Chapter 56: Magic Beast Mountain Range

A spiritual message was transmitted into Xiao Yan's mind, leaving him with a face that didn't know whether to cry or laugh. What Soul Sacrifice Old Shop? This was outright a blatant scam!

Because the information about the Ten Thousand Beast Flame in the spiritual message was more speculation than factual data!

It posited that the Ten Thousand Beast Flame was born in a land brimming with the vitality of myriad beasts, created from the combined force of countless beasts and blended with their spirits, its color mirrored that of ten thousand beasts. It was known as the flame that guarded and promoted the vitality and prosperity of all beasts.

The Magic Beast Mountain Range fits the description perfectly, thus leading to speculation that the Ten Thousand Beast Flame might be found there.

Xiao Yan was of course familiar with the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Wu Tan City had managed to become one of the major cities in the Jia Ma Empire precisely because it was situated at the foot of the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Otherwise, why would a major commerce house like the Miteer Auction House consider setting up a branch there?

He sometimes joined the medicinal herb gathering teams as part of their protection force when they ventured into the Magic Beast Mountain Range.

The birthplace of the Ten Thousand Beast Flame was said to be the place where the spirits of myriad beasts converged. It could only be born in areas densely populated by magical beasts, where the souls of magical beasts that had died with a protective spirit gradually converged and gathered over the years. The Ten Thousand Beast Flame was then born under the influence of the wishes of countless magical beasts.

Hence, it was called the flame that protected and fostered the vitality and prosperity of all beasts. The lands inhabited by magical beasts that possessed this Heavenly Flame tended to be extremely prosperous, with the magical beasts themselves growing very strong.

The Magic Beast Mountain Range stretched across the entire Jia Ma Empire and divided the territories of several other empires. It could be seen that its population of magical beasts was terrifyingly vast.

If one were to speculate on where the Ten Thousand Beast Flame could possibly be born, the Magic Beast Mountain Range would indeed be the most likely candidate.

That was the logic, but the information provided by the Hall of Souls made Xiao Yan curse inwardly. After all, potential birth and actual birth were two entirely different matters.

The spiritual message contained not only a detailed map of the Magic Beast Mountain Range but also some dubious intelligence provided by mercenary groups who claimed to have sensed strong fire attribute energy fluctuations deep within the mountain range.

Thus, it was speculated that the Ten Thousand Beast Flame had already been born deep within the Magic Beast Mountain Range.

The map in the spiritual message marked several locations where intense fire attribute energy had been felt.

As Hun Lao Gui had mentioned, these places were all deep within the Magic Beast Mountain Range. There, Rank 3 magical beasts were as common as dogs, Rank 4 roamed freely, Rank 5 were also present, and even Rank 6 magical beasts could be found.

With Xiao Yan's current strength as a 1-star Dou Master, he might not have a problem dealing with Rank 2 magical beasts, but if Rank 3 beasts were in groups, he would have no choice but to run.

"Aren't you guys being a bit too greedy, charging 5,000 Soul Points for such information?"

Moreover, is this information even reliable?

5,000 Soul Points! That amount could hire an intermediate-star Dou Emperor for a task!

"Jie Jie Jie, the information about a Heavenly Flame is worth this price. Even the weakest Heavenly Flame can drive alchemists of the sixth tier and above into madness. A 7th-tier medicinal pill can be exchanged for an elite Dou Ancestor to make a move once, but it cannot necessarily be exchanged for a Heavenly Flame."

This answer left Xiao Yan speechless. But what could he do when all the cards were controlled by the other party?

He gave Hun Lao Gui a blank look and said, "Never mind, I still need to exchange for a High Xuan Soul Training Method, the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique, and add these medicinal ingredients."

Xiao Yan took out a piece of paper and wrote down the ingredients needed for the Blood Lotus Essence Pill and Ice Spirit Cold Fountain. After all, he wasn't just refining a Seed Flame this time; a true Heavenly Flame was something only a 6th-tier alchemist would dare to pursue.

Hun Lao Gui glanced at the list of materials and grumbled, "Do you think this place is a junkyard? How could I possibly have this junk here?"

"We don't have any materials for a 5th-tier medicinal pill, but you might be able to find them in the Black-Corner Region. Ice Spirit Cold Fountain is not sold by the bottle; it's 1,000 Soul Points per box."

A vein throbbed on Xiao Yan's forehead. The Hall of Souls was really something, looking down on people like that!

"Exchange it!" He gritted his teeth. The humiliation! To be insulted with money!

Looking at the cubic meter of Ice Spirit Cold Fountain in front of him, he grudgingly accepted it and immediately put it into his storage. Then he turned to leave this black shop that looked down on people!

Just as Xiao Yan was leaving the old shop, a spiritual transmission from Hun Lao Gui reached his ears: "If you need a Heavenly Flame, be wary of the Yao Clan and the Yan Clan, those two Dou God Clans."

Xiao Yan frowned slightly and turned back to look at the Soul Sacrifice Old Shop, but Hun Lao Gui had already closed his eyes as if he had fallen asleep.

'Other Dou God Clans?'

…

Ten days later. It had been almost two weeks since Xiao Yan had left Jia Nan Academy. According to the information in the spiritual message, he needed to head to a place called Qingshan Town to enter the Magic Beast Mountain Range from there.

The blazing sun and scorching temperatures cracked the earth, and stepping on the hard soil sent a wave of heat surging from beneath one's feet, causing passersby to sweat profusely and curse the dreadful weather.

On the wide, dusty road, a man clad in a black robe with a hood walked through the sandy terrain.

A closer look revealed that the young man was carrying an extremely large, thick iron ruler on his back. The ruler lacked a pointed tip and appeared as if it had been cleanly cut in half at the end, revealing a smooth, mirror-like cross-section.

A small black cat lay on the man's shoulder, panting with its tongue out, unable to cope with the intense sun. At this moment, it was not yet capable of swallowing the sun...

"Mao Wu, can't you absorb some sunlight to cool down?" Xiao Yan, fully concealed within his black robe, turned to complain to the Seed Flame on his shoulder.

Meow~~ Mao Wu shook its cat head, indicating that there was nothing it could do. It was not as if the Heavenly Flames were omnipotent.

This Seed Flame of the Nihility Devouring Flame resembled a cat, hence it was named Mao Wu.

Reaching the base of a tree, Xiao Yan took off his hood to cool down and plopped down in the shade. He took out a bottle of ice water from his storage ring and began to drink in large gulps.

In addition to his daily cultivation of the Flame Mantra to increase his Dou Qi, he had also started cultivating the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique.

'Cultivating this Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique is proving to be quite challenging,' Xiao Yan sat cross-legged and cultivated the technique for a while. A High Xuan Class Dou Technique was not too complex for him, but this was his first encounter with a Soul Training Method.

He slowly circulated the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique. His Spiritual Strength sensed the remnant soul particles floating in the air, and through the technique, he captured those remnants with his Spiritual Strength to strengthen his own soul.

This process was called Soul Gathering.

'If it weren't for this Soul Robe, I'm afraid that even the initial progress would be far away.'

The black robe he wore was not a mere light-blocking cloak but a Soul Robe provided by the Hall of Souls. He was rated at the Low Di Class, and his Soul Robe not only provided a certain level of defense, but it could also protect him from the spiritual perception of Mortal State cultivators.

Most importantly, the Soul Robe had a certain soul gathering effect, whereby soul light particles would adhere to it, thus accelerating the cultivation of his Soul Training Method.

…

Before dusk fell, Xiao Yan finally arrived at Qingshan Town, also known as Magic Beast Town due to its proximity to the Magic Beast Mountain Range.

As the saying goes, 'The mountain dweller lives off the mountain, the shore dweller lives off the sea;' in a town that relied on the Magic Beast Mountain Range, the most common sight was naturally groups of mercenaries. These battle-hardened men moved in packs, linking arms and discussing without restraint which women in the town were the most seductive, which taverns served the strongest liquor, and which magical beasts were the most ferocious.

Unfortunately, there was no information about the Heavenly Flame that Xiao Yan was seeking.