Ye Wenyi arrived at the mouth of the cave and was immediately hit by a wave of heat, an unprecedented occurrence that left him deeply astonished.

Stepping further in, he beheld the entire cavern awash in a crimson glow, steam rising in thick plumes. Even the water of the frigid spring was boiling, emitting vapor that threatened to transform this once chilling, near-impenetrable grotto into a massive sauna.

Through the hazy mist, Ye Wen could vaguely discern a single, dazzling red light deep within. With just a glance to locate its approximate position, Ye Wen immediately understood the source of the strange phenomena filling the cave.

“The fruit is ripe?”

Activating his Primal Violet Qi, Ye Wen relied on his formidable cultivation to ignore the oppressive heat. With a sweep of his wide sleeves, he dispersed the surrounding steam and mist, revealing the area immediately around him.

He continued to walk, sweeping his arms, and in moments, Ye Wen reached the location of the red light. Only then did he notice that the patch of pool water closest to the light was bubbling incessantly. The spring water, cold enough to instantly encase a person in ice, was being boiled by the heat radiating from that single fruit?

“How hot must it be?”

Considering this was merely residual heat, the fruit itself must possess an unimaginable intensity. Based on these manifestations alone, Ye Wen knew the Crimson Fruit was an exceedingly rare treasure—a divine object emitting such terrifying heat must be incredibly nourishing.

Ye Wen gazed at the red fruit, contemplating whether to pluck it, when the fruit seemed to sense his presence, dropping with a soft thud from the small tree onto the ground.

Simultaneously, the small fruit tree could no longer withstand the terrifying heat. It withered rapidly, then suddenly burst into flames, vanishing without even ash remaining in an instant, leaving Ye Wen quite startled.

“Damn, so this is a non-renewable resource?”

He had initially assumed that once the Crimson Fruit ripened and he consumed it, he could carefully guard the tree, and perhaps in a decade or so, another fruit might grow. But clearly, his hopes were far too idyllic; the fruit afforded him no such opportunity.

“Eat? Or not eat?”

This question didn’t keep Ye Wen hesitating for long; he made his decision in an instant. Picking up the Crimson Fruit, feeling its searing temperature, Ye Wen took a bite directly.

Ye Wen had intended to taste it cautiously, hoping to absorb only a portion of its essence first. This way, he wouldn't risk being overwhelmed or killed by excessive potency, and perhaps he could even save some for his junior martial sisters and brothers.

Unexpectedly, the moment his teeth managed to crack a small fissure in the fruit, the Crimson Fruit instantly melted into a surge of scalding juice that flowed entirely into Ye Wen’s mouth before he could react.

“Heck, is this thing alive?”

The bizarre reaction of the Crimson Fruit startled Ye Wen. He began to suspect the fruit possessed sentience, transforming into a stream of liquid to enter his body directly, perhaps to avoid being coveted, dismembered, or consumed piece by piece.

After standing for a while, Ye Wen focused his mind, waiting for the fruit's medicinal properties to manifest. Yet, after a full hour, there was still no discernible change. Even the frigid spring before him had reverted to its bone-chilling original state, and the steam in the cave had entirely dissipated, the cold air rising from the spring driving out every last bit of warmth.

“Why is there no reaction?”

Pondering for a moment, Ye Wen saw no effect from the Crimson Fruit and simply assumed its potency would manifest gradually. He pursed his lips dismissively and prepared to leave.

The moment he tried to step forward, however, he felt his feet rooted to the ground as if nailed there. Even his hands, which had been free moments before, could not budge.

“What’s happening?”

Not only that, but his tongue was immobile as well. Ye Wen felt as though he had been forcibly frozen in place. Then, he felt a scorching sensation rising from his abdomen, spreading throughout his entire body in the blink of an eye.

“Could this be the fruit’s effect kicking in?”

Feeling the tremendous surge of heat rushing into his meridians, Ye Wen desperately wanted to mobilize his Primal Violet Qi to refine this essence. More critically, the essence was intensely hot and tyrannical; if allowed to clash unchecked, his meridians could be destroyed. He might even be burned down to nothing by this searing energy.

Ye Wen felt like his entire body was igniting. His previously fixed gaze vaguely perceived a flame-like crimson aura swirling around him; he was no different from a human torch.

Being burned was agonizing, especially since Ye Wen was being roasted from the inside out by the scorching vital energy. If his internal Primal Violet Qi hadn't automatically activated to guard him, he would have said goodbye to this world in that short span.

But the power of the Crimson Fruit was too immense. Even with his Primal Violet Qi running at full capacity, it could not fully digest the fruit’s medicinal properties. The situation was that for every portion the Primal Violet Qi refined, two, perhaps three or even four portions of energy surged forth from his abdomen.

Ye Wen was powerless against this surplus essence, forced to let it crash and clash within him, enduring the immense pain of his meridians being destroyed without being able to utter a sound.

“Damn it! What the hell is this thing!”

When immense fortune suddenly befalls a person, it can often bring about immense tragedy.

This was precisely Ye Wen's situation. The sheer power of the Crimson Fruit far exceeded his expectations. This was no longer a matter of simple digestion; as things stood, being blown apart by the energy seemed only the beginning.

Even though Ye Wen’s meridians were already exceptionally robust, and the circulating Primal Violet Qi was continuously repairing them, the rate of destruction caused by the surging heat was still faster. Furthermore, the powerful energy had packed his body tightly, making him feel completely full, yet something continued to pump energy into him as if inflating him.

The Primal Violet Qi in his Dantian rotated ceaselessly, spinning like a propeller, yet it could not reverse this disadvantage. In his panic, Ye Wen even considered opening new vortices of energy at his Tanzhong and Baihui points, running his Primal Violet Qi from three locations simultaneously to neutralize the overbearing energy. However, before he could even begin to act, the energy within him swelled to a point where he felt he was about to explode.

“Am I going to die?”

Ye Wen felt his body nearing collapse. In this critical moment, his gaze happened to fall upon the inconspicuous ring on his finger.

“This... yes!”

He suddenly remembered that this object was practically a bottomless pit. He might as well send all the excess energy surging within him into the ring. He didn't care about receiving any treasure in return; just alleviating the immediate crisis would be cause for immense gratitude.

First, he directed his Primal Violet Qi into the ring. After all, the Primal Violet Qi occupied a large portion of space in his meridians, and clearing it out might grant him a brief respite. Although losing the Primal Violet Qi meant his meridians would be destroyed faster, he couldn't afford to worry about that now.

The Primal Violet Qi was absorbed completely by the ring in a moment. Then, triggered as if by momentum, the ring continued to draw energy from Ye Wen’s body. Ye Wen felt his body reach a bizarre equilibrium after a moment.

The scorching energy continuously welling up from his abdomen filled every inch of space throughout his body, while the energy that threatened to burst him was constantly vanishing through his finger into the ring.

One increasing violently, one decreasing rapidly. Under these circumstances, Ye Wen’s body acted as a mere conduit—the searing energy generated inside him, yet just before the point of explosion, it was sucked away by the ring to some unknown destination.

Tormented by this heat, Ye Wen's consciousness was already wandering, oblivious to everything. He didn't even notice the ring on his finger suddenly flash brightly, nor the appearance of a slender, cool object in his hand.

In his daze, he felt a flood of incantations and cultivation methods, entirely unfamiliar, entering his mind. Ye Wen, already in a trance, instinctively began circulating true essence according to these newly acquired formulas.

If he had been conscious, Ye Wen certainly wouldn't have done this. But now, with his mind clouded and energy raging inside him, his body was instinctively seeking a way to quell this violent surge. Having suddenly acquired a set of formulas, he spontaneously began operating under the logic: If the habitual method fails, try a new one.

The last trace of Primal Violet Qi in his Dantian began to spin fiercely. With every rotation, the surrounding scorching energy was drawn into it.

Not long after, this small amount of Primal Violet Qi transformed into a dazzling river of stars, flowing into the meridians that had been occupied by the fierce heat and were now severely damaged.

It was unclear what the effect of this incantation was, but once activated, it traversed every meridian in his body. As this starlight-like energy surged and flowed, it swallowed up all the tyrannical, scorching energy within Ye Wen, transforming it into specks of starlight that joined the magnificent stellar river.

If anyone were standing next to Ye Wen now, they would see the flame-like crimson glow around his body gradually calming down, slowly morphing into a purple starlight swirling gently around him. Before long, these specks of starlight coalesced into a brilliant, long river. The person standing at the center seemed encircled by stars, conveying a sense of mystery while simultaneously emanating an imposing might from these unnaturally beautiful stellar currents.

The purple crystal on Ye Wen’s hand was steadily shrinking. As the river of stars expanded, the crystal had now diminished to the size of a finger. Logically, given his posture and the crystal’s size, it should have fallen off. Yet, the crystal seemed adhered to Ye Wen’s hand, utterly ignoring the pull of the ground and remaining firmly in place.

Looking inside Ye Wen’s body, the purple Qi flowed gently in his Dantian. Upon exiting the Dantian, it transformed into a magnificent, star-strewn river. His meridians resembled a starry sky, covered in purple starlight, and the slow movement of this starlight vaguely outlined the locations of his meridians.

At this moment, Ye Wen, who had been in a stupor for quite some time, regained consciousness. He felt his mind clear, his entire body refreshed, and the paralysis that had kept him immobile finally vanished. Restored to mobility, his first action was to check if he was still alive and if any "parts" were missing.

“Good, good. Limbs intact, senses normal!” He instinctively reached down, and his expression instantly turned peculiar: “Why has this part become even more imposing? What’s the use of such high fighting spirit right now?”

With no physical anomalies, Ye Wen settled his mind to examine his internal condition. He discovered his meridians were completely undamaged; in fact, compared to before he lost consciousness, the toughness of his meridians was on an entirely different level.

Especially the true essence flowing in his meridians, shimmering with starlight like flowing water—though it appeared subtle, Ye Wen could sense the sheer power contained within it.

“Where did that strange heat go?”

Summoning his true essence to search, Ye Wen located the source of the heat with a mere thought. He discovered an uninvited guest in his Dantian: a fiery red, almost tangible mass had taken residence within him. When Ye Wen tentatively probed it, the reddish mass would unleash a burst of intense, scorching energy. Thinking he had invited trouble, Ye Wen hastily directed his true essence to confine it—but as soon as the essence circulated, the terrifying erupting energy was instantly swallowed by the energy resembling a stellar river.

“Did I accidentally cultivate some divine art?”

The moment the thought crossed his mind, the collection of formulas and methods that had flooded his brain resurfaced. Only then did Ye Wen realize he had unconsciously practiced a new technique, and his expression became exceptionally strange.

“It is actually…” Opening his eyes to look at the purple stellar river swirling beside him, and the specks of starlight scattered everywhere that illuminated the entire dark cave with brilliance, Ye Wen finally understood why he had turned disaster into fortune and even benefited greatly.

“I never expected to inadvertently acquire this divine art, and actually master it…”

Ye Wen closed his eyes and could even sense a hidden purple object in his Dantian. This thing wasn't exactly vital energy, nor was it precisely energy; it was a long, pillar-shaped purple crystal resting within his Dantian. Moreover, Ye Wen discovered that whenever his true essence circulated, it passed through this crystal and emerged transformed into the purple, starlight-emitting river.

“Purple Stellar River…”

Muttering the name of the technique he had just mastered, Ye Wen’s first reaction wasn't relief at having practiced such a heaven-defying art, but a curse: “Why is it purple again?”

Withdrawing his power, the starlight around Ye Wen gradually faded away. However, the earlier specks of starlight scattered throughout the cave remained. Presumably, these were the residues of the energy Ye Wen had violently expelled, and they would only disappear once the energy was fully consumed.

Gazing at this beautiful yet bizarre scene, Ye Wen pondered his current situation.

His meridians were stronger, and he realized his physical body seemed to have undergone a complete tempering, far stronger than before. Now, if an ordinary expert punched him, Ye Wen suspected he wouldn't even need to channel energy to defend; his physical resilience alone could negate the attack.

Furthermore, his true essence had also changed. The Primal Violet Qi in his Dantian had nearly condensed into substance. When directed into his meridians, it flowed like liquid silk. Ye Wen noticed that the essence of his previous technique remained Primal Violet Qi, and he could still use it; mastering the Purple Stellar River hadn't changed that fundamental aspect.

This fact puzzled Ye Wen a bit, but upon reflection, the Purple Stellar River was merely the first layer of the monstrously powerful Hantian Treasure Codex. Since mastering the Codex allowed the use of ten distinctly different types of vital energy, it must possess unique characteristics.

Ye Wen deduced from the current situation that mastering the Hantian Treasure Codex preserved the practitioner's original, purest state of true essence. The ten energies were then converted from this true essence through specific circulation methods or perhaps via that Heavenly Crystal.

Thinking it through, Ye Wen realized a vast amount of knowledge regarding the Hantian Treasure Codex had entered his mind. Only then did he grasp that for this technique, all true essence was just true essence. This profound art, supposedly created by the Great Goddess Nüwa, surpassed Ye Wen’s wildest imagination.

Based on his current comprehension, he couldn't possibly grasp it fully.

He also finally understood that he hadn't truly mastered the Purple Stellar River. According to the information he had just received, true mastery would result in a swirling purple stellar river mass appearing in the Dantian, not a purple crystal.

If all ten layers of the Hantian Treasure Codex were mastered, there would be ten different energy masses situated in the Dantian, guarding the practitioner’s original true essence while interacting with each other to continuously elevate their cultivation.

“So, this only counts as being initiated?”

Only now did Ye Wen understand the true might of this divine art. Ye Wen, who already felt a sense of being out of sync with the world, had only just reached the entry level.

Standing up again, Ye Wen glanced back at the lingering starlight in the cave, then slowly walked out. The moon was high; it must have been the middle of the night. As soon as he stepped out, he saw Ning Ruxue and Huayi walking toward the cave entrance, frequently looking around. Apparently, since he had been gone for so long, they had come searching for him and arrived just as he emerged.

“Master is over there!”

Seeing that Ye Wen showed no ill effects, Ning Ruxue sighed with relief, though she deliberately put on an indifferent expression, pouting: “Always making people worry!”

Ye Wen, having just navigated a profound transformation, didn't dwell on it. He simply smiled, drew both women into an embrace, and kissed each of them on the cheek: “I’m sorry for worrying you both!”

Just then, that wondrous sensation of being out of sync with the world reappeared in Ye Wen’s heart, stronger than before.