A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality - Chapter 463

Chapter 463

Chapter 463: An Opportune Encounter

Han Li raised his hands with a solemn expression, and tossed several spirit beast pouches into the air . As they floated in the air, he formed his hands into an incantation gesture, causing the pouches to open and release countless Gold Devouring Beetles . They formed a cloud of shining gold and silver shimmers in the air . In regards to numbers, the Gold Devouring Beetles were far fewer to the recently seen colony of Ironfire Ants .

With his confidence strengthened from looking at the the gold-silver insect swarm, he pointed to the ground not far away and softly shouted, “Go!”

With a buzz, the glittering cloud flew forward, moving to descend and blanket the ground .

But before they touched the ground, a black cloud of ants suddenly rose to meet the swarm of Gold Devouring Beetles .

In the instant that the two sides clashed, huge streams of dark flame suddenly spouted out from the black ant colony, violently enveloping the Gold Devouring Beetles in black radiance . It was clear the ant colony had realized the Gold Devouring Beetles were fearsome and rushed to strike first by using their innate flames .

Were it another breed of insects, the strange flames would’ve burnt a majority of them at the very least . But not only were the Gold Devouring Beetles completely unscathed by the black flames, the black flames themselves were cleanly devoured . Once the flames were gone, the beetles charged forward with a buzz .

The two insect swarms fiercely clashed, interweaving colors of black, silver, and gold . After only a moment of tearing away at each other, countless dead insects began to successively fall to the ground with piercing screeches . A vast majority of them were black with only a sparse few being gold and silver .

In just a short moment, the Gold Devouring Beetles had achieved an overwhelming victory, exterminating a majority of the ants .

The Ironfire Ants also sensed that things were far from good . Their remnants released a weak cry and suddenly gathered together to form a jet-black arrow . They shot past the Gold Devouring Beetles in an attempt to escape .

But at that moment, a streak of dazzling azure swordlight pierced through the air and chopped down at the arrow . The arrow trembled and was greatly slowed down .

In that moment of delay, the Gold Devouring Beetles swarmed around the arrow . In the blink of an eye, the black arrow was submerged in a sea of gold and silver and could no longer be seen . By the time the insect swarm dispersed, the arrow had completely disappeared .

At that moment, Han Li slowly walked over and serenely looked at the dead insects on the floor . He silently pondered for a moment while clasping his chin .

Only about several hundred of the dead insects belonged to the Gold Devouring Beetles, a trifling amount . The Gold Devouring Beetles’ decisive victory clearly illustrated the superiority of the Gold Devouring Beetles . After all, the Ironfire Ants had outnumbered the Gold Devouring Beetles ten to one .

After a moment of analysis, Han Li revealed an expression of relief . It seemed that his Gold Devouring Beetles would be able to get him through the black desert without problem .

After taking another look at the ground littered with dead insects, a strange expression flashed through his eyes . A low whistle left his mouth . The gold-silver insect cloud shrieked in response and fell from the sky, cleanly devouring the dead insects like an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves . They then obediently flew back into Han Li’s spirit beast pouches .

Having put away the pouches, Han Li gazed into the depths of the black desert before walking forward without hesitation .

…

Han Li motionlessly stood in the distance as he expressionlessly gazed at the sky .

The largest battle that his Gold Devouring Beetles had fought since entering the desert was currently taking place in the sky . Countless Gold Devouring Beetles and Ironfire Ants were scattered across the skies at a low altitude, mutually devouring each other . Dead insects rained from the sky, forming a thin, dense layer on the ground . It made for a truly shocking sight!

Han Li’s brow creased during a moment of carelessness . Although only about a day had passed, he had already lost nearly ten thousand Gold Devouring Beetles . It was as if he’d encounter a colony of Ironfire Ants every short distance he walked, numbering anywhere from three thousand to ten thousand .

But now, he’d encountered a tremendously large Ironfire Ant colony that numbered at around fifty thousand . He reckoned that this battle would result in the deaths of at least eight thousand of his Gold Devouring Beetles .

It was no surprise that Han Li felt regretful . The Gold Devouring Beetles took a long period of time to breed . Who knew when he’d be able to next replenish their numbers?

After the time it took to finish a cup of tea, the ant colony retreated in defeat . Apart from the several thousand survivors that managed to retreat, the winged ants had been cleanly devoured by the Gold Devouring Beetles .

Han Li was uninterested in wasting time pursuing the remaining Ironfire Ants . Instead, he turned his gaze towards the Glacial Ice Pearl and continued on his way with roused spirits .

He supposed that he was currently at the center of the desert which was why he had encountered such a large colony of ants . He had better be more vigilant on the path moving forward, else he would waste the much needed magic power to fuel his heat repelling magic treasures, leaving himself in a dire situation .

After walking about twenty kilometers, Han Li’s expression froze . He stared to the right with narrowed eyes . After a short moment, he revealed a trace of suspicion and suddenly changed his direction to a dune he was looking at .

When Han Li arrived at the top of the dune, he unconsciously frowned . He had spotted yet another colony of Ironfire Ants in his line of sight .

This colony of winged ants only numbered about ten thousand, and were attacking a sphere of faint blue light . The sphere of light was on the verge of collapse . As it flickered, the image of a person with a strained appearance leaked through .

Han Li gazed at this with complete indifference .

At that moment, the Ironfire Ants had transformed into a keen longsword blazing with black flame and fiercely chopped at the sphere of light .

Han Li was certain that this person was doomed . But then, an unremarkable, dark green pellet shot out of the light sphere . Just as the pellet touched the black sword, a fist sized dark green flame violently combusted . The ants that were wrapped up by the flame rapidly dispersed with nearly a hundred Ironfire Ants falling to the ground .

Han Li felt surprised . That dark green pellet was an exceptional treasure . It was fearsome enough to burn away at fire attributed Ironfire Ants without resistance . An inconceivable display! It seemed he was still quite ignorant of the countless unique treasures that existed in the cultivation world .

The appearance of the green flame infuriated the ant swarm . They scattered and wildly charged towards the light sphere without any intent to retreat .

The cultivator inside the light sphere seemed to no longer have many pellets remaining . By the time the Ironfire Ants had scattered, it was already too late to shoot a second pellet, resulting in a helpless situation . However, he had also become aware of Han Li’s existence . As he was under attack from the Ironfire Ants, he occasionally glanced in Han Li’s direction .

Han Li indifferently turned away and continued on his path . He currently had no mind to acquire his treasures or waist the lives of his Gold Devouring Beetles . His Gold Devouring Beetles had far more value in this strange desert than ordinary treasures, and he didn’t wish to squander them in vain .

But who could’ve known that just as he had taken his first step, he suddenly heard the transmission of a hoarse, familiar voice from the light sphere .

“Fellow Daoist Han! Please wait! This is Yuan Yao! I must trouble Fellow Daoist Han to assist me! I will definitely express my gratitude afterwards!” Yuan Yao’s voice was filled with anxious panic .

“Yuan Yao?” Han Li suddenly stopped and hesitated for a moment before slowly turning around .

This was truly a small world! In an area as large as the Path of Molten Rock, he actually managed to encounter this woman he could barely be considered acquainted with . Unbelievable!

Since she could be considered somewhat of a friend, Han Li felt reluctant to leave her to die . Moreover, he had initially considered finding her for a secret matter . This was just killing two birds with one stone .

After looking at the dimmed light sphere and quickly muttering to himself, he tossed a spirit beast pouch from his waist and released a swarm of Gold Devouring Beetles into the fray .

When she saw this, she was left speechless . The Gold Devouring Beetles only numbered about a thousand but were able to easily exterminate a swarm of Ironfire Ants that was over ten times its size .

She had finally recovered from her shock when Han Li calmly retrieved his Gold Devouring Beetles, and she quickly put away her blue light sphere .

Yuan Yao’s complexion had paled from the expended magic power, but this only made her appear even more endearing .

Her black robes had already been replaced for thin, well-fit clothes, revealing her graceful, youthful figure . Her body was also drenched with the fragrant scent of her sweat, filling the air with deadly allure .

Han Li was stunned by this, but he soon recovered .

Yuan Yao saluted Han Li with a beaming smile and spoke with a charming voice, “Yuan Yao cannot thank Fellow Daoist Han enough for his rescue!”