Chapter 480 481: Collecting the Dao Essence

The mention of affinity gave Chen Dong a headache. He was well aware of his own luck, and affinity was closely tied to it. Even though he cultivated a Fire Technique, hearing this instantly drained him of all confidence.

Zisang Jin continued, "I already possess a Dao Essence, so I cannot refine a second one. Moreover, its attribute conflicts with my own. You all can step forward and try dripping your blood essence on it. If the Dao Essence chooses you, it will merge into your body."

At once, no one stepped forward. Even Jiang Hongqin and the others suppressed their greed and looked toward Chen Dong. They owed this opportunity in large part to Chen Dong, second only to Peak Master Zisang. In terms of strength, they didn't dare to take the lead either. Besides, how could they fail to see that the relationship between Peak Master Zisang and Chen Dong was anything but shallow?

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Chen Dong didn't hesitate. He stepped forward and dripped two drops of blood essence from his palm onto the Anger-Burning Heaven Dao Essence.

Instantly, SIZZLE! With two sizzling sounds, Chen Dong's blood essence was incinerated by the flames, which showed no reaction at all.

Chen Dong slapped his forehead. 'Just as I thought! To hell with affinity and luck!'

Xu Fu couldn't help but cover his mouth to stifle a laugh, feeling a wave of smugness. 'As long as Chen Dong doesn't get the Dao Essence, I still have a chance.'

Annoyed, Chen Dong looked at Murong Qing. "You go!"

'If Murong Qing gets it, it's no different from me getting it myself. Her bloodline might be of the water and ice variety, but what if it works? Since it all comes down to affinity anyway, there's no harm in trying.'

No one had any objections. Murong Qing walked up and dripped two drops of her blood essence as well, but the flames once again incinerated it completely.

Sigh! Chen Dong let out a soft sigh. Afterward, Liu Ling and Meng Yingluo went up one by one, but the result was the same. Neither could merge with the Dao Essence.

Xu Fu grew even more excited. 'It's mine! The Dao Essence is mine! Surviving a great disaster is bound to bring good fortune. I was gravely injured and my cultivation level dropped, but if I can just merge with this Dao Essence, it will all be worth it.'

To this day, both he and Zhang Tashan believed their cultivation levels had dropped because of their severe injuries. Who knows what Meng Yingluo had made them dream, but they hadn't the slightest suspicion.

Xu Fu took two deep breaths, walked forward, and solemnly dripped out two drops of his blood essence.

'Merge. It has to merge.'

Again, SIZZLE! The two sounds instantly plunged him into despair. He staggered back two steps and sat on the ground, his expression completely vacant.

Zisang Jin shook her head helplessly. She had truly hoped someone would be able to merge with the Dao Essence. No matter who it was, it would have increased the power of the Human Race.

Jiang Hongqin and Zhang Tashan also went up to try one after another, but the result remained the same. The Dao Essence would not merge with any of them.

Sigh! This time, it was Zisang Jin's turn to sigh.

Unwilling to give up, Xu Fu went up to try again. This time, he dripped out dozens of drops of blood essence in a row. His face, already pale from his heavy injuries, turned even more ghastly. The result was still a relentless sizzling sound.

"Are we really going to just leave this Dao Essence here?" Zhang Tashan asked.

Zisang Jin shook her head slightly. "There's nothing else we can do. You can try to see if you can take it with you, but remember, do not use force!"

Zhang Tashan nodded. He first took out a jade box, wanting to place the Dao Essence inside. The jade box was quite valuable, designed to store Tier Three Spiritual Objects without letting their Spiritual Qi dissipate. For an expedition team like theirs, such items were essential.

But before the jade box could even be closed, it burst into flames, turning to molten slag in an instant.

Still not ready to give up, Zhang Tashan then took out a storage pouch, intending to put the Dao Essence directly inside. But the storage pouch simply couldn't take it in. He then tried to just cover it with the pouch, but the pouch instantly burned to ash.

"This..." Zhang Tashan shook his head in defeat.

Stroking his chin, Chen Dong asked, "What would happen if we tried to take it by force?"

Zisang Jin immediately said with a grave expression, "Absolutely not. The backlash from something that contains a law is no small matter. Even a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator who has comprehended a law could be killed instantly!"

Chen Dong, who had been tempted to try, instantly dismissed the thought.

To see a supreme treasure right in front of you but be unable to take it—the heartache was like a knife to the chest!

Everyone stared at the Anger-Burning Heaven Dao Essence, their expressions pained as if they were losing a part of themselves.

As Chen Dong stared at it, he suddenly asked, "What about using Divine Sense?"

Xu Fu scoffed, "Divine Sense? We've all scanned it with our Divine Sense countless times. There was no reaction at all!"

Zisang Jin mused, "I've never heard of someone at the Divinity Transformation Stage being able to subdue something with Divine Sense. If you sent a wisp of your consciousness into it, it would likely just be burned to nothing!"

For the first time since being ambushed by the Demon Race, Xu Fu finally found a moment to feel superior. He sneered again, "If Divine Sense actually worked, did you think we would have waited for you to suggest it? You're truly..."

However, under his mocking gaze, the Dao Essence flew directly into Chen Dong's brow and vanished.

He stammered out two words, "Utterly... ridiculous," his expression freezing on the spot.

Everyone else was just as shocked as him, looking as if they had just seen a ghost.

They stared dazedly at Chen Dong, but the Dao Essence was not visible on his brow. What was going on?

"Master, how did you do that?" The most anxious of all was Liu Ling. She knew the location of another Dao Essence, and Chen Dong had just managed to take this one directly, without even being chosen by it.

But Chen Dong was as happy as if he'd just gotten a new toy.

"Haha!" With a laugh, he pulled the Anger-Burning Heaven Dao Essence out from his brow, then put it back in, then pulled it out again.

"Haha, see how simple that was? Now we can take it with us!"

His little demonstration left the already shocked crowd even more stunned. A Dao Essence, the very representation of a law, could be taken away so casually???

'Are we dreaming?' Everyone was dumbfounded.

Zisang Jin quickly asked, "Won't you suffer a backlash from the law for doing that?"

Chen Dong chuckled. "Nope!" As he spoke, he once again retracted the Dao Essence into his sea of consciousness, placing it before the Fire Phoenix to be kept under its control.