Chapter 478

"Pah!" The bearded giant roared, spitting a crimson beam of blood that struck the Blood Jade Spider.

With a "plop," the beam exploded on contact with the spider's body.

A vast cloud of red mist suddenly appeared around it, instantly engulfing the spirit beast.

The Blood Jade Spider hissed, appearing agitated, as if provoked.

Han Li, seeing this, felt a surge of inner fury.

"Rage Technique"—just from the name, it was clear this was a demonic art with serious drawbacks.

These old demons had never mentioned this to him, yet they applied it without hesitation, showing not the slightest concern for the consequences to the Blood Jade Spider.

Clearly, they had never regarded him, a Golden Core cultivator, as anything important!

Though he had anticipated this scenario, being treated this way still made Han Li's expression darken.

At this moment, the blood mist had been entirely absorbed by the Blood Jade Spider.

The spirit beast's formerly translucent body had turned completely crimson, resembling a massive ruby.

"This is…" Han Li, seeing the spider's transformation, immediately recalled the time in the underground caverns of Tiannan when that Blood Jade Spider had gone berserk.

Its entire body glowing crimson, vivid and bright—this was clearly the state of a Blood Jade Spider in a rage.

Han Li sent a faint spiritual sense toward it, sensing only wild, frenzied energy, as if it were on the verge of losing its reason.

Han Li's heart leapt in alarm—he was about to forcibly calm the Blood Jade Spider—when the bearded giant beside him suddenly roared.

"What are you standing there for? Order your Blood Jade Spider to pull back! The Rage Technique has a time limit!" the bearded giant barked.

Han Li, hearing this, inwardly seethed—but he could only order the Blood Jade Spider to keep pulling.

Fortunately, though in a rage, the Blood Jade Spider still obeyed its master's commands. Its green eyes flashed crimson, and its sharp legs clawed wildly, slowly dragging the taut silk backward.

A tremor stronger than before surged forth, accompanied by low, rumbling thunder echoing from within the cave.

Seeing this, the bearded giant and the others all smiled at once.

Then a blinding blue light erupted from the cave, shooting over ten zhang above the altar.

Han Li instantly felt a chill, then a warmth.

A shimmering green light shield enveloped him.

Startled, Han Li realized the robed elder had expanded the aura of his treasure manyfold, shielding him as well.

"Be careful! At the instant the Xu Tian Ding is lifted, a cold current far stronger than before will erupt. Many treasure-seekers who failed to prepare suffered greatly when this happened before," the elder murmured solemnly.

The words were clearly meant for Han Li, yet the elder's gaze never once turned toward him—he stared fixedly at the cave entrance.

At this moment, Qingyi Qingyi Jushi seemed extremely tense!

Han Li, hearing this, paused in surprise.

Had many others tried to lift this ding before? If so, why had they all failed?

Though he harbored this doubt, Han Li knew this was no time to ask. He turned his gaze back to the center of the altar.

Clearly, the Xu Tian Ding was immensely heavy. Despite the spirit beasts exerting their full strength, it moved only a fraction at a time, while the blue light at the cave mouth grew even brighter.

At this moment, not only Master Ji Yin and the bearded giant, but even Wu Chou and Xuan Gu below the altar stared without blinking.

Wu Chou gripped his fists tightly, his face filled with excitement and greed.

Xuan Gu's eyes held a complex expression—both anticipation and hesitation.

As the Xu Tian Ding slowly rose, everyone except those pulling held their breath, eyes fixed on the cave mouth.

Han Li, however, did not look there—he watched his Blood Jade Spider with growing concern.

After all, no matter how valuable the Xu Tian Ding, it would never be his. This Blood Jade Spider was his own painstakingly cultivated creation.

As he observed, he noticed something unexpected: the originally milky-white silk now emitted a faint blue glow. Though extremely subtle—if one didn't look closely, it was invisible—it was clearly not the silk's natural color.

Han Li, puzzled, was about to ponder this further when a faint "tsiiii" came from behind them.

Though quiet, the sound stood out sharply in the absolute silence of the platform.

Han Li was startled, then inwardly delighted—he quickly turned around.

The sound was unmistakably that of a protective barrier being violently torn open—and it came from the stone steps of the platform.

Master Ji Yin, the bearded giant, and the others also heard it.

The bearded giant's face darkened; he cursed loudly and slapped his spirit beast pouch, sending out a flash of yellow light.

The light faded, revealing a leopard-like spirit beast before him, its body covered in yellow spots.

This leopard was several times larger than an ordinary one, and on its head grew a third eye, faintly glowing with yellow light.

The robed elder turned around, his eyes flashing coldly as he spoke:

"It's Wantieming and his group. My Qingji Bird and Wu's two undead corpses have been destroyed. They clearly didn't trust us to retrieve the treasure—they've come back."

"Buy us as much time as you can. The Xu Tian Ding has been pulled halfway out, but the suction within the cave grows stronger the more it rises. It won't be pulled free in a short time," Master Ji Yin Master Ji Yin Zuoshi said, his face icy, yet showing no panic. The return of the orthodox sects was clearly expected.

"As Wu brother says!" The elder, knowing battle was imminent, replied crisply. His sleeves flared, and hundreds of green orbs surged forth—over a hundred Qingji Birds, each no larger than a sparrow.

These tiny, fist-sized birds, with steel-like feathers and sharp beaks, floated silently above the elder's head, their presence formidable.

On the other side, Master Ji Yin Master Ji Yin Zuoshi formed hand seals, and thick, ink-black qi spread from his body. When the demonic aura dispersed, fourteen or fifteen armored, emerald undead corpses appeared around them.

The bearded giant merely glanced coldly at the two and said nothing.

Below, Wu Chou hurried closer to the altar, his expression uneasy.

Xuan Gu shifted his eyes several times, remaining still, as if deep in thought.

Han Li, seeing Xuan Gu's actions, frowned slightly—but immediately smoothed his expression.

For several long streaks of light had shot from afar at incredible speed, arriving before the altar in an instant.

The aura faded, revealing Wantieming and the orthodox sect cultivators before them.

"Good. Very good!" Wantieming scanned the Blood Jade Spider pulling the Xu Tian Ding and the flickering blue cave mouth, his expression calm as he spoke these words.

The demonic cultivators exchanged glances, unsure of the meaning behind his words.

"Good? Of course I'm good. But if you hadn't come, I'd be even better," the bearded giant snapped, glaring.

"I had no desire to come here," Wantieming said coolly. "But who knew that after we'd left, we'd discover this young friend possesses a Blood Jade Spider—long thought extinct. How could I possibly walk away now?"

But as soon as he finished speaking, his lips moved slightly, emitting a strange low cry.

The bearded giant and the others froze, unsure what trick this was.

Suddenly, a flash of white light appeared on the stone ground beneath Wantieming—and a blue creature the size of a rat darted out, vanishing in a flash onto Wantieming's arm.

Only then did the master of Wanfa Sect smile mockingly at the bearded giant and the others, saying nothing.

"Fossil Beast!" Qingyi Qingyi Jushi, seeing the creature, cried out involuntarily.

"Heh! Had I not left this beast behind to spy on you, how could I have arrived so timely? This Fossil Beast has no other abilities—but once it burrows into stone and hides, even if you cultivators possessed divine powers, you couldn't detect it immediately. And now, it seems my backup plan was well-placed."

"Now, I offer you two choices: either let us kill the Blood Jade Spider and leave the Xu Tian Ding to sleep in the cave, or we split the treasure equally. I will not allow you demonic sects to monopolize the contents of this ding," Wantieming said slowly, stroking the Fossil Beast on his arm and glancing twice at the Blood Jade Spider.

At this moment, Wantieming seemed utterly confident, as if certain the bearded giant and the others would submit.

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