Fire Contemplation Complete!
Time passed quietly in this Starry Sky Dao Arena, isolated from the outside world.
In the first few days, the other students in the training ground held on, trying to glean a glimpse of a breakthrough opportunity from the vast Dao Rhythm emanating from Chen Fan.
But soon, they discovered in despair that this was not an opportunity at all, but a form of torture.
Chen Fan's Dao Rhythm was too profound and vast; merely observing it placed a tremendous burden on their Divine Souls.
As far as the eye could see, there were incomprehensible fluctuations, which would ultimately cause one's own Divine Soul to crumble inch by inch in the face of such power.
On the third day, one student was the first to give up. His face turned ashen, and his Divine Fire flickered precariously. He was then gently expelled from the spiritual arena by a powerful force.
On the fifth day, three more students were ejected simultaneously.
On the seventh day, more than half of the trainees were eliminated.
As they left, the look in their eyes when they gazed at the figure on the high platform had lost its initial scrutiny and curiosity; it was now only one of awe and reverence.
Two weeks later, in the vast Starry Sky Dao Arena, apart from Chen Fan, who was immersed in a deep resonance and knew nothing about the outside world, only Lin Xuanqing and Wen Yuan remained on the high platform.
The master and disciple remained silent, like two ancient statues, quietly guarding and observing.
Time flies, and a month has passed in the blink of an eye.
At this moment, the golden ripples spreading from Chen Fan were no longer illusory ripples, but had become incredibly solid and dazzling, as if they had transformed into a golden ocean composed of pure Life Laws!
The sea rises and falls gently, and with each ebb and flow of the tide, it seems to be witnessing the rise and fall of a universe.
Just by observing this sea, Wen Yuan felt that the bottleneck in his cultivation, which had been stagnant for countless years, had begun to loosen slightly!
This discovery made Wen Yuan's heart skip a beat.
He's Seventh Grade Immortal Realm!
Just as the month was about to expire.
The vast, boundless golden ocean seemed to receive a silent command and suddenly shrank inward.
All the ripples, all the Dao Rhythms, and all the strange phenomena of the laws all rolled back and, in a fraction of a second, silently merged into Chen Fan's small body, without causing the slightest ripple.
It was as if that Sea of Laws, which could move even Seventh Grade expert, had never existed.
The Starry Sky Dao Arena has fallen silent once more.
Chen Fan slowly opened his eyes.
Those eyes were still crystal clear, yet so deep they seemed to hold the cycle of birth and death of countless Stars.
In just one month, he had already completed the first step and reached the pinnacle of Fire Contemplation.
He looked at his master and Senior Fellow Apprentice, whose expressions were complicated, calmly stood up, and bowed slightly.
"Master, I have finished Fire Contemplation."
The sound wasn't loud, but it resonated clearly in the empty dojo.
Lin Xuanqing opened his mouth, ready with countless words of praise, but couldn't utter a single one. In the end, he could only let out a complex and incomprehensible sigh. He waved his hand to indicate that he understood.
Looking at his junior Junior Fellow Apprentice, Wen Yuan's surging emotions finally turned into a soft sigh.
He knew that any words of praise would be pale and powerless to Chen Fan.
Lin Xuanqing gave Chen Fan a deep look, then waved his sleeve.
The all-encompassing Starry Sky Dao Arena, like a burst bubble, quietly dissipated, returning to the simple and unadorned stone house.
Keep up the good work.
Lin Xuanqing left behind four words, and before he could finish speaking, his figure blurred, as if he had never truly existed, disappearing once again into a research space deep within the stone house, leaving everything to his eldest disciple.
Wen Yuan was used to this and led Chen Fan out of the stone house.
Outside, the sun shines brightly, and life is vibrant, a stark contrast to the desolation inside the temple.
Wen Yuan's gentle face now held an unprecedented solemnity. He stopped and looked directly into Chen Fan's eyes.
"Junior Fellow Apprentice, you have successfully completed your Fire Contemplation. Congratulations!"
He paused, his voice turning serious, "But the next step in Adding Fuel requires using oneself as fuel, burning away the old self to achieve rebirth. This process is fraught with peril. Are you... ready?"
He asked with extreme seriousness, because he himself had nearly met his demise on this very path.
However, upon hearing this, Chen Fan showed no fear whatsoever; instead, a smile curved his lips.
Excitement and anticipation flickered in those deep eyes.
"Senior Fellow Apprentice," Chen Fan replied casually, "In my opinion, complete annihilation and instant ascension are just two ways of saying the same thing."
"Of course I'm ready."
"..."
Wen Yuan opened his mouth, but all the words of advice he had prepared were instantly swallowed back.
Looking at Chen Fan's matter-of-fact expression, he finally couldn't help but chuckle.
He shook his head, no longer dwelling on it, and simply followed Chen Fan's train of thought, pointing out a more convenient path.
"Using oneself as a source of income is the right path, but it's too dangerous and slow," Wen Yuan's tone softened. "Actually, there's another way."
"Finding the purest Origin Power from the outside world as fuel to ignite the Divine Fire will make the task twice as effective."
Seeing Chen Fan's interested expression, Wen Yuan stopped keeping him in suspense and began to explain in detail.
"In certain chaotic Star Domain deep within the universe, there lives a peculiar race known as the Void-Devouring Locust. This race is formless and intangible, feeding on the Origin Source of all things. Its Life Core is one of the purest aggregates of energy in the world."
"For those of us on the Path to Godhood, a fully grown Void-Devouring Locust is the finest external material for the Adding Fuel' stage."
At this point, Wen Yuan changed the subject, a perfectly timed smile appearing on his face.
"As luck would have it, the academy has just issued a large-scale cleanup mission. The target is a planet called Huangzhe Star, located near our Life School's Star Domain."
"There, a Void-Devouring Locust Mother Nest, on the verge of becoming a plague, has been discovered."
"The Mother Nest?"
Chen Fan's eyes lit up instantly.
One isn't enough.
A whole litter is much more exciting!
"What are the mission details?"
He immediately pressed for more details.
Wen Yuan smiled and nodded, gesturing for him to examine the Student Badge on his wrist.
"Through the badge, you can access the Star River Martial Academy's mission Light Screen; all public missions are displayed there."
With a thought, Chen Fan Divine Thought unfurled a deep blue Light Screen before his eyes.
On the Light Screen, the information flow was reorganized like a waterfall, and at the very top, a high-risk task marked in scarlet firmly occupied everyone's attention.
[Mission Name: Clear Out the Void Locust Mother Nest Void-Devouring Locust the Huangzhe Star]
[Mission Level: Red - High Risk]
[Mission Description: A large Void-Devouring Locust Mother Nest has been discovered at the Huangzhe Star (453, 874). It is showing signs of spiraling out of control and must be completely eradicated within seven days, otherwise the disaster will spread to the surrounding Star Domain.]
[Task Reward: 500,000 base credits, with additional credits allocated based on contribution.]
[Current number of participants: 67]