Activating a true treasure was far more difficult than a regular talisman treasure, which was why Liu Jing had asked for a Protector. He certainly didn't want to end up like that poor junior sister who died miserably. Therefore, after releasing a yellow circular artifact to surround himself, he finally sat down in peace and began channeling his spiritual energy into the fire bird true treasure.
The crimson talisman in Liu Jing's palm began to glow brighter and brighter. The fire bird inside the talisman danced with increasing agility and joy, looking as if it could leap out at any moment. It seemed that when this bird took form and flew out, the activation would be successful.
Although Han Li was still entangled with the Ice Demon on the ground, he understood that his fellow sect members were employing other methods. His heart immediately relaxed. What he feared most was that these companions would lose their courage and flee, leaving him alone against the Black Fiend Sect Master with no way to obtain what he needed.
Since he no longer needed to divide his attention, Han Li focused all his mind on the opponent before him. Using the Luoyan Steps with his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation still placed considerable strain on his body. He couldn't drag out this battle of speed any longer—he had to risk everything for a decisive strike.
With this thought, Han Li wielded his silver sword with one hand while his body flickered constantly, suppressing the Ice Demon so much it could barely breathe. His other hand quietly hooked a small object from his storage pouch with his finger, wrapping it tightly around his ring finger.
Once this was done, killing intent flashed in his eyes. He brought both hands together into a wide, sweeping two-handed sword stance, then suddenly charged forward with sword and body in a ferocious overhead slash. This strike was far faster and more vicious than any of his previous attacks, making the Ice Demon's heart clench. It hastily retreated while raising its crystalline ice claws in a cross to block.
The gap was about to widen, putting distance between it and Han Li, but a faint look of mockery appeared on Han Li's face.
Just as the Ice Demon sensed something was wrong, Han Li released his grip on the sword with one hand and suddenly pulled back.
The Ice Demon's backward momentum inexplicably froze. Then, against its will, it shot toward Han Li at full speed. At this moment, Han Li gripped the sword with both hands again, assuming a slashing stance, his face completely devoid of expression.
The Ice Demon was terrified. It struggled desperately, but it was too late. In the blink of an eye, it had arrived before Han Li. Han Li's silver sword trembled slightly, and countless dense flashes of silver light vanished in an instant. The two figures passed each other, then both appeared under the moonlight. But while Han Li stood holding his sword, the Ice Demon crashed heavily to the ground.
This scene was clearly witnessed by Song Meng and the others watching from above. They couldn't help but grow extremely tense.
The Ice Demon stood up unsteadily. Looking at Han Li's back, a savage grin appeared on its face. Just as it was about to say something, its expression suddenly froze.
A series of crisp cracking sounds rang out. The Ice Demon's body, as transparent as ice, developed countless fine cracks. In an instant, the cracks spread and lengthened. The entire Ice Demon body crumbled into a pile of glittering ice shards on the ground.
Among the crystalline fragments, a single intact ice claw protruded halfway. Its razor-sharp tip still radiated a chilling cold. Only this object could withstand Han Li's rapid cutting without any damage.
Han Li coldly glanced at the pulverized remains of the Ice Demon, then looked up at the three blood-colored cocoons that were glowing even more intensely. He furrowed his brows.
He silently waved his hand, and an ice claw flew straight toward him.
Under the moonlight, one could faintly see that Han Li and this ice claw were connected by a transparent thread—this was the fatal cause of the Ice Demon's death.
During their exchange, Han Li had manipulated the transparent thread on his ring finger to silently wrap around the opponent's claw. Though its demonized ice body had become transparent and hard, it had also lost its sensitive touch, allowing Han Li to easily gain the upper hand and claim its life.
Han Li lowered his head for a closer look at the ice claw, hesitated briefly, then casually tossed it away.
Although he knew this ice claw could withstand a sword forged from "silver essence" without breaking and was therefore an excellent material for artifact refining, the fact that it had originally been a human hand still gave him chills. He couldn't overcome his mental block to keep it.
He walked a few steps to the Ice Demon's corpse, swiped his silver sword through the ice shards a few times, and flicked out a storage pouch with a single strike. After a brief inspection, he carefully stored it away. Then, without a word, he flew up into the sky. He wanted to see what tricks his fellow disciples were playing—those three Blood Servants were about to transform.
What Han Li didn't know was that at the very moment the Ice Demon perished, in a secret chamber beneath a rockery, a pale, fair-skinned middle-aged man with closed eyes suddenly opened his blood-red gaze and muttered to himself:
"The Ice Demon is dead? Fine. That saves me from having to deal with it later."
After saying this, he casually closed his eyes again.
Before him lay a skeletal corpse that was nothing but skin and bones. Judging by its gaunt appearance, it seemed to have no flesh or blood left beneath the skin. And from the clothing on the body, it was clearly a cultivator from Yellow Maple Valley.
...
Han Li flew up on his sword. Before he could speak, Song Meng and the others quickly gathered around, all exclaiming with admiration and amazement. Some of their words even carried hints of reverence. And that "Snow Rainbow" Senior Sister's dual cultivation partner had reddened eyes, his face full of gratitude.
Han Li modestly offered a brief response, then pointed puzzledly at the glaringly red talisman in Liu Jing's hand and asked with confusion.
Someone immediately explained the "true treasure" matter to Han Li, which delighted him greatly and put his mind completely at ease.
Han Li had indeed heard of true treasures before, but he never expected that Senior Brother Liu possessed such a treasure, let alone was willing to use it now. Under normal circumstances, these were life-saving trump cards reserved for moments of mortal peril.
Han Li and Liu Jing had different experiences, so he naturally couldn't understand Liu Jing's complex feelings or his anxiety about gains and losses.
For Han Li, how others viewed him was completely irrelevant. As long as his own interests weren't touched, it wouldn't cost him a single hair.
Of course, if there was an opportunity to leave a good impression on others without much effort, Han Li would be happy to do so. But to use a treasure like a "true treasure" just to maintain that impression? He wouldn't do such a foolish thing even if his life depended on it.
However, Liu Jing's actions genuinely moved Han Li a little, making him wonder if his previous views had been wrong. Were there really "good people" in this world who would disregard even themselves to eliminate evil?
Just as Han Li was feeling slightly ashamed, a roar of fury suddenly rose from below, filled with bloodlust and killing intent.
Han Li and the others were startled and hastily looked down.
They saw that one of the three blood-colored cocoons had begun to continuously expand and deform, as if the Blood Servant inside was about to emerge at any moment.
Han Li's heart tightened. It seemed he would need to fight another Blood Servant first to buy time for Senior Brother Liu!
As this thought crossed his mind and Han Li was about to take action, a calm voice came from behind the group.
"Senior Brothers, please step aside. Let me take care of these three demonic cultivators."
This voice brought smiles to everyone's faces. Han Li quickly turned around.
There stood Liu Jing, smiling at them. In his palm, a small, exquisitely delicate red bird fluttered back and forth, utterly adorable. The oppressive heat that had been nearby had vanished without a trace at some point.
"Is this the original form of the true treasure?" Han Li looked at the red bird with some surprise.
"Thank you all for your protection!"
Liu Jing slowly stood up and gently flew to the front of Han Li and the others. Then, under their astonished gazes, he blew softly on the bird in his hand without hesitation. The crimson bird immediately let out a clear cry and flew out of Liu Jing's palm, heading swiftly downward.
At that moment, the already-changing cocoon below made a muffled "pfft" sound and split open on its own. From within emerged a demon wrapped in dark green light, its form extremely similar to the Ice Demon's semi-demonized appearance, only the color had turned a deep green.
The demon's face was unmistakably that of the Green-Patterned Taoist, though he was now wearing an expression of madness, as if his mind had somewhat deteriorated.
He roared twice, then raised his head and spotted the gently descending red bird. His body froze, and the madness on his face suddenly subsided, replaced by a look of extreme fear.
He frantically looked around in panic, then suddenly surged with green light and rose into the air, attempting to flee.
But just then, the red bird's body rapidly expanded with a sizzling sound, transforming into a fire bird roughly ten feet tall. It then flapped its wings and, as if teleporting, suddenly appeared behind the demonized Green-Patterned Taoist from over a hundred feet away, gently pecking with its sharp red beak.