The flow of time seemed irrelevant within the Mystic Realm as Xiao Ming's transformation continued its course.
Days blurred into each other, but his body, encased in a frozen aura, began to settle into a tenuous state of balance.
His once feverish writhing had now calmed into a steady, controlled rhythm as he endured the taxing duality of the Shadow Phoenix's Natal Flame and the primal chill of the Ancient Dao Body.
The cyan Shadow Flame flickered and surged, its aura sending out ripples of heat that, when they touched Xiao Ming's skin, puffed outward like an ethereal mist.
The heat was unbearable—an ever-present reminder of the fire consuming him from within. But as the days passed, the flame began to behave differently.
Xiao Ming's subconscious desire to control the fiery force, to retract it from his skin, surged within him, and with great effort, he did just that.
