Guo Lie had initially only probed slightly. If Zhang Yan’s cultivation had proved too weak, he wouldn’t have had any interest in wasting effort here. Yet after testing him, he found Zhang Yan’s Xuan Guang to be highly formidable, enough to fight as an equal. Instantly, his hunter’s heart surged with excitement. Despite his body being fatigued after crossing the ocean whirlpool, he forced his spirit to rally for the battle.
He let out a great roar, shaking his body. The light curtain behind him shuddered, and a streak of Green Light suddenly shot forth. Midway, it transformed into a massive Green-Scaled Python, dozens of meters long, which tore open its huge jaws and lunged at Zhang Yan, as if intent on swallowing him whole. Before it even reached him, a noxious, salty wind blew toward his face.
At the same time, the striped giant tiger stealthily circled to Zhang Yan’s rear, its fierce eyes flashing erratically, lying in wait for the right moment.
Facing the descending Green-Scaled Python, Zhang Yan remained calm and composed. A streak of sword light emerged from the center of his brow as he activated a spell. His sword ball trembled and split into four. One charged straight at Guo Lie’s face, one remained to protect his person, one hovered in mid-air prepared to strike, and the last carried him into flight, transforming into a streak of rainbow light that shot outward.
In repeated battles with opponents, Zhang Yan’s mastery over sword balls had grown increasingly skillful.
After battling Lu Ge, he had come to understand that against adversaries with higher cultivation levels and adept at close combat, sword balls must never be unleashed simultaneously. Doing so would allow the opponent to overwhelm them with brute force. Guo Lie appeared exceptionally powerful and seemed hot-tempered, making it highly probable he would exploit such an opening. Thus, Zhang Yan preferred to engage in a mobile skirmish first, striking strategically only once the opportunity presented itself.
Guo Lie’s eyes gleamed brightly, his excitement visibly escalating. He exclaimed, "Oh? A sword cultivator? Excellent, excellent! A worthy opponent!"
When the sword ball flew straight toward him, Guo Lie didn’t attempt to dodge. Instead, the light curtain behind him shuddered, revealing a Mystical Turtle that had withdrawn into its shell. Its sturdy back plate tilted upward, deflecting the sword ball to the side, though the turtle itself dissipated, transforming back into Essence Qi and returning to the light curtain.
However, Zhang Yan noticed carefully. Though Guo Lie seemed to block the attack effortlessly, his footing wavered slightly—nearly undetectable. Moreover, the light curtain that had previously been thick and solid faded slightly with every essence summoned and dissipated. By the time the Mystical Turtle essence returned, the curtain had thinned to transparency, like clear water, and seemed on the brink of collapse. Zhang Yan couldn’t help but smile wryly at this.
The Green-Scaled Python, caught off guard by Zhang Yan’s sudden flight transformation, missed its bite entirely. Its jaws snapped onto the deck, causing the ship’s prohibition field to tremble violently. Then, it slithered in a wide circle before coiling itself on the ground, craning its neck like a drawn bow to stare up at Zhang Yan.
Zhang Yan soared in the air, with the Flying Sky Tiger persistently trailing behind him. However, every time his Xuan Guang surged downward, the tiger rapidly retreated, slyly keeping its distance.
Before Zhang Yan could deal with it, the Green-Scaled Python below suddenly let out a hissing roar, its spine stretching taut as it shot toward the sky like an arrow, leaping dozens of meters in an instant.
Zhang Yan inwardly let out a chilling laugh, enveloping himself in sword light as he ascended even higher at astonishing speed. After another thirty meters of elevation, the Green-Scaled Python faltered, glaring at him unwillingly before helplessly plummeting back to the ground.
Without hesitation, Zhang Yan drove his sword ball in pursuit, his thoughts surging as he commanded it. The swirling sword light transformed into a radiant slash and, with a piercing sound, ruthlessly sliced the Green-Scaled Python in two.
The Flying Sky Tiger, seeing Zhang Yan’s protective sword ball flying away, seemed to spot an opening and couldn’t resist lunging at him.
Zhang Yan chuckled and remarked, "After all, it’s merely a demon beast essence. Its spirit is dimmed and knows no discretion."
With a wave of his hand, his Xuan Guang swept downward. Sensing impending danger, the Flying Sky Tiger quickly dodged to the side. However, the sword ball that had slain the Green-Scaled Python had already returned, lying in wait at the tiger’s landing point and slashed decisively. With a flash of white light, its head was severed, and the Golden Fire Mysterious Light followed closely to obliterate its essence entirely.
The essence of both the python and the tiger remerged into the light curtain behind Guo Lie, who seemed displeased. He roared angrily, shaking the curtain and causing two new Xuan Guang clusters to descend, reforming the beasts anew, sending them lunging at Zhang Yan once more.
Zhang Yan smiled faintly and thought to himself, "Even if the essence stays intact, I’d like to see just how much Xuan Guang you can afford for me to deplete."
He flew within the arena upon his tunneling light, deliberately avoiding entanglement with the White Tiger and Green Snake. Instead, he seized opportunities to strike with his sword but always refrained from entirely destroying their essence. After several exchanges, Guo Lie’s face turned slightly pale, and his breathing grew labored.
After another round of fighting, Guo Lie realized that neither the Green-Scaled Python nor the Flying Tiger could effectively pin down Zhang Yan, and their re-summoning only served to drain his Xuan Guang unnecessarily. Furious, he shouted, "No matter how you slip away, your Grandpa Guo has ways to deal with you!"
He let loose a thunderous roar, shaking the Xuan Guang behind him. Accompanied by a crisp, clear crane cry, a streak of white light shot forth, instantly transforming into a Red-Crowned Heavenly Crane. Its long beak stood high, its white feathers shining, and its black neck glistening. Though formed from Xuan Guang and essence, it resembled a living creature so vividly that it far outclassed the ethereal forms of the python and tiger.
However, releasing the Heavenly Crane caused Guo Lie’s light curtain to nearly shatter, his footing becoming unstable, and he seemed unsteady on his cloud perch.
The Heavenly Crane flapped its wings, darting through the air like lightning to hover above Zhang Yan, its sharp beak aiming precisely as it struck downward.
Zhang Yan’s mind raced, unleashing a soaring streak of sword light. Yet, the Heavenly Crane, brimming with spiritual intelligence, realized it couldn’t win and let out a sharp cry before dissolving into light and relocating elsewhere, its beak poised for another strike.
With the Heavenly Crane keeping Zhang Yan occupied and the Green-Scaled Python and Flying Tiger lunging at him relentlessly, Zhang Yan indeed lost the earlier ease he’d displayed. Still, he knew full well that despite his apparent disadvantage, Guo Lie had nearly exhausted his Xuan Guang reserves and had no further tricks to deploy. The moment of victory was near.
Zhang Yan shouted sharply from the air. The Xuan Guang atop his head surged, and his sword ball split into three sword shadows, dispersing the three beasts. Then, a dazzling sword light shot straight from the center of his brow, slicing downward.
Guo Lie’s expression changed dramatically. He crouched to release the Mystical Turtle essence for protection but then abruptly froze, his face twisting as his mouth opened involuntarily. The light curtain behind him trembled violently before collapsing with a resonant explosion, sending him plummeting from the sky.
At that very moment, a pinpoint of sword light reached his throat.
...(To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)