Chapter 1466: Ice Death Land and the Ten Thousand Vine Path

Bai Bi's command was met with no resistance from Han Li. Lei Lan and Ye Lu, initially shocked, now showed a simultaneous look of reverence. Han Li, however, remained unfazed. He waved at the three and then silently flew forward.

The other three immediately transformed into three streaks of spiritual light and followed him.

"Fellow Daoist Qin," Lei Lan asked Qin Xiao curiously, "I recall that more than one person from the Night Green Tribe arrived. Where are the others?"

"Our tribe dispatched three Saint Sons in total," replied the woman with small green horns on her head, a bitter expression on her face. "However, after entering the second level, we successively encountered several hostile factions, and the other two have already perished. I had originally intended to secretly enter the third level from a nearby entrance, hoping to fortuitously find a Netherflame Fruit. But unexpectedly, I ran into the Yellow Wind people on the way and was chased all the way to this point."

"Oh, the Yellow Wind Tribe sent so many people just to chase one fellow Daoist?" Lei Lan's eyes flickered, revealing a meaningful expression.

"Perhaps because I was carrying several of our tribe's treasures," Qin Xiao said cautiously after a moment of hesitation.

"I see." Observing Qin Xiao's evasiveness, Lei Lan raised her delicate eyebrows, finding it difficult to press further.

"To prompt the Yellow Wind Tribe to mobilize such forces and pursue you relentlessly, Fellow Daoist Qin, could it be that you possess one of your noble tribe's three great treasures?" Bai Bi interjected at that moment.

"This junior did indeed bring the Primordial Cauldron from our tribe," Qin Xiao said with a hint of helplessness after a moment, her expression subtly shifting.

"The Primordial Cauldron? The treasure that manipulates Primordial Force and can be wielded against enemies?" Both Bai Bi and Lei Lan were visibly moved.

"Precisely, it is this treasure. If not for it, how could a mere mid-level Spirit General like myself escape the Yellow Wind people's pursuit for so many days? Unfortunately, each activation of this cauldron requires several extremely rare Primordial Crystals. Even after exhausting all the crystals from our tribe, there isn't a single one left," the woman said with a sigh.

Upon hearing her explanation, both Lei Lan and Bai Bi instinctively glanced at Han Li, who was still ahead.

Yet, Han Li never once looked back, as if he had not heard a word of their conversation.

Seeing Han Li's complete lack of interest, Lei Lan and Bai Bi exchanged a glance. They immediately dropped the subject and instead began courteously discussing matters concerning the third level of the Earth Abyss with Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao, seeing this, breathed a deep sigh of relief.

While the Night Green Tribe and the Sky-Peng Tribe did have some alliances, these were merely verbal agreements with no binding force. If the other three were to harbor intentions of seizing her treasure, she would be utterly powerless to resist, given the formidable abilities Han Li had just demonstrated.

Conversely, given Han Li's recent display of ferocity, relying on him as a protector and ally would ensure extreme safety if she were to follow him.

Embracing this thought, Qin Xiao made no mention of leaving and instead happily chatted with Lei Lan. Through careful observation and deliberate efforts to forge a connection, she conversed very congenially with the other woman. Before long, they were addressing each other as sisters.

Bai Bi, witnessing this, frowned slightly.

Two days later, after slaying several waves of low and mid-level demonic beasts, the group finally flew out of the mountain range. Before them lay a peculiar world of ice and snow.

Their escaping light involuntarily slowed as they all meticulously surveyed the landscape before them.

Crystalline, dark black glaciers stretched endlessly. Enveloped by gusts of bitter wind, countless black snowflakes drifted down, and whistling, piercing cries rose and fell intermittently, as though innumerable vengeful spirits roamed deep within the ice.

From a distance, the deeper regions of the glacier appeared pitch black, seemingly devoid of any light, resembling a wide-open gate to the netherworld.

"This must be the renowned Ice Fiend Land of the second level," Han Li murmured, seemingly to himself. "I've heard that numerous low and mid-level Ice Fiend demonic creatures are stationed here, and some have even occasionally sighted an Ice Fiend Demon King."

"Brother Han is right, this is indeed the Ice Fiend Land," Qin Xiao dutifully interjected. "However, most of the Ice Fiends here are low and mid-level demonic creatures that haven't yet developed sentience. As for the Ice Fiend Demon King, that's merely a rumor; few seem to have seen one with their own eyes."

"While this place appears dangerous, in reality, with our divine abilities, passing through here shouldn't pose a significant problem," Bai Bi added with a smile.

"Logically speaking, this place shouldn't pose much danger," Han Li said, nodding. "However, with the impending eruption of the Earth Abyss demon tide, it's better to exercise caution. All right, let's enter!" With that, he flapped the wings on his back. The speed of his escaping light instantly doubled, and after a few blinks, he plunged into the black ice and snow that lay directly before them.

Lei Lan and the other two exchanged glances, then likewise vanished into the depths.

Initially, from a distance, various spiritual lights flickered, and one could still faintly discern their escaping lights.

However, after a powerful black wind, carrying a large volume of black particles, swept through, the group vanished into the darkness.

With a resounding "bang," a rhinoceros-like demonic beast, over ten zhang tall, crashed heavily to the ground.

Its immense body even caused the nearby ground to tremble slightly.

A brilliant red light flared, and dozens of red threads shot out from the black body of the rhinoceros, disappearing in a flash as they merged into a figure shrouded in red light hovering in the air. "Senior Brother Zhu, your Crystalflame Threads have become even more refined," exclaimed another winged figure nearby, also enveloped in red light. "The hide of this mid-level black rhinoceros is as tough as that of some high-level demonic creatures, yet you were able to slay it with such ease. I doubt even Fei Ye of the Nanlong Tribe possesses such skill." Several other individuals accompanying him also offered continuous praise.

The one who had struck was none other than Zhu Yinzi of the Crimson Flame Tribe! The other individuals were, naturally, fellow Saint Sons of the same tribe.

Their location was a circular basin thousands of *li* in circumference. All around them stretched dense black-green forests, but the center, over a hundred kilometers across, was a barren expanse, littered with skull-sized, grey, oval-shaped rocks, giving it a stark and desolate appearance.

At the very center of this rocky expanse lay a dark, gloomy cave, over a hundred *zhang* wide, which appeared to lead deep underground.

The Crimson Flame Tribe members were guarding the vicinity of this cave entrance. The black rhino demon had evidently emerged from the nearby dense forest but was swiftly killed by Zhu Yinzi with a single strike.

"Hmph, stop with the flattery, all of you," Zhu Yinzi declared after a moment of contemplation in the air. "We've been guarding this entrance for three or four days. Besides completely annihilating another minor tribe, we haven't encountered anyone from the Sky-Peng Tribe yet. It seems they either took the other two passages or are still lingering on the second level. It's likely that members of other major tribes have already entered the third level. The Sky-Peng Tribe members must certainly be eliminated, but we also cannot abandon the search for the Netherflame Fruits. Here's what we'll do: Chitian, Hongsha, you two will descend to the third level with me. The rest of you will continue to guard this spot. I will personally find your Netherflame Fruits for you."

"Senior Brother Zhu," Chitian said, his eyes darting around, a worried expression on his face, "that fellow from the Sky-Peng Tribe, Han, doesn't seem to have weak cultivation. If only a few of us Senior Brothers remain, might there be some unforeseen incident?"

"Hehe, rest assured on that point," Zhu Yinzi said without hesitation, as if he had long considered this matter. "Junior Brother You's cultivation isn't much weaker than mine. I'll also leave behind our tribe's treasure, the Soul-Dropping Bell. When activated, this bell is silent and invisible, making it impossible to guard against. Even a Spirit Commander-level existence, if caught unprepared, would be forced to surrender. If Junior Brother You ambushes them stealthily, there will absolutely be no problems."

He then opened his mouth and spat out a ball of green light, which enveloped a small, antique-looking bell, about an inch high.

With a single tap of his finger, the small bell flashed and vanished, but the next moment, after a low chime, it suddenly reappeared above the head of a brawny Crimson Flame Tribe man, slowly descending.

"Thank you, Senior Brother, for bestowing this treasure. I, You, will certainly not fail your trust!" The man surnamed You raised his hand to support the small bell, his voice deep and emotionless, yet strangely sharp and grating, like metal scraping.

Although the man surnamed You was not very talkative, Zhu Yinzi appeared to have immense faith in his abilities. After nodding, he waved his hand, and taking Chitian and Hongsha with him, transformed into three streaks of red light and vanished into the cave.

"Listen up!" the burly man commanded without ceremony, as soon as Zhu Yinzi was out of earshot. "From now on, everyone must conceal their figures and avoid revealing their presence nearby. I will set up the Three Talents Concealment Array inside the entrance and hide within it. Once the target truly arrives, I will use the Soul-Dropping Bell to ambush them. It won't be too late for you to reappear then."

This man surnamed You appeared to wield considerable authority among the Crimson Flame Tribe's Saint Sons, as the others voiced no objections whatsoever. They immediately began forming hand seals and conjuring their treasures.

In the blink of an eye, the other individuals successively vanished into invisibility within the void.

With a movement, the burly man surnamed You also vanished into the dark cave.

All at once, the vicinity of the enormous cave became exceptionally quiet.

On the second level, deep within another dense forest of black-green giant trees, a hundred *li* away, a colossal black-yellow pillar, seemingly propping up the sky, stood majestically on an open, elevated slope.

Upon closer inspection, one would discover that this so-called "colossal pillar" was, in fact, an enormous plant, approximately a *li* in diameter. It appeared to be composed of countless unusually thick vines twisted together, stretching directly up into the sky.

Within a radius of several tens of *li* around this towering plant, not a single blade of grass grew, rendering the area akin to a desert.

Yet, at the base of this plant, booming explosions could be heard, accompanied by a continuous flickering of spiritual lights of various colors.

Indeed, members of the Flying Spirit Tribe were trapped in the nearby low-altitude air by thousands of golden-yellow moths.

Of these two groups, one comprised about a dozen individuals, both male and female, all bearing black tattoos on their faces. The other group consisted of only four exceptionally tall men, each with a massive weapon strapped to his back.

The moths surrounding them were entirely golden and fist-sized. They did not approach the Flying Spirit Tribe members directly but instead flapped their wings from a distance, sending overwhelming clouds of colorful moth dust swarming towards them, completely besieging the Flying Spirit Tribe members.

Although these moth powders appeared ordinary, the two groups trapped within dared not allow a single speck to touch their bodies. They continuously unleashed various secret techniques, and several treasures transformed into shimmering shields, completely encasing them in protection.