by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
Those who were more experienced knew instantly Xiang Shaoyun had a unique flame. One of them exclaimed, "T-this is the power of the profundity of flame! One of its traits is being incredibly hard to extinguish!"
The words caused everyone's expressions to change. They were all genius cultivators, and for them to be able to join the Dragon Phoenix Academy signified that they were among the best in the world.
However, even they had yet to start comprehending the profundity of flame, but Xiang Shaoyun had accomplished just that. The gap between them was now clear for all to see.
Furthermore, the might Xiang Shaoyun displayed had gone beyond their imagination. He was only a second-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivation, yet a random flame he left on the ground was enough to cripple one of their leaders, a third-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator. It was obvious his strength was far beyond them.
It was no wonder he was so confident. A few of them still wanted to try challenging Xiang Shaoyun, but they gave up after some hesitation. Offending someone like him would only make things difficult for them in the academy.
One of them was an oddity. Standing before the flame line, he looked at Xiang Shaoyun with a fanatical gaze and said, "Young Master Xiang, I am Wang Ziyu. I wish to join the Overlord Legion. Please accept me."
Wang Ziyu was also one of their leaders, and he was a mid third-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator. He had a decent talent in cultivation. Someone like him was strong enough to climb the Jiao Luan List. What he did caused several people to look at him with contempt before they turned to leave. They felt insulted just to be standing together with someone like Wang Ziyu.
However, some thought differently. Like Wang Ziyu, they expressed a desire to join the Overlord Legion.
"Young Master Xiang, please give me a chance. I am willing to join the Overlord Legion...to fight for the glory of the legion!"
"Young Master Xiang, I did not come to offend you. In truth, I am here to ask for a chance to enter the Overlord Legion and dominate the academy alongside you!"
"From the very first time I saw you, I have been greatly attracted by your magnificence. You are the greatest monarch in my heart. Please, accept the offering of my knees!"
"Overlord, please accept me. I will definitely work with great devotion!"
Chapter 703: Flame Spirit Appearing
Xiang Shaoyun did not know whether to laugh or cry as he looked at all these people who were suddenly expressing interest in joining the Overlord Legion. His initial intention was to establish his might and deter others from creating more trouble for him.
Never had he imagined that they were actually so decisive and good at changing their position. Almost half the group immediately submitted to him while the others left gloomily.
"Sure, there is a chance for anyone wishing to join, but not now. You have to first prove your sincerity to join," said Xiang Shaoyun.
He was clear that not many of them would be sincere in joining. Most of them were only aiming for the cultivation spot the Overlord Legion currently occupied.
"That is not a problem. I, Wang Ziyu, shall stand guard here. Who dares to encroach upon this spot will need to step over me!" said Wang Ziyu as he patted his chest.
The others also quickly made their promises, offering to stand guard on his behalf. With Xiang Shaoyun's intelligence, he saw through them immediately. Since he had chased the Di Alliance away and had also subdued this group of people, nobody should come creating trouble for him anymore. These people were only feigning loyalty with no sincerity.
Xiang Shaoyun said, "If you wish to join the Overlord Legion, leave immediately. When you're back at the academy, go to 1 Dragon Villa, and look for our butler, Zhuge Zhantian. He will test all of you. Those passing the test can join. For now, leave."
They were disappointed, but they were unwilling to leave just like that.
"Still not leaving?" Xiang Shaoyun frowned and roared.
When they saw that Xiang Shaoyun was going to get furious, they left gloomily. Right after they left, an earth-shaking explosion thundered from the top of the mountain. The volcanic crater started spraying a massive quantity of lava. Like dazzling fireworks, the lava shot into the sky before spreading everywhere with great destructiveness and heat.
It was a stunning view and a dangerous moment. Volcanic eruptions were very common here, but this was Xiang Shaoyun's first time seeing one. He could sense the intense heatwave sputtering down in his direction.
Any King would flee at its mere sight. Even Emperors would not have the confidence to face the dropping lava head on. Naturally, Xiang Shaoyun did not fear the lava. When he thought of his companions, he rushed to the peak of the mountain without any hesitation.
A red layer of flame shrouded his body and absorbed the flame energy from the lava, increasing his strength. The lava could not even touch him as his aura pushed it all away.
Before he reached the peak, he saw Deng Lingtian, Ling Lin, and the others flying down. Behind them was a group of fiery beings. They were none other than the flame spirits. A flame spirit was akin to a massive fiery shadow, and like a human, it also had four limbs. Its head only had a pair of eyes and a mouth, without a nose or ears. They looked rather odd.
They were formed of pure flame and were very different from an actual fleshy life form. They were capable of spitting flame endlessly, and when they brandished their limbs, they could send out an unending amount of flame to burn their surroundings.
There were at least several hundreds of them here chasing after Deng Lingtian and company, forcing them into retreat. One ought to admit that when these flame spirits worked together, their attacks were valiant. Ordinary Emperors would be helpless against them.
Defeating a flame spirit would grant one a strand of flame origin energy. Perhaps that energy wouldn't be completely pure, but it would still help any cultivator grow rapidly. The moment these flame spirits appeared in Xiang Shaoyun's sight, Yun Flame started transmitting an emotion of absolute delight. He knew this was Yun Flame's longing to devour these flame spirits.
"Since you want them, I will slaughter to my heart's content today," said Xiang Shaoyun with an excited look. With a roar, he shot forward like a gust of wind, charging straight toward the flame spirits.
At this time, Ling Lin was being attacked by about 30 flame spirits. He had decent combat prowess, but the flame spirits were too strong, and he couldn't hold on much longer. Suddenly, Xiang Shaoyun dropped down from the sky before clawing forward with two massive fiery palms.
Instantly, several flame spirits were torn apart. Xiang Shaoyun imagined that they would die from that, but they merely scattered before reforming into new flame spirits. Some of them would simply join into the bodies of other flame spirits, enhancing the strength of those spirits.
"Overlord, they are extremely difficult to deal with. You need to seize their origin crystal the moment you defeat one. Otherwise, they will keep on reforming or fusing with other flame spirits," said Ling Lin.
"Origin crystal?" Xiang Shaoyun muttered as he activated his gift of instincts. His senses penetrated the bodies of the spirits, detecting the origin crystals within.
Instead of their heads, the origin crystals were actually located within their chests. Each origin crystal was shaped like a spirit crystal and was the source of the flame origin energy. Xiang Shaoyun was slightly distracted scanning these flame spirits, and they took the chance to send several powerful flame attacks toward him.
The incoming attacks were comparable to the attacks of a third-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator. Few could withstand such attacks. Within Xiang Shaoyun, Yun Flame pulsed, and a massive suction force erupted. Immediately, the incoming attacks reduced by half their size before striking Xiang Shaoyun.
His body was burned, putting him in intense pain. Fortunately, the pain was still within his acceptable limit.
The flame spirits' attacks originated from their origin crystals. So long as I harvest their origin cr
ystals, the flame spirits will automatically collapse, Xiang Shaoyun concluded inwardly.
He then clawed with his Seven Scorching Sun Claws and struck the flame spirit charging in front of the others.
Xiang Shaoyun thought he could easily dig out the origin crystal. However, he found that the crystal was connected with the energy coursing through the flame spirit's body. A massive counterforce assaulted him alongside an intensely hot energy.
The flame spirit was unwilling to have its origin crystal grabbed just like that. Thus, it hugged Xiang Shaoyun, seemingly trying to perish with him. It was a technique that many disciples had suffered from. Alas, it wasn't that useful against Xiang Shaoyun.
Chapter 704: Seizing Origin Crystals
Xiang Shaoyun was someone who had been tempered by fire before. On top of that, he had Yun Flame within him, so he did not fear regular types of flame. Even some high-tier flames would not be able to harm him.
The flame spirit's decision to perish together with Xiang Shaoyun was a mistake. Before it could even set Xiang Shaoyun on fire, Yun Flame devoured a majority of the spirit's flame energy, causing its strength to plummet.
With a pull, Xiang Shaoyun plucked the origin crystal out of its body. With the departure of the origin crystal from its body, the flame spirit withered before dissipating into the air.
Ling Lin opened his eyes wide in shock after witnessing such a domineering method of harvesting the origin crystal. They had to painstakingly destroy a flame spirit before they could harvest an origin crystal, but Xiang Shaoyun merely plucked it out in such a coarse manner, shocking Ling Lin greatly. Ling Lin tried doing the same, but he ended up being burned badly by the flame spirit.
The overlord lives up to his reputation. He is truly a freak, Ling Lin thought to himself.
Before Xiang Shaoyun could stow the spirit crystal, numerous flame spirits surrounded him. They attacked unendingly, their attacks akin to a volcanic eruption. Their destructiveness was not something an ordinary person could withstand.
Xiang Shaoyun did not dare to hold back as he immediately escaped from a crack amid the incoming attacks. He then clawed at one of the flame spirits.
Seven Scorching Sun Claws!
The target of his violent attack was clear. After facing the first flame spirit, he now knew the flame spirits better. Thus, he held nothing back the moment he attacked. So long as he could pluck out the origin crystal quickly, the flame spirit would not be a threat.
Sure enough, the moment he plucked the origin crystal from the flame spirit he targeted, it started dissipating. More attacks were sent his way, but it was as if he had a pair of eyes on the back of his head. He quickly moved aside, dodged the attacks, and attacked with both hands, clawing at the origin crystals of two different flame spirits. Whether in movement or attack, Xiang Shaoyun moved like a specter. Each attack was accurate and effective, and the flame spirits had no way of guarding against him.
After a few seconds, he collected a total of six origin crystals. Just as he was about to seize his seventh origin crystal, the flame spirits did something surprising. They surrounded him then exploded together.
The flame spirits had low intelligence, yet they had extremely violent tempers due to the flame element. Hence, when encountering an opponent they couldn't defeat, they tended to do something extreme.
They were doing one such extreme action now. By exploding their origin crystals, they could create terrifying explosions that even fourth-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivators would have a hard time surviving.
Xiang Shaoyun was in the midst of them and was caught by a complete surprise. Intense pain assaulted his entire body, and his skin cracked apart, more flame energy invading him.
If it wasn't for Yun Flame constantly absorbing all the flame energy, he would have already been set ablaze and killed. One ought to admit that these flame spirits were extremely dangerous.
That was why the academy's genius disciples could perish easily while harvesting origin crystals. Xiang Shaoyun had a powerful flesh, and his reaction time was impressive as well. The moment they exploded, he had erected his defenses, protecting himself from the second wave of explosion.
"Overlord!" Ling Lin had retreated a distance away, and when he turned back, the sight that welcomed him was of several flame spirits exploding with Xiang Shaoyun in their midst. His face sank.
The other Overlord Legion members who were escaping from the peak saw it as well, and they were greatly alarmed, thinking that Xiang Shaoyun was either heavily injured or outright dead.
"Go and help the overlord!" Deng Lingtian roared.
Just as they were about to charge forward, the flame surrounding Xiang Shaoyun vanished rapidly, revealing him before them once again. Instead of retreating, Xiang Shaoyun charged the flame spirits again, plucking one origin crystal after another.
He pushed his speed to its limits, using both the power of wind and footwork intent, holding nothing back. In his current state, the flame spirits couldn't even sense him before they were killed. The others who saw Xiang Shaoyun come and go as he pleased amid the flame spirits were completely stunned. Only a while later did they gasp in shock.
"What kind of speed is this? It's terrifying. I can't see him at all!"
"You are not alone. I can't see anything either. The only thing I know is that the boss doesn't fear the flame spirits and can easily pluck the origin crystals from their bodies. What a direct and hoarse method of harvest."
"He is indeed our overlord. This strength is not something we can compare to."
"If I'm this fast as well, I will definitely be able to pluck the origin crystals as easy as reaching for it like him."
...
Suddenly, Xiang Shaoyun shouted at them, "What are you waiting for? Attack them together. Don't scatter and fight separately like before."
They no longer hesitated and worked together to attack the flame spirits. They had to grab this opportunity. It wasn't normal to easily encounter the flame spirits out here, as they would usually need to enter the volcanic crater to encounter them.
They started to work together and hunt the flame spirits, harvesting the origin crystals. As for Xiang Shaoyun, he became accustomed to the environment and could now deal with the flame spirits easily.
However, he had been using the power of wind to move, and he still needed to attack to get the origin crystals. Hence, he had exhausted a large amount of astral energy. Fortunately, his flame star was filling rapidly due to Yun Flame absorbing all the energy from the flame spirits.
If this continued, perhaps in about 10 days he would completely fill up the flame star. It was no wonder flame cultivators could advance so quickly at the Flame Mountains. It was heaven for them.
About half of the several hundred flame spirits were defeated by Xiang Shaoyun and his group, while the remaining retreated back to the volcanic crater. They weren't able to leave the crater for long, and each time they left, they had to borrow the power of the erupting volcano. Otherwise, with their high energy expenditure, they would exhaust all their energy before fighting for long.
Because of that, they all retreated when the heat in the area started dissipating. Xiang Shaoyun had the urge to rush straight to the volcanic crater. However, he noticed a massive flame spirit ahead of him, glaring at him furiously.
Behind him, someone exclaimed, "That is the flame spirit emperor! Overlord, retreat!"
Chapter 705: Flame Spirit Emperor
The flame spirit emperor was one of the strongest flame spirits in the Flame Mountains zone. It was as strong as a peak Emperor, or perhaps even as strong as an ordinary Sovereign. It had terrifying combat prowess.
Furthermore, its flame manipulation had reached perfection, unlike the regular flame spirits who only know to attack violently without controlled techniques. The strength of the flame spirit emperor signified that it also had a purer origin crystal containing much more powerful energy.
Xiang Shaoyun wanted to charge forward, but when he
heard the reminder, he stopped. It was not that he was afraid of the flame spirit emperor, but he was not at peak condition. He might not be able to defeat the flame spirit.
Hence, he decided to first retreat and absorb the origin crystals he had harvested so far. Once again, he returned to halfway down the mountain with the Overlord Legion members. There, they started recuperating.
Xiang Shaoyun refined several origin crystals rapidly. Strands of flame energy entered his flame star, strengthening the star and Yun Flame. The flame star coexisted with Yun Flame, and their growth was equivalent to Xiang Shaoyun's growth. The strands of flame origin energy he absorbed this time weren't entirely pure, but they still contained incredible power.
After refining the flame origin energy, Xiang Shaoyun not only felt the growth of his flame cultivation, he also felt his comprehension of the profundity of flame increasing. He would be able to fully comprehend it any day now. He refined all the origin crystals he had, converging the powerful energy into his flame star.
Like a sponge, Yun Flame tirelessly absorbed the origin energy. It was as if no amount of energy could fully satisfy it. Fortunately, the flame origin energy Xiang Shaoyun had gotten this time was abundant enough, and it would take Yun Flame some time to fully digest them all.
Three days passed, and Xiang Shaoyun finally fully refined all the origin crystals. His flame star was almost completely full, and he grew excited at that realization.
"Looks like I only need to charge up the mountain one more time to complete my flame star. Monopolizing an entire mountain is indeed profitable," Xiang Shaoyun muttered in a pleased manner.
He only had a single flame star, with all his other stars focusing on other elements. That was why he could quickly fill his flame star. If he had nine flame stars instead, it would take him much longer to fill up all the stars.