Chapter 499

“Oh my goodness!” Shasha dramatically fanned the air with her hands, drenched in mist from the swirling hot and cold vapor, and shouted angrily: “Lu the Charlatan, you’re showing off so hard you’re drying up the entire Pacific’s moisture!”

“This is ridiculous—he burned through one of the stasis pods. If the fire suppression system hadn’t reacted so quickly, the whole stasis section would’ve been destroyed.”

Kiki crossed her arms, frowning: “Hey, we still need to do lattice cultivation—don’t go burning this place down.”

As she spoke, she waved her hand, and a shockwave swept through, instantly clearing the haze from the hall.

Only then did everyone see that Lu Xingchen still stood with his hands behind his back, facing away from them—but his clothes were now charred and soaked, his entire body resembling a burnt roast chicken.

“Wait, wait!”

Seeing the mist blown away, Lu Xingchen suddenly rekindled his flames—when Lin Xian immediately flung the nanofiber undersuit toward him; silver nanoparticles rapidly released, instantly wrapping him and the charred remnants of his clothing in a seamless shell.

Lin Xian had already realized this guy wasn’t just showing off—he suspected Lu’s clothes had been shredded during his evolution due to his overwhelming energy surge, and now, with everyone watching, he’d clearly seen Ningjing’s sudden body transformation. So he’d staged this “God of Fire Descending” pose to cover up the embarrassing fact that he was barely clinging to a few scorched scraps that didn’t even cover his buttocks.

Watching the flames on Lu’s body extinguish but him still refuse to turn around, Lin Xian knew exactly why—guys understood each other; if it were him, he wouldn’t dare turn either. At least showing your butt was more dignified than showing something else—especially for someone as vain as Lu Xingchen.

Fortunately, the steam swirling around him, combined with the charred fabric fragments and his blackened skin, made it impossible for anyone to see.

Once he felt the nanofiber undersuit envelop him, Lu Xingchen quietly exhaled in relief, then immediately resumed his composed posture, turned to face Lin Xian with a calm smile, and said:

“This garment’s material is extraordinary—clearly Brother Lin poured his heart and soul into crafting it to contain the wild inferno I’d unleash upon my emergence. Brother Lin, you’ve thought of everything.”

Lin Xian smiled wryly at him: “You’re welcome.”

At his side, Ding Junyi lifted the Oscillating Energy Meter, adjusted her glasses, and said: “26,500. His internal dark energy peak has already surpassed the transcendent threshold. According to the Phoenix Society’s new standards, this places him among the top-ranked psychics worldwide.”

“26,500!!!” Luo Yang blurted out in shock: “Fire Brother, you’re awesome!”

Among the crowd, Xiaoqing stared at Lu Xingchen in astonishment. Though she’d expected his psychic peak to rise by 100%, for Fire Brother to jump from 12,500 straight to 26,500 was truly beyond miraculous.

“Not bad! I’m only at 18,000—you’re 7,500 higher than Long Zhijie’s 19,000. Looks like lattice evolution can massively boost combat power!”

Qian Dele rested his chin on his hand, calmly remarking: “At this rate of lattice energy gain, breaking 30,000 shouldn’t take long.”

Hearing this, Lu Xingchen beamed and walked over to Ding Junyi: “Director Ding, really? I was only at 12,500 before…”

Though phrased as a question, it was clear Lu Xingchen was ecstatic—combat power surging was exactly what he’d most anticipated, and with Ding Junyi adding “top-ranked worldwide,” his personality meant his heart was already bursting with joy.

Ding Junyi held up the Oscillating Energy Meter for him to see: “It’s not the full standard—there’s still significant room for growth. Your lattice amplification rate likely exceeds 100%.”

“Excellent, excellent!” Lu Xingchen let out a long breath, straightened his chest with restrained excitement, gazed haughtily, as if peering through the train’s armor toward the crimson, monster-infested wasteland beyond: “The road ahead is long, filled with demons and specters. Very well—let my newly acquired ‘Three Pure Fires’ carve a heavenly path for all my fellow cultivators!”

As his words ended, the chamber’s temperature spiked again, the air seeming to boil.

“Enough, enough!” Chen Sixuan interrupted him before he could “take off,” concerned: “Check yourself for any other abnormalities.”

Lu Xingchen, startled by Chen Sixuan’s interruption, quickly sensed his body, then straightened up with renewed vigor: “All is well, rest assured, everyone.”

Lin Xian nodded: “So far, using Grade-4 Blood Essence, everyone’s evolution amplification rate hovers around 100%. That’s good news. The issue now is whether the building and Ningjing’s body changes are beneficial or harmful—we’ll need to consult the Phoenix Society to find out.”

“I feel fine,” Da Lou patted his chest. “Just redder than usual… otherwise, I feel better than ever.”

Da Lou was thrilled. His combat power had long lagged behind the team’s; his blood aura ability was useless against giant anomalies. Though Lin Xian had crafted the Black Dragon Armor for him, it conflicted with his innate power, preventing full potential—only improving his mobility and defense on water. Now, he clearly felt he possessed raw physical strength capable of shattering the air. With a little adaptation, he might even develop a way to kill at range, like Vanessa.

As Da Lou finished, Ningjing stood with arms crossed, gazing at her body and sighing: “I think I’m about the same—no real discomfort, just sleeping might be tricky.”

“I agree,” Kiki smirked, looking up at towering Ningjing: “Guess Lin Xian’s gonna have to make you a new bed.”

"I think so too," Kiki muttered, looking up at the tall Ningjing: "It seems Lin Xian will have to make you a new bed."

Lin Xian looked at her seriously: “Right now, even the Phoenix Society, the Falcon Sea Corps, and the Holy City Organization are still in their infancy studying lattice transformations. Human evolution has happened too rapidly—we still have countless unknowns to unravel. So as long as there’s no life threat and lattice evolution proceeds smoothly, treat all other changes as latent power development. Even aberrant-limb psychics can suppress and control their forms—I’m sure your case has a solution too.”

Lin Xian looked at her seriously and said: "Right now, not just us—even the Phoenix Society, the Hawk Sea Corps, and the Saint City Organization are still at a very basic stage in exploring the changes after crystallization. Human evolution has occurred too rapidly; there are still too many unknowns we need to unravel. So for now, as long as there’s no life-threatening danger and the crystallization proceeds smoothly, I think we should treat all other changes as manifestations of psychic abilities. Even those with aberrant limbs can suppress and control them—I’m sure there’s a way for your situation too."

“Looks like your earlier worries were too cautious,” Mo Nika said, arms crossed, calmly: “Including me, seven of us now exceed 15,000 Oscillating Energy. We haven’t fought yet, but judging by the core fighters of the Falcon Sea Corps, handling a few Special-Class anomalies should be no problem.”

“I agree,” Shu Qin nodded, clenching her fist: “This isn’t just about power increase. Once we can assimilate dark energy, anomalies’ dark corruption barely affects us anymore—and we can even use this energy to counter them. In a way, we’ve become a type of destructive force similar to anomalies themselves.”

"I think it's fine too," Shu Qin nodded, clenching her fists: "This isn't just about increased strength—most importantly, once we can assimilate dark energy, the dark incursions from the strange entities will have minimal effect on us. At the same time, we can use this energy to counterattack. In a certain sense, we and the strange entities are a similar type of destructive force."

Ningjing, standing above the crowd, added with a teasing tone: “Yeah, just like anomalies—same massive size now.”

“Alright, alright,” Kiki stepped forward: “Everyone’s done well. Now it’s our turn, right?”

Lin Xian looked at Kiki and nodded: “Alright, no time to waste. Kiki, Chen Laoshi, Luo Yang, Xiaoqing, Abai, and Shizhi—prepare for the next batch.”

“What about you?” Mo Nika said, her gaze fixed on him.

“I’ll wait until you’re all done,” Lin Xian admitted. “That way, I’ll feel more at ease.”

“I’ll come back after all of you are done,” Lin Xian admitted. “That way, I’ll feel more at ease.”