted no words and immediately injected demon general energies into Han Shuo's body.