Chapter 266: Flame Armor’s Absurd Upper Limit! Lili Zi’s Seed Battle Begins! Shangshan Che Meets The Tokugawa Head!
【Flame Armor（Beginner）】
The beginner prompt popped up in front of his eyes, and Shangshan Che waved his hand to make it disappear without looking much.
Shangshan Che used spiritual power to manipulate the Flame Seed that had just been completed, floating it in mid-air.
He thoughtfully examined this crystal-clear structure like a ruby, intricately precise yet nearly possessing infinite durability, a semi-automatic spiritual power construct.
In the field of view of the Eye of Interpretation, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth was slowly being absorbed by the Flame Seed.
The speed of absorbing spiritual energy would gradually increase, eventually reaching a relatively constant value.
From this moment on, the Flame Seed had begun to operate.
Clearly, before the last rune was engraved, it was just a mass of purified and compressed spiritual energy, but in an instant, it turned into this “Flame Seed.”
Astronomy Path, truly magical.
This great path was equally long and broad, with no end in sight.
Unfortunately, he no longer had the energy to pursue it further.
Shangshan Che sighed lightly, manipulating the Flame Seed with his thoughts just as in the Memory Orb.
Whoosh!
Without any delay, nearly transparent crimson flowing fire instantly enveloped Shangshan Che’s entire head, even covering the upper half of his neck.
And as long as his thought turned again, he could make the Flame Armor, which only protected this area, begin to extend.
Shangshan Che felt that it did not seem impossible to have this manifested Flame Armor cover his entire body.
However, the defensive capability would probably drop significantly, and the spiritual power consumption would increase geometrically—compared to the current deployment that required no personal spiritual power, it really had no cost-effectiveness.
That’s right, the Flame Armor Technique had long stated that maintaining a normal Flame Armor deployment required no spiritual power from the cultivator.
In other words, Flame Armor could actually be considered a Passive Skill.
—But consuming spiritual power would add many new effects.
Feeling the rapidly heating air around him, Shangshan Che blinked and restrained the excessive overflow of Flame Armor spiritual power.
The nearly transparent flowing fire immediately turned into pieces of semi-transparent crimson Armor Plates, reflecting the sunlight projected from the horizon.
If he didn’t restrain it a bit more, the house would probably burn down in less than a few dozen seconds.
Shangshan Che fiddled with the Flame Seed using his consciousness and soon found a way to consciously control which small area of Flame Armor to strengthen.
Simply put, it was shrinking the original 50% defense over the whole head to 100% defense limited to the front.
Wherever Shangshan Che’s thought went, that piece of Flame Armor plate would turn deep red.
Moreover, it was perfectly smooth.
In a short second, all thirty-two Armor Plates constituting the entire head lit up once.
This function was very good—for Shangshan Che, who could multitask, it was almost equivalent to doubling the Flame Armor strength.
After all, opponents capable of multi-angle strikes at the same time were rare.
Very good.
Shangshan Che commented in his mind, then flicked his finger, using a Qi Sword to wake Kaga Kiyomitsu who was lying on the bed,
“Little Jia, come and chop me to test.”
“Huh!?”
Kaga Kiyomitsu suddenly bounced up from the bed and shook herself, the Blade so startled by the words that it popped out more than half,
“Master, have you cultivated to the point where your spirit is a bit abnormal! In reality, asking me to chop Master, if it really hurts Little Jia, what should I do afterwards?”
Shangshan Che was speechless: “Your master isn’t that useless… Besides, it’s just testing the strength of this new Flame Armor Technique.”
He spread his hands,
“Little Jia, if you can chop me with one strike, then frankly, all this time I’ve practiced for nothing, might as well die.”
—If Flame Armor could defend against Kaga Kiyomitsu’s attack with multiple built-in buffs, it should handle most situations without issue.
“Alright…”
Kaga Kiyomitsu slowly drew her body out from the Scabbard, but still somewhat reluctant.
“Master, how should I chop?”
“Hmm… Use Tusk Thrust.” Shangshan Che turned around and pointed to the back of his head, “Thrust directly here, don’t hold back.”
Considering that if an opponent targeted the head, they would mostly Thrust rather than slash, Shangshan Che had Kaga Kiyomitsu simulate this situation.
“Alright… Then Master, be careful.”
Kaga Kiyomitsu made quite a bit of noise in mid-air, posing for Tusk Thrust, and proactively reminded: “Master, Little Jia is coming!”
“Mm, come on.”
Shangshan Che held his breath and focused, not putting all of the Flame Seed’s power directly behind, but first maintaining the normal state of Flame Armor to simulate a more realistic combat scenario.
Whoosh!
From the sudden chill surging in his heart, Shangshan Che knew Kaga Kiyomitsu had acted without mercy as instructed.
Thus, before the blade already at extreme speed crossed this short distance, the piece of Flame Armor at the back of Shangshan Che’s head had turned deep blood red.
The next moment, the pale-wrapped blade tip collided violently with this Flame Armor plate!
Clang!
The crisp sound of metal clashing rippled out.
But in mere moments, the blood-colored Flame Armor had cracked inch by inch, on the verge of shattering.
Shangshan Che didn’t hesitate, pouring in the large amount of spiritual power he had prepared.
In an instant, the Flame Armor on the brink of shattering was perfectly repaired at an unprecedented speed, even deepening in color.
Half a second later, the slight force from the Flame Armor disappeared from Shangshan Che’s perception.
Kaga Kiyomitsu’s surprised cry came from behind: “Master is awesome! You defeated Little Jia without even turning your head!”
“The awesome one isn’t me, but the Onmyoji who created this Onmyōdō technique a thousand years ago.”
Shangshan Che sensed the consumption of nearly thirty percent of his spiritual power and was slightly taken aback.
Although he had completely blocked Kaga Kiyomitsu’s Thrust by adding spiritual power later, the consumption was indeed quite high.
It could be said without exaggeration that Flame Armor’s upper limit was entirely determined by the amount of spiritual power in the user!
In the Memory Orb, the Onmyoji’s defense after condensing all five Flame Seeds and linking them was far stronger than the current Flame Armor.
This was normal; relying on a single Flame Seed was ultimately like clapping with one hand.
However, even with just the current Flame Armor itself, it had blocked Little Jia’s blade for a bit of time.
In actual combat, that bit of time was fully enough for him to react.
Shangshan Che extended his finger again, propping the Flame Seed on his fingertip—in a crisis, he could still pop out the Flame Seed for self-explosion.
With a thought, the Flame Seed floated up and disappeared into his brow, and a Spear made of semi-transparent flowing fire appeared in Shangshan Che’s Palm.
After some examination, Shangshan Che completed his summary of “Flame Armor” in his mind.
—In terms of defense, Flame Armor was undeniably strong.
Both flexible and sturdy, with a stable lower limit, and consuming large amounts of spiritual power could raise the upper limit.
Although the flexibility might be due to Shangshan Che practicing Spirit Control Technique, it didn’t matter; the reason wasn’t important.
It was just that in terms of active attack, the power was a bit lacking.
Shangshan Che pondered further and discovered that the Flame Seed could form a subtle connection with Uguisudori’s Feather in his Sea of Qi.
He didn’t stop it, instead letting the two connect.
In just a few minutes, Shangshan Che could “see” the crimson Flame Seed turn pitch black.
After some testing, he found that Flame Armor would automatically spit out flowing fire upon receiving attacks, making it akin to counter armor.
Shangshan Che exhaled in satisfaction and tapped the rowdy Kaga Kiyomitsu in the air.
—In the beginner state with only one Flame Seed condensed, this Flame Armor’s strength was nearly maxed out.
No wonder the Nameless Onmyoji once used this as a foundation to reach Ghost God and was willing to spend a large amount of time to complete this Onmyōdō technique.
Flame Armor was completely worth it!
Sweeping away fatigue, refreshed Shangshan Che opened the Room Door and went down the Stairs.
Just arriving on the First Floor, Shangshan Che was stunned.
Because Lili Zi, dressed completely differently from usual, was standing in the Dojo on the first floor.
A simple and plain white bodysuit tightly wrapped most of the girl’s body, outlining abundant power and explosiveness.
The girl with a high ponytail heard the sound and explained without turning her head,
“The Seed Battle is about to start soon, this is a special combat uniform from Sister Nanjo, otherwise it would be bad if clothes burst midway.”
Shangshan Che suddenly understood.
Because of the existence of Thousand Faces Talent, he had never considered such a thing.
Clothes bursting?
Just transform into a new set.
“The original design was too cumbersome, so I removed it all.”
Lili Zi pointed to a few obviously ill-fitting spots, then casually picked up a Bamboo Sword from the ground: “Combat isn’t dance, nor for others to watch.”
Indeed words Lili Zi would say.
Shangshan Che inwardly sighed that it fit her style, then recalled what Nanjo Emi had said on the phone with him in the early morning about more people coming from out of town recently.
He had a vague uncomfortable premonition.
After hesitating for a moment, Shangshan Che asked: “If it starts soon, do you want me to accompany you?”
Lili Zi was first stunned, then smiled over at him.
“Shangshan Jun, am I a child?”
She said lightly with a smile: “The commotion upstairs just now was loud, but I couldn’t sense what it was specifically… so it should be spiritual energy.
The Special Affairs Office built a new high-concentration Spirit Energy Room a few days ago; if you go, Sister Nanjo would probably make a move to enhance it further.”
Shangshan Che naturally understood the girl’s meaning, so he nodded readily,
“Got it!”
“Then Miss Lili Zi, we’re going!”
Tamamo, who had deliberately crouched under the air conditioner vent to cool off, raised her hand and grinned: “I want to take some photos inside the Venue, can you take me along?”
Lili Zi blinked and nodded: “Of course, no problem.”
Yagyu Oshi said he would stay in the first-floor Dojo to meditate—his State of Mind Cultivation was not yet as good as Shangshan Che’s, let alone Lili Zi’s.
So before the big battle, he needed a long period of stability to temper his Spirit, Energy, and Vitality, adjusting himself to the best state.
Before Lili Zi went out, Shangshan Che felt his Mobile Phone vibrate in his pocket.
Opening it, it was an “don’t worry” emoji from Tamamo.
He looked up and saw Tamamo at the Doorway turning back, winking at him with a smile and patting her chest.
—Leave it to me!
She seemed to be saying.
Shangshan Che immediately gave her a thumbs up.
Sister, reliable!
—With Lili Zi’s words earlier, Shangshan Che naturally headed to the Special Affairs Office.
What to do now was to condense all five Flame Seeds.
……
Nanjo Emi heard the knock at the door.
She had just hung up the phone and wanted to say no need to knock, just come in, but before she could speak, the door really opened.
Chisa walked in holding a few small stacks of Documents, mouth slightly open in slight astonishment, hesitating before speaking: “Nanjō Great Officer, there’s an old man outside who wants…”
“No need to introduce, kind little girl.”
An aged voice came from outside the door, along with the light sound of a Cane tapping the ground.
The old man with a face full of wrinkles crossed the threshold of the Office, step by step, straight past Chisa, and walked in.
Then, with a smile, he looked at Nanjo Emi who had narrowed her eyes in the main seat, and said hoarsely,
“I’ll handle it myself.”
“Uh… alright.” Chisa first placed the Documents on the edge of the Table, “Then do you need me to fetch a Seat for you…”
“No need, Chisa.”
Nanjo Emi lifted her gaze coldly, speaking in an icy tone Chisa had almost never heard: “For an uninvited wicked guest, no courtesy is needed.”
The girl was startled by the words, her ten toes curling simultaneously in her boots, not daring to speak again.
She nodded carefully and tiptoed out of the Office.
But she still remembered to close the Office’s main door.
After seeing Chisa leave, Nanjo Emi withdrew her gaze and fixed it on the splendidly robed old man in front of her, who was leaning on a dragon-head Cane with both hands,
“Alright, let’s talk.”
She spoke calmly and indifferently,
“The current Head of the Clan of the Tokugawa family, what do you want here.”
“After walking such a long road, not even providing a chair for a panting old man?”
Tokugawa Motoyasu rubbed his lower back, ignoring the soft Seat of the deputy on the other side, and sighed slightly: “Is this the Special Affairs Office’s way of hospitality?”
Nanjo Emi was expressionless: “I don’t recall scheduling a meeting with such a guest.”
Tokugawa Motoyasu seemed oblivious to the sarcasm, maintaining a chilling smile, looking down condescendingly as he spoke,
“Since I’ve come, I figured I should at least say hello.”
“Then now, the hello is done.”
Nanjo Emi spoke without mercy, lifting her eyelids to meet those extremely turbid Eyeballs: “Tokugawa Head, you can leave.”
In the dead silence, Tokugawa Motoyasu stared at Nanjo Emi’s face, leaning closer as if to recall something.
“Right, Nanjo Emi… you’re that child from the Nanjō Family.”
Suddenly, the old man smiled and spoke, gesturing with his withered fingers,
“When you were little, I even held you.”
……
At the same time, outside the door.
The guilty Chisa had just stepped out of the Office when she was startled by the scene: “Whoa! Big Brother, no!”
She dashed forward in one step, grabbing the suit corner of the young man who had half his body leaning out the window, pulling hard to yank him back to safety.
After pulling him back almost effortlessly, Chisa sighed in relief and earnestly lectured the somewhat surprised young man with practiced ease,
“Big Brother, looking at the scenery outside like this has safety hazards…”
After quietly listening to Chisa’s long lecture, the suited young man showed a gentle smile and lightly patted Chisa’s head,
“I’m fine, thanks for your concern.”
Then, he noticed Chisa was wearing the Special Affairs Office uniform.
“So young and already an Agent of the Special Affairs Office?” The young man exclaimed admiringly, “Very impressive.”
“Not really…”
Chisa grinned sheepishly at the praise, her earlier guilt fading a bit.
She coughed and asked brightly: “I’m Chisa, what’s Big Brother’s name?”
“Tokugawa Ryuji.” The young man replied generously.
Huh?
Tokugawa?
Lili Zi sister also has the surname Tokugawa?
Without thinking, Chisa asked: “Tokugawa Big Brother, do you know a sister also surnamed Tokugawa, named Lili Zi?”
Tokugawa Ryuji was slightly stunned, then his drifting gaze focused on Chisa’s surprised face.
He nodded,
“Of course, that’s my Little Sister.”
—This girl knows Lili Zi.
In a flash, Tokugawa Ryuji’s long contemplation ended.
He said,
“Little Sister Chisa, please pass a message to my Little Sister—tell her it’s best to forfeit the Seed Battle and leave Tokyo quietly.”
“Oh, oh…”
Chisa nodded as if understanding: “Got it, I’ll relay it to Lili Zi sister!”
“Thank you.”
Tokugawa Ryuji bowed solemnly, leaving Chisa momentarily unsure how to respond.
But the next second, she didn’t need to worry about it.
Creak.
The Office door slowly opened, and the smiling old man with the Cane walked out.
“Let’s go, Ryuji.”
Tokugawa Ryuji composed his extra expressions and respectfully asked Tokugawa Motoyasu,
“Great-Grandfather, are we still taking the Stairs?”
“No.”
The old man shook his head,
“Old age, tired, can’t walk…”
……
At this moment.
Shangshan Che, under the blazing sun, arrived at the Special Affairs Office’s lobby and pressed the elevator button.
