Wu Tan City – Three Days Later
News of my duel with Mu Cheng spread like wildfire.
Some said I was blessed by the heavens. Others called me a flame-wielding devil reborn. The Xiao Clan elders whispered in tighter circles now, not because of shame—but because they didn't understand me anymore.
Good.
Let them fear.
Let them wonder.
But I had no time for celebration. My instincts whispered of something darker, something moving beneath the surface.
And I was right.
---
South District – Merchant Guilds
The Xiao Clan's long-standing deal with the Ye Clan's merchant caravans was on shaky ground. Recently, three caravans had been attacked while transporting goods through the Firetail Pass.
One survivor spoke of strange figures in black cloaks.
No bandit flags.
No looting.
Just fire. Burned wagons. Burned corpses.
But the fire was wrong.
Cold. Blue. Unnatural.
---
> "You think it's another phoenix flame?" I asked my father, Xiao Zhan.
> "Unlikely. Too controlled. Not like your flame. But I've sent scouts. No one's come back."
> "Let me go."
> He frowned. "You've just recovered."
> "All the more reason to test myself."
---
Firetail Pass – That Night
I left Wu Tan alone. The road to Firetail was littered with ash, half-burnt wagons, cracked wheels, and blackened bones.
And then—I saw him.
A lone man in tattered robes stood in the center of the pass, staring at the moon.
His face was covered in soot. His eyes glowed faint blue. His voice was hollow.
> "Do you burn like me?" he asked.
I readied my flame. "No. I burn better."
---
Combat Initiated – Bluefire Cultist
> Rank: Dou Zhe (3-Star, unstable)
Affiliation: Unknown
Flame Type: Ice-Blue Inversion Fire
Notes: Artificial flame binding. Host unstable.
He threw his hands forward—blue fire poured in twin jets. I leapt back, using Phoenix Step to teleport over a boulder. His flames sizzled, not with heat—but cold.
> "How do you burn cold?" I growled.
He grinned.
> "We invert the laws. We burn backward."
> Freak.
---
I used Flame Fang – Spiral Burn, firing two back-to-back spears. The first struck his left shoulder, exploding mid-contact. The second pierced his side, sending him spinning.
He roared in pain, then pressed a palm to his chest—and absorbed his own flame.
The blue fire formed armor around his body.
But that was his mistake.
He drew it inward. Contained it.
I just needed to shatter it.
> Ash Phoenix Martial Style – Phase 3: Inferno Bloom
I struck the ground with both hands.
A glyph in the shape of a flaming lotus bloomed beneath him—detonating upward in a plume of violet light.
He screamed as the false blue flame shattered. The armor cracked. His body burst into dust and smoke.
I staggered back, breathing hard.
Then I noticed what he left behind.
A half-burned map… and a token shaped like a serpent's eye.
---
System Notification
> • Victory Achieved: First Encounter – Blueflame Inversion Cult
• Trait Unlocked: Ash Tracking
> Can trace residual flame energy up to 24 hours old.
> • Item Collected: Serpent Eye Token
→ Belongs to the Ancient Flame Altar of the Tagan Desert
→ Warning: Contact with this item may attract high-level attention.
---
I pocketed the token and looked west.
The system pulsed.
> "Queen… watching…"
My heart skipped.
Medusa was near. Or her enemies were.
Either way—the flames were converging.
---
Meanwhile – Tagan Desert
Inside a scorched temple half-buried in sand, a woman dressed in violet silk opened her eyes.
Her hair was long and purple, flowing like riverwater. Her pupils shifted with seven colors.
Queen Medusa tilted her head.
> "Another one with phoenix flame dares breathe my air."
She stood slowly, eyes narrowing.
> "Then let him come. Let him burn."
---
[End of Chapter 7]