The Blue Frost

The Great Muddle of Extremes, Heaven's Gate, Ten Thousand Laws Sect Leader Wan Tianming, and the others were still locked in their standoff above. Meanwhile, the Fire Wolf trapped by Wu Chou and the Profound Bone Saint made a move that caught both of them completely off guard.

It let out a low howl. Its two heads twisted and squeezed together, and after a single roll, it transformed into a single-horned, silver-furred giant wolf.

Without a word, the wolf lowered its head. A ball of blinding silver light shot out from its silver horn.

The light orb was not large, only about half a foot in size. But the moment it left the horn’s tip, it shrieked through the air. It punched a massive hole straight through the black python, then struck the green net and exploded.

No one knew what property the silver light orb possessed. The moment the green net touched it, its color drastically changed. In the blink of an eye, it turned into a ball of gray-white Qi and vanished without a trace.

Wu Chou and the Profound Bone Saint were both startled.

Wu Chou hurriedly formed a hand seal with both hands and pointed a finger. A black light shot from his hand onto the python, which was on the verge of dissolving. The massive hole slowly mended itself with a flicker of dark light, and the giant python’s form solidified once more.

As for the Profound Bone Saint, after a moment of shock, he stared fixedly at the silver giant wolf, as if something had occurred to him. But after a brief hesitation, his expression turned grave. He opened his mouth and spat out a small, emerald-green dagger.

The dagger was only a few inches long, short and handleless. Its blade-tip flickered and pulsed with a restless light. It was clearly no ordinary item.

Han Li’s heart stirred. He could not help but take a few extra looks at this magic treasure.

If his senses were not mistaken, this small dagger was none other than the Gold Devourer Beetle Bamboo Arrow in disguise. The Profound Bone Saint had merely used a spell to conceal its true appearance.

Was this old ghost insane? Extreme Yin was right above them, and he dared to use this treasure right under his nose. After all, Extreme Yin had used this very treasure to ambush him all those years ago!

True, the concealment technique was extremely clever. If Han Li himself had not cultivated a life-bound treasure also made from Gold Devourer Beetle Bamboo, he probably would not have noticed its true nature. But it was still far too reckless.

Could this silver wolf be so unusual that the old ghost was willing to take such a tremendous risk to secure it? Han Li’s thoughts turned, and his suspicion deepened.

In that brief moment, the silver giant wolf inside the light barrier suddenly began to shrink rapidly. In the blink of an eye, it had transformed into a miniature wolf no more than a foot long.

Then, silver light flashed. It flickered once and shot straight out through the half-closed hole, breaking free from the black python’s entanglement.

The moment the Profound Bone Saint saw this, he flung the small dagger. A streak of green light struck at the wolf’s head.

With a loud bang, the silver wolf and the small dagger were both sent flying in opposite directions.

The silver wolf’s body was as hard as stone. It seemed completely unharmed.

As luck would have it, the silver wolf’s trajectory sent it hurtling directly toward Han Li, who was standing off to the side.

With such an opportunity dropping into his lap, Han Li cast aside all hesitation. Without a second thought, he sacrificed the basket and sent it flying toward the silver wolf.

At the same time, worried that the treasure alone might not be enough to trap the wolf, Han Li pressed his hand against his storage pouch. Five copper rings linked in a chain shot out from within.

He blew a mouthful of green Qi onto them. After a flash of five-colored light, the copper rings vanished from sight.

Almost in the next instant, a clear ringing sound suddenly rang out.

The silver wolf had barely stopped its momentum and had not yet had time to flee. Suddenly, the copper rings, which had just disappeared, materialized around its four limbs and head. With a few flashes of light, they tightened simultaneously.

The silver wolf fell from the air like a bird struck by an arrow.

The basket ancient treasure, which had transformed into a ball of white Qi, had already sped over. In one motion, it wrapped the wolf inside. Then, with a whistling sound, it flew back into Han Li’s hand and reverted to its basket form.

Seeing this, the Profound Bone Saint, who had just retracted his small green dagger, and Wu Chou, who was in the middle of pulling out a black brocade handkerchief, were both stunned. Their faces were filled with disbelief.

But the moment he came to his senses, Wu Chou’s expression twisted into one of fury and exasperation.

This was too bizarre! He had thought that retrieving an ownerless treasure with the Profound Yin Grand Technique would be as easy as reaching into a bag. But first, the Profound Bone Saint had intervened to snatch it away. Then, by the time he realized the treasure was not so easy to collect and had just freed a hand to take out another magic tool, the silver wolf had been so easily taken by Han Li. This made Wu Chou feel not only utterly embarrassed but also furious and anxious.

The Profound Bone Saint, after a moment of frozen shock, revealed a somewhat strange expression.

Although he quickly put on a look of nonchalance, Han Li could still see a trace of chagrin in the old ghost’s eyes. Furthermore, the old ghost took a few extra glances at the copper rings on the silver wolf, as if he still found something puzzling.

Han Li had no time to ponder the Profound Bone Saint’s odd behavior. After the basket flew back, he eagerly looked inside.

The copper rings seemed to be the silver wolf’s natural nemesis. They had locked the wolf down so tightly that it could not move an inch.

White Qi swirled inside the basket, wrapping around the wolf’s entire body. Only a small wolf’s head was left exposed, looking utterly pathetic.

Han Li let out a soft laugh. Without hesitation, he reached out and gently rubbed the wolf’s head. Then, a flash of green light appeared in his hand, enveloping the silver wolf.

A moment later, the silver wolf’s form began to fade. Finally, it turned into a faint shadow, revealing a jade ruyi scepter.

Just as Han Li picked up the jade ruyi and was admiring it with delight, the Confucian-robed elder and Extreme Yin, having just failed to seize the treasure from Wan Tianming, turned and saw this astonishing scene.

Extreme Yin Patriarch frowned inwardly. But at this moment, facing a great enemy like Wan Tianming, he could not afford to be distracted by this matter.

Besides, having the treasure in Han Li’s hands did not seem particularly problematic. After all, such a shape-shifting, sentient ancient treasure was not something a junior could simply keep as a gift. He would naturally have Han Li hand it over later.

With this plan settled in his mind, Extreme Yin fixed his gaze back on Wan Tianming.

The Heavenly Thunder Pearl was one of the few items that could directly harm a cultivator’s Nascent Soul. He had to be fully alert to deal with his opponent!

Unfortunately, they were destined not to break out into a full-scale battle at this moment. The platform inside the light barrier began to shake once more.

This time, the shaking was even more violent and shocking than before. It was as if the entire ground were about to cave in.

At the same time, a dazzling ball of blue flame finally emerged from the cave entrance.

It was just a tiny bit at first. But the moment the flame appeared, a splendid blue light bloomed across the entire platform, centered on the cave entrance. The light grew and spread, instantly expanding to cover the entire platform.

Then, a loud crackling sound erupted. A layer of eerily blue ice rapidly thickened and spread across the ground.

Han Li was startled. He instinctively flew up into the air.

The Profound Bone Saint was not slow either. He rose into the air almost at the same time as Han Li.

Only Wu Chou hesitated for a brief moment. But that single moment of hesitation was enough. The blue ice climbed up his feet and began to freeze him solid from the ground up. The Profound Yin demonic Qi coiled around his body was completely unable to stop it, even for an instant.

Wu Chou was terrified. He immediately tried to lift himself into the air. But his feet were already firmly frozen to the stone platform. There was no way he could break free from the ice layer!

Wu Chou let out a terrified scream. The blue ice spread to his calves, then his thighs…

Seeing this from above, Han Li and the Profound Bone Saint could not help but exchange a glance. They both saw the sheer horror in each other’s eyes.

Just as it seemed Wu Chou was about to be completely turned into an ice sculpture by the strange blue frost, a slender black beam of light shot down from the sky. It struck Wu Chou’s body in a single, instantaneous flash.

Immediately, a great black flame erupted. The blue ice began to recede and melt, giving off waves of blue smoke.

Wu Chou was overjoyed. The moment he was free, he frantically flew into the air, his face a picture of someone who had narrowly escaped death.

Only then did a cold snort come from above, followed by an impatient voice.

“Be more careful. Next time, I might not have the chance to save you.”

It was Extreme Yin Patriarch, who had reached down from the sky and used his Heavenly Capital Corpse Flame to save Wu Chou’s life.

By now, the old monsters from both the righteous and demonic factions were staring unblinkingly at the blue flame at the cave entrance. Their expressions were mixed—some excited, some tense, and a few burning with naked greed!

Extreme Yin Patriarch seemed to have only casually saved Wu Chou. He did not even turn his head as he spoke. He simply licked his lips, a look of fanatical desire flashing in his eyes.

The first secret treasure of the Chaotic Star Sea, a legend that had been passed down for who knows how many years—the Void Heaven Cauldron—was finally about to be born, right before the eyes of several Nascent Soul cultivators from both the righteous and demonic paths.

Even a deep and inscrutable old monster like Extreme Yin Patriarch, who normally never let his emotions show on his face, could not help but focus all his attention on the cave entrance. No wonder he had seemed so impatient when saving Wu Chou and speaking to him.

By now, the Blood Jade Spider and the pair of Fire Pythons were utterly exhausted. Their bodies were trembling slightly, making the old monsters in the air watch with bated breath. But none of them could do anything, and none dared to help these three spirit beasts.

The reason was simple: the cave entrance had become a world of blue light. Apart from the red glow on the three spirit beasts that could repel this frigid light, even these old monsters did not dare to try flying any lower at this moment.

As for Han Li and the others, they had long since retreated to a distance of twenty or thirty zhang from the cave entrance, and could only watch from afar.