Such recovery ability would undoubtedly give him a huge advantage in a true life or death battle.
Zhou Yuan nodded in satisfaction. His three days of secluded cultivation were indeed quite fruitful.
*Knock knock*
A knocking sound was heard at this moment, and Zhou Yuan hurriedly got off the bed to open the door.
Li Qingchan stood at the entrance, her gorgeous face covered in a layer of frost as usual. She glanced at Zhou Yuan and said, “If you still didn’t come out, we would have went ahead without you.”
Although her tone was indifferent, it was not hard to hear the faint trace of disapproval within it.
After all, besides that one time flame rocking gambling, Zhou Yuan had basically locked himself in his room for the entire time. Such an attitude was definitely not going to earn him any brownie points.
Zhou Yuan’s spot on the team had basically been protected by her this whole time, but now, even elder Wu seemed as if he had something to say about it. If not because he respected her as a Chosen, he would have likely even chided her about this decision.
Zhou Yuan also felt somewhat awkward upon hearing this, and hastily apologized.
He too understood that though he had told them he was going into secluded cultivation, others would only view it as an excuse. After all, how much could one possibly achieve in a short three days? It was obviously some kind of last-ditch effort.
However, he could not possibly reveal any the Taiyi Green Wood Mark. Thus, he could only apologize without explanation.
Li Qingchan merely let out an almost inaudible snort at Zhou Yuan’s apology as she shook her head and said, “Let’s go. The essence flame vein fight is about to begin, and we need to get ready.”
“Besides this, though you’ve been allocated an area outside the core region this time, don’t even think about complaining. The district you’ve been tasked with is still considered a contribution.” Warned Li Qingchan.
The core region she mentioned was naturally the area with the richest essence flame vein, and where the fighting would also be the most intense. It was basically the battleground of the four hegemon level sects.
However, Zhou Yuan was not going to be sent in, and was instead tasked with some other location outside the core region by elder Wu where the factions from Black Flame Province would be duking it out, and fighting would naturally be less intense.
Of course, his contribution would also naturally be less than the others.
Zhou Yuan gave a faint nod, his expression remaining rather calm.
Li Qingchan did not say anything else and turned to leave.
Zhou Yuan hurriedly followed behind her.
When Zhou Yuan and Li Qingchan arrived at the top floor, elder Wu, Zhao Zhu, Bai Li and the rest were already waiting.
Qin Hai looked towards Zhou Yuan with a wide grin and teasingly said, “Hehe, junior brother Zhou Yuan’s three days of secluded cultivation must have been very beneficial, right?”
Zhou Yuan merely glanced at him without replying.
Elder Wu could not help but sigh as his gaze paused on Zhou Yuan for a moment, likely also feeling his presence to be quite troublesome.
Placing Zhou Yuan outside the core region was was basically giving up land in the core region.
But he had no choice. Zhou Yuan’s strength was nowhere near enough for him to vie with the others.
With a wave of elder Wu’s sleeve, ten dots of light shot out towards Zhou Yuan and the rest.
Zhou Yuan and the rest caught the object, only to find that it was a small thumb-sized piece of jade. The jade flickered with a peculiar gleam, and a Genesis Rune had been carved into it.
“This is a communication jade which will allow one to briefly communicate within a thousand mile radius. I’ve given one to each of you to be used inside the essence flame vein to share information.” Elder Wu explained.
Li Qingchan, Zhao Zhu and the rest nodded before placing the jade into their ears.
Upon seeing this, elder Wu waved his sleeve as Genesis Qi spread from under his feet. It took on the shape of a cloud that encompassed Li Qingchan, Zhao Zhu, Zhou Yuan and the rest of the team.
“Let’s go.”
As his voice faded, the Genesis Qi cloud had already brought the group into the sky.
Meanwhile, countless glowing figures rose into the sky from the giant Black Flame City. Like a swarm of locusts, they flew towards the far away Black Flame Mountain Range.
The battle to decide the allocation the essence flame vein in the Black Flame Province was finally about to begin.
Chapter 411 Essence Flame Vein
In the depths of the Black Flame Mountain Range.
An extremely enormous and majestic mountain stood in this place. The peak of the mountain was sunken in, forming a volcano like mouth. Searing heat rose from the mouth, making the surrounding area feel unbearably hot.
All of the trees within a several hundred mile radius of this mountain had already been burnt to ashes, turning the place into a glaringly barren land.
This mouth of this very mountain was the entrance to the essence flame vein.
Swish! Swoosh!
At this current moment, countless glowing figures were descending from the sky, landing around the mouth of the volcano. It was quite a grandiose scene.
When the gazes of these figures met, hostility would appear in their eyes. Once they entered the essence flame vein, anyone from another faction would be a competitor.
A surge of Genesis Qi descended from the sky at this moment, landing closest to the mouth of the volcano.
When the Genesis Qi scattered, a group led by elder Wu appeared.
As the Cangxuan Sect team revealed was revealed, the teams from Sacred Palace, Hundred Flowers Fairy Palace and North Sea Dragon Subduing Hall also quickly appeared near the mouth of the volcano.
Zhou Yuan swept a glance at the Hundred Flowers Fairy Palace team, finding Zuoqiu Qingyu prettily standing among them. She quickly noticed his gaze, responding with a crafty wink.
It seemed that Zuoqiu Qingyu was also going into the essence flame vein.
Zhou Yuan replied with a small smile, before casting a glance towards the Sacred Palace group. They were also led by an old man who was clearly an elder of Sacred Palace. Behind him stood Wang Chi and Cao Jinzhu.
At their side was Yang Xuan, who was dressed completely in white.
When Zhou Yuan looked over, he realized that Yang Xuan was already looking at them. Their gazes met in the air as a faint smile appeared on Yang Xuan face. However, not a single ripple could be seen in his eyes, similar to the silent cruelness displayed by a predator that was hunting for its prey.
“Everyone shall we start the battle for the essence flame vein?” The elder from Sacred Palace smiled as he looked towards elder Wu and the other two elders from the overlord sects.
Elder Wu and the rest were expressionless as they nodded.
Upon seeing this, the Sacred Palace elder’s gaze swept towards the many restlessly stirring factions present, before raising his hand and gently letting it fall.
“Everyone, whatever portion of the essence flame vein you obtain shall depend on your abilities.”
“Let’s get started.”
Rumble!
The Genesis Qi began to churn violently the instant his voice rang out as countless figures shot forth, seemingly covering the sky as they bolted towards the giant mouth of the volcano, and dived into it.
The sound of rushing wind was unceasing for a time.
“Let’s go too.” Li Qingcahn looked towards the team, her gaze pausing on Zhou Yuan for a moment as she said, “After entering, we’ll head for the areas we’ve been allocated.”
Everyone nodded.
A split second later, everyone’s Genesis Qi erupted as they dashed into the air.
Their figures soon appeared above the mouth of the volcano. A wave of searing heat pulsed from within it, but was completely blocked by the Genesis Qi around
their bodies.
“Go!”
Ten figures dived into the gaping mouth of the volcano.
The entrance led deep into the ground where a world of crimson red slumbered. Li Qingchan, Zhou Yuan and the rest fell for several minutes before the scenery in front of their eyes abruptly widened.
What appeared before them was a seemingly endless red land. Magma would occasionally rise from the ground, making the place appear exceptionally hot.
It was an underground world of its own.
Innumerable glowing figures descended from the mouth of the volcano, before swiftly flying off in all directions. Berserk explosions of Genesis Qi soon began to erupt all over.
The battles had already begun.
Li Qingchan also orientated herself, before leading the team straight towards the central region.
The group flew at high speed. After an incense stick of time, they realized the land below them was beginning to grow increasingly red. A giant vein grew out of the ground somewhere in the distance, red essence flame swimming within it.
Zhou Yuan gradually slowed down.
Any further and it would soon be the core region. The area he had been tasked with was on route with Li Qingchan and the rest.
“Be careful Zhou Yuan.” Cautioned Li Qingchan as she shot a glance at him.
In contrast, Zhao Zhu, Qin Hai and the rest had a sliver of contempt in their eyes. Looks like insisting on participating in this Heaven task had only ended up inviting shame to himself.
Zhou Yuan smiled as he nodded at Li Qingchan. Without further ado, his figure turned and began flying in another direction.
Li Qingchan bit her lip as she watched his figure disappear. However, she knew that this was not the time to be distracted. Once they entered the core region, they would meet the other three hegemon level sects, and an intense battle would soon erupt.
Hence, she waved her hand and led the rest towards the core region.
…
Zhou Yuan flew past the hot and arid red land, holding a map in one hand as he searched for the district he had been assigned. At this current time, more and more members from the other factions were beginning to appear in the vicinity, displaying caution and vigilance whenever they got too close to one another.
These individuals saw Zhou Yuan were momentarily stunned at the sight of Zhou Yuan, clearly recognizing the disciple from the Cangxuan Sect that had become famous a few days ago in Black Flame City. Aren’t the Cangxuan Sect disciples suppose to duke it out in the core region? Why has he come all the way here...
Zhou Yuan was unconcerned by these confused gazes. After searching for about half an incense stick of time, he finally found the area he had been tasked with.
A scarlet-red vein rose from the ground below him like multiple hills. However, these hills were filled with red flame rocks.
Although this area could not compare to the core region, it was considered a pretty rich vein in the outer region.
Zhou Yuan’s figure fell from the air, landing on one of the taller hills. He retrieved his flag and poured Genesis Qi into it, causing it to rapidly expand to a height of several dozen feet.
Zhou Yuan firmly stuck the flag into the ground. With a surge of Genesis Qi, a pillar of light swiftly emerged from the top of the flag and began spreading in a circular fashion.
The circle of light quickly expanded to cover a hundred miles.
This was a marking that represented that the area within a hundred miles already belonged to someone.
Others who saw this marking and still insisted on entering were basically saying they wanted to contest for this area. When that happened, a battle would naturally be unavoidable.
Zhou Yuan stood beside his flag, his expression calm as he looked up.
Although he was treated differently from the others, he did not resent anyone. Since this was the mission he had been tasked with, he should first ensure that his job was done properly.
However… he was ultimately still a tiny bit unhappy at being looked down on to such an extent.
His grasped the flag as his fingers rhythmically drummed against it.
Zhou Yuan’s gaze lowered slightly as an icy light flashed within them.
From now onwards, the area within a hundred miles was his territory. Anyone who dared to enter...
Should be prepared… for all the frustration that had accumulated within him since the start of this trip...
Chapter 412 A Hint of Evolution
On a red hill littered with rocks, a pair of red eyes swept out from one of the crevices, a savage look within them as they locked onto a young figure seated at the top of the hill.
It stealthily moved from shadow to shadow, gradually approaching the figure. In the end, gruesome red fangs were suddenly revealed as it shot forth like a bolt of lightning, leaving a stench in its wake.
Ch!
However, it was met by a sharp brush tip. The snow-white hairs were bunched together like the tip of a spear, ripping apart even the air as Genesis Qi flowed along it.
Plop!
Genesis Qi swirled around the sharp brush tip as it instantly pierced the giant creature’s head. Fresh blood flowed out, the beast already dead before it could let out a single cry.
Zhou Yuan turned his head and looked at the giant beast behind him. It was a giant lizard fully encased in a shell of red armor, a searing and savage aura spreading from its body.
This was a Heavenly Flame Lizard.
A grade 4 Genesis Beast that was native to the essence flame vein, which was no weaker than an Alpha-Origin practitioner.
However, it does not pose much of a threat towards Zhou Yuan.
Zhou Yuan rose to his feet and dug out a red crystal from the lizard’s head. Inside the crystal, the silhouette of a lizard could be seen.
It was a Beast Spirit Crystal.
Zhou Yuan placed the grade 4 Beast Spirit Crystal on the Heavenly Yuan Brush. Light began to emerge from the brush as it forcibly extracted the lizard silhouette inside and devoured it.
The crystal soon began to dim, before shattering.
To Zhou Yuan’s surprise, the mottled body of the brush seemed to become a little brighter after absorbing the Beast Spirit Crystal as a faint buzzing noise emerged.
A feeling akin to desire suddenly spread from the Heavenly Yuan Brush.
Zhou Yuan was stunned, before a look of joy appeared in his eyes.
He could not help but blurt out in happiness, “The fifth rune is about to awaken!”
After awakening the fourth rune, Zhou Yuan had continued to nourish the brush with Beast Spirit Crystals everyday. However, there had been no response from the fifth rune all this time.
He never imagined that it would suddenly begin to stir today.
Normally speaking, the brush would only be able to absorb a limited number of Beast Spirit Crystals everyday. Only when a rune was close to awakening would it turn into a starving beast that would devour Beast Spirit Crystals without restraint to build up its energy in preparation to awaken the next rune and evolve to the next level...
“The Heavenly Yuan Brush is currently a high grade Black Genesis Weapon. If the fifth rune is awakened, it may rank up to the Heaven tier!”
Zhou Yuan’s stared at the brush with glowing eyes. For Genesis Weapons, the Heaven tier was huge leap. Every Heaven Genesis Weapon possessed power that far surpassed those of high grade Black weapons.
Back when king Qi had attacked the city in the Great Zhou Empire, Su Youwei had borrowed the power of the Heaven Genesis Weapon in her body to slay a second layer Alpha-Origin expert.
What’s more, she had merely been at the Qi Nourishing stage.
Of course, though a Heaven Genesis Weapon was alarmingly powerful, it was also extremely valuable. Even in a place like the Cangxuan Sect, only a tiny handful of disciples would own one.
As such, if Zhou Yuan’s Heavenly Yuan Brush could evolve to become a Heaven Genesis Weapon, his battle power would undoubtedly be greatly boo
sted.
This was the main reason why Zhou Yuan had been so happy.
“But all my Beast Spirit Crystals have already been used up…”
Zhou Yuan stood up, his burning gaze sweeping across the hundred mile district as he tightly grasped the Heavenly Yuan Brush. Fortunately, there were quite a number of Heavenly Flame Lizards in the essence flame vein. He could take their Beast Spirit Crystals to nourish the Heavenly Yuan Brush to complete its awakening and evolution.
“It just so happens that I’ve nothing to do now. Guess I’ll be borrowing all of your Beast Spirit Crystals.”
Although many fights had broken out in various spots in the essence flame vein, it was currently still peaceful here. Hence, he could make use of this time to hunt the Heavenly Flame Lizards within a hundred mile radius.
Zhou Yuan immediately got to work, his Spirit vibrating as his senses spread.
In a split second, he found a somewhat berserk Genesis Qi undulations in the ground nearby.
“I’ll start from you guys.”
Zhou Yuan’s body leaped into the air, before hurtling back down like a cannonball. His slammed into the ground, causing it to crack open as several angry Heavenly Flame Lizards charged out roaring, their giant mouths snapping at Zhou Yuan.
Bzz!
With a shake, Genesis Qi flowed along the brush’s snow-white hairs as it fearlessly clashed with the Heavenly Flame Lizards.
Zhou Yuan spent the next incense stick of time as a god of slaughter, rampaging through the hundred mile area he had been tasked with securing. Even the Heavenly Flame Lizards hidden deep in the ground were found and killed.
When he was done, he found himself with a few dozen grade 4 Beast Spirit Crystals.
All of these crystals ended up being absorbed by the Heavenly Yuan Brush.
However, Zhou Yuan was beginning to realize that there was a problem. Even after absorbing so many Beast Spirit Crystals, the brush was still giving off a strong feeling of desire.
The amount of energy needed to reach the Heaven tier clearly exceeded Zhou Yuan’s estimation.
“How troublesome…”
Zhou Yuan’s looked at the pulsing Heavenly Yuan Brush in his hands. The fifth ancient Genesis Rune was blinking, evidently in the process of accumulating that last bit of energy needed for its evolution.
Dragon Prince Yuan c1-1251 Page 223
