IV

Chapter 221: Fragmented Flame

"The last time we met, I had mentioned a few ingredients that could boost her growth and help her breakthrough to the next stage."

"However, from her current growth rate, development and perceptivity, I think she will greatly benefit if we add in another factor," Seraphina explained.

Liam's interest was immediately peeked and he rubbed his clean-shaven chin. "Oh, what is this new ingredient?"

Seraphina's look immediately turned serious as she replied. "There is a village in the east named Javi. It is unusually cold and often times the weather is unbearable."

"My Lord's strength should be barely sufficient to deal with the strong and powerful creatures there."

"So if you manage to reach that place, the village chief there should be able to give you clues about an ancient spirit beast's flame fragment."

"I have been meaning to visit the place myself but I am tied down to the capital city with too many duties. I hope that my Lord can visit this place and acquire the flame fragment."

"Here is my token." Seraphina handed over a small silver ember. "My Lord, the chief will trust you easily if you show him my insignia."

"I wish you good luck. If you can acquire this flame, then Luna's potential can truly explode using both the flame fragment and the nine-colored divinity stone."

[Ding. New Quest available]

[Ding. Obtain the ancient eternal flame from Javi village]

[Ding. Reward - Beast Master Seraphina's recognition and assistance; Reputation with Beast Master Seraphina]

[Ding. Do you wish to accept the quest? Y/N]

"Yes." Liam quickly accepted it.

It was truly surprising for him to see that even though he was a Duke and he had an item in his possession that the loli badly wanted, she still did not recognize him!

But it did not matter, once Luna's evolution was completed, with her and the two golems he could power level by grinding invasions back to back.

So he needed to finish this as soon as possible and head to the nether realm.

"Shall we?" Liam looked at the little fox who was curiously listening to everything with big round eyes. It looked like she had a strong desire to become powerful.

Liam scruffed the fox and then walked out of the beast hall.

The duo headed out of the city and getting Talon, they started their journey to the east of the kingdom without any further delay.

The village was located slightly towards the south in the eastern part of the Kingdom and because of the Seraphina's quest, the exact location was marked on the map.

So Liam did not have any difficulty in getting near the place.

However, before he could reach the actual village, they came across mountainous terrain with strong cold winds. The entire place was covered with snow and it was freezing cold.

Talon couldn't bear to fly in that kind of atmosphere and his stamina rapidly dropped.

"Alright. Stop here. It looks like we have to go by foot after this."

Liam left the bird here, remembering the location on the map, and then proceeded to hike up the snowy mountain with Luna on his back.

The spirit beast as well was not doing that great in the weather so she huddled up close to him, nuzzling inside his shirt, only her little red head peaking out.

Liam took out another cloak and wrapped himself with it. The duo then braved the terrible freezing cold and walked up the hill to search for the village settlement.

"Hmm… Luna… This village is located in such a remote place even though these conditions are terrible, so… will the village chief really give us this flame fragment?"

Kyuuuuu… The fox blinked.

"Maybe we have to take it by force…" Liam muttered, answering his own rhetorical question. "In any case, let's first find the village and then have a chat."

The two of them hiked all the way up, bearing the biting cold, and finally reached the small settlement in a couple of hours.

The journey would have taken a lot longer but thanks to Liam's current level and high stamina, he was able to keep up with the cold and reach the place.

In front of them was a small and isolated settlement that could only be barely called a village.

There were literally just a dozen or so yurts and a couple of kids dressed in thick furry robes running around here and there.

In such a small place, Liam's presence was immediately noticed. Not long after an old man walked out of an yurt and approached him.

"Young adventurer, have you lost your way?"

Liam smiled politely and shook his head. "Greetings Chief Daka, I am a Duke of the Gresh Kingdom. Beast Master Seraphina has sent me to help in your endeavor."

"Oh, that young lady?" The old man looked up at him and nodded, but he still looked a bit hesitant as if he did not believe him.

Liam then took out Seraphina's insignia and handed it over to the old man, whose eyes instantly widened in surprise.

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"This is indeed her token. Lord Duke himself has arrived at our small village to help us. We are truly blessed! We are truly blessed!"

The chief now started grabbing Liam's hand and crying. It was a complete 180 change in attitude. Liam chuckled inwardly and waited for the man to speak up.

"Lord Duke, our village is suffering. We desperately need your help."

"A few miles away from our village, there is a huge glacier cave and inside that cave, our ancestral heritage is being held captive by a bunch of strong and powerful monsters."

"They are treating our prized treasure as a mere fireplace and using it to warm their bodies in this cold weather."

"Not only that they are also continuing to attack and plunder our village as they please."

"Because of their terrorization, we are being forced to flee and hide in these mountains moving our village ever so often."

"This all started only this year and already the number of people in our village has dwindled to this extent. We have lost several of our capable men and women to those monsters."

Liam heard the old man explain his plight. "Why don't you move to another village, Chief Daka?" He then asked.

"There are several more convenient places past these mountains, more habitable and less cold. Why must you all stay here and suffer in these horrendous conditions?"

"Ah… that…" The chief hesitated to answer.

Liam smiled and did not force him. Also, he could easily guess the reason.

These guys most probably did not leave this region because they were trying to fight back and get the flame fragment.

If it belonged to an ancient beast, then it was a truly powerful treasure. How could they simply leave it in the hands of the enemy?

But the real question was… would the old man be willing to part with the flame once he retrieved it back?

Liam had to think about this.

The people in front of him were struggling in cold harsh weather just to have a chance to fight back, perhaps raid the cave when the monsters were no longer inside or something like that.

Would such people really just hand it over to him? No way!

Irrespectively, he decided to worry about this part later and first find out the whereabouts of this cave. He also needed to find out just what sort of inhabitants were present inside.

Luckily, the old man was able to help him out in both aspects.

Liam chatted with him for a bit more and then hurried over to the spot where the cave was located.

About an hour later, they arrived in front of a huge towering cave, one that was not made of stones, rather out of sparkling crystalline ice.

Stalactites and stalagmites were littered around the cave and the entire place looked breathtaking as if someone had purposefully chiseled a beautiful ice sculpture.

Surprisingly, the weather here was also somewhat bearable when compared to the nearby areas.

"This flame fragment has such a big impact?" Liam was amazed.

Now that he was in the vicinity of the cave, he quickly activated [Stealth] and only then proceeded towards the cave opening.

But he suddenly stopped, noticing another problem. Luna's small figure was stood out like a sore thumb. She had nowhere to hide in this icy mess.

"This is not good. Hmm… Wait, this place is not too cold. Can you try hiding in between these ice spears?"

Both Luna and Liam looked inside the cave and saw that the cave had a lot more stalagmites near the wall than in the middle pathway.

There were also huge footprints in the middle pathway. Clearly, the ice formations were not there here because of the constant usage of the path.

However, walls were barely used so that part was rather cluttered.

Luna quickly hopped over and dove in between the stalagmites hiding her small figure easily.

Liam nodded and then walked in slowly and cautiously in the middle passageway with this [Stealth] activated, while Luna twisted and turned her body slipping in between the ice spheres.

The two had only barely entered the cave when their first opponents promptly showed up.

Chapter 222: Famous Four

A group of three creatures walked leisurely cackling amongst themselves. They looked like goblins with green-colored skin but were slightly taller and sturdier.

They also had certain beast characteristics like fur on their body and horns on their head.

[Level 38 Goblin Beast]

[Level 41 Goblin Beast]

[Level 31 Goblin Beast]

"So these guys are the ones causing all the troubles…"

Liam first carefully observed these creatures and tried to gauge their strong points and weak points.

He then moved after a couple of seconds.

"Alright, let's start."

Just as he was gathering mana to materialize a huge ball of fire to start the fight with a bang, suddenly something strange happened.

Three feral arctic wolves barged into the cave and started attacking the goblin beasts in a frenzy.

Liam immediately stopped moving. He felt that something was off. "Where did these come from?" He quickly backed away so as to not expose his presence.

The three wolves continued to attack the goblin beasts and following them a group of four players barged in.

"Blacky 1, watch your back! Three more are coming!" The fat chubby guy at the back roared.

He had a bow in his hand that gave off a golden luster and he was apparently controlling the wolves because one of the three wolves responded to his shout.

This guy was calling a snow-white arctic wolf blacky?

Liam, however, did not have any time to be amused. Rather he was busy watching the group in awe.

At first, he did not understand why this group seemed extremely familiar but when he looked at them closely, all of four them bore a remarkable resemblance to four of the very popular experts.

The chubby Indian beast tamer…

The flat-chested Russian blonde with clear emerald eyes who relied on nature magic to heal…

The American thug berserker who liked to shave his head…

And last but not least…

The thin average height Japanese who was the only normal-looking person in the group… and the one wielding undead monsters.

"Kouske…" Liam muttered in a daze.

For a second, he was completely stunned, his brain heating up. Just how the heck was this possible?

Four different people from four different countries and all four of them… top experts!

He knew for a fact that these guys were not friends or acquaintances in his last life, at least not yet in this stage of the game.

So how the hell was all four of them together, working as a team right now?

And moreover, they were here trying to snatch the item that he was aiming for?

Was this just a coincidence or was this pre-planned?

Liam already knew the answer to this question.

There was no such thing as a coincidence, this was definitely going according to someone's plan.

Someone among the four of them or perhaps another person had purposefully assembled this small group of whos who of 'Evolution Online'.

Just like how he was trying to collect the gems that he came across, this person as well was clearly collecting.

The question was… how was that person doing it?

Did he/ she know that these four were going to become powerful experts? Did he/ she also have knowledge about the future like him?

It was a ridiculous thought, but it was not a possibility that Liam was ready to rule out just yet. After all, he himself had come back in time.

So really anything was possible…

He didn't for a second dare to think that he was special or extraordinary. If he could come back, then maybe someone else also could come back.

This might just be a video game for now but their future was one filled with myriad magical abilities, distorted creatures, and ancient beasts.

In this kind of future… really anything was possible…

Liam stood absolutely still, completely shocked from top to bottom. His mind was reeling. The consequences of what he just saw were game-changing.

Now… he was not just racing against time and the people to who the fate originally belonged, but he was also essentially competing against this group of experts.

Sure, he had others on his side as well.

Derek had a solid foundation and Shen Yue had a very special, unique, and powerful class but they also lacked several things.

Derek might have a solid foundation but he did not have a special class just yet.

And to make things worse, Liam had no idea how to obtain one for him.

He was only a slave and a bottom feeder in his last life. So he was heavily limited by the knowledge that he was privy to.

So he was not very confident that he would be able to get one for him.

Derek's strength and progress would have to depend on his own efforts. Not to mention, he had already considerably altered the man's life.

Would he still have the same drive and hunger for power?

And as for Shen Yue, she had a special class, something that could become powerful in a skilled player's hands, but she completely lacked the foundation.

She needed lots and lots of combat experience and then some more to actually be of any help.

Considering all of this, it was instantly apparent to Liam that he was at a significant disadvantage.

While they might be strangers for now, if there was ever a confrontation, he had no doubt that he would lose.

"Fuck." Liam clenched his fist, his heart thumping loudly in his chest.

Everything was against him.

His gaze lingered on the excellent coordination and teamwork the four experts displayed in front of him.

The group slaughtered all the goblin beasts as they casually cruised through with terrifying ease.

With just one look anyone would be able to tell that they were no ordinary players. Every skill, every move was properly executed.

And if they also managed to comprehend the true talent behind all these skills and magic… then it was once and for all game over.

Liam dug his nails further into his palm and calmed himself down.

"This is not the time to worry about this. I should focus on what's important now."

The more important and pressing question right now was… whether these guys joined forces and came together to this spot hunting for him or hunting for the flame fragment?

Based on the way things were unfolding, Liam could tell that it was probably the latter.

So he saved the rest of his theories, conjectures, and concerns for the future and focussed on the present.

If he knew anything, it was that nothing was set in stone. They might have the upper hand right now but he was also not that helpless.

Besides, he had an additional advantage that they did not have yet.

He knew that they existed when they probably had no clue about his existence.

Liam grinned. He suddenly knew what he had to do.

He had to make use of this exact same advantage right now to steal the flame right under their noses.

Rumbling sounds continued to echo from the depths of the cave as Liam started to move once again.

"Luna, stay back.." He ordered the small fox, made sure that his [Stealth] was still active, and slowly followed the trail of blood and goblin beast corpses.

Chapter 223: Party Wipe

Liam patiently hid in the background and waited. He did not act just yet.

Though he overall had an idea of what he had to do, he still had to observe the surroundings and then formulate an exact plan.

The interior of the glacier cave was very simple.

The icy walls and the projections jutting out did not change at all as the group and its silent stalker headed deeper and deeper.

Except for the herds of goblin beasts that came out every once in a while, there was nothing else out of place.

This was good for the group of four but for Liam not so much.

If things continued going so smoothly, then he would only be able to stand in the background and watch while the team also took the flame fragment just as easily and left the cave.

"This won't do." Liam shook his head and his chance to meddle soon arrived.

At the next turn, the group came across two mobs of goblin beasts, each standing a few feet away from the other.

It looked like the hunter had special eyesight so he was able to discern the details properly and informed the group which was also how Liam came to know about it.

Normally, when two mobs were this close, it was almost impossible to trigger just one without aggroing the other.

However, this group of four easily did it as the hunter took out a slingshot from his inventory space and aimed for the goblin beast that was the closest to them.

He then sent a small rock flying towards it and skillfully managed to aggro only the first group without grabbing the attention of the second group at the far end of the passageway.

On top of this, the berserker also kited the goblin beasts back a few feet and then only started the fight when they were at a safe distance.

But how could Liam allow things to go so smoothly?

Hiding in the background, with a subtle smirk on his face, he lifted his finger.

The next instant a small spark of lightning flew forward towards one of the arctic wolves.

The spark was so tiny and weak that no one had noticed it but the attack perfectly landed on the wolf's eye so it started howling in pain.

Liam did not stop there and sent out several more sparks particularly targeting the three wolves. Soon all three wolves began to howl and dance in pain.

The team coordination that was pitch-perfect until now was also inexplicably in chaos.

Because their levels were a lot lower than the goblin beasts, every single fight was on the edge. Even the four experts had to expend all of their energy to deal damage and fight with the mobs.

So even a small mishap was enough to toss this delicate balance. But what Liam did wasn't a small mishap by far.

Because he attacked the wolves, they were momentarily unable to see properly and deal damage.

This reduced the overall damage output and not just that, but the healer also had to spend some time to heal the beasts.

Moreover, when the three pets couldn't see properly, they swung their paws wildly in pain attacking their own group members.

So the others had to dodge this attack as well along with the attacks of the goblin beasts.

The goblin beasts were also far more superior than their normal counterparts as both their speed and strength were enhanced.

So the mob fight that was going smoothly until now suddenly became a bloody mess. But Liam was not done yet.

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As if the commotion he had created was not enough, he also sent some sparks flying to the other group of goblin beasts that had not been pulled yet.

And bingo!

They only needed that small nudge.

Because of all the ruckus the three wolves created, and the screeching and roaring noises from the fight, even if it was Liam who pulled their aggro, the goblin beasts only ended up noticing the other group first and ran towards them.

Fuck!" The berserker shouted in panic.

How could four Level 30 players handle a couple dozen goblin beasts that were at least seven levels higher than them?

The next second, the group of four was completely overwhelmed and their health plummeted down crazily.

"Crazy bastard, this is all because of your stupid wolves! I fucking hate playing with hunters! Always pulling the aggro. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it."

The berserker's agonized shout was the last to be heard when all four dropped dead without being able to handle the fight.

And Liam who watched this from the sidelines once again looked shocked.

This was in fact what he had planned for and aimed for right from the start. However, he was only doing this to exhaust all their supplies and cache.

He did not think that he would actually be able to kill them off so easily.

But more importantly, they died just like that?

They didn't struggle hard. They didn't try to salvage the situation. The moment things went south, they accepted the outcome and died as if they decided to simply start over.

Of course, this was what normally anyone would do in a game, but this was not a game!

Liam did not know what to think of this.

On one hand, the four of them were unlikely experts joined together as if they knew what was going to happen in the future.

But on the other hand, they did not seem to know the penalty behind death and did not seem to mind dying at all?

How was this possible?

Did they know about some secret alchemy recipe that could cure damaged souls?

Or did they not know about anything in the first place?

Just as Liam was pondering this, the group of four returned back to the glacier cave once again.

By now, he had already gone back into his [Stealth] mode and the goblin beasts as well returned to their original positions.

So nothing was off and the group walked in to try their luck again.

Chapter 224: Goblin Beast Nest

"Pay attention, at least this time." The blonde healer, Anya started casting earth's protection on the group while Kouske brought over five undead wolves with him.

As soon as he saw more pets entering the fray, the berserker Barret facepalmed in annoyance. "Just what we need. More pets! Great! Just great!"

The fat chubby guy, Madan, who had been gritting his teeth all this time and bearing the insults couldn't hold it in any longer and angrily retorted back.

"Shut up. I am telling you, you idiotic numbskull. That wipe was not my fault. My wolves did not pull the aggro. Why the fuck are you always blaming me?"

"Just because I am a hunter you can't keep fucking blaming me for every single thing that goes wrong! This is BS!"

"BS? Fine, then you tell me what happened?"

"If you stupid mutts did not drag in more goblins we would have finished the fight by now and moved on!"

Seeing the two bicker, Kouske tried to speak up but his soft voice was drowned in the background.

He turned to look at Anya for help but she looked the other way playing casually with her blonde curls as if she couldn't care less what happened here.

Without any other choice, Kouske could only hope that the two would stop fighting. However, even after a few minutes, they still continued pointlessly arguing back and forth.

Seeing that this was not going anywhere, Kouske sighed and opened his system interface. He then made a call.

Instantly, the two who were bickering on the side turned stiff.

"FUCK. Cut the call. Cut the call, damn it."

"Not fighting. Not fighting. Let's start the run again."

"Damn it. Kouske, do you have to be such a tattletale? Always running to big brother for this and that."

"If you had just asked us to stop, we would have stopped. We were only discussing a bit loudly."

Hearing these two shamelessly trying to justify their actions, Kouske closed his system interface and chuckled wryly in silence.

But Anya did not remain silent. "You two brutes. Always fighting stupidly. Let's start." She scoffed, rolling her eyes.

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Both Madam and Barret glared at her but they did not argue back. Instead, they even looked at each other and exchanged meaningful glances, also rolling their eyes.

When they had first been introduced to the Russian blonde, they were both trying to woo her because she was very tall and very sexy.

However, as soon as a few days passed, this illusion completely wore off. Her personality was the absolute worst and she was also extremely prideful.

So they no longer bothered to treat her with reverence and instead avoided her like the plague.

She was also unfortunately the favorite of their big brother. So the two did not behave like they usually behaved and cursed each other.

Kouske did not want another fight to break out so he quickly eased the tension and asked Madan to once again aggro the goblin beast pack.

Their small group might be always at odds when they were not fighting but once everything started that was when they coordinated perfectly and understood each other as if they were the best of friends.

So once again Madan took his slingshot out and tickled one of the goblin beasts attracting its aggro, thereby the aggro of the first group.

The first started again and they hacked and slashed at the goblin beasts with vengeance.

And Liam who watched all of this from the sidelines, stood silently, without intervening this time.

The opponent he was up against right now was completely different from all the other people he had faced so far. These people in front of him were not foolish by any means.

If he intervened again, they would surely know that there was someone else present here along with them.

And Liam had no plans of letting that happen.

He continued silently observing them from the darkness of the cave as the group proceeded to once again smoothly clear everything in sight.

He in fact kept on watching everything all the way until they reached the very end of the cave.

And then his moment finally arrived…

As the group reached the end of the passageway, suddenly the number of goblin beasts tripled. This looked like their nest and they all rushed together at the four intruders at the same time.

Not just that but there was also a huge Elite goblin beast seated on a throne-like ice formation. This boss goblin beast was Level 55!

And each of the mob goblin beasts was Level 40!

No one including Liam had expected these kinds of numbers so they instantly unleashed all of their strongest attacks and tried to buy some time to salvage this situation.

But Liam who was able to see everything from a bystander's perspective needed only one second to gauge the situation.

Although these four were experts, there was no way that they were going to survive this onslaught.

This high-level horde would have been difficult to manage even for him, but he had several backup plans for such situations.

This was why he had also temporarily borrowed the golems from his sister.

If not the golems, he would have bombed this whole place with explosives and then taken the flame fragment.

However, from the looks of things, these people lacked such preparations.

This was all the more surprising for Liam because someone who knew enough to gather these four monster players did not prepare adequate supplement items?

Was this just a coincidence or was this as well planned to ensure that they wouldn't end up becoming too powerful for their 'big brother' to handle?

Liam still had no idea which single individual was behind all these four people. He had only heard of the term 'big brother.'

So it might be just a single person, but it could be a corporation or one of the big families. Moreover, they could be from any part of this world.

He might or might not be connected to them.

Considering all these, he definitely needed more information about this newly cropped-up issue, but now was not the time.

As Liam casually observed the carnage around him, he noticed that what he wanted was right there in the cave… near the throne of the huge boss goblin beast.

It was just a few feet away from him, and the only thing that was standing in his way was the group of four humans and the goblin beasts rumbling and tumbling with each other.

Liam quickly made a plan and sprang into action.

These four people clearly did not have the ability to handle this last mob and the boss that came along with the mob.

It was just a matter of seconds before they died and the party wiped once again.

In fact, they would probably need a couple more tries to even clear out the mob fully and fight with the boss one on one.

And that fight was also probably going to take a couple of tries.

Now, Liam was not sure if these people were aware of the quest with the village chief or they simply came here from some other quest crumb.

Taking everything into consideration, if he dived in for the flame fragment right now and escaped the cave along with it, these goblin beasts would be able to buy him the time he needed.

He could then get the hell out of here and also meet with the village chief for submitting the quest without any issues.

These people might not even have the time to notice the disappearance of the flame until after he left the area.

And by the time they notice he would be long gone.

He wouldn't be caught by them and his presence wouldn't be revealed.

Liam doubted that they even noticed the flame in all the chaos that was running amok in the cave. There was a chance that might simply assume that the flame was never here to begin with.

So no matter from which angle he thought about it, it was a win-win situation.

However, he didn't have much time. If the party wiped and came back a second time, then they might notice it.

So now was his only chance. He needed to grab the flame asap and run!

Liam moved and his figure instantly materialized, coming out of stealth. It was impossible for him to stay out of sight with these many attacks flying back and forth.

He was bound to be hit by one or two and there was nothing that could be done about it.

Nevertheless, stealth or not, he was still invisible with all the commotion and uproar. No one paid any attention to him.

So he used this chance to quietly walk over to the flame fragment that was sealed in a chunk of ice and then tossed it into his inventory without a care in the world.

Just as he was about to snatch the flame crystal back from the trembling hands of the chief, the other members of the village started coming out and gathering around.

However, unlike the chief they all did not look too pleased to see that the flame fragment was restored.

In fact, they looked extremely angry and agitated.

Before the chief could say anything, an old woman stepped forward and shouted.

"We don't want that accursed item here. My son died because he was trying to protect that."

"My husband was killed because he tried to fight with those monsters and bring this back."

"This is not our blessing. This is our curse. We don't want it."

The several villagers who had gathered started to make a huge commotion, crying and shouting in frustration.

At first, the chief looked shocked and surprised, but slowly he as well sighed in tiredness. Perhaps it was time to move on.

He shook his head helplessly and looked at Liam. "My Lord. We are all extremely indebted to you. This kindness you have shown us, please allow me to repay you."

"Please take this crystal."

"Knowing that our ancestral treasure is with someone kind and noble like you and not those filthy bloodthirsty beasts, we will all be able to rest easy tonight."

To Liam's surprise, the old man extended his trembling hands and returned the flame crystal back to him.

Liam did not know whether to laugh or cry. Thankfully, he had been a bit patient so there was time for all of this to play out.

Otherwise, he would have massacred everyone here and taken the crystal by force.

But now there was no need for it, so he happily accepted the crystal and then waved goodbye to the group of people.

He was short on time so he did not accept their hospitality feast and invitation to stay back to talk to them.

From what he could see, they were also starting to gather their things and move out of the cold mountains.

The flame crystal was already saved from the goblin beasts so there was no longer any need for these people to stay in these adverse conditions.

Liam silently wished the villagers good luck and then rushed over to the coordinates where Talon was waiting for him.

Only when he and Luna got onto the bird's back and they rose up in the sky, did he let out a breath of relief. Somehow this mission was accomplished.

He had a feeling that every single mission after this was only going to be more and more troublesome.

Meanwhile… a few party wipes and couple more deaths later… four people stared at the big empty glacier cave.

"Where the fuck is that flame?"

Chapter 226: Bursting Potential

Madan and Kouske refrained from jumping to conclusions and patiently searched the whole glacier cave from top to bottom, again and again.

They searched every inch of the cave without giving up. They even dug up the icy walls and the hard frozen ground to search for the flame.

However, even after spending such a long time inside the cave, they were unable to find the flame or even any clue about it.

Finally, Anya spoke up. "You guys continue searching. Let me have a chat with the village chief first. Maybe something changed?"

The other three also nodded in agreement. She left the cave to search for the small settlement. However, weirdly, she was once again lost.

No matter how much she combed the mountains, she was not able to find those small yurts, the old village chief, and the handful of people.

After a while, she did find some other small clues, sets of footprints here and there, leftover wood from most probably a cooking fire, and signs that some people had lived here recently but they were no longer there.

She sighed and went back to report this. The other three as well became alarmed after hearing this and searched the mountains again.

However, no matter how much time they spent, they simply could not find out any clues about the small village. It was as if everyone had disappeared.

A couple more hours passed and they could only reluctantly give up.

"Let's leave," Kouske muttered and the group left the freezing mountains.

Not long after, Madan slowly asked, "Do you think someone else got that flame fragment?"

"What? Impossible!" Barret gritted his teeth. They had worked so hard for it, even losing a few levels. How could someone else have obtained it?

"Ya. It's not possible." Anya added. "No one else could have handled those mobs. Very few players are at Level 30 right now."

"Hmmm. What you are saying makes sense." Madam nodded.

However, he was very paranoid by nature so he couldn't help but think about the only person who could have possibly taken the flame before them.

"Then what about the player who is at the top of the leaderboard right now?" Madam slowly asked.

"If it is him, then it possible for him to have cleared the cave before us and taken the flame fragment."

Hearing everyone suddenly fell silent. Though what Madan suggested sounded extremely impossible, they couldn't just rule it out.

But after a while, Kouske shook his head. "No, I don't think so. The chances of something like that happening are very low. Did you forget big brother suggested us this place?"

"There is no chance for a normal player to know about it. Also, that person Liam should be in the nether world at the moment."

"I saw him in the leaderboard." Kouske tried to reason. However, he himself did not sound convinced by his own words.

"Let's just tell what happened to brother. He will take care of the rest." He nodded and the team silently hopped onto their flying mounts and left the area.

Meanwhile… the person whom they were talking about had already arrived close to the center part of the Gresh Kingdom.

Liam as usual let Talon wander outside, and entered the royal city along with Luna. The two of them straightaway went to the beast hall to meet with Seraphina.

The beast trainer revealed a big smile as soon as she saw Liam as if she wanted to eat him whole and Liam cleared his throat awkwardly.

"We have the flame fragment."

"Lord Duke, that is amazing news! Congratulations! My Lord is so capable." The loli smiled ear to ear. However, Liam was not fooled.

He knew that this person was only being so nice because she wanted the gemstone. So he simply nodded, not reacting to several words of flattery.

Seeing that her charms were not working, Seraphina cleared her throat. "Cough. Cough. Now we have all the required items. We can help little Luna level up, my Lord."

Kyuuuu!

The little fox jumped up and down as soon as she heard her name. Liam smiled and took her in his hand, rubbing her little head.

"Let's start."

Seraphina tied her brown hair up into a bundle and started taking out the different herbs and essences that were required.

Some of them were a little difficult to obtain and yet she willingly parted with the items because ultimately the gemstone was the most precious thing at the moment.

So she did not hold back and took out all the top-tier ingredients.

Liam saw that she was even taking out fire essence crystals. These were extremely rare drops and the loli master was generously taking out several of them.

The little fox as well eyed all the items with a twinkle in her eyes and then started obediently eating up one after the other, listening to everything Seraphina told.

Slowly by slowly the fox first ate all the herbs and then some tonics and then the essence crystal. By the time she was done her stomach was bulging.

She also had an intoxicated content look on her face, burping in satisfaction.

The next second, her fur color slowly started to change. The bright red of her fur turned into a shade of orange.

But at this point, Seraphina quickly intervened. "Wait, Luna. Don't break through just yet."

She took out the flame crystal that Liam had obtained and then muttered a few words under her breath.

The solid ice around the flame instantly melted and from within it, a small wisp of yellow essence emerged.

"Quick. Quick. Absorb it." Seraphina instructed.

The essence was so strong that both she and Liam began sweating profusely. However, the small fox found it very pleasant and hurriedly inhaled it.

Almost immediately, her body started heating up and her fur color once again began changing, turning from into a shade of yellow and then yellow with a tinge of green.

"This girl's evolution is so colorful?" Liam carefully observed everything.

He saw that Luna was in a lot of pain so he rubbed her head gently.

The little fox wrapped her tail around his hand and had her eyes tightly closed as if she was trying really hard to bear everything even though it was painful.

Seeing this Seraphina lightly gasped in awe. "You have here an amazing pet, my Lord. Her intelligence level is off the charts."

"What do you mean?" Liam asked.

"This flame fragment is actually too much for her to handle at the moment. Using it right, we could actually call it a waste."

"Even I wouldn't have suggested it if not for the fact that we had a nine-colored divinity gemstone with us."

"So basically, the essence from the flame should be too much for her. She would only be able to absorb it partly and waste the rest."

"But your spirit beast is trying her best to take in everything."

"Oh?" Liam was surprised.

"Yes, my Lord. If it was any other beast, by now it would have released the essence that it could not handle. Aha ha ha… but your beast is really amazing."

"May I know from where Lord Duke managed to obtain such a powerful spirit beast?"

Liam, however, did not bother answering her and continued to gently rub the little fox's head, trying to comfort it as much as possible.

Seeing that she wasn't getting anything, Seraphina could only sulk in silence and she also carefully observed the fox.

A little later, her fur color once again started to change…

"Impossible!" Seraphina blurted out. "Lord Duke, your beast is evolving again. At this rate… her potential… there is a possibility for her to become an extremely terrifying existence!"

"Quick, let's give her the gemstone."

Liam nodded and took out the gemstone from the inventory. He gave it to Seraphina and she placed it near the fox.

Instantly, Luna's face softened and she looked a little relieved.

"The gemstone should give her a cooling nourishing feeling. So she should be able to ease up now." Seraphina explained.

Liam as well nodded. All of this was new to him so he carefully observed everything and tried to make sense of the details.

However, just as the loli finished talking, the little fox's face that had only just now relaxed, suddenly became tensed up again.

"What is happening now?" Liam became worried.