Countless gray threads shuddered in unison and froze within the halo of light, then flickered and dissolved into wisps of gray mist, vanishing without a sound.
The dense web of threads melted away under the flowing halo of light like spring snow — dissolving into nothing one strand after another.
It was only then that the tri-colored fire phoenix launched its true attack. Spreading its wings wide, it instantaneously transformed into a massive sphere of light. The luminous halo on its surface contracted once, then surged outward in every direction—
In the span of a single blink, a tri-colored wheel of gold, silver, and red materialized out of thin air in the low sky. Its size was so enormous that it completely enveloped the entire web, and tri-colored runes flowed ceaselessly across its surface — the largest spanning a full zhang across, the smallest no less than a foot — each one abstruse and incomprehensible, filling anyone who beheld them with profound awe.
The dazzling and extraordinary spectacle below drew the startled gaze of both Han Li and the Silver-Winged Yaksha hovering in the air.
Then, with a flash of radiance, the colossal wheel of light existed for no more than the time of a single breath before vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared.
Along with it, the gray web — dozens of zhang in diameter — disappeared without a trace, as though it had never existed in that place at all.
The Silver-Winged Yaksha's fleshy wings flapped unconsciously behind its back, its face frozen in an expression of stunned disbelief.
It had to be understood that the massive web of threads had condensed nearly all of the Corpse Qi it had cultivated over countless years. What remained within the desiccated body now was but a pitiful handful of wisps — barely enough to sustain the Corpse Qi Avatar's movements, and certainly not enough to mount any further formidable attacks.
A single strike from the opponent's feather fan had completely obliterated a divine ability painstakingly refined over untold ages. And the spiritual power contained within that tri-colored wheel just moments ago had been so terrifying that had it been caught within, the outcome would almost certainly have been fatal.
This was no longer a question of mere temperature or flame. It contained certain Laws of Heaven and Earth — the kind of power that only those who had reached the Deity Transformation Stage could begin to touch.
Though the Silver-Winged Yaksha had not yet advanced to the equivalent realm of the Golden Body Moon Corpse, it had lingered at the threshold of that stage for so many years that it possessed a natural sensitivity and understanding of such forces.
The strike just now had contained only the barest sliver of that celestial power, yet it was enough to send the Silver-Winged Yaksha's heart plummeting.
What manner of treasure was the feather fan in the opponent's hands? How could it possibly be this terrifying?
With the Silver-Winged Yaksha's own cultivation and abilities, had it possessed a supreme-grade treasure that complemented its techniques, it might not necessarily have feared an attack of this magnitude. But unfortunately, since awakening its spiritual intelligence, it had been trapped within this formation — with neither the opportunity nor the materials to personally refine a suitable weapon.
If not for the fact that cultivators had occasionally entered the cavern, only to be killed one after another and have their corpses used in blood-sacrifice rituals to refine into Corpse Qi Avatars, its movements would have been restricted even more severely.
Although it had obtained a motley assortment of treasures from the corpses of dead cultivators, very few were worth a second glance. The only one that truly satisfied it was the Evil Moon Phantom Mirror. It was precisely because it had only that single presentable treasure that it had poured countless years of effort into it — several of its divine abilities depended entirely upon that artifact to be deployed.
That was why its destruction at Han Li's hands had sent it into such a towering rage.
Just as the Silver-Winged Yaksha's eyes darted about and dread swelled within its heart, Han Li — witnessing the Three Flame Fan's devastating power — was naturally overjoyed. Seeing that the ice wall before him had already been reduced by nearly half under the relentless barrage of golden needles, he hesitated no longer. With a flip of his palm, he produced a small bottle he had just retrieved from his storage pouch.
Han Li removed the bottle's stopper and tipped a single drop of the Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Liquid into his mouth.
As the medicinal power took effect, his meridians immediately generated a torrent of pure spiritual energy. His magical power was fully restored in an instant.
Tucking the bottle away, Han Li felt the abundant magical power coursing through his body, shot a cold glance at the Silver-Winged Yaksha in the distance, and gave the Three Flame Fan a spin before gripping it firmly once more.
The fan blazed with light, and tri-colored runes began to flicker across its surface.
This time, Han Li intended to utterly finish off the enemy before him.
It was fortunate that the creature bore a restrictive seal and could not leave this place. Otherwise, no matter how formidable the fan's power, if the Silver-Winged Yaksha simply chose to flee using its escape techniques, Han Li would be equally powerless to stop it.
The Silver-Winged Yaksha across from him saw this and its expression changed drastically.
Given the attack range the fan had demonstrated moments ago, combined with the limited space within the barrier of light, it had no choice but to take the blow head-on.
Suppressing a bitter curse inwardly, the Silver-Winged Yaksha gritted its teeth and pointed a finger at the now significantly diminished golden sphere of light hovering in the air.
The golden light immediately ceased radiating its beams. With a muffled pop, it flashed and merged into the Silver-Winged Yaksha's body. Instantly, a layer of brilliant golden light materialized around it, forming a protective barrier.
Almost simultaneously, the flying corpse opened its mouth wide without a moment's hesitation and expelled a torrent of black, misty Corpse Qi. Every wisp shimmered with an eerie, ghostly glow. In moments, it had completely engulfed the golden barrier.
Seeing this, Han Li let out a cold laugh and was on the verge of channeling all of his magical power into the fan when, without the slightest warning, the formation beneath them began to tremble violently. Then the entire formation's light began to flow and shift — the surrounding gray barrier of light flickered once and vanished without a trace, completely disappearing.
Han Li froze, his movements pausing for an instant.
But before he could even begin to understand what had happened, an even greater upheaval occurred.
From a distant point beyond the formation, enormous swathes of ground suddenly cracked open and erupted with blinding spiritual radiance. A far larger formation materialized beyond the borders of the original one, adorned with nearly a hundred spirit stones. In the blink of an eye, it resonated and fused with the first formation, combining them into an entirely new array.