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Chapter 122: Promotion - Blue Ember Seed
Chapter 122: Promotion - Blue Ember Seed
However, much to Song Chi's frustration, before he could make his third selection, the Yin Wind Soldier Puppet Tree component was already claimed by Song You.
With no other choice, Song Chi opted for another special component called the Blood Soul Mark.
This component was a tracking device that could imprint a "Blood Soul Mark" on a living being, allowing the user to track them within a certain range.
Blood Soul Mark
- Level: 0
- Quality: Blue
- Cost: 200 points (Mystic Energy) per use
- Marks: 3/3
- Effect: Imprints a "Blood Soul Mark" on a designated target, allowing continuous tracking within a 0.5 light-year range.
- No Recharge or Buffer Time Required
- Upgrade Requirements: 5 strands of Floating Land Essence (Rank 0), 300 Mystic Energy points, 5 Life Nuclei (Rank 0)
While the Blood Soul Mark had a lower chance of being used compared to soldier puppet components, it wasn't entirely useless. In critical moments, it could still prove quite valuable. This was why Song Chi decided to choose it.
The white components that followed were nothing special. Most of them were scavenged from ordinary pirate warships and didn't stand out much.
After distributing these, there were only a few strands of Floating Land Essence left.
The reason for the scarcity of Floating Land Essence was twofold. First, most Ember Ship captains didn't have the habit of keeping large amounts of it. Second, when pirate crew members sank or died, they wouldn't leave behind any strands of Floating Land Essence.
When an Ember Ship sank, about 80-90% of its components would be destroyed, but 10-20% might survive by chance. However, if an Ember Ship captain died, their Ember Ancestral Aperture would collapse, and the Floating Land Essence stored within would be lost.
The Floating Land Essence they had now was obtained from the surrendered pirate crew members, and the quantity was extremely limited.
There were over 50,000 strands of Rank 0 Floating Land Essence, but the numbers dropped sharply for higher ranks. There were only 800 strands of Rank 1, fewer than 300 strands of Rank 2, 62 strands of Rank 3, and none at all for Rank 4.
Song Chi ended up with several thousand strands of Rank 0 Floating Land Essence, 50 strands of Rank 1, and none of Rank 2, which were divided among the five younger members. The Rank 3 strands naturally went to the elder Song Shan and the patriarch.
Once everything was distributed, everyone left. They had only a month left on the White Tower Floating Land and needed to make the most of their time to arrange subsequent matters.
In Jiangyuan City, Song Chi's family also began handling various affairs upon returning to the city.
"Dad, should I go pick up Xiaoting now, or wait a few days?"
Song Chao thought for a moment before replying, "Let's wait a bit longer. We need to finish our current tasks first."
"Got it!"
With his father's clear response, Song Chi nodded and then brought up another matter.
"Mom, Dad, I need to go out for a few days, probably two or three."
"Go ahead!"
...
Outside the White Tower Floating Land, the Skyborne dove into a spatial vortex with a violent spatial fluctuation.
A day later, a standard space shuttle landed in the docking area of the Guangyuan Floating Land's fort.
A combat robot, draped in a black cloak, walked toward the fort's market district.
It was the same familiar, secluded street. When Song Chi, from his location billions of kilometers away, saw the open door of the Morning Star Multi-Function Shop through the brainwave beacon, he felt a wave of relief.
However, he quickly suppressed his excitement. The door was open, but it wasn't certain that the "Bone Flame of the Forest" had been left behind.
With a mix of anticipation and apprehension, he guided the combat robot into the shop.
The shop's interior was as it always was, with a wide variety of items neatly categorized, making it a comfortable place to be.
Seeing the familiar setup, Song Chi felt more confident. He walked to the counter, and the communication bracelet on the combat robot's wrist projected a message.
"Hello, has the previous owner left?"
Behind the counter, a young girl with a slightly youthful face stood up. She didn't rush to answer but instead scrutinized the black-cloaked combat robot, seemingly trying to confirm something.
After a few seconds, she tentatively asked, "Are you here for the 'Bone Flame of the Forest'?"
Hearing her straightforward words, and recalling the black cloak and the projection subtitles used by the combat robot in their previous encounters, Song Chi could already imagine the smirk on the woman's face as she described his features to the girl in front of him.
Inside the Caelum, Song Chi cleared his throat awkwardly and continued to control the combat robot to reply, “Yes!”
As soon as these two words appeared on the communication screen, Song Chi's heart raced with excitement. The thought of the Sen Hakotsubame improving the quality of his Ember Seed made his heart beat faster.
However, the next words from the girl behind the counter left him speechless.
“If it’s you, that’s good. The boss specifically emphasized that you must come in person for any future transactions involving the Cerulean Bone Flame. You also need to use that special communication bracelet to verify your identity with her. Otherwise, no deal!”
As the girl finished speaking, Song Chi’s face darkened. The woman wasn’t trying to verify anything; she was clearly just toying with him.
“Haha, what a childish and stupid woman!!”
While he raged inwardly, he still asked carefully, “What about the trade item? Are there any additional restrictions?”
The girl behind the counter thought for a moment and then shook her head. “The boss didn’t say. You’ll have to discuss it with her during the next communication.”
Though frustrated, Song Chi had no choice but to accept the conditions. Purple-grade Ascendant Fire Sources were rare, and he had no other option but to comply, unless he was willing to give up the Cerulean Bone Flame entirely.
Three days later, Song Chi, accompanied by his grandfather and uncle, walked into the Morning Star Multifunctional Shop with renewed confidence, clutching the black special communication bracelet in his hand.
Taking a deep breath, Song Chi pressed the call button on the bracelet.
Beep beep beep!
The communication bracelet connected with a series of beeps.
“Hello!” Song Chi spoke first, and then he heard a faint rustling sound, like someone getting dressed in the morning.
The current communication was only audio, so he couldn’t see what the other person was doing.
The woman was far away in the capital star domain of the Principality. Being able to communicate via the bracelet was already a stretch, and it likely cost a fortune to set up and maintain the communication network. The annual maintenance fees were probably astronomical.
After a moment, a familiar, soft voice echoed in his ear.
“Giggles, so you’re already busy contacting your big sister so early in the morning, little brother? Haven’t seen you in a few months, and you already miss me?”
Hearing this, Song Chi’s eye twitched uncontrollably, and he felt powerless to respond.
The woman’s teasing was truly formidable. Her first words alone made him want to throw the communication bracelet.
Perhaps sensing his mood, the woman stopped teasing, but her voice remained lazy and seductive, with a hint of magnetism that was hard to resist.
“Alright, enough fooling around. Are you here to exchange for the Cerulean Bone Flame?”
“Yes.”
After confirming, the woman continued, “What items do you have to offer in exchange?”
Song Chi quickly recited the attributes of the Hyper-Distance Cannon.
After hearing the attributes of the Hyper-Distance Cannon, the woman paused, considering the value of the two items. She soon replied, “Little brother, you should know that even though they are both purple-grade items, their values are not equal.”
Song Chi wasn’t surprised and responded, “How about adding three blue main cannons?”
There was a long silence on the communication bracelet, and then the woman finally agreed.
Hearing her answer, Song Chi was stunned, at a loss for words.
Mentioning the three blue main cannons was just a way to negotiate a better price; he never expected her to agree.
Three blue main cannons were indeed a significant number and seemed valuable at first glance. However, compared to a purple-grade component, they were almost incomparable.
While blue components were roughly one-sixth the price of purple components, these three cannons were equivalent to half a purple component, but the reality wasn’t that simple.
The purple components available on the market for 90,000 or 100,000 zero-grade Floating Land Essences are, in reality, the least valuable among purple components. They are neither useful nor worth keeping.
Truly high-quality purple components, on the other hand, cannot be bought with zero-grade or first-grade Floating Land Essences. They are either traded for other items or exchanged for higher-grade Floating Land Essences.
This is just the case for regular purple curios. For something like the Sen Hakko En (Bone-White Flame), an exceptional purple-tier fire source, it is the pinnacle among exceptional purple curios. To some Ember Fleet Captains, it is even more appealing than ordinary orange components.
This is precisely why Song Chi was momentarily speechless.
It was clear that the woman was essentially giving him the Bone-White Flame at a bargain price.
To be honest, this gift was significant!
After a long silence, Song Chi finally spoke, uttering only two words.
"Thank you!"
After these two words, a light giggle echoed from the bracelet, and then the woman continued, "Alright, just remember me. And if you have time in the future, remember to 'initiate' contact with me."
She deliberately emphasized the word "initiate" before hanging up without waiting for Song Chi's reply.
Song Chi was taken aback for a moment, then he turned to look at the counter. The young girl had already retrieved a white jade box from below the counter and was now handing it to him.
Song Chi also took out the [Hyper-Dimensional Cannon] and the other three blue main cannons.
Opening the white jade box slightly, a strong purple light immediately emanated from within, along with a thread of extremely cold energy.
Confirming that it was indeed the Bone-White Flame, Song Chi closed the jade box and nodded to the girl behind the counter. He then followed his uncle and grandfather out of the shop.
At the entrance of the Dawnstar Multi-Function Shop, Song Ming Song turned to look at Song Chi for a while before speaking.
"This time, you owe her a favor. You can repay her appropriately in the future, but don't completely trust her. Maintain your basic precautions, understand?"
Song Chi narrowed his eyes and nodded lightly.
...
In the White Tower Floating Land, in the Roaring Lion Manor, inside a secret chamber.
Song Ming Song and Song Shan stood on either side of the chamber door, looking alert. Inside the chamber, Song Chi was seated on a circular white jade platform, his inner spirit energy rapidly circulating as he adjusted his state.
After a few minutes, feeling that his state had reached its peak, Song Chi suddenly opened his eyes. His inner spirit energy began to gather at his brow, and as time passed, the Ancestral Ember Nucleus at his brow slowly opened.
At the same time, he raised his right hand and opened the white jade box in his palm. A flame emitting a cold aura floated out and, under the attraction of the Ancestral Ember Nucleus, began to move slowly toward his brow.
A few seconds later, the Bone-White Flame was completely absorbed into the Ancestral Ember Nucleus. As it entered the Ancestral Ember Nucleus, the white ember seed within the nucleus suddenly flared up.
Since the Ten-Thousand-Year Star Core Fire, it had not felt such a strong attraction to a fire source. The instinct to advance drove it to quickly devour and assimilate the Bone-White Flame.
Under the attraction of the ember seed, the Bone-White Flame began to move slowly toward the center of the nucleus.
When it finally touched the ember seed, the ember seed flared up like a newly added log, the burning flame raging like a wild horse, leaping and galloping.
The Bone-White Flame itself gradually dimmed as it was devoured and assimilated by the ember seed, until it was completely absorbed.
This process of devouring and assimilation lasted about half an hour. When the devouring was complete, the white ember seed had transformed into a deep blue.
As the ember seed changed from white to blue, Song Chi's somewhat weary mind suddenly rejuvenated. The energy he had expended was fully restored, and with the enhancement of the blue ember seed, his mental strength became more solid and stable.
It is well known that the ember seed provides protection and enhancement to the mental strength of an Ember Fleet Captain. If the previous white ember seed provided a faint glow, the current blue ember seed was like a bright candle, not overwhelming, but far superior to before.
(End of Chapter)
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