Noxus Glory

Chapter 17 Vermilion Bird: Chaotic Dance

【Vermilion Bird - Southern Fire】

Huo Jixing, his face covered in blood, stared in astonishment at the golden-red flames burning between his tiger's mouth.

He felt an immense sense of warmth and familiarity from it.

The terrifying heat and the scorching flames seemed unable to harm him, and they gradually changed shape under his control.

"So this is the true way to use [Talent·Star Spirit·Vermilion Bird]!" Huo Jixing realized.

Looking back on my understanding of the Southern Flame, I felt quite ashamed.

The Vermilion Bird is one of the Four Symbols of Heaven.

How could the Southern Fire it bestowed merely enhance his physical abilities and make him unafraid of the cold wind?

Fortunately, it's not too late now. In the life-or-death struggle, Huo Jixing has managed to grasp some of the ways to use the Southern Fire.

However, just as Huo Jixing came to his senses...

The blazing, golden-red flames, seemingly aided by the biting cold wind, roared and swept over the entire body in an instant.

Startled, Huo Jixing lowered his eyes, his dark pupils reflecting the blazing golden-red flames, and noticed something unusual.

This fire of the South seems not to be a rootless duckweed.

It appears to be engulfing the entire body, but in reality, it is moving along the path of crimson blood.

"Using my blood as fuel?" Huo Jixing pondered, wanting to continue searching for something, but...

Oh! Awooo! Awooo!

Suddenly, a mournful wolf howl rang out, interrupting Huo Jixing's thoughts.

With a slight brow raise, Huo Jixing saw, through the hazy white mist, the Frostfang Giant Wolf leaping into the air to attack, the young Beast Spirit Apprentice wielding his sword, and the many returning raiders.

Those faces, smeared with blood and ashes, displayed a mixture of diverse emotions: fear, horror, ruthlessness, madness, and more.

"Is this because they're afraid of me?!"

As the mournful howls of wolves approached, Huo Jixing, though bowing and kneeling, did not appear as pathetic as before.

Because the Southern Fire enveloping his entire body was scorching everything nearby, including the spiritual power carried in the howling.

"Unfortunately, your plans..."

Huo Jixing grinned, revealing a brutal and cruel smile on his thin face covered in blood.

"It's a failure!"

With a low back and a steady pace, Huo Jixing's feet shattered the ice and snow, burying him deep in the snow.

Then, he twisted his wrist, bending the broken blade to cut through the hazy white mist, and a streak of golden-red flame covered the sword.

In an instant!

In the silent battlefield, on the red and white snow.

Suddenly, countless golden-red flames of Nanli erupted forth, their ferocity, surging power, and swiftness overwhelming the biting wind and drifting snowflakes.

boom!

【Vermilion Bird - Chaotic Dance】

Huo Jixing lightly swung his sword.

The bright yellow, blazing fire of the South suddenly transformed into a raging inferno, with plumes of white mist rising into the air.

In the shadows.

It seemed as if a Vermilion Bird was reflected in the white mist of the snow, its golden-red crown raised, its crimson wings spread, enveloping and concealing the attacking raiders and the Frostfang Giant Wolf.

Rumble!

Fireworks raged, and the Vermilion Bird cried out!

Within the golden-red sea of ​​fire, the flame-covered blade sliced ​​through the hard, thick fabric, penetrating the burly bodies of the raiders. As the sword moved, the flames burned, scorching everything flammable.

The offensive continued. Huo Jixing moved closer to the Frostfang Giant Wolf and the Beast Spirit Apprentice, facing their claws and bone knives directly. He used the momentum of the flaming sword he was holding to spin it, making it fall from the sky like a crimson crescent moon.

Awoo!

On the red and white snow, within the raging golden-red Southern Flame, mournful cries and howls resounded.

Accompanying this was the sound of sword blades cutting through flesh, and the crackling sound of flames burning fur.

At last……

All sound ceased abruptly within the Southern Flame.

Pfft!Pfft!

Amidst the muffled sound, the completely charred carcass of a giant wolf and a head with disheveled hair rose into the air from the fireworks, rolled onto the snow, and clung to the fresh snowflakes.

"A Beast Spirit Apprentice?"

In the scorching fire, Huo Jixing looked down at the rolling head on the ground, then at the charred Frostfang Giant Wolf, a hint of smugness in his expression.

With the power bestowed upon him by the Vermilion Bird, he turned the tide in a desperate situation and saved the day.

And this feeling is truly captivating.

Huo Jixing looked up at the falling snow, wanting to laugh, but suddenly felt a pain in his throat and was extremely thirsty.

Cluck! Cluck! Cluck!

At the same time, a low rumbling sound came from his stomach, and bitter fluid rose in his stomach.

It is hunger and thirst that are attacking!

An intense, overwhelming thirst suddenly arose, assaulting Huo Jixing's senses.

"So hungry! So thirsty!"

Huo Jixing shakily reached out his left hand, trying to touch something.

But the intense hunger seemed to transform into an endless wave, overwhelming Huo Jixing's weak nerves and forcing him to bend over and hunch over.

The Southern Flame that had enveloped his body had been extinguished at some point, with only a few sparks flickering.

"Damn it, what's going on?"

Huo Jixing's expression shifted, and a hint of bloodlust appeared in his dark eyes.

Overwhelmed by a wave of hunger, he began to look around, searching for something, until he saw the broken and charred corpses, and couldn't help but swallow.

"No, that won't do!"

His remaining rationality forced him to look away, but hunger was slowly consuming him, twisting his pale face and trying to drag him into an abyss.

Suddenly!

Huo Jixing raised his sword and ran forward, collapsing into the snow and crawling toward the charred remains of the giant wolf.

With a bent blade, he laboriously cut open the giant wolf's belly, revealing flesh that was half black and half crimson.

Huo Jixing didn't care whether it was raw or cooked. Driven by hunger and thirst, he began to tear and bite, swallowing the flesh and blood without even chewing, and then digesting it.

Perhaps because we ate too quickly, some of the flesh and blood were mixed with snowflakes and dirt and entered our mouths together.

But Huo Jixing now only has one thought left.

Fill your stomach!

Quench your thirst!

Snowflakes fell and blanketed the mountains.

A desolate, cold wind swept across the red and white battlefield.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Huo Jixing lay on the snow, panting heavily. His face and mouth were stained with pieces of flesh and blood. The belly of the giant wolf in front of him was mostly gone, and its internal organs were faintly visible.

Gradually, he began to regain his senses, and a glimmer of light appeared in his dark eyes.

"What exactly happened?" Huo Jixing felt a mix of doubt and lingering fear.

Although the hunger was still there, he could barely suppress it, unlike before when it almost made him lose his mind.

"This is...my hand?"

Huo Jixing was about to get up when he saw his withered hands, which looked as if they had lost all their flesh and blood, when he used his arms.

Loose skin and prominent bones.

The grooves that once filled my palms are now devoid of mud and ice; only wisps of flesh and blood clinging to the bones remain.

Huo Jixing's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly lowered his head.

Only then did he realize that the damaged composite armor no longer fit him, and his once strong and muscular body was now shriveled and ugly, covered in uneven bones, as if dehydrated.

"Damn it!" Huo Jixing cursed under his breath, vaguely understanding the reason.

As he staggered to his feet, he grabbed a handful of snow and stuffed it into his mouth to wash away the strong fishy taste in his mouth.

"star!"

Just as Huo Jixing was observing the battlefield, he heard a familiar shout.

Looking back, he saw DeWitt and Moore walking towards him, supporting each other, with the bodies of the raiders lying around them.

"It seems victory belongs to Noxus!" Huo Jixing thought to himself, a sense of joy rising in his heart. However, when he looked into DeWitt and Moore's eyes, his expression froze.

Fear? Anxiety? And more?

Envy and longing?!

Huo Jixing could see different emotional shifts in their eyes and expressions. Even when they were close enough, they stopped and refused to go forward.

Snowflakes landed on his shoulder, and Huo Jixing's brows furrowed slightly.

He looked down at the surrounding corpses of the raiders, at the burn marks, and at the charred and mangled giant wolf carcass, as if he had gained some insight.

Is there a difference between extraordinary individuals and ordinary people?

"Or perhaps, they are afraid of supernatural power?"

Huo Jixing's thoughts were racing, and he vaguely recalled an article he had read in his previous life about the conflicts on the continent of Valoran.

It had been too long, and he couldn't quite remember the details, but it seemed to be related to the rune wars and various supernatural powers.

It says that even after thousands of years, the effects and damage caused by the Rune Wars still linger on the continent of Valoran, telling the world about the terror of runes and magic.

The Noxian Empire was born on this chaotic land most deeply affected by the Rune Wars, resulting in a scarcity of resources that forced it to rely on war to establish itself.

But within the empire.

The extraordinary represent another class, far beyond the reach of ordinary people and soldiers.

"Congratulations!"

Behind them, in the snow, Captain Eric strode over, patted Hojixing on the shoulder, and said softly.

Huo Jixing turned around and looked at Eric, who was standing nearby, unable to move and severely injured.

His tall, tiger-like body was covered in wounds, and his wild eyes could not hide his sorrow. However, the hideous head he held in his left hand silently spoke of the glory of blood.

"Awakening in the wild, a rare sight indeed!"

Eric looked at Huo Jixing in front of him, a hint of envy rising in the depths of his eyes.

He understood better than anyone else the Empire's thirst for extraordinary power, and he also anticipated what changes would occur after Huo Jixing returned to the camp.

Not only status, but also power, strength, and even if one is powerful enough, a noble title is not a luxury.

"All of this has come at a considerable cost!"

Upon seeing Hojixing's pale, withered face and skeletal frame, Eric realized the corrosive effect of supernatural power on the body.

"But we won, didn't we?"

Huo Jixing seemed to see through Eric's thoughts. He raised the curved longsword in his hand, pointed it at the many corpses in the snow, and said with a smile.

"Victory belongs to Noxus!"

Eric was initially taken aback, then laughed and roared.

"Victory belongs to Noxus!"

"Victory belongs to Noxus!"

"Victory belongs to Noxus!"

On the other side, DeWitt and Moore also walked over slowly, roaring at the same time to vent their emotions and celebrate this hard-won victory.

In the red and white snow.

After a short rest, the remaining survivors finished looting the bloody battlefield and continued their journey back to the Noxian camp along the rugged mountain path.

(End of this chapter)