Chapter 143: The Body of Fire

Soul Snatcher, Yama’s Call.

This was a deadly flower. According to ancient legends, it was an emissary from the underworld, sent to the mortal world to claim the lives of the living. Once it collected the lives of eighty-one living souls, it would resurrect itself, transforming into a human form with world-shaking, heaven-defying powers. Of course, this was merely a legend, and no one truly knew the reality.

Song Nianqiang and his crew surrounded the bizarre flower. Soon, the blossom suddenly burst open. The head of the miniature human figure split apart, revealing some unidentifiable white substance inside, yet it emitted a deeply intoxicating fragrance. Upon catching the scent, the group instantly fell into a trance, their eyes glazing over and their bodies swaying unsteadily.

However, the dizzy sensation vanished from Song Nianqiang’s mind almost as quickly as it arose. Among the entire group, Song Nianqiang possessed the strongest soul power, allowing him to shake off the effect the fastest. Yet, by the time he realized the flower was perilous, it was already too late, for someone's hand had already brushed against the blossom—the Soul-Snatching Yama Flower.

"Look out!"

Panic-stricken and ignoring the rest of the group, Song Nianqiang lunged forward, launching a flying kick that sent the team member who had touched the flower soaring backward. But it was already too late. The man’s entire body rapidly turned a deep purple, his skin slowly softening until he melted into a puddle of dark purple pus.

Song Nianqiang’s shouted warning snapped the others out of their daze, forcing them to witness the horrifying moment their comrade dissolved into pus. Seeing his sworn brother perish at the hands of a flower, Old Niu’s eyes split with rage as he viciously thrust the iron rod in his hand straight at the bloom.

Another bizarre phenomenon occurred. The flower suddenly dissolved into a wisp of smoke, followed by a harsh, grating sound—"Caw! Caw!"—that made everyone’s scalp tingle. Shortly after, a deformed creature abruptly materialized before them.

The deformed creature was missing nearly one entire arm and one leg, yet its head was disproportionately massive. A pair of eerie, greenish eyes stared ahead as if eager to devour them whole. Its sudden appearance baffled everyone; the stone chamber was completely sealed, and no creature had entered through the gap smashed open by Old Niu. Where on earth had this thing come from?

"Caw~~~~ Caw~~~~"

The deformed entity parted its jaws and let out two exceptionally grating shrieks. Had it not been for Old Niu, the flower would likely have maintained its original form for a while longer, as it had not yet absorbed enough human souls. However, faced with Old Niu’s iron rod, it was forced to take on a human form; otherwise, that single strike from Old Niu would have reduced its millennia of painstaking effort to nothingness.

Thus, it had paid the price of transforming into a grotesque monstrosity to adopt a humanoid shape, harboring a deep and bitter hatred for Old Niu. The creature’s two piercing cries served as a declaration of war against him. Yet, completely clueless about the creature's origin, the group remained frozen in place for the moment.

"Caw~~~"

The creature opened its mouth and spat a glob of green liquid. Fortunately, none of the group lacked agility, and they all managed to dodge it. The green liquid possessed terrifying corrosive power; the moment it hit the floor, it instantly dissolved the stone and billowed into a cloud of thick smoke. Only then did everyone realize that the deformed entity before them was an enemy, not a friend.

Since that was the case, things became much simpler. Making the first move this time was a white-haired youth under the Smiling Tiger. Suddenly, a handful of chillingly sharp flying daggers appeared in the youth's hand. With a wave of his arm—"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh..."—more than a dozen flying daggers left his grip, striking the deformed creature without a single one missing.

By now, everyone's nerves had grown thick, and they had become almost accustomed to the bizarre. The white-haired youth’s daggers had all hit the deformed entity squarely, but upon impact, the blades simply melted away. Several people could not help cursing aloud, "Even that doesn't kill it?!"

The white-haired youth seemed momentarily stunned as well. With another flick of his wrist, Song Nianqiang estimated that at least fifty flying daggers flew out simultaneously. "Screech, screech, screech..." A rapid succession of flesh-piercing sounds echoed as the deformed creature’s entire body bristled with embedded daggers, its massive head practically shredded. Yet, almost instantly, it regenerated to its original state. The sheer tenacity of the creature's vitality deeply shocked everyone.

"Damn it!!! Even that won't kill it?!"

The burly, heavy-set man nearby dropped his jaw in an exaggerated fashion. If even that couldn't kill it, what other methods could possibly work? The white-haired youth hurled yet another volley of daggers, this time concentrating all of them on the deformed creature’s neck, cleanly severing its head. But to everyone’s astonishment, the creature simply picked its head off the ground, pressed it back onto its neck, and was as good as new.

By now, the area surrounding the creature's body had formed an isolation barrier for the group. The green blood possessed equally terrifying corrosive properties, and no one dared to take a single step forward, lacking the courage to test a liquid capable of melting solid stone slabs.

"Big Brother, I'm out of weapons," the white-haired youth said dejectedly to the Smiling Tiger. The Smiling Tiger maintained his habitual smile, casually patting the youth's shoulder before speaking in a calm tone, "It's fine. Since things have come to this, go back outside and keep watch for us." Having lost his weapons, the white-haired youth could no longer contribute much; it was better to send him outside to stand guard. After all, all the experts had ventured inside together, and someone needed to be outside to handle any unforeseen emergencies.

The white-haired youth nodded and retraced his steps. At this moment, everyone furrowed their brows tightly. "Fourth, your turn!" the Smiling Tiger smiled as he called out to a short man standing behind him. Upon hearing this, the short man took a step forward, though he still maintained a distance from the pool of green liquid.

"Big Brother, are you sure? Once I use that technique, I'll need a very long time to recover!" the short man asked the Smiling Tiger with a hint of hesitation in his voice. Upon hearing those words, Old Niu’s expression shifted slightly, and he actually squeezed further back into the crowd, appearing utterly wary of the short man's impending move.

"Go ahead and use it with peace of mind. It'll be fine," the Smiling Tiger said cheerfully. Since the boss had given his assurance, the short man cast aside his reservations. He slowly turned around, and a white flame unexpectedly began to radiate from his body. The moment the flames emerged, a wave of scorching heat washed over the others, forcing them to step back and distance themselves from him.

"In the name of the Fire Avatar, I sentence you to death!"

Enveloped in roaring flames, the short man was completely transformed. Fortunately, there were no women present, otherwise he would have lost all his dignity. Having delivered this declaration, the short man slowly extended his right hand.

Seemingly realizing that the fiery energy radiating from the short man was potent enough to obliterate it in a single strike, the deformed creature panicked, repeatedly opening its mouth to spew torrents of green liquid at the short man. However, the corrosive fluid was completely vaporized the moment it came within a meter of him.

At this point, the short man was practically a blazing furnace. The hair of the rhinoceros-like brawler standing at the very front began to singe slightly. Seeing that the short man showed no intention of stopping, a middle-aged man stepped to the front, sweeping his large hand through the air to conjure a hazy mist that shielded the group from temperatures high enough to roast them alive.

"Ssssh~~~"

A fiery arrow shot forth from the short man’s hand, hurtling directly toward the deformed creature. Despite its grotesque deformity, the creature moved with blinding speed. While the fiery arrow was still mid-flight, it had already bolted from its original spot. However, its true nature was that of a plant, bearing an innate dread of fire. Thus, though the creature repeatedly attempted to close the distance for hand-to-hand combat, it was repeatedly driven back by the searing heat.

"Caw, caw......"

The temperature continued to climb. The protective mist in front of the group began to evaporate bit by bit. As for the deformed creature, it could no longer stand; its skin began peeling away from its body in patches, and its cracked, withered flesh and bones started disintegrating as well. Eventually, the creature was reduced to a mere skeleton.

Just as it seemed the entity was about to be baked into a pile of ashes, a sudden burst of smoke erupted from its remains. The original Soul-Snatching Yama Flower materialized before them once again. Immediately after, the enormous blossom burst open, releasing an irresistible, intoxicating fragrance into the air.