As the words were spoken, the monk suddenly raised his hand—just the blue-and-gold stele. "Moji, what are you doing?" Han Li, the senior master, roared in outrage. Though he didn't understand why the monk had come to assist him, the precious artifact had now appeared at his doorstep, and naturally, Han Li would not hesitate to accept it. With a gentle sweep of his sleeve, a wave of emerald light surged forth, aiming to draw the stele into his sleeve. Upon seeing this, Han Li's expression darkened. Suddenly, he pressed a hand seal and swiftly pointed at the small stele. "Pffft!" The once perfectly still stele halted mid-air, its lid then shot upward, spewing forth a surge of intense blue flame. The stele then turned sharply, veering toward Han Li. "You've indeed made preparations from above!" the gray-robed monk murmured coldly, already anticipating the move. With a single, open palm gesture, he instantly summoned a glowing green hand that materialized on the stele and plunged downward to grasp it—aiming to reseal it. "Break it!" Han Li's eyes flashed with golden light as he thundered the command A thunderous sound followed, and the green hand on the back of his hand twisted violently. Suddenly, an ancient script shimmering with golden light appeared in mid-air. Then, with a tremendous "boom," the script burst apart, releasing an astonishing surge of golden light that completely obliterated the hand. "Haoran Changge Ju! You've actually cultivated the Confucian school's cultivation technique!" the monk breathed in astonishment. Yet Hán Lí the Elder paid no attention, raising a single hand and summoning the small cauldron, which immediately continued its flight and was swiftly captured. In that very instant, a strand of silvery hair mysteriously shot forth from the surrounding void, flashing with a green glow and instantly wrapping the cauldron, hurling it back with such force that no one had time to react. Hán Lí the Elder was startled, and without hesitation, pressed her palms together, chanting several "break" sounds. Several golden ancient characters burst forth along the silken strands, producing a thunderous roar. Yet the silken strands only slightly dispersed before swiftly returning to their original state, gently rolling the small tripod into the hands of another person. Before this person floated a second tripod, only a few inches in size, its characters shimmering and moving, resembling the Qianlan Tripod to about five or six degrees. The silken strands indeed shot out from this tripod. "Xutian Tripod!" Han Li murmured upon witnessing this scene. This person was none other than Han Li himself, who had just summoned the Xutian Tripod. Upon successfully capturing the Qianlan Tripod in his hands, he gently flicked his fingers toward the Xutian Tripod before him, and a soft "clink" echoed through the air. Several streams of silken threads erupted from the tripod, fully encircling the Qianlan Tripod and forming a shimmering, thread-wrapped sphere. With a simple sweep of his sleeve, he tucked the sphere into his sleeve, then calmly looked at Han Li, a subtle cold smile playing at the corner of his lips. "Excellent! Remarkable! You've already summoned the Xutian Trip Yet with your current cultivation level, you could at best reach the first stage of the Tongbao Technique—thus only tapping into a fraction of this spiritual artifact’s potential. Indeed, I never expected Master Mojiu to make such an unwise choice. You have now compelled even Master Han to take action against you. "As I watched the Qianlan Cauldron being retrieved, I did not grow angry; rather, I sighed gently and spoke to the monk. "I have known Master Han for over a hundred years. My actions here are merely for self-preservation. I do not wish for your court to eliminate Fr. Han only to eliminate me afterward. This matter of the Heaven-Opening Spiritual Artifact—wasn't it Master Han’s intention from the very beginning to keep me here? I am but a wandering cultivator, far less connected to Master Long and your court than Fr. Han is." From his sleeve, the gray-robed monk produced a wooden fish glowing with green light, his expression calm and composed. "Master Mojiu, what do you mean by that?" Upon hearing these words, the elder who had previously retreated to the side flashed a sharp gaze, her eyes gleaming with intensity, and asked coldly. "Why continue Others may be unaware of this matter, but I am well informed. The Li Cui Sect that Master Long presides over is nothing more than a branch of the Xiaojing Palace's outer gate division. Master Long himself is essentially one of the outer gate elders of Xiaojing Palace. Have I made any mistake, Brother?" the gray-robed monk said, his expression growing serious. "I didn't expect the Master to know so much about this. Master Long, it seems you no longer need to wait for the right moment—let us act together now." After a moment of silence, Han Li silently decided to no longer conceal his intentions. "Heh! It appears I can't even manage to be lazy now. Nevertheless, Elder Grandmaster, you never mentioned the matter of the Xutian Ding to me in advance. Are we also to keep this information confidential even from our outer gate elders?" The old woman's face remained as still as water, her hand flashing with yellow light, and a staff of one zhang in length, shaped like a dragon's head, materialized in her hands. Then, she suddenly said coldly to Han Li. "I have also acted with confidentiality in mind. Regardless, we must now capture these two and With this tripod as the palace's guardian treasure, I believe even should we face a mightier opponent in the future, we shall be able to repel them." Hán Lí, the monastic elder, replied somewhat evasively. "Moji, dear friend, shall be entrusted to me—you three proceed to deal with the young man named Han and secure the Xutian Tripod." The elderly woman, with her deeply etched wrinkles, expressed some dissatisfaction, yet still nodded in agreement. "Very well, then, that shall be settled thus." Seeing this, Hán Lí immediately ceased hesitation. With one hand, she flipped it slightly, and suddenly a pale blue array disc appeared in her grasp. With the other, she swiftly began to channel her hand seals. "Unfortunate! He's about to activate his seal—act quickly to stop it!" The gray-robed monk, observing Hán Lí's movements, immediately frowned and raised his hand, launching a bright green glow that swiftly sent her wooden fish flying. Then, with a swift application of her hand seals, a deep, resonant "thud" echoed from within the wooden fish. This sound was like a quiet resonance in an empty valley, or as if a Buddhist chant were being softly sung, causing those who heard it to feel a sudden stir in their spirit, as though their immortal essence had momentarily left their bodies. Yet all present were accomplished in their spiritual abilities, and the old woman—before the wooden fish even emitted its second tone—had already regained full awareness. With a cold exhalation, she pointed her walking stick at the wooden fish, and a thick, deep-yellow sword-like aura surged forth and vanished in an instant. The gray-robed monk, seeing this, could no longer delay in advancing his Buddhist chants to attack; instead, he swiftly poured his spiritual power into the wooden fish. The sacred object spun rapidly in the air, swelling dramatically until it reached the size of a stone, and then directly confronted the sword aura, resulting in a series of explosive sounds as the wooden fish became entangled with the light. Meanwhile, the cold and distant Master Han Li continued his hand seals without pause, and even began to emit a brilliant, radiant glow from his array disk. Han Li gently exhaled. He showed absolutely no intention of allowing Han Li to smoothly activate the spell array, raising his hand and swiftly flicking his fingers—ten to twelve streaks of jade-blue sword energy burst forth from his fingertips, aimed precisely at Han Li, who was continuously tapping the array disk. Han Li’s jade-blue sword energy, transforming into ten to twelve streaks of azure light, were intercepted mid-flight by several white sword energies and two streaks of black luminescence, which entangled them in a shimmering dance. The initiators were Bai Mengxin and the middle-aged man in green robes. As the sword energies were nearly severed into fragments in an instant, Han Li furrowed his brows, yet instead of immediately stepping in to block Han Li’s spellcasting, he merely shook his sleeve—fifty golden flying swords surged out like fish swimming, forming a radiant golden shield around himself, while he coldly observed Han Li’s every move. A deep, resonant roar suddenly erupted beneath him, startling Han Li momentarily, but he instantly flashed with a burst of luminous energy, rising into the air from the column of light. At that moment, the purple light column below suddenly vanished, giving way to a shimmering circular array pattern. Han Li felt an instant, powerful suction beneath him, making his body feel as heavy as a thousand pounds, pressing him straight downward. At the same time, vibrant light streaks flashed around him, with waves of strange spiritual energy continuously rippling. Before he could even begin to cast a spell, the scene around him abruptly transformed. He now found himself in a vast, wind-blown and snow-covered void. Snowflakes fell endlessly from the sky, while the ground below was clear and sparkling—revealing a vast expanse of ice and glaciers. "It's a spell! This is beginning to show promise!" Han Li smiled lightly as he stepped onto the ground, yet his face remained devoid of any warmth. The enchantments now pressing upon him had grown stronger, and if it weren't for his training in the Ming Wang Sect's technique, his body might have struggled to bear them. Still, compared to the gravity of the Jin Mi Ling Mu realm, this was nothing in comparison. Thinking thus, Han Li instantly stirred his mind, and as the golden swordlight spiraled around him, the gravitational force pressing upon his body was instantly severed. Encased in a sphere of golden light, his form rose slowly once more. Now scanning the surroundings, Han Li's eyes slightly narrowed, with blue glimmers flashing continuously. The area was blank and white all around, and the other people had vanished completely—seeming as though he were the only living being in an endless expanse. He raised his gaze toward the sky, where the massive snowflakes falling from above seemed endless. Suddenly, the blue glow in his eyes intensified, and with a low exclamation, the golden light swirling around him burst forth in several dozen streaks, aimed directly at a seemingly empty region of the heavens. A series of explosive cracks echoed from the void, followed by the interweaving and flickering of golden and white light, which then revealed a cluster of several dozen small swords. These flying swords were only a few inches in size, yet each one was translucent and luminous. Moments ago, they had concealed themselves within the wind and snow, silently advancing toward Han Li. However, Han Li had spotted them first, and with a simple gesture, he emitted swordlight that effortlessly shattered their traces. "Ah!" an expression of surprise sounded from somewhere—clearly White Mengxin's voice, yet tinged with astonishment. Yet as the dozen flying swords flickered, they vanished completely into the wind and snow. Han Li raised an eyebrow, then, without hesitation, pressed two hand seals. Instantly, golden light rippled around him, and a dozen slender golden swords shot forth—each glowing brilliantly, radiating a piercing cold. After a graceful spiral, these golden swords suddenly scattered and surged outward, producing another series of thunderous impacts. Each golden sword struck and revealed the true forms of the translucent flying swords. Then, as Han Li further accelerated his hand seals, both types of swords began to emit resonant hums. Their golden light and crystalline glimmers intertwined, and thus, a fierce clash began. Han Li saw this, his eyes flashing with intensity, and suddenly uttered a strange incantation. A low groan came from somewhere amid the wind and snow, and at a distance of several dozen zhang, a brilliant white light erupted, revealing a woman in a flowing white robe who immediately reached both hands to her head, her delicate face contorted with pain. It was Bai Mengxin, struck by Han Li's secret technique, "The Piercing that Causes Unconsciousness!" (First update!)