20: Chapter 20 The Journey to the Northwest, the False Flame Displays its Power

Within the rocky crevice, time flowed silently.

When Lin Yan opened his eyes again, daylight had already seeped in from the top of the crevice, dispersing some of the darkness. Deep in his eyes, an extremely faint, light-devouring pitch-black flashed and disappeared, instantly returning to clarity. Although his face was somewhat pale, his spirit carried a strange, sharp edge.

It was a success.

With the help of the system and his own soul power, which far exceeded his current realm, he barely guided a trace of the origin power of the Seed Flame of Void Devouring Flame, cautiously devouring the core aura of the Bone Chilling Flame imprint in the black ring. Using the unique "void" and "simulation" properties of the Void Swallowing Flame, he constructed an extremely weak, almost non-existent false fluctuation shell where the imprint used to be. From an outside perspective, this ring felt like a piece of ordinary iron that had completely lost its energy reaction, with only its material remaining. Unless a high-ranking member of the Hall of Souls who was highly proficient in this art carefully examined it at close range, it would be extremely difficult to detect anything amiss.

Of course, this process was extremely exhausting. Not only were another 50 system points deducted, but his soul power was also nearly overdrawn. However, the hidden danger was temporarily removed, so it was worth it.

"You're awake?" Xiao Yi Xian had been keeping watch by his side. Seeing him open his eyes, she hastily handed him a water skin and a small piece of dry rations. Her own condition was much better than last night. Although there was still fatigue in her eyes, her breath was steady and her gaze was clear. She had clearly gained initial control over that eruption of her poison body, and her control over her poison power had even improved slightly because of it.

"Yes," Lin Yan replied as he took them, quickly replenishing his strength while asking, "How is the situation outside?"

"It's very quiet. I haven't heard any pursuers," Xiao Yi Xian whispered, concern in her eyes. "Are you... alright just now? I feel like the aura on your body has become a bit... strange." She couldn't quite describe it, but she just felt that after Lin Yan woke up, his aura had become more restrained and profound. The occasional trace of it that leaked out made her instinctively feel a bit of palpitation, as if she were facing not a living person, but a bottomless, dark void.

"I just consumed a bit too much energy, it's fine," Lin Yan brushed it off, changing the subject. "We must set off immediately toward the northwest. The people from the Hall of Souls might have already noticed the abnormality of the imprint. Although it is temporarily blocked, there's no guarantee they don't have other tracking methods. The Wolf Head Mercenary Group also suffered a huge loss, and they will definitely not let this go."

Xiao Yi Xian nodded vigorously without the slightest hesitation. She quickly packed her only few belongings—the stone box containing the Seven-Colored Poison Manual, the remnant map, and some essential medicinal herbs and silver needles.

The two of them silently left the rocky crevice where they had been hiding. Discerning the northwest direction, they plunged headlong into the denser and more primitive deep mountain forests.

The northwestern region of the Magical Beast Mountain Range was sparsely populated. Towering ancient trees blotted out the sky, vines crisscrossed like giant nets, and the ground was piled with rotting leaves of untold years. Stepping on them was soft and silent, yet they could harbor hidden venomous insects and swamps. The air was filled with a rich scent of vegetation and a faint, beastly stench, with all kinds of strange and dangerous plants visible everywhere.

Lin Yan walked in front, his soul perception fully unfolded like an invisible radar, alert to danger that could come from any direction. Xiao Yi Xian followed closely behind. Having gathered herbs all year round, she adapted quickly to the mountain forest environment, her steps light. Perhaps because of the Seven-Colored Poison Manual, her perception of the surrounding venomous things was exceptionally sharp. She warned him in advance several times, avoiding lurking venomous snakes or highly toxic plants.

The first half-day of the journey went quite smoothly. Aside from the difficult terrain, they did not encounter any powerful magical beasts. Lin Yan took the opportunity to briefly teach Xiao Yi Xian some jungle movement and concealment techniques, while Xiao Yi Xian also shared her insights on identifying certain medicinal herbs and poisons. The cooperation between the two grew increasingly tacit.

However, as they went deeper into the northwestern region, danger began to manifest.

In the afternoon, as they passed through a strange woodland filled with faint purple mist, they were attacked. The attackers were not large magical beasts, but a swarm of fist-sized, completely green "Corrosion Poison Beess" with transparent thin wings on their backs! The venom of a single bee was not strong, but they gathered in swarms, fearless of death. Their stingers carried highly corrosive venom; once stung, one's flesh would rot, making it extremely troublesome.

The swarm of bees, like a green dark cloud, swept toward them with a loud buzzing.

"Hold your breath! It's Corrosion Poison Beess!" Xiao Yi Xian cried out in alarm, instinctively preparing to scatter insect-repellent medicinal powder.

Lin Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. There were too many Corrosion Poison Beess, and the powder's effect would be limited. Once entangled, the consumption would be immense. It was the perfect time to try his newly acquired ability!

"Keep close to me!" Lin Yan barked softly. Instead of retreating, he advanced, taking a few steps forward to meet the swarm. He did not circulate his Dou Qi, nor did he use the Eight Extremities Collapse. Instead, with a slight movement of his mind, he communicated with that trace of the Seed Flame of Void Devouring Flame in his body that had just been initially guided.

A thread of fire, even thinner than a strand of hair, pitch-black as ink and seemingly capable of absorbing even light, quietly seeped from his fingertip. There was no temperature, no light, only a heart-palpitating sensation of "emptiness" and "devouring."

Lin Yan flicked his finger.

That barely perceptible pitch-black fire thread shot into the swarm like a living creature. There was no earth-shattering explosion, nor did it even make any sound. In the area swept by the pitch-black fire thread, that green "dark cloud" seemed to be wiped away out of thin air by an eraser, and dozens of Corrosion Poison Beess vanished silently! Their existence seemed to be completely devoured and returned to nothingness, leaving not even a speck of residue behind!

The swarm's originally fierce attack suddenly ground to a halt, as if gripped by some immense fear stemming from biological instinct. They emitted sharp, chaotic buzzing sounds and retreated in panic like a tide, disappearing deep into the purple mist in the blink of an eye, leaving behind a small, eerie blank area.

Xiao Yi Xian watched this scene dumbfounded, her green eyes wide and round. She had not even clearly seen what Lin Yan did; she only saw him flick his finger, and that terrifying swarm of bees... partially vanished and then fled in fear? What kind of method was this? So bizarre, so... overbearing!

Lin Yan slowly retracted his finger, the trace of pitch-black on his fingertip already hidden. His face grew a shade paler, and fine sweat seeped from his temples. Merely activating this trace of the Seed Flame of Void Devouring Flame and executing such precise control over it consumed far more of his soul power and Dou Qi than using the Eight Extremities Collapse or even simulating the Green Lotus Core Flame. But the effect was also immediate—directly erasing existence and intimidating living creatures, this was simply a sharp weapon for clearing out minor enemies and creating panic!

"Let's go, this is no place to linger," Lin Yan said quickly without explaining. The toxic mist and the scent of blood from the Corrosion Poison Beess might attract other predators.

The two quickly traversed this purple mist woodland. Xiao Yi Xian followed behind, looking at Lin Yan's back, the curiosity and awe in her heart deepening. This youth not only possessed pure and powerful fire-attribute Dou Qi and mysterious force-exertion techniques, but actually had such a bizarre and unpredictable black flame method as well... Just how many secrets did he still hide?

For the rest of the journey, the two of them became even more cautious. Relying on his powerful soul perception and the Void Swallowing Flame's sensitivity to energy fluctuations (after devouring the Bone Chilling Flame imprint, his perception of soul power, yin-cold, and other special energies seemed to have grown stronger), Lin Yan avoided the edges of lurking high-tier magical beasts' territories several times in advance, choosing relatively safe paths to detour forward.

At sunset, they found a shallow stone cave on a dry, leeward hillside and decided to spend the night there.

After lighting a small campfire and having a simple meal to rest and recover, Lin Yan sank his mind into the system once again.

[Deep analysis of Three-star Dou Ling You Gu's soul fragment has been completed. The following supplementary information has been obtained:]

1. The true direction of the Purification Lotus Demon Flame remnant map (fake): This map was indeed forged, but its forger, "Poison Master Yao Ling," did not fabricate it out of thin air. During his lifetime, Yao Ling had sensed a faint fluctuation similar to the Purification Lotus Demon Flame (or a high-tier fire-attribute rare item) near the "Lava Cave" deep in the northwestern part of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and drew this map based on that and legends. Although the location of "Purification Lotus Lake" marked on the map is inaccurate, there is indeed an abnormal fire-attribute energy reaction in the "Lava Cave" region.

2. Suspected location of the Hall of Souls' Jia Ma Empire branch stronghold: A vague coordinate remains in the memory fragments, located near the "Black Mist Canyon" at the border between the Izumo Empire and the Jia Ma Empire. This information's credibility is moderate.

3. Fragment regarding the purpose of the Hall of Souls' experiments on the Calamity Poison Body: "...poison body origin, can refine 'Ten Thousand Poison Soul Fiend'... or act as a 'vessel' to host the split soul of 'Elder Zun'..." The information is incomplete, but it reveals the direction of the Hall of Souls' utilization of the Calamity Poison Body—refining some sort of malicious soul fiend, or serving as a temporary vessel for a powerful soul.

4. Three-star Dou Ling You Gu's personal secret collection: During his lifetime, he set up a small secret stronghold in a hidden valley three hundred miles east of Qingshan Town, which contains some of his collection (medicinal herbs, gold coins, low-tier Qi Methods, and Dou Techniques) and backup tools for contacting the Hall of Souls. The coordinates have been extracted.

The information was highly valuable! Especially the truth about the fake Purification Lotus Demon Flame remnant map and the clues about the "Lava Cave." Although it might not necessarily be the Purification Lotus Demon Flame, for a poison master of at least the Great Dou Master level to sense it and specially draw a fake map pointing to it, there must be a high-value fire-attribute treasure or a singular land there, making it well worth investigating. As for Three-star Dou Ling You Gu's secret collection, it might provide some urgently needed supplies.

Lin Yan carefully informed Xiao Yi Xian about the information regarding the Calamity Poison Body, omitting the specific experimental details of the Hall of Souls, only emphasizing that the Hall of Souls attached extreme importance to her constitution and was highly determined to capture her, so they had to be exceptionally careful. Xiao Yi Xian listened in silence, her hands tightening unconsciously, but her gaze grew increasingly resolute.

The night grew deeper, and the campfire crackled. Continuous traveling and being on high alert made both of them feel exhausted.

"You go to sleep, I'll watch the first half of the night," Lin Yan said to Xiao Yi Xian. Although his soul power consumption was great, his recovery speed was also fast, and he needed to organize his thoughts.

Xiao Yi Xian did not try to be brave. She wrapped her clothes tightly around herself and curled up by the fire, soon falling into a deep sleep due to exhaustion, though her brow remained slightly furrowed, as if she could find no peace even in her dreams.

Lin Yan leaned against the entrance of the stone cave, gazing at the pitch-black forest outside where the faint roars of beasts could be heard, his eyes deep.

The journey to the northwest was filled with uncertainties. The threat of the Hall of Souls followed them like a shadow, and raising his own strength brooked no delay. Although the Void Swallowing Flame was powerful, its consumption was too great to be used as a conventional method. He had to break through to become a Dou Practitioner as soon as possible and find more resources to raise his cultivation and Dou Techniques. The clue about the Lava Cave might be an opportunity.

Just as he was deep in thought, a faint prompt suddenly came from the system:

[Disturbance in a special energy field detected. Source: North-northwest, distance approximately one hundred and fifty miles. Energy characteristics: Mixed, containing strong fire attribute, earth attribute, and weak spatial fluctuations. Suspected to be related to the 'Lava Cave' or a similar leyline node.]

"A reaction so soon?" Lin Yan's spirit was shaken. It seemed the direction was correct.

However, at almost the exact same time, that trace of the Seed Flame of Void Devouring Flame in his body, which had been initially guided, actually throbbed extremely weakly, transmitting a vague... "yearning" pointing toward a much deeper direction in the northwest?

It was as if there was something there, faintly attracting it.

Lin Yan looked toward the heavy darkness of the northwest. That was the true depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, an unknown region where even maps were vaguely marked. The clues of the Purification Lotus Demon Flame, the abnormal movement of the Void Swallowing Flame, and the potential pursuit of the Hall of Souls... all seemed to interweave, pointing toward that even more mysterious and dangerous land. The light of the campfire flickered on his face, reflecting a quiet solemnity.