As the battle continued, however, Venerable Bai Ling's brows knitted ever tighter. He could clearly see that although his race's prodigy seemed to be attacking like a surging tide, he had already exhausted his strength. Yet the Human Race cultivator remained steady as a rock, never moving even half a step. More terrifying still, whenever White Ghost unleashed an inherited Treasure Art, his opponent effortlessly found its weakness and casually neutralized it. This battle was practically a senior guiding a junior's cultivation!
"You join in too!" Bai Ling suddenly ordered the other White Ghost watching the battle, his voice carrying unquestionable authority.
That White Ghost froze for a moment, but quickly understood the Venerable's intent. Without another word, he turned into a streak of white lightning and attacked Shi Yi from the flank.
The two White Ghosts worked together seamlessly, one leading the assault and the other supporting him. Their sharp claws carried the power of thunder, weaving a net of death through the void. More frightening still, Heavenly Thunder Valley's unique environment amplified their lightning power. Every strike carried a deafening thunderclap, its might multiplied severalfold.
To onlookers, Shi Yi seemed barely able to fend off the encirclement. His figure appeared and vanished amid the dense barrage, like a tiny boat in a tempest that might be torn to pieces by the raging thunder at any moment. The White Ghosts' attacks grew increasingly savage. The entire valley trembled beneath their might, and amid flying sand and stones, that lone figure remained standing...
Venerable Bai Ling stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sharp as lightning as he watched the battle. Watching the two juniors coordinate their attacks as smoothly as flowing clouds and water, he nodded slightly, occasionally offering pointers: "That Lightning Shadow Split was well executed... make the angle of that Void-Rending Claw a little more devious, and it'll be even better..."
A contemptuous sneer lingered on his lips. In the memories of their ancient inheritance, the Human Race were merely ants groveling beneath their claws. Being worthy of a joint attack by two White Ghost prodigies was already an immense honor.
Gradually, however, Bai Ling's pupils began to contract uncontrollably. The Human Race cultivator strolled leisurely through the lightning filling the sky, every dodge avoiding a lethal move with perfect precision. More terrifying still, his opponent seemed to be deliberately exposing openings, enticing the two White Ghosts to execute more sophisticated moves-he was clearly using them to hone his techniques!
"Something's wrong..." Bai Ling's claws clenched involuntarily, and a bone-piercing chill suddenly rose in his heart. When he saw a strange gleam flash through the human's eyes, every hair on his body instantly stood on end. "Retreat! Retreat now!"
Though the two White Ghosts did not understand why, they instinctively tried to pull back. But their moves had already been unleashed; there was no withdrawing that final, thunderously powerful strike. In that lightning-swift instant-
Crack! Shi Yi suddenly turned his hand over and seized the leading White Ghost's forelimb, his five fingers sinking deep into flesh and bone like iron pincers. Lightning flared in his eyes, and his aura erupted with a crash, like a slumbering Fierce Beast suddenly awakening.
"Flood Dragon Claw!"
Shi Yi barked coldly. Deep blue lightning abruptly spread over his right arm, making the entire limb as hideous and fearsome as a dragon's claw. With a flash of lightning, his hand pierced the White Ghost's chest like a sharp blade. Before the blood could even spurt out, the thunder vaporized it into a bloody mist.
Squelch-
When he withdrew his hand, a Primitive Treasure Bone flowing with mysterious runes was firmly clasped in his palm. Lightning patterns flickered across the crystalline bone, forming a lurid contrast with the lingering blood. Before the other White Ghost could react, Shi Yi swung his fist back and struck. The savage power of thunder instantly blasted his body into a skyful of bloody rain.
"An unexpected windfall." Shi Yi weighed the still-warm treasure bone in his hand, an amused smile touching his lips. "Looks like my bone-excavating skills are getting more polished by the day."
"Human! You're courting death!!!"
Venerable Bai Ling's roar shook the entire valley. He had watched helplessly as two of his race's prodigies perished in an instant, and his scarlet beast eyes seemed ready to drip blood. Violent thunder gathered around him, and the rocks within a hundred zhang burst apart beneath his terrifying pressure. "Even if I must scour the azure heavens above and the Yellow Springs below, I will hack you into ten thousand pieces today!"
Venerable Bai Ling's heart spasmed violently. Regret and fury gnawed at his reason like venomous snakes. He had only intended to use this human as a whetstone, never imagining that his opponent was a murderous blade already drawn from its sheath! That bone-plucking movement had been so fast that even he could not stop it. More terrifying still-this seemingly young human was actually so familiar with the White Ghost Race's fighting style!
Crack-boom!
The sky abruptly changed color as pitch-black thunderclouds gathered wildly above Bai Ling's head. The killing intent radiating from him became tangible, and bolts of black lightning struck down like venomous dragons.
"You think you can dodge them?" Bai Ling's voice seemed to come from the Nine Nether Depths. Although the Primordial Chaos Heaven-Refining Grand Formation concealed Shi Yi's aura, the lightning he personally controlled seemed to have eyes, tracing bizarre arcs through the air as it pursued him relentlessly.
Boom!
The instant their fists collided, the entire mountain peak collapsed with a thunderous crash. Savage force tore the lightning filling the sky to shreds, while flying stones were pulverized in the shock wave. Bai Ling discovered, to his horror, that his full-powered Venerable Realm strike had actually been met head-on! The recoil drove both of them back a hundred zhang, and a bottomless chasm had split open in the ground between them.
Shi Yi shook out his numb arm, a trace of fighting spirit finally appearing in his eyes. "Now this is getting interesting."
"How can a mere Array Formation Realm human possess such strength?!" Venerable Bai Ling's voice was hoarse, his scarlet beast eyes filled with disbelief. He could clearly sense his opponent's cultivation realm, yet this utterly unreasonable disparity in combat strength chilled him.
Shi Yi slowly raised his eyes, cold runes flowing through his pupils. "An early-stage Venerable. Nothing more." His voice was terrifyingly calm. "Weak bodies are a common failing of your race. If you have no other trump cards, I'll take your life within three hundred moves."
Every word struck Bai Ling's heart like a heavy hammer. This was no threat, but a declaration. That indifferent tone made it sound as though he were discussing today's weather.
"Insolence!!!"
Every hair on Bai Ling's body stood upright as his Venerable pressure erupted in full. How many years had it been? Since he had ascended to his supreme position, who had ever dared look down on him with the eyes one would turn on a dead thing? At that moment, he would rather burn his own essence than fail to grind this human's bones to dust and scatter his ashes!
"I'll show you-" Bai Ling's sharp claws tore through space, and nine phantoms of ancient Fierce Beasts formed from lightning appeared behind him. "What true despair means!"
Bai Ling's claws carried destructive lightning, every swipe ripping through the void with a piercing shriek. Lightning patterns flowed across the Void Halberd in Shi Yi's hands. Dazzling sparks erupted whenever its blade met those sharp claws, and the clang of metal rang throughout the valley.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Their figures repeatedly crossed amid the lightning, every collision triggering an earth-shaking explosion. The surrounding rock walls kept collapsing in the aftershocks, and the rubble was ground into dust by the raging energy before it could reach the ground. In just a few dozen exchanges, the entire
valley's terrain had been completely transformed.