The moment the colossal black tiger saw the flood dragons formed by the Emerald Bamboo Bee Cloud Swords coiling toward it, a vicious glint flashed in its eyes. With a deep roar, it opened its gaping maw and spat out a volley of over a dozen black light spheres the size of human heads, hurtling straight toward the jade-green flood dragons.
The two phantom flood dragons managed to tear apart the first several light spheres with their fangs and claws combined. But by the seventh or eighth sphere, they could no longer hold.
With a mournful cry, the flood dragon forms shattered under the impact of the black spheres, revealing the true bodies of the flying swords within.
The two flying swords were knocked more than thirty meters away by the subsequent barrage, tumbling through the air end over end several times. Their cyan glow had dimmed considerably, suggesting their spiritual nature had sustained some damage.
Han Li winced inwardly with a twinge of distress. He quickly extended a finger and pointed, and the two swords transformed into streaks of cyan light that shot back toward him. He recalled them into his body to nourish and recover in peace.
At the same time, his other hand opened wide, releasing another four identical cyan flying swords that flashed toward the giant tiger in the blink of an eye.
The ghostly figure standing behind the tiger was growing impatient with this situation.
It drew in a deep breath, and a piercing, ear-splitting shriek rose long and sharp through the air.
The moment the tiger heard the sound, it lowered its head and twisted its neck, plunging both front claws deep into the ground.
Then, an astonishing sight appeared!
A massive bulge swelled up on one side of the tiger's head, and after a flash of black light, a second, slightly smaller tiger head materialized there — it had transformed into a two-headed aberrant tiger!
With the appearance of the second head, the demonic energy surging from the tiger's body skyrocketed once more, drawing a deep frown from Han Li.
Now the sword spirit showed no mercy — both tiger heads opened their jaws wide, and dense volleys of black light spheres poured out one after another, swarming toward Han Li in a fearsome tide.
Han Li dared not grow careless. He formed a series of hand seals, and the four flying swords midway through the air trembled violently, splitting into eight.
Then, with a brilliant surge of radiance, the eight swords converged and fused together, forming a single colossal cyan sword several meters in length.
Han Li gazed at the sword, a strange light flickering in his eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, he opened his mouth and spat out a sphere of pure, concentrated true essence — a wisp of hazy cyan brilliance — onto the broad blade of the great sword.
Instantly, the giant sword emitted a long, clear hum as light blazed outward, transforming into a cyan ribbon of light more than thirty meters long. It cleaved straight toward the black light spheres, carrying with it the faint rumble of wind and thunder.
The cyan and black radiance collided head-on. Light scattered in every direction, and a chain of explosive booms erupted — the spectacle was nothing short of terrifying.
The cyan great sword carved through the black light spheres with unstoppable momentum, displaying extraordinary prowess.
But the black spheres only multiplied, pouring forth ceaselessly from the two tiger heads in wave after wave, with no sign of stopping — as if they were limitless!
This development made Han Li's expression darken with surprise.
He was weighing whether to employ a different technique to break through the onslaught, or to release several more flying swords, when the air behind him, some thirty-odd meters away, rippled ever so slightly. Then that incredibly faint grey ghostly silhouette materialized there in utter silence.
Aside from a pair of blood-red eyes, it emitted not the slightest trace of unusual aura.
Han Li appeared completely unaware of the presence behind him.
The grey shadow glanced at the swarming insects hovering around Han Li. The red glow in its eyes flickered several times, and then it suddenly lunged, transforming into a thin grey arc of light that shot soundlessly toward Han Li's back, intent of seizing and crushing his Golden Core.
As for those insects, it gave them not the slightest thought.
The technique it cultivated excelled above all else in assuming formless guise. At this moment, its entire body had been transformed into an intangible state — what need did it have to fear being detected by mere insects?
Moreover, even if they did detect it, it was supremely confident that Han Li would have no time to react before dying miserably beneath its razor-sharp claws.
The ghostly figure's technique was indeed bizarre in the extreme. The grey streak hurtling toward Han Li produced absolutely no sound or disturbance, and it was impossibly fast.
In the blink of an eye, it had already closed in on Han Li's back — when the gold and silver beetles that had been hovering in midair suddenly emitted a collective buzzing and surged forward in a sky-blotting swarm toward the grey light.
The grey shadow was stunned! Before it could react, the mass of gold and silver beetles had already blocked its path and was charging straight at it.
In an instant, the grey light plunged headlong into the gold and silver insect swarm. Beetles covered every inch of its form, coating it in a dazzling layer of gold and silver.
The grey shadow seethed with shock and fury, shaking its body violently in an attempt to fling the insects off, but to no avail. Moments later, a dense, tingling sensation spread across its entire being.
Startled, it reflexively lowered its gaze to look.
What it saw sent the red light in its ghostly eyes flickering wildly — its face was a mask of horror.
These seemingly insignificant beetles were each gnawing away at its intangible ghostly form. Though the process was clearly arduous, they were indeed devouring it mouthful by mouthful. They were actually capable of ignoring its formless ghost body entirely!