Chapter 837: The Wager

Would an Emperor Seed contain an Emperor's divine consciousness imprint? Of course it would. Otherwise, how could it be called an Emperor Seed? As for what impact such an imprint would end up having on the artifact, that was harder to predict. In truth, even Tang San wasn't sure if the Sunborne Nymph Emperor's imprint would take control of the Fire God's Scepter. But as soon as he raised the possibility, the expressions of the Firedawn clan powerhouses visibly shifted.

The reason was simple—if what Tang San said came true, it would be the greatest disaster the Firedawns had ever faced.

Even though the Fire God's Scepter's divine energy had been gradually dissipating, at its current rate, it could still last for several hundred years, maybe even a thousand. But if the scepter fell under someone else's control, the Firedawn clan would immediately collapse!

"You're talking nonsense!" The Scorching King, fully aware of the implications, was instantly furious. He stepped forward, unleashing a powerful aura that bore down on Tang San like a tidal wave. Behind him, a radiant sun appeared, and a scorching aura erupted violently.

In a place like Fire God City, within the Magma Red Sea, all fire-attribute energy was greatly amplified. The pressure was so immense that even Tang San felt as if he was suffocating.

"Scorching King, that's enough! Today is our clan's festival, the Fire God's celebration. We cannot allow a battle to break out." The Firedawn clan leader intervened, stepping between them. With just a gentle wave of the Fire God's Scepter, the Scorching King's fire element dissipated without a trace.

What a powerful artifact,

Tang San thought to himself in admiration. If the Fire God were still alive, this scepter would not be far from the level of a transcendent divine artifact.

"Clan Leader, don't let this human deceive you. He clearly covets the scepter," the Scorching King said angrily. He knew that if the clan leader insisted on blocking him, there was nothing he could do to Tang San here. With the Fire God's Scepter, the clan leader could even challenge an Emperor in the Magma Red Sea.

Tang San's smile deepened. "That is a reasonable assumption. Clan Leader, why don't you ask the scepter itself? True divine artifacts all have a spirit, and since I've already made contact with it, it knows me. You can ask it if I have any desire for it."

The Firedawn clan leader hesitated momentarily and instinctively looked at the Fire God's Scepter in his hand. The rainbow light emanating from the scepter formed a flame that flickered gently. Then, the flame pointed in Tang San's direction and conveyed warmth and closeness. It was clear that the scepter acknowledged Tang San.

There was no way to deny it!

Indeed, having made contact with Tang San's divine consciousness, the scepter understood his intentions. Moreover, as a weapon once belonging to a true god, the Fire God's Scepter was extremely sensitive to divine beings. When it sensed Tang San's divinity, it naturally grew close to him because it understood that this divinity was the only thing in this plane that could truly help it. In fact, it was even possible that, if Tang San took it for himself and nourished it for a while, it would regain its former power.

But Tang San was the Sea God, and water and fire do not mix. The scepter could sense the aura coming from him, and it knew it had no chance to become Tang San's core divine artifact.

As a weapon once wielded by a true god, it could not be satisfied unless it was the core divine artifact for whomever it chose as its master. But would the Sea God ever wield a fire-attribute weapon? Most certainly not. Thus, the weapon spirit clearly relayed its thoughts to the Firedawn clan leader:

This man has no reason to covet me

.

Just then, a crisp, pleasant voice rang out.

"Grandpa, how about we settle things the simple way?"

From among the Firedawn's higher-ups, a figure stepped forward. It was a young girl clad in a long red dress, with fiery red hair that almost reached the ground. Her beautiful face radiated a heroic spirit that made her appear like a leading figure even among all the powerhouses surrounding her.

Her large pink eyes fixed on Tang San, clearly showing keen interest.

Everyone on this high platform was at least at the tenth order or higher, and there was no doubt this girl was at the tenth order as well.

"Grandpa, the Scorching King is one of our important partners. This time, he has come to propose some terms, and so has this esteemed guest before us. But since they're in a disagreement and you can't make a decision, why don't we let them settle it themselves? Let them fight it out, and whoever wins, we'll work with them. After all, we've been working with the Scorching Sunflower clan for hundreds of years. We can't let this guest's words shake our relationship. But if this human can prove he has the power to back up his words, then we shouldn't rule out working with them either. They can just go outside, so they don't ruin the festival for us, and see whose fist is bigger."

The girl addressed everyone with a charming smile, but most of her attention remained on Tang San.

The Firedawn clan leader furrowed his brow, hesitating a little.

His main concern was that he didn't want to offend the Scorching Sunflower clan. After all, they were the strongest clan in the Solstice Empire, and the Sunborne Nymph Emperor was possibly the number one Emperor of the entire Daemon Continent.

Offending such a powerful force would be a huge problem for the Firedawn clan.

"I agree with Miss Ling'er's suggestion. This matter involves her, after all. Human, do you dare to face me in a duel? If I lose, I'll leave immediately and never bother you again. But if I win, you will hand over that flame and piss off." The Scorching King had no objections whatsoever; he genuinely wanted to kill Tang San, and he had no doubt that he could carry that out.

Tang San smiled faintly and said, "Sure!"

The clan leader wanted to say something, but the girl named Ling'er tugged on his sleeve. After glancing at his granddaughter, he sighed and said, "Very well. But regardless of the outcome, our clan doesn't want to see either of you injured. Only victory or defeat matters, not life or death. After it's over, you both will still be honored guests of our Firedawn clan and are welcome to join in the Fire God Festival."

The Scorching King glared fiercely at Tang San. "Let's take this outside."

Tang San nodded. "Let's go then."

The clan leader turned to the other experts in the clan and said, "Continue overseeing the Fire God Festival. I'll act as a witness for these two."

"Grandpa, I'm going too," Huo Ling'er[1] said with a charming smile. Her beautiful eyes gleamed with excitement, as though she was extremely thrilled by all of this.

With a wave of the Fire God's Scepter in the clan leader's hand, a red beam of light shot into the distance. He floated up and he was enveloped by the red light. As if the red light was dragging him into the distance, he quickly flew toward where the beam pointed.

Huo Ling'er followed her grandfather, while Tang San, the Scorching King, and the two Scorching Sunflower experts trailed closely behind.

Since they were all powerful, their flying speed was naturally up to par. Within just a few moments, they were out of Fire God City and back to the center of the Magma Red Sea.

The Firedawn clan leader looked at both sides and said solemnly, "The Fire God Mountain is extremely sensitive and may not be disturbed. I will kindly ask the two of you to move farther away before starting. We don't want to anger the sacred mountain and cause unnecessary trouble."

"That's reasonable." The Scorching King, now appearing calmer, nodded at the Firedawn clan leader.

Tang San was more than happy to distance himself. The closer they got to the center of the Magma Red Sea, the denser the fire energy became, while the other elemental energies dispersed. Naturally, this was an advantageous environment for the Scorching King, but not so much for himself, so he was rather eager to go elsewhere.

They took off again, speeding toward the edge of the Magma Red Sea. This time, Tang San activated his Dragon Roc Transformation. A pair of golden wings unfurled and a slight flap of them allowed him to easily keep pace, staying not far from the Scorching King, although the latter was clearly at the peak of the eleventh order.

The Scorching King had been sensing the changes in Tang San's aura all this while. Earlier, while in the Firedawn clan, he hadn't noticed much. But when Tang San readily agreed to fight, it became clear that Tang San wasn't just at the tenth order; he was at the eleventh. But since when did humans have experts at the eleventh order?

For a race forced to rely on foreign bloodlines to cultivate, a tenth-order expert was already impressive; as for eleventh-order humans, the Scorching King had knowledge of none. Could it be that this human wasn't from the Daemon Continent? But if he wasn't, then where was he from? Were there other territories like the Magma Red Sea, but inhabited by humans?

As he pondered Tang San's origins, Tang San also quietly assessed the Scorching King's cultivation.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

There was no doubt that the Scorching King was at the peak of the eleventh order. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come to the Firedawn clan seeking collaboration. His goal was surely to use the Fire God's Scepter to achieve a breakthrough and become an Emperor.

A peak eleventh order, and from the Scorching Sunflower clan—this guy was definitely not going to be easy to deal with. But to fight for fortune and lay the groundwork for him and Mei Gongzi to become Emperors in the future, he couldn't allow the Scorching King to seize the scepter. He had to win, and he had to win in a very convincing manner.

The group of experts flew much faster than the boat that had brought Tang San here. Within just a few short minutes, they could see where the blue and red waters met. They had arrived at the edge of the Magma Red Sea.

At this point, the smile on Tang San's face deepened. If the Magma Red Sea was the domain of the Firedawn clan, then the Endless Blue Sea was his territory. In the Endless Blue Sea, it wasn't just a mere Scorching King he could deal with; even if the man's ancestor came, Tang San could give him a run for his money.

As they reached the edge of the Magma Red Sea, everyone slowed down.

The Firedawn clan leader said, "This is the place. As I said before, this fight is to determine a winner, not life and death. Please give me some face and refrain from striking to kill."

He certainly didn't want either Tang San or the Scorching King to fall. That seven-colored flame of Tang San's had piqued its interest, especially since the Fire God's Scepter had recognized Tang San—nothing like that had ever happened. Moreover, the young human was aware that they weren't from this world but outsiders. The chief wanted to talk to Tang San and find out how he could be so sure about that.

This mysterious young man had sparked a great deal of its interest.

As for the Scorching King, he absolutely could not fall here. Otherwise, it would provoke the wrath of the entire Solstice Empire.

The Firedawns could certainly defend themselves from an Emperor, but if all the Nymph Emperors of the Solstice Empire descended together, they would be doomed. At best, they could take down one or two Emperors with them as they were annihilated. Naturally, having the two determine a victor without killing each other was the best outcome.

Ling'er was right. Letting them decide the matter through a duel was much better than the clan making the choice directly. At least that way, there would be less offense taken. If you lost because your abilities were lacking, what more could you say?

Tang San and the Scorching King floated out, facing each other a hundred meters apart.

The Scorching King stared coldly at Tang San and said lightly, "You'll pay for everything you've done today, and you won't even have the chance to regret it."

Tang San smiled and shrugged. "I don't even know how to write the word 'regret.' One has to bear the consequences of their actions. But whether you can make me bear the consequences is an entirely different matter."

The Scorching King snorted coldly. "Let's see if your fist is as big as your mouth."

"Allow me to show you, then."

Both of their auras surged instantly. Behind the Scorching King, a blazing sun suddenly appeared, illuminating the space behind him like a sunrise over the sea, radiating an overwhelming aura.

His entire body turned a blinding golden-red. Although they weren't at the center of the Magma Red Sea anymore, fire energy was still abundant and gave him a significant boost. His bloodline energy radiated a violent, savage aura, burning like the center of a sun.

So powerful!

The pressure Tang San felt from him at this moment was almost as intense as when he first saw the Crystal Phoenix Demon Emperor years ago. This Scorching King was indeed at the peak of the eleventh order, touching the final threshold.

If he is given the Fire God's Scepter, he might very well step across that threshold.

But at that moment, golden light erupted from Tang San. A massive golden silhouette slowly rose behind him!

1. Her name literally means "fire spirit," and in case you think it sounds familiar, you're right: it's the same as the Huo Ling'er in

Nine Star Hegemon Body Art

. ☜