Evan Chu felt a jolt of fear—had this thing seen through him? But Luna had said that the Earthfire Wraith’s intelligence was only child-level, so tricking it shouldn’t be hard. Right now, its reaction was probably just instinct, thinking Evan meant it harm. Honestly, with its strength, the only one who’d get hurt here was Evan himself.
“You’re seriously my biggest idol! Your mastery of fire element is hands-down the best in the world, and with power like yours, how could I ever dare lie to you?” Evan gritted his teeth and said, enduring the pain.
The Earthfire Wraith looked Evan over, decided he didn’t seem to be lying, and said, “At least you know what’s good for you and recognize my power. There are plenty of fire wraiths in this earth-fire, but most aren’t fully formed yet. I’m the only one with true intelligence—meeting me is your lucky day.”
Evan finally breathed a sigh of relief—at least he wouldn’t get swallowed for now. Being weak really was suffering, and his hunger for power burned even stronger.
“Evan pays respects to the Great King! Seeing your true form is my greatest honor—please accept this Phantasite as a greeting gift!” Evan said respectfully, though deep down he wished he could cut the thing down right now. Too bad he didn’t have the strength.
The Earthfire Wraith eyed the yellow-glowing stone in Evan’s hand and laughed, “Kid, you know how to please me. I’ll accept your gift!”
As soon as it finished speaking, Evan felt a sudden suction—his Phantasite shot out of his hand and vanished in a blink.
Evan hadn’t expected the Earthfire Wraith’s control over force to be so precise. He quickly said, “Great King, your command of fire element is so pure—could you teach me how you do it?”
“Kid, you’re not bad yourself. Lasting this long in the earth-fire means you’ve got a solid grasp of fire element. I’m in a good mood today, so I’ll teach you a thing or two.” said the Earthfire Wraith.
“Great King, the earth-fire here is way too hot—I’m almost at my limit. Could you drop the temperature a little? I’m afraid I’ll get roasted before you even finish talking!” Evan pleaded. If you’re going to con someone, you’ve got to do it right—always steer things toward your own goals.
“You really are a handful. Got any more glowing stuff on you? I’m very interested in things that shine. If you can satisfy me, maybe I’ll give you a little unexpected surprise.” said the Earthfire Wraith.
Then the Earthfire Wraith opened its huge mouth—a powerful suction flared up around Evan, but it didn’t touch him at all. In moments, half the surrounding fire-element particles were sucked away, and the leaping earth-fire flames weakened a lot.
Evan instantly felt the temperature drop—a level he could actually handle. He’d always wanted to resonate with these fire elements, but couldn’t. Right now, he could only connect with ordinary flame particles.
Most of what was here were earth-fire element particles, and since his Fireshift hadn’t broken through to the second layer, it was impossible for him to connect with them. Evan hurriedly fished out dozens of Starstones from his storage ring. Their glow was weaker than Phantasite, but the energy inside was obvious.
The Earthfire Wraith saw the Starstones in Evan’s hand, and its lantern-sized eyes grew even wider. “What are those? I can sense energy waves on them—they look really helpful to me.”
“Great King, these are Star Crystals—a very noble kind of energy stone. I risked my life to get them, and now I’m giving them all to you! Hope they’re useful!” Evan said. He knew the Earthfire Wraith had no clue about storage rings or how many treasures he really had.
The Earthfire Wraith was instantly delighted. “Excellent! I see your grasp of fire element is just average. Tell me exactly why—if I can help, just say so. You’re the first human I’ve seen in millions of years. You’re human, right? I vaguely recall that race exists.”
While it spoke, it sucked away all the Starstones from Evan’s hand. Every one was top-grade, and Evan’s heart ached—he was paying a heavy price, but he had to get those Glassfire Crystals.
“Thank you for your kindness, Great King—Evan is honored! I’m cultivating a fire-element martial art, but I’ve hit a bottleneck. Without strong fire-element energy stones to absorb, I just can’t break through. Do you understand bottlenecks, Great King?” Evan said.
Inside, though, he was laughing to himself: 'If this doesn’t make you hand over those Glassfire Crystals, I don’t know what will. Millions of years and you’re still this weak, with intelligence so pathetic I’ve got you floating with a few words. Great King? More like a complete idiot.'
“Of course I know! I know all about that. If there’s anything I’ve got in abundance, it’s fire-element crystals. Take a look—are these enough?” said the Earthfire Wraith, and dozens of basin-sized Fire Crystals appeared in front of Evan.
Evan wasn’t interested in those Fire Crystals. They were big, but couldn’t help him break through, so he said, “Great King, I think I’ll pass. I got some Fire Crystals from a volcano before—not as big as yours, but still quite a few. They can’t help me advance anymore.”
“Oh, I see. Well, wait a moment!” said the Earthfire Wraith. Soon, a batch of Flameheart Crystals appeared—much higher-grade than Fire Crystals. If Evan absorbed them, he might have a shot at breaking Fireshift’s second layer, but he knew the wraith still had better stuff. No way was he settling for Flameheart Crystals.
If he accepted these, the wraith might never give him the Glassfire Crystals, so he said, “The energy in these Flameheart Crystals is excellent—super rare fire-element material—but it still can’t help me break through at my current level.”
The Earthfire Wraith’s massive body shifted, as if thinking hard. After a few breaths, it finally said, “Kid, since you gave me the finest treasures, I can’t be stingy. Wait here—I’ll go to the heart of the earth-fire and fetch you some Glassfire Crystals.”
As soon as it finished speaking, the Earthfire Wraith vanished in front of Evan. Only now did Evan let out a solid breath—conning creatures like this is exhausting. It’s way more tiring than fighting three hundred rounds with an enemy; mainly, it’s mentally draining.
“Evan, congrats! You’re finally about to get Glassfire Crystals. Once your Fireshift breaks through to the second layer, you’ll see just how terrifying its power can be,” Luna said.