The man in the green robe summoned a green flying knife, which shattered the crimson fireball.
Shen Long took out the Golden Armor Talisman, slapped it onto his body, and with a flash of golden light, a thick golden armor appeared, protecting his entire body.
He flicked his sleeve, and a vat-sized crimson fireball flew out, crashing towards the other side; he then summoned the Xuan Water Knife to attack the man in the green robe.
The man in the green robe took out a green Talisman, slapped it onto himself, and a thick green magical shield appeared.
The green flying knife collided with the Xuan Water Knife, emitting a sound of metal clashing against metal.
Shen Long raised his sleeve, and a vat-sized crimson fireball shot out, heading straight for the man in the green robe.
The man in the green robe summoned a pair of scissors that flickered with green light, opening and closing them to smash the crimson fireball. His right hand flipped, revealing a red Talisman with a Fire Crow pattern on its surface.
With a flick of his right hand, the red Talisman soared out, releasing five crimson Fire Crows radiating an astonishing high temperature.
"Fire Crow Talisman!"
Shen Long's face tightened; this was a first-class high-grade Talisman. He quickly summoned the Xuangui Shield, and two of the crimson Fire Crows struck it, turning into rolling flames that engulfed the Xuangui Shield.
The other three crimson Fire Crows circled around the Xuangui Shield and struck Shen Long.
With a thunderous boom, a sea of crimson flames enveloped Shen Long.
The green scissors came at him head-on but were blocked by the Xuangui Shield.
A sandy-yellow Spider emerged from the ground with eight sickle-like claws covered in fluffy fur.
The corners of the man in the green robe's mouth curled up slightly; this Quicksand Spider was his real trump card.
The Quicksand Spider spat out several foot-long yellow Earth Cones that burrowed into the flames while its sickle-like claws went straight for Shen Long.
A series of muffled "bang bang" sounds followed; it seemed as if the attacks had been blocked.
As the flames dissipated, Shen Long's figure appeared.
Shen Long was enveloped in a light blue magical shield, and he was wearing a thick golden armor, which showed signs of being scorched by fire.
"Xuan Water Shield at Great Perfection!"
The man in the green robe frowned.
Shen Long raised his right hand, and a vat-sized crimson fireball flew out, crashing onto the Quicksand Spider, engulfing it in rolling flames, eliciting a painful shriek from the creature.
Shen Long formed a spell with his fingers, and the Xuan Water Knife's blue light intensified, sending the green flying knife flying and circling back to slash the Quicksand Spider in half.
The man in the green robe was filled with shock and rage; he had spent a significant amount of Cultivation Resources to raise this Quicksand Spider. When they ambushed Xu Wen and Xu Wu's Monster Hunting Team last time, the Quicksand Spider played a significant role in helping him kill an enemy.
Now that the Quicksand Spider had been killed by Shen Long, he naturally wouldn't let it go.
Shen Long raised his right hand, and a vat-sized crimson fireball flew towards him.
The man in the green robe hurriedly controlled the green flying knife to split the crimson fireball in two, and soon after, the Xuan Water Knife shot forth, entangling with the green flying knife.
Shen Long put away the Xuangui Shield and continuously unleashed vat-sized crimson fireballs, smashing them towards the opposition.
He was only controlling a low-grade Magic Artifact, which consumed less Mana.
The man in the green robe was controlling a mid-grade Magic Artifact and a low-grade Magic Artifact, which resulted in a significant Mana drain. The green scissors struck the blue water screen, causing it to cave in.
After a good half-quarter hour, the man in the green robe's face was pale, his eyebrows tightly knit.
Limited by their Divine Sense, most Qi Refining Cultivators could only control two Magic Artifacts at the same time, which was already at their limit.
Unable to break through Shen Long's defenses and controlling two Magic Artifacts at the same time, he experienced serious exhaustion of Divine Sense and Mana. In contrast, Shen Long, although slightly pale, persevered.
Shen Long's heart leaped with joy, as his opponent clearly had not cultivated a single spell to the Great Perfection. For things that could be resolved with a magic artifact or a talisman, very few people were willing to spend a great deal of time practising a spell, when that time could be better spent on cultivation.
If nothing went amiss, the man in the green robe was bound to be defeated.
The man in the green robe produced a talisman that flickered with white light, which transformed into more than a dozen two-foot-long white ice cones that shot straight toward Shen Long.
Shen Long flicked his sleeve, and a fiery red fireball flew out to meet them.
With a thunderous explosion, rolling flames engulfed most of the white ice cones. A few ice cones struck the blue water curtain, causing ripples to spread across it, yet it remained unscathed.
The man in the green robe put away his two magic artifacts and took out a green shield that kept spinning around him. He slapped a Wind-Riding Talisman on himself and started running towards the distance.
He hadn't gotten far when a green vine, as thick as an adult's arm, shot out from the ground and entangled his right leg.
"Entwining Technique at Great Perfection!"
The man in the green robe exclaimed in shock, never having imagined that a Qi Refining fifth layer cultivator could achieve Great Perfection in three tier-one spells.
He quickly took out a green flying knife and cut through the green vines.
An astonishing wave of high temperature hit him, as a house-sized fiery red fireball descended from the sky and smashed onto the green shield.
With a loud bang, the fireball exploded, and rolling flames swallowed the man in the green robe.
Before the flames had even dissipated, another fiery red fireball crashed down.
Shen Long continuously launched fiery red fireballs toward the man in the green robe, with endless rumbling sounds and billowing flames.
The Xuan Water Knife circled around before plunging into the sea of fire, without making the slightest sound.
Shen Long didn't dare to be careless, continuing to hurl fiery red fireballs at the man in the green robe.
After a short while, Shen Long was pale and gasping for breath.
As the flames dissipated, a huge pit a dozen feet across appeared on the ground where signs of melting were evident. Inside the pit lay a green shield and a green storage bag.
Under the relentless assault of the fireballs, the man in the green robe was reduced to ashes, leaving behind only a storage bag and his magic artifacts.
Shen Long heaved a sigh of relief. He collected the corpse of the Quicksand Spider and approached the edge of the giant pit, picking up the green shield and the storage bag. He then took out a Flying Heaven Talisman and slapped it onto his body; a pair of wings, flickering with green light, sprouted from his back.
With a gentle flap of the green wings, Shen Long soared into the sky and flew upwards.
Upon returning to the marketplace, Shen Long went straight back to his dwelling.
He activated the Soundproofing Array, sat cross-legged on the stone bed, and shook out a green storage bag. With a flick of the bag's mouth, a swath of green light swept by, and a heap of items appeared on the ground.
After a thorough inventory, there were three magic artifacts: the Green Cloud Shield and the Green Cloud Saber were lower-grade magic artifacts, while the Qingyue Scissors were a mid-grade magic artifact. There were also one hundred and seventy-five Spirit Stones, three Jade Slips, five Qi Nourishing Pills, one Wind-Riding Talisman, and a green wooden box.
When he opened the wooden box, inside was a white insect egg emitting faint vital energy fluctuations.
"Could this be the egg of the Snow Crystal Spider?" Shen Long wondered to himself.
He picked up a green Jade Slip and pressed it to his forehead.
"Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect List!"
A contemplative expression crossed Shen Long's face.
According to the Jade Slip, there are countless Spirit Insects in the Cultivation Realm; the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect List recorded over a thousand of the more powerful ones, each with its unique divine abilities.
The Snow Crystal Spider ranked eight hundred and seventy-five on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect List, an Ice Attribute Spirit Insect with a breath cold enough to freeze, impervious to blades and spears, and resistant to both water and fire.