Ji An had remained on guard the entire time. Almost by reflex, he unleashed Soaring Golden Light, vanishing from sight before reappearing above the lake four or five li away.
Only an afterimage remained where he had stood, which shattered beneath the enemy's Spiritual Treasure attack.
Even with disaster erupting at such close quarters, Miao You Sanren reacted swiftly. He hastily activated his Natal Spiritual Treasure, shielding his entire body with spiritual light as he fled upward.
Compared to the two of them, Qing Yue Sanren reacted half a beat too slowly. Half her body collapsed as though it were a stone struck by a heavy blow.
However, a mass of azure spiritual light suddenly burst from her body's surface. Her figure abruptly vanished and reappeared a hundred zhang away, completely uninjured. In the spot where she had been, a foot-long azure little man appeared instead.
The instant the little man emerged, it abruptly ignited itself. Some kind of life-substituting treasure must have taken effect.
Ji An was not surprised by this outcome. Many Nascent Soul cultivators with the means possessed life-substituting treasures. It was nothing unusual for a Three Flowers Realm cultivator to have one; it would have been strange if she did not.
"Haha, you three fellow Daoists react quite quickly!"
A touch more savagery appeared on Zhong Ding Sanren's face. He hovered in midair, the whites of his eyes having completely vanished and leaving behind only pitch-black pupils, making him seem rather eerie.
The whites of Guang Tong Sanren's eyes had likewise vanished. He stirred his magical power and rose to the same height as Zhong Ding Sanren, staring unblinkingly at Qing Yue Sanren. His scarlet tongue slid out to lick his lips, his expression filled with vicious malice.
Ji An sensed the spiritual pressure emanating from