Chapter 156
Fusion! Holy Light Knife
The red figure appeared on top of the ice that hadn't been broken. Salamandhys's body was covered in a blue light, and the fast-flowing water beneath the ice actually stilled, so Nian Bing wasn't swept out of the newly created pool.
When he was learning culinary arts from Zha Ji, Nian Bing often played with the water in the the leisurely parts of the Sky Azure River, but it didn't mean he could just cruise through this frozen river. He desperately swam for the edges so that he could clamber up on sh.o.r.e. At present, he didn't even care about cursing Salamandhys.
"Boy, where do you think you're going? Clean yourself first. Otherwise you won't leave this river." Salamandhys' only generosity was that when he kicked Nian Bing flying, he held onto the Holy LIght Knife for him. If not, Nian Bing would have long since sunk.
"Y-you…crazy…b.a.s.t.a.r.d, th-the river is…so…c-cold, do you…want me….to die?" Nian BIng's teeth chattered violently, rendering his speech incoherent.
Salamandhys chuckled. "Relax; with me here you can't die. Not even if you wanted to. Hurry up and wash yourself, if you hope to eventually get out of the water."
The cold seemed to have stopped his blood flowing. Forget about was.h.i.+ng; even moving his body slightly was extremely difficult. Just as Nian Bing despairingly believed that he was going to die as an ice cube, a strange thing happened. A hot stream suddenly flowed from his abdomen. The heat of the stream immediately filled his chest, greatly weakening the chill in his body.
Nian BIng's mind cleared up, and the hot stream gradually became more intense. When he looked down, he saw that his skin was actually glowing red. The bones of his body filled with heat, making Nian BIng feel even more comfortable. He treaded water then looked at Salamandhys with surprise.
"Mighty Salamandhys, what is that stinky thing you made me eat?" His body's changes could only be explained by that thing that he ate for over twenty days.
Salamandhys chuckled. "If I told you it was my feces, would you believe me?"
"You…" Nian Bing had realized that no matter which area, he was completely suppressed by Salamandhys. A greater dragon who has lived for millennia had an almost flawless mind.
"Don't worry. I wouldn't like to give you my excrement even if you wanted to eat it. Hurry up and wash yourself. You have been eating the snake gall of the iron thread snake, local to the Tiandang Mountains. It basically changed your body's essential character. The iron thread snake is well-adapted for living in the cold, but it's gall is much different than ordinary snakes. Not only does it not reduce internal heat, it is a very hot item itself.
"Now wash in the icy river so you can get rid of some of the excess heat, so you can absorb it completely. A hundred-year-old iron thread snake's gall is not something an ordinary person could eat. it could easily kill several iron-backed land dragons. I caught them while you were meditating."
Actually, Nian Bing not only ate hundred-year-old snake galls, but also several thousand-year-olds. This supplement had increased his body's resilience to far beyond that of an ordinary mage. Perhaps even warriors could not compare to him. Although less tough than dragon scales, his skin and meridians were comparable to an ordinary greater dragon. In the future, this was main reason why Nian Bing would be called the mage who won't stay down.
As he floated in the river, Nian Bing was frightened as he looked at the apathetic face of Salamandhys and recalled everything from before. Ever since they left the cave, even though he faced unimaginable hards.h.i.+p, everything was for his own good. He was at a loss. What did the mighty Salamandhys think of him?
He was sufficiently washed after an hour. A month's worth of filth had been completely scrubbed away. On the banks, he used the Holy LIght Knife to shave off his hair, and the handsome and confident Nian Bing reappeared.
"Here." He threw a change of clothes out of the s.p.a.ce ring for Nian BIng, then patted his shoulder. The seal on Nian Bing's magic was immediately dispelled. As Nian Bing sensed the strength of the Ice and Fire Source Again, he clearly felt that he was stronger than he had ever been.
"It's cold out. This is a river, so naturally there is fish. I will make some fish soup for you," suggested Nian Bing, now in his clean clothes.
Salamandhys gave him a look. "What is this?
Nian BIng almost died of anger because of Salamandhys. It seemed it would be impossible to hear nice words from him. He should just not talk at all. A dark cloud crossed his face as he looked at the self-t.i.tled 'mighty' fire dragon king.
"What are you looking at me for? Aren't you going to make me fish soup? I haven't eaten your food for almost a month; I really have a craving. Remember to make a lot; you know my stomach."
"Mighty Salamandhys, I think that if you were to die in the future would because your stomach burst. Gluttonous dragon." He walked up to the edge of the water.
Salamandhys rubbed his handsome mien. He muttered, "Aren't I so good to this boy, yet he's still getting more impudent to me. Never mind, who made him so worthwhile to exploit? Treating him well is as it should be." Was he helping Nian Bing get stronger just for a his stomach? As a fire dragon king who had acc.u.mulated a millennias' worth of knowledge, he naturally would carefully consider all the pros and cons. He would only take action if he was sure of his decision.
Although Nian Bing insulted Salamandhys out loud, he didn't slack at all when he was cooking. He used the few ingredients left behind in the s.p.a.ce ring and the fish he s.n.a.t.c.hed from the river with his flexible magic control to make a perfect Ice and Fire Eight Extremes Delicacy.
"Waah, so fish soup was this delicious. It's good, really very good." Salamandhys drank another mouth of the thick soup and felt comfort through his body.
Nian Bing also was not idle. He seemed to be venting all his dissatisfaction with Salamandhys into his food. He shoveled his own food down his throat vigorously. In the cold winter season, eating fresh and tender fish meat and delicious fish soup and side dishes, the flavor was indeed the apex of humans. His taut nerves were relieved by his cooking.
"Boy, right now we've left the Tiandang Mountains, about ten kilometers from Tiandang City. Should we go there? Where is the good food?" Salamandhys lifted up the iron pot and swallowed down the last mouthfuls of soup without table manners.
Dozens of ideas flashed through Nian Bing's mind upon hearing this question. Ever since he discovered that Salamandhys was not too big of a threat to his life, he had learned to loosen up. Obviously this mighty fire dragon king was using him, but it didn't matter if he was using his culinary skills, or something else. It would be hard to shake off a dragon. Since that's the case, he might as well use him in return. Having a dragon with him was not necessarily a bad thing.
Nian BIng replied, "Mighty Salamandhys, there are five large empires on the Yangguan continent. The most populated areas are undoubtedly the empire capitals. The closest one to us is the Profound Orchid Empire's Profound Orchid City. I have never been there, but a prosperous area must have delicious food there. We should go to Profound Orchid City."
Salamandhys did not disappoint. He set down the iron pot and nodded. "Okay, let's go to Profound Orchid City. You human's world changes too quick. I remember just a couple centuries ago there weren't anything like five empires. You are more familiar with the situation than me, so you can arrange our food tour."
Nian Bing smiled. "Then leave it to me. I will definitely make the best plans; this trip will not be in vain."
Salamandhys seemed to not hear any deeper meaning in Nian Bing's words. He laughed. "Okay. Since we are going to the human world, don't call me 'the mighty', anymore. Just directly call me by name. This is the first time I've given this privilege to a human. From now on you'll be travelling me; perhaps one day I'll be happy enough to give you more good things."
"Salamandhys, as you know, my Ice and Fire Source has advanced greatly with your 'help'. I feel that my understanding of ice and fire has also gotten deeper. Could I learn your mimicry skill now?"
He snorted contemptuously. "It's still too early for you. If you want to learn my mimicry skill, you must be able to turn ice into fire and fire into ice. You've only scratched the surface. Every magic element has different properties. When you have time, learn to sense the special properties of wind and light elements with your magic knives, so that you will have a chance at training mimicry.
"Mimicry also requires a ma.s.sive quant.i.ty of magic power, especially during interconversion. If your understand of magic elements is not high enough, not only would using mimicry not increase your effective strength, it will also consume many times the magic power. Without strong magic power, you don't have the qualifications to train mimicry.
"In your current situation, you've only just managed to step foot in what you humans call the magic scholar realm. Magic scholars and magisters are vastly different. Can you use a rank 9 spell now? When you can use a rank 9 spell, you can use the Ice and Fire Source to cultivate mimicry."
"Could I be able to use rank 9 mimicry spells one day?" he asked with a hint of despondency.
Salamandhys chuckled. "Of course, but that's not for certain. If you have outside help, the requirements are slightly less and you could use it. Just, it wouldn't be easy to obtain outside help."
Nian Bing looked at Salamandhys' mysterious appearance and hurried to smile. "Of course, how could mimicry be something easy for humans to learn? Mighty Salamandhys, are there any shortcuts you could tell me about?"
Salamandhys snorted. "There's nothing to tell you. It's quite simple. Just raise your magic power and stabilize your footing in the magic scholar realm, and then you can try. The 'shortcut' would require to use special items. Of course, these special items must be extremely pure form of a magic element attribute. Boy, you sure are lucky. You already have four of them. Didn't I tell you to start sensing the light and wind elements?"
His eyes twinkled. "So what you're saying is that my magic knives and their precious stones and can be used to help me gain the mimicry ability?"
Salamandhys said, "Of course. Do you think they're called precious stones for nothing? Any top level precious stone can produce energy and can raise your disposition for magic. Only right now, your magic power is far too weak; you can't really use them. But since you have the Holy Light Knife and that Proud Sky Knife as well as your Ice and Fire Source as a base, you can try to start practicing."
Nian Bing thought about it for a moment. "That said, if I could find a dark, s.p.a.ce, and earth attributed magic knives, then I could cultivate mimicry with a magic scholar's strength."
Salamandhys nodded. "In theory, yes. Although it's not truly your ability that's producing the mimicry, using outside objects to help you practice will make it easier for you to possess the true mimicry ability. However, do you believe that top level magic knives are so easily obtained? Besides great chances of fate, you might spend your whole life searching and never find one."
Nian Bing smiled. "No worries, I still have time. It's good to have a goal. Mighty Salamandhys, since you're full, should we start on the road to Profound Orchid City?"
Salamandhys rolled his eyes. "Who said I was full; I need at least three more portions of this fish soup"
Nian Bing: "……"