“You are…”
By the time Wu Ming met the “friend” mentioned by the Eastern Sea King, despite his preparedness, he could not help but be surprised: “King Nihuan?”
Before him stood none other than the culprit behind the Crimson New Year incident, King Nihuan, clad in a black robe, exuding a wild and arrogant aura.
However, at this moment, the other’s face appeared somewhat aged, with signs of weariness etched upon it.
“Wolf Hawk King?!”
King Nihuan gave Wu Ming a slight nod upon seeing him, managing a grim smile.
“King Nihuan, how come you have become like this?”
The Eastern Sea King furrowed his brows, asking first.
“It’s nothing… I encountered a formidable enemy, and Chiyan Spirit King sustained minor injuries…”
Whether it was genuine trust in the Eastern Sea King or intentional, King Nihuan showed no sign of concealment, honestly recounting the events, which greatly surprised the other two kings.
“A formidable enemy?”
Wu Ming asked in astonishment: “Righteousness King is dead, and the senior ancestor of the Jun family is rumored to have perished suddenly. The rebels should have had the upper hand. Why is it like this?”
Previously, Jun Xuanning had two kings backing him, pushing the rebels into continuous defeats.
King Nihuan’s only enemy was this one, and besides Jun Xuanning, Wu Ming could hardly think of any other possibility.
At the same time, he silently speculated that it was probably the other party’s chosen one with an indomitable fate causing trouble again.
“What you mentioned has already become the past. Jun Xuanning has now ascended to the rank of King, and he has also gained the assistance of Star Fate King and Green Snake King. Otherwise, how could I have fallen into such a plight?”
King Nihuan shook his head.
“Oh? And what Golden Sprout did Jun Xuanning obtain?”
Wu Ming rubbed his chin, suddenly asking.
“You should be quite familiar with it…”
King Nihuan’s gaze was peculiar: “The Ten-Thousand-Year Azure Sky Dragon and the Golden Roarer! Not the younglings, but the matured forms! They directly propelled him into the King rank!”
“The Ten-Thousand-Year Azure Sky Dragon is one thing; after splitting, it was greatly weakened and barely able to maintain its King status. However, that Golden Roarer was a spirit beast carefully cultivated by the Jun family’s senior ancestor, with an extremely sharp Gold-element immortal technique, which even my Chiyan Spirit King could not defeat…”
King Nihuan left something unsaid.
In the previous battle where he was surrounded, not only was Chiyan Spirit King injured, but two of his King-level spirit beasts were also killed in action, marking a devastating defeat.
This time, coming to the Central Volcanoes was partly to utilize the terrain and resources to help Chiyan Spirit King recover, and secondly, to attempt to subdue other King-level spirit beasts.
He had always felt deep shame for losing to Jun Xuanning, believing it was because the latter had two King-level spirit beasts, thus defeating him two against one, and he was eager to gather more forces to fight again for redemption.
“Star Fate King? Green Snake King?”
Wu Ming inwardly sighed, thinking how truly resilient Jun Xuanning’s chosen fate was.
He had heard of these two kings’ reputations. Green Snake King was famous for commanding poison-type spirit beasts, known for his sinister nature and vengeful disposition, making him an extremely formidable opponent among all kings.
Even he himself paled in comparison to Star Fate King.
Besides being a King-level spirit beast tamer, Star Fate King had another identity—as the most renowned diviner in the Flame Continent!
Undoubtedly, having the ability to see into the future, he must have already known of Jun Xuanning’s status as a chosen one, hence his eagerness to come out of seclusion to assist him.
“A matured Golden Roarer?”
The Eastern Sea King clapped his hands: “I heard that the Jun family’s senior ancestor perished the day before yesterday. It seems this Golden Roarer must be his… wow, Jun Xuanning is indeed fortunate, receiving two Golden Sprouts from his mentors, and they have even been cultivated to the King level! It’s no longer a case of manna from heaven, but a mountain of gold!”
As he spoke, his face bore an expression of envy.
Ordinary spirit beast tamers could only dream of even seeing a Golden Sprout, let alone someone like Jun Xuanning, who obtained two at once, both already cultivated to the King level. This was no longer a case of manna from heaven, but a mountain of gold!
“Hehe… when it comes to luck, Wolf Hawk King, you’re not bad either. Both your wolf and eagle spirit beasts have ascended to the King level, making people wonder if you possess some secret cultivation method!”
King Nihuan grinned slyly.
“I merely got lucky. Back then, I obtained a scroll of theoretical manuscripts on spirit beast evolution from Jia Kongming, which happened to record the evolution routes of these two spirit beasts… Even so, it cost me a lot of resources to succeed by sheer luck…”
Wu Ming made a face of feigned reluctance, seeing the skeptical expressions of the Eastern Sea King and King Nihuan, while inwardly sneering: “What’s that compared to me? If you knew that Jun Xuanning eventually directly contracted the Flame Emperor, what would your expressions be?”
“But this person is ruthless. I suspect there’s something suspicious about the death of the Jun family’s senior ancestor!”
“Originally, did Wolf Hawk King really obtain Jia Kongming’s secret teachings?”
The Eastern Sea King nodded repeatedly: “Master Jia was indeed a genius. According to my family’s records, he indeed researched spirit beast evolution theory in his later years, but unfortunately, I never had the chance to meet him…”
“The cost of cultivating spirit beast evolution is indeed too high, and there’s a fixed probability of failure, making it not worth the effort…”
Wu Ming shook his head: “If it weren’t for that, why would I come here? Comparatively speaking, directly contracting Golden Sprouts suits us better…”
“That’s exactly the point!”
King Nihuan, who appeared to be a straightforward man, said, “There’s no time to waste. I suspect Jun Xuanning is also heading this way. We must set off immediately! The journey to the largest volcano of the Undying Sacred Mountain is still long, and there are countless fire spirit tribes along the way—they won’t be easy to handle!”
“Oh?”
Wu Ming feigned confusion.
The Eastern Sea King kindly explained: “In this Central Volcano Cluster, the outer regions are all inhabited by ordinary fire element tribes, with the strongest being no more than Silver Sprouts, like the previous Flame Emperor. However, the deeper you go, the richer the fire element resources become, and the rarer fire element spirit beasts grow more numerous… Around the central Undying Sacred Mountain, there are at least eight major tribes, each led by a Gold Sprout fire element King!”
Obviously, even a spirit beast tamer King could not resist a giant tribe, with tens of thousands of fire elementals, dozens of Flame Emperors, and a Gold Sprout King attacking together!
Especially, these fire element tribes are not only quite united, but when facing enemies, especially human spirit beast tamers, they would still watch out for each other and assist.
Once held back, reinforcements from other tribes would immediately arrive, leaving no way to escape.
“There’s no time to lose. Let’s get going!”
After listening, Wu Ming’s eyes showed eagerness.
According to his knowledge, the Flame Emperor was deep within the volcano cluster, at the heart of the Undying Sacred Mountain!
“Haha… eight Gold Sprout Kings are enough for us three to divide!”
King Nihuan laughed heartily: “When I fully recover my strength, that Jun boy will definitely know the meaning of retribution!”
Although it was difficult to find rare items to repair souls and replace spirit beast contracts, they were all Kings, the peak of the Flame Continent, and had accumulated a batch over time.
This fire elemental tribe incident was both dangerous and an opportunity.
Perhaps, they could replace all their spirit beasts with Gold Sprout Kings!
Such a King, even in history, had only appeared once, almost unifying the entire continent, and was revered as an Emperor!
…
“Roar!”
The Ten-Thousand-Year Azure Sky Dragon extended its vine-like tendrils, forming massive vine-bone wings. With a single flap, it soared through the air, trailing dazzling streamers, and in an instant, it had flown several miles away at an astonishing speed.
On its back sat three people cross-legged, with numerous vine tendrils entwining to form low tables and other items, completely shielding them from the strong winds.
“Star Fate King, how is it going?”
Jun Xuanning, dressed in a purple-gold robe, bore a calm expression on his face, with a terrifying aura that clearly marked his ascension to the rank of King!
The King referred to as Star Fate King was a figure wrapped entirely in a starry robe, fully focused on a crystal ball at the center of the vine table, his fingers deftly manipulating it, muttering under his breath, as if seeing the future and everything within it.
“I see the Eastern Sea King and King Nihuan… your enemies have already gathered together! Right in the Central Volcanoes!”
Star Fate King spoke slowly.
His voice was very peculiar, neither clearly male nor female, carrying an androgynous tone.
At this moment, he gazed at the mist in the center of the crystal ball, as if somewhat puzzled: “I also saw… the unknown! Your true enemy, the variable in fate, may also be there!”
“Unknown… variable?”
Jun Xuanning’s hand made a crackling sound, snapping a piece of vine in two.
That’s right… you were originally supposed to be the darling of the world, the top figure of your generation in the Flame Continent, the savior, the fastest to ascend to King level, possessing everything…
Star Fate King spoke fluently: “But all of this… immediately fell into chaos after encountering that variable! That’s why you encountered these setbacks!”
“Wolf Hawk King! Dongfang Shuoming!”
Jun Xuanning said solemnly.
“I have also divined about Wolf Hawk King before, but alas, I could only see a fog, representing the unknown…”
Star Fate King shook his head: “That represents danger! If the variable continues to expand, it will take away the greatest opportunity in your life!”
“The greatest?”
Jun Xuanning was somewhat puzzled.
“That’s right…”
Star Fate King’s voice changed, filled with excitement: “All the previous difficulties for you were just minor obstacles… your true opportunity lies within the Central Volcanoes. Once you obtain it, you can immediately turn the tide and no longer fear any challenge…”
“Could it be… hiss… Star Fate King, do you also believe in the legend of the Divine Spirit Beast?”
Beside him, a tall, thin figure dressed in emerald robes, resembling a snake with a chilling demeanor, also spoke up—the Green Snake King.
“Not a legend… Green Snake King, the Divine Spirit Beast is truly real… and only the chosen one of the world can gain its true recognition!”
Star Fate King shook his head slowly.
“Will I obtain the Divine Spirit Beast and become a Divine Spirit Beast Tamer?”
Jun Xuanning’s breath grew heavy, his eyes blazing with fiery brilliance, his heart roaring: “Dongfang Shuoming! Your time is up once I subdue the Divine Spirit Beast! I must avenge this grudge!!!”
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