As Xiao Yan spoke, the Heavenly Fire Venerable was taken aback. He then smiled and said, “Tell me more.” Xiao Yan’s gaze was fixed intently on the Heavenly Fire Venerable. He said in a soft voice, “I hope, if Elder really has the day to recover your strength, you can protect me for one year.”
“Protect you for a year?” Upon hearing this, the Heavenly Fire Venerable was first stunned, then a smile with a hint of deeper meaning appeared on his face. “Little one, you’re not at a loss, are you? Do you actually want me to be your guard for a year? You should know that a Dou Zun powerhouse is not something that ordinary people can hire easily.”
Xiao Yan smiled and said, “A year’s time is but a snap of the fingers for someone as strong as Elder. Moreover, I know that as long as Elder can successfully repair your soul, even if it means reviving again, it’s not too difficult. I think this should be enough to engage Elder’s services for a year, right?”
“You little rascal indeed have a silver tongue. Guarding you for a year is not a big problem, of course, under the condition that you can repair my soul. With my current soul strength, I can’t sustain it for many years.”
The Heavenly Fire Venerable pondered for a moment, then nodded slowly and solemnly.
“Rest assured, Elder. Repairing souls is not new to me; I have some experience. Though your soul is heavily injured, it’s not irreparable,” Xiao Yan said with a smile. He inherited many medicinal formulas from Pill Elder, including ones for repairing souls, though the required herbs were rare and would take considerable time to find.
“I hope I haven’t misjudged…,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable gave Xiao Yan a deep look, then without hesitation, tossed the Falling Heart Flame in his hand towards Xiao Yan.
Carefully catching the Falling Heart Flame, Xiao Yan could feel its fragility. Suppressing his joy, he quickly took out the ‘Fire Gathering Pot’ and gently placed it inside.
As the Falling Heart Flame fell into the ‘Fire Gathering Pot’, a faint warmth rose, and Xiao Yan clearly felt an intangible fluctuation spreading out. Being familiar with the Falling Heart Flame, he knew this was exactly what the Blaze Training Tower needed…
Having resolved the troubles in the Inner Academy, Xiao Yan let out a sigh of relief. With a wave of his hand, he stowed the ‘Fire Gathering Pot’ into his storage ring. Then, he waved the ‘Five Cycle Separating Fire Technique’ towards the Heavenly Fire Venerable and said, “Then I’ll accept this graciously.”
With that, he also put away the scroll into his storage ring.
Seeing Xiao Yan’s actions, the Heavenly Fire Venerable couldn’t help but shake his head in exasperation. Holding the snowy-white storage ring, he looked at the pile of bones and sighed, “Please pack up these bones. A Dou Zun’s skeletal remains have some special uses.”
Xiao Yan naturally wouldn’t refuse this request. With a wave of his hand, a suction force emerged, drawing the pile of bones into his storage ring.
After completing this, Xiao Yan clapped his hands and turned his gaze outside the light barrier. In the red lava, there seemed to be no sign of the flame lizard people. However, having been caught once, Xiao Yan knew these creatures were hard to detect in the lava. It was possible they would be discovered upon stepping out. Currently, Xiao Yan couldn’t handle so many lizard people. Besides, according to the Heavenly Fire Venerable, there were lizard people here with the strength to match a Dou Zun. If Xiao Yan met one of that level, escaping might be very hard.
“The flame lizard people are extremely sensitive to the flow of lava. Any slight movement in the lava will be detected by them. Coupled with their large numbers, the more you kill, the more they come. Eventually, they may even attract the true powerhouses of their clan. At that time, it would become troublesome,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable reminded. He needed Xiao Yan to help restore his soul and wouldn’t let him be torn apart by the lizard people.
Xiao Yan nodded slightly and frowned, “Above this lava is the Jia Nan Academy. If these fellows ever breach it, the consequences would be unimaginable…”
“Don’t worry, these creatures can only survive in lava. Without it, they die like fish out of water,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable said calmly.
Xiao Yan heaved a sigh of relief and forced a smile, “I wonder how these guys appeared. Nature truly has its wonders. This isn’t even the bottom of the lava. What else could be down there…”
Before he could finish, Xiao Yan’s words were cut off. He noticed an indescribable fear on the Heavenly Fire Venerable’s face.
Looking at the fear on the Heavenly Fire Venerable’s face, Xiao Yan suddenly felt a chill run up his spine. Dammit, what kind of terrifying place is this? For a former Dou Zun to show such a look…
An eerie and mysterious atmosphere filled the space. After a long while, it was broken by the Heavenly Fire Venerable’s ragged breathing.
“Little one, since you’re helping me, I advise you not to get curious about going further down. I don’t know what lies below, but I can sense a terrifying presence there…”
The Heavenly Fire Venerable took a deep breath, shaking his head and speaking slowly.
Seeing the seriousness on his face, Xiao Yan swallowed and quickly nodded. Something that could make a Dou Zun so afraid, could there be a Dou Sage-level existence at the bottom of this lava world?
“I sensed it faintly when my body was collapsing. Otherwise, it’s nearly impossible to detect. Sometimes, I wonder if these flame lizards are guardians of the bottom of the lava world,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable said slowly.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Xiao Yan found this boundless lava world increasingly mysterious. It not only spawned two types of Falling Heart Flames but also bred strange species like the flame lizard people. Even at the very bottom, there was a terrifying existence that made even Dou Zuns fearful.
“Seems like we need to leave here soon…” Muttering to himself, Xiao Yan decided to leave this wretched lava world as soon as possible. This place was too oppressive.
“To leave, you should first recover your strength. With your current Dou Qi, it will be hard to reach the surface smoothly. Here is safe. Don’t worry about being discovered. You can cultivate the ‘Five Cycle Separating Fire Technique’ safely. You possess heavenly fire, so using this fire control technique will greatly increase its power,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable said.
Xiao Yan nodded. The previous battle had drained him significantly. To avoid being discovered again, he must stay at peak condition.
With this thought, Xiao Yan quickly sat cross-legged, ready to start his cultivation. But his mind moved, and his fingers flicked, revealing a red orb. This was the item he extracted from the flame lizard people.
“Fire Essence Orb?” Seeing the red orb, the Heavenly Fire Venerable was slightly surprised. “I didn’t expect you to find such a treasure in the lizards. It contains rich fire energy but is too violent. Consuming it is risky.”
Xiao Yan smiled. What fire energy could be more violent than heavenly fire? With two different fires, he could refine and absorb it forcefully…
Tossing the red orb into his mouth, it entered like a flame, and Xiao Yan’s skin turned red.
Seeing Xiao Yan ignore his warning and swallow the fire essence, the Heavenly Fire Venerable frowned. Then, he chuckled, remembering Xiao Yan’s possession of heavenly fire.
Staring at Xiao Yan, as his skin returned to normal, the Heavenly Fire Venerable nodded and, gazing at the red lava above, sighed, “Never thought I’d see the light of day again. Fate sure is kind to me…”
Xiao Yan finished refining the fire orb in about twenty minutes. Feeling the rapid replenishment of Dou Qi in his body, he was overjoyed, “Truly a good supplement. Relying on these orbs, I should reach the Six-star Battle Emperor. But now, we need to leave…”
Feeling his Dou Qi fill up, Xiao Yan heaved a sigh of relief.
“Later, I’ll use all my spatial power to conceal the lava movements for you. You need to act quickly. I can’t maintain this for long,” the Heavenly Fire Venerable said, smiling.
Xiao Yan nodded, grateful for not acting rashly. Though severely weakened, the Heavenly Fire Venerable wasn’t as helpless as he claimed.
The Heavenly Fire Venerable formed a hand seal, and the white storage ring automatically slipped onto Xiao Yan’s finger. His hazy figure darted into the storage ring, and a faint fluctuation spread from the ring. The light barrier before Xiao Yan slowly split open…
As the barrier cracked, Xiao Yan stepped out, turning into a green shadow, shooting out like lightning. Meanwhile, a faint spatial force from the white storage ring immobilized the surrounding lava.
Neither Xiao Yan nor the Heavenly Fire Venerable noticed a massive pillar of light, several feet tall, slowly opening in the distant red lava at the bottom, like… eyes.
Cutting silently through the lava, Xiao Yan’s heart stirred. From his sleeve, he pulled out a fragmented ancient jade, which, after a long silence, started to emit a faint warmth.
Stroking the jade, Xiao Yan’s heart surged with emotion. This ancient jade was none other than the Ta She Ancient Emperor, a Xia family heirloom!
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage