Journey to the Central Region
Several days had passed since they left Blazing Flame Valley. With their high-speed flight, their destination— Li Huo City —came into view.
It would take them about four or five days to travel through the Space Wormhole of Li Huo City to reach the central region of the entire Middle Continent — the Central Region!
Although Li Huo City is not as impressive as the core area of the Scorching Volcano Mountain Range where Burning Blazing Flame Valley is located, it is still one of the major cities in the Southwest Region of the Middle Continent. It is exceptionally prosperous because it controls one of the important Space Wormhole leading to the Central Region Core. The city's buildings are mostly made of crimson stone, and from a distance, it looks like an inextinguishable flame burning on the ground.
After paying the city entrance fee, the three walked along the bustling streets.
Unlike the pure fire-attribute energy within Blazing Flame Valley, the energy attributes within Li Huo City are more complex, which makes it feel more vibrant and bustling. Various shops, restaurants, and auction houses stand side by side, and the sounds of hawking and discussion fill the air.
Their goal was clear: to head straight for the Space Wormhole plaza in the city center.
However, as they walked through a relatively quiet street, Lin Ming paused slightly. In his Soul Perception, several subtle and cold auras, like venomous snakes lurking in the shadows, quietly locked onto them.
"It has a tail." Xiao Yi Xian transmitted her voice to Lin Ming. Lin Ming's expression remained unchanged, and he continued forward, but his Dou Qi had already quietly circulated within his body.
Xiao Yi Xian's eyes turned slightly cold, while Zi Yan excitedly licked her lips, eager to try.
They arrived at an abandoned market area, where few people were around. The few auras finally stopped hiding.
"Whoosh whoosh!"
Five figures emerged like ghosts from the surrounding ruins, surrounding Lin Ming and his companions. All were dressed in identical ice-blue robes, their faces cold and stern, radiating a chilling aura. The leader alone possessed the aura of Five-Star Dou Ancestor! The other four were also three-star or Four-Star Dou Ancestor.
"Gentlemen, please wait." The man who looked like Five-Star Dou Ancestor stepped forward, his voice hoarse. His gaze swept over Lin Ming's face like a venomous snake before he looked at Xiao Yi Xian and said, "My master would like to invite the three of you to a chat."
His words seemed polite, but the coldness and unquestionable look in his eyes betrayed his ill intentions.
Lin Ming stopped, his gaze calmly sweeping over the four people. He said indifferently, "I have no prior acquaintance with you, and who is your master? If you're inviting someone, you should at least have a title."
The Five-Star Dou Ancestor narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing within them. "We cannot reveal our names. The three of you simply need to come with us. Otherwise..." Before he could finish speaking, the chilling aura of Five-Star Dou Ancestor emanated from his body, carrying a threatening intent. The other four also released their auras simultaneously, the combined pressure of the five Dou Zong attempting to overwhelm Lin Ming and his companions.
In response, Lin Ming sneered, "This chilling aura is completely out of place with the scorching atmosphere of Blazing Flame Valley and even the entire Li Huo City. Ice River Valley's actions are faster than expected."
Their orders were to investigate and, if possible, "bring back" the three people connected to the death of the Old Man Demonic Desire. Ideally, they should be taken away discreetly; otherwise, they were prepared to use force. Of course, in the most dire circumstances, they were to at least ensure the return of the woman who used the poison.
Seeing that Lin Ming had directly exposed them, the group no longer bothered to hide anything and immediately said, "Boy, you've offended Ice River Valley, and you think you can leave unscathed?"
The leader, a Five-Star Dou Ancestor level expert, spoke in a hoarse, icy voice, like the grinding of ice. "Blazing Flame Valley can protect you for a while, but not forever! Surrender and you might suffer less!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Ming chuckled and shook his head, "Ice River Valley... their methods are indeed underhanded, only daring to engage in clandestine ambushes."
"You're courting death!" A cold glint flashed in the leader's eyes. Without another word, he waved his hand and shouted, "Form the Mysterious Ice Array! Finish them off quickly! As long as this poison-wielding woman survives!"
The four Ice River Valley Dou Zong immediately moved, taking up positions in the four directions. They formed hand seals, and a surge of powerful, icy Dou Qi erupted forth, instantly condensing into countless sharp ice shards in the air, transforming into a massive ice cage that descended upon Lin Ming and his companions! The biting cold spread, and even the ground was instantly covered with a layer of white frost.
This Mysterious Ice Array is clearly a combined attack formation that can gather the Ice Attribute Dou Qi of several people into one, multiplying its power, enough to trap and kill ordinary High-Rank Dou Zong or even Peak Dou Ancestor people!
Faced with this sudden attack, Xiao Yi Xian snorted coldly, raised her jade hand lightly, and gray Calamity Poison Power surged out like a tide, condensing into a huge gray shield in front of her. Poison gas swirled on the shield, corroding the extreme cold that was attacking her with a hissing sound.
Zi Yan went even further, her petite body unleashing terrifying power as she threw a punch, accompanied by a faint dragon's roar, which slammed directly into the barrier of the icy cage!
"Bang!"
With a muffled thud, ice shards flew everywhere. The hard ice barrier was violently shaken by Zi Yan's punch, and fine cracks appeared! But in an instant, the cracks disappeared, and the ice wall became smooth again.
Although they saw that Xiao Yi Xian and Zi Yan's attacks had failed, they knew that this was the territory of Blazing Flame Valley, and if they lingered too long, it would definitely attract the attention of the people from Blazing Flame Valley. Then it would be difficult to explain themselves.
Then, the leader shot out, a point of extreme, eerie blue light gathering at his fingertip, seemingly capable of freezing even the soul, aiming straight for Lin Ming's brow! This finger strike contained the full power of his Five-Star Dou Ancestor, and its speed was astonishing!
"Mysterious Ice Soul Finger!"
However, facing this fierce attack, Lin Ming neither dodged nor avoided it; instead, a burning fighting spirit flashed in his eyes.
With a thought, the Purple Extreme Annihilation Flame within his body's vortex suddenly erupted!
"Boom!"
A violent power surged from Lin Ming's body in an instant, and the purplish-red flames around him made him look like a god of fire descending to earth!
"What?! This is Heavenly Flames?!" The leader's pupils shrank drastically, his heart filled with horror, but the Finger Wind had already been unleashed and could not be retracted.
"Roll!"
Lin Ming let out a low shout, and his fist, covered in the Purple Extreme Annihilation Flame, unleashed a simple punch that smashed directly at the point of dark blue cold light!
"Laugh--!"
Extreme ice and destructive Heavenly Flames collided with a deafening roar! There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a violent melting sound, as if their attributes were mutually antagonistic! The Mysterious Ice Soul Finger, powerful enough to freeze steel, melted and evaporated at a visible speed the moment it touched the Purple Extreme Annihilation Flame!
"Ah!" The leader screamed in agony, feeling a scorching, violent, and destructive force invade his finger meridians. His entire arm instantly felt a tearing pain, and he staggered back, his eyes filled with terror and disbelief as he looked at Lin Ming!
Heavenly Flames! And a very high-quality Heavenly Flames at that! The intelligence was wrong!
Strike while the iron is hot! Lin Ming pressed his advantage, flapping his Sky Demon Phoenix Wings and instantly catching up with the retreating leader.
"Five Rounds Leaving Fire Method, Fire Wolf, Condense!"
"Aww~!"
The Purple Extreme Annihilation Flame surged forth, transforming into a ferocious purplish-red Fire Wolf, which roared as it pounced on its opponent.
The leader hastily conjured an ice shield to defend.
"Crack!" The ice shield shattered with a sound, and the Fire Wolf slammed into its chest.
"Pfft!" The leader coughed up blood, his chest was charred black, and his life force instantly weakened.
Under the terrifyingly high temperature of the Purple Extreme Annihilation Flame, the Mysterious Ice Array formed by the four Dou Zong also began to melt, which allowed Xiao Yi Xian to use her poison power to corrode open a corner of the Mysterious Ice Array.
Upon seeing this, Zi Yan immediately charged in like a tiger among sheep, using her terrifying strength and speed to send a Three-Star Dou Ancestor flying backward with broken bones and shattered tendons.
With the formation broken, the remaining three Dou Zong from Ice River Valley were shaken to their core. Facing the drastically increased strength of Lin Ming and the strangely powerful Xiao Yi Xian and Zi Yan, they had no will to fight.
"Go!" the heavily injured leader roared, crushing an ice-blue jade talisman, which was instantly enveloped by a Spatial Fluctuations.
The other three followed suit.
"Trying to leave?" Lin Ming's eyes turned cold, and his Soul Power transformed into invisible spikes, slamming into the Spatial Fluctuations.
"Ugh!" Two muffled groans were heard as two of the Dou Zong suffered soul injuries, their spatial teleportation was interrupted, and they staggered as they were revealed.
Lin Ming pointed his fingers like a knife, and a flash of Blazing Sun Saber instantly killed the two men.
The leader and the other two Dou Zong used the power of the jade talisman to blur their figures and disappear from the spot.
The battle began quickly and ended even faster. In a short time, of the five Ice River Valley Dou Zong, two were dead and three escaped.
After the battle, Lin Ming looked at the two corpses lying on the ground and said to the two women, "It seems Ice River Valley has its eye on us. We can't stay here any longer; let's leave through the wormhole immediately."
Xiao Yi Xian nodded, and with a wave of her hand, she withdrew the pervasive poisonous gas back into her body, as if nothing had happened. Zi Yan also nodded, waving her little fist.
Without further delay, Lin Ming immediately collected the corpses of the two men from Ice River Valley, along with their Storage Ring. The three of them then quickly walked out of the alley, joined the crowd in the square, and headed towards the huge entrance to the Space Wormhole.
Lin Ming knew this was just the beginning. The spies from Ice River Valley had been sent away, and the other side would soon receive the news. The journey ahead would likely not be peaceful.
However, he would meet force with force and water with earth. Lin Ming remained calm, wanting to see what the Ice River Valley, one of the Three Valleys, could do to him!
After the three arrived at the center and paid the fee, the Flowing Fire Boat trembled slightly and carried the three of them towards the holy land of Alchemist, which was also the center where the storm was about to gather.
Inside the Space Wormhole, Lin Ming stood at the bow of the ship, gazing at the Radiant Flow Space Passage outside with a profound look in his eyes.
The shadow of the Ice River Valley has already loomed. The road ahead is destined to be anything but peaceful. But Lin Ming clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within him and the amplification from the Heavenly Fire Three Xuan Transformations Secret Technique, and his heart was no longer filled with fear.
"Come, let me see just how magnificent this core area of the Middle Continent truly is!"