The crimson round furnace, having long been poised for action, was immediately launched by Li Buwei. As soon as its lid opened, a torrent of inferno erupted.
Upon witnessing this, Lu Xian swiftly conjured the large banner before him. The damaged banner, previously torn by Nanxi's strike, swept through the air, using spiritual light to hold the surging flames at bay mid-air.
Meanwhile, the Fire Monkey let out a hearty laugh. It repeatedly struck out with its palms, forcing the sea of fire before it to recede. Even more surprisingly, a significant portion of the flames converged onto its own hands.
Ji Yuan's brow furrowed. Without hesitation, he drew the long whip from his waist and, with a flick of his wrist, lashed out directly at the Fire Monkey.
As his Dharma power surged into it, the Yuan Chen Whip pulsed with wave after wave of watery light. Upon contact with the opponent's palms, it immediately extinguished much of the raging inferno coiled around them.
The adversary, however, remained unfazed. Laughing wildly, he advanced, his front now a blur of flaming palm strikes.
At the same time, with the aid of his companion, the power of Lu Xian's manipulated artifact greatly increased. A mere sweep of the banner's surface repelled the roaring waves of fire.
He even opened his mouth and expelled a stream of pure Dharma power, injecting it into the banner. This immediately caused the spiritual light emanating from its sweep to strengthen by more than half.
The surging sea of fire was instantly pushed back by the sweep of the banner. Even the crimson round furnace was sent into a precarious wobble by the spiritual light, appearing to struggle to maintain its stability.
Ji Yuan and Li Buwei exchanged a glance. Gritting their teeth fiercely, they channeled the Dharma power within their bodies, doing their utmost to hold back the advance of Lu Xian and the Fire Monkey.
"Zhou Lianying! Quickly go and snatch the Inheritance Orb!"
The former suddenly shouted, his voice filled with urgency.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Lianying was momentarily stunned. Then, steeling herself, she disregarded the covetous gazes of several second-realm cultivators and prepared to snatch the orb containing the inheritance.
But at that very moment, a figure moved faster than her. With just a few swift movements, he had covered seven or eightzhang and reached out towards the Inheritance Orb atop the mountain peak.
This figure was none other than Hong Lie, who had been waiting for his opportunity. Despite having agreed to a joint effort with the other two, he did not hesitate to strike the moment a chance arose.
Currently, the middle-aged swordsman Nanxi was locked in a fierce battle with Shi Shan, who cultivated both Dharma and body. Their sword energy clashed and Dharma power surged, making it impossible for either to attend to anything else.
Lu Xian and his companion, along with the Fire Monkey, who also cultivated both Dharma and body, were being held in check by Ji Yuan and Li Buwei.
At this moment, only Hong Lie and Zhou Lianying on the mountaintop were free to act. The former clearly did not consider the latter, who was only in the Enlightenment realm, a threat.
This timing could not be called perfect, but at least it could be considered opportune.
However, Ji Yuan and Li Buwei showed no surprise on their faces. On the contrary, they seemed to have anticipated this turn of events.
Exchanging a look, they successively withdrew their Dharma power. One retrieved the crimson round furnace they had launched, while the other pulled back his long whip.
In an instant, the other two who had been restrained were freed. Instead of pressing their advantage, they quickly turned and attacked Hong Lie.
In the next breath, as the banner's surface danced, streams of spiritual light shot out, transforming into short, forearm-length flying swords in mid-air.
Simultaneously, the Fire Monkey let out a soft cry and then slowly struck out with a palm. A torrent of Dharma power surged forth, coalescing with its vital energy into a palm strike half a zhang wide, engulfed in scorching flames.
Seeing this, Hong Lie immediately understood that he had been outmaneuvered by the two behind him. Yet, at this point, he could neither advance nor retreat.
He knew clearly that if he evaded their attacks, those behind him would certainly not stand by and watch him escape; they would undoubtedly join forces to pressure him.
Furthermore, he was only six or seven zhang away from the Inheritance Orb, practically within arm's reach.
Therefore, Hong Lie was unwilling to let such a monumental opportunity slip through his fingers.
He gritted his teeth fiercely and slammed his palm onto his chest. In the next instant, he spat out mouthfuls of blood exuding spiritual energy.
As soon as the crimson blood erupted, it coalesced into a palm-sized blood bead. Pure spiritual energy churned within it, emitting a pungent odor of blood.
Hong Lie grunted deeply, his hands forming a Dharma seal. The Dharma power within him surged out, all of it integrating into the blood bead before him.
A powerful aura erupted. He was clearly fighting with his back against the wall now, employing his ultimate techniques.
The blood bead spun rapidly, and blood-red light scattered. Both the flying swords formed from spiritual light and the flame-engulfed palm strikes began to emit wisps of black smoke under the illumination of the blood-red light.
The attacks of Lu Xian and the Fire Monkey were corroded by this blood-red light. Within mere breaths, the two lost their connection and could no longer control their respective techniques.
Then, the flying swords abruptly disintegrated, and even the flame-engulfed palm strikes dissipated explosively under the erosion of the blood-red light.
However, the blood bead's volume had shrunk by two or three circles, causing Hong Lie's eyes to sting with pain.
But this was not the time to dwell on such matters. He opened his mouth and spat out four or five more mouthfuls of blood, causing the blood bead before him to grow several circles larger than before.
Under the illumination of waves of blood-red light, Lu Xian's face immediately turned pale. He hastily unleashed several streams of pure Dharma power, barely stabilizing his faltering artifact.
At the same time, he let out a low growl, his words filled with chilling killing intent: "You are from the Blood Fiend Hall!"
Upon hearing this, the faces of the others also changed, their gazes subtly taking on a murderous glint.
The Blood Fiend Hall, along with the Crimson Flame Mountain and Yin Yang Sect, were all demonic sects lurking within the Great Yu Dynasty. Their signature technique was to use blood-red light to corrode the artifacts, and even the Dharma power, of other cultivators.
The cultivators of this demonic sect most commonly engaged in devouring the vital essence and blood of cultivators and even demonic beasts through various means to rapidly increase their own cultivation.
If one were to rank the demonic sects most detested by righteous cultivators among the five major demonic sects, the Blood Fiend Hall would surely rank at least second, surpassed only by the Yin Yang Sect, which captured souls.
"What are you waiting for? Demonic cultivators are targets for everyone to eliminate!"
Lu Xian shouted loudly, his demeanor radiating killing intent.
However, Ji Yuan and Li Buwei exchanged a look and then both retreated two steps, showing no intention of attacking.
The majority of their strength lay in their artifacts. Until they found a way to counter it, they were unwilling to have their artifacts and treasures corroded and tainted by the opponent's blood-red light.
Seeing this, Lu Xian's expression turned somewhat grim. Although he also felt a desire to retreat, unwilling for his artifact to be defiled, he suddenly felt a gaze upon him.
He turned his head and met Hong Lie's eyes, a layer of blood-red light now filling the latter's pupils.
At this point, the man no longer concealed his identity and simply revealed all his hidden means.
In the next moment, Hong Lie formed hand seals, and streams of blood-red light erupted from his body, with blood fiend energy coiling around him.
There were no rolling demonic energies, only an overwhelmingly thick blood fiend aura. A blood bead slowly ascended, emitting a dazzling blood-red radiance.
Silently, a sword of blood fiend energy coalesced and, without a sound, streaked out. It then rotated in mid-air and, with a silent strike, slashed downwards.
The seemingly soft and powerless strike caused Lu Xian to appear extremely solemn. His companion beside him fully channeled his Dharma power, mobilizing the spiritual energy from over a dozen array formations and pouring it unceasingly into the large banner.
With his companion assisting him, Lu Xian let out a soft shout, exhibiting a spirited demeanor.
At his command, the banner in mid-air rustled violently, conjuring streams of spiritual energy that, in a short while, transformed into over a dozen flying swords.
Immediately after, Lu Xian changed his hand seals. The over a dozen flying swords merged into one, enveloped by five-colored auspicious clouds, and their blades flickered with wisps of sword energy.
A five-colored flying sword and a blood fiend longsword then collided in mid-air, sending ripples of violent energy surging outwards in all directions.
Suddenly, Hong Lie's expression darkened slightly. He abruptly grabbed the blood bead with his hand and then swung his arm forcefully, hurling the blood bead towards his side.
At some unknown time, the Fire Monkey had already stealthily advanced before him. Now, it ferociously struck out with its palms.
However, under the eruption of blood-red light, the heavy palm strikes instantly disintegrated. The Fire Monkey, who cultivated both Dharma and body, was sent flying backward by the arm holding the blood bead!
Who could have imagined that Hong Lie, who had initially seemed the least threatening, and who had only managed to enter the mountain protection formation through trickery to obtain a jade token, could now, solely through his own efforts, suppress Lu Xian, a pair of array cultivators, and the Fire Monkey who cultivated both Dharma and body?
Observing him, he even appeared relatively relaxed, not showing any excessive pressure.
"There's no time. You deal with that Lu Xian. As for Hong Lie and the Fire Monkey, I will handle them."
Ji Yuan suddenly spoke.
He had originally intended to continue observing, waiting for the three parties to fight amongst themselves, depleting their Dharma power, and even hoping for someone to be eliminated.
However, seeing the increasingly fierce battle between Nanxi and Shi Shan, this idea of sitting on the sidelines and watching the tigers fight had to be abandoned.
Based on their current state, the two would likely reach a conclusion within another twenty or thirty breaths.
Unless they both suffered mutual destruction and lost all fighting capability, any victor, even if injured, would pose a significant problem for them.
Li Buwei nodded. Upon hearing the light shout from beside him, he immediately unleashed the crimson round furnace he had long prepared.
This time, he truly went all out, holding back nothing, clearly understanding the importance of the current juncture.
Under his full power, the crimson round furnace spewed forth flames imbued with scorching heat, transforming into waves of fire that surged outwards.
Next, Li Buwei's hand seals shifted. The rolling waves of fire churned in mid-air and then condensed into firebirds flapping their wings and soaring high!
These firebirds were about the size of watermelons, numbering twenty in total. They were formed entirely of flames yet appeared remarkably agile, as if they possessed genuine life.
The firebirds emanated heat capable of melting metal and stone. With their synchronized wing beats, the gusts of wind they stirred were scorching hot. Even Lu Xian and his companion's clothes, though protected by Dharma power, had become scorched and yellowed, almost igniting.