Otherworldly Affairs Office-Chapter 716: Candle Dragon Appears (Subscribe Plea)

Pei Yan, who had swallowed numerous essence fragments and could even condense pure energy fragments himself, was undoubtedly the most familiar with essence fragments. However, even he was taken aback by the fragment extracted from Li Songtao's body. Unlike the essence fragments from other foundational planes with their alluring azure clarity, this fragment was dark gray. Through its semi-transparent crystal surface, one could clearly see the liquid energy flowing slowly inside.

When Lin Junzhao extracted it from Li Songtao's body, the already cold and damp dungeon dropped in temperature even further. Even though he wasn't controlling his own body, Pei Yan could vividly sense the evil energy seeping from the fragment. Until today, Pei Yan had thought of "evil" as an abstract term, but now, witnessing it in a tangible form, he finally believed some could materialize it so plainly. Staring at it or contacting it longer seemed to corrupt the soul, dragging one's spirit into degeneration.

Seeing this, Pei Yan involuntarily glanced at Li Songtao, bound on the rack, observing his expression of relief after liberation. Now, Pei Yan understood the deep-seated hatred and fear he had toward the Candle Dragon.

As an observer, Pei Yan attentively noticed these details. However, Lin Junzhao, who was truly in control of the body and orchestrating the separation of the essence fragment, was far from relaxed. She assumed that the fragment, once divided from her body and now back in her possession, would easily come under her control. Yet, after the Candle Dragon had modified it, the fragment resisted her fiercely. Now seized by her, it showed signs of self-collapse, displaying a determination of preferring destruction over assimilation.

After strenuous efforts to stabilize the fragment, Lin Junzhao signaled to others. She led the process to expel the impurities entwined within the fragment that did not belong to its inherent rules. Elder Lin, who had been prepared on the side, immediately released his own essence, forming a Source Energy Bridge in the air. The expelled evil impurities were fed through this bridge, entering the body of a Red Armored Warrior bound to an iron pillar. Once connected, the Red Armored Warrior, without additional compulsion from Lin Junzhao, greedily absorbed the evil energy like an insatiable vacuum.

"Something seems off?" Lin Junzhao frowned in surprise at the scene.

"Wh-what's wrong?" Pei Yan wondered within.

"I had you find five people to bear and dispel the energy because I discovered that the impurities mixed within the fragment of my own essence contained an evil energy. Only by leveraging this energy's parasitic and greedy nature towards living beings could we entirely remove the foreign force imposed by the Candle Dragon. But..." Lin Junzhao turned toward the Red Armored Warrior, who displayed a mix of pain with an excitable thrill, and in shock, she said, "This evil energy, filled with various negative emotions, should be excruciatingly painful for any being and avoided at all costs. Why does this Red Armored Warrior seem to relish it so effortlessly? It's not the energy forcing its way into him, but rather him forcibly absorbing it!"

The initial plan to use five captives was due to concerns that one person might not withstand the energy, hoping for shared burdening. Now it seemed that the single Red Armored Warrior intended to absorb the entire force alone.

"No! We can't let him absorb any more."

Seeing the Red Armored Warrior's emaciated body swell continuously, straining his shackles and causing them to groan, even the spectators realized the anomaly. Lin Junzhao, perceiving the imminent danger, shouted urgently, aiming to cut off the energy transfer to another individual. Yet, to her dismay, the energy defied her control, deliberately opposing her action and increasing its output rate.

"This energy actually has its own consciousness!" Lin Junzhao exclaimed in shock. In that brief moment, the modified essence fragment had already restored to a clear azure hue, all the evil energy fully infiltrating the Red Armored Warrior.

Now, the Red Armored Warrior's body ceased its tremors, his arms hanging limply, head slumped against his shoulder as if unconscious. Just as everyone in the room let out a sigh, assuming the event had concluded, the Red Armored Warrior suddenly raised his head and emitted a strange hiss from his throat, facing upward. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Upon hearing the uncanny sound, everyone's nerves instantly tightened. Xia Yu reacted first, controlling the iron pillar to sprout numerous iron thorns firmly entangling the individual inside and out. Just then, the Red Armored Warrior lowered his head, scanning every soul present until his eyes sharpened upon seeing Pei Yan. After spitting out a black mist, he languidly spoke, "So, it's you who broke my spell. Turns out it's the essence, or rather, you couldn't do it if it were anyone else. It seems you've been doing well since escaping from me, hasn't it?"

Stunned and having their essence directly seen through, Lin Junzhao and Pei Yan were momentarily caught off guard before they both exclaimed in unison, "Candle Dragon?"

Confronted with their questioning, the body possessed by the mind did not immediately respond. Instead, it idly swayed, its motion sparking once again the nerves of those present. Knowledge that this might be the Divine Desire Leader, Candle Dragon, heightened the tension within the room, readying everyone for battle.

"No need to be so tense; this is but a trace of consciousness I harbored within the fragment," Candle Dragon spoke, drawing Pei Yan into deep shock as his entire body turned into a red mist, effortlessly slipping free from the chains binding him. Under everyone's shocked gaze, he resumed human form.

In the blink of an eye, he had transformed a Red Armored Warrior, originally devoid of Demon Race Essence Blood, into a Demon Race body capable of vapor magical arts!

"Ah, this body is far too weak. It cannot bear my power. Ugh! Seems it will disperse into nothingness in minutes without your interference." Looking down at his left arm, which failed to remain consolidated and crumbled into ash, the Red Armored Warrior wore a look of regret before turning his gaze toward Li Songtao, bound on the instruments of torture. With a mocking smile on his lips, he said, "Hahaha, I had originally thought you wouldn't endure my power, leading you to plead with your uncle to extract the fragment. Sadly, all this time, you've made no progress, not only allowing yourself to be captured alive but also having your essence fragment separation unraveled before others. Ah! What a disappointment, wasting the sideline chess piece I placed."'