Gu He let out a breath after blasting the puppet apart in one stroke.
However, people could arrive at any moment, and Gu He had no time to rest. With a wave of his right hand, a gust of wind swept through, blowing away the puppet's scattered remains. Gu He then prepared to fly onto the raised platform and claim the sphere of light.
Just then, an old man flew in from outside the hall. When he saw the enormous sphere of light in the center of the hall, especially the faint phantom of a meditation cushion within it, delight immediately filled his face. However, upon seeing Gu He approaching it, his expression abruptly darkened, and killing intent flashed through his eyes.
He slashed forward fiercely with his right hand. The space before him suddenly tore open into a pitch-black rift, from which dense shadow energy spilled out before shooting toward Gu He like lightning. Everywhere it passed, space seemed to be soaked in ink, turning utterly black.
The newcomer's cultivation was almost no weaker than Gu He's before his breakthrough. Coupled with the sudden ambush, Gu He was caught off guard and forced to retreat directly from the raised platform.
Otherwise, if Gu He ignored the newcomer's attack, this avatar of his would likely be on the verge of dispersing. By then, let alone obtaining any benefits, merely maintaining the avatar's existence would be quite troublesome.
Having been forced down from the raised platform, Gu He naturally would not be polite to the newcomer. He did not waste words and was ready to strike directly. However, he stopped again an instant later, his gaze turning toward the hall entrance as his expression worsened.
He sensed three more auras flying over. Though they were not particularly powerful, with the strongest