Wen Tingguang's gaze sharpened as he looked at the colossal Earth-Fire Flame Demon. He saw Ling Feng steadily approaching the demon despite the fierce flames from the Earth's Core burning around him.
"H-How is this possible?" Wen Tingguang stared in disbelief at Ling Feng, his face filled with astonishment.
"Elder Wen, is he a member of your Wen family?" Long Xiao took a deep breath, gradually regaining his composure. He wondered if Ling Feng might have a talisman or artifact that protected him from fire.
In this vast world, there were all sorts of wonders. While it's true that the temperature of the Earth's Core flames could easily incinerate even a formidable Spiritual Element Realm expert like him, it was possible Ling Feng had something like a Fire-Repelling Pearl.
"No, this kid is a new acquaintance. His name is Ling Feng."
Wen Tingguang kept his gaze on Ling Feng, his brows furrowed in puzzlement. "But how did he manage to get close to the Earth-Fire Flame Demon?"
"Elder Wen, even you don't know?" Long Xiao tightened his grip on his spear. Despite the Flame Demon writhing on the ground, he remained vigilant.
As Ling Feng walked through the searing Earth's Core flames surrounding the Earth-Fire Flame Demon, he initially felt overwhelming unease. However, he soon noticed a dim purple light enveloping him, providing protection. Beneath this layer of purple light, the flames couldn't harm him at all.
"Master, you've finally arrived!" Zifeng's voice rang out once more, now noticeably calmer.
As Zifeng mentioned, its connection with Ling Feng's soul amplified its abilities infinitely when it was close to him.
At this moment, the Earth-Fire Flame Demon's gaze became vacant, ceasing all struggles and becoming remarkably calm.
"Zifeng, what exactly are you going to do?"
"You'll see soon," Zifeng replied with a mysterious smile. Ling Feng then sensed a peculiar energy emanating from his own eyes, shining directly onto the demon's forehead.
In an instant, the Earth-Fire Flame Demon began to flicker with dazzling and piercing purple radiance, transforming the entire world into what seemed like a blank expanse.
Even Wen Tingguang and Long Xiao struggled to keep their eyes open amidst the intense brightness. Despite tightly shutting their eyelids, they still felt a sharp pain piercing through their pupils.
In the forest, the surviving martial artists, all bewildered, covered their eyes with their hands.
Gradually, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop, and even the fires burning in the forest suddenly went out, with wisps of white smoke rising slowly, enveloping the entire sky.
Only Ling Feng could clearly see the colossal creature, once towering dozens of meters high, gradually shrinking until it became a pocket-sized stone figure, only about seven inches tall, with its flames extinguished.
The pocket-sized stone figure had facial features and expressions that were remarkably human-like, resembling a baby. It had small hands, small legs, and even a hint of tiny muscles, looking incredibly cute. [1]
In the next moment, the pocket-sized stone figure kicked off the ground, leaping into the air and landing on Ling Feng's shoulder. It then winked and grinned mischievously at Ling Feng, saying, "Master, do I look awesome in this form now?"
"Did you just call me master?" Ling Feng's pupils suddenly contracted as he lifted the pocket-sized stone figure from his shoulder, carefully examining it. "Are you Zifeng?"
"Yes." Zifeng giggled, teasingly sticking out its tongue. "What's wrong, Master? Can't you even recognize me anymore?"
"Uhh... How did you transform from a bug into a stone?" Ling Feng stared at Zifeng in disbelief. This was extraordinary.
"I wasn't exactly a bug to begin with. I just underwent a slight evolution."
Zifeng wrinkled its nose. Now, in its current form, Zifeng's expressions were much more diverse than in its insect state. It hopped up Ling Feng's arm and settled comfortably on his shoulder, grinning. "Wow, molting really does make life easier!"
"Molting?" Ling Feng gulped before asking, "And what about that Earth-Fire Flame Demon from before?"
"Here it is! Hehe!" Zifeng spread open his palm, revealing a dark red, circular stone. Inside, it seemed to contain a powerful fire attribute energy, along with a strong and wild will—it was the Earth-Fire Flame Demon.
As the Earth-Fire Flame Demon vanished, the glaring light finally dissipated.
Despite Ling Feng's figure being shrouded in the pervasive smoke of the mountains, everyone still noticed something astonishing.
The Earth-Fire Flame Demon, it was gone!
"W-What's going on?" Long Xiao's face displayed sheer astonishment, as he had never encountered such an inexplicable event before.
Wen Tingguang was the first to notice the absence of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon. His figure flashed as he darted towards Ling Feng.
However, upon seeing the pocket-sized stone figure perched on Ling Feng's shoulder, Wen Tingguang was taken aback.
"Is that the Earth-Fire Flame Demon?" Wen Tingguang's gaze fixed on Zifeng perched on Ling Feng's shoulder, mistaking it for the formidable creature. He urgently shouted, "Ling Feng, quickly dispose of that monster!"
"Hey, old man, who are you calling a monster?" Zifeng glared at Wen Tingguang with a puffed-up attitude, cursing, "You're the monster here, your whole family is a bunch of monsters!"
"Stop fooling around, he's my elder. Show some respect."
Ling Feng shot Zifeng a stern look, causing it to relent slightly. Nonetheless, it still crossed its arms defiantly, saying, "Fine, for my master's sake, I won't stoop to your level, old man."
"Master?" Wen Tingguang didn't mind Zifeng calling him an old man, but he was utterly astonished by Zifeng referring to Ling Feng as its master.
The fearsome Earth-Fire Flame Demon has actually acknowledged Ling Feng as its master?
That's a demon lord at the level of the Spiritual Element Realm, with almost one foot into the demon king level. Such a heaven-defying existence willingly acknowledged Ling Feng as its master?
"What's wrong? Is it not allowed?"
Zifeng grimaced at Wen Tingguang, its body glowing faintly red, indicating that flames were poised to erupt at any moment.
Clearly, after taking control of the Earth-Fire Flame Demon's body, Zifeng also gained the ability to control flames.
"Ling Feng, how did you manage to subdue this Earth-Fire Flame Demon? It's truly unbelievable," Wen Tingguang's mind was almost overwhelmed by waves of shock.
While the mastery of medicine and alchemy could be considered specialized skills, the fact that Ling Feng had managed to tame a creature that nearly killed him was beyond comprehension.
After all, Ling Feng was at best a Qi Formation Realm martial artist, a cultivation level that appeared pitifully weak to those in the Spiritual Element Realm.
"Did Elder Wen mistake Zifeng for the Earth-Fire Flame Demon?" Ling Feng chuckled inwardly. Nonetheless, it worked out well, providing Zifeng with a fitting identity!
After all, he couldn't exactly say it was a bug he accidentally caught from the sect leader of the Cangqiong Sect.
"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what happened either. I stumbled upon it by accident and, in a moment of carelessness, formed a spirit animal blood pact with the Earth-Fire Flame Demon, thus subduing it."
Ling Feng made up a few words, but they weren't entirely fabricated. After all, he and Zifeng had indeed formed a spirit animal blood pact.
"But..." Wen Tingguang struggled to swallow, his mind flashing with four words: Heaven-defying luck!
Some individuals were naturally blessed with extraordinary luck; they could stumble upon treasures even while dozing off by the roadside.
This was extraordinary luck, unstoppable and utterly unreasonable.
In Wen Tingguang's view, Ling Feng evidently possessed extraordinary luck. Despite being at the Qi Formation Realm, he had managed to tame a Spiritual Element Realm Demon Lord as a spirit pet.
Heaven-defying! He was absolutely heaven-defying!
1. Author's note: If you've watched Guardians of the Galaxy, there's a miniature version of the tree-like creature Groot, which bears a resemblance to this appearance. ☜