Landlord World - Start with SSS talent-Chapter 260: No! Run!

Vinelord, for the first time, found someone even more shameless than himself.

But Zeka was right—this body originally belonged to Zeka, not him.

And he couldn't keep controlling it forever. Every time Vinelord took over Zeka's body, it drained a massive amount of energy.

Just during the fight with Alex, Vinelord had nearly exhausted all of his stored energy just to help Zeka escape.

Now, he could no longer assist Zeka, nor could he forcibly control his body to act on his own will.

In the end, Vinelord could only sigh, suppressing the rage burning within his mind.

[Fine, do as you wish. But I want to remind you not to be too merciful. We need to grow stronger—everyone else out there is hunting you.]

"Huh!" Zeka snorted disdainfully. "Evil God, you really are a coward. They're just ordinary Lords—what's there to be so afraid of?"

"Once I get the opportunity hidden in this strange zone, we'll wipe out every single Lord in the Chaotic Region."

"Hahahaha…"

Vinelord fell silent. One second Zeka was talking about mercy,

and the next he was declaring his intent to kill every Lord in the world.

It seemed Zeka's version of humanity held no real kindness—only lust for beautiful women.

Vinelord had no intention of arguing anymore.

At least Zeka still intended to kill other Lords to grow stronger—

that was the last bit of consolation Vinelord had left.

Zeka wanted to carry Elara like a princess,

but realized that in his current condition, his arms weren't capable of that.

In the end, he had no choice but to use a vine from his severed arm to bind Elara and lift her up.

"All right, let's go claim our opportunity," Zeka said confidently,

then took his first steps into Malrik's so-called 'Hell'.

…

"This fire… it's really strange," Zeka muttered as he walked, surveying his surroundings.

The entire area was engulfed in flames—blue-green flames that seemed to have replaced the grass and trees.

The branches bore not leaves, but flickering blue-green fire. And on both sides of the path, instead of meadows, there were entire fields of flame.

Yet these flames gave off no heat—on the contrary, they emitted a chilling coldness, and the gloomy light they cast made the whole place even more terrifying.

[Don't touch it. I have a feeling this fire is extremely dangerous.]

Zeka frowned upon hearing Vinelord's words. "You mean… this fire is dangerous?"

[Yes, I can sense the danger radiating from it. It's best not to touch it.]

Hearing that, Zeka narrowed his eyes, staring at the flames surrounding them. He muttered, "Could it be… the opportunity in this place is this strange fire?"

[What are you talking about? Don't touch it!] Vinelord was genuinely alarmed now.

He could clearly sense that this fire was anything but ordinary.

Even as someone known as the Evil God, he felt a sensation like Death itself was pressing a scythe to his throat the moment he looked at the flames.

And this wasn't even the center of the area. The pillar of fire at the center was far more terrifying.

A flame stretching over 200 meters high—

even if it were ordinary fire, that alone would be terrifying.

But this one…

Zeka, however, didn't seem to feel any fear. On the contrary, he looked excited.

"Hahaha… Vinelord, I can feel it. This fire is the opportunity I've been looking for," Zeka said confidently.

[You're insane! Don't touch it! Leave now—there's no opportunity here at all!]

"Ah, why are you so afraid?" Zeka scoffed, his face filled with contempt. "If we leave now, doesn't that make our entire trip here pointless?"

[Pointless is better than death. I don't want to die.]

"You're such a coward. If you don't risk your life, how are you ever going to obtain great fortune?"

Vinelord sighed and said nothing more. His survival up to this point had come from caution.

If not for his careful nature, he would have been killed long ago by those damned Elves or frozen into a block of ice.

Even if someone eventually broke his seal, he wouldn't have been able to awaken in his current state.

Moreover, Vinelord had the unsettling feeling that some mysterious existence was watching and controlling him.

If he made a single move that displeased or provoked that entity, he was sure he would die.

Vinelord suddenly regretted choosing Zeka as his host.

This bastard wasn't just foolish—he was reckless and overly confident.

So confident, in fact, that he ignored the warnings of an Evil God.

At that moment, Zeka reached out toward the blue-green flame before him.

The moment his fingertip made contact, a bone-chilling cold surged through his body—

followed by countless voices.

"It hurts!"

"Kill me!"

"It hurts! Huhuhu… it hurts so much!"

"Damn it! Damn bastards!"

"So uncomfortable!"

"So hungry! I want to eat!"

Zeka was startled as he heard what sounded like the voices of countless people speaking all at once.

He clutched his head and covered his ears, but the voices continued to echo inside his mind.

"Shut up! Shut up!!!" Zeka screamed in fury.

Vinelord couldn't avoid hearing the voices either.

After all, he was parasitically linked to Zeka's body—so everything Zeka heard, he heard too.

However, being an Evil God, he wasn't so easily shaken by voices inside his head.

But… even if he wasn't frightened, he was still deeply disturbed.

'Strange! Where are these voices coming from? Could it be from inside our minds?' Vinelord muttered in confusion.

Zeka was clutching his head, yet he was laughing rather than showing fear.

"Hahaha… I knew it! This is my opportunity. This fire is something special.

If I can possess it, I'll become invincible."

Zeka flung his arms wide and charged straight toward the flames.

Vinelord couldn't take it anymore.

He used the vines sprouting from Zeka's severed arm to bind him tightly.

"Damn it, Vinelord! What the hell are you doing?! Let me go!" Zeka roared in fury.

'Are you insane?! You're going to die! Can't you feel how dangerous this fire is?'

"Vinelord! I'll say it one more time—this is my opportunity. I have to take it, you…"

Vinelord, hearing that, suddenly realized there was no way to stop Zeka through reasoning anymore.

He would have to find another way.

[Then go to the center.]

Just as Vinelord expected, Zeka immediately stopped when he heard that and asked in confusion, "Why?"

[It seems these flames are just offshoots of the pillar of fire in the center. If you go there, that might be where your so-called opportunity really lies.]

"Ah! You're right." Zeka suddenly understood what Vinelord meant.

Vinelord was right—though the surrounding flames were terrifying, they were merely byproducts of the main pillar in the center.

It seemed his true opportunity lay within that pillar—he needed to reach it and seize what was his.

As Vinelord watched Zeka's growing madness, he understood why the man had become like this.

It was because Zeka had consumed far too much blood in a short period of time, and that blood wasn't ordinary—it was filled with the energy and willpower of those he had drained.

Zeka hadn't just consumed blood—he had also consumed the very wills of those people.

That had slowly twisted his mind, making his thoughts increasingly unstable.

Vinelord had initially planned to let Zeka adapt to his new body step by step, then gradually begin blood absorption to help him acclimate.

But Vinelord had been too eager to escape the snowy world they were trapped in, so he let Zeka absorb far more than he should have.

Even though Zeka had only taken in about a quarter of the blood Vinelord had stored, it was still an immense amount.

The fact that Zeka had remained mentally stable even after that had genuinely surprised Vinelord.

But now, Zeka was beginning to lose control. His personality was warping—though his body remained incredibly strong.

For that reason, Vinelord didn't choose to abandon him for another host. He continued parasitizing Zeka.

Something in Vinelord's instincts told him Zeka was special—that as long as he stayed with him, he would reap unimaginable rewards.

While Vinelord was deep in thought, Zeka had already reached the central zone.

There, he saw the Pillar of Fire—over two hundred meters tall—raging like the wrath of a god. Not just Vinelord—even Zeka felt fear upon seeing it.

Suddenly, Vinelord caught sight of something inside the pillar. He shouted in panic:

[No! Run! Hurry—now!]