At this time, what he was facing off against was a berserk Bone Chilling Flame. Yao Chen with his powerful spirit was precisely the best alchemist to subdue it.
This was a competition of spirits, a battle that was dangerous and fluctuated rapidly. Yao Chen’s spirit body was destroyed by the Bone Chilling Flame many times, but each time a soul seed would absorb back all the surrounding spiritual particles and his body would once more form. As for the Bone Chilling Flame, its spiritual energy also seemed to be limitless. No matter how or how many times Yao Chen attacked it, it could also reappear from nothingness, each time becoming more and more violent.
Gradually Yao Chen started to feel a strain. His soul seed was an external representation of his firm willpower. The strain he was feeling immediately caused the soul seed to become on the verge of collapse, while the Bone Chilling Flame became even more violent as if it could also sense Yao Chen’s strength fading. Sensing victory, it prepared to swallow Yao Chen. That would obviously allow the Bone Chilling Flame to become even stronger than it was before. That was a transformation it looked forward to…
Right at this time, Han Shanshan’s mind started buzzing.
BOOM! The scene before her changed. She saw a region of extreme Yin and extreme cold. Where the sun and moon intersected, a snow white light grew in her vision. There were countless powerful beast corpses there, and even some ancient human-shaped skeletons. Amongst them was even a dragon corpse. All these powerful existences had now become corpses that were part of a huge bone altar…
From this altar came a fluctuation of extreme Yin and extreme cold. All kinds of mysterious essences of heaven and earth had been summoned there.
From the bone altar suddenly shot out a white light which soared into the sky, bringing with it the rolling of thunder. The dark sky immediately change. Blinding white lights lit up the sky. Web-like blue lightning densely all throughout.
The white light slowly faded, revealing a flame… no, a flame sprout. It was a small ball only the size of a thumb and seemed so frail that a light breeze could extinguish it.
However all the countless powerful corpses in the bone altar had had all their essences drawn out into that flame sprout. The flame sprout began to grow stronger and larger.
Finally all the bones had turned to dust. Even the ancient dragon corpse which didn’t fear fire in the least was swallowed completely clean by that white flame sprout, leaving not a single piece of bone untouched.
Bone Chilling Flame? No! This wasn’t the true Bone Chilling Flame. At some point a blazing hot flame had descended from the sky. The sky flame was also completely white. Within it were countless lamentations and cries as if it had imprisoned countless souls. This was a spiritual ghost flame that was born from the consumption of countless experts’ souls. It had the potential to also become a Heavenly Flame. However just at this moment the pseudo Bone Chilling Flame charged over to that spiritual ghost flame in the sky to consume it!
A confrontation between flames was based on their heat. These two extreme powers would consume each other, forming a fusion…
Time passed. Perhaps it was just a short moment or perhaps a hundred years passed. The two flames both disappeared, in the end leaving behind an extremely hot and extremely cold Heavenly Flame.
This was the true Bone Chilling Flame.
Burning everything around it in order to grow stronger. Boundless burning that could swallow and refine all kinds of energy. In the end, a bit of consciousness was born from the flame.
It continued to become stronger over time. Once it gained a consciousness, it would be able to become infinitely strong if given enough time. It was supposed to be like that....
However another Heavenly Flame had appeared in the sky. As for what Heavenly Flame it was, that couldn’t be seen. But that Heavenly Flame was able to burn and influence time and space. The world’s rules were nothing in front of it. Space warped and twisted, water flowed upwards, light became shadow, shadow became light.
An existence as powerful as the Bone Chilling Flame was immediately swallowed by this Heavenly Flame…
Darkness spread everywhere. Endless suppression, extraction, freezing, burning, it was as if it had been trapped in purgatory for tens of thousands of years.
A light flashed and countless flames awoke. They were all in a field where a battle had exterminated everything. There was no life, and not even a speck of dust could exist in that space. There was a jade annulus emitting a terrifying pressure. That pressure was exactly the same as the one given off by the Heavenly Flame that had swallowed it at the beginning.
The Bone Chilling Flame was one countless other flames there that were equally powerful as it. Once it had awakened, it immediately fled from that place.
Han Shanshan’s nose was bleeding. Looking up at the Bone Chilling Flame, she realized those images were the origin of this Bone Chilling Flame.
The sacrificial altar that had been formed of countless expert’s bones, the spiritual ghost flame that had descended from the sky… it had most definitely not been formed naturally. And as for that powerful Heavenly Flame that had appeared and swallowed the Bone Chilling Flame, it was even stranger for it to have appeared! This was all too coincidental.
Could it be that in this world, Heavenly Flames took the initiative to rear other Heavenly Flames and then swallowed them as food?
BOOM!
A bright light came from the sky. Yao Chen’s spirit body had already entered a weak position. As for the powerful beast the Bone Chilling Flame had transformed into, its ice-cold eyes turned to Han Shanshan for the first time.
“You can synchronize with my soul and sense my everything. You, I should first eat you.”
Only Han Shanshan could hear this voice, the voice of the Bone Chilling Flame. But it wasn’t truly a voice, and it wasn’t truly words that were being spoken. It was a kind of mental messaging, a connection through nothingness. Simply by having their spirits touch they could exchange thoughts.
“Why?”
Han Shanshan instinctively used the same kind of method to reply. Her spirit formed a strange connection with the Bone Chilling Flame.
“Only by consuming others can I grow stronger. I want to become it .”
Han Shanshan saw a powerful Heavenly Flame in the Bone Chilling Flame’s mind. It swallowed countless other Heavenly Flames. Amongst those countless Heavenly Flames were those that were even stronger than the Bone Chilling Flame.
Madman!
That word might normally be reserved for humans, but it could not be better suited based on what she saw in the Bone Chilling Flame’s mind. Every kind of Heavenly Flame had its own unique properties and their own way to get stronger. Imitating others would only cause a strong one to become weak.
“If I eat you I might get stronger. To be able to connect with me, your soul definitely has something special.”
The beast-form Bone Chilling Flame charged at Han Shanshan.
Yao Chen’s spirit body angrily blocked it, but his strength was far from enough. This Bone Chilling Flame wasn’t one that had only gained consciousness a while ago, but a powerful existence that had survived for countless years. This kind of strength was almost without equal.
His spirit body was once more torn apart and crushed. Only his tenacious soul seed survived, once more collecting his spirit back.
He could only watch during that moment as the Bone Chilling Flame swallowed Han Shanshan in one gulp.
“NO!!!”
Yao Chen’s spirit body was still up in the sky, however his physical body actually began to move now. Opening his eyes, spiritual energy surged out from his body.
“DIE!”
Space shook and trembled. Yao Chen’s spiritual energy exploded out and actually reached the level of a Dou Zun’s strength! A Dou Zun level spirit was the very peak of Yao Chen’s potential.
BOOM! His spirit shook and Yao Chen tore at an empty space. A hidden flame immediately appeared before him. This was the true body of the Bone Chilling Flame. That beast was just an outer apparition. Han Shanshan was currently naked and being refined within the hidden flame’s body.
Yao Chen spat out a mouthful of blood and once more reached out his hand and clawed at it. The Bone Chilling Flame let out a mournful shriek and actually released Han Shanshan. It fled up into the air, burning intensely. Countless suppressed souls within the flame appeared now, seeming to be rebelling.
“You’ve eaten too much and don’t have the power to digest them. Don’t you know if you eat too much you’ll burst?”
Yao Chen’s head shook and several bloody wounds appeared over his head. Blood gushed out of those openings. His body was completely unable to endure this kind of Dou Zun level spiritual attacks. His body was collapsing and dissipating, but before that happened, he was just like a true Dou Zun.
This was an extremely strange state. From his blood came an energy that supported him. The blood of a Dou Di… the Yao clan’s ancestor was a Dou Di, and only those with a Dou Di’s bloodline could continue to have it inherited down forever without it weakening. This kind of bloodline inheritance was both mysterious and frightening. It was extremely rare for anyone to find the key to activating it.
Yao Chen had also yet to find the key to activating the hidden energy within his Dou Di bloodline, but now he had just directly blown through that barrier, using the most violent way that allowed him to tap into that energy.
But the price would be the sacrifice of his body. It was collapsing and disintegrating. In this world there was no power that was free. Everything had its price.
Han Shanshan hadn’t lost consciousness and was covering her body. She looked at Yao Chen in shock. To be able to destroy space, that was the power of a Dou Zun! Men should be powerful like that.
Yao Chen could feel himself dissipating. The kind of power you gained would be equivalent to the price you had to pay. As an alchemist he was well aware of this.
At this time, in terms of quantity his Spiritual Strength was perhaps not equal to the Bone Chilling Flame, but every time they collided the power the Bone Chilling Flame could display was far, far weaker than him.
Yao Chen once more reached out his hand. His spirit body followed his orders to charge at the Bone Chilling Flame’s true body.
A ripple tore through space. Yao Chen’s spirit body charged right into the Bone Chilling Flame’s core, assimilating it and grinding down on its mind. This was a battle that was difficult to describe. Even time slowed down. Just the blink of an eye felt like hundreds of years had passed to his spiritual body’s senses. It was just like how one day in heaven was ten thousand years on earth.
In the end his spirit body assimilated the Bone Chilling Flame. The Bone Chilling Flame’s mind had been whittled away and destroyed.
Yao Chen bitterly smiled. Unfortunately at this time his body had been completely devastated. He glanced at Han Shanshan. Her naked body was without a single fault and beautiful to the extreme. The most moving part of her had to be her eyes. Up until now, in their three years of contact, he had never felt her to be beautiful.
“I’m giving it to you.”
The tamed Bone Chilling Flame descended into Han Shanshan’s body.
Han Shanshan’s spirit’s fluctuations were originally already similar to the Bone Chilling Flame’s. When the Heavenly Flame entered her body, there was not even the slightest resistance. Or perhaps it was due to the karma of being swallowed by the Bone Chilling Flame, but it immediately became hers. She was the Heavenly Flame and the Heavenly Flame was her.
It was both natural and without a flaw.
Yao Chen laughed. Karma truly was strange. He had put in all his effort, yet it only benefitted someone else. But since that person was Han Shanshan he didn’t actually mind. However… father, mother, I’m sorry… your son was unable to accomplish your wishes.
A burst of medicinal fragrance came from Yao Chen’s body. At the same time, his body truly began to dissipate, turning into specks of fairy light. These specks of light lit up the black ice region.
“Yao Chen… what’s happening to you?”
Han Shanshan was frightened. No longer bothering to cover her naked body, she rushed forward, wanting to hold Yao Chen.
However Yao Chen had already lost his substance. Han Shanshan grabbed empty space, her body going right through Yao Chen’s.
“I’m about to leave. Look after Feng Xian for me and my other brothers. Oh, and also apologize to Xuan Yi. I won’t be able to pay her back the pills I owe her.”
“No, it shouldn’t be like this! Why did the Heavenly Flame become mine? If you take the Heavenly Flame then it’ll be fine.”
“That might have been possible, but you have a body that can perfectly accept the Heavenly Flame. But I already don’t have the energy to force the Heavenly Flame into surrender. If I missed this chance, the flame might escape. This is simply your karma.”
Yao Chen laughed calmly. Reaching out his hand, he stroked Han Shanshan’s face, but he wasn’t actually able to touch her.
Tears blurred her vision. Looking up at the sky full of fairy lights holding Yao Chen, she knew he was right. Subduing a Heavenly Flame and making it your own was extremely dangerous. How could it be easy to force a Heavenly Flame to become a part of your own life and spirit? She was an exception because she was perfectly suited to it.
“No! I won’t let you disappear, I…”
Suddenly a spark ignited in her mind. She now shared the Bone Chilling Flame’s memories since her spirit was perfectly suited to the Bone Chilling Flame. Their souls were so perfectly aligned that the Bone Chilling Flame had actually felt that consuming her spirit would be even more beneficial to it than consuming an extremely powerful soul like Yao Chen’s.
The spark exploded, she seemed to hear a huge bell tolling. Suddenly a strange form appeared in her mind. This was an absolute taboo; she had managed to join up with an existence that could not possibly exist – a Dou Di!
A Dou Di that had already disappeared from this world, a Dou Di that could not possibly exist!
However, a taboo was a taboo… it would have an absolutely terrifying price!
Han Shanshan’s face paled. But decisiveness filled her eyes.
“I still have a way! If you truly are a disciple of the Yao clan and have the special bloodline transmitted down from a Dou Di, if your power is from a mysterious Dou Di bloodline… I have a way!”
The Bone Chilling Flame which had just become a part of her spirit now erupted out of her body and sucked in those fairy lights in the sky. Those fairy lights were the pieces of Yao Chen’s disintegrating body.
“Great Bloodline Formation, Heavenly Flame Sacrificed to God, from beyond this world, the great Dou Di who transcends time and space, your descendant offers sacrifice…”
BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!! Han Shanshan used the Heavenly Flame to form a huge Dou Formation, forming a strange river that seemed to reach past time and space.
This was from the memories of the Bone Chilling Flame. Who knew just how long this Bone Chilling Flame had existed. It remembered countless secrets of this world.
A distant sigh came from beyond time in reaction to her secret technique. Within the long river came a burst of spray.
Nothing could exist outside Karma. If you want power then you must pay the price. If you want to gain something you must be ready to give something up.
In an instant her body began to tremble. In order to reconstruct Yao Chen she had to sacrifice her own life to become part of the long river. Why did Dou Dis disappear from this world? Having opened this river that transcended time and space, she had a sudden realization…
“Will you remember me?
“No, you won’t. That’s the price.
“However…
“That’s ok, because as long as you are fine, I’m happy.
“Unfortunately I can’t leave the Bone Chilling Flame to you. That is also part of the price of the sacrifice. But a part of the Bone Chilling Flame will remain and it will have my brand on it…
“That’s why maybe if you are able to become a Dou Di we will once more meet again…
“Yes…”
Her voice turned to muttering which faded away into the sky…
Yao Chen suddenly opened his eyes. “I… did I succeed?”
Standing up atop the black ice, he looked around. It was completely silent and empty. Raising his hand, a Dou Flame ignited. But it didn’t have the slightest trace of the Bone Chilling Flame. He had failed!
Just at this moment Yao Chen felt an inexplicable pain in his heart. It was as if something was missing. Yao Chen subconsciously looked around, wanting to find something.
An unconscious body was lying not far from him.
“Feng Xian!”
Yao Chen ran over to the unconscious Feng Xian. He sent a strand of Dou Qi into his body, activating the Dou Qi within his body.
“Cough… brother Chen? What happened to us? Did you succeed?”
Yao Chen shook his head bitterly. “It was impossible to succeed. This Bone Chilling Flame has existed for countless years already…”
In his memories, all he remembered was that he and Feng Xian had ran into the Bone Chilling Flame and it had transformed into a huge beast. The result of the ensuing battle was that he wasn’t a match for it, but the Dou Di bloodline within him had saved his life. Although he didn’t know how it had happened, the Bone Chilling Flame ended up giving up any thoughts on consuming his spirit and retreated.
Was it the Dou Di ancestor who had protected him?
However, arriving here in his thinking, a nameless pain filled his heart. It seemed as if he was forgetting something extremely important.
What was it?
No, now wasn’t the time for that. Feng Xian’s condition was almost critical and he had to bring him back as quickly as possible. The matter of the Bone Chilling Flame could wait for now. But Feng Xian couldn’t continue to stay in this death zone of extreme cold.
Carrying Feng Xian on his back, Yao Chen quickly left the death zone.
He didn’t hear the soft sigh from a spirit deep within the depths of the death zone…
Han Shanshan appeared in the sky. Her spirit body was transparent and covered with countless mysterious seals. Strands of terrifying Dou Qi came from those seals. That kind of power which had transcended time and space was omnipresent, existing in the past, the present, and the future.
She watched as Yao Chen left. As part of the price, Feng Xian and Yao Chen’s memories of her coming here had been completely erased.
Chains suddenly appeared out of nothingness and tightly wrapped around her empty spirit body. The long river once more appeared, and in instant dragged her within before disappearing…
Just as Han Shanshan disappeared, a white flame column suddenly roared into the sky. The might that was specific only to the Heavenly Flames exploded out of the death zone, in an instead spreading tens of thousands of miles.
All creatures within that perimeter, whether it Magical Beasts or humans, all cowered in front of that might. The closest animals to Fallen Spirit Ice Source were actually directly frightened to death.
Ten thousand miles away was a huge mountain with mist swirling around it. A middle-aged man upon it suddenly opened his eyes. In front of him was a medicinal cauldron emitting a dense medicinal energy. A medicinal pill that was emitting a terrifying energy fluctuation was being slowly condensed within a Dou Flame…
“Heavenly Flame! The aura of a Heavenly Flame appearing in this world! But why would this aura explode here?” The middle-aged man frowned and quickly made some calculations. With the Heavenly Flame’s aura exploding out so far, the entire Central Plains will be alerted. Who knows just how many alchemists will come to fight over it. But this place is I, Qing Hua’s, territory. No one had better even think of competing with me!
“Get over here! Get some people to seal the Spatial Wormholes!”
Qing Hua shouted out and at the same time his spirit sent out a dispatch, summoning several experts. As a seventh tier alchemist, every Dou Wang, Dou Huang, and even Dou Zong within thousands of miles would listen to him.
Several days later, the center of the death zone in Fallen Spirit Ice Source was covered in layers of experts.
At this time Yao Chen had brought Feng Xian to a mountain village with only a couple families within it. In total there were less than a hundred people in the village, and all of them made their living through hunting and collecting herbs.
Such a cold village naturally wouldn’t be paid attention by others. Experts went back and forth, forming a large net, yet not one paid any attention to this place.
Feng Xian quickly recovered, and his realm had even advanced. It was if he had experienced death, and many things that weren’t clear to him were now obvious to him. He had completely understood his own path and was no longer lost.
“Brother Chen? It seems like the situation isn’t good. Now that the Bone Chilling Flame has erupted, news will pass everywhere and even Dou Zongs will come to fight for it.”
Yao Chen nodded helplessly. It seemed he really didn’t have any affinity with the Bone Chilling Flame. At this time he should quickly flee. Calamity had struck this place. It was obvious that not long from now there would be a complete bloodbath here as the Bone Chilling Flame slaughtered those who wanted to subdue it. He was just a Dou Ling, and no matter how he looked at it, he simply had no chance. He would just become a pile of ashes.
However inside he had a longing that made it impossible to listen to the voice of reason and leave safely now.
Riches could be gained amidst danger. Staying here might be dangerous, but as long as there was a chance, even a one in ten thousand chance, he still had to stay. If he left then he really would be left with nothing.
“We should stay here for a bit longer. We’ve already experienced the power of the Bone Chilling Flame. It isn’t even close to a newly born Heavenly Flame, but is instead a flame that has existed for countless years. Even Dou Zong alchemists aren’t guaranteed to succeed.”
Yao Chen took a deep breath and decided to take this one a thousand shot.
Feng Xian didn’t say anything and merely nodded. No matter what Yao Chen decided, he would forever be his unconditional support.