This time, it took Zhang Lie quite some time to absorb the disaster gene fragments, because his [Ninecarp Transformation] had reached another threshold. Although it didn't advance, Zhang Lie had managed to gain a perfect grasp of the intricacies behind each transformation.
When he returned to the draconian sage's residence, before he could speak, the draconian sage asked, "The third disaster-grade lifeform, now?"
"Of course!"
The draconian sage began, "In light there is darkness, in bitter cold, fiery-hot flames. Such is the duality of mater—"
Zhang Lie broke the draconian sage off. "Sage, just what are you trying to say?"
"I'm trying to give you information about the third disaster-grade lifeform. Don't interrupt me, please."
The draconian sage continued, "Unexpectedly, the frozen world of the surface is a counterpart to the superheated subterranean world beneath it. A preponderance of lava and flame naturally result in an abundance of fire-attuned genetic energy, which has given birth to an unusual lifeform in that world..."
"Enough—just send me to the disaster-grade lifeform!"
The draconian sage sighed, waved a hand, wrapped Zhang Lie up in spatial fluctuations, then dropped him off in a landscape of fire and lava.
The environment was so hot that Zhang Lie felt as though he were nearing the surface of the sun. If not for his disaster-grade ability to acclimatize to even the harshest environments, Zhang Lie might have vaporized on the spot.
Zhang Lie was shocked. "Is this really the subterranean layer of the frozen world...?"
Before Zhang Lie was a huge river of lava which constantly emitted flames. Even the air was glowing red and suffocating. An egg would be cooked in half a second; ordinary superior-grade lifeforms would perish in days.
The moment Zhang Lie appeared in the underground world, a pack of fiery dogs rushed toward him, their bodies burning with flame. Rather than flames feeding off their body, however, it was more like their bodies were made out of flames entirely.
Zhang Lie activated his disaster-grade mistmeld clam soulshard, but they were entirely useless against these flaming dogs, who were composed of flame and seemed to lack rationality entirely.
Zhang Lie kicked at the ground, sending ripples of water-attuned genetic energy flying around him and snuffing out the flames on the dogs.
Zhang Lie projected into the environment. He could sense a disaster-grade lifeform's aura within the lava in front of him, but it seemed to simultaneously be spread out throughout the entire river of lava.
"[Ninecarp Transformation: Golden Tiger]!" The image of a golden tiger appeared behind Zhang Lie's back, and its roar echoed through the air. A golden aura suffused Zhang Lie.
A mountain of blades rested atop the tiger's back, and Zhang Lie's body itself underwent a transformation. His hair turned silvery-white, until they became akin to silver needles.
His genetic energy likewise became more honed. Silvery-white genetic energy gathered over his body, and tigers' stripes appeared on his arms. His eyes became those of a tiger's, and steely sharpness erupted from every pore.
Upon feeling the change in Zhang Lie's aura, the lava began to quake. The flames flared.
Zhang Lie pressed both palms flat on the ground, then leapt forward like a tiger, evading the flood of flames.
"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Fade]!" The [Fists of the Silent Sea] formed a fist in combination with the black serpent form and a mallet with the golden tiger. The condensed genetic energy solidified into sharp silver crystal, spinning so quickly it cut apart the lava like a blade.
Lava sprayed out from the river, which suddenly turned turbulent.
"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Fade]!" A crystal wall appeared behind Zhang Lie, reflecting light in five colors, so dazzling it dazed any who looked at it, so beautiful it sparked their desire.
As Zhang Lie manipulated space, that crystalline genetic energy shot out of the wall behind him in the form of sharp daggers, able to penetrate anything thanks to Zhang Lie's mastery of space. They tore apart space and sky, shooting into the river of lava like raindrops in a thunderstorm and spraying lava all over.
The lava became turbid and rotated quickly, gathering and clumping together to form a gigantic lava dragon that opened its maw and bit forward. It was the manifestation of the entire river of lava, and its jaws were large enough to fit a hundred Zhang Lies within them.
Zhang Lie saw through the artifice immediately. The lava dragon was nothing more than a construct, not a disaster-grade lifeform.
Zhang Lie activated his blood ant and dragonwolf soulshards. Red fur grew out of his skin, and dragon scales covered his limbs. Dragon horns emerged from his forehead, and his aura was immediately magnified.
A blood hurricane manifested, sending hot wind blowing all over. Zhang Lie's claws swiped at the lava dragon and tore it apart. The ground shook as lava spread madly across it and formed countless more lava dragons.
Zhang Lie condensed his genetic energy. Sharp white crystals floated around his body.
"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Hundred Dragons Soaring]!" As he cocked his fist, dozens of crystalline dragons formed behind his back, roaring in unison and causing the lava to quake. The next moment, they shot out through his fists, their trajectories criss-crossing over the lava, beautiful and striking even as they pierced through the lava dragons and sunk into the river of lava.
The entire world seemed to be quaking, as though the river of lava was roaring in rage. Huge quantities of lava flowed down the river like a flood, filling the entire underground space. contemporary romance
Zhang Lie summoned the sword Guicang, splitting the space before him into two pieces and shielding himself from the impending attack. None of the lava was able to hurt Zhang Lie at all.
A beam of light shone down from above, as though a deity of the sword was descending to the mortal realms. A torrent of water-attuned genetic energy exploded forth from Zhang Lie, and a ferocious shark was manifesting behind his back.
As water-attuned genetic energy rotated around his body and formed a miniature cyclone, the blade Guicang seemed to reflect the boundless ocean.
"[The Boundless Blade: Yawning Wave]!" The ferocious shark shot forward into the depths of the lava, sending steam hissing into the air on impact. Zhang Lie's water-attuned genetic energy blocked the steam from his body.
As the river of lava dried up, the form of a lava salamander was finally revealed. It was massive and formed from what seemed to be free-flowing lava, radiating such heat in its vicinity that it would melt even the sturdiest metal.
Zhang Lie activated his mistmeld clam soulshard again, but it didn't have the desired impact. The disaster-grade salamander opened its maw and shot out a flood of crimson lava.
"[Ninecarp Transformation]!" A black serpent materialized behind Zhang Lie, by now so large and so developed that it resembled the world-swallowing serpent Jormungandr. It let out a threatening hiss as its scales clicked together.
At the same time, Zhang Lie's genetic energy changed attunement again.
"[The Boundless Blade: the River Lethe]!" An underworld river materialized in the sky, one so vast the entire world could see it. The impossibly hot underground layer suddenly cooled down. As though the doors to hell had just been thrown open, tens of thousands of serpents rushed out in a flood...
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done.co