The Next Step

It let out a satisfied hiss, and its eyes, made of flames, finally locked onto the last main course of this feast.

Without any hesitation, the phantom of the Taotie suddenly swooped down, opened its huge maw, and bit down on the Mother Empress Core!

Buzz!

The moment it was swallowed up, the Mother Empress Core trembled violently!

A remnant will, infinitely close to the Sixth Grade Undying Realm, containing savagery and destruction, suddenly erupted from the depths of its core, transforming into an invisible spiritual shock, attempting to resist this fate of being devoured!

However, Chen Fan, who was sitting cross-legged in the center of the Quiet Chamber, did not even lift his eyelids.

Under the absolute suppression of his Invincible Dao Heart and the "Myriad Dao Furnace Scripture," this trace of resistance, which was enough to stir up storms in the outside world, could not even last a moment.

"Click."

It was as if something had shattered.

That tyrannical will was crushed by an even more domineering and unreasonable one.

Having lost all resistance, the Mother Empress Core's sturdy outer shell instantly melted, transforming into a dazzling, dark golden torrent, which was swallowed whole by the Divine Fire Taotie.

In an instant, the phantom of the Taotie froze for a moment, and then expanded with a roar!

At this moment, the golden Divine Fire transformed into a real golden sun that illuminated the entire Quiet Chamber!

This sun seems determined to transform this desolate void into its own Divine Kingdom!

One month later.

Quiet Chamber, all the startling and extraordinary phenomena subsided.

The golden sun, suspended in mid-air, slowly shone inward, its enormous size rapidly shrinking at a visible speed. Finally, it transformed into a wisp of golden flame, condensed to its ultimate intensity, and silently disappeared into Chen Fan's brow.

He slowly opened his eyes.

Two clusters of golden Divine Fire flashed in his eyes, and the temperature of the entire Quiet Chamber seemed to rise sharply.

Chen Fan felt the immense power within him, brimming with energy yet perfectly under his control, and calmly muttered to himself:

"The Adding Fuel is ready; only the final step remains: alchemy."

After saying that, he stood up, dusted off imaginary dust from his body, as if he had just taken a short nap.

"Squeak!!"

The heavy stone door opened silently inward.

Chen Fan walked out slowly.

Outside the door, Senior Fellow Apprentice Wen Yuan remained in the same posture as a month ago, waiting quietly.

But the teacup in his hand was already cold.

The moment Wen Yuan saw Chen Fan walk out, Wen Yuan gaze passed over him and landed on the empty Quiet Chamber, then looked at Chen Fan aura remained as restrained as ever.

Wen Yuan's expression became incredibly complicated.

He subconsciously looked down at the already cold tea in his hand, his Adam's apple bobbed as if he wanted to say something, but in the end it only turned into a very soft murmur.

"This isn't Adding Fuel..."

"This guy is a money-devouring beast!"

In one month, enough Kindling to help ten cultivators at the Perfected Golden Body stage refine their foundations was burned. This was hardly cultivation; it was like turning a mountain of gold into ashes just to make a sound.

Chen Fan didn't care about his Senior Fellow Apprentice's loss of composure. He simply calmly felt the incredibly powerful yet perfectly controlled Divine Fire within his body, confirming that he had completed the second step.

So he raised his head, his clear, childlike eyes looking at Wen Yuan, and asked directly, "The Adding Fuel is full. The final step, how do we refine the gold?"

"..."

Wen Yuan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart.

He straightened his back again, his expression becoming more serious than ever before.

"Alchemy is the greatest obstacle on the Path to Godhood."

He spoke slowly and deliberately, his voice deep and resolute, "The Divine Fire has already reached its peak. Ordinary external forces are useless for further transformation. You need... to use your own understanding of the Dao and principles as Furnace to refine, compress, and ultimately temper this vast, Heaven-Burning, sea-boiling divine Divine Fire into gold!"

Wen Yuan's gaze sharpened, as if it could pierce through Chen Fan's body and look directly at the Divine Fire within him.

"And the Tao of our Life School is to master life and death, and to understand the Life-and-Death Intent in the cycle of reincarnation!"

"Only by completely fusing the opposing yet interdependent forces of Life and Death can the most perfect and indestructible Life-and-Death Furnace be forged!"

At this point, Wen Yuan's eyes suddenly narrowed, and he pointed out the crux of the matter.

"Junior Fellow Apprentice, you are naturally drawn to life, igniting Divine Fire amidst Annihilation, and your understanding of the realm of life has reached a transcendent level. However, your path is incomplete..."

"You don't understand death."

These words struck the silent space like an invisible hammer.

"If you don't understand death, you won't know the preciousness of life. Your business realm seems perfect, but in reality, it's just a rootless duckweed, a castle in the air, and can't form a real Furnace at all." Wen Yuan's voice was like a morning bell, deafening and resounding.

Upon hearing this, a ripple appeared in Chen Fan's eyes.

"What does it take to truly understand death?"

Chen Fan's tone carried a hint of curiosity that he himself was unaware of.

Seeing Chen Fan's expression, Wen Yuan's tense face finally revealed a knowing smile.

I'm not afraid you won't understand, I'm just afraid you won't be curious.

He lightly swiped his Student Badge, and a Light Screen appeared out of thin air, displaying a mission file.

"The college happens to have a place that's perfect for you to understand it."

The title of the mission file is cold and lonely.

[Mission Name: Guarding the Annihilation Seven Star]

[Mission Description: Travel to Annihilation Seven Star, guard the star's core coordinate point for three months, and collect the unique Deathly Silent Crystal.]

Wen Yuan pointed to the Light Screen and explained.

"Annihilation Seven Star Star, utterly eroded by endless death energy due to the decay of its star. There is no life there, no sound, not even light; only the purest... death."

Chen Fan looked at the mission description and the planet that was slowly rotating on the Light Screen, exuding an aura of absolute solitude, he felt no fear or discomfort. Instead, a slight smile slowly curved his lips.

"To have class in a cemetery?"

He murmured to himself, and as soon as he finished speaking, he stretched out his little finger and gently tapped the option to accept the mission on the Light Screen.

Buzz!

The Student Badge trembled slightly, indicating that the mission had been accepted.

"Thank you for your help, Senior Fellow Apprentice."

Chen Fan nodded to Wen Yuan as a greeting.

The next moment, his figure transformed into a golden Stream of Light, soaring into the sky without the slightest hesitation and disappearing into the horizon.

Decisive and efficient, just like every action he had taken before.

Only Wen Yuan remained before the Quiet Chamber.

He sensed the lingering domineering yet pure aura in the air, then glanced at the system notification on his badge that Chen Fan had set off for the mission teleportation point. His expression was extremely complex.

A long time.

He suppressed all expression on his face, turned his head, and looked towards the deepest part of the school, towards the stone house where his teacher, Lin Xuanqing, was in seclusion. He murmured to himself in a voice only he could hear.

"Teacher..."

"Perhaps... a one-year Betting Agreement is an insurmountable obstacle for others, but for him, it's just a deadline you casually set."