Chapter 530: Chapter 519: The Sword Cultivator Father
As the black flames emerged, all cultivators felt an uncomfortable aura, as if the flames were tempting the darkest side of a person’s heart.
Yet the flames also caused palpitations, as if one touch would bind you forever, or as if you could be reduced to ashes in the next second.
As everyone frowned in thought, they wondered what exactly those black flames in Lin Shen’s hands were.
"Truly disgusting," Little Golden Crow said, perched on Ye Qiu’s shoulder.
"Do you know what that is? Is it very dangerous?" Ye Qiu had a bad feeling and thought that Lin Shen would use that thing against his precious son.
"A kind of flame with a disgusting origin, somewhat capable, but still not as formidable as me," Little Golden Crow proudly and disdainfully said, not even willing to mention it further.
"Isn’t that disciple from the Feng Family in great danger then?"
At that very moment, as the black flames appeared, the Feng Family Disciple battling with Lin Shen became increasingly cautious. The Feng Family possessed a unique secret technique, which was an acute sense of danger.
Although it was embarrassing, after much consideration, he chose to admit defeat decisively.
The surrender of the Feng Family Disciple came as a surprise to all but those familiar with the Feng Family’s capabilities. Just moments ago, he had the upper hand. Why suddenly concede? They naturally didn’t know how relieved the Feng Family member felt after stepping down from the arena—if he had been any later, his cultivation journey could have ended right there and then.
Lin Shen won the match, but his expression was far from happy, as controlling Dark Netherworld Fire was easy, but retrieving it was not.
As seconds ticked by, Lin Shen’s complexion grew increasingly ugly, and people from major sects and families sensed that something was wrong. The guard team separated the crowd, and the Tianyan Sect personally activated the arena’s Array.
No one knew when the arena was built; it has existed since the cultivators knew it, with an Ancient Array left on it. Once activated, the Array could protect the people outside from harm.
But in doing so, Lin Shen inside the Array was now in danger.
"Elder Zhao, what are you doing? Lin Shen is a disciple of our Four Seasons Peak," Master Wu’an declared, along with his own master and ancestors, challenging the decision.
Their murderous and cold demeanor made Elder Zhao’s already unfavorable impression of Four Seasons Peak even worse, thinking that the Four Seasons Peak was a cancer to their Tianyan Sect. With all the major sects and families watching, they showed such disregard for his authority as a housekeeper!
"What am I doing? Naturally, I am preventing a danger," Elder Zhao replied, mimicking their icy demeanor, adding a hint of disdain, and he felt more pleased as he saw Master Wu’an’s face turning an ever deeper shade of green.
"What danger could Lin Shen be in? If there’s any danger, it should be dealt with by us at Four Seasons Peak."
"A joke? Lin Shen looking like this and you say there’s no danger? How would you deal with it? What if the innocent are implicated?" Elder Zhao retorted with a cold laugh.
"The lives and deaths of cultivators are predetermined by fate. If anyone is implicated, it’s their own fault," someone from Four Seasons Peak said nonchalantly.
Elder Zhao laughed out of exasperation: "Indeed, life and death are predetermined by fate, so why do you still want to release Lin Shen? He brought out this fire, shouldn’t he bear it?"
"You..."
Seeing the faces of the people from Four Seasons Peak become even colder, Elder Zhao laughed even more cheerfully, hehe... after so many years, he finally got a bit of revenge, it was time to let the selfish and cold-blooded Four Seasons Peak suffer some frustration.
Lin Shen on the platform looked at everyone avoiding him as if he were a plague, feeling both excited and gloomy. He was excited because he could make cultivators stronger than him wary of him, yet gloomy because everyone was afraid of him without him actually doing anything, making him feel like a villain.
But they were wrong. Although he couldn’t control the Dark Netherworld Fire at will, it wouldn’t cost him his life so easily; otherwise, he wouldn’t have contracted with it in the beginning.
"Lin Shen, be careful yourself, I will help guide you. In the future, you must not summon it rashly. Your cultivation is not yet powerful enough to control it freely," the voice in Lin Shen’s mind said.
"I know." He agreed as such at any time, but when it came down to the critical moment, Lin Shen always couldn’t help himself because even Ye Sheng could control the Dark Blue Ice Flame and keep winning; why couldn’t he do the same?
It was precisely because of Ye Sheng’s provocation that whenever Lin Shen was outmatched, he would summon the Dark Netherworld Fire. As soon as the Dark Netherworld Fire appeared, almost all opponents would admit defeat voluntarily. Whenever this happened, Elder Zhao would have to anxiously activate the protective shield and clash with the people from Four Seasons Peak, while Lin Shen would pull the flames back at the crucial moment.
Everyone looked at him with surprise and uncertainty in their hearts.
Compared to the mysterious black flames in his hand, Ye Sheng’s Dark Blue Ice Flame had been recognized by many.
Strange Fires were not numerous in Canglan World; some large families controlled them, and even the Artifact Refining Peak of Tianyan Sect had one that was used for Artifact Refining by disciples.
However, the Dark Blue Ice Flame was infamous for its extreme coldness and the associated spirit ore it produced. Thinking of the Nether Blue Ice Stone, people then turned their gazes towards Ye Qiu’s Immortal Sword, thinking that’s why it emitted a cold aura! They wondered if it was really made with Nether Blue Ice Stone!
Almost all cultivators skilled in Artifact Refining were eagerly watching Ye Sheng. The Nether Blue Ice Stone couldn’t be used up all at once. Could they possibly trade for a bit? After all, it was a legendary ore that could forge Immortal Artifacts.
Of course, while they guessed that Ye Sheng had the ore, not a single person believed that Ye Qiu’s Immortal Sword was refined by Ye Sheng. After all, Ye Sheng was only at the Void Refining Stage. How could he possibly forge an Immortal Artifact? Even with great talent, that’s not feasible!
Ironically, the only one who believed was Lin Shen, who bore a grudge against him.
Once again summoning the Dark Netherworld Fire so that the opponent conceded defeat, Lin Shen’s face became a few shades paler, and even Master Wu’an, who practiced the Heartless Path and only took responsibility for his disciple, couldn’t help but ask, "Lin Shen, what exactly is that flame? Will it affect you?"
"It’s fine, I won’t let anything happen to myself," Lin Shen replied to Master Wu’an as if to reassure himself, but the pallor of his face and the increasingly gloomy and discordant aura he emitted made people quite unconvinced.
"I yield." In the twentieth match, Ye Sheng finally lost to a cultivator in the Mahayana Realm. However, he had no regrets, since the opponent had a higher cultivation level than himself and very sharp instincts, securing the victory before Ye Sheng could summon the Dark Blue Ice Flame.
Seeing Ye Sheng lose, Lin Shen couldn’t wait to challenge the one who had defeated Ye Sheng.
"Father, is there a problem with Lin Shen’s cultivation practice? I feel that something is increasingly off about him," Ye Sheng said, frowning.
Ye Qiu smiled inscrutably, "Some people always think they have everything under control, not knowing they are themselves being manipulated by others. Just wait, Lin Shen will reap what he sows."
What he left unsaid was, that evil flame was not something the current Lin Shen could control. Moreover, having summoned it so many times, he had already suffered backlash, only he was so filled with desire and hatred that he hadn’t realized it yet.