Chapter 455

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Protagonist:

Yu Zhangsheng

The air was filled with a scorched stench, the earth collapsed, trees turned to flying ash; after the residual might dispersed, Lord Han Cheng looked at the Flame Lion's corpse on the ground and smiled faintly.

As his fingers shifted rapidly, the Flame Lion corpse before him began to decompose, condensing into a mass of energy, ultimately returning to simplicity as three crimson Dao patterns emerged.

These three crimson Dao patterns floated up and down, faintly visible, crimson like fire, winding and coiling like a long serpent, shimmering with a clear firelight; if one focused their senses, a scorching heat would transmit from the depths of the mind, causing discomfort.

They were precisely Fire Dao Patterns.

If it were the past, after the Dao patterns emerged, Lord Han Cheng would still need to act, shattering the Dao patterns into the most basic constituent Dao rhymes, only then could they be absorbed into the bodies of Yu Zhangsheng and the others; but now, obviously, this step could be omitted.

Therefore, at this time, Lord Han Cheng merely cast his gaze toward Yu Zhangsheng, a trace of complexity surfacing in his expression, and said:

"Give it a try, see if this time it can succeed; if not, just keep trying, and don't feel pressured."

Yu Zhangsheng heard this, nodded, feeling somewhat helpless inside, then after exhaling a deep breath of turbid Qi, slowly closed his eyes and focused his mind, operating the breathing technique Lord Han Cheng had re-taught him, placing his entire mind and spirit upon the Fire Dao Patterns before him.

Simultaneously, he released Chi Lian, and Lord Han Cheng acted, decomposing one of the three Fire Dao Patterns, supplying it for Chi Lian to absorb.

【Successfully consumed a small amount of Dao Rhyme to feed Chi Lian, Chi Lian improved slightly in all aspects, gained 1000 Essence Points...】

The System's voice rang out in his mind, but at this moment Yu Zhangsheng was already immersed in his own world; with the deliberate rise and fall, Yu Zhangsheng's entire mind and spirit were also intently fixed upon the Fire Dao Patterns.

Bit by bit, intangible Qi mechanisms slowly covered the Fire Dao Patterns; the Fire Dao Patterns swayed gently, trembled once, and with each ripple of intangible fluctuations, transformed into specks of light rhyme, slowly flowing into Yu Zhangsheng's body.

Yu Zhangsheng's spirit remained attached to the Fire Dao Patterns, guiding their circulation within his body, ultimately converging in the Sea of Qi dantian; there, a submerged purple-gold pellet was slowly rotating, reflecting the Fire Dao Patterns in mutual brilliance...

This process was extremely profound, a process of tracing back to the origin, stripping tendons and breaking bones; every detail of the Fire Dao Patterns was clearly visible in Yu Zhangsheng's mind, all structures laid bare at a glance; they dispersed within Yu Zhangsheng's body, and under the guidance of his consciousness, began to reassemble...

"Fire..."

Yu Zhangsheng frowned, subconsciously murmuring; bit by bit, sweat flowed down from his forehead at some unknown time; immediately after, a layer of fine sweat densely covered every part of his skin; drenched in sweat, a scorching heat radiated from within his body, as if a furnace existed, blazing and burning.

And at this moment, Yu Zhangsheng's mind and spirit were within this sensation; with the continuous comprehension of the Fire Dao Patterns, the sensation of flame burning became even more distinct; strands of profound Qi emanated from Yu Zhangsheng's body.

The Fire Dao Patterns swayed, flowing everywhere within Yu Zhangsheng's body, constantly being refined and assimilated by him; with the reassembly, they wound their way toward the Heavenly Dao Golden Core in the Sea of Qi dantian.

"Boom!!"

Finally, when Yu Zhangsheng had completely penetrated this Fire Dao Pattern, the Fire Dao Pattern shook, carrying Yu Zhangsheng's will, and floated swayingly toward the Heavenly Dao Golden Core at the center of the dantian, as if to engrave upon it...

The Heavenly Dao Golden Core trembled lightly, flashing with purple-gold radiance, looking increasingly noble and sacred; in the crystal-clear transparent center of the Golden Core, a dragon-shaped blood-colored Heavenly Dao Qi swam up and down; facing the approaching Fire Dao Pattern, it let out a disdainful, furious roar.

"Whether it succeeds or not depends on this one time." Yu Zhangsheng's heart tightened, not daring the slightest slack; his brow furrowed tight, he exhaled a deep breath, and gritting his teeth, endured the burning sensation in his spirit, controlling the Fire Dao Pattern to approach and attach to the Heavenly Dao Golden Core!

"Boom!"

Flames swayed, firelight obscured the sky; within Yu Zhangsheng's Sea of Qi dantian, wind and waves rose; the Fire Dao Pattern carefully approached the Heavenly Dao Golden Core, ultimately transforming into a light and shadow, covering and engraving upon the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.

The Heavenly Dao Golden Core trembled; on its purple-gold surface a wisp of firelight flashed, a faint Fire Dao Pattern phantom flickering upon it, a profound meaning arising; before Yu Zhangsheng could breathe a sigh of relief, the next moment, the Heavenly Dao Golden Core seemed startled and enraged; with a flash of purple-gold light halo, the Fire Dao Pattern just engraved upon it instantly trembled, collapsed with a boom, transforming into Dao Rhyme and vanishing, unable to be condensed again...

"Pfft..."

Yu Zhangsheng's complexion instantly turned pale; with his mind and spirit in turmoil, his breath slightly disordered; he opened his eyes, his expression revealing a bitter smile; beneath tightly locked brows lay deep confusion and powerlessness.

"Failed again, why is this? Why does the Heavenly Dao Golden Core reject it? Clearly I have completely comprehended and reassembled it... Could it be that relying on myself, I simply cannot succeed?"

Yu Zhangsheng's mind and spirit sank, falling into deep thought; looking at the remaining Fire Dao Pattern, he was somewhat lost in thought.

Of the three Fire Dao Patterns the Flame Lion produced, one was given to Chi Lian to absorb, one just now was absorbed but failed and collapsed, leaving one more, which can be attempted once more.

However, Yu Zhangsheng did not rush; in fact, before this, he had already attempted dozens of times, each time exactly like this; despite having completely penetrated it, they all collapsed at the final moment...

This left Yu Zhangsheng baffled; helpless in his heart, after a long while, a trace of determination flashed in the depths of his gaze.

"Forcing me to cheat, are we..."

Yu Zhangsheng murmured softly in his heart; and seeing Yu Zhangsheng fail once again, Lord Han Cheng gently exhaled a breath, a trace of complexity flashing across his face; he shook his head and comforted:

"Dao Patterns are inherently difficult to engrave; failure is perfectly normal; accumulate experience, keep trying and you will eventually succeed."

Yu Zhangsheng was silent, not responding to his words; instead, after heavily exhaling a breath, he operated the breathing technique, adjusted slightly, then immersed his mind and spirit once more upon the final Fire Dao Pattern; instantly, this Fire Dao Pattern was also drawn by Yu Zhangsheng, slowly fusing into Yu Zhangsheng's Sea of Qi dantian, and began reassembling again; this process was familiar and easy, extremely smooth...

Seeing Yu Zhangsheng not discouraged, Lord Han Cheng merely shook his head inwardly, said nothing more; with a light sigh in his heart, he placed his gaze upon Chi Lian, who was happily absorbing the Dao Rhymes.

【Successfully consumed a small amount of Dao Rhyme to feed Chi Lian, Chi Lian improved slightly in all aspects, gained 1000 Essence Points...】

Essence Points increased, and Chi Lian's joy increased likewise; the continuous absorption of Dao Rhymes had already made Chi Lian appear to have more changes.

Its bloodline became purer, its Qi more orthodox; its innate flame was also slowly strengthening.

"His Spirit Beasts are not bad either; he has put thought into nurturing them. I can perceive that this Chi Lian has fused Yanhuang Linglong True Blood within its body, and its bones and flesh also seem to have fused the True Bones of a Fifth Stage Peak dragon-type Spirit Beast. This is originally a heaven-defying fortune, but because its bloodline is mottled and its Qi impure, it fundamentally cannot fuse perfectly, nor fully exert its power; it can only slowly harmonize with time... a precious jade covered in dust."

Lord Han Cheng's thoughts turned, staring at Chi Lian; a strange color flashed in the depths of his gaze; he thought: "However, now with the continuous absorption of Dao Rhymes, this harmonization process is also accelerating; some things that should have been exerted are only now slowly manifesting."

"If this continues, who knows about Yu Zhangsheng, but the fortuitous enhancement his tamed beast has gained will certainly be extraordinary..."

Before entering the Abyss, Yu Zhangsheng had once fused a drop of Fifth Stage King-Grade Spirit Beast Yanhuang Linglong True Blood into Chi Lian; although the amount was small, it was also extremely precious; Spirit Beast fusion is a transformation akin to shedding one's mortal body and exchanging bones; coupled with the previously fused Fifth Stage Peak Spirit Beast's Spirit Dragon True Bones...

The enhancement Chi Lian gained, how could it possibly be only this simple on the surface? Normally speaking, the fusion of the two can push any Third-Order Spirit Beast to Fourth Order; of course, the premise is that this Third-Order Spirit Beast can bear it.

And although Yu Zhangsheng relied on the System to let Chi Lian fuse these two supreme treasures, flaws inevitably appeared; most of the power of the Spirit Dragon True Bones and Yanhuang Linglong True Blood was sealed and silenced, only able to slowly release and harmonize with time, slowly manifesting on Chi Lian.

And now, the continuous absorption of Dao Rhymes has accelerated this process; the transforming effects of the Yanhuang Linglong True Blood and Spirit Dragon True Bones are also gradually manifesting, coming into play.

"In this World, Chi Lian's cultivation base is sealed; however, if things go smoothly like this, by the time Yu Zhangsheng leaves this Wu Dao Jie, his Spirit Beast will likely break through to Fourth Order as a matter of course in an instant..."

Lord Han Cheng thought, his gaze also involuntarily falling upon Yu Zhangsheng, who was meditating with closed eyes, refining the Fire Dao Pattern; his complexion returned to calm.

And regarding Chi Lian's changes, although Yu Zhangsheng was aware, he also did not pay excessive attention; at this moment, he had already entered the final stage of engraving the Fire Dao Pattern.

The Fire Dao Pattern, once again refined and reassembled within Yu Zhangsheng's body, branded with Yu Zhangsheng's Qi imprint, once again swaying, approached the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.

The Heavenly Dao Golden Core trembled lightly; a faint purple-gold light halo spread, seemingly rejecting.

Yu Zhangsheng's mind and spirit immersed within, sensing everything of the Fire Dao Pattern; he frowned slightly, feeling puzzled: "I've checked many times; the Fire Dao Pattern has no errors."

"Then why does it collapse every time shortly after engraving onto the Golden Core! It shouldn't be like this; but since it is so, the problem isn't the Dao Pattern's fault; why does the Heavenly Dao Golden Core reject the Dao Pattern... and it even seems to be looking down on it?"

Yu Zhangsheng pondered, sensing the tsundere Golden Core; he did not continue controlling the Fire Dao Pattern to continue engraving; he had a premonition that if it were just like this, the result would still be the same as last time.

"Forget it, no use thinking about it. Since I can't do it myself... you're forcing me to cheat, aren't you?"

After a long while, Yu Zhangsheng sighed inwardly, and helpless, turned to look at the Essence Points that had just broken through one million after feeding the spirit beasts these past few days, gritted his teeth hard, and made a resolution in his heart.

"You have to give to get. It's just five hundred thousand Essence Points. I want to see how I could possibly fail this time with the system's help!"

Yu Zhangsheng steeled his heart, suppressed the flesh-pain, and the next moment, as five hundred thousand Essence Points vanished from his system account, a crisp sound rang out in his mind.

【Consumed 500000 Essence Points! Successfully purified Fire Dao Wen, engraving for host...】

Yes, just like improving cultivation techniques, the system can also play a role in engraving Dao Wen, and Yu Zhangsheng had been clear on this three days ago.

But what pained Yu Zhangsheng was that engraving a single Dao Wen required as many as five hundred thousand Essence Points, so Yu Zhangsheng had spent these three days constantly trying himself, wanting to engrave the Dao Wen on his own as much as possible to save this one batch of Essence Points.

A single Fire Dao Wen is 500000 Essence Points. If all Five Elements Dao Wen are fully engraved, that would be 2500000 Essence Points, a veritable astronomical figure, not something Yu Zhangsheng could bear.

Moreover, Yu Zhangsheng had a premonition in his heart that the Dao Wen he would engrave would probably not be just five...

Under such circumstances, Yu Zhangsheng did not choose to rely on the system from the start, but now, so many failures had made him stop caring about that.

"The Fire Dao Wen engraved by the system, could it be different from mine..."

Yu Zhangsheng contemplated, and the next moment, a wave of invisible, mysterious fluctuations suddenly swept in from the four directions of heaven and earth, surging into Yu Zhangsheng's body.

Thump thump thump...

Yu Zhangsheng's body immediately trembled, a trace of bewilderment appearing in his eyes, and the Fire Dao Wen in his Sea of Qi dantian also suddenly shook, turning blurry.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..."

Wind, unknown when it rose, Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi quietly gathered from the four directions, the four directions' wandering Dao rhyme likewise, and even more, strands of indescribably mysterious fluctuations, centered on Yu Zhangsheng, began to rotate and surge in.

The air began to grow scorching, spiritual qi began to rotate, the big trees began to bend at the waist. In the True Source Dense Forest, spirit beasts seemed to sense something, and with whimpers lay down their bodies, facing Yu Zhangsheng.

"This is..."

Lord Han Cheng suddenly froze, his pupils shrinking, turning his head to look at the meditating Yu Zhangsheng. A sense of heart-palpitations arose spontaneously — this palpitation came from the depths of the soul, the instinct of living beings, unrelated to cultivation base. Even Lord Han Cheng could not exempt himself.

Thus, Lord Han Cheng's gaze flickered, looking at Yu Zhangsheng with shock and doubt, his steps shifting slightly, a look of disbelief emerging on his face.

"What kind of fluctuation is this... what Dao Wen has Yu Zhangsheng condensed..."

Under her perception, the current Yu Zhangsheng had become blurry. Before her was a mass of flame, crimson red, emitting astonishing high temperature.

At first tiny, then rapidly turning violent, blazing and burning. Boundless heat waves and a sea of fire covered everything. As this flame swayed, space began to collapse, everything around turning to annihilation. Only this flame continued burning, illuminating heaven and earth, seemingly eternal. All else before it was but a pile of ashes.

The flame twisted. In the hazy depths of the firelight, an entwined, mysterious rune faintly flickered... (Chapter End)