The instant Green Lotus Core Flame passed through Ya Fei's throat; it split and spread throughout her body.
Ya Fei's body trembled, and blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. It was just the beginning.
The wild nature of the Green Lotus Core Flame was unleashed. It burned everything in its path.
As it passed through her Qi Pathways, the flame's high temperature melted the icy coating covering the pathways; in the same instant, white mist reformed the white covering.
Like an unending cycle, the process repeated; two elements, ice and fire, raged within her body.
It was only the beginning. The foundation Xiao Ning reshaped for her only provided Ya Fei with the opportunity to refine the heavenly flame. To succeed, she needed to rely on her willpower and luck.
Xiao Ning sat across her and watched. From time to time, golden light flickered in his eyes, proving that his mood was not as calm as he looked.
...
As the Green Lotus Core Flame completed the first revolution, it severely damaged Ya Fei's qi pathways and burned through most of her body. Red patches appeared on her flawless skin, and the cave's temperature rose.
Ya Fei constantly trembled. It didn't take long for her body to be covered with blood. Even then, she didn't scream and continued to endure the hellish pain.
As the heavenly flame continued to rampage throughout her body, wisps of it started seeping into her qi cyclone. The actual test began.
Wisps of green-colored flame drilled through her qi pathways and rushed into her qi cyclone, and like a snake seeing its prey, it started swallowing Ya Fei's dou qi.
In no time, the wisps of Green Lotus Core Flame grew thicker and began to merge; soon, a miniature green lotus appeared in the center of her qi cyclone.
With the emergence of the green lotus, it began to gather the wisps of heavenly flame spread throughout her body. Soon, a dangerous aura spread out with the green lotus as its center.
From the outside, one could see a green color appearing on Ya Fei's abdomen.
Xiao Ning's face showed a stunned expression as he saw this change.
Even with his experience over the years, he couldn't help but show a weird expression. Out of all the results, the current scene was the one he had never expected.
...
The moment Green Lotus Core Flame started gathering in Ya Fei's qi cyclone, the high-tier pill Xiao Ning gave her showed its effect. A thick pure aura emerged in her body; it isolated the heavenly flame.
In this pure aura, specks of golden light gathered and formed a drop of blood. A noble and primal atmosphere lingered around it. One could even faintly hear the dragon's roar from within the blood.
Because of Green Lotus Core Flame's rampage, Ya Fei's body was on the verge of collapsing; but with the emergence of the pure aura, it stabilized. The vitality released from the medicinal pill formed a barrier and enclosed the heavenly flame within it.
...
Within the barrier, a mysterious change took place. It was as if the golden drop of blood had its own spirituality, and after sensing the hostility from the heavenly flame, its form changed. The arrogance hidden deeply within Xiao Ning's Dou God bloodline got inspired by the heavenly flame.
The drop of blood transformed into a golden dragon with a dark-golden flame as its body. The destructive aura released by the dark-golden flame was no less than the green lotus.
The golden dragon roared and rushed toward the green lotus. Relying on their instincts, the two clashed many times.
If it wasn't for the barrier transformed by the high-tier pill, Ya Fei's body would have long turned to ashes.
...
In a separate semi-real spiritual plane, Ya Fei's consciousness stood alone, surrounded by darkness. She looked around in confusion.
"Am I dead?"
Unfortunately, there was no one else present to answer her. In the end, she picked a direction at random and moved forward.
Even after being alone in a strange place, surrounded by darkness, Ya Fei showed no weakness, and her face showed a calm and confident expression.
After walking for an unknown period, Ya Fei raised her charming face and looked up. She finally heard strange voices.
A soft voice asked for her help, and the other was the dragon's roar full of nobility.
Confusion flashed across her pretty face. Ya Fei could sense she had a connection with the owners of both voices.
As she wished, Ya Fei's spiritual body vanished from the spot and appeared in another place. Unlike before, there was no darkness; instead, it was divided into dark-golden and green colors representing different camps.
Two unknown creatures appeared in front of her. A dragon wrapped in dark golden flame, and a ball of light sitting on top of the green lotus.
Ya Fei stood stunned, and she couldn't understand what was happening.
"No! Why do they seem so familiar?" After taking a deep look, Ya Fei seemed to guess the reason.
'The green lotus and the ball of light on top of it must be the manifestation of the heavenly flame. If so, the dragon must be Xiao Ning,' she thought.
"It is all happening within me," Ya Fei muttered as a helpless expression appeared on her face.
...
The two continued to collide and break the other's defense; Ya Fei stood aside as the only spectator.
With no concept of time in this strange place, she couldn't tell how long had passed. Still, Ya Fei could see the result was around the corner.
The dragon had overpowered the heavenly flame, and it was only a matter of time before it devoured the green lotus.
At this moment, the ball of light flickered and sought help from Ya Fei. It conveyed its thoughts directly to her mind.
The next instant, a shock appeared on Ya Fei's face. She never thought that Green Lotus Core Flame would possess such intelligence.
Ya Fei glanced thoughtfully; finally, she decided to help the latter. The dragon seemed to have guessed her intention and roared, showing dissatisfaction. Yet, it stopped attacking.