I Am Overlord c1-962
Page 190
However, the devil cores of these devil flame rats were too low in quality to be of much help to this particular group of geniuses. Their main goal was instead the devil flame of the devil flame rats. Devil flames were also classified as unique flames, and cultivating even a tiny bit of devil flame would prove very helpful for these genius cultivators.
Presently, Yun Flame was stirring in excitement within Xiang Shaoyun's third star. It repeatedly urged Xiang Shaoyun to head toward a certain direction.
Is there a unique flame there? wondered Xiang Shaoyun inwardly.
However, Xiang Shaoyun did not leave the group. For now, he still needed to obey Yu Caidie and would only be free to act after he had gotten her what she needed. Fortunately, the direction Yu Caidie picked was also the same direction Yun Flame was urging Xiang Shaoyun to go.
A large number of devil flame rats were in the area, and it was obvious this was their territory. The devil flame rats bred at a rapid speed, which was how they had been able to survive at the border of the first and second layers of the Devil Domain.
As the group moved forward, more and more devil flame rats appeared. These devil flame rats were all Kings, and some were even late-stage Kings. Finally, devils capable of posing the group some threat had appeared.
Even Xiang Shaoyun managed to kill two devil flame rats this time. Holding the devil cores in his hand, he could sense the energy contained within them. However, before he could further study them, Yun Flame had already impatiently devoured the energy in the two cores. Emptied of energy, the two cores turned into dust.
Inwardly, Xiang Shaoyun mused, Looks like Yun Flame is getting impatient to grow even stronger.
Others might fear the devilish energy in the devil cores, but that did not apply to Xiang Shaoyun.
"Ignore the devil flame rats. Charge through them," said Yu Caidie. She was in a hurry to reach the devil wind beast's territory and did not wish to waste her time here.
After all, she had a cousin competing for the yin devil wind as well. If she couldn't get the yin devil wind first, things would get troublesome for her. The young geniuses had to obey her and give up on hunting more devil flame rats. They charged through and moved on. But they hadn't even gone far when they encountered a different group of people. These people were being chased by a large number of devil flame rats.
There were dozens of Devil King devil flame rats here, led by a peak Devil King. Those not strong enough would immediately turn into their food. Humans could grow through absorbing the energy from devil cores. On the other hand, devils could also grow through devouring the flesh of humans to increase their bloodline power.
In the Devil Domain, death was common. Thus, Yu Caidie's group couldn't be bothered to help the other group. Their first reaction was to move away. However, when the devil flame rats sensed the strength of the newly arrived group, they attacked the newcomers as well.
"Audacious! Exterminate them!" Yu Caidie commanded coldly and was the first to attack.
Standing on her phoenix, a halberd appeared in her hand. She swept the halberd at the devil flame rats. Her halberd attack was fast and destructive, instantly killing two devil flame rats with one strike.
The others attacked as well. Each of them was strong enough to face several devil flame rats alone. They quickly killed a portion of the comparatively weaker Devil Kings. When the leader of the devil flame rats saw how strong they were, it screeched and called for help.
At that, eighth-stage and ninth-stage Devil King devil flame rats appeared from several different directions and started attacking the humans madly. The devil flames these devil flame rats spat were extremely powerful. A regular King would not be able to survive an attack of this power. They could clearly sense that these devil flame rats had refined some sort of unique devil flame.
Ling Lin, someone cultivating the power of flame, couldn't help but exclaim, "There must be a devil flame seed here. Otherwise, the flame of these devil flame rats won't be so powerful."
Ling Lin was a genius from a tier-6 organization in Yu Province. He was lucky enough to meet Yu Caidie once at the Yu Province, and ever since, he had been deeply smitten by her graceful temperament. Thus, when Yu Caidie came to the Bloodsin City, he came as well.
His dream was to one day become the Yu Clan's son-in-law, and with his outstanding talent in cultivation, that was a dream he could afford to have. At his exclamation, the eyes of two other flame cultivators started burning with excitement. For them, obtaining the devil flame seed was equivalent to a large growth in strength. In fact, they might even have a chance to directly enter the Emperor Realm.
Yu Caidie could see what these people were thinking. After contemplating it for a bit, she said, "We will stop here for three days. Three days later, we will leave regardless of whether you have obtained the devil flame seed or not. Otherwise, consider yourself disqualified."
"Thank you, Holy Maiden," the three were overjoyed.
She gave no reply. After the group left the territory of the devil flame rats, they settled down somewhere. As for Ling Lin and the other two, they started looking for the devil flame seed. This devil flame seed was most likely not a high-level one. Otherwise, the devil flame rats wouldn't only be Devil Kings. The three were confident they were strong enough to tame a devil flame seed of this level.
However, after spending a long time searching, they still found nothing. Meanwhile, Xiang Shaoyun, who had been seated cross-legged all day, suddenly stood up and dashed toward a certain direction. Through Yun Flame, he had successfully found the location of the devil flame seed.
Chapter 450: Devil Flame Seed
Initially, Xiang Shaoyun was only able to sense a rough location of where the devil flame seed was. But after finding no traces of the devil flame seed at that area, he sat down and quietly searched with his senses. And finally, he found something. He had a feeling the devil flame seed was located underground. That was the only explanation for it to not be visible at all.
After reaching that conclusion, he delayed no more and rushed toward where he sensed the devil flame seed. His destination was a place tightly guarded by the devil flame rats. Stealing the devil flame seed from them would be no easy task. Using his speed superiority, Xiang Shaoyun dashed deep into the devil flame rat territory.
The moment Xiang Shaoyun tried approaching, the devil flame rats attacked madly, not letting him approach. Not only did the devil flame rats possess powerful flame attacks, they were also insanely fast. Thus, even with his outstanding combat prowess, he still found them hard to deal with. After all, this was the devil flame rats' territory.
Xiang Shaoyun was forced to start killing. With the Overlord Skyslaying Saber in hand, he swept it around with his human saber unity mode active. The Overlord Skyslaying Saber had always been kept and nurtured in his astral cosmos sea. Its compatibility with him had grown considerably. Having a high compatibility with his weapon would be very beneficial for when he tried increasing his comprehension of saber intent in the future.
Ling Lin and the other two flame cultivators also noticed Xiang Shaoyun fighting with the devil flame rats.
Is that where the devil flame seed is at? the three wondered.
Soon, the three reached a conclusion as to what Xiang Shaoyun's intention was. They no longer hesitated and quickly joined the battlefield as they charged into the depths of the devil flame rat territory to search for the devil flame seed.
Of the three, Ling Lin was the strongest. Although he was only a mid ninth-stage King, he had an impressive combat prowess. With his weapon, he ceaselessly killed devil flame rats at the same time of using a unique detection technique he knew to search for the devil flame seed. As he searched, he was increasingly sure that there was a devil flame seed here, and it was located underground.
"Haha, all my hard work hasn't been for nothing," Ling Lin roared with laughter as he started bombarding the ground with his weapon.
He drilled straight underground, trying to obtain the
devil flame seed before the others. The other two who had come with him also did the same. They quickly broke free of the devil flame rats and drilled underground.
On the other hand, Xiang Shaoyun suddenly flew to the sky. A faint smile hung on his face as he muttered, "How will the devil flame seed be so easy to subdue?"
Sure enough, three figures could be seen flying out of the ground at this moment. The three were none other than Ling Lin and the other two flame cultivators. Apart from them, dozens of Devil King devil flame rats also shot out from the ground. These were all eighth-stage and ninth-stage Devil Kings with valiant combat prowess. They were much stronger than all the other devil flame rats the group had encountered before.
They had been busy absorbing energy from the flame devil seed and had never been disturbed. Ling Lin's group of three were too reckless and had charged right into their lair. For the devil flame rats, this was a great provocation.
Eyes red, the devil flame rats spat out numerous clumps of flame. These clumps were extremely dreadful, capable of directly turning ordinary king armors to ash. Although Ling Lin and the other two cultivated the power of flame, they still couldn't face the devil flame head on. Killing these devil flame rats in a short time frame was practically impossible for them.
In fact, they would only have a chance of obtaining the devil flame seed if Yu Caidie and the others helped. At this thought, they started withdrawing from the devil flame rat territory unwillingly. If they didn't leave, they would eventually end up surrounded and killed.
Only now did Xiang Shaoyun noiselessly drill underground. Instead of heading directly to the devil flame seed, he fully released Yun Flame’s power. He knew all high-level flames would have a certain level of intelligence. If this devil flame seed had a high enough level, it would definitely come over by itself to devour Yun Flame.
If not, then it only signified that this devil flame seed was a low-level one. Yun Flame would then be able to devour it instead. Yun Flame's power that was being released was merely serving as bait to make the devil flame seed erupt in power. Sure enough, after Xiang Shaoyun released Yun Flame’s power, the devil flame seed reacted and immediately released a large amount of devil flame.
Bang! Bang!
Instantly, the power of devil flame covered a radius of about 1,000 kilometers around it. The devil flame rats within the area started whining in pain and quickly fled the area. Ling Lin's group of three paled when they saw the escaping devil flame rats. They thought they were chasing after them, and so the three flew even faster. Even Yu Caidie and the others who were staying farther from the devil flame rat territory were forced to react.
"We need to help them," Yu Caidie stood up and said.
Although Yu Caidie really did not want to get involved with what Ling Lin's group was trying, she was the leader. She would not be a good leader if she turned a blind eye when her companions were in trouble. That would only cause others to doubt her character and helping her get the yin devil wind might no longer be their priority.
The young geniuses were unhappy with Ling Lin's group of three, but out of respect for Yu Caidie, they still acted. Only now did they notice that Xiang Shaoyun had disappeared. That caused them to be curious. Yu Caidie also noticed that, but making everyone search for him was not possible. Thus, they returned to their resting spot and waited.
Meanwhile, Xiang Shaoyun was approaching the devil flame seed with his entire body wrapped in a layer of Yun Flame's power. He had become one with Yun Flame. Thus, he could sense the agitation of the devil flame seed. He found that the devil flame seed had not come to devour Yun Flame, proving that it had yet to grow a sufficient level of intelligence. It was a much lower leveled flame in comparison to Yun Flame.
Xiang Shaoyun only started moving toward the devil flame seed after reaching that conclusion. Protected by Yun Flame’s power, he charged straight to the devil flame seed. He encountered a large amount of flame, but every flame he encountered moved out of his way, so he was able to move unimpeded.
The devil flame seed finally reacted when it sensed Yun Flame approaching. It started releasing even more flame in Yun Flame’s direction. The raging devil flame was black in color, looking incredibly bewitching. It had a power not much weaker than Yun Flame.
It also became apparent that this devil flame seed was actually waiting for Yun Flame to come before making a move. It actually possessed a rather high intelligence. At the beginning, the tongues of devil flame sent toward Yun Flame failed to do anything to Yun Flame. Instead, they were all devoured. But soon, the power of the devil flame soared and took the form of a devil flame rat. It then started madly attacking Xiang Shaoyun.
Xiang Shaoyun had a suffocating sensation, finally feeling threatened by the devil flame seed. After becoming one with Yun Flame, he had become very sensitive toward fire. He could sense that this devil flame seed was completely comparable to Yun Flame in strength.
Xiang Shaoyun did not dare to be careless and worked together with Yun Flame to release all the energy in his third star. He was ready to face the devil flame seed with all his power. And thus the clash between the power of two different flames began.
Chapter 451: Return of the Flame Taming Technique
Yu Caidie and the others were able to sense the collision of two different flames from far away. After all, the raging power of the two flames and the heatwave were spreading wildly, covering a radius of three kilometers. This collision of two different colors looked incredibly dazzling and brilliant.
"Why is there another flame here?" Ling Lin exclaimed in alarm.
He had a beast flame in his body. Although this flame was incomparable to those naturally formed flames, it was decently powerful. He could clearly sense how terrifying both the flames currently clashing were. The other two flame cultivators also sensed the same, and their eyes were filled with greed.
Getting a flame of this level could very well bring them straight into the Emperor Realm. Earlier, they had to leave because of the devil flame rats. With the devil flame rats all having fled the area, they started thinking that they had a chance to make a move on the devil flame seed again.
"Don't bother," Yu Caidie's voice suddenly rang out.
"Oh? Why do you say that, Holy Maiden?" asked someone in confusion.
Ling Lin said, "Holy Maiden, if we can obtain even one of the two flames, we will grow stronger. At that time, helping you get the yin devil wind will be—"
Before he could finish his words, Yu Caidie said, "A collision of two flames will definitely end with one being devoured by the other. The victorious flame will become even stronger. It will be much harder to tame the victor. Furthermore, one of the two flames belongs to Mister Xiang. I suggest you don't try making a move on him..."
"What? The other flame belongs to Xiang Shaoyun? How is that possible?" Ling Lin cried out in alarm. He had personally seen Xiang Shaoyun use the power of gold and lightning. He had never expected him to also possess the power of flame.
"Just watch, you'll see," said Yu Caidie who couldn't be bothered to offer more explanation.
The others were also surprised that Xiang Shaoyun actually possessed a third power. A smile now hung on their faces. They were all remarkable geniuses in cultivation. They knew very well the more powers one cultivated, the harder one's growth would be.
Furthermore, one would not be able to unleash the maximum potential of each power when cultivating too many powers. That was why most of them basically cultivated only one type of power. At most, they would cultivate two types of power. Someone cultivating three powers like Xiang Shaoyun might seem strong right now, but in the long run, he would fall far behind them. Yu Caidie also reached the same conclusion, her eyes rippling with a complicated emotion.
Meanwhile, Xiang Shaoyun was suffering an ordeal few could withstand amid the battlefield of the two flames. Because he was in the devil flame seed's territory, the devil flame seed was able to completely suppress Yun Flame's power. Although Yun Flame was
n't weak, the power it could unleash was limited due to Xiang Shaoyun.
Furthermore, Xiang Shaoyun had a body of flesh and blood while the devil flame seed had formed a body of flame. Thus, Xiang Shaoyun was disadvantaged when clashing against such a body. He felt like he was being cooked alive. At this time, Yun Flame suddenly told Xiang Shaoyun that things were getting dangerous and urged him to think of something.
After all, its power had all been compressed within Xiang Shaoyun's third star. Even though Xiang Shaoyun had released a large portion of its power, that was far from enough to face their current foe.
At that realization, Xiang Shaoyun started using the Seven Scorching Sun Claws to attack the devil flame seed. Although he could tear the incoming attacks apart, there was a boundless sea of flame around him. There was no way for him to extinguish it all, and even Yun Flame's power was starting to be slowly devoured by the devil flame seed.
I can't allow this to continue or I will die! I need to think of something, Xiang Shaoyun thought to himself anxiously.
He unleashed everything he had and started circulating his cultivation method to unleash as much of Yun Flame's power as he could, trying to devour the devil flame seed instead. At the same time, he also battled the devil flame seed with numerous battle techniques, trying to weaken it. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to work.
What should I do? Nothing seems to work! Do I really need to fully release Yun Flame from the star? Xiang Shaoyun thought gloomily.
It was at this moment that an inspiration hit him. He quickly sat down cross-legged and ignored the devil seed flame. He focused on completely withdrawing Yun Flame's power. He wasn't planning to sit down and accept his death. Rather, he had a solution in mind.
He was planning to repeat what he had done to subdue Yun Flame back then. A human skin appeared before him, and it emitted an incorporeal power, completely isolating him from the flame around him, protecting him from any harm.