Red light suddenly blazed at the center of the water curtain, and then a colossal pillar of flames materialized out of thin air around the Fire Toad Beast.
In an instant, whether it was the water dragon, the ring, or the two blue halberds, all were forcefully expelled beyond the pillar of fire. And at the heart of that pillar, the hazy silhouette of the ancient Fire Toad Beast could faintly be seen unleashing its power.
Just as all the attacks were deflected by the pillar of fire, the Fire Toad Beast — knowing it had fallen into a trap — seized the opportunity, pushed off backward, and transformed into a ball of raging flames that shot forth like a bolt, its target the aperture that was gradually sealing shut.
The Marquis of Nanlong and Elder Lu's faces both changed in alarm. They hastily directed their treasures, hoping to catch up and prevent the beast from escaping through the restriction.
But it seemed they were too late.
The ball of raging flames was approaching the water curtain, and in the blink of an eye it would flash through. Just then, a sharp cry suddenly rang out from the distance. The Fire Toad Beast had just thrust one forelimb through the aperture when it felt a flash of dark light before its eyes. Something grazed past, and in that instant — between one hot and one cold sensation — a large section of the limb was abruptly sheared away.
The Fire Toad's body convulsed violently, and an unbearable wave of agony radiated from where the limb had been severed.
Though this beast possessed formidable powers, it could not suppress a wretched shriek before plummeting from the sky.
The Marquis of Nanlong and his companion outside the barrier were overjoyed at this sight. They immediately directed their treasures to circle around the Fire Toad Beast, which could no longer stand, and unleashed a relentless barrage upon it.
The emerald ring flickered and split into several hundred illusory copies, tumbling ceaselessly around the Fire Toad as they attempted to close in and bind the beast. Meanwhile, the two blue halberds transformed with a shimmer into two azure ice serpents, each roughly fifteen or sixteen feet long, and lunged straight at it.
Yet this beast was truly worthy of being the ancient extraordinary creature that even Patriarch Cangkun had once regarded with wariness. Despite having lost a limb, it was utterly unaffected in terms of its cultivation and abilities. In nearly the span of a single thought, dense layers of light shields materialized before it once more, catching every last one of these attacks.
Those emerald ring phantoms were unable to draw even a fraction closer to its body, let alone achieve any sort of binding. They could only rely on their ordinary force to keep striking against those light shields, with negligible effect.
The two ice serpents, however, had attributes that naturally countered these fire-attribute light shields. Each time they lunged, they shattered one small shield — but these shields seemed practically inexhaustible. The effect was equally limited.
But moments later, six beams of blue light shot in from beyond the sky, joining the assault. Every time one flashed, a light shield was inevitably shattered.
A tremendous rumbling erupted forth, and the Fire Toad Beast — which had just been about to rise — was once again pinned to the ground.
The Marquis of Nanlong was taken aback and glanced over.
He saw that Han Li had at some point flown to a nearby position and was waving his hand to disperse the black qi lingering on one arm. Behind him, six massive blue turtle-shaped puppets were opening their mouths and blasting bowl-thick beams of light into the water curtain, attacking the ancient Fire Toad Beast within.
Han Li turned his gaze and glanced at the Fire Toad Beast's severed limb, which had fallen outside the water curtain.
Though it had separated from its original owner's body, it still emitted wisps of red light, drifting near the water curtain as though it still possessed a will of its own.
Han Li's eyes flickered with a hint of surprise upon seeing this.
He had witnessed from afar moments ago that the situation was dire and the Fire Toad was about to escape the restriction. In his urgency, he had unleashed a single Devil Destruction Slash, which was what severed the beast's forelimb.
He had not expected that even after losing its limb, the Fire Toad Beast would remain so fierce. Despite being assailed by two Nascent Soul cultivators and six giant turtle puppets, it could still hold its ground. No wonder Patriarch Cangkun had voluntarily retreated back then, knowing he was outmatched while his spiritual energy was severely depleted.
"Fellow Daoist Han, the fire-attribute spirit shields on this Fire Toad are utterly inexhaustible. I'm afraid we'll need your ice-attribute arts to counter them. Otherwise, there's no telling how long this battle will drag on." Elder Lu called out urgently, watching as each small shield on the Fire Toad Beast shattered only to dissolve into wisps of fire qi that were drawn back into the beast's body, after which batch after batch of new light shields surged forth.
There was no need for the elder to say this — Han Li had already noticed the situation himself.
Without a word, he swept his great sleeve, and over a dozen gleaming golden flying swords shot forth. After a brief circling, they condensed under Han Li's incantation into a single massive sword roughly ten feet long.
The sword radiated a brilliant golden light, its frigid aura piercing and oppressive.
This move left Lu Weiying and the Marquis of Nanlong momentarily stunned.
They had wanted Han Li to deploy that terrifying blue cold flame against the Fire Toad, yet he had released a flock of flying swords instead. They were naturally perplexed.
Seeing the great sword fully formed, Han Li expressionlessly raised a hand and beckoned toward it.
The golden light flickered, and the great sword descended, hovering before Han Li.
Han Li opened his mouth, and a slender tongue of blue flame shot forth, striking squarely upon the great sword.
The golden sword trembled slightly, and then a layer of blue flame enveloped it, blazing fiercely.
Han Li hesitated for a moment, then rubbed his palms together and sent another hand seal into the sword, activating the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder within.
A deep rumble of thunder immediately resounded, and amid the blue flames of the great sword, countless slender arcs of golden lightning appeared, flashing ceaselessly.
Han Li's eyes flashed coldly at this sight. With one hand, he pointed a single finger at the Fire Toad Beast within the water curtain and uttered the word: "Go."
With a deep hum, the great sword transformed into a streak of golden radiance that shot forth, slashing straight at the Fire Toad Beast.
At this moment, the Marquis of Nanlong and Lu Weiying's frenzied assault had proved ineffective, and their offensive momentarily slackened. Seizing this chance, the Fire Toad finally caught its breath.
Its crimson spiritual aura flickered between dim and bright, and its belly suddenly began to swell drastically — it appeared to be preparing some manner of supernatural power to counterattack.