Amid the gasps of the crowd, Han Li—who had been on guard from the start—flung his other hand upward. The Green Radiance Sword shot from his grasp and collided with the dark shadow.
The shadow was immediately knocked back to the edge of the pool, where it reared its head, flicking its tongue and glaring coldly at the group.
"A Demon Crest Serpent? How did the demon crest on its head turn into the shape of the Seven-Colored Lotus!" The moment Hu Yue caught a clear look at the shadow's true form, his eyes went wide.
The dark figure beside the pool was unmistakably a jet-black serpent three to four feet long, with a fleshy horn growing from its head. The creature flicked a blood-red tongue, and the upper half of the fleshy horn was a three-colored bud—almost as if a delicate little flower were sprouting straight from its skull, making it look utterly absurd.
As for the rainbow, it was actually streams of hazy, seven-colored demonic energy the serpent had exhaled. It looked exactly like a real rainbow. No wonder it had fooled the eyes of so many cultivators.
Shi Di, having seen the serpent's true form, shot a cold glint from her eyes. Without a word, she raised her hand and released a purple cloud scarf. The artifact hurtled forward with a roaring sound, striking straight at the demon serpent.
"Be careful! This serpent is extraordinarily venomous—you're no match for it!" Jin Qing's expression changed drastically as he hurriedly shouted. With that, he released his own white great seal, transforming it into a beam of white light to support the attack.
The demon serpent's eyes were icy. Seeing two artifacts bearing down on it, it opened its mouth and spat out a seven-colored iridescent pearl. The pearl radiated dazzling, jewel-like light, managing to hold the great seal and the purple scarf at bay in front of it, preventing them from getting even an inch closer.
By this time, Hu Yue had finally snapped out of the despair caused by the sudden loss of the treasure. After a brief hesitation, he sent two flying knives soaring out like streaks of rainbows, joining the fray as well.
Instantly, before the demon serpent, three streaks of white light, a purple glow, and a ball of seven-colored radiance tangled together in a chaotic dance.
The serpent showed not the slightest fear! After letting out several harsh croaks, it spat out puffs of colorful mist. The moment the cultivators' artifacts and treasures touched the mist, they immediately dimmed and lost their luster.
"How can this thing possibly be this powerful? Could it be some kind of mutated demon beast?" Jin Qing said, visibly shaken by the sight.
But before his words had even faded, a blood-red beam suddenly shot in from the side. It flashed and vanished in an instant, piercing through the colorful mist and striking the fleshy crest on the serpent's head.
A blood-hole the size of a thumb appeared there without warning.
The demon beast shrieked in pain, rolling across the blue stone ground. Then its body coiled, and with a flicker of movement, it shot toward the jade pool.
But just at that moment, a emerald-green flying sword hurtled in from beyond the sky. With lightning speed, it pinned the snake's head to the blue stone floor with a single strike. The serpent's tail thrashed wildly, but it could no longer move an inch.
This was none other than Han Li and Qu Hun striking from the side.
Qu Hun had used one of the Blood Spirit Crystals, while Han Li had deliberately suppressed the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder on his "Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords," making sure not to release it. He wanted to avoid being recognized as having forged his sword from Heavenly Thunder Bamboo.
Only when Jin Qing and the others saw the demon serpent subdued by Han Li did they finally breathe a sigh of relief. Working together with their artifacts, they slowly forced the seven-colored demon pearl down. After a brief discussion, Shi Di collected the pearl into her storage pouch.
Then the group closed in on the demon serpent.
"It really is a Demon Crest Serpent, but its crest seems to have been artificially crafted by someone to resemble the Seven-Colored Lotus. There's no way this creature was born with it." Hu Yue glanced at the serpent still struggling desperately beneath the small sword, his expression full of doubt.
"Obviously, this Seven-Colored Lotus was nothing but a trap—probably designed specifically to deal with that white skeleton. We've simply fallen for the same trick again," Jin Qing said with a bitter smile, nodding in agreement.
Han Li, meanwhile, stood silently to one side, looking at the demon serpent and then at the skeleton's damaged right hand.
An image involuntarily flashed through his mind: someone excitedly reaching for the Seven-Colored Lotus, only for a lethally venomous serpent to suddenly fly out of the pool, clamping down on their finger and dragging them into the pool of poison.
A chill ran through Han Li's heart.
Looking again at the small arrow lodged in the white skeleton, it was clear the one who had set this trap had prepared additional measures. The person behind this scheme had truly been meticulous!
With a wet squelch, the Demon Crest Serpent's head and body were severed in one stroke by a flash of cold light.
Shi Di stood to the side, gripping a short sword, her gaze dark and her demeanor chilling.
Seeing this, Han Li furrowed his brow slightly.
He understood that this woman harbored such hatred for the serpent because her face had been disfigured. Even if the Demon Crest Serpent was not the direct culprit, it was certainly one of the main ones responsible.
For a woman, one's appearance was likely just as important as life itself.
Han Li shook his head lightly and raised his hand with a beckoning gesture. The small sword flew back to him, completely unstained.
Then his gaze fell once more upon the arrow in the white skeleton.