Although nervous under the gaze of so many, the woman of the Xu surname could only gently shake her sleeve, and a beam of white light shot out, spiraling before settling—exactly her own true essence artifact, the Ice Crystal Sword. In truth, she too felt deeply helpless. Even if the Green Wave Blade had been tampered with, as long as she had enough time to fully dissolve the new ten-thousand-year-old purple jade into the flying sword, the enhanced power of the Ice Crystal Sword would surely give her a chance to freeze the blade solid. Yet now, though she had summoned the sword, she hesitated to immediately strike the green flying blade, instead glancing uncertainly at Han Li. Han Li glanced at both the Ice Crystal Sword and the green flying blade, then suddenly extended his hand and reached out toward the sword in the air. The woman felt her true essence artifact tremble violently, and then, with a sudden "whoosh," it detached from her grasp and was seized by Han Li. Holding the sword handle in one hand, Han Li lightly tapped his fingers against the sword's surface, emitting a long, resonant sound reminiscent of a phoenix's call. The sound was pleasant and heavenly, truly like the music of the gods. The elder with the triangular eyes watched the scene, first startled, then a cold smile formed on his lips. Though at their level of cultivation, they could indeed employ techniques and secret methods to enhance the power of their own divine artifacts, it was extremely difficult—nearly impossible—to spontaneously amplify the power of another's life-bound artifact. After all, whether it was conflicts in spiritual energy or incompatibilities in the cultivation techniques, achieving seamless integration was no easy feat. Even in this instance, when he had recently bestowed such powerful capabilities upon his disciple's life-bound artifact, it had been only after he accidentally discovered a highly intricate spiritual seal, which he painstakingly refined over a month of dedicated cultivation. Now, facing a mere early-stage cultivator like Han Li, he simply could not believe that Han Li could achieve such a feat in an instant. Moreover, to freeze the Green Wave Blade, only an icy, cold-natured power would suffice—this added a significant limitation. The elder had thoroughly considered all these points, which was precisely why he felt no fear that Han Li might also be secretly preparing something. "A fine blade!" Han Li, however, seemed to have read every thought in the elder's mind. A slight smile played at his lips, and then, as if by instinct, the palm gripping the hilt suddenly burst forth with silver flame, instantly enveloping the entire flying sword in the glow. The flame flickered and vanished, leaving no trace. The once translucent flying sword instantly transformed into a silvery-white hue, and a vivid image of a firebird in flight emerged upon its surface—so lifelike that it appeared as though it had always been engraved there. This was precisely the effect Han Li achieved by forcefully channeling the Shenglin Heavenly Fire into the ice-crystal sword. The Shenglin Heavenly Fire, renowned for its ability to absorb and consume various forms of spiritual energy, and composed of the harmonious fusion of the Taiyin True Fire and the Taiyang Pure Fire, could thus seamlessly adapt to either extreme cold or extreme heat, allowing it to integrate effortlessly into the sword without causing any disturbance. Witnessing this spectacle, the elder's triangular eyes widened slightly, his pupils constricting momentarily, while everyone else was equally astonished. Han Li moved his hand, and the flying sword shot back with a sharp "whoosh." The Xu-named woman was startled, quickly pressing a series of sword gestures, instantly regaining control over the sword. Then, murmuring incantations, she rapidly flicked her jade fingers, a sequence of spells flashing onto the sword's surface, while channeling her entire inner energy into the blade. At once, the sword emitted a series of resonant hums, shuddered violently, and then a layer of silver flame surfaced on its surface. As it curled upward, it instantly transformed into a silver fire bird, measuring one zhang in height. The air throughout the hall dropped in temperature dramatically at the very moment the fire bird appeared, even forming layers of shimmering, snow-white frost on the nearby ground. With a cry of surprise, the fire bird flapped its wings furiously and plunged straight toward the green flying blade standing at some distance. Seeing the ice crystal sword clearly had also been manipulated by Han Li, now displaying greatly enhanced power, the dwarf looked somewhat alarmed, yet by this point, could only grit his teeth and, in turn, press his own seal to activate his own life-bound法宝. His green flying dagger shimmered and, as the light dimmed, rolled into a green dragon with a single horn on its head, fierce and menacing, charging forward. A tremendous roar echoed. The green dragon and the fiery bird collided, their green glow and silver flame intertwining. The bird then opened its beak wide and, in one gulp, swallowed half of the green dragon’s body, completely consuming it. The dwarf gasped, spitting out a fountain of blood, still stunned and unable to cast another spell. After a soft "puff," the fiery bird transformed into a dense, silvery mist, enveloping the fragmented green dragon within. As the silver light intensified, a sharp "crack" sounded, and a massive block of ice, over ten dozen feet high, rose into the sky. The green dragon蛟, frozen within, emitted a mournful cry as its body dissolved and vanished, revealing a flying dagger of dimmed luminescence. Fragile leaves failed to notice that, at the very instant the dagger appeared, a slender streak of silver light silently shot forth from the ice mist, flashed briefly into the dagger, and then disappeared without a trace. However, during the journey, a silver flame detached itself from the sword and flashed forth briefly before vanishing. A moment later, this flame had fully merged into Han Li's body and disappeared. Meanwhile, Huang Bao, who had been stunned, regained his composure and instantly shook with surprise. In the next instant, he appeared beside his disciple, and upon a quick glance at the dwarf on the ground, he noticed a strange milky frost forming on the dwarf's body, his complexion turning bluish, as though he were about to be frozen to death. "The cold has penetrated his body!" Huang Bao exclaimed, his face filled with shock. Yet, as a Fully Perfected Immortal, he immediately raised his sleeve and, without hesitation, swept a red glow toward the massive ice floating above. The light spiraled around the ice block. With a thunderous "boom," a burst of fiery clouds erupted, completely engulfing the ice block. The temperature in the hall surged dramatically, and the massive ice instantly melted and dissolved, allowing the green flying dagger to regain its freedom. In a flash, it shot back and embedded itself into the shorter figure's body. Yet Han Li showed no surprise at this sight. To conceal the true power of the Spirit-Consuming Heavenly Fire, after reducing the dagger's enhanced potency, the ice that had sealed it was sustained by the inherent cold of the crystal sword—otherwise, with such a powerful cold aura, the ice would have been easily dissolved. Nevertheless, Han Li demonstrated a few notable strengths, aiming to make the opponent aware of the challenge. Earlier, he had guided a strand of the Spirit-Consuming Heavenly Fire's extreme cold into the dagger, then directly infused it into the shorter figure's body through mental connection. In fact, this technique of coldness penetrating the body—though now newly mastered—had only recently been achieved by Han Li through the power of the Spirit-Consuming Heavenly Fire. He had also reviewed relevant materials, and it seemed that this ability stemmed from something quite significant—perhaps only the legendary, extreme cold forces of the spiritual realm could achieve it. The results were indeed impressive. In the eyes of the elderly man, Han Li now appeared profoundly enigmatic. The elder swiftly produced a crimson pill from his robes and placed it in the dwarf's mouth. Observing the gradual fading of the bluish tint on the dwarf's face, he exhaled a sigh before turning to Han Li, his expression both uncertain and fluctuating. "Han brother, your abilities are truly astonishing. Huang is deeply humbled and can only look on in admiration. As for my young disciple's proposal, it shall now be withdrawn. I shall be on my way," Huang said after a moment's thoughtful pause, finally offering a polite bow and a forced smile. Then, he picked up the dwarf and departed from the hall. Han Li gave a calm nod, saying little. Yet, as he watched the elder vanish suddenly at the entrance of the hall, his expression darkened immediately. Before Xu's woman had a chance to rise and offer her thanks, he coldly asked, "Do you know anything about this person's background?" Xu was momentarily taken aback, still unsure of the meaning behind Han Li's words, while the bearded man with green eyes quickly grasped the point and promptly replied, "Master Han, please rest assured. Huang and Bao are both disciples from a small sect known as Liusha Valley—not from any ancient, major lineage. In fact, he is the senior most abbot of Liusha Valley." "Ah, that explains it. Then I needn't bother myself further! Xu, this is the first time I've personally stepped in to assist you during our mission, and it will be the last. Should anything like this arise again, I hope you'll manage it on your own. Do you understand what I mean?" He suddenly turned to the female disciple. "The junior is clear. I sincerely thank you for your timely assistance this time. I promise there will be no such occurrences in the future." "Xu, the female cultivator, felt a slight weight in her heart, yet remained exceptionally respectful in her thanks. Han Li simply nodded slightly, then strode steadily toward the main gate, leaving the hall behind. "What exactly is this silver flame—such a profound cold force that it can manifest the divine power of chilling the very essence of one's being? The various cold flames mentioned in the legends seem quite different. Xu, I believe Master Han has been particularly kind to you. There must be some connection between you two—could you tell me what kind of cold flame this is?" After Han Li had gone far, the bearded man smiled wistfully and turned to ask Xu. "Master Han indeed has a close relationship with my ancestors. However, I have never heard of this particular type of cold flame before. When it consumed the wild beast human after their fusion into a combined state, such a feat was not particularly surprising. Still, Master Han seems to dislike others inquiring about his background. Perhaps you should not ask so many questions about it. Otherwise…" Xu gently sighed, adding the final remark. The man with green eyes frowned slightly, then nodded vigorously in agreement. At that moment, Han Li had already transformed into a streak of jade-green light, rushing straight toward the Tianyuan City marketplace. According to the information he had received, the auction was scheduled for noon—by now, it was precisely the right time to arrive.