Seeing how formidable the Asura Holy Fire was, Han Li's expression shifted several times, and he drew in a sharp breath.
However, once the grayish-white flames had completely incinerated Xuan Gu, they recongregated into a small wisp of fire that gently floated in the air.
But just then—whether it was some anomaly caused by Xuan Gu's death—all of the falling grayish-white flames simultaneously emitted a wisp of black-green qi. After some hair-thin black lightning arcs flashed past, the flames instantly transformed into blue, reverting to the form of the Qianlan Ice Flames.
In that instant, Han Li felt the space around him constrict. The entire area filled with a pale blue chill, and a wave of bone-piercing cold swept over him. Transparent sheets of ice began forming across his body, threatening to completely encase the entire protective barrier in ice.
Han Li's face drained of color in alarm!
He hastily poured a torrent of spiritual power into his Spirit Deviation Token, and blazing white light surged outward, pushing back the surrounding cold and keeping it at least half a foot from his body.
But the Qianlan Ice Flames, now freed from Xuan Gu's control, seemed to finally unleash their true power. In that brief span of time, the entire elevated platform froze solid into a massive iceberg. Only Han Li, desperately fending off the cold with the white light enveloping his body, remained unfrozen.
Yet the rapid depletion of his Magical Power left Han Li silently cursing his fate.
Only now did Han Li realize that the Qianlan Ice Flames, when under Xuan Gu's control—whether due to insufficient cultivation or the fact that they had never been truly refined—had only displayed a fraction of their true power during their earlier assault on him.
Had the Qianlan Ice Flames unleashed this terrifying power from the very start, Xuan Gu would never have needed to fuse them with the Asura Holy Fire—that alone would have been more than enough to destroy Han Li several times over.
By that reasoning, the presumably even more formidable Asura Holy Fire could not possibly have displayed so little power—it surely hadn't revealed even a tenth or a fifth of its true might!
With these horrifying thoughts racing through his mind, Han Li quickly deduced most of the truth.
Still, he absolutely refused to perish at the hands of the ownerless Qianlan Ice Flames after having gone through so much trouble to destroy Xuan Gu.
Gritting his teeth, Han Li pressed one hand against a spirit beast pouch at his waist.
This pouch contained tens of thousands of Gold Devouring Beetles.
Right now, the only option he had was to rely on these creatures' devouring ability and see if he could take the gamble to break free.
But regardless of whether his escape succeeded, these not-yet-fully-evolved Gold Devouring Beetles would surely be unable to withstand such terrifying extreme cold. One misstep, and they would be annihilated entirely!
But with his life on the line, Han Li could no longer afford to worry about such things.
Han Li's hand moved, about to open the mouth of the spirit beast pouch.
But just then, another sudden change occurred!
The Qianlan Ice Flames floating all around him flickered rapidly several times, then let out a clear, piercing hum. As if receiving some command, they all shot upward into the sky simultaneously, converging and fusing into a single entity at some point above.
Moments later, a hazy blue orb of light materialized in the air. Within that orb, a fist-sized blue ice bead appeared.
And the icy chill that had engulfed the entire platform vanished in an instant, leaving no trace whatsoever, as if it had never existed.
Han Li, who had already opened the spirit beast pouch halfway, froze in astonishment—then his face broke into a look of delighted surprise.
He couldn't care less about why the Qianlan Ice Flames had undergone such a bizarre transformation—it had just saved his life!
Now, the blue ice bead drifted slowly down from the sky, passing right before Han Li's eyes.
Han Li stared at the bead, a strange glint flashing through his eyes, his expression turning contemplative.
Suddenly, he raised one hand, and a slender arc of lightning—a remnant from within his body—shot out from his palm and coiled around the ice bead, arresting its descent.
The ice bead showed no reaction whatsoever, docilely allowing itself to be drawn along by the arc of lightning.
Seeing this, Han Li remained solemn and composed, not daring to let his guard down in the slightest.
With a careful flick of his wrist, he guided the golden arc of lightning, bound around the ice bead, slowly toward him.
Gazing at the bead that now hovered about a foot in front of him, a hint of hesitation crossed Han Li's face.
With a grave expression, he reached out. A layer of azure light enveloped his entire hand, wrapping it tight, and only then did he cautiously reach forward to grasp it.
Even through the thick layer of True Essence, Han Li could clearly feel a faint coolness from it—but it was nothing close to the bone-piercing cold. It was as though, once the Qianlan Ice Flames had condensed into this bead, they had retracted every trace of their extreme chill, leaving none to leak out.
Only then did Han Li truly feel at ease.
He withdrew his True Essence, pinched the bead between three fingers, and brought it up before his eyes for a careful look.