"Since Brother Han is determined to back this woman, don't blame me, Xiao, for not giving face. Fairy Huaxi, Brother Wugou, the three of us will deal with Fellow Daoist Han. We don't need to actually defeat him—just keep him occupied so he can't spare any attention for anything else. Let Qingping and Wan capture his companion. When that's done, we'll divide the treasures on her equally, and each of us gets a copy of Perfected Tian Ding's teachings and techniques. No objections?" Xiao Ming's face darkened as he turned to speak toward Fairy Huaxi.
"What? The three of us against him alone? Fellow Daoist Xiao, when did this Mad Demon of yours become so timid?" Fairy Huaxi replied, unconcerned.
"Hmph. It seems Fairy doesn't know Fellow Daoist Han's background, which is why you're being so careless. The truth is, he's..." Xiao Ming's lips suddenly moved soundlessly as he transmitted his voice.
After hearing only a few sentences, Fairy Huaxi's expression changed abruptly. The look she directed at Han Li was suddenly filled with deep wariness. After hearing everything, she finally let out a long breath and said: "Fine. My husband and I will cooperate with Brother Xiao to keep this man occupied. But I hope that after Daoist Qingping and Fellow Daoist Wan succeed, you won't try anything foolish. Otherwise, you know how powerful the two of us can be. Don't blame us for turning on you if it comes to that."
"Fairy, rest assured—we're not people without standing. We would never do something so unwise." Daoist Qingping was overjoyed at this and hastened to say, practically swearing an oath.
Lady Wan also showed a glimmer of fervent desire as she nodded repeatedly.
Watching the five Mahayana Ancestors openly and brazenly discuss joining forces against him right in front of him, Han Li smiled faintly. His mouth moved soundlessly a few times as he quietly transmitted a few words to the pale-faced Ice Soul beside him. At the same time, one of his ring fingers, held behind his back, twitched almost imperceptibly, and a wisp of golden thread so faint it was nearly invisible flickered and vanished in an instant.
After receiving the transmission, Ice Soul's expression shifted, and the terror in her eyes diminished by more than half.
"Attack!"
Xiao Ming gave a low shout, then rolled on the spot. A massive blood cloud spanning roughly an acre materialized, and from within came a deep, guttural roar. Then a colossal blood toad with nine eyes on its head flickered into existence.
The moment the Nine-Eyed Blood Toad appeared, the nine demonic eyes on its forehead opened simultaneously. Nine blood-red beams of light shot out, and after a momentary blur, they converged as one and arrived at Han Li's side—yet their target was Ice Soul beside him.
Ice Soul was startled. Almost instinctively, her body twisted sharply, and she teleported away from her original position, appearing in the empty air over a hundred zhang away.
At that moment, Fairy Huaxi shook both sleeves, and a crystalline light flashed across her body. Suddenly, ring after ring of translucent crystal flew out—each only the size of a palm, yet densely packed, numbering well over a hundred.
Under the woman's spell incantations, all the rings hummed in unison and shot out like a torrential downpour. After a momentary blur, they appeared around Han Li from every direction, hurtling toward him in a frenzied barrage.
Meanwhile, Ancestor Wugou, who had remained silent and expressionless until now, opened his mouth. A stream of pale golden flame rolled out, transforming into a sea of fire that engulfed his entire body.
The golden sea of fire then swelled, rising into a towering wave of flame over ten zhang high that rolled violently toward the opposite side.
Before the fire sea even truly crashed down, an indescribable wave of searing heat spread through the void around Han Li, as though the very air itself had been set ablaze.
The three of them—Xiao Ming, Fairy Huaxi, and Ancestor Wugou—were indeed worthy of being called Mahayana Ancestors. Not only was their opening attack earth-shattering, but their coordination was seamless. They had forced Ice Soul away from Han Li's side with ease.
Strangely, Han Li showed no intention of stepping in to help Ice Soul. Instead, he simply smiled faintly and swept one hand casually in front of him.
A thunderous boom rang out as radiance surged!
Three small mountains, each over ten zhang tall, materialized and spun rapidly around Han Li before suddenly transforming into an extraordinarily dense, crystalline barrier of light.
Countless rings flickered and slammed into the barrier one after another, but after a series of muffled thuds, the crystalline shield didn't budge an inch.
When the golden fire wave crashed heavily against it, the barrier flickered a few times, but still showed no signs of damage whatsoever.
From within the barrier, Han Li's eyes flashed with a cold gleam. He let out a low roar, and his body suddenly surged in size amid golden light, transforming in the blink of an eye into a colossal golden-furred ape over a hundred zhang tall. Both arms blurred as they thrust through the barrier before him, then abruptly hurled something fiercely toward Fairy Huaxi and Ancestor Wugou respectively.
An explosive boom erupted.
Two spheres of light—one green, one black—shot out from the ape's hands. In a flash, they arrived before Ancestor Wugou and Fairy Huaxi. With a burst of radiance, they transformed into two mountain peaks over ten zhang tall and bore down upon them with crushing force.
Before the peaks even truly struck, two waves of suffocating force swept downward first, causing the void around Ancestor Wugou and Fairy Huaxi to tremble.
Seeing such terrifying power, Fairy Huaxi's expression changed. Her slender waist twisted, and her body shot silently backward. At the same time, her jade-like hand made a gesture in the void, and all the countless rings converged at the spot where she had been standing. Merging together, they formed a colossal crystal ring thirty to forty zhang in diameter. Then, with another blur, the ring materialized around the descending mountain peak and contracted violently.
Blinding radiance erupted between them.
The mountain peak, which had been bearing down with such menacing momentum, froze momentarily and hung suspended in midair as though petrified.
Facing the other mountain peak descending upon him, Ancestor Wugou merely formed a seal with one hand. The nearby golden sea of fire suddenly surged upward around him as its center, transforming into a golden fire giant over a hundred zhang tall. Without the slightest fear, it threw a punch directly at the mountain peak.
A heaven-shaking, earth-shattering boom erupted.
The enormous fist, along with the entire arm, shattered into countless golden flames under the tremendous force emanating from the mountain peak.
The mountain peak paused in the air for a moment, then flashed with light and pressed down again. But at that instant, the fire giant's other fist swung upward like a falling star, and the same scene played out once more.