Chapter 1176 Sun Devouring Cauldron
Xuan Mu's expression twitched, and he whispered, "The Lord has come out. This old man is crazy. He has nothing better to do than to make such a big scene."
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw the Sun-Devouring Lord stepping over the steps where red fire lotuses were burning. The golden patterns embroidered on his black robe flowed with his steps, like flowing lava.
A dark red crystal core on his forehead shone brightly, and wherever he passed, the air was filled with slightly distorted heat waves.
Luo Li noticed that behind the lord was a mysterious woman covered in black veil. She walked barefoot on the hot tiles, but her skirt was wrapped in a cold mist.
"It is an honor for our humble home to have the leader come in person." The Sun-Eating Lord's voice was as deep as a bell.
Luo Li smiled and nodded: "It has been a long time since I last saw Lord Sun Devourer, and he is still as high-spirited as ever."
As soon as he finished speaking, the mysterious woman behind the lord suddenly laughed softly. The laughter was like ice breaking in a cold pond, forming a strange contrast with the surrounding heat waves.
She raised her hand and gently brushed the edge of her veil, revealing half of her face, pale as snow. A cinnabar mole at the end of her eye was enchanting and almost fierce. "I heard that the leader can tame the Chaos Soul Fire. I wonder if you would let me open my eyes?"
Xuan Mu's face suddenly changed, and he was about to speak out to stop her, but Luo Li raised her hand to stop him.
Her eyes fell on the silver chain that was faintly visible around the woman's waist. The runes flowing on the surface of the chain were exactly the same as the array runes seen by the puppet in the trial field.
Luo Li's fingertips moved slightly, and a wisp of chaotic soul fire rose from her palm, condensing into a lotus shape in mid-air: "What do you want to see, young lady?"
"It depends on whether the leader can hide murderous intent in the candlelight." Before the woman finished speaking, dozens of gilded candlesticks in the hall suddenly went out at the same time, only the giant brazier under the seat of the Sun-Eating Lord was still burning.
In the darkness, the soul fire lotus in Luo Li's hand suddenly exploded, turning into thousands of sparks and disappearing into the shadows.
Immediately afterwards, the fire silk curtains hanging from the ceiling of the hall moved without wind, lashing towards the mysterious woman like countless red whips.
"Good move!" The woman cried out, and mist suddenly rose up around her body, colliding with the blazing fire whip, and steaming up billowing white smoke.
In the smoke, Luo Li keenly caught the trajectory of the woman's wrist turning. She tapped her toes lightly and turned into a stream of light to attack the opponent's vital point.
Just as the two were about to clash, a golden light suddenly flew out from the Sun Devouring Lord's sleeve, accurately cutting off the woman's attack: "Nian Nu! Using force at a birthday party is unbecoming!"
The mysterious woman saluted gracefully, her black veil covering her face again. "My Lord, please forgive me. I just can't wait to see the leader's demeanor."
Luo Li retracted the fire lotus, but her eyes were always fixed on the woman's back as she disappeared behind the curtain.
Xuan Mu leaned over to her ear and whispered, "This woman suddenly appeared three years ago. The old man doted on her very much. I always felt..."
"Think there's something wrong with her?" Luo Li lowered her voice.
Xuan Mu nodded, "That's right, but it's not convenient to go into details now. I'll tell you in detail after the old man's birthday."
Luo Li nodded slightly, her eyes sweeping across the toasts coming one after another in the banquet hall, but she always remained somewhat vigilant.
Halfway through the banquet, the aroma of the spirit wine became stronger and the guests' laughter and conversation gradually became noisier.
Fortunately, nothing happened during the birthday party, and it was soon time to give birthday gifts.
Luo Li presented the gift box she had prepared. When she opened it, she saw a crystal clear pill inside. A ray of morning light was sealed in the pill, and the flowing light was as bright as the stars.
"I heard that the Lord likes to collect rare treasures. Although this Dawn Pill is not a rare treasure, it is still quite special. I hope the Lord will accept it."
The Sun Devouring Lord stroked his beard and laughed, a hint of appreciation flashing in his eyes, "Alliance Leader, you are thoughtful!"
Just as everyone was presenting birthday gifts, there was a sudden commotion outside the door.
The birthday celebration ended soon, and Nian Nu never showed up again.
Xuan Mu brought Luo Li and the other two back to his yard.
As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, Xuan Mu glanced around cautiously, then closed the gate tightly and said in a low voice, "A-Li, the Nian Nu you met today is definitely not as simple as she appears."
Luo Li raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"
Xuan Mu continued, "When she appeared three years ago, it coincided with unusual movements in the Sun Devouring Territory's forbidden area. The 'Sun Devouring Cauldron', which had been dormant for thousands of years, suddenly began to operate on its own. After she appeared, she was able to touch the cauldron with her bare hands without being incinerated."
Wen Xingyan frowned: "Are you saying that this person has some plans for the Sun Devouring Territory?"
"More than that, Xuan Mu..." He lifted his sleeve, a dark red burn faintly visible on his wrist. "Half a year ago, when I was inspecting the treasury, I discovered that someone had tampered with the secret compartment containing the Sun Devouring City defensive formation diagram. When I fought that person, the aura he left behind was exactly the same as the chilling aura on Nian Nu's body."
Before he could finish his words, there was a sudden sound of tiles clicking on the roof.
Wen Xingyan reacted extremely quickly, his long sword flew out from the air, but it only nailed half of a dead leaf covered with ice crystals.
Xie Shiyuan flicked her jade fingers lightly, and a curtain of water suddenly rose up, wrapping up the falling dead leaves, and the ice crystals made a slight "crackling" sound in the water.
"Such keen vigilance." A cold female voice came from the darkness. Nian Nu's figure appeared on the wall like a ghost, and her eyes under the black veil were like a poisonous blade. "But, do you think you can trap me?"
She tapped her toes lightly, and the cold air around her instantly condensed into an ice cone, piercing Xie Shiyuan's throat.
Luo Li was prepared. The chaotic soul fire wrapped around the ice cone like a dragon. The raging fire and the cold air collided, and white mist suddenly rose in the yard.
Nian Nu took advantage of the chaos to throw out a silver chain, which turned into a giant python in the air. The runes on the surface of the chain completely overlapped with the puppet formation runes.
The moment the chain wrapped around Luo Li's wrist, the power of chaos suddenly erupted, breaking the chain directly.
"Is this... the power of chaos?!" Nian Nu took a few steps back in shock, and a corner of the black veil was lifted by the air wave, revealing half of a flame-shaped birthmark on her neck.
Xuan Mu saw her face clearly and said coldly, "Are you the descendant of the Sun Devouring Territory traitor who was expelled from the territory?!"
Nian Nu let out a sharp laugh, and the black veil shattered completely, revealing her entire face—a face that bore a striking resemblance to the Sun Devouring Lord in his youth. "Traitor? Back then, it was you who coveted the Burning Heaven Cauldron guarded by our clan, and you hunted us down and killed us all! Today, I will personally take back everything that belongs to us!"
Luo Li's pupils suddenly shrank, and the Chaos Soul Fire rose up around her body, blazing for three feet. "So you approached the Sun Devouring Lord because of the Burning Heaven Cauldron!"
Before he finished speaking, Nian Nu's body suddenly became cold, and spider-web-like ice patterns instantly formed on the ground of the entire courtyard.
Xie Shiyuan shouted coldly, and the water curtain turned into an ice dragon to attack, but it shattered the moment it touched the cold air.
Wen Xingyan's long sword drew a star-like pattern, and the sword energy went straight to Nian Nu's vital point.
Nian Nu turned her wrist and the chain flew out again. The runes collided with Wen Xingyan's sword energy, and a deafening roar erupted.
Xuan Mu took the opportunity to throw out the Sun-Devouring Territory's special soul-binding rope. The dark red chain wrapped in flames rushed towards Nian Nu, but was cut off in mid-air by a dark golden light.
"Stop!" The voice of the Sun-Eating Lord came down with the pressure of lava. His black robe moved without wind, and the crystal core on his forehead burst out with a dazzling red light.
When Nian Nu saw the newcomer, a complicated expression flashed across his face, but he still held the chain tightly: "When Second Uncle took away the Burning Heaven Cauldron, he never thought of leaving my people alive!"
Luo Li's eyes wandered between the two people's similar outlines, and suddenly she remembered the connection between the sun-devouring totem on the invitation and the dark pattern on the boy's palm, and her heart sank.
She raised her hand to stop the people who were about to attack, and looked directly at the flame birthmark on Nian Nu's neck: "Is the Burning Heaven Cauldron you mentioned related to the puppet formation talisman in the trial field?"
Nian Nu sneered: "As expected of the leader of Buli City, you finally discovered it. Those puppets are just the decoys I planted. The real killer move..."
Before she finished her words, the entire Sun-Devouring City suddenly trembled violently, the magma sea surged with huge waves thousands of feet high, and the dark blue flames on the crimson rock pillars all turned into a strange purple.
"Oh no! The city defense formation has been broken!" Xuan Mu's face turned pale, and black blood oozed from the burn on his wrist. "She used the stolen formation diagram to activate the backlash power of the Sun Devouring Cauldron!"
Luo Li leaped into the air, and the chaotic soul fire collided with the purple flame, but she found that the other party could actually devour her own power.
Nian Nu took the opportunity to throw out the chain and pointed it at the Sun Devouring Lord: "Hand over the Burning Heaven Cauldron, and I will spare your life!"
The Sun Devouring Lord's body was surrounded by golden light, and when he raised his hand, a giant lava shield appeared in front of him. The chains hit the shield, splashing thousands of sparks.
A trace of sadness flashed in his eyes as he looked at Nian Nu: "What happened back then was not what you imagined. If the Burning Heaven Cauldron went berserk, it would endanger the entire Sun Devouring Territory. I had no choice but to..."
"Stop using those high-sounding excuses to deceive us!" Nian Nu's body condensed into an icy phoenix, its sharp cry piercing everyone's eardrums. "Today, I will definitely take this tripod!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a dark crack suddenly appeared in the sky, and countless puppets stained with purple flames poured down from the crack. They were mutants that were almost identical to the out-of-control puppets in the trial field.
Luo Li's eyes flashed, and the chaotic soul fire turned into a rain of fire to attack the group of puppets.
However, these puppets could actually split and multiply after coming into contact with flames. The original lord-level puppet turned into dozens of puppets in the blink of an eye, rushing towards the crowd in dense crowds.
"These puppets have been injected with the backlash power of the Sun-Devouring Cauldron!" Wen Xingyan appeared behind Luo Li at some point.
Xie Shiyuan raised her jade hand lightly, and the water curtain turned into a cage to trap some of the puppets, but she saw purple flames flowing upstream along the water flow, instantly evaporating the water curtain.
Wen Xingyan's sword skills were unconventional, and his sword energy focused on the array symbols at the joints of the puppets. However, every time he shattered a puppet, more puppets would crawl out from the sea of magma.
Xuan Mu's Soul Binding Rope burned red in the flames. He gritted his teeth and said, "The core of the Sun Devouring Cauldron must be destroyed! Otherwise, the entire city will be buried with it!"
Luo Li's eyes swept across the violently shaking city, and suddenly noticed that the flame birthmark on Nian Nu's neck was resonating with the direction of the Sun-Devouring Cauldron.
An idea struck her, and she shouted to Xuan Mu, "Divert her attention! I'll find the flaw in the tripod!"
After saying this, his figure flashed and turned into a stream of light, rushing towards the depths of the lord's mansion.
Luo Li shuttled through the twisted space cracks, and the buildings along the way collapsed under the backlash of the Sun-Devouring Cauldron.
The dark red magma moved on the ground like a living thing, and the purple flames that gushed out from time to time burned the air and distorted it.
Her chaotic soul fire condensed into a protective shield on her body surface, but she could still feel the erosion of that strange power.
When she rushed into the secret room where the Sun-Devouring Cauldron was stored, the scene before her made her pupils shrink suddenly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
