Chapter 647: The Star Vortex
Void Swallowing Flame remained silent for a long time, his expression shifting constantly. The emergence of Emperor Flame had disrupted all his plans. He had originally planned to use the power of the Soul Clan to collect pieces of ancient jade and enter the ancient emperor's cave with Soul Heaven Emperor. He was supposed to help Soul Heaven Emperor obtain the Emperor Chick Pill while securing the ancient emperor's inheritance for himself. Even in terms of foundation, having the ancient emperor's inheritance would make him stronger than Soul Heaven Emperor, who would have broken through to Dou Di with the Emperor Chick Pill. Unfortunately, the appearance of that unique flame had disrupted everything for Void Swallowing Flame. Even he couldn't guarantee that this supreme flame, formed from devouring myriad fires, could maintain its memories as he and the Nether Lotus Demon Fire had.
If it could retain its memories, that would be terrifying. Compared to the two of them, whose memories had been consumed by the flames, Emperor Flame's memories might be intact! Although they didn't know why they had left the ancient emperor's cave, their memories had been fragmented by the cave's mechanisms. Thus, they didn't know the exact location of the ancient emperor's cave. But now, the appearance of Emperor Flame had given Void Swallowing Flame a great sense of crisis.
The ancient emperor himself was the original Emperor Flame; how could his mechanisms affect him? In terms of known information, Emperor Flame undoubtedly knew much more than they did. Currently, Emperor Flame had not gone to the ancient emperor's cave, likely because he lacked sufficient power and had not yet gathered all the pieces of ancient jade.
Of course, this was not a situation to be pleased about. Because once Emperor Flame truly grew strong, they would have no chance! Thus, they must hurry to gather all the pieces of ancient jade! Void Swallowing Flame considered a possibility: if the ancient emperor's body was Emperor Flame, would most of the restrictions in the ancient emperor's cave be virtually ineffective against him?
Thinking of this possibility, Void Swallowing Flame's sense of urgency increased. "It seems I need to have an honest talk with Soul Heaven Emperor; we must accelerate the Soul Clan's plans." Void Swallowing Flame muttered to himself, glancing at the Soul Clan elder who had come to report. "You can go back now; I have to meet the clan leader."
After the Soul Clan elder had left, Void Swallowing Flame stood in the hall for a long time, pondering the situation. In the end, he resolved to lay his cards on the table with Soul Heaven Emperor and have an honest discussion. Void Swallowing Flame had a significant concern: as Emperor Flame, would he need the ancient jade to enter the ancient emperor's cave?
If not, the only obstacle for Emperor Flame would be the Emperor Chick Pill within the ancient emperor's cave. As a source of primal energy, the power of the Emperor Chick Pill was absolutely terrifying, surpassing even a peak Nine Star Dou Saint. If Emperor Flame could not gather the ancient jade pieces, he would not be able to obtain the complete Tuo She Ancient Emperor Jade. Even if he knew the Alchemy God Technique, without the Tuo She Ancient Emperor Jade, he couldn't use it! The Tuo She Ancient Emperor Jade was the only thing that could prevent Emperor Flame from smoothly obtaining the inheritance within the ancient emperor's cave before he fully matured. The Soul Clan must keep tight control of the Tuo She Ancient Emperor Jade while also accelerating their plans. Otherwise, once Emperor Flame grew strong enough to disregard the Emperor Chick Pill, the inheritance within the Tuo She Ancient Emperor Cave would fall into his hands!
This concern prompted Void Swallowing Flame to seek an open discussion with Soul Heaven Emperor. Once his decision was firm, Void Swallowing Flame transformed into a stream of black flame and darted toward a highly secretive location within the Soul Realm.
Outside the Ancient Realm, Xiao Ze stretched and looked up at the sky where the sun shone brightly, its dazzling light piercing his eyes without a star in sight. Considering this trip to the vast starry space might not accommodate Xun'er, Xiao Ze decided to go alone. He had already seen his ancestor Xiao Chen leave to preside over the Pill Tower. Now, it was time to head to the vast starry space.
Xiao Ze vanished from near the Ancient Holy City in a flash. Moments later, he began to sense the power of stars in the void. With Xiao Ze's current strength, reaching the star realm wouldn't take much time. Thus, as he sensed the power of stars, he invigorated himself and accelerated, plunging into the vast starry space. The sight before him was magnificent; ancient and cold star power twinkled in the darkness, not as benign as one might imagine but filled with a deadly force. Xiao Ze was covered in an energy layer, shielding him from the erosive star power.
Although the Three Thousand Flames had strong self healing properties, the star power generated in space seemed gentle and life giving, but in reality, it was immensely destructive. This ancient energy had become cold and deadly over eons; ordinary people might freeze instantly from the outside in if they touched it.
Xiao Ze sensed the coordinates left by his ancestor and immediately tore through the ancient and cold star power, heading toward that location. The destination was extremely far, located beyond the western regions of the continent, well away from the Central Plains. The journey was long, but fortunately, Xiao Ze's current strength made it manageable. A Dou Saint's travel speed was incredibly fast, especially when assisted by spatial and soul powers.
Within a day, Xiao Ze arrived at a star domain where the star power formed a vortex spanning millions of miles, rendering the scene before him spectacularly brilliant. Xiao Ze viewed the formidable vortex with a grave expression. Feeling the terrifying shearing forces within, he was secretly relieved he hadn't brought Xun'er along. She might have had to return without achieving anything. The power of this star vortex could likely make even a late stage Dou Saint apprehensive. Even Xiao Ze wasn't confident that he could protect Xun'er through this star vortex.
"Damn! Opportunities indeed, but this one might be too much?" Xiao Ze tried using the Nine Profound Golden Thunder to probe a path, but it was annihilated by the vortex's power within a thousand feet. Now, even Xiao Ze hesitated, unsure of the vortex's depth. Given its association with stars, reaching depths of ten thousand miles wouldn't be surprising, yet his attempt with the Nine Profound Golden Thunder barely made it a thousand feet.
"This is a rare opportunity; if I encounter insurmountable danger, I'll just use the Origin Tree's traversal power to leave!" With this thought, Xiao Ze covered himself with a layer of Origin Emperor Flame. He then conjured roots of the Origin Tree in the void, forming a sturdy armor around him. Only then did he charge directly into the star vortex.
(End of Chapter 647)
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