Chapter 370 – Tomb

Just as they were about to pass each other.

“Do you need a light?”

Lu Yuan suddenly stopped.

He turned around, and unexpectedly asked the red-haired man with a top hat who was close at hand.

The man with a top hat seemed caught off guard by this sudden act of kindness.

Holding a cigarette and a lighter, his body froze in place.

A few hints of surprise and bewilderment could be seen in his wine-red eyes.

“Do you need a light?”

Lu Yuan asked again, his gaze clear and sincere.

“Yes, do you have a light? Thank you.”

The man with a top hat finally responded, casually tucking his shiny silver lighter back into his coat pocket. He spoke in a slightly awkward Xia Language, and happily leaned his face closer.

“Snap-“

Lu Yuan took his hand out of the pocket of his down jacket and lightly snapped his fingers.

A small tuft of emerald green flame, like the tender leaves of an Oak tree, sprang from his fingertips.

“Wow!”

The man with a top hat exclaimed exaggeratedly, looking at Lu Yuan with a face full of disbelief.

“Are you a… magician?”

Lu Yuan smiled gently and shook his head.

“No, I’m not.”

After saying this, the little tuft of emerald flame on his fingertips suddenly surged.

The wild, roaring emerald flame burst forth, instantly engulfing the man with the top hat.

In the moment the azure flame roared to life, Lu Yuan’s eyes flashed, and his slender, pale right hand formed a claw, piercing through layers of emerald flame to tightly grasp the man’s neck.

Then, his whole body shot upwards like a rocket.

At some apex, they began to fall like a Meteor.

Until… they returned to the ground.

“Boom!”

Accompanied by a thunderous explosion, the jade Meteor crashed violently onto the crossroad.

The terrifying blast of emerald green fire waves spread in all directions, instantly destroying the entire intersection.

The concrete pavement rolled outward like gray waves, and the buildings near the intersection collapsed rapidly…

When all the aftershocks settled, this place had completely turned into ruins.

As if ravaged by a level eighteen typhoon.

At the very center of this disaster site.

In the massive concrete crater.

Lu Yuan, his entire body wrapped in emerald flame, looked calmly at the humanoid figure beneath him being constantly burned by the flames.

A strong smell of burnt feathers filled the air; it was the scent of scorched and melted flesh.

“Crack, crack-“

Lu Yuan’s fingers tightened bit by bit. With the terrifying power granted by the three flowers bloom together and The Fusion of Two Flowers, even superalloy, the material used to forge sky level mecha, would have been crushed into molten iron.

Yet, the neck he was gripping, supposedly the most fragile part of the human body, revealed bones with incredible hardness after the outer layer of soft flesh was breached.

A pair of hands reached up, grabbing his wrist tightly.

Bit by bit…

Trying to slowly pry open his tightly clenched fingers.

Lu Yuan took a light breath, more emerald flame surged from his pores, gathering under his palm like a flowing stream.

The flames condensed, forming plump “flesh,” with distinct fiber-like “veins”…

A luscious, green fruit rapidly grew from his hand.

“[Super Killer Move-Jade. Fruits of Flame]!”

“Boom-“

The fully ripened fruit exploded, and a tidal wave of jade flame swept out in all directions…

Lu Yuan’s body soared upward, hovering in mid-air.

He looked down, quietly observing the sea of jade flames raging below.

The crossroad that had already turned to ruins was completely leveled.

The damaged buildings disintegrated into powder within the flames, vanishing as if they had been burnt up paper…

In the bustling city, the scene resembled a natural disaster.

Yet, this enormous commotion did not provoke any shock or chaos.

Around the battlefield, untouched by the flames, it was silent; not a single figure came to watch.

It seemed as though Lu Yuan was the only person left in the entire world.

“Swish-“

Suddenly, the surging emerald flame below silently parted.

As if gently pushed aside by invisible hands.

From within the flames, a figure strolled out.

Stepping on air, they walked step by step towards Lu Yuan, only stopping once they were level with him.

Lu Yuan calmly looked at the figure before him.

To be precise, this couldn’t be considered a normal person.

It was more like a humanoid machinery-alloy hybrid.

A scarlet red, metallic skeleton that seemed to shine with the brilliance of the sun.

Tall, proportionate, and perfect, it had a strange beauty with an ultra-futuristic, space-age aesthetic.

The facial features of the metal-molded visage barely resembled the original appearance of the red-haired man with a top hat.

His skin and flesh, like garments covering his body, had been completely incinerated by the flames, yet his eyes remained intact.

They were golden-red.

Like a pair of perfect synthetic gems.

“Let me introduce myself first…”

The scarlet metal Cyborg smiled elegantly at Lu Yuan, “My name is Roya.”

Lu Yuan nodded slightly.

“Lu Yuan.”

At this moment, it was as though they had returned to the original trajectory of their encounter.

Two strangers meeting by chance, politely and amicably exchanging names after a light, and thus, formally becoming acquainted.

“You are much more brutal than I had expected…”

After introducing himself, Roya sighed softly and said, in a somewhat disappointed tone, “I was originally planning to invite you for a cup of coffee. Now…”

Roya glanced at the scorched earth below, sighed again, and said, “What a pity.”

Lu Yuan didn’t respond to his words but instead looked around, frowning, and asked, “Where is this place?”

Roya’s glowing scarlet face smiled faintly, and he responded in a bright and cheerful tone, “A tomb.”

He then quickly added, “The highest grade one.”

“Oh.”

Lu Yuan nodded thoughtfully.

Then, his hair, which had a hint of emerald sheen in its blackness, began to grow slowly, turning pure white from the roots.

His body also started to extend and stretch…

Streams of aurora-like light surged from within his body.

Just before Lu Yuan was entirely engulfed by the aurora, his final words to Roya drifted out.

“So, whenever the Day Keepers of the Distant Star Federation go out on a task, they carry their own tombs?”

“What a strange yet practical tradition.”

“Uh…”

Roya was momentarily taken aback upon hearing these words.

Soon, he shook his head, the smile gradually vanishing from his face, and a cold, murderous intent flowed from his eyes.

“Snap-“

An orange-red flame ignited the tobacco.

The man in the black trench coat took a deep drag from his lit cigar.

Then, he quickly exhaled a pale blue smoke ring.

“Looks like the two of them have started fighting…”

The man in the black trench coat casually glanced at a glowing device on his wrist and then turned to the person beside him. “How long do you think it will take Roya to finish?”

Standing next to him was a person with deeply chiseled features, like they were carved by a knife, and deep gray eyes that gave off a strong, steely presence.

“Five minutes, I’d say.”

He answered expressionlessly: “Given Roya’s strength, five minutes should be enough to settle the battle.”

“I think two minutes will suffice.”

The man in the black trench coat chuckled and took a light puff of his cigar.

The two of them stood on the rooftop of a residential building, facing a deserted intersection.

Just half a minute earlier, they had watched Roya and their assassination target disappear together on the crosswalk, successfully stepping into the carefully laid trap.

“The Secret Realm of the Embers Mountain suppresses divine level mecha by about thirty percent. And that fool Bast has almost made every mistake possible…

This guy named Lu Yuan from Xia State, a Hidden Star, fluctuates around the ninth stage threshold in nine simulated combat power assessments…

His potential assessment results are mediocre. His evil energy tolerance limit doesn’t even reach the seventh stage, probably due to taking a large number of breakthrough Potions…

His martial arts talent in the Starry Sky is predicted to be poor too, with an over 83% probability that his natal stars will not exceed ten…

The only noteworthy thing about him is…”

The man in the black trench coat swiped his hand across the virtual light screen in front of him and sneered, “His age.

Seventeen… my goodness, he’s not even older than my son.

Xia State is truly ruthless, sending such young soldiers to the battlefield…”

His companion glanced at him expressionlessly but said nothing.

The man in the black trench coat turned off the virtual light screen in his hand, shrugged, and said, “Honestly, I don’t see the point of this mission.

A combat power barely reaching the ninth stage won’t impact the current situation.

Why take such a big risk?

Did you hear about those alien aircraft discovered last night in Connaught? That’s far more interesting than assassinating some ‘kid soldier’…”

Ignoring the man’s rambling, his companion replied flatly, “This task isn’t just about assassinating some newbie ninth stage.”

“Oh?!”

The man in the black trench coat’s eyes flashed with surprise, showing a look of astonishment.

But when he tried to probe further, the latter refused to say another word.

…