Chapter 361: Chapter 360: Magma Tide (7th update, Seeking monthly ticket)
This was a man dressed in a short, sturdy robe, his petite figure characterized by especially thick finger-bones. Eyeing the ten-year weapon embryo in Shi Xiaole’s hand, he couldn’t help but sparkle with excitement.
A ten-year weapon embryo was incredibly rare in the Flame Cloud Mountain Range, with a value impossible to describe even by its weight in gold.
The man’s weapon of choice was a pair of customized knuckle-dusters. Unfortunately, his previous pair had been damaged in a recent duel. The main reason he had come to the Flame Cloud Mountain Range was to find high-quality weapon embryos to reforge his weapons.
Beholding the ten-year weapon embryo now felt like a divine intervention!
Filled with euphoria, the man stated calmly to Shi Xiaole, "I won’t repeat myself: leave the object, and you can go." As soon as his words fell, an intimidating presence characteristic of a peak ninth-level Spiritual-Passage Realm expert emanated from him.
After tucking away the ten-year embryo into the box, Shi Xiaole turned to leave.
"Damn it, Di Sha Fist!"
The man struck out angrily with a punch toward Shi Xiaole.
What Shi Xiaole didn’t expect was that this man had achieved complete mastery over his fist technique, with high-level comprehension. As the force of his punch thundered out, even the void seemed to vibrate.
Boom!
The ground exploded beneath them.
Shi Xiaole moved to the left.
"This kid has got rotten luck; if I’m not mistaken, that man must be the ’Di Sha Quan’ Ma Dongming, ranked 53rd on the Martial Rankings. In the Martial World, there aren’t many who can withstand his seven fists."
"This Ma Dongming, originally from the underworld, is said to have accomplished many wicked deeds in his early years. He may act righteous at times, but he’s also evil, and seizing what doesn’t belong to him is like second nature."
Several martial artists nearby noticed the altercation, wisely choosing to not interfere.
Those who ventured into the Flame Cloud Mountain Range included both individuals from the Righteous Path and the underworld.
For many Righteous Path experts, the act of stealing weapon embryos was conditional. If the embryos were masterless, then everyone was entitled to exercise their skills to claim them. But if one were to forcefully steal an object already possessed by another, it could be viewed as dishonorable.
At least, that’s how it seemed on the surface.
However, this Ma Dongming clearly didn’t subscribe to this philosophy. With his robust strength, who would dare to question his high-handed acts?
"Di Sha Heavenly Gang!"
Not desiring to waste time in idle chatter with Shi Xiaole, Ma Dongming clenched his fist and swung out, unleashing intertwined black and white fist-lights to pierce through Shi Xiaole as if intending to run him through.
"Mimicking the Yin-Yang Realm?"
Shi Xiaole was slightly taken aback.
The Yin-Yang Realm, undeniably one of the most advanced understandings within high-level martial arts, was much more sophisticated than the Fierce Kill Intent Realm.
Obviously, the man hadn’t fully grasped the concept of the Yin-Yang Realm, yet there were some similarities. From the projection of his fist, it was clear that one force was rigid while the other was soft. If they hit the target, it would inflict serious damage even if it didn’t kill.
Implementing the Wind God Leg technique, Shi Xiaole swiftly swept across and landed a solid kick to Ma Dongming’s chin.
"What?!"
Seeing Ma Dongming struck by a single blow, the faces of the onlookers froze with disbelief.
"Di Sha Heavenly Shock!"
Feeling a tingling pain from his chin, Ma Dongming’s face turned grave. He clenched his right fist and punched out, the air immediately emitting the sounds of explosions.
"Ferocious Wind and Rain."
Featuring a flurry of kicks as swift as a downpour of rain and a raging wind, Shi Xiaole was quicker than Ma Dongming could react. Often, before his fist could strike, Ma Dongming would find himself kicked by Shi Xiaole.
However, after dozens of such exchanges, Shi Xiaole gave up on using the Wind God Leg technique.
Against such a senior-level Spiritual-Passage Realm expert, the Wind God Leg attack wasn’t strong enough to breach the other’s protective genuine energy. Continuing this way would only be a waste of time.
Drawing his Redfire Sword, and supplemented by the ultimate Fierce Kill Intent Realm and Sword Heart mastery, Shi Xiaole launched the fifteenth Death Claiming Sword at his opponent.
Whoosh!
Ma Dongming’s fist suddenly bore a bloody line, which rapidly widened until a stream of blood was spilling out, his entire fist pierced through.
"I’ll remember you."
Seething with excruciating pain, Ma Dongming felt a chill crawl up his back as he hastily retreated.
He was fortunate that at this moment, a large volcanic pit erupted nearby. Streams of lava spewed and shot into the air, blocking Shi Xiaole’s way to continue the pursuit.
"You got lucky."
Sheathing the sword, Shi Xiaole swiftly departed.
"What a formidable young swordsman. Who is he? Based on that strike alone, his skills could rank him in the top twenty of the Martial Rankings!"
"He’s so young, appearing even younger than the ’Lightning Blade’ Yang Feng. Could he be a newly emerged prodigy?"
Those who watched Shi Xiaole’s retreating figure started discussing among themselves. They committed Shi Xiaole’s appearance to memory, deciding it would be best not to offend him if they ever encountered him again.
Having understood some of the patterns of the volcanic pits, Shi Xiaole’s finding efficiency significantly increased.
In the following few days, he found three ten-year weapon embryos from two different volcanic pits, as well as six high-quality weapon embryos. As for middle and low-quality weapon embryos, there were dozens. He didn’t even bother to pick those up.
Actually, in Shi Xiaole’s view, ten-year weapon embryos weren’t scarce. The reason for their supposed rarity was the relatively low number of finders. A significant proportion of ten-year weapon embryos would be ejected from the magma, only to be covered by yellow soil again and eventually buried underground.
"This makes six."
Once again storing away a ten-year weapon embryo, Shi Xiaole began to feel a sense of dissatisfaction.
If he hoped to upgrade the Redfire Sword’s power, ten-year weapon embryos simply wouldn’t suffice. He needed twenty-year, thirty-year, or even fifty-year weapon embryos.
However, such weapon embryos are truly rare and unpredictable; there are no patterns to follow.
Boom ...
Suddenly, the ground beneath throbs at a frequency faster than before, and the surrounding temperature skyrockets exponentially.
"This is bad!"
Shi Xiaole’s face changes. He exerts the Wind God Leg to its full potential, using almost all his strength to sprint towards the outskirts of the Flame Cloud Mountain Range.
At the same time, all the skilled fighters in the area, whether they were grabbing weapon embryos or walking alone, were terribly shocked.
"Is this... a lava surge?"
"Impossible! Lava surges only happen every hundred years. The last eruption was just thirty years ago. How could it happen so soon?"
Looking at the shaking mountain range, where the temperature has skyrocketed to the point that the distant view is blurred, all warriors are dumbfounded.
The lava surge is the most terrifying natural disaster in the Flame Cloud Mountain Range. It’s not just a dozen or hundreds of volcano craters erupting simultaneously, but over 90% of them.
The description of it being earth-shattering and causing the heavens to crumble is not an exaggeration.
Unlike normal volcanic eruptions, lava surges come quickly and end quickly.
The strangest thing is, because of the eruption’s tremendous force, the lava shoots into the sky, reducing its dispersal. And since the Flame Cloud Mountain Range is several hundred meters lower than its surroundings, it doesn’t affect the Flame Cloud City tens of miles away.
But by then, the Flame Cloud Mountain Range will have become a literal hell on earth, with any living thing inside it set to die!
The cries, roars, rushing winds are all drowned out by the deafening rumbling noises.
The dark mountains around are now reflecting a menacing, hellish hue in people’s eyes. It’s the calm before the storm, so suffocating that it almost breaks their hearts.
Shi Xiaole is not located in the inner circle, and his incredible speed using Wind God Leg has allowed him to get past successive scared fugitives. The outskirts of the mountain range are within sight now, requiring only a few more moments.
Whoosh!
From the front, a fist force comes at him. Although it doesn’t hit him, it inevitably slows Shi Xiaole down. He turns to look and is surprised to see it’s Ma Dongming, whose right fist he had crushed.
The latter swung his fist and started running, obviously fleeing. Facing life or death, he still didn’t forget to mess with Shi Xiaole.
Shi Xiaole kept soaring forward, and the distance between him and Ma Dongming diminished.
"Get lost."
Next to Ma Dongming, a man in black hurls a punch towards him. The formidable fist force straightens the twisted air around, and despite being a dozen meters away, it churns Shi Xiaole’s chest, giving him a hard-to-resist feeling.
As Shi Xiaole dodges, the fist force whizzes past him, crushing a giant rock weighing tens of thousand pounds to powder.
The man in black is obviously much stronger than Shi Xiaole. Probably his strength is not inferior to the Moon Demon of Cold State.
Once again interrupted, Shi Xiaole chooses to dash in a slightly different direction, avoiding the black-clothed man and Ma. The eruption of the lava surge is imminent, and he can’t afford time for revenge.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
People keep escaping from the Flame Cloud Mountain Range, not daring to relax no matter how far they’ve run.
The shaking of the mountain range grows stronger. Finally, it feels like the entire world is trembling. As black fog emerges from the volcano craters, it signals an impending eruption.
"No!"
Someone suddenly screams, their face turns as white as a sheet, both legs twitching from over-exertion, numb to everything.
Many others have the look of death on their faces, as the fear of death gnaws at their hearts.
"Just a bit more."
Executing Wind God Leg beyond its limit, Shi Xiaole has never craved speed more. Right when the black smoke thickens, he finally escapes from Flame Cloud Mountain Range. In a split second, he covers a hundred meters and soon reaches the safe zone.
Boom...
A terrifyingly loud sound that he has never heard before, like the roaring of an ancient giant beast, reverberates through heaven and earth.
The sound is accompanied by a scorching and violent firestorm, blowing Shi Xiaole hundreds of meters away. The blood he coughs out due to the impact is instantly incinerated.
Stones scatter across the sky followed by the earth-shaking trembling.
Unable to resist, Shi Xiaole turns back. The entire Flame Cloud Mountain Range has turned into a realm of lava. All he sees is an endless red hue. The mountain range seems to be a pipe, spewing a thick column of lava into the sky, penetrating and scorching the blue heavens!
The wild storm rages like countless scorching-hot blades, relentlessly slicing Shi Xiaole’s protective Qi.
Even though 45% of his inner Qi has transformed into Inborn Gang Qi, he is still repeatedly burned and torn, until he gets dozens of miles away from the mountain range. Only then does the pain subside.
"Is this a lava surge? The irresistible force of nature?"
Shi Xiaole falls into deep shock.
In the face of this force and will, of what use is human martial prowess?
"Thank goodness I ran fast!"
Ma Dongming and the man in black have already escaped to the safe zone. Seeing the Flame Cloud Mountain Range resembling purgatory, Ma Dongming is secretly alarmed. If his Senior brother hadn’t taken him along, he would have surely been consumed by the sea of fire.
"Senior brother, do you think that kid died?"
Thinking of Shi Xiaole, Ma Dongming can’t help but feel better.
"What does it matter if he’s dead or alive?"
The man in black, his eyes full of bright sparks, looks at the Flame Cloud Mountain Range. It’s as if he perceives something from this natural force. As for Shi Xiaole’s life or death, it’s inconsequential to him.
