Chapter 73: Samadhi True Flame Concept

Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Samadhi True Flame Concept

Chen Shang grabbed the Golden Crow by the scruff of its neck and tossed it aside. "Get lost, don’t cause trouble here!"

The Golden Crow gave an awkward chuckle and flew away. Although the Magma Giant cub’s flames had covered its face in soot, the attack wasn’t powerful enough to actually hurt it.

Chen Shang looked at the little guy. "From now on, you’re with me. I’m Chen Shang. Do you have a name?"

"Lord Solem didn’t give me a name." The Magma Giant cub stopped crying and looked at Chen Shang timidly.

Chen Shang thought for a moment. "Then you shall be called Surtr from now on!"

"Surtr?" The Magma Giant cub repeated the name.

"Yes, it’s... a type of Fire Giant I know of. Extremely powerful. You will go by this name from now on."

Surtr was the flame giant of destruction in Norse Mythology that brought about the end of the world. By bestowing this powerful name upon the Magma Giant cub, Chen Shang was also placing certain expectations on him.

After naming the cub, he opened the Crystal Plate again and searched for "Magma Giant food" on the shopping interface.

The results came up quickly. Magma Giants fed on Crystal Stones rich in Flame Energy. Common options included Fire Pattern Stones, Hearts of Molten Fire, and Flame Crystal Shards. They weren’t expensive. For the cheapest option, the Fire Pattern Stone, a single Wizard Coin could buy over two hundred pieces. Just one piece would be enough for the cub to gnaw on for two days.

Chen Shang thought it over and bought a hundred Wizard Coins’ worth of Fire Pattern Stones as Surtr’s basic rations. He also purchased some Hearts of Molten Fire as extra snacks, spending over two hundred Wizard Coins in total. After placing the order, he went to check on the Wood Spirits’ condition.

In the Wood Spirits’ little garden, the crops were growing well and came in a wide variety. This gave him peace of mind, saving him the trouble of buying them extra food. Moreover, a few of the younger Wood Spirits, represented by Yilu, had already mastered the Wizard Language. Their next step would be studying the relevant Runes.

In less than an Hourglass, the goods arrived. They were first teleported to the Starfall Plane, then delivered to Chen Shang’s laboratory by the relevant Mechanical Puppets.

Chen Shang took out a properly cut piece of Fire Pattern Stone. Sure enough, it lived up to its name. The dark red Crystal Stone’s surface was covered in fine patterns, resembling the traces of flames solidified upon the rock. It was rich in Fire Elemental Energy.

"This is for you. Try it and see how it tastes."

Surtr’s eyes lit up when he saw the Fire Pattern Stone. He sprawled over it and began gnawing—CRUNCH, CRUNCH. The sound was crisp, as if he were chewing on hard candy.

Watching from the side, the Golden Crow grew greedy. It secretly pecked off a tiny shard and tossed it into its mouth, which was immediately followed by a rapid string of spits: "PFFT, PFFT, PFFT!"

"How bizarre! How can there be creatures that eat rocks?" the Golden Crow complained.

Chen Shang ignored the foolish bird. Earth Elements made up the vast majority of a Magma Giant’s body, so eating rocks was only natural. Although Dream Crows were omnivorous creatures, their stomachs weren’t strong enough to digest a Fire Pattern Stone.

The little guy couldn’t chew anymore after eating half a piece. He let out a satisfied burp, spewing out a cluster of sparks. Chen Shang then brought him to the Temperature-Controlled District of the experimental table and began his research.

First, he used the Secret Eye to observe the Energy flow within the cub’s body. He discovered that the core of the Stone Flame wasn’t pure fire; instead, it was a combination of earth and fire, similar to a dual Element model. This flame’s Energy Origin was extremely solid. The flame’s unique frequency meant its temperature barely radiated outward; instead, it condensed inward, locking all the heat onto its contact surface. This was also one of the reasons why the Stone Flame could smelt minerals and reinforce rock formations.

Chen Shang then asked Surtr to actively release the Stone Flame, and he began to deconstruct its Runes. Once the drafting was finished, he suddenly felt that the blueprint in front of him looked familiar. Therefore, he brought out Siwa’s Flame Rune and placed it alongside for comparison. He tested it out, using the Elemental Multiplication method to look for a Resonant Point between the two.

It was very difficult. The frequencies of the two flames weren’t aligned at all. He tried over a dozen tiered structures, but none could operate stably. However, he didn’t feel discouraged, because an even greater idea was forming in his mind.

Siwa’s fire belonged to the plant aspect. It was born from vegetation, burned in the air, surged upward vibrantly, and brimmed with vigorous Life Force. The Stone Flame was an Earth Vein flame. Born from rocks and hidden within the Earth Veins, it was dense, restrained, and possessed strong cohesive power.

The frequency difference between these two flames was massive. Naturally, there was another way to describe them—they could serve as the Fire in Wood and the Fire in the Stone. If he could find the Aerial Fire, was it possible to trigger his Golden Finger and fuse them into the legendary Samadhi True Flame? When that time came, he wouldn’t need to painstakingly search for a Resonant Point himself. The Golden Finger would directly lay the answer before his eyes, saving him a tremendous amount of effort.

Thus, Chen Shang searched for keywords in the database. A massive list of options like Celestial Fire, Thunder Flame, Star Flame, and more sprang into view. Many fit his requirements; the only downside was that they were too expensive!

This was because these flames were Powers that only High Tier Elemental Creatures could master, or they required specific, high-Energy environments to form naturally. The cheapest type of Celestial Fire Crystal cost fifty thousand Wizard Coins for a piece the size of a fingernail. If Chen Shang broke the bank to buy it, his other research projects would have to grind to a halt. As for certain Star Flame Fragments, they were effectively unpurchasable; the sellers demanded bartering.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Shang mentioned his requirements to Evelyn, stating his willingness to exchange the Water-Fire Model for items related to Celestial Fire Crystals. As for whether it would work out, that entirely depended on whether Evelyn could pull it off.

For the next period of time, Chen Shang didn’t visit the static field. He pulled up [Three Heads and Six Arms·Fragment]—which he had extracted from the Two-headed Ogre—from his interface and drafted it onto a Crystal Plate. This was an extremely complex, three-dimensional nested structure. Three heads shared a single body, while six arms operated independently yet remained interconnected, touching upon certain Soul-related domains. Even though its completion rate was very low, it still involved hundreds of Runes, making it a Masterwork among Apprentice Witchcraft. Chen Shang could use it himself with the help of his Golden Finger, but replicating it required quite a bit of effort.

It took him a whole month to fully transcribe the Rune Array. Afterward, he carried Surtr over. The little guy sprawled on the experimental table with a blank look on his face.

Chen Shang pushed the Crystal Plate in front of him and promised a hefty reward. "Learn this Rune Array, and I’ll buy you an Advanced Flame Crystal Core!"

The little guy’s eyes lit up—literally. Because Surtr couldn’t yet proficiently control his innate talent, any emotional fluctuation would cause flames to erupt from him.

"My lord, I will do my best!" Surtr promised Chen Shang with a face full of anticipation.

"Boss, you’re too biased! High Level Flame Crystal Stones aren’t cheap!" the Golden Crow popped up inappropriately, its voice loud and grating.

Chen Shang’s smile turned subtle. "Don’t worry. I’ve spent a great price to find a suitable flame for you. But if you can’t learn it, that’ll just be a waste of my Wizard Coins..."

He didn’t finish, but the Golden Crow shuddered. "Boss, I haven’t been slacking! I’ve already grasped the most basic Flame Runes."

"You better have." Chen Shang shrugged, then went to another room to check Marcus’s Soul Core.