Chapter 202
Chapter 202: Refining the Phoenix Clan’s Divine Fire – What Use Is It If You Don’t Fight With It?
Chong Ming and Zhong Li He used their supernatural abilities to block countless tiny bits of fire. The scattered sparks never landed on their bodies.
All the dead grass around them caught fire. Carried by the wind, the flames rushed into the sky and spread without limit. In the blink of an eye, the fire stretched as far as they could see, as if the entire Monke Great Grasslands had gone up in flames.
Chong Ming shouted an order: “Fire suppression team, take your positions. We cannot let the fire spread beyond the Monke Great Grasslands.”
As he gave the order, Chong Ming ran quickly toward the deep pit.
The huge pit was deep and round. They had thought that after the black and white Flame Sphere exploded, there would be no fire left inside.
To their surprise, after the largest Flame Sphere exploded, there was still a slightly smaller black Flame Sphere at the bottom of the pit.
The black Flame Sphere was pitch dark, like a star with no life in it, only waves of scorching heat flowing over its surface.
Zhong Li He rushed over too, stood at the edge of the pit, and looked down as he sighed: “Amazing, Jiang Tea Tea is way too amazing. She used only ten days to go from red flames to black flames. She is more than seventy days faster than that old ancestor of our clan.”
He clicked his tongue and joked to Chong Ming: “Chong Ming, how are you this lucky? You already have trouble reproducing. Having a youngling pop up after one spring night is already something, but the youngling’s mother is this powerful too. I am really jealous. I am really, really green with envy.”
For people like them, with high level, many, and mixed supernatural abilities, it was not that they did not want to fall in love or find a partner.
The problem was reproduction. Finding a partner basically meant that, with a 99 percent chance, the partner would never have a child that truly belonged to them.
Love could overcome many hardships, but once all material needs were met, children would become the fuse that set everything off, a fuse that would explode at a single touch.
For the sake of others and for themselves, people like them, who had trouble reproducing, sometimes chose not to find a partner. That was being responsible to others and also to themselves.
Chong Ming got a youngling overnight, and his partner was this strong. Anyone in his shoes would be jealous and red eyed, jealous to death.
Still staring at the black Flame Sphere at the bottom of the deep pit, Chong Ming answered Zhong Li He: “You can be as jealous and as green with envy as you want. It is useless. In all the Interstellar Space, there is only one of her.”
Zhong Li He’s mouth twitched. He could not stand this proud, smug air of his. Even if he swung his hammer, he could not knock down this wall and steal the person away, but he still did not want Chong Ming to feel too good. He asked lazily: “So there is only one of her. Fine. By the way, have you two registered your marriage yet?”
Chong Ming paused a little: “Not yet.”
Zhong Li He instantly perked up and blurted out: “You two have not registered your marriage yet. So that means I still have a chance to swing my hammer and dig at your wall, right?”
He laughed loudly: “Ha ha ha, Chong Ming, I do not mind being a cheap dad, and I do not mind helping you raise that little dragon brat.”
Chong Ming gave him a sharp sideways glance: “I also do not mind plucking all your feathers, twisting off your neck, and stewing you in a pot for soup.”
Zhong Li He was not afraid at all: “You? Stop bragging so loudly. Between the two of us, it is still not certain who will end up stewed in a pot.”
He added very seriously: “When Jiang Tea Tea comes out, let us have another fight. I do not believe that, with my skills, I cannot beat you to the ground.”
Just then, an urgent report came from the sky. The firefighting squad shouted to their Commander in Chief: “Commander in Chief, the fire on the Monke Grasslands is out of control. We cannot put it out using the Fire-against-Fire Technique. Water does not work either. Other physical methods also fail.”
When he heard this, Chong Ming frowned slightly and asked: “Using Ice Seal and Cryogenic Technology does not work either?”
The person from the firefighting squad replied: “Yes. Freezing with Ice Seal, using water, and using the Fire-against-Fire Technique, none of them can put out the fire.”
“The more the fire burns, the stronger it gets. The more it burns, the wider it spreads. Even plants that are not dry burn as if they have been soaked in fuel and catch fire very quickly.”
The flames were spreading too fast. Luckily this was the uninhabited area of the Monke Great Grasslands. If this had been in a residential zone or the Primeval Forest, it would all be over.
Chong Ming lowered his eyes to look at Zhong Li He: “Zhong Li He, the fire of your Phoenix clan’s Flame Spheres can usually be stopped with Ice Seal freezing, right?”
Zhong Li He’s face turned serious: “Good question. I also want to know why, after our Phoenix clan’s Flame Sphere fire passed through Jiang Tea Tea’s hands, it cannot be put out anymore.”
“But do not worry. I will have my people on the warship try to put it out. Maybe your Ice Seal freezing, your fire element ability users, and your ice element ability users all have supernatural ability levels that are not high enough.”
Chong Ming replied politely: “Sorry to trouble you.”
“Not a problem.” Zhong Li He agreed, then sent an order to Kong Que on his warship.
Kong Que took the order from his own Executive Commander and personally led people down to put out the fire. Not only did they fail to put out even a little bit of it, the fire burned even hotter and stronger.
All the firefighting devices seemed to turn into fuel for the fire, making the flames burn higher and spread even wider.
About ten minutes later, after Zhong Li He got this news, he stared blankly for a long time before he spoke to Chong Ming: “Chong Ming, I have bad news for you. It seems this fire has leveled up. My people cannot put it out either.”
He gave a rough estimate: “At the current speed, it will take less than ten days for the fire to burn all of the Monke Great Grasslands to the ground. Maybe you should send more people to dig a firebreak?”
But the Monke Great Grasslands were far too vast. Digging a firebreak around them, even with high speed modern technology, was still a fantasy when the fire was spreading at this kind of speed-type ability.
Chong Ming fell into deep thought. Around the deep pit where they stood, except inside the pit, there was no fire in sight.
The firefighting squad and the team led by Kong Que had not stopped trying to put out the fire. Red flames, green flames, blue flames, and white mixed with black flames raged wildly together like they were all attending a grand festival. None of them wanted to go out. They were competing to see who could burn more fiercely.
Seeing Chong Ming thinking, Zhong Li He spoke up again with a new suggestion: “We cannot dig a firebreak. How about this? You shout down to Jiang Tea Tea in the pit, tell her to hurry up and come out and put the fire out.”
He added: “Yes, I think the fire started because of her and changed color because of her. She will definitely be able to put it out. What do you think?”
Chong Ming was silently considering the possibility of evacuating everyone on Ri Pan Star. Since none of the firefighting methods could put out the flames, and the fire was only growing stronger and larger, the only choices left were to evacuate or move people to areas that had already been burned.
When Zhong Li He saw that he still did not speak and did not agree with any of his suggestions, he squatted by the edge of the pit. He cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted down: “Jiang Tea Tea, it has been ten days. You have been down in the pit for ten days. If you do not come up, Chong Ming is going to shovel dirt and bury you.”
“Hurry up, hurry up. If you are fine, then hurry up and come out. The fire you set is about to burn Ri Pan Star down.”
He grumbled loudly: “Even if Ri Pan Star burns down, it does not really matter. It is not a planet of my Western Kingdom anyway. The main thing is that my Western Kingdom is holding a Weapons Expo here, and we have not taken many orders yet.”
“Zhen Lin Empire has already signed several dozen orders, each worth over a trillion. My Western Kingdom has only a dozen or so orders in the trillions. These orders are not even enough to cover my round trip Space Jump costs. I really do not want to end early and lose to Zhen Lin Empire.”
Jiang Tea Tea did not answer Zhong Li He from inside the black Flame Sphere, but Chong Ming, standing beside him, could not help complaining: “You are so noisy.”
Zhong Li He tilted his head and lifted his eyes: “I have no prospects? In the whole M31 Star System I am the one with the most prospects. You are just too serious and do not know how to be flexible. I really do not know what Jiang Tea Tea saw in you.”
Inside the black Flame Sphere, Jiang Tea Tea had reached the critical point of refining her magical artifact. She could not hear any of the sound outside.
Only when the black Flame Sphere fully merged into the tree branch that was her true body did things change. The branch was a little thicker than a thumb, more than one meter long, and the whole stick turned black, carrying scorching heat. Her legs, which she had turned into tree roots to spread all through the underground of the grasslands to absorb nutrients, changed back into human form.
She held one end of the branch stick and stood up. With a casual swing of her hand, the black Flame Sphere that had been covering her cracked open.
Squatting at the edge of the pit, Zhong Li He watched the Flame Sphere tear open from the inside, revealing Jiang Tea Tea. He hurriedly slapped his hand on Chong Ming’s calf and shouted: “Chong Ming, Chong Ming, Jiang Tea Tea, it is Jiang Tea Tea, she is fine.”
Chong Ming moved one step from the force of the slap: “I saw.”
Zhong Li He’s proud voice rose high: “I told you, the simplest method is the best method. Sure enough, I am the best.”
Chong Ming answered him perfunctorily: “Yes, you are the best.”
Zhong Li He did not take his perfunctory tone to heart at all. He was still full of pride as he shouted down to Jiang Tea Tea: “Jiang Tea Tea, hurry up and come up. Are you down there hatching eggs or what?”
Jiang Tea Tea lifted her head and looked up. With a flick of the dark branch stick in her hand, a palm sized red Flame Sphere flew out, as if it had grown eyes, and shot straight at Zhong Li He.
Zhong Li He’s pupils shrank. He twisted his body to the side, dodging. The red Flame Sphere scraped past his face, hit the ground, bounced back up, and came at him again.
Zhong Li He dodged again and again. The red Flame Sphere really seemed to have eyes. No matter how he hid or where he hid, as long as it did not hit its target, it would keep chasing him.
With no other choice, he activated his supernatural abilities and condensed a red Flame Sphere of the same size, smashing it into the Flame Sphere that was chasing him.
With a bang, the two Flame Spheres collided and exploded. Sparks flew in all directions and fell to the ground, like little stars, shining with undying light.
Seeing this, Zhong Li He was both shocked and surprised. He felt that Jiang Tea Tea’s Flame Sphere listened to her even better than his Flame Sphere listened to him. His Flame Spheres were not like hers at all. They did not miss their target, hit the ground without dispersing, and then chase their target to the death.
At the bottom of the deep pit, Jiang Tea Tea silently chanted the magical artifact spell incantations in her heart. The black flames inside the pit that she had split apart began to gather again, slowly merging into a single black Fireball. It drilled into the dark branch stick in her hand and disappeared.
Holding the dark branch stick, she leaped upward.
Without her in it, the pit looked several hundred meters deep when viewed from above.
After she landed at the top, she looked at Chong Ming and asked: “How many days have passed?”
Chong Ming looked her over from head to toe. After confirming that she was fine, he answered: “Ten days. A full ten days have passed.”
Jiang Tea Tea was surprised: “Only ten days?”
“Only ten days?” Zhong Li He leaned over and said: “If another ten days had passed, this big golden dragon mister in front of you would probably have gone down there swinging to see whether you were dead or alive.”
Jiang Tea Tea raised an eyebrow: “I do not believe that. I burned the flames that high. Anyone with eyes could see I was fine.”
“As the saying goes, the person involved is confused while the onlooker is clear. When someone cares, they get anxious and lose their head…”
He did not finish his saying, but the meaning was clear.
At this moment, both Chong Ming and Zhong Li He spoke at the same time: “Did you get hurt anywhere? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?”
But Chong Ming’s voice was louder and drowned out Zhong Li He’s.
Jiang Tea Tea answered happily: “I am not hurt, and I do not feel uncomfortable. I feel better now than at any other time.”
Using the Phoenix clan’s nirvana rebirth Divine Fire to refine a magical artifact, once the artifact was successfully refined, her spiritual power had risen by one level.
Now she had forty percent spiritual power. With forty percent spiritual power, she could do much more. Even if it was fighting, looking across the whole M31 Star System, she was almost unstoppable.
Zhong Li He’s sapphire blue eyes swept back and forth between the two of them. He kept feeling that the air and relationship between them were a bit polite and distant.
Was it because they had not registered their marriage yet that they still stayed polite and distant with each other?
Chong Ming lowered his gaze and let it sweep past her lower belly: “It is good that you are not hurt and do not feel uncomfortable. Just now I saw you take back the black fire in the pit. Can you also take back the other flames?”
Jiang Tea Tea did not understand: “The other flames?”
Chong Ming pointed into the distance with his hand: “Yes, those flames far away.”
Following the direction of his hand, Jiang Tea Tea looked over. In the distance, red, green, blue, white, and black flames rose to the sky, with thick smoke rolling.
She froze for a moment, then asked hesitantly: “Those flames are ones I threw out from the pit?”
Chong Ming did not say that she had thrown them out: “All of these flames came out from the pit and spread outward. They are hard to put out.”
This was also the first time she had seen the five colored flames so directly.
They truly lived up to their name as the Phoenix clan’s nirvana bath of rebirth Divine Fire.
So powerful.
Jiang Tea Tea nodded: “Ok, I will give it a try. You two back away from me.”
Chong Ming’s golden eyes rested on her as he slowly moved back.
Zhong Li He backed away with him, but his eyes never left Jiang Tea Tea.
The fire that every member of the Phoenix clan could summon had never been used to its full potential in any of their hands, but in Jiang Tea Tea’s hands, it had.
He did not believe what Chong Ming said, that Jiang Tea Tea did not have Phoenix clan genes. Later he was going to investigate it carefully.
If he found out that Jiang Tea Tea did have Phoenix clan genes, then Jiang Tea Tea would be one of the Phoenix clan, and it would be even easier for him to swing his hammer and dig at Chong Ming’s wall.
Jiang Tea Tea stood where she was and silently recited a fire gathering spell incantation in her heart.
After she finished chanting the spell incantation, she formed a hand seal to collect the flames.
In an instant, the raging flames that had been burning toward the sky across the Monke Great Grasslands stopped spreading outward. As if they had their own life, they began to turn back.
The firefighting team from Zhen Lin Empire and the forces led by Kong Que of Western Kingdom were stunned. By their plan, even if they used their bodies to block the flames, they still would not be able to stop this heaven level blaze.
Now the fire had simply stopped burning outward because it was told to, and it was even turning back. Who had ever seen fire turn back like this? They truly had not.
The flames in all directions, red, green, blue, white, and black, moved back even faster than they had spread outward.
The fire even knew to avoid people. It dodged the firefighters, dodged Chong Ming and Zhong Li He standing not far away, and rushed straight toward Jiang Tea Tea.
Jiang Tea Tea stood in place and raised the hand that was holding the stick. The flames returning from every direction rose with the stick and turned into several fire dragon pillars of different colors, wrapping around the stick she held up.
In an instant, the plain, dark branch staff was wrapped by five different colored flames. They twined around the branch staff like five twisted ropes, winding tightly along the stick.
The once ordinary, dark branch staff became extraordinary. Jiang Tea Tea tightened her grip on the stick, joy clear in her eyes. She swung it in a horizontal slash toward Chong Ming and Zhong Li He and shouted: “Chong Ming, Zhong Li He, come, test my Flame Staff and see if I can knock you both flat.”