Just how vast the Withered Bone Mountain Range was, Ji Tian still couldn't tell at his current level of cultivation. In other words, he simply wasn't strong enough to know. Out here on the outskirts, he was still struggling just to survive.
After all, there was still a being in this area who could call himself king. If Ji Tian wanted to gain more, he would have to devour that being's Soul Flame. He wanted to learn more.
The Bone Dragon's appearance had left him shaken for a long time, but it had also ignited his fighting spirit. He didn't want to live a life of being sealed away. If he wanted freedom, he had to grow stronger.
But he didn't even know about the powerful beings in this area. He might die without ever knowing how, and that would be a miserable end.
He needed more information, and the powerful beings in this area could undoubtedly tell him everything they knew.
From the lizard's memories, Ji Tian knew that the Flying Demonic Tiger was a defector from deep within the Withered Bone Mountain Range. One could also say it was too stupid and had been driven out. Now it lorded over the outskirts.
It was said that deep in the Withered Bone Mountain Range were strange resources that ghostly beings could use to cultivate. That was what tempted Ji Tian most.
Ji Tian's strategy was still to take his enemies on one at a time. He didn't know if he could defeat the Flying Demonic Tiger. After all, it was a Purple Flame expert and could even fly. It would be a difficult opponent.
Still, he was relieved that his Core Elixir could provide more spiritual power and refine unusual bones like ox horns and lizard claws.
There weren't many, but they were still his strongest weapons.
Following from behind and launching a sneak attack—this was a strategy made for him. Being a ghostly being was wonderful. He could blend into this dark world of black rocks, Malevolent Qi, and Death Qi, which made the perfect camouflage.
This was a Bone Snake with a black horn on its head. The Skeleton Race really was a strange and bizarre kind of creature. Ji Tian had no idea how they controlled their Bone Bodies.
Though the Bone Snake was at the Blue Flame level, a faint trace of purple was already mixed into its blue flames. In other words, it had considerable offensive power.
The most obvious difference was that its eye sockets weren't empty. It was as if a transparent membrane of bone had formed an inner wall inside its skull, protecting its Soul Flame. It had a thousand legs, which were ribs it had refined into feet. From a distance, it looked like a centipede.
The Bone Snake was quite haughty, holding its chest high. It had even replaced its normally flickering, retractable tongue with a Soul Flame.
A Bone Snake that could spit fire.
Since his fight with the lizard, Ji Tian had felt that dealing with these skeletons wasn't so difficult after all. Their main weapons were their bones. All he had to do was smash them. Their Soul Flames could also cause some damage and devour others, but so far, he hadn't encountered one that could devour him.
Ji Tian followed slowly from behind, watching for an opportunity. When he spotted a lone skeleton, its foot caught in a crack between the rocks, and it let out a mournful howl. Ji Tian sent a Bone Needle flying.
"Crack!" The skeleton's head shattered. Ji Tian was thrilled. The Bone Snake had entered a canyon-like area, which was ideal for him. The mountainside was full of weapons he could use. If he managed to knock a boulder down on his enemy, it would be as if Heaven itself were helping him.
Perhaps the spiritual power mixed into the Bone Needle had alerted the Bone Snake. It turned around and flicked out its blue tongue, hissing.
Ji Tian realized that this skeleton wouldn't be easy to deal with. It was highly alert.
"Crack! Crack!" Ji Tian stopped waiting and struck first. With a flourish, he fired the dozen or so needles on his body. Each Bone Needle struck a skeleton. Only the Bone Snake and one lucky Green Flame Skeleton remained.
The Bone Snake gave a long hiss, then turned and lunged at Ji Tian.
Ji Tian used the Gravity Technique to hurl the rocks around him at the Bone Snake. To his frustration, the Bone Snake crushed the obstacles he had set up into pieces with ease. It suddenly coiled around a boulder as tall as a man and tried to hurl it at him. Ji Tian hurriedly retreated.
Ji Tian realized he had encountered a formidable opponent. It could attack from a distance, too. A huge boulder came whistling toward him. He dodged. After evading six boulders, he found himself trapped in a small canyon.
Ji Tian sensed a hint of a trap. Could he be the prey they were hunting this time? But one Bone Snake alone couldn't turn the situation against him.
The Bone Snake thrust its tail into a crack in the rock, then coiled its body upward.
With a series of sharp cracks, the snake's head shot into the air and hurtled toward him. Ji Tian dodged, but the head kept going and smashed into the mountainside, shattering the rocks.
Ji Tian was shocked. The Bone Snake's bones could extend and change shape at will. It was definitely a long-range attacker.
The snake head struck rapidly, leaving Ji Tian in a sorry state in the narrow space. He didn't know what would happen if it hit his ghostly body, but he knew that if his body was scattered, it would be just like a skeleton's bones being smashed—he would be at the mercy of others.
Ji Tian could only use his Levitation Technique to dodge. He didn't even have a chance to fire a Bone Arrow.
Seeing that Ji Tian had been driven into a corner with nowhere to run, the Bone Snake grew smug. Its blue tongue flicked in and out, and the black horn on its head suddenly lit up. It opened its mouth and spat out a cloud of black smoke.
As soon as Ji Tian came into contact with the Black Mist, his Core Elixir actually stopped spinning for a moment. A wave of weakness overtook his entire body.
Not good, it's poisonous! It must have been a venomous snake in life. I can't believe it can still spit venom after dying.
Just then, a bird called out in the sky, and a Giant White Bone Bird swooped down toward him.
Ji Tian realized he had truly fallen into someone else's trap. He was the prey they were hunting this time. That alone showed how terrifying the Flying Demonic Tiger was. It had already learned of his existence and knew that he liked to ambush others in valleys.
Had the tiger arrived yet?
Ji Tian drew on the drop of liquid spiritual power he had been reluctant to use. A surge of powerful energy erupted. One arrow shot toward the Bone Snake's oncoming head, and another toward the vulture diving at him.
The two Bone Arrows momentarily checked the two skeletons' attacks. The Bone Snake smashed the arrow aimed at it, but the force of the impact knocked its head aside.
One of the vulture's bone wings was struck. Unable to maintain its balance in the air, it tumbled to one side.
Clearly, the vulture's bones were much weaker than the Bone Snake's.
A third Bone Arrow, imbued with Soul Power, shot toward the vulture. This time, it pierced straight through the creature's chest vertebrae. Its entire body shattered, while the head that held its Soul Flame lifted defiantly and let out a piercing shriek.
"Flying Dagger!" Two bone knives, white as jade, whistled toward the Bone Snake's neck. Ji Tian knew the snake's head was mutated and far tougher than the rest of its body.
"Crack!" The Bone Snake's front half broke off, but its momentum didn't let up. It crashed straight into Ji Tian's ghostly body.
His ghostly body, formed by refining Malevolent Qi, immediately began to disperse. Great clouds of black mist drifted away from him.
His Core Elixir shuddered, as if it were about to leave his body. Ji Tian forced down the impact. His Core Elixir spun rapidly, and all the liquid spiritual power that had gathered inside him surged out, stabilizing the scattered black mist.
Ji Tian roared and controlled the daggers to wheel back around and strike the snake's head again. The white Bone Snake's head rolled a long way across the ground.
Just then, Ji Tian felt a shiver of dread. A white blur lunged at him. He summoned his spiritual power and rode the gust of wind raised by his attacker, drifting forward and narrowly avoiding the blow.
"Not bad. You're quick enough to dodge my sneak attack. Would you be willing to follow me? I've never seen a ghostly body as strange as yours." A voice rang out through Spiritual Sense, deep within Ji Tian's soul.
Ji Tian was genuinely a little frightened. His opponent could already use Spiritual Sense. Beings with Soul Flames usually communicated through fluctuations in their souls. As far as Ji Tian knew, only those who had cultivated a primordial spirit could use this ability.
The white blur was the Flying Demonic Tiger. Its bones gave off a strange light, and a faint membrane covered them, giving them an unusual, fleshy appearance. This was a sign that its spiritual power had taken tangible form. Was this the ability of a Purple Flame Skeleton? It had already reached the late Purple Flame stage. One more step, and its Soul Flame would advance to the Black Flame realm.
"Useless! What good are you?" The tiger stretched out a claw and smashed the vulture's skull, which was still twitching on the ground. Then it opened its mouth and swallowed the blue flame, looking as if it savored the taste.
Ji Tian paid no attention to the tiger's actions. He quickly drew out the Bone Snake's Soul Flame and began refining it. Since his opponent had tried to recruit him, it probably wouldn't attack while he was refining a Soul Flame. Besides, there was no need. The tiger must have been certain that Ji Tian was already trapped.
Ji Tian lamented inwardly. He couldn't believe that after fighting so hard to reach this outcome, things had still ended up this way. The hunter had become the hunted.
Should he submit or refuse? It seemed he had no trump cards left. He couldn't escape—the tiger could fly.
What comforted him was that his liquid spiritual power had recovered by one drop. He had fought a great battle and lost a drop, only to condense another. It was a losing bargain.
What else could he use? It seemed like nothing.
The Flying Demonic Tiger urged him again. Ji Tian's response was starting to irritate it. If its subordinates hadn't all been killed by this brat, and if it had any capable assistants, it wouldn't have bothered wasting its breath. The tiger was also a little puzzled. Why didn't the little ghost across from it have a Soul Flame? But it had seen a purple flame appear when he refined the Bone Snake just now. Could he be at the same level? That was impossible. If he were, why would it have taken him so much effort to deal with a few Blue Flame skeletons?
It shouldn't act rashly. Better to observe him first.
Ji Tian ignored the tiger's urging and calmly continued refining the Bone Snake's black horn. He felt there was something unusual about it, perhaps some unexpected property.
He sensed it. Poison. He had guessed correctly: the horn contained poison that could make someone feel weak.
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