Flame Slime

(Please remember Taiwan Novel Network, the best website for following novels, ⓣⓦⓚⓐⓝ.ⓒⓞⓜ, with the fastest chapter updates.)

After the wolf pack, Amon and the others were attacked by Soul Beasts once again and were forced to extend their rest. By the time they reached their destination, it was already evening.

The sun hung low in the west, its last rays illuminating the clouds in intertwined shades of gold and crimson. Farther from the sun, the sky gradually shifted from light blue to deep azure, becoming profound and ethereal.

The lake atop the mountain was very still. From above, its waters looked dark and deep, and beneath the broad surface seemed to lurk enormous shadows that stirred a fear of the unknown within one's heart.

"Wow... it's so beautiful." Yan Jin stood on a rock, looking at the scene before her with a sincere smile on her face.

The pressure of supporting her family had kept her nerves taut at all times, and she rarely had a chance to relax. At that moment, she felt as though both her body and mind had been cleansed.

Glen gazed toward the boundary between the lake and the land, where he spotted several small black dots moving slowly in the distance.

"Found them. Over there."

Following the direction of his finger, Amon saw the Slime colony.

Not far behind the Slime group, an orange-yellow speck of light followed at neither too great nor too short a distance. That was the target of their trip—the Flame Slime.

Because its attribute differed from that of other Slimes, the Flame Slime was rejected and isolated. It could only live on the outskirts of the colony, looking utterly alone.

"It feels so pitiful." Yan Jin's voice carried a trace of tenderness.

After a brief pause, she added, "So let's help it find release."

The words Glen had been about to say, warning her that excessive sympathy was not a good thing, caught in his throat.

You don't have any sympathy at all!

"Tch... that just makes it easier for us to hunt."

The approach of the three made the Slime group wary, and they bounced backward in retreat.

When they realized that the trio's target was the outcast within their colony, they chose not to help. Instead, they sped up their escape, leaving only the Flame Slime uneasily surrounded in the middle.

It suddenly swelled, growing from the size of a basketball to as large as a water vat, making a chugging sound like a boiling kettle.

Its color also changed from orange-yellow to fiery red, and clusters of flames appeared atop its body.

It opened its mouth and spewed out a massive pillar of fire.

Yan Jin dodged it somewhat awkwardly.

Amon watched the attack range of the fire pillar, his expression turning slightly grave.

A Slime's age could not be judged by its physical appearance, but it could be estimated by the effective range of the water columns they sprayed. For those between ten and one hundred years old, the range was five to ten meters; for those between one hundred and five hundred years old, ten to fifteen meters; and for those between five hundred and a thousand years old, fifteen to thirty meters.

That was the standard for judging ordinary Slimes. This one was merely a fire-type mutant, and Amon could not be sure whether the same rule applied to it.

He felt that it most likely did. Slime mutations usually only altered their attributes.

That fire pillar had reached over twenty meters just now. Based on those standards, it was already close to being a thousand-year Soul Beast!

That clearly far exceeded the absorption limit for Yan Jin's first Spirit Ring.

Amon came to Yan Jin's side and placed a hand on her shoulder. A Worm of Time silently merged into Yan Jin's body.

"Ah, this..." Yan Jin sensed a foreign object suddenly merging into her Martial Soul. Just as she was about to drive it out, Amon's voice sounded in her mind.

"Don't resist. This is my Martial Soul."

"Amon?" She was about to turn her head.

"Don't look back. Don't let anything show," Amon stopped her. "I'm communicating with you through my Martial Soul right now. You only need to silently think whatever you want to say.

"Listen carefully. This Slime's age has already exceeded your limit. It's probably around eight or nine hundred years old.

"Under normal circumstances, even a Soul Master's second Spirit Ring could not absorb one of such a high age, but I have a way to let you absorb it.

"However, I've never tried it before, so there is a certain chance of failure.

"Think it over yourself. Do you want to take the gamble?"

Yan Jin was deeply surprised. She had never heard of anyone being able to help another person absorb a Spirit Ring of a higher age. Even the people in the tavern would not boast that wildly!

Well... they would only boast even more outrageously, such as having Innate Soul Power at rank twenty, or having a God personally bestow a Spirit Ring...

"What method?" she asked curiously.

Amon's voice sounded in her heart. "My Martial Soul can merge into someone else's body, or their Martial Soul, as long as they do not resist.

"The reason Soul Masters cannot absorb Spirit Rings that are too old is because their bodies cannot bear such enormous energy.

"My Martial Soul can help you share part of that energy. There is a limit to it, and it cannot exceed it by too much. I don't know where that limit lies."

Merging into a body or Martial Soul was actually an application of the Worm of Time's "parasitism" ability. However, because it was still too weak, "parasitism" required the other party's consent. Otherwise, it would be easily driven out.

When Amon made the suggestion, he did not choose to conceal anything. He told Yan Jin the unfavorable conditions exactly as they were, which would subtly make her trust him more.

He was not worried at all that Yan Jin would choose not to gamble. Reality did not allow her to back down.

After thinking for a moment, Yan Jin agreed. "Alright, let's do it."

"Hm? This concerns life and death. Aren't you going to think it over more?" The corners of Amon's mouth lifted slightly. This was within his expectations.

"Since you said this, you must have some confidence. I can only choose to gamble... Ms. Ma Wen obviously won't continue wasting manpower and resources to help me search for a second Flame Slime. Finding one that is completely suitable is simply too difficult! I don't have a second chance!" Yan Jin said firmly.

"A very wise judgment." Amon revealed a faint smile.

Glen dodged another attack from the slime and casually assessed it. "Although its attack range is quite large and the flames deal decent damage, it's far too slow, and the signs before it launches an attack are way too obvious. Even an ordinary trained person could easily dodge it."

He revealed his Martial Soul. "Shadow Leopard, possess me."

The pitch-black Martial Soul, shrouded in shadow so that only its rough outline could be seen, turned into a phantom and merged with Glen. A pair of cat ears emerged from the top of his head, while long, sharp claws grew from the tips of his fingers.

His second Spirit Ring lit up, doubling Glen's speed as he swiftly charged toward the slime.

The Flame Slime was startled and panicked as it tried to retreat, but its movement speed was painfully slow. Before it even landed from its jump, dozens of wounds had already appeared across its body.

Like a leaking balloon, flames continuously spurted from its wounds. It suddenly became listless, and its body slowly began to shrink.

"Hey, stop standing around. Do you want this Spirit Ring or not? If you don't hurry up and finish it, it'll die," Glen reminded them.

"Yes, yes, yes..." Yan Jin hurried over, summoned her Martial Soul, and slammed it into the creature's body.

With a puff, the Flame Slime deflated, leaving behind a puddle of orange-yellow, warm liquid.

Faint yellow motes of light began gathering above the slime's corpse, forming a bright yellow Spirit Ring. Even without touching it, Yan Jin could sense the immense energy contained within, and she could not help doubting whether she would be able to absorb it.

After hesitating for a moment, she gritted her teeth and slowly raised her right hand, gathering Soul Power in her palm. Amid a red glow, a mass of slowly flowing lava poured from her hand, radiating scorching heat.