Swallowed Star: Lord of the Wolf

Under the night sky, the bone boat cut through the fierce winds high above and moved forward silently.

Below lies an endless, dark wilderness, dotted only by a few luminous plants or rivers flowing with bioluminescent plankton, like stars on the earth.

Xu Yang sat cross-legged at the bow of the boat, seemingly resting with his eyes closed, but in reality, his mind was like invisible tentacles, carefully sensing every inch of the texture of the huge bone boat beneath him.

This bone boat, crafted from the bones of some colossal beast, possessed a warm, jade-white hue and was covered with natural, seemingly innate, mysterious patterns. It lacked a complex array core and inlaid with energy-driving crystals; its ability to fly and conceal itself appeared to originate entirely from the inherent material properties of the bones and the "spirituality" within them, activated by the divine power of the craftsman.

This was completely different from the complex, intricately structured, and even 'spirit-infused' spaceships and magical artifacts he had seen in the cosmic sea.

Combining everything seen and heard along the way—whether it was the bone spears and bows and arrows used by the Yongzan tribe's hunting teams, the ancient and heavy tables of Utona, or even the animal tooth amulets worn close to Chigu's body—everything exuded a primitive, rugged, and close-to-nature atmosphere.

“Respecting heaven and earth, worshipping nature, and emphasizing naturalness…” Xu Yang silently recited his understanding of the cultivation styles of the local natives. “This is similar to the path of ‘ancient cultivators,’ but it is different from the bloodline cultivation style that simply digs out the power of the bloodline.”

He thought to himself.

The core of this school of thought probably lies in comprehending the origins of the laws of heaven and earth, pursuing harmony between humanity and nature, and resonating with all things in nature.

The objects they use, whether weapons or tools, are made from powerful creations of heaven and earth, such as the bones of strange beasts, rare woods, and spiritual minerals. They preserve their original form and natural patterns as much as possible, and through special refining techniques, they stimulate the inherent power of the laws, making them a bridge for communication between their own power and the laws of heaven and earth.

Such objects may have relatively simple functions, but their power is not necessarily weak, and they are connected to the owner's mind, like an extension of the body.

"No wonder most of the weapons and magical artifacts I've seen along the way are ancient and primitive, yet they faintly exude powerful fluctuations of laws. It turns out it's not that their weapon-making skills are low, but rather that their cultivation system dictates that the artifacts must be like this—the closer they are to the origin of nature, the more they conform to their 'Dao'." Xu Yang suddenly realized.

But this is not absolute.

His thoughts swept over Mo Chen, who was sitting cross-legged and meditating on the other side of the bone boat.

A long, azure-blue sword, as clear as ice crystal, lay horizontally across Mo Chen's lap, its chilling aura concealed. While the sword's material was certainly extraordinary, the subtle, ice-crack-like patterns on its blade were clearly not naturally formed!
A clearly artificially created rune with specific guiding and amplifying effects!

Although the technique seemed somewhat crude to Xu Yang, far less refined and profound than the treasures he obtained from Ku Yanju, it was indeed a refining secret pattern originating from the mainstream cultivators of the continent!

Then look at Shi Kui, who is dozing against the ship's railing, with a massive crimson axe the size of a door panel lying beside him. At several key joints where the axe handle connects to the blade, one can also see artificially inlaid fiery red crystals and runes that amplify the power of fire.

"They're imitating..." Xu Yang understood.

Whom are we imitating?
Naturally, they were the enemies who had defeated them and driven them from the rich and prosperous core of the continent to the edge of this relatively resource-poor "Eastern Territory"—those cultivators who inherited their skills from ancient and powerful nations and were proficient in "technical" skills such as weapon crafting, alchemy, and formations!
They were defeated by the enemy with more advanced, complex, and comprehensive weapons and magical artifacts, and even their homes were driven out.

After painful reflection, even the most stubborn traditions will develop cracks.

Enlightened individuals among the natives, or those radicals who desperately craved power and the desire to reclaim their homeland, would inevitably begin to try to learn and imitate the enemy's methods.

They combined foreign refining secrets with their own "natural origin artifacts," attempting to retain the core of their own path while absorbing the strengths of their opponents.

As elite warriors of the Burning Flame Tribe, Mo Chen and Shi Kui's weapons are products of this "fusion".

With bones as its foundation, it retains a powerful primal force and an affinity with nature.

The secret runes, acting as a guide, grant more precise energy channeling, greater explosive power, or special effects.

This represents a struggle, a balance between upholding tradition and pursuing the power to survive.

"This integration is still in its early stages and looks a bit awkward," Xu Yang assessed. "The level of detail in the engraving of the secret patterns is not high, and it is not perfectly integrated with the natural patterns of the artifact itself."

"However, it's also possible that Mo Chen and Shi Kui don't have enough wealth to equip me with more expensive treasures. Otherwise, when they saw the mechanical treasure 'Dusk Mountain' on me, they probably wouldn't be amazed, but rather wary and call for reinforcements to besiege me."

This is important because it means that mechanical treasures are not uncommon in the Eastern Arctic Region; they are just not deployed on a large scale.

……

Under Mo Chen's control, the bone boat did not simply fly at high altitudes, but cleverly utilized the terrain.

Sometimes it glides close to the undulating ridgeline, the natural patterns on the bone boat resonating with the mountain wind, suddenly increasing its speed; other times it sinks into the bottomless, vast canyon where the gale subsides, silently traversing the rushing underground river. Occasionally, it passes through some natural caves hidden in the belly of the giant peak, the cave walls shimmering with ancient natural runes reinforced by the power of the tribal ancestors, like secret shortcuts through time and space.

"This is a secret passage that the tribe explored at great cost," Mo Chen explained with a smile, noticing Xu Yang's attention to the path. "It avoids the fixed territories of some powerful beasts and bypasses several natural spatial disorder zones and poisonous miasma areas. Although it takes a detour, it is safe and fast."

Xu Yang nodded slightly to show his understanding.

At the same time, they were also impressed by the generosity and confidence of Mo Chen's tribe. They had directly led him, a newcomer recruited for the first time, through this secure secret passage, without any hesitation that he should take notes. Clearly, the Burning Flame Tribe must have many such secure routes!

Moreover, unlike the Yongzan tribe, whose strongest member is only an Eternal True God, the Burning Flame tribe, which can send out two Eternal True Gods to carry out missions, must be very large and powerful!

However, Xu Yang wasn't too worried. As long as he didn't encounter the Chaos Ruler head-on, he could protect himself more than enough with his divine power and the will of the Chaos Realm.

Day and night alternated, and it only took five days.

As the bone boat passed through a vast rift valley perpetually shrouded in crimson aurora, the view ahead suddenly opened up!
At the end of a vast, flat wasteland, glowing with a dark red hue under the starlight, stands a city built against the mountain, like the skeleton of a giant beast that grew out of the primordial earth, towering between heaven and earth!
Burning Flame Tribe – Burning Flame City.

The scene before him confirmed Xu Yang's guess, but it also far exceeded his expectations!
This is not a city in the usual sense.

It's more like an ancient giant mountain that has been forcibly captured and tamed! An unimaginably massive solitary peak, its entire body a dark, rusty red, like a spear of the earth piercing the sky.

The mountain itself is the foundation and main body of Burning Flame City.

The entire mountain is not a natural shape; its surface is covered with huge marks that look as if it had been torn apart by a tremendous force and forcibly pieced together.

Countless thick, dark golden bones, like towering pillars, are deeply embedded in the mountain, fused together with the rock strata to form a massive supporting framework. At the junctions of these bones and the rock, natural ravines flowing with molten lava can be seen, like the blood vessels of the earth, radiating a scorching heat.

The so-called 'city' was carved and grew out of this enormous mountain!
There are no regular city wall outlines, only layer upon layer of defensive barriers built along the mountain slopes, relying on the remains of giant beasts and natural rock strata. These barriers are made of huge, unpolished dark red volcanic rocks and rough bones, and their surfaces are covered with a thick layer of strange, moss-like substance that emits a dark red glow under high temperatures, forming a natural defensive layer and energy barrier.

Countless caves, rock caves, and suspended platforms of varying sizes and shapes are densely distributed at different heights of the mountain like a honeycomb, forming the dwellings, workshops, and places of cultivation for the residents.

They are not arranged in a neat row, but rather extend naturally along the contours of the mountain and the direction of the skeletons, full of a primitive and wild sense of power.

Wide roads, paved with solidified lava or carved directly into the rock face, meander and twist like coiled pythons, connecting different levels of the area.

On the road, some tribal warriors wearing leather or bone armor could be vaguely seen patrolling.

However, what is most striking is the immense, magnificent, chaotic, and violent energy emanating from the entire Burning Flame City! The core source of this energy points directly to the very top of that solitary peak.

At the summit of the mountain!

There, clouds and mist shrouded the area, and the energy of heaven and earth formed tides, from which occasionally burst forth chaotic air currents that were visible to the naked eye and seemed to have a physical form.

The endless chaotic energy flow, like boiling, raging waves, rolled, surged, and collided in the depression at the summit!
Space was severely distorted there, light was swallowed and refracted, forming a bizarre and distorted visual area.

The raging torrent of laws was like an invisible whip, lashing the void and emitting a muffled, thunderous roar. Even from a distance, Xu Yang could clearly sense the heart-palpitating tearing sensation and destructive aura!
Every now and then, streaks of light or light, dark purple chaotic lightning, like wildly dancing venomous snakes, would burst forth from the chaotic vortex, striking the massive skeletons or specially crafted rune pillars surrounding the peak, unleashing blinding light and deafening roars, before being guided, absorbed, or dissipated by the runes.

The Ruins of Chaos!

Xu Yang was shocked; it was just as he thought!
The Burning Flame Tribe did not choose this location arbitrarily when establishing their main city. This solitary peak is actually an entrance to a Chaos Ruins! And at its summit lies the channel through which the energy of the Chaos Ruins flows outward!

“No wonder…” Xu Yang instantly understood.

Although the Chaos Ruins are extremely dangerous, with their raging chaotic energy and disordered laws capable of easily tearing apart even the True Gods of the Void, they also contain the most refined and primordial energy of the Origin Continent!
Most importantly, the eternal true gods need to rely on it to comprehend the laws of chaos!
Cultivating using the pure chaotic primordial energy leaked from the Chaos Ruins is far more effective than cultivating in other parts of the wilderness.

"To be able to occupy a chaotic ruin on your own, Brother Mo Chen, your tribe must be one of the major tribes in the Burning Blade Domain!" Xu Yang stood there, his gaze fixed intently on the mountain peak that seemed to be swallowing up chaos, and he praised it from the bottom of his heart.

Occupying and controlling an entrance to a Chaotic Ruins is a feat that no ordinary tribe could accomplish!

Mo Chen's face showed a hint of pride, and he was about to say a few words of humility when Shi Kui, carrying an axe, puffed out his chest and answered loudly, "Of course! Our Burning Flame Tribe is a top-tier tribe in the Flame Domain! Our ancestors back then..." He was about to recount the glorious history of the tribe.

Mo Chen glanced helplessly at Shi Kui, coughed lightly to interrupt him, but his tone was also filled with pride: "Brother Bai Yu, you flatter me. Being able to guard the entrance to this Chaos Ruins is indeed the result of our ancestors' arduous struggle and bloody battles. However..."

He changed the subject, pointing to the outskirts of Burning Flame City, "Brother Bai Yu, please see, this is no easy task either."

As the bone ship drew closer, a more expansive view of Burning Flame City unfolded before Xu Yang.

Beneath the magnificent walls clinging to the mountain, there was not an empty space, but a vast fan-shaped plain paved with dark red rocks—the Ruins Plain!
On the plains, the scene is even more breathtaking!
The first thing that catches the eye is the enormous structure standing silently in the air on both sides of the plain, like two floating fortresses!
On the left is a giant fiery tortoise, its body forged from dark red metal and some strange mineral flowing with magma. Its thick shell is covered with rough edges and protruding cannon muzzles. The surface of the shell is not smooth, but is engraved with countless complex arrays of secret patterns that shine with a crimson light!
The giant tortoise held its head high, and its mouth contained not flesh and blood, but a massive energy core composed of countless prism crystals, radiating a terrifyingly destructive aura.

It floats silently, its heavy shadows covering a large area below, like an insurmountable war fortress!
The one on the right is shaped like a crimson eagle about to take flight. Its skeleton is made of silver-gray metal that gleams with a cold light, and the "feathers" covering it are made of energy blades that are as thin as cicada wings, with sharp edges and burning with golden flames!
The eagle's talons, like massive mechanical hooks, gleamed with a cold metallic sheen. The slightest flap of its wings sent ripples through the air. Its eyes were two enormous, constantly rotating, deep red crystals, projecting beams of light like searchlights, scanning the plains below and the distant wilderness. Dense energy runes flowed around its body, clearly indicating its exceptional mobility and offensive capabilities.

The Burning Flame Tribe's most important clan treasures—'Lava Rock' and 'Crimson Flame Sky Patrol'!
Two major legion-style mechanical treasures!
They are not top-tier treasures like Xu Yang's "Dusk Mountain" that pursue ultimate individual power, but rather strategic weapons specifically designed for war, capable of carrying a large number of soldiers and unleashing the combined power of legions!
Its massive size, heavy armor, comprehensive firepower, and powerful energy shield are all designed to cope with large-scale wars and to guard strategic locations such as the entrance to the Chaos Ruins!
While its power may not be as exquisite as Xu Yang's "Dusk Mountain", its strategic value on the battlefield and its ability to suppress lower-level cultivators are absolutely terrifying!
The presence of these two mechanical behemoths guards the gates of Burning Flame City like pillars of stability. The crafting runes on their bodies, which are clearly of a "technical" style, contrast sharply with the primitive and rugged style of Burning Flame City itself, yet they blend perfectly together, forming the powerful defensive system of the Burning Flame Tribe!
This is precisely the manifestation of the "integration" path that Xu Yang had previously deduced, at a higher level and on a larger scale! (End of Chapter)