As He Yiming vanished from sight, Bai Lingba turned back to look at the earth-fire, which was surrounded by flames and slowly surging up from beneath the ground.
He seemed to hesitate, two conflicting sequences warring fiercely within his mind.
This situation was unprecedented, yet it brought him a novel sensation.
Finally, as if making a decision, he turned and walked toward the gate sealed by fire.
The earth-fire raged, unscrupulously devastating everything on the surface.
In this unique environment, where the earth-fire invaded every six months, no living creature could possibly survive. Even the Red Wolf King, possessing the power of burrowing and fire, could only escape from here.
In the face of Nature's might, the power of any creature seemed so minuscule and unremarkable.
Bai Lingba moved with astonishing speed, traversing through the flames. The towering fire enveloped his entire body, and rapidly, patterns of brilliant colors began to shimmer on his surface. Something akin to this ** completely barred the immense power of the fire from penetrating.
In moments, he reached the mouth of the cave.
From here, he could see the brilliant light outside. He stepped out, leaving the terrifying sea of fire behind.
The weather outside was equally scorching, but compared to what was inside the cavern, it was undoubtedly the most beautiful paradise.
Bai Lingba looked up. Staring at the dazzling, blinding sun overhead, he suddenly fell into a daze.
After a long while, he opened his palm. Resting there was a silver ring—the spatial world He Yiming had entrusted to him.
Following He Yiming's instructions, he was supposed to remain here for half a year. If He Yiming failed to emerge after six months, then Bai Lingba was to deliver the silver ring to Yu Jinglei.
At this moment, the silver ring shone with its customary silver luster, showing no sign of melting even under the intense burning of the earth-fire.
A treasure that contained an independent space was indeed not easily destroyed.
For a long time, Bai Lingba maintained the posture of gazing at the silver ring, as if time had stopped at that very instant.
Though the sun continued its daily rise and set, and though the earth-fire inside the cave raged and expanded, time seemed to freeze for Bai Lingba.
He silently watched the silver ring, much like he had stood alone in the cave dwelling within the Hohhot Mountain Range for untold ages.
In that moment, he seemed to have transformed into a bas-relief, a statue that would never move.
※※※※
Inside the cavern, He Yiming tapped the ground lightly with his feet, already flying a considerable distance away.
After condensing the Flower of Wind, his body seemed capable of merging with the wind, completely transforming into air. And whenever this happened, he felt an innate ability to control the power of the wind.
Though the degree of control wasn't vast, and he couldn't conjure a world-destroying tornado, he did possess a certain command over the wind's force.
This was the power bestowed upon him after successfully condensing the Flower of Wind.
Therefore, even in what appeared to be a suicidal situation before him, he was far from despair.
Since the Flower of Wind allowed him to command the wind, if he could condense the Flower of Fire before the earth-fire permeated the entire cave, he would certainly be able to ensure his own safety under this temperature.
His speed was extreme, and in a short while, he returned to that strange, circular passage.
He experienced a peculiar sensation: in this place, his comprehension of the power of fire seemed exceptionally sharp.
Though he didn't know the origin of this feeling, he trusted his instincts implicitly, especially given his current circumstances—he had no other choice.
Once he reached this spot, he opened a jade bottle he carried and poured out a milky-white pill exuding a faint fragrance.
This was a Grain-Dispelling Pill he had refined in the cave dwelling on Spiritual Medicine Peak.
Consuming one of these high-grade pills could sustain him for at least ten to fifteen days. Though this bottle held few pills, it was barely enough to last half a year. If he could condense the Flower of Fire within six months, he could leave safely. But if he failed within that time, even ten times the number of these pills would be useless to He Yiming.
After swallowing the pill, He Yiming sat down cross-legged, his spirit instantly focused.
The fire-element true qi surged fiercely out of his body, and the Innate Fierce Fire Art operated at its maximum efficiency at this moment.
The cultivation of Innate Marvelous Arts, unless in a state of enlightenment, required extremely strict environmental conditions. But this location, at this time, was absolutely the optimal choice for cultivating fire-element techniques.
And so, in this passage, He Yiming cast aside all other thoughts, concentrating all his energy.
Before him lay a road of no return. Apart from successfully condensing the Flower of Fire amidst the flames, he had no second path to take.
Vast amounts of fire-element true qi circulated within his body until He Yiming’s physical form reached a certain limit, unable to withstand any greater pressure. Only then did he take a deep breath and recover from his state of meditative absorption.
As soon as his focus dispersed, He Yiming immediately sensed that the surrounding temperature had increased further.
He opened his eyes; the surrounding stone walls were glowing deep red. Although the earth-fire had not yet spread here, judging by the situation, it seemed he could not hold out much longer.
He sighed deeply. Despite his profound reluctance, he rose and walked deeper into the cavern.
This spiderweb-like network of tunnels held countless forks. Every time He Yiming reached a junction, he carefully sensed the changes in the wind.
His mastery over the power of wind had reached an extraordinary level; with just a slight sensing, he could immediately discern where the heat waves were originating.
He Yiming avoided the winds carrying rolling heat waves, proceeding through areas where the temperature was comparatively lower.
Soon, he arrived in a section of the tunnel where the color of the mountain walls was lighter, clearly indicating that the heat had not fully permeated yet.
Having selected his location, He Yiming consumed another Grain-Dispelling Pill and gently gathered the fire-element true qi within him.
His eyes suddenly lit up. The change in his true qi this time brought him immense joy and surprise.
After the previous session of secluded cultivation, his true qi had actually advanced by leaps and bounds. While this improvement couldn't compare to a sudden enlightenment, it was far beyond what was achievable under normal circumstances.
Glancing at his surroundings, He Yiming felt both deep love and hatred for this place. If not for the six-month time constraint, remaining here to cultivate would genuinely have been the best choice.
Moments later, he sat cross-legged and began his second period of meditative absorption.
He knew that he had very little time to waste now; he had to condense the Flower of Fire as quickly as possible. However, before attempting to condense the Flower of Fire, he needed to increase his total true qi reserves as much as possible and gain deeper insight into the power of fire. If his comprehension of fire power did not reach a certain level, then no matter how strong his true qi was, he could not succeed in condensation.
Time ticked by. When He Yiming awoke from his second meditative trance, the surrounding rock walls had begun to feel scorching as well.
He got up, sought a new location, consumed a pill, began cultivating the Innate Fierce Fire Art, and simultaneously absorbed the omnipresent power of fire throughout this space.
He followed this cycle, cultivating in the fire cavern without wasting a moment.
Three months passed. He seemed to have completely forgotten the passage of time, forgotten the threat of the earth-fire to his life, continuing his methodical cultivation sequence within the cave.
※※※※
Outside the cave, Bai Lingba remained standing silently.
In these eight hundred miles of red mountains, not a single raindrop had ever descended from the sky. All dark clouds were dispersed by the towering heat before they could approach.
A faint sound drifted from a distance, as if someone were approaching this location.
Mechanically, Bai Lingba, still holding the silver ring, moved slightly. He raised his head, flicked his wrist, and the silver ring instantly vanished. He then took two steps back, pressing himself tightly against the slightly warm stone wall.
His body immediately dissolved, quickly merging with the mountain rock.
Inside the wall, the earth-fire raged, but outside the wall lay another world. The massive heat was blocked almost entirely by the rock face—a testament to the true, uncanny workmanship of Nature's creation.
Soon, a man and a wolf appeared here: Soguo, missing one hand, and his terrifyingly scarred Red Wolf King.
A vicious saber gash scarred the Red Wolf King's forehead—a gift left by He Yiming, making it look even more frightful.
Outside the cave entrance, Soguo stared silently inside. The blazing earth-fire sealed his vision; beyond the expanse of red, there was no other color, not even a single dark corner.
Soguo watched for a long time, still finding nothing. He gently stroked the Red Wolf King's neck and asked, "Red Wolf King, do you think they died?"
The Red Wolf King let out a low whine. Soguo paused to consider, then said, "They must be dead. Unless one possesses fire-element power and the ability to burrow, escape is impossible." He took a deep breath. "This trip off the mountain has resulted in the annihilation of all of us—over a hundred clansmen plus She Ru. If we return to the mountain like this, the furious Saints might execute me directly."
The Red Wolf King turned its head, its whine carrying a hint of worry.
Soguo gave a dry laugh, offering comfort, "It's alright. As long as I can slay He Yiming and retrieve his weapon, when the Saints realize I've eliminated such a powerful young expert from beyond the mountain, they surely won't pursue my responsibility."
His eyes gleamed slightly. "He Yiming's Great Guan Saber is unbelievably sharp. I truly wonder what material it’s made of. But since it could cleave through your fire pillar, it must have survived perfectly well in the earth-fire."
The Red Wolf King’s large head nodded up and down, seeming to concur with his words.
Soguo scanned the ground meticulously, finally withdrawing his gaze with satisfaction, turning to leave with the Red Wolf King.
After their figures had completely disappeared, Bai Lingba reappeared on the rock wall. He watched the man and wolf depart, then retrieved the silver ring once more.
However, this time he didn't seem to be merely observing; he was channeling a certain power into the silver ring.
After a while, that bizarre spatial world opened again.
Bai Lingba thrust his hand inside, groping silently. In moments, he retrieved the three broken sections of the Great Guan Saber.
He examined the saber closely. Initially, his eyes, like those of an ordinary person, held no brilliance. But gradually, he seemed to discover something, and his eyes finally began to flash with a chilling light, as if an ordinary person had suddenly stumbled upon a treasure trove.
Then, his hand continued to explore inside.
Finally, a stone emitting four distinct colors, a white stone block twice the size of an adult's fist, and the cross-sword He Yiming had obtained from Sima Yin were all placed before Bai Lingba.
The light in Bai Lingba's eyes grew increasingly intense. In his mind, structured completely differently from a human brain, vast amounts of data were calculating furiously.
After a long time, he finally raised his head, seemingly having made the most critical decision.
He turned, walked to a section of the wall, and dug into it with his hand, pulling out a fragment of rock. Then, he placed the silver ring into the cavity, sealing the gap.
Afterward, he snatched up the Great Guan Saber, the cross-sword, the energy stones, and the four-colored fused jade from the ground.
His gaze swept toward the boiling cave, emitting an impossibly high level of heat, and then, he stepped forward, walking into it without hesitation.
Bai Lingba proceeded through the great fire. The surface of his body began to exude that strange ** once again. But this time, the ** did not seem to be merely sustaining his body; it served a special purpose.
Under the constant erosion of the surging earth-fire, Bai Lingba's body showed signs of impending melting. But at that very moment, everything held in Bai Lingba’s grasp also began to melt, merging with Bai Lingba himself...
Amidst the massive flames, Bai Lingba advanced in one direction. There, he had left a marker. Along the way, if he encountered an obstructing stone wall, he did not choose to detour but struck out with a fierce punch.
His hand was not massive, but the force behind the punch could not be underestimated.
With successive thunderous impacts, a straight path opened before him.
And his body began a strange metamorphosis: his arms gradually gave way to a pair of swords and blades...
The Cross-Sword, the Great Guan Saber...
※※※※
A powerful and inconceivable force of fire gathered around He Yiming.
After more than three months of rigorous cultivation, in an environment comprised solely of fire, He Yiming's comprehension of fire power had undergone a fundamental, transformative improvement.
Similarly, his total true qi reserves had made significant progress through this cultivation under near-limit conditions.
By this time, the earth-fire was gradually spreading from the periphery toward the center. Even He Yiming could no longer easily find a suitable spot for meditative absorption as he could initially.
Thus, on this day, he finally decided to cast everything aside and attempt to condense the Flower of Fire.
Sitting quietly at his chosen spot, He Yiming closed his eyes. He relaxed his control over his internal true qi, instead continuously absorbing the surrounding fire aura.
After an unknown amount of time, a light breeze suddenly blew past him.
This was the power of the Flower of Wind. In the process of comprehending the power of fire, the wind element suddenly erupted, surging outward in all directions with him at the center.
In this near-meditative state, He Yiming's control over the power of wind reached an unprecedented, almost perfect realm.
The diffusion of the wind power swept toward the distant earth-fire. The thick pillars of fire surging up from beneath the ground—each one seemed to possess power no less than the single pillar of fire spat out by Soguo and the Red Wolf King at their full strength.
This was the power of Nature. Even the mere aftershocks of the earth-fire were equivalent to countless Soguo and Red Wolf Kings combined.
Under the pressure of this power, any living being would naturally feel awe, perhaps even reverence.
The wind churned the fire, guiding the flames' flow. Slowly, these winds followed the gaps between the fire pillars, penetrating beneath them, continually advancing toward the source.
Beneath the earth-fire lay a space—a colossal underground world. When this wave of wind power arrived here, it was almost overwhelmed and dispersed by the sheer vastness of the space.
White-hot stone hail, dark-red smoke clouds, and rocket-like molten lava intertwined to form a massive, ever-changing kaleidoscope.
This was the true power of fire—a mighty, widespread conflagration of energy.
Faced with this might, the gust of wind seemed to show apprehension, hesitating at the entrance.
This was only He Yiming's first attempt. Even if it failed, he had a second chance, or perhaps more opportunities; therefore, he would never commit to anything without confidence.
Until he had completely mastered the power of fire, until the absolute limit truly arrived, He Yiming would never stake everything on one throw.
Waves of heat rolled in. They did not repel the power of the wind; rather, as if the wind had always been fire's accomplice, they slowly began to merge.
As the power of wind gradually penetrated the core of the fire element, even He Yiming felt a joy that was intensely indescribable.
The power of the wind soared freely within the power of the fire. At this moment, the endless sea of fire seemed to transform into the sky, allowing the wind element to be utilized to its maximum potential, and allowing the fire element to gradually take shape in He Yiming's mind through some miraculous means.
In the passage, the surrounding temperature suddenly spiked higher.
But this small temperature fluctuation was no longer something He Yiming paid attention to.
He gently opened his mouth, and a surge of scorching, crimson true qi was softly expelled from it...
Ps: Two chapters making ten thousand characters today, guaranteeing fifteen thousand tomorrow. Hehe, will the second tangible flower be condensed tomorrow? Give me monthly votes to talk! ^_^
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