Shura's Wrath

Editor: Chlocolatte

South of the Vermillion Bird City, Lava Purgatory.

The heat waves caused Xiao Qi’s skin to turn bright red. She hadn’t stopped even once on her way from the Vermillion Bird City to the Lava Purgatory. As she rode on, she became more and more determined to follow through with her decision.

When she arrived, she called back her mount and took out the feather that the Vermillion Bird had given her. She gripped it tightly in her hand... after yelling out the Vermillion Bird’s name, there would be no going back. Since she was already here, she wouldn’t allow herself to harbour any regrets.

Big brother Ling Tian, I believe in you.

Xiao Qi lifted up the feather and closed her eyes. Within her mind flashed many familiar figures. When she opened her eyes, there was not a hint of hesitation anymore. She yelled out, “Vermillion Bird... Vermillion Bird!!”

The Vermillion Bird’s feather lit up, and a gigantic crimson shadow appeared in the sky. It was the image of a bird radiating majesty and power. The bird had the head and tail of a phoenix, claws of an eagle, neck of a snake, and was covered in burning, crimson feathers.

It was the Vermillion Bird’s phantasm.

“You’ve come. It’s been quite a while; you must have had quite a lot of doubts about coming.”

The Vermillion Bird’s voice boomed out.

The first time she had met the Vermillion Bird, Xiao Qi’s heart had been full of terror and apprehension. This time, she was incredibly calm. She looked up and replied in a loud voice, “Vermillion Bird, I wish to inherit your flames.”

“Very good. That is the answer I hoped for. However, I want to remind you: once you enter the Lava Purgatory, until you finish the inheritance, you will not be able to leave in body or in spirit. That means you will not be able to return to your own world. Have you prepared for this?”

“Yes, and I won’t regret it either. If you can give me power, and even... even cure my illness, I will do all I can to thank you.” Xiao Qi said.

“There’s no need to thank me; this is my destiny. You will receive great benefits, and will also fulfil one of my greatest wishes. If you’ve made up your mind, then walk forwards into the Lava Purgatory.

Xiao Qi didn’t reply as she took a step into the Lava Purgatory.

Whoosh!

A ball of flames ignited under Xiao Qi’s feet, and began to expand. Soon, it covered her entire body. Xiao Qi let out a gasp of shock, but immediately, her fear turned into wonder and awe. She looked at the flames around her... they were definitely real, but she didn’t feel any heat from them at all.

A gust of wind blew over, causing the flames to grow even more. All of Xiao Qi’s clothes and equipment were instantly incinerated, revealing her beautiful body.

“Ahhhhhhhh!!!”

Xiao Qi instinctively cried out, and covered her chest with her arms. However, her arms and small hands weren’t able to cover her entire body.

“What do you need those low-grade equipment for? If you bring them into the Lava Purgatory, they will be incinerated anyways. As the inheritor of my Vermillion Bird’s Flames, how can normal equipment match up to the flames you will inherit? Because you are not of my clan, and do not have feathers, I will make a battlesuit of holy fire for you from my feathers. Prepare yourself for the inheritance- the first few days will be the most painful part of the inheritance. If you can endure it, the rest of the process will go smoothly. If you can’t endure it, then your consciousness will be consumed by my Vermillion Bird’s Flames, and will disappear. It is too late to change your mind, so please be prepared.”

The Vermillion Bird’s voice gradually dissipated, and Xiao Qi’s body and the flames around it also disappeared...

————————————————————

At the same time, in the Fairy Forest.

With Xiao Hui leading the way, Ling Chen quickly found the Bewildering Formation, the entrance to the Fairy Realm. This time, Ling Chen didn’t need Xiao Hui to show him how to activate the teleportation channels. After all, he had gone through all of them before.

Very soon, Ling Chen passed through the Bewildering Formation. The scenery in front of him changed, and he once again saw the beautiful Fairy Realm.

This was the third time he had come to the Fairy Realm, but he felt completely different to how he had felt the first two times.

“Lalala... lalalala... lalalalala...”

The sound of cheerful singing travelled into Ling Chen’s ears. The voice sounded young and sweet, and the song consisted of just “lala”. This song should have sounded quite plain, but Ling Chen couldn’t help but listen to it as he stood still.

The song was extremely simple, yet it made him feel calmer, as if it contained some sort of magic. When he came back to his senses, it felt as if a long time had passed.

This voice...

“Cai’Er, is it you?” Ling Chen looked around him as he shouted out. This voice was most probably Cai’Er’s, but because she was so small, it was hard to see her in the sea of flowers and grasses.

“Eee?”

The singing stopped, and a light blue figure floated out of the sea of flowers and grasses. It was a little girl who was only about half a metre tall, and was wearing a light blue gown. She had black hair, and her eyes shone like stars. On her back were two wings that were quickly flapping, and she was holding a small basket in her hands. It was indeed Cai’Er.

When Cai’Er saw Ling Chen, her eyes widened and she stared for a long time, unable to believe her eyes. Her little mouth opened wide, and she flew over with a ‘swish’ as her eyes sparkled, “Big brother! It’s really big brother! Big brother’s fine, and he actually came out! Dad and granny said that big brother went to a very horrible place, and might never come out. But... big brother actually came out! Awesome, awesome!”

Cai’Er flew around him as she excitedly yelled out. The joy and happiness that she displayed caused Ling Chen to feel moved. He smiled as he said, “Cai’Er, long time no see. Are you here to collect flower nectar?”

“Mhmm, Cai’Er comes out to collect flower nectar every day. Just like butterflies and bees, flower nectar is our food.” Cai’Er said as she happily nodded. Her head tilted as she continued, “However, after eating your human food, flower nectar doesn’t taste as good anymore, and I always feel like eating human food... and I also miss those big sisters. Big brother, are you here to visit Cai’Er? Did the big sisters come? I really want to see the prettiest and kindest one, big sister Shui Ruo. I like her the most.”

Ling Chen trembled, and his expression froze for a split second. However, he immediately recovered and smiled, “I came here today to play with Cai’Er, as well as to talk to your dad... and granny. Cai’Er, can you take me to meet them?”

“Okay, okay!” Cai’Er immediately nodded. She flicked her wrist, and the little basket mysteriously vanished. She flew in front of Ling Chen as she talked, “Dad and granny have always kept big brother in their thoughts. After big brother vanished, they said that big brother went to a very dangerous place, and would probably never be able to come out. They were really worried about you, and blamed themselves, and would often say that they hated themselves for what they did. And big sister’s been really sad as well, and hasn’t played with Cai’Er in days. If they see big brother, they’ll definitely be really happy.”

Ling Chen: “......”

The Fairy Realm was quite large, and took up nearly a quarter of the Fairy Forest. However, there were only roughly 2,000 or so Fairies living there. It was quite tragic to see that the once powerful Fairy Clan had been reduced to such a state. The reason for this was because of the current low fertility rate of the Fairies, as well as the fact that they were sealed inside the Fairy Realm. If they continued on like this, even if they did not engage in any battles, they would disappear from the Forgotten Continent.

The only way to restore their Fairy Clan was for the Fairies to live among humans, and reproduce with humans. This was the Fairy Clan’s greatest desire, but they were prevented from doing so by the barrier.

“Dad, granny, big sister... big brother’s back. Big brother’s come back to see us!”

Cai’Er’s clear voice rang out, breaking the peacefulness of the Fairy Realm.

A green light flashed, and the first to appear was Fairy Chief Greenwood. As soon as he saw Ling Chen, a look of surprise flashed across his face, before he quickly regained his calm, “Ling Tian... you were actually able to escape from the Lunar Sky Hell.”