Chapter 76: Super Flame Frenzy
Chapter 76: Super Flame Frenzy
On the first day, Ji Xinghuo and his group of four traveled over three hundred kilometers.
It was only when night fell that Ren Mian chose a concealed spot to set up camp.
The area east of Yanhuang City was not a primary battleground between Earth and Betelgeuse, nor was it within the depth of either side's defensive lines. Thus, the probability of encountering enemies was relatively low.
Following their usual routine, Ren Mian took the first watch, with Ji Xinghuo taking over for the latter half of the night.
However, there was now an additional member capable of keeping watch—Qinghong. With its keen sense of smell, it provided an excellent means of reconnaissance.
The team set off again at daybreak the next day.
Everyone traveled light.
The luggage that used to weigh down Chi Zhonglin had been neatly packed into Qinghong's dimensional pouch after their previous encounter. Ji Xinghuo had tested the capacity of a level one dimensional pouch, finding it to be approximately 1.8 cubic meters—plenty of space for the team's belongings with room to spare.
Freed from the burden of their luggage, the team's speed increased significantly.
By midday, they had covered over a hundred more kilometers and encountered three groups of Betelgeuseans along the way. However, as the enemy groups numbered more than ten individuals each, they were clearly patrols, and Ren Mian chose to avoid conflict.
Noon arrived.
The team climbed over a mountain ridge, and a broad lake nestled among the mountains came into view. It was a picturesque sight, with a city visible on an island in the lake, discernible to Ji Xinghuo's sharp eyes.
His instincts told him that the place was extremely dangerous.
"That's a city of the Dagun people," Ren Mian said, glancing at it.
"No wonder..." Ji Xinghuo murmured.
The Dagun were a people who loved water, often building their cities by the water, or even on or under it. Over the past two days of traveling, Ren Mian had steered them away from bodies of water to avoid the Dagun's cities and any potential battles.
"What a beautiful place!" Chi Zhonglin exclaimed, gazing at the vast lake. "It's a shame it's occupied by the enemy."
Ji Xinghuo couldn't help but smile.
Before the Stellar Gateway to this planet had opened, the over 1.5 million square kilometers of territory currently under human control belonged to the Betelgeuseans. Earthlings were the newcomers.
Even so, the Betelgeuseans' sphere of influence was still far greater, estimated to be over four million square kilometers.
Ren Mian wiped the sweat from her forehead. With the star realm about to enter "Humming Moon," the second hottest month of the year, even an otherworldly being like herself found the heat oppressive. She needed to replenish her fluids regularly.
She sat down in the shade of a tree. "Let's take a break. We'll detour around the lake this afternoon."
Ji Xinghuo raised his hand, signaling Qinghong to retrieve a few bottles of water and distribute them to the team.
Chi Zhonglin looked at Qinghong with envy in his eyes. "Just the ability to have a dimensional pouch makes your Qinghong invaluable. It's made my life so much easier." Without having to carry a backpack, he now only needed to concern himself with his weapon, making his travels safer and more convenient.
Qinghong, understanding his words, proudly raised its head.
Ji Xinghuo gently stroked its head and took out some roasted pigeon that he had prepared before their departure, carefully tearing off pieces to feed to Qinghong.
Once Qinghong had finished eating, the team was well-rested and ready to set off again.
It took the entire afternoon to detour around the lake, adding several dozen kilometers to their journey, and they encountered multiple Betelgeusean patrols along the way, all of which they successfully avoided.
By the time night fell, they were over forty kilometers away from the lake and the city within it, gradually easing their vigilance.
Without the sun's direct rays, the temperature became much more pleasant.
The group's steps grew lighter and quicker.
Their hunting destination lay deep within Betelgeusean territory, over four thousand kilometers away, so most of their time would be spent traveling.
Suddenly, the entire team came to a halt, turning their heads to the right.
"What's that sound?" Chi Zhonglin listened intently. "Do I hear people talking? Is it the New Ro language?"
"It's definitely human voices," Ren Mian confirmed.
Ji Xinghuo was greatly surprised. They had ventured over five hundred kilometers into Betelgeusean territory, yet they were still encountering Earthlings! "Could it be a trap?" he wondered aloud.
The voices were coming from a great distance, beyond the range of magnetic field sensing, and the trees obstructed their view.
"The probability is low," said Ren Mian, who had the keenest hearing in the group. She listened for a few more seconds, her face changing slightly. "They're fighting, and it doesn't sound good. Let's move closer to investigate, Xinghuo. Be on alert for any signs of a trap, and we'll retreat immediately if necessary."
The four immediately changed course and quickened their pace toward the source of the sounds.
As they drew nearer, the voices became louder.
Amid the sounds of people talking, there were roars and the clanging of metal weapons, indicating a fierce battle.
"Stone Lizardmen," Ren Mian identified.
A few minutes later,
Ji Xinghuo and his companions rounded the mountainside and caught sight of the valley below, their expressions transforming at the sight that greeted them.
It was a typical rift valley found in the Thousand Peaks and Forest, deep and bottomless. Dozens of tall, alien warriors were rushing out of the valley.
They resembled upright running lizards, standing over two meters tall with grayish-brown skin like rocks. Their powerful legs dug into the ground, and their clawed forelimbs, dexterous like hands, wielded various weapons. They wore armor and had thick tails.
"Stone Lizardmen!"
Ji Xinghuo was no stranger to this race.
The Stone Lizardmen were the most numerous race among the Betelgeuseans, but they held the lowest status.
Their homeworld was a satellite of "Dagun," a world of perpetual cold and harsh conditions, forging the Stone Lizardmen's cold-blooded nature and resilient bodies.
His entire body was engulfed in flames, and he wielded a heavy broadsword almost as tall as himself. Each swing of his blade unleashed a fierce blaze, and none of the Stone Lizardmen daring to approach him escaped unscathed, either losing their heads or being sliced in half at the waist.
"Flame Maniac!"
Chi Zhonglin whispered, a hint of surprise in his voice.
"This Flame Maniac is a super mutant with a high martial arts rank, close to master level. His overall strength is very powerful, and he's likely a prominent figure in the Tower," he added.
"He's at the end of his rope," Ren Mian said, watching the raging Flame Maniac fight. She shook her head and continued, "He's entered the burning state, and his stellar power won't last much longer. If he can't break free soon, once his stellar power is exhausted, his end is near."
The Stone Lizardmen were a fearless and cold-blooded race, and most of them didn't possess high combat strength, relying primarily on their instincts and physical might in battle.
However, they were not averse to sacrificing their lives to take down their enemies.
Moreover, there were experts among the Stone Lizardmen as well!
The Super Flame Maniac fought while retreating, each swing of his blade taking down a nearby enemy, only to be forced to dodge an arrow shot by an extremely robust Stone Lizardman archer. This brief pause in his escape allowed the other Stone Lizardmen warriors to close in on him.
Ji Xinghuo observed the Stone Lizardman archer, noting that he was using a longbow nearly two meters in length, its material indiscernible.
Just from the vibration of the bowstring, Ji Xinghuo could guess that the draw weight of this massive longbow was at least 300 kilograms, making the arrows it fired incredibly formidable.
Whenever the Flame Maniac found himself surrounded, the Stone Lizardman archer would seize the opportunity to shoot.
Thus, the Flame Maniac had to constantly be on guard against the archer, and many of the wounds on his body were indeed inflicted by arrows. He cursed nonstop in the language of the New Roman Empire, which Ji Xinghuo couldn't understand.
Soon, the flames engulfing his body began to weaken.
"Sister, should we save him?" Jiang Nan Caiyi asked, unable to contain herself any longer.
Ren Mian didn't answer immediately.
"This rift valley is probably just an outpost for the Stone Lizardmen, and there aren't many of them here. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to escape and would've died already," Chi Zhonglin said.
"I know," Ren Mian said, glancing at her three teammates before finally nodding in agreement. "Since he's a fellow Earthling and the New Romans are our allies, let's save him."
Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo spoke up. "Sister Ren, I'll go alone."
The other three gave him puzzled looks.
Ji Xinghuo pointed at the Stone Lizardman archer standing behind the others and said, "As long as we take out that Stone Lizardman archer, he can escape on his own. I'll launch a surprise attack from behind and shoot an arrow. Even if it doesn't kill him, it'll take him out of the fight. This way, we can also avoid exposing our entire team and won't cause any trouble for your hunting plan, Sister Ren."
"Alright, be careful then," Ren Mian agreed.
Ji Xinghuo immediately entered stealth mode and quickly ran down from the mountainside, soon reaching a higher vantage point on one side of the valley, about 200 meters away, which allowed him to overlook the entire situation in the valley.
Seeing that the Flame Maniac could still hold on, Ji Xinghuo moved closer to the exit of the rift valley.
From this position, any Stone Lizardmen who rushed out of the valley would be within his range, and he could intercept them to prevent them from chasing after the Flame Maniac.
Ji Xinghuo stood at the high ground, raised his Dragon Falcon Eagle Bow, and drew an electric capacity arrow.
A faint light circle lit up in his right eye.
The Myriad Phenomena Art was activated! Currents of electricity appeared on his skin, gathering in his hand and stimulating the electric capacity arrow, making it brighter and brighter, almost reaching overload.
Ji Xinghuo's eyes flickered with countless light and shadow changes, and at the moment they froze, he released the arrow.
At that very moment.
The Stone Lizardman archer was also aiming at the Flame Maniac.
As Ji Xinghuo's electric capacity arrow left his stealth outline, a flash of electricity bloomed in mid-air, alerting the Stone Lizardman archer to the imminent danger. He disregarded the arrow in his hand and rolled on the spot, simultaneously summoning a thick layer of rocky armor to protect himself.
A thunderous boom echoed through the valley.
The electric capacity arrow pierced through the Stone Lizardman archer's rocky armor, finding a gap between the scales and embedding itself in his neck, leaving only half of the arrow shaft exposed.
The Stone Lizardman archer let out a painful roar as the high-voltage current from the arrow caused his body to convulse uncontrollably, rendering him unable to make any further moves.
Ji Xinghuo shot another arrow, precisely hitting the Stone Lizardman archer in the eye and ending his agony.
+21 Spiritual Source Energy
It was only then that the surrounding Stone Lizardmen realized their leader was dead.
The New Roman Empire's Flame Maniac, overjoyed, roared and slashed at the few Stone Lizardmen warriors in front of him. Taking advantage of their momentary disarray, he turned and fled.
Without the Stone Lizardman archer to intercept him, the Stone Lizardmen warriors struggled to match the Flame Maniac's explosive speed in his burning state, and he quickly escaped the valley.
Although Ji Xinghuo had successfully rescued the man, he didn't stop there.
To him, the Stone Lizardmen warriors in the valley were not just enemies but also sources of spiritual source energy waiting to be harvested.
Seeing the large group of Stone Lizardmen warriors climbing up the valley's side, a smile appeared on Ji Xinghuo's face.
Then, one by one, his arrows flew with lightning speed!
(End of Chapter)
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