Shi Chuankong's eyes immediately lit up at the sight of the sword, and Han Li's gaze also lingered on it momentarily, but most of his attention was still focused on Fox 3.

At this moment, Fox 3 was a little different in appearance compared to his usual self. Layers of hemispherical light had appeared around him like layers of illusions, giving him a rather indistinct appearance.

After observing Fox 3 for only a short while, Han Li felt a throbbing pain in his eyes, and he couldn't help but massage his own glabella.

Right at this moment, a shimmering golden talisman appeared between the tips of the index and middle fingers of his left hand.

Han Li took a glance at the talisman, and a hint of befuddlement flashed through his eyes. He could sense that the talisman was brimming with spiritual power that was on the verge of overflowing, but he didn't recognize it.

"Is that... a Golden Spirit Gathering Sword Talisman?" Shi Chuankong exclaimed in a surprised voice.

However, Fox 3 seemed to have entered some type of profound state of immersion, and he didn't hear Shi Chuankong at all. He was carrying many injuries, and it was clear that he wasn't faking his condition, but at this moment, his aura was steadily climbing, and he was almost back to his peak condition.

"What is this Golden Spirit Gathering Sword Talisman, Fellow Daoist Shi?" Han Li asked.

"It's a type of talisman that can drastically enhance the power of an immortal sword for a short time, and the effectiveness of the talisman varies depending on the material used. That golden talisman is a premium talisman, and it's no exaggeration to say that it's a priceless treasure," Shi Chuankong explained.

Right at this moment, Fox 3 suddenly waved the talisman in his left hand through the air, then adhered it firmly to the blade of his sword, and the talisman instantly erupted into golden flames.

A golden rune that was around half a foot in length appeared on the silver longsword within the golden flames, and the sword instantly began to tremble violently, while the spiritual power fluctuations that it was giving off became ten times more formidable.

With this sudden change, the immortal sword had almost been elevated to the level of a fifth-grade immortal treasure.

At the same time, around a dozen giant projections of Fox 3 appeared all around him, each of which was several thousand feet tall and was wielding an enlarged version of the same silver sword, and as he took a step forward, all of the projections also stepped forward with him.

Liu Qi's eyes lit up slightly upon seeing this.

With a thunderous roar from Fox 3, all of the projections raised their swords in unison before sending them crashing down upon the azure chain in unison.

A sharp clang rang out as a burst of bright swordlight erupted from the azure chain, flooding the entire area with blinding radiance.

Gusts of ferocious wind swept through the air in all directions from the point where the sword was grating against the chain, causing the robes of Han Li and the others to flap audibly.

"Such incredible sword qi!" Shi Chuankong couldn't help but praise as he raised a hand in front of himself for cover.

Weeping Soul was still yet to recover from her injuries, so she was forced to stay back and watch from afar.

Han Li also took half a step backward, and at the same time, he heaved a forlorn internal sigh.

He had noticed that despite the tremendous power of Fox 3's sword strike, the chain that it had struck remained virtually completely unmoved.

Right at this moment, a burst of dull rumbling rang out from within the azure Baleful Cleansing Pond, immediately following which a bolt of azure lightning erupted out of the pond, then surged along the azure chain to reach Fox 3 in the blink of an eye.

In the instant that the bolt of azure lightning struck the radiant swordlight released by Fox 3's silver longsword, the latter instantly exploded into countless fragments.

An enormous ball of lightning appeared within the shattered remnants of the swordlight, and Fox 3 was trapped within it, unable to free himself as arcs of lightning ravaged his body from all directions, causing him to tremble violently while letting loose a string of agonized howls.

Massive arcs of azure lightning were constantly erupting out of the ball of lightning, causing the surrounding space to rumble and quiver, and a charred odor was quickly spreading through the air. This lightning was countless times more powerful than even the tribulation lightning that Han Li had endured to ascend to the True Immortal Realm.

An alarmed look appeared on Shi Chuankong's face upon seeing this, and he wanted to lend Fox 3 his assistance, but he had no idea how.

Weeping Soul's brows furrowed slightly as she turned to Han Li, who was, in turn, observing Patriarch Liu Qi.

Liu Qi was still in a crouched position, and arcs of azure lightning were being transmitted along the azure chain before striking his body, causing his fur to stand up on end, but he didn't seem to be in any pain at all.

His eyes habitually narrowed slightly, and he wasn't displaying much surprise or disappointment in response to Fox 3's failed attempt to free him. All of a sudden, he raised one of his giant tails, then swept it through the air before wrapping it around the azure chain.

Immediately thereafter, a burst of azure light rose up around him alongside an incredibly violent aura, and the tail wrapped around the chain was lifted up even higher, hoisting the entire chain up into the air.

The tail then came plummeting down out of the sky, and the azure chain shuddered violently as a ball of dense black light shot out of Liu Qi's tail before hurtling toward the giant ball of azure lightning.

Both the black light and the ball of lightning exploded in unison upon contact, and arcs of azure lightning and specks of black light erupted forth in all directions alongside ferocious shockwaves, causing the surrounding space to tremble violently.

Han Li and the others immediately flew back in retreat while conjuring up layers of protective spiritual light around themselves, but their efforts proved to be unnecessary as Liu Qi raised another one of his massive tails, positioning it in front of them to shield them from the oncoming shockwaves.

Only after close to a minute had passed did the sound of the howling wind gradually subside. At this point, the azure lightning and black light had already faded, and everything had returned to normal.

Liu Qi slowly withdrew his tail, then carried Fox 3 over to Han Li and the others with another one of his tails.

At this moment, Fox 3's robes were in tatters, and many parts of his body had been charred black. It appeared his injuries were quite severe, but in reality, they were only minor external injuries. In contrast, the silver longsword in his hand had dimmed significantly, looking as if it had sustained some rather serious damage.

"Thank you for saving me, esteemed patriarch. It appears I overestimated my own abilities," Fox 3 said in an embarrassed manner as he extended a respectful bow.

"It's already very impressive that you were able to muster up such a powerful attack as a High Zenith cultivator, but you were too hasty and overconfident. I can see that you've managed to elevate that sixth-grade immortal sword into a faux fifth-grade immortal sword using that talisman of yours, but I can tell you now that even if you had a true fourth-grade immortal treasure, you still wouldn't have been able to severe this azure lightning chain," Liu Qi said.

Han Li was internally rather disgruntled to hear this. If Liu Qi knew in advance that Fox 3 wouldn't be able to sever the chain, then why didn't he stop him?

"Even a fourth-grade immortal treasure wouldn't be able to sever this chain?" Fox 3 asked in an astonished manner.

"That's right. The four chains in these Baleful Cleansing Ponds were crafted by the Infernal Tribe using many types of precious materials gathered from all over the Gray Realm and the Immortal Realm, and there are also many types of fortification runes inscribed upon them, allowing them to fuse perfectly with the Baleful Cleansing Ponds. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to trap me for so many years," Liu Qi explained.

"If a fourth-grade immortal treasure can't even sever these chains, then there's nothing that we can do," Shi Chuankong mused with slightly furrowed brows.

"At your current levels of power, you'll perhaps only be able to sever these chains by using an immortal treasure of the third grade or above," Liu Qi said as he swept his gaze over Han Li in a subtle manner.

A dismayed look instantly appeared on Fox 3's face upon hearing this.

"Even in the Immortal Realm, third-grade immortal treasures are exceedingly rare, and even the average Great Encompassment cultivator wouldn't be guaranteed to have one. Where are we supposed to find a treasure of that caliber in the Gray Realm?"

A hesitant look flashed through Shi Chuankong's eyes upon hearing this, and he looked as if he were about to say something, but ultimately decided against it in the end.

His Virata Lute was a third-grade immortal treasure, but it was extremely significant to the Devil Race, so he chose not to offer it up.

Right at this moment, Liu Qi's gaze returned to Han Li, and he said, "If you're looking for a third-grade immortal treasure, then you don't have to look any further than this friend of yours here. Would you be willing to lend me your power?"

Han Li was very surprised and befuddled to hear this, and he didn't know if the third-grade immortal treasure that Liu Qi was referring to was the golden plate that he had obtained from the True Mantra Sect, the Heavenly Fox Bloodform Saber, or his Heaven Controlling Vial.

He could narrow it down to these three as they were the only three treasures in his possession that were completely unfathomable to him.

Before Han Li had a chance to say anything, Fox 3's eyes lit up with elation as he declared, "It has to be that strange saber of yours, Brother Li! Please lend us your assistance. Our Heavenly Fox Race will be sure to compensate you handsomely!"

Han Li heaved an internal sigh as he attempted to contact Shi Qinghou with his spiritual sense, but he received no response, and it was as if Shi Qinghou had gone into hibernation.

Hence, he could only manually summon the Heavenly Fox Bloodform Saber.

Liu Qi's eyes clearly lit up slightly at the sight of the saber, and he immediately declared, "That's precisely the treasure that I'm referring to."

"My apologies, Senior, but judging from the attempt that Fellow Daoist Fox 3 made just now, even with this Heavenly Fox Bloodform Saber, I don't think I have any chance of severing this chain," Han Li said with an apologetic expression.

"Of course it would be impossible for you to sever this azure lightning chain with your own power alone," Liu Qi mused.

"Is there some type of external power that I can draw upon?" Han Li asked with a perplexed expression.