Chapter 452: Meteor Fire Spreads Through the Wilderness

Chapter 452: Meteor Fire Spreads Through the Wilderness

On the planet of Black Ring, Ji Xinghuo rose slowly to his feet after sitting beneath a grand tree in the forest all night. His eyes were filled with gravity and relief.

"There really was a Star Shepherd waiting at the stargate."

"Damn..."

He couldn't help but curse.

This was the first time he had faced a Star Shepherd directly, yet he had been utterly powerless, not even knowing where his enemy was hiding. That shadow clone of his, infused with 25,000 star power, had reached seventy percent of his main body's strength, yet it had been defeated in an instant.

Even the Ninth Void, transformed into an Obliterator Dragon, had not escaped.

"Is this the terrifying power of a Star Shepherd?" Ji Xinghuo shook his head, feeling the immense gap in their strengths.

However, in the end, he had still won half the battle.

Normally, with the eyesight of a Star Shepherd, they shouldn't have been so easily fooled. But the enemy had been blocking the stargate for too long. The longer they waited, the greater the risk, as they didn't know whether he had asked for help from the Titanium-Cobalt family through other means.

That Star Shepherd had faced greater pressure, so when the Obliterator Dragon appeared, they had hastily made their move.

Only to find out it was a fake.

By making a move, they had exposed themselves, and the Star Shepherd didn't dare to continue waiting in You Guicheng. They fled immediately.

Otherwise, they would have had to face the Titanium-Cobalt Dragon King and a group of Star Shepherds.

The greatest danger had been averted.

Ji Xinghuo relaxed, but he didn't let his guard down completely. He still didn't know who that Star Shepherd was, and they weren't alone—they had accomplices.

"Keep hiding."

He found a new hiding spot in the forest.

Several hours later, the Ninth Void was reborn within the Ultimate Dark Force Ball, shooting out from his left eye and revealing its true form.

Having just died once, the Ninth Void was still in a weakened state, but it quickly absorbed dark energy to replenish itself, recovering to its peak condition in just a few hours. This was the power of the solar eclipse ability, "King of Darkness."

The main reason the Ultimate Dark Force Ball was one of the Five Stars of the Apocalypse was because of the Ninth Void's existence.

As long as the Force Ball remained intact, the spirit body would be immortal.

"You've worked hard."

Ji Xinghuo soothed the Ninth Void.

Then, he opened the interface of the Omniscient Star Pupil to check its ability information.

This time, the Ninth Void had made a great contribution, allowing Ji Xinghuo to truly experience the wonders and strength of the You Guicheng spirit body. With over 570,000 spiritual source energy remaining, he decided to upgrade several of its ability levels as a reward.

The "King of Darkness" ability was upgraded from level seven to level eight, but it still needed over 400,000 more spiritual source energy to reach the next level, which was too demanding, so he decided to put it aside for now.

Ji Xinghuo turned his attention to the Ninth Void's two star-falling abilities.

[Ability: Dark Matter Mutator (Level 4 83326/122011)]



[Ability: Shadow Formless (Level 3 1245/48311)]



Dark Matter Mutator referred to a body composed of dark matter, formless and ever-changing, capable of absorbing dark energy and nuclear radiation to mutate and evolve. Shadow Formless was a superior ability that encompassed multiple shadow-type abilities.

These two star-falling abilities complemented each other, and together with the later acquired "Disguise" ability, they formed the core of the Ninth Void's thousand variations.

Ji Xinghuo invested nearly 90,000 spiritual source energy.

Dark Matter Mutator reached Level 5 (1/521021), and Shadow Formless reached Level 4 (1/121001).

He then spent over 200,000 spiritual source energy to upgrade the Ninth Void's other abilities, except for its spirit ability. Dark Energy Vortex Field, No Light Black Domain, Cold Flame Wave, Disguise, High-Energy Rays, and Torrent Form were all upgraded by one to two levels.

The Ninth Void's strength soared.

"There's still 250,000 spiritual source energy left. I'll keep it in reserve," Ji Xinghuo said, not because he was unwilling to invest more but because he had other plans.

In the following days, he did not reveal himself.

Just like before, he remained hidden in the wilderness of Black Ring, changing his hiding place every day without hunting.

Patience is a virtue.

Ji Xinghuo hid on Black Ring for over ten days. It wasn't until the shuttles in the sky resumed their normal operations that he sent a shadow clone to a nearby base to gather information. He learned that the uproar in You Guicheng had finally calmed down.

The specifics of what had transpired were unknown to the general public.

All they knew was that the Rock King family, responsible for managing Black Ring, had undergone a significant upheaval. Many of their members had been executed by the Titanium-Cobalt Dragon King, and even their family head had been replaced.

The news was consistent across different bases and outposts.

Ji Xinghuo sent a shadow clone to the North Pole transfer station. As soon as it entered the protective shield, electromagnetic sensing detected a familiar person.

The shadow clone entered a hotel.

In front of a door, it hadn't even knocked yet when the door opened automatically. Titanium-Cobalt Blue's voice came from inside, "Come in."

"Blue," the shadow clone greeted.

As it stepped inside, it saw Titanium-Cobalt Blue sitting by the window, reading a book. Surprised, it asked, "Why are you on Black Ring?"

"If I hadn't come, how long did you plan to hide on Black Ring?" Titanium-Cobalt Blue glanced at the shadow clone, a hint of approval in her eyes. "Not bad. You're more cautious than I thought, only sending a clone."

"If I weren't cautious enough, I would've died at the hands of that Star Shepherd," Ji Xinghuo replied calmly.

"Indeed."

Titanium-Cobalt Blue nodded.

"What's the situation now?" Ji Xinghuo asked.

"The Dragon King rushed to You Guicheng as soon as he received the news, but the enemy had already fled," Titanium-Cobalt Blue said in a low voice. "After investigating, although we couldn't pinpoint their identities, we found out they were from the Empty Space Dragon Domain and had connections with the Xiao Yu family."

The Xiao Yu family, one of the three great Titanium-Cobalt Dragon families.

"I killed two enemies on Black Ring. One claimed to be Titanium-Cobalt Zhonghui of the Xiao Yu family, and the other was a drifter named Kong Ling," Ji Xinghuo shared the information he knew.

"Titanium-Cobalt Zhonghui?" Titanium-Cobalt Blue frowned.

Whether it was Titanium-Cobalt Zhonghui or Kong Ling, the likelihood of their authenticity was low.

"What happened to the Rock King family?" he asked.

Titanium-Cobalt Blue scoffed, "Before the Dragon King could act, Rock King Yifeng committed suicide. He left behind a suicide note, claiming that he was coerced by a Star Shepherd who threatened the lives of his clan members, leaving him no choice but to comply with their demands against you."

Rock King Yifeng was the head of the Rock King family.

A peak Sixth Tier Dragon Lord, his strength was renowned among the extraordinary individuals below the Star Shepherds in the Yuan Magnetism Domain. Holding a high position and great authority, he had been favored by the Titanium-Cobalt Dragon King for many years. Yet, he had taken his own life?

Whoever believed that was a fool.

Ji Xinghuo smelled a strong conspiracy and asked, "What did the Dragon King say about this?"

"After questioning and investigation, it was found that all the orders were indeed directly given by Rock King Yifeng," Titanium-Cobalt Blue said. "Those who carried out the orders, regardless of their identity or rank, have been put to death if they had knowledge of the situation. Those who were unaware were also punished, but their crimes were deemed less severe."

"Is that it?" Ji Xinghuo's eyes flickered.

"The entire Rock King family has been purged," Titanium-Cobalt Blue continued. "This is both a punishment for daring to lay a hand on a member of the Titanium-Cobalt family and a warning to others with treacherous intentions. The Dragon King has decided not to escalate the matter further."

Ji Xinghuo remained silent for a few seconds, a strange expression on his face, as he said, "Is this really the Dragon King's decision, or has someone else made the decision for him?"

"Don't speak nonsense!" Titanium-Cobalt Blue was startled but also helpless.

She understood what Ji Xinghuo meant. Rock King Yifeng's death was shrouded in doubt, and while it seemed logical, it was definitely not that simple.

If they continued to investigate, they might uncover an even deeper mastermind.

However, the Dragon King had chosen to stop there.

Titanium-Cobalt Blue was dissatisfied, but this was the Dragon King's decision, and no one dared to bring it up again. She could only reassure him, "Rest assured, no one in the Yuan Magnetism Domain will dare to touch you."

"Hmph..."

Ji Xinghuo laughed, of course, not taking such words to heart. "I can't stay in Titanium City forever, nor do I feel safe there. I only have one life, and I need to be in control of it."

Just as he had considered before, he couldn't entrust his life to others, not even the Titanium-Cobalt Dragon King, who might not always make the "wise" decision.

The handling of the Rock King family was a testament to that.

"Sigh."

Titanium-Cobalt Blue let out a sigh.

Looking at the distrustful expression on Ji Xinghuo's shadow clone, she asked softly, "What do you plan to do now?"

"Of course, I'll lay low and stay away from places of trouble," Ji Xinghuo replied, having already made his plans. "Blue, you're the only person I trust in the Star Realm. I want to ask you for a favor."

"Go ahead."

"From now on, I'll be venturing into the Dynasty, but I can't use the name 'Obliterator Jin'. I need you to create a new identity for me as a true dragonkin. Not from the Titanium-Cobalt family, something more low-key, but still allowing me to move freely in the Dynasty."

"That's easy," Titanium-Cobalt Blue immediately agreed.

"When creating my new identity, Blue, it would be best to go through someone else. Don't let the Titanium-Cobalt family trace it back to you, and it's better to keep it from the Dragon King as well," Ji Xinghuo reminded her.

Titanium-Cobalt Blue nodded, "You don't need to tell me that. I know what to do."

The two continued their conversation for a moment longer, after which Titanium-Cobalt Blue flew out of the hotel and left Black Ring Star via the space elevator.

Ji Xinghuo's shadow clone then dissipated on its own.

A few days later, a shadow clone of Ji Xinghuo entered the North Pole transfer station and met with Titanium-Cobalt Blue once more. She handed him an identity card and smiled, "It's done."

Ji Xinghuo examined the information on the card.

Meteor Fire, age 24 seasons (44 Earth years). Born to a regular true dragonkin family in Titanium City, he had not become a Dragon Lord through competition nor had he become a Dragon Warrior. Instead, he chose the path of the "Ironblood War God."

Ironblood War God was an ultimate profession.

It was an amalgamation of five occupational templates: Giant General, Iron Guard, Martial Artist, White Knight, and Black-robed Bishop, augmented by multiple powerful supermodel abilities.

Meteor Fire had good talent and luck. He had already fused most of the abilities of the first three occupational templates and evolved to the Fifth Tier. Two years ago, he joined a small family without a fief, which only possessed a Meteor Dragon and a few other ordinary dragons. The family head granted him the surname "Meteor" and renamed him "Lioyuan."

This identity information was entirely genuine and could be found in the Dynasty's true dragonkin census database.

However, that was the identity of another true dragonkin.

The real Meteor Lioyuan did not go by that name. The true dragonkin with that identity had died in an accident a few months ago, and his identity had not been deregistered yet.

Titanium-Cobalt Blue pulled some strings and transplanted Meteor Lioyuan's information onto Ji Xinghuo, replacing it with his genetic makeup, appearance, physical characteristics, and life story. She brought the entire package with her.

"Thank you, Blue," Ji Xinghuo said as he finished reviewing the materials and proceeded to destroy them.

"Where are you headed next?" Titanium-Cobalt Blue's voice sounded in his mind, ensuring that no one else could overhear.

"The Cetus Domain, to the Whale Dragon family," Ji Xinghuo replied without hiding anything.

"Polar Extremity Slash?" Titanium-Cobalt Blue's reaction was identical to Titanium-Cobalt Qing's; she shook her head. "Although I don't think you'll be able to obtain the Polar Extremity Slash, I still wish you good luck. May you advance to the Heavenly King realm soon and strive to become a Star Shepherd!"

With that, she left.

Ji Xinghuo remained on Black Ring Star for a few more days, transforming into Meteor Lioyuan's appearance and smoothly passing through the checkpoint. He then traveled through the stargate and returned to the Star Realm.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end