"Bah!" The Barbarian Beard let out a great shout, and a beam of blood-red light shot from his mouth, striking the Blood Jade Spider.
With a muffled pop, the beam burst apart the moment it touched the Blood Jade Spider's body.
A large cloud of crimson blood mist suddenly appeared all around, instantly enveloping the spirit beast within it.
The Blood Jade Spider let out a hissing sound, growing agitated and restless, as though it had been provoked.
Seeing this, Han Li felt a quiet surge of anger.
A "Frenzy Technique" — just from the name alone, it was obvious this was some demonic secret art that came with aftereffects.
Those old monsters hadn't told him a thing about it before casting it without the slightest hesitation, giving absolutely no consideration to what consequences it might have for the Blood Jade Spider.
It was clear they had never taken him seriously as a Core Formation cultivator.
Though he had long anticipated this scenario, actually being treated this way still made Han Li's expression turn grim.
By now, the blood mist had been completely absorbed by the Blood Jade Spider.
The spirit beast's originally crystalline, translucent body had turned entirely blood-red, resembling a massive scarlet gemstone.
"That's…" The moment Han Li saw this transformation, he immediately recalled the time back in the Tianan underground caverns when a Blood Jade Spider had gone berserk.
The same crimson flush, the same vivid coloring — this was the appearance of a Blood Jade Spider in a state of fury.
Han Li anxiously sent a wisp of spiritual sense toward it, only to feel wild, violent intent, as though the creature was on the verge of losing all reason.
Han Li's heart lurched. Just as he was about to forcibly try to calm the Blood Jade Spider, the Barbarian Beard beside him suddenly bellowed.
"What are you standing there for? Get your Blood Jade Spider to keep pulling outward! The Frenzy Technique has a time limit!" The Barbarian Beard glared and roared.
Han Li seethed inwardly at these words, but he could only urge the Blood Jade Spider to continue exerting its strength.
Fortunately, though the Blood Jade Spider had fallen into a frenzy, it still obeyed its master's commands without fail. Immediately, its green eyes flashed with blood-red light, and several of its sharp legs clawed simultaneously, actually managing to slowly drag the taut spider silk backward, bit by bit.
A tremor three times stronger than before rumbled through the area, accompanied by several deep peals of thunder that echoed up from within the pit.
At the sight of this, the Barbarian Beard and the others all broke into expressions of joy at nearly the same moment.
Then a piercing bolt of blue light suddenly erupted from the pit, shooting more than ten zhang high above the altar.
In an instant, Han Li felt a chill wash over his body, followed by a wave of warmth.
A radiant green light barrier enveloped and shielded him.
Han Li blinked in surprise before realizing that the Confucian-robed elder had magnified the protective light from his treasures several times over, extending it to cover him as well.
"Be careful! The moment the Void Sky Cauldron is lifted, it will unleash a cold wave several times more powerful than the previous one. When this unexpected event happened in the past, who knows how many treasure-seekers who were caught off guard suffered terribly," the elder murmured solemnly.
Though the words seemed addressed to Han Li, the elder's gaze never once drifted toward him — his eyes remained fixed, unblinking, on the mouth of the pit.
At this moment, the Blue Easy Scholar appeared to be extraordinarily tense.
Han Li was inwardly startled upon hearing this.
Had many people actually managed to lift this cauldron before? If so, why had they all failed?
Though the question lingered in his mind, Han Li knew this was not the time to ask. He turned his attention back to the scene at the center of the altar.
Clearly, the Void Sky Cauldron was extraordinarily heavy. Despite the spirit beasts exerting every ounce of their strength, it shifted and retracted only in tiny increments. The blue light at the pit's mouth grew ever more blinding.
At this point, not only were Ji Yin and the others completely focused, but even Wuchou and Xuangu, standing below the altar, stared without so much as blinking.
Wuchou's hands were clenched tight, his face awash with excitement and greed.
Xuangu, on the other hand, had a complicated look in his eyes — part anticipation, part hesitation.
As the Void Sky Cauldron was slowly pulled upward inch by inch, everyone held their breath and fixed their gaze on the pit's opening, the only sound being the straining creaks of the pull from the altar above.