A flicker of fire, emerald-green and no larger than a fist, yet even from a distance, Shi Hao felt as though his soul was about to ignite. This was a mystical treasure flame.
Around it, wisps of mist dispersed, enigmatic and unfathomable, while an unsettling ripple pulsed outward, like the undulations of the Great Dao itself.
Was this even fire?
Shi Hao was astonished, staring intently. How could it carry the aura of the Great Dao? It was baffling.
“Brother Daoist, come lend a hand! Once we brew this dragon bone soup, I’ll treat you to a whole cauldron!” Shi Hao called out, though inwardly he was tense, sensing an undercurrent of danger.
He realized this treasure flame wouldn’t be easily subdued—he’d need another approach.
In truth, he was already preparing to take flight. The wings of the Kunpeng flickered faintly behind him. If he unfurled them, he’d achieve extreme speed, confident the flame couldn’t catch him.
Whoosh!
Azure light suffused the air, like a stretch of pristine sky, flawless and pure. As it burned, the hue deepened into a sapphire blue, resembling the heavens themselves.
Shi Hao was stunned. Instinct told him this flame was anything but ordinary, yet it seemed indifferent—no, hostile—toward him, ready to lash out.
Sure enough, with a sharp hiss, a thread of green fire shot toward him, twisting the void and sending ripples of Dao principles outward.
Shi Hao dodged sideways. That mere wisp of flame melted a boulder weighing hundreds of thousands of pounds and scorched the earth into a lake of magma.
He sucked in a cold breath. Such power! Those Dao ripples were terrifying—enough to slay deities with ease.
“I can’t subdue it!” Shi Hao soberly acknowledged the truth. The flame seemed sentient, bearing malice toward him.
“Brother Daoist, let’s talk this out. If you want the bones, I’ll yield them to you, alright?” Shi Hao forced a dry laugh.
Boom!
Suddenly, the azure flame intensified, its blue hue spreading rapidly, filling the ruins like a collapsing sky, pristine and boundless.
Shi Hao flapped his wings, lightning crackling around him, runes glowing beneath his feet. Combining the Kunpeng’s speed, lightning, and the art of shrinking distances, he prepared to soar away.
Yet, at that moment, he paused in surprise. The “azure sky” receded without attacking.
Simultaneously, warmth bloomed nearby. A second flame appeared beside the ancient bronze coffin, its glow pure and crystalline, driving back the azure fire.
This flame, also fist-sized, was densely inscribed with symbols. Upon closer inspection, it seemed less like fire and more like a cluster of runes.
It was even stranger!
Another flame? Shi Hao was dumbfounded. Both were absurdly powerful, far from ordinary divine fires.
“Is this the Chaos Flame?”
The area was thick with chaotic energy, emanating from the ancient coffin. He couldn’t tell if the flame itself carried the same aura.
Boom!
The azure flame surged, erupting with boundless light, forming a crushing force that descended like a sapphire sky.
Before the bronze coffin, the second flame pulsed softly, its runes unfurling like Dao patterns. Effortlessly, it held back the “azure sky,” shielding the area.
Shi Hao’s pupils constricted. Such formidable flames!
Silently, the azure fire vanished—startled, it retreated into the earth. Shi Hao was stunned.
The rune-clad flame by the coffin flickered and disappeared just as quickly.
“Both gone?” Shi Hao rubbed his hands, realizing these treasure flames were far more fearsome than he’d imagined, not so easily absorbed.
“I don’t understand their nature. I need to consult bone scriptures, gather more knowledge!” He resolved to prepare thoroughly; otherwise, this was hopeless.
With the area quiet again, Shi Hao returned to his dragon bone soup. After hours of boiling, the bones remained pristine, unchanged, while the water in his cauldron had evaporated.
“Could this be… a true dragon?” Shi Hao gnawed at a bone, only to nearly cry out in pain—his teeth couldn’t make a dent.
“There’s dragon marrow here, but how do I extract it?” He scrutinized the bone, frustration gnawing at him.
Then, like a thief, he decided to haul it away. Leaving it here was too risky, especially with two bands of marauders aware of its location.
Yet, to his dismay, none of his treasures could store the coffin or the nine massive skeletons. Neither his Qiankun Bag nor his cauldron worked—they seemed ineffective.
“Up you go!” Shi Hao roared, lifting the colossal bronze coffin. Though he couldn’t open it, his Herculean strength allowed him to hoist it.
He gasped—the coffin was heavier than a mountain, straining him to the limit.
“No good. It’s too huge. Carrying it out like this will draw attention.” Shi Hao fretted.
Pacing the ruins, hands behind his back, he pondered solutions. The azure flame had spared the ruins, leaving the remnants intact.
He sought an altar, hoping to teleport the coffin away.
After an exhaustive search, he found only the shattered base of an ancient altar in the dead city.
“Hmm?”
While scavenging, Shi Hao discovered fragments of divine materials—precious remnants. His interest piqued, he began collecting them.
“An alchemy hall!”
More surprises awaited. Amid the ruins of a pill-refining site, he unearthed several intact jade jars. When opened, they released radiant light.
Clearly, the jars had once borne formidable runes, now faded, but preserving their contents.
“Such a waste. Time has eroded even the divine pills, leaving only faint traces of their fragrance.”
He lamented—these were at least saint-grade elixirs, possibly even divine.
Similarly, he found an armory, but all artifacts had crumbled, their runes dimmed, their forms broken by time.
Scouring the ancient city, Shi Hao grew puzzled. Its age seemed far more ancient than he’d imagined.
“A… world treasure box?” Suddenly, he rejoiced, spotting a vessel resembling a bronze casket housing a miniature world.
Yet the box was cracked, leaking faint light. A gentle tap caused it to shatter.
Boom!
The explosion was cataclysmic—a collapsing pocket dimension. Only Shi Hao’s speed saved him.
He sighed. The box, too, had succumbed to time. Its contents were likely destroyed.
“What’s this?” A black stone, the size of an infant’s head, shot toward him from the blast.
Amid the devastation, this one object remained intact—astonishing, given the void’s rupture.
Thud!
Catching it, Shi Hao grunted. The small stone weighed a staggering hundred thousand pounds, hitting him like a mountain.
Any other Venerable One would’ve been crushed.
“Surviving a world box’s destruction—is this an immortal material?” His heart raced.
Such density in such a small form—it was terrifying!
This had to be extraordinary, perhaps even Defying the Heavens. Why else would it be stored in a world box? He carefully stowed it away.
As the dust settled, Shi Hao surveyed the glowing fragments and wailed, “Heavens! My treasures! My saintly talismans!”
The loss was devastating—thousands of divine talismans, now shattered, their materials undoubtedly priceless.
A world box was a treasure trove, sealing away wonders.
But its destruction was equally catastrophic, ruining nearly everything inside.
Shi Hao tallied over a thousand divine talismans—an extravagant display, all crafted from rare materials.
“Gods strike me down!” he lamented.
Then, in the distance, he spotted a glowing talisman, its light shielding a few intact companions.
“A Guardian Talisman?” Shi Hao was awed. Even the world box’s destruction hadn’t marred it—proof of its supreme grade.
“Cracked. Will it work again?” He waited for its glow to fade before picking it up.
The other talismans had survived thanks to its protection.
“World-Piercing Talismans?” Two of them resembled the one Ye Qingxian had given him, even sharing a similar aura.
Clearly, they could traverse world barriers—priceless treasures, appearing in pairs.
Of the remaining two, one’s purpose eluded him, while the other was a Void-Splitting Talisman—a weaker version, capable of short-range teleportation.
“Let’s test it.” Finding no further gains, Shi Hao decided to try the talisman by the coffin.
Whoosh!
Guiding its direction, he vanished with the coffin and skeletons, reappearing deep underground, hundreds of miles away.
In the darkness, he mused, “This should be safe now.”
Suddenly, light bloomed—the rune-clad flame reappeared.
It had followed! Shi Hao was stunned, then thrilled. Was it housed within the coffin?
For the next fortnight, he tried every method to tame the flame, only to be ignored. It vanished for days at a time, appearing briefly.
Finally, he left in frustration, resolved to study bone scriptures for answers.
With the coffin, dragon bones, and treasure flame relocated, he was confident they’d remain hidden.
Returning, he visited the marauders’ territories, learning they’d ventured into the abyss first but found no ruins.
Instead, they’d provoked the azure flame, losing half their men to its sapphire “sky” before fleeing in terror.
“A happy accident. With the World-Piercing Talisman, I can visit the Celestial Immortal Academy.” Shi Hao grinned, no longer fearing exposure.
He aimed to study bone scriptures there, deciphering the coffin’s flame.
He also sought a drop of the Tribulation Transcendence Lotus’s sap to safely consume the Golden Bodhi Fruit, granting him evolving Rune immunity.
“Yue Chan’s second self is there. How will our reunion go?” he pondered.
He also recalled his duel with Feng Wu at the Bronze Sparrow Platform, where she’d dubbed him the “Great Menace,” vowing to tame him as a mount—only to lose before unleashing her First Generation treasure art.
Back then, he’d joked that if he ever visited the academy, she’d have to honor her bet and become his mount.
Now, fate had brought him to the border of Fire Province, near the academy.
Days later, back in Breezewind City, he charted his course. The academy lay at the intersection of Fire, Celestial Immortal, and Kun Provinces.
Without using a teleportation array, he flew there in a day, arriving at the bustling, sacred cultivation haven.
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