Chapter 630 - 343: Lost Flame

"A round trip takes half a year, which means the journey there should take three months. It’s already been two and a half months since I purified the Fog Ashes. He should be arriving soon.

"I wonder what the situation is like on their end."

The grayish-white land gradually dissipated. Su Chen opened his eyes, having already returned to the Nether Tower.

His main goal in contacting Black Tuo this time was to determine the entity’s movements and assess whether he posed an imminent threat. Asking for Divine Blood was just something done in passing; he hadn’t expected Black Tuo to actually be willing to give it to him.

"My preemptive strike this time probably confused him. Since he can’t be certain whether Zhou Yunyang actually lied to him, it must have dispelled some of his anger toward me—his ’believer.’

"Coupled with the fact that I indirectly set ’Su Chen’ as the target for using the Divine Blood, he was willing to hand it over."

Su Chen made his conjectures. Although there was an unexpected pleasant surprise, his main objective for this attempt remained unfulfilled—he still had no idea about Black Tuo’s movements.

Pondering their recent exchange, he figured that Black Tuo’s refusal to share his plans with his believer likely didn’t stem from wariness. In his words, Black Tuo showed more distrust toward Zhou Yunyang, along with anger that his believer had seemingly been deceived. However, he hadn’t shown any suspicion toward his believer itself.

Su Chen deduced further, "Since it isn’t out of wariness, it means he really doesn’t need my help right now. This implies he hasn’t reached the vicinity of the Bronze Sect yet.

"He told me to contact him again in three months. Could it be that it will take him three months to arrive at the Bronze Sect?

"By then, nearly half a year will have passed since his awakening. He probably descended into some obscure, remote corner... What exactly is Old Hei doing? He wouldn’t have descended with his true body, right? If he gets hunted down and killed, he’ll actually be dead."

Unable to figure out what Old Hei was up to, Su Chen felt a faint sense of anxiety lingering in his heart as he muttered to himself.

"But as long as I don’t go outside, it shouldn’t be a big problem. Even entering the Dragon Abyss is a major hurdle, let alone entering the Copper Heart. Besides, I still have the ’Great Venerable, save me’ trump card."

Su Chen opened his interface and glanced at it. Not only did he have "Great Venerable, save me," but he could also issue one command to the Great Venerable. The only thing he wasn’t entirely sure about was the Great Venerable’s actual level of strength. Was it comparable to the true Morning Star Tier, or was it weaker, or perhaps stronger?

"The power of a complete spirituality can’t compare to a true Morning Star Tier, but it’s stronger than a Tier Eight Professional. Since the Great Venerable devoured the Professional Spirituality, it should have at least that level of strength..."

Su Chen estimated. The hardest thing to figure out was the exact nature of the Professional entities that evolved from the Profession Panel. Was it just a text-based game floating on the interface, or did a group of such beings actually exist in some alternate space? He simply couldn’t wrap his head around it.

"Regardless, after being strengthened by the Fog Ashes multiple times, as long as Black Tuo doesn’t descend with his true body, saving me shouldn’t be a big problem.

"Moreover, by that time, barring any accidents, the Ancient Kings will most likely have returned as well."

Thinking of this, he felt much more at ease, though he couldn’t help but sigh. At the end of the day, it all came down to a lack of strength. If he were at the Morning Star Tier right now, he wouldn’t be afraid of anything short of Black Tuo’s true body.

His gaze shifted upward, landing on the development progress of the Thunder Ash World Master Profession. It had reached eighty-nine percent—not far from advancing to Tier Seven.

Letting out a long sigh, Su Chen adjusted his state of mind. He looked at the two drops of Black Tuo Divine Blood suspended before his eyes. "I don’t know if these eleven drops of Divine Blood will be enough to sustain me until I enter the Lost Flame. If they aren’t enough, it’ll be troublesome."

About to make the attempt, Su Chen couldn’t help but feel a bit apprehensive. After all, it was a place that even the Ancient Kings constantly thought about, and Great Deceitful Gods like the Faceless Ghost seemed to covet it deeply as well.

"I don’t know what the situation will be like once I enter. According to Qin Yun, they didn’t encounter any danger immediately upon entering; it was only after inexplicably triggering the Spirit of Sun that the danger erupted.

"Although Qin Yun’s words can’t be completely trusted, she shouldn’t have faked such minor details that have no bearing on the bigger picture. But if every entry requires consuming this much Divine Blood..."

Su Chen gathered his focus and suppressed his thoughts. It was a bit too early to consider what came after before even entering.

"No matter what, I have to try first."

With a mere thought, the Sun Residual Fire that had fused with the Great Venerable burst forth from his body once again, latching onto one of the drops of Black Tuo Divine Blood.

WHOOSH!

The flames expanded abruptly, leaping up like a living creature. They brightly illuminated the dark interior of the Nether Tower and entirely enveloped Su Chen.

Having experienced it once before, he didn’t panic. He reached out and grasped the other drop of Divine Blood. Beneath his feet, the grayish-white land spread out, looking as though a filter had been layered over it.

Once again arriving beneath the Lost Flame, Su Chen looked around. It seemed no different from the last time he had visited. It was still desolate and deathly silent. Not even a speck of Nether Fog could be seen in his line of sight; there was only the air, twisting from the scorching heat.

The purple flames shrouding his body surged ceaselessly. They began to drift upward and grow, much like a sapling breaking out of the soil. Just like last time, it didn’t take long before the Sun Residual Fire swirling around him began to slowly dim.

At the same time, an indescribable sweltering heat struck from the outside. Like magma piercing through a mountain, the scorching aura pierced through his flesh and rushed straight into his limbs and bones.

Su Chen reacted quickly, bringing out another drop of Divine Blood. It was immediately devoured by the Sun Residual Fire, and the sweltering heat radiating from his surroundings gradually faded.

The streak of bright flames spreading above his head began to grow once more. Su Chen tilted his head back, watching it as he muttered in his mind, "Don’t tell me it actually has to spread bit by bit all the way to the Sun Flame. How much Divine Blood will that consume?"