Chapter 116: Fleeing in a Hurry

Xiao Yan squinted and only then realized Mao Wu was holding a slender object between its teeth!

"A snake?! Where did you drag that from?!"

Xiao Yan was stunned! I told you to go find the Strange Fire and bring it back—what the hell did you bring back?!

The thing Mao Wu held was a tiny snake, barely two centimeters long, its entire body covered in minute seven-colored scales, pale purple eyes, radiating an eerie aura.

Especially the strange sweet scent clinging to its body, which made Xiao Yan frown.

He had smelled that sweet scent just recently!

Though the snake's appearance wasn't particularly fierce, it was unnaturally beautiful—such a beautiful creature would likely make many women forget their fear and revulsion toward snakes.

But Xiao Yan knew: this seven-colored snake was almost certainly Mei Du Sha Queen!

Xiao Yan muttered to himself: "Seven-colored body, purple-tinged eyes, fragrant form, power reaching the heavens? This matches the rare Magical Beast records of the Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent! Could Mei Du Sha Queen's so-called evolution actually be the evolution of her Spiritual Soul, condensing into a true new body?!"

A Magical Beast's Spiritual Soul is weaker than a human's; the Transformation Pill only grants it human cultivation potential, but does not strengthen the Spiritual Soul itself.

Yet Xiao Yan never imagined Mei Du Sha Queen's evolution through the Strange Fire had targeted her Spiritual Soul!

"Why do I feel some strange connection with this Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent?!"

What crushed Xiao Yan most was that he truly felt a connection to this Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent—he felt as if he could read its thoughts, like it was his Clone.

"Didn't I accidentally fulfill the conditions for Mei Du Sha Queen's evolution and strengthen her Spiritual Soul…?"

Xiao Yan stared at the slender snake; due to some error in evolution, this Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent was extremely weak—now only at the level of a Third Grade Magical Beast.

"No, keeping her might be useful—if Qing Lin uses her Qi San Hua Tong, perhaps we can control Mei Du Sha Queen!" Xiao Yan's heart trembled as he remembered Qing Lin's Qi San Hua Tong!

That was a peculiar bodily trait capable of controlling snakes; though Xiao Yan didn't know if Qing Lin could control the Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent, it was worth trying!

With a flick of his finger, Xiao Yan pulled out the Azure Lotus Platform from his storage ring; instantly, a pale green glow slowly rose from the ring, hovering before him—within the green light, the perfectly sculpted Azure Lotus Platform rotated gently, releasing a faint energy.

The moment the green lotus appeared, the Origin Flame Seed of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire hidden in a corner of the fire barrier spontaneously drifted over—a faint green aura spread from it, quietly enveloping the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire.

"Mao Wu, put the snake in too. Without the Origin Flame Seed, the fire barrier will vanish. We're leaving!" Xiao Yan said to Mao Wu.

~o(=∩ω∩=) Meow!

Mao Wu tossed the Seven-Colored Devouring Sky Serpent into the green Lotus Platform; perhaps because Mei Du Sha Queen had successfully evolved using the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire, the fire did not attack, slowly sinking back into the lotus center—whereupon an eerie green flame rose from the now-empty center.

The acquisition of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire went smoother than Xiao Yan had expected; watching the fire now sealed within the Azure Lotus Platform, he couldn't help but feel a flicker of joy.

Looking up, Xiao Yan saw the fire barrier formed by the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire beginning to fade—he could even see Gu He waiting outside, watching intently.

Xiao Yan had not yet fully secured the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire; only when he escaped Gu He and the others would it truly be his!

His eyes flashed; Xiao Yan's body trembled slightly, and after using an Elixir to restore some Dou Qi, he covered his Purple Cloud Wings with the Fused Strange Fire and shot forward with a boom.

The instant Xiao Yan dashed forward with the Lotus Platform, the fire barrier of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire vanished completely, dissolving into countless tiny specks of light.

A long trail of fire slashed across the sky as Xiao Yan surged forward, racing desperately toward the outskirts of Shen Cheng.

Gu He's pupils shrank sharply; far up in the sky, a figure clad in black robes, holding the Azure Lotus Platform, was

frantically fleeing.

Upon the Lotus Platform, eerie green flames continuously burned.

"Strange Fire!!!"

Gu He suddenly let out a furious roar—he hadn't even seen the Strange Fire's true form, yet he'd done all the work for someone else!

Instantly enraged, he growled: "Damn it! Chase him!!"

Gu He's Dou Qi surged violently; his Dou Qi wings flared hard as he chased after Xiao Yan without pause.

Xiao Yan, having restored some Soul Force via Elixir, sensed Gu He—the Sixth-Rank Alchemist—still chasing relentlessly; he bit his tongue, the piercing pain jolting his brain.

His Dou Qi surged again; powerful Soul Force wrapped around the Purple Cloud Wings. With the Fused Strange Fire and Mortal Realm Late Stage Soul Force, Xiao Yan's speed was nearly equal to Gu He's Dou Wang-level pace—even slightly pulling ahead.

"Damn it! When did Jia Ma Empire produce a Dou Wang this strong?!" Gu He, watching the black-robed figure grow farther away, was furious beyond words.

The Strange Fire was right before his eyes!

Seeing Gu He still chasing without relenting, Xiao Yan felt his Dou Qi was nearly depleted from sustaining the Fused Strange Fire; he roared inwardly: "Mao Wu! Hit him!!"

Mao Wu appeared in Space; a black skull twisted the fabric of Space, spewing green flames generated from the Earth Core Fire Seed.

Boom! Under Mao Wu's control, the skull slammed straight into the pursuing Gu He.

"What the hell is this?! Blue flames raging!" The eerie skull, carrying a trace of Azure Lotus Earth Core Fire, charged toward him; Gu He shouted, and instantly, pale blue flames erupted before him.

With a wave of his hand, the blue flames surged like a tidal wave, blasting toward the skull conjured by Mao Wu.

Blue and green flames exploded together; though they failed to injure Gu He, they halted his pursuit.

Boom—a wind-splitting sound; a shadow instantly overtook Gu He, moving several times faster than he did!

"Leave the rest to me. Scatter and meet at Mo City," came the black-robed figure's voice into Gu He's ears.

Seeing Yun Yun act, Gu He could only stop; if even a Three Star Dou Huang with wind affinity couldn't catch them, no one in Jia Ma Empire could.

Sensing a powerful pressure behind him, Xiao Yan knew Yun Yun had arrived!

Xiao Yan gritted his teeth, pulled an Earth Core Fire Seed from his storage ring, and swallowed it; as the seed entered his mouth, a surge of green flame energy flooded his Meridians, providing immense Fire Attribute Energy—the Purple Cloud Wings erupted in a flash of green light, his speed leaping another tier.

Swallowing the Earth Core Fire Seed directly granted immense energy, but humans aren't machines—without a Cultivation Method to convert it into Dou Qi, the Meridians would shatter.

"This speed rivals a Dou Huang," Yun Yun frowned; though she couldn't sense his exact strength, her experience told her he shouldn't exceed Dou Wang level.

(End of Chapter)