In the next breath, that single mark fractured into countless microscopic runes. They spread like a swarm of luminous insects, burrowing into the flame's surface, merging and binding.
Li Mei's eyes grew cold. Her voice remained silent, but her intent was merciless. She began erasing the flame's spiritual essence without hesitation. Cruel? Perhaps. Necessary? Absolutely. If she didn't strip the flame of its will, she would never be able to fully colonize it. And this flame—anything left behind by the Alchemical Saint—was not something one treated lightly.
If she didn't take total control… catastrophe was guaranteed.
The once-brilliant flame shrank rapidly, compressing into itself until it was no larger than a single marble, glowing faintly like a captured star. Li Mei's cherry-pink lips parted gently.
She swallowed it whole.
