Chapter 39: Devouring the Heavenly Flame
Xiao Tian sped along his journey until he found a suitable location at the edge of the desert. There, he carved out a cave in the mountains. Once inside, he placed the Green Lotus on the ground and took out the jade bottles containing the Ice Spirit Cold Spring.
At this moment, Yao Lao flicked his finger, and a faint gray light fell before Xiao Tian. It was a thumb-sized gray stone, smooth as jade without any blemishes. Within its core, a faint blue glow moved like a small, living creature.
"Is this the Spirit Stone?" Xiao Tian asked as he examined the gray stone. Only this rare treasure could withstand the destructive power of the Heavenly Flame.
Yao Lao sighed, "This Spirit Stone is incredibly rare, only appearing occasionally within high-grade storage stones. If I hadn't been fortunate enough to acquire an extra piece, you wouldn't be able to devour the Heavenly Flame now."
Xiao Tian nodded, acknowledging Yao Lao's significant role in his early progress. He then turned his gaze to the flame. "It's time to start."
With that, Xiao Tian's skin quickly transformed into a bronze color as he activated the Copper Thunder Body. He then flashed to the top of the Green Lotus.
"Boom!"
His sudden presence immediately attracted the attention of the previously calm Heavenly Flame.
"Hiss!"
Even with his strengthened body, Xiao Tian's skin was burned, blood flowing from his wounds. These were merely superficial injuries, terrifying to look at but not life-threatening as his body continuously healed itself. Xiao Tian quickly drank a bottle of Ice Spirit Cold Spring and swiftly grabbed the source fire from within the flame.
The source fire was a blue, magma-like liquid that writhed slightly in his grasp. After a brief hesitation, Xiao Tian swallowed it. Thanks to the Ice Spirit Cold Spring, the initial impact of the source fire was mitigated, but the spring's cooling power was soon consumed by the flame's immense heat. Xiao Tian's entire body began to convulse violently as if struck by lightning.
The temperature of the Heavenly Flame was simply too high. Even his thunder-tempered body struggled to withstand it. Without the multiple times he weakened the flame, the process would have been unimaginably difficult.
In this dire situation, Xiao Tian drank another bottle of Ice Spirit Cold Spring, using its power to drive the source fire along the path of the Burning Incantation. As more bottles were consumed, the source fire finally completed one circuit through his meridians. The Green Lotus Core Flame began to establish a connection with him.
Seeing this, Yao Lao nodded slightly and sent the Spirit Stone into Xiao Tian's body. Despite the significant amount of Ice Spirit Cold Spring used, the Heavenly Flame continued to damage Xiao Tian's body. Instead of storing the flame in the Spirit Stone right away, Xiao Tian persisted in guiding the source fire through his meridians along the Burning Incantation's path.
Because the flame had already been partially refined, it now emitted a gentle energy, repairing and transforming Xiao Tian's body. This transformation made his body even more resilient. After his body was repaired, Xiao Tian drove the flame into the Spirit Stone, completing the refinement of the Green Lotus Core Flame.
Upon sensing his enhanced body, Xiao Tian realized his strength had increased by one star, now reaching the level of a six-star Dou Master.
"Next, I'll evolve the Burning Incantation," he thought, summoning the Green Lotus Core Flame to merge it with the Burning Incantation. Sensing danger, the refined flame resisted, erupting into a wild blaze intent on incinerating Xiao Tian.
Faced with this unexpected ferocity, Xiao Tian drank all remaining Ice Spirit Cold Spring. Yet, this time the Green Lotus Core Flame was even more violent, and the spring's power was barely enough to guide it halfway.
"Damn it, why is it so easy for others but so dangerous for me?" Xiao Tian felt exasperated, sensing his body on the brink of collapse. He thought his meticulous planning had gone to waste, and he was nearing despair.
Just then, the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python on his wrist awoke. The small snake opened its mouth, generating a terrifying suction that drew all the blue flames into its body. With the python's help, Xiao Tian finally managed to guide the flame into the Burning Incantation's space.
"I remember now, in the original story, Xiao Yan also needed the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python to refine the Green Lotus Core Flame," Xiao Tian recalled. He felt a sense of relief. If he hadn't sought out Queen Medusa and taken the python, he would have faced certain death unless he gave up on the Burning Incantation or waited until he was much stronger.
Xiao Tian slowly opened his eyes, his pupils flickering with blue flames. Yao Lao floated over, concerned. "How did it go? Did you succeed?"
"I did," Xiao Tian nodded. "Not only has my strength increased by one level, but the Burning Incantation has also evolved to the high-grade Xuan class."
"Excellent," Yao Lao smiled. "With another flame, it will reach the Di class. Three or four more flames and it could become Tian class. If you collect all the Heavenly Flames, it might even surpass Tian class!"
Knowing that there were other worlds beyond Dou Qi Continent, Yao Lao believed in the existence of transcendent techniques and skills.
"Heh, finding more flames isn't that easy," Xiao Tian shook his head. Although he knew the original story, locating all the flames was a different challenge altogether, unless he reached the Dou Emperor level and could summon the world's flames.
(End of Chapter)