It was only a quarter of an hour later when Bing Xiaotian and the others emerged from the water, their hands naturally gripping the corpse of the giant beast. However, a gaping hole had been rent into the top of the beast's skull; its vital inner core, it seemed, had long since been claimed by one of them.

Dragging the carcass to the center, He Yiming, without a word, released the Five Elements Ring. The giant hand manifested by the five-colored light swept across the ice surface, leaving it instantly bare.

Bing Xiaotian and the others watched He Yiming with envious eyes, wondering how he had managed to forge such a powerful Five Elements Space.

Although they vaguely knew the origin of the Five Elements Ring, they absolutely refused to believe that He Yiming hadn't refined it further.

Yet, no matter how much they speculated, they could never have conceived that the Nine Dragons Furnace, the foremost fire-elemental divine artifact rumored throughout the world, actually resided within the Five Elements Ring.

"This Holy Beast King is truly too dull," He Yiming said with a disarming smile. "If a few more idiots like this show up, we'll be rich."

The Qilin Holy Master retorted sharply, "It's not that the Holy Beast King was slow; it's that the inherent malevolent aura of the Qilin Beast naturally possesses the ability to provoke the Holy Beast Kings."

Ji Mo Fanshu chuckled coldly a few times. "And those beasts surely never imagined that a Qilin Beast, possessing the noble bloodline of a Divine Beast, would actually conspire with humans to set a trap."

The Qilin Holy Master's face darkened. "Old Assassin, are you looking to challenge me to a duel?"

Ji Mo Fanshu snorted dismissively. "One-on-one, I am no match for you."

Although he stated he was no match, the mocking tone underlying his words was unmistakable.

Bing Xiaotian frowned deeply and hurriedly intervened. "Everyone, with a powerful enemy before us, we should be uniting. Please, do not fall into internal strife."

The Qilin Holy Master and Ji Mo Fanshu exchanged a look, finally turning away without another word.

He Yiming shook his head slightly. This assembled team, comprised of the strongest figures among contemporary humans, appeared incredibly formidable, yet it was rife with internal contradictions. He became increasingly certain that the moment the ice island opened and they successfully entered, this alliance would dissolve.

Half a day later, another colossal roar echoed. Just as Ji Mo Fanshu predicted, these North Sea Holy Beast Kings absolutely had not anticipated that the proud Qilin Beast, with its Divine Beast bloodline, would collude with humans. Therefore, they assumed that only one peak Divine Beast, the Qilin Beast, was present, giving them the audacity to issue challenges meant for one Sacred Beast against another.

If they had known that several of the most powerful scourges among humanity were also present, these cunning and intelligent Holy Beast Kings would surely have fled in the opposite direction.

The Qilin Holy Master nodded slowly. The Qilin Beast rose to its feet, shook its body a few times, turned its head, and looked coldly at Ji Mo Fanshu. "Old Assassin, watch my strength this time."

Carrying the Qilin Holy Master, the Qilin Beast vanished instantly. Zi Luli and Di Shitian exchanged wry smiles and quickly pursued them.

Yuan Lixun's eyes widened, almost unable to believe what she heard.

Although she had spent over a year with the Qilin Beast, and had even developed powerful mental abilities stimulated by its malevolent aura, the Qilin Beast had never spoken human language during that time.

The beautiful eyes of White Horse Thunder were darting around; it was clearly startled by the Qilin Beast's performance as well. Only the Treasure Pig maintained an air of calm composure; while there was envy in its eyes, there was no sense of surprise.

He Yiming gently patted the White Horse and the Treasure Pig, smiling faintly. "You two need to work harder."

They glanced at each other, their eyes filled with considerable distress. For a Sacred Beast to speak human language... just how had that Qilin Beast managed it?

The distant, provocative howls quickly morphed into mournful cries, which instantly faded away.

He Yiming knew that the Qilin Holy Master must have smashed through the ice surface and dragged the monster back into the water, the intent being to stop it from roaring any further.

However, what struck He Yiming as strange was that most of the North Sea Holy Beast Kings were creatures of the water—the previous Azure one, the Giant Turtle, and the first challenger to the Qilin Beast, an unknown large fish from the water. Yet, before challenging, these creatures all seemed compelled to leap out of the water and utter a few roars. He couldn't fathom how they developed such habits.

A quarter of an hour later, the Qilin Holy Master and the others returned safely. Though their speed had been faster, the Qilin Holy Master's robes were ripped in several large gashes. Fortunately, the old man's physique was robust, so he hadn't suffered any real injury.

He tossed the corpse of an unknown Holy Beast King before He Yiming, the Qilin Holy Master shot a cold glance at Ji Mo Fanshu, and then left with the Qilin Beast to recuperate.

The others merely shook their heads silently, but He Yiming sighed inwardly. No wonder Bing Xiaotian hadn't invited Ji Mo Fanshu to guard Yuan Lixun last time; it seemed his decision was indeed correct.

One day later, the third roar sounded. He Yiming laughed heartily. He and Yuan Lixun mounted the White Horse together, lightly tapped its flank, and shot out like lightning.

Bing Xiaotian and the others exchanged glances, a hint of worry flickering in their eyes.

Among the three groups, He Yiming's team was undeniably the weakest in terms of sheer power. Despite having the aid of Yuan Lixun's Ice Mirror, her martial cultivation was too low; it might suffice for a sneak attack, but it might not be enough to freeze a frenzied Holy Beast King in a direct confrontation.

However, despite their concern, they did not follow to see what would happen. In the current situation, their only option was to trust He Yiming.

※※※※

Once White Horse Thunder unleashed its full speed, it became as fast as lightning.

The Holy Beast King coming to its death in the third encounter was a massive blue crab, measuring over seven zhang long. Its pair of great pincers were enormous and terrifying; it could crush not just one person, but an entire row of people with ease.

At that moment, it held its two large pincers high, emitting a deafening roar that seemed to be showing off its might.

However, a flash of white light appeared before it. To its bewildered eyes, a streak of purple lightning unceremoniously struck its body. Its proud, high-pitched roar instantly became soft as cotton and tender as water, contorting wildly under the intense electrical stimulation.

He Yiming raised both hands high. In each hand, a massive cycle spun.

In his left hand, the combined power of light and darkness formed the two realms of Yin and Yang—Heaven and Hell.

In his right hand, the Flower of the Great Cycle of Five Elements soared into the sky, the cycle of life and death.

Forces of distinct radiance instantly shot forth from his hands, striking the giant crab whose body was writhing and dancing a bizarre jig before him.

The most powerful martial skills from the Eastern and Western worlds manifested simultaneously through He Yiming.

The seven different elemental divine powers were exerted to their absolute peak...

On the left, silently, half the giant crab's body seemed to melt away, losing a full fifth of its mass. Only the large pincer was preserved intact due to He Yiming's precise control.

On the right, a colossal boom erupted. The Five Elements Reincarnation exploded completely, obliterating the other half of its body. The only part remaining perfectly whole was the pincer that had once looked so menacing, having taken the lives of countless beings.

In one move, a single strike, He Yiming had utterly annihilated the powerful Holy Beast King.

Yuan Lixun, seated before He Yiming, once again widened her beautiful eyes. Although she held the replica divine artifact, the Ice Mirror, at that moment, her only sensation was that the replica artifact felt like a mere prop.

He Yiming leaped high, sharply tapping the giant crab's forehead. The five-fold True Qi amplification ability from the Five Elements Ring instantly helped the crab, which had only one breath left, find its final release.

The Five Elements Ring spun around He Yiming's body. At this moment, it possessed an ineffable spiritual quality.

He Yiming sighed softly. After all, the Five Elements Ring was not a true Divine Artifact; after He Yiming input Divine Power, it was unable to obtain the special effect of True Qi amplification.

However, he firmly believed that once he refined the Five Elements Ring into a genuine Divine Artifact, it would certainly be able to amplify the power of the Divine, and even the might of Heaven and Earth, fivefold.

Looking at the wreckage, He Yiming searched with his mind and instantly located the coveted inner core hidden in the crab's head. With a gentle wave of his hand, the Five Elements Ring smashed a bloody path through the crab shell and seized the core. He Yiming casually placed it into a jade vial and tossed it to Yuan Lixun.

The crab shell itself was excellent material for forging defensive divine weapons, but compared to the shell of a Profound Turtle, it was vastly inferior.

Thus, what He Yiming truly valued were only the inner core and those two terrifying great pincers.

The five-colored light swirled in the air and swept the shattered remains of the giant crab into the Five Elements Space. Then, the five-colored light circled once more before manifesting as a mighty force, slamming down onto the ice surface, quickly shattering the area into shards of ice that plunged into the sea.

However, it was clear that in this freezing weather, those ice shards might not melt; perhaps by the next day, they would freeze back into ice of the same thickness.

But none of that concerned He Yiming.

"Yiming, how did you do that?" Yuan Lixun asked, clutching the jade vial, her face full of disbelief.

She knew He Yiming was strong; even Bing Xiaotian and the others held him in great awe.

But after witnessing his movements firsthand, she finally understood how truly powerful he was. The Holy Beast King, which required a full quarter of an hour for the other four Human Dao peak experts to subdue together, couldn't even withstand a single move from him. While the White Horse's lightning strike played a role, with her perception, she could see that the gap in their strength was simply too vast.

This disparity was almost on the level of a difference in rank, yet were there no Divine Paths left in this world?

He Yiming chuckled, raising a single finger: "Shhh..."

Yuan Lixun paused for a moment, then revealed a smile of understanding. They remounted the horse and turned back.

Ps: Five chapters completed today. For the ultimate goal, White Crane urgently requests monthly votes. Tomorrow, five chapters again. Thank you...