Third Floor, Advancing to Dou Ling

The Fire Python was enveloped in twisted flames. Its huge mouth was wide open, and its fangs, as thick as Xiao Yuan's thigh, gleamed with a twisted ripple. From its huge triangular eyes, invisible flames kept shooting out. Xiao Yuan was no stranger to these flames, because he had suffered from them before!

Of course, the invisible fire that had appeared in his mind earlier was nothing compared to this giant python that seemed to be entirely formed from flames—it was like the difference between a firefly and the moon. Feeling the intensity of the flames on the Fire Python's body, Xiao Yuan had no doubt that even Dou Huang expert would be reduced to ashes in an instant if touched by it! The Fire Python roared angrily as it burst out of the darkness. However, just as it was about to reach a position five meters above the dark cave, the surrounding space suddenly fluctuated. With the help of the Heavenly Flames, Xiao Yuan could vaguely perceive that at this moment, the space around the black hole was strangely distorted, forming a Space Cage. Although the Invisible Fire Python was powerful, when it crashed into the Space Cage, it only caused the cage to fluctuate for a moment before having no other effect.

Realizing there was no hope of breaking through, the Fire Python went berserk. Invisible flames spewed out from its giant mouth, burning the Space Cage relentlessly. Unfortunately, no matter how hard it burned, the Space Cage remained completely still! After struggling frantically for a while, the Invisible Fire Python finally became exhausted. It let out a roar filled with rage and then returned to the dark cave.

As the Fire Python disappeared, the Space Cage gradually faded and slowly vanished.

Feeling the temperature drop around him, Elder Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief, shook the water off his hands, and muttered, "That was close. But how did this thing suddenly wake up?"

Wait, where is he? Elder Liu came to his senses, staring wide-eyed at the drying water stains on his hands.

"Elder Liu, are you alright? What happened just now?"

Xiao Yuan's voice came from far behind Elder Liu, startling him so much that he turned around abruptly and saw Xiao Yuan standing a hundred meters away!

"Xiao Yuan, what did you just now?"

Elder Liu glanced at the traces left on the ground after the water had dried, and looked at Xiao Yuan with some doubt.

"I sensed danger earlier, so I retreated. However, the commotion seemed quite loud. I wonder what happened?"

Xiao Yuan lied through his teeth, speaking with an earnest expression.

Upon hearing this, Elder Liu's solemn face softened somewhat. Looking at Xiao Yuan, he said in a deep voice, "It's nothing. Don't tell anyone about what happened here. Originally, students were not allowed to approach the center of the tower. I was somewhat negligent today. Fortunately, it was my turn to be on duty, otherwise there would definitely have been some trouble."

Seeing Elder Liu's solemn expression, Xiao Yuan nodded and spread his hands innocently. "I didn't see anything, but I suddenly felt that the temperature here had increased a lot, and I felt an extremely dangerous feeling."

"It's best if you didn't see it. Some things are better left unknown. You should come here less often in the future, otherwise if you are discovered, our duty elders will also be implicated."

Elder Liu breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't doubt Xiao Yuan's words much. After all, even he himself couldn't see that terrifying thing. He could only judge the shape of the invisible object by sensing the distortion of space.

Xiao Yuan nodded obediently upon hearing this.

"Alright, let's go. Your current strength is at the Five-Star Dou Grandmaster. Considering that you possess Heavenly Flames, you should not be afraid of the Fire Poison inside the tower. I will take you directly down to the third level. If you can't hold on, just come out."

Seeing Xiao Yuan nod, Elder Liu's expression softened. He glanced at the bottomless black hole with lingering fear before turning and heading towards the entrance to the next level.

After quickly passing through the second level, Xiao Yuan finally followed Elder Liu to the third level.

"This is the third floor. Which level of training room would you like to go to?"

Elder Liu asked with a smile.

"If it's convenient, I'd like the one with the best effect."

Xiao Yuan said with a smile.

Are you sure you can handle it?

Upon hearing this, Elder Liu frowned slightly and asked with some concern.

"Don't worry, Elder Liu. With the protection of the Heavenly Flames, as long as you can endure the loneliness, you can stay in the tower without any problems."

Xiao Yuan said with a serious expression.

"That's true. Although this Fire Poison is quite troublesome for ordinary people, it's still not enough in the face of Heavenly Flames. Well then, come with me."

Elder Liu nodded upon hearing this, and then led Xiao Yuan toward the central area of the third floor, where they found a cultivation room that looked rather ordinary.

"This is it. Just a heads up, each level of the Qi Refining Tower consumes an extra day's worth of Fire Energy. Keep that in mind, otherwise you'll be in real trouble if you can't use the Qi Refining Tower's functions at a crucial moment in your cultivation due to insufficient Fire Energy."

Elder Liu smiled and gave his instructions.

"I've taken note. Thank you for the reminder, Elder Liu!"

Xiao Yuan nodded seriously, then pushed open the door and walked into the cultivation room.

Soft light illuminated every corner of the room. In the center of this cultivation room, there were five black stone platforms spaced about two or three feet apart. At this moment, two of the stone platforms were already occupied by people meditating cross-legged. Therefore, Xiao Yuan lifted his leg and walked towards the empty stone platform.

Perhaps because of the sound of the door opening, the two students who had been cultivating with their eyes closed opened their eyes after Xiao Yuan entered the cultivation room. They looked at Xiao Yuan with wary eyes, and only breathed a sigh of relief after they found no badges representing their faction on him.

Xiao Yuan didn't care about the two people's gazes. He walked to a black stone platform and sat down. With a flick of his hand, a blue Fire Crystal Card appeared in Xiao Yuan's hand.

"Azure Fire Crystal Card?"

The moment the crystal card appeared in Xiao Yuan's hand, two exclamations rang out in the cultivation room. The voices contained a hint of surprise, envy, and covetousness. Noticing the two covetous gazes shooting from the side, Xiao Yuan narrowed his eyes and said calmly, "You two had better focus on your cultivation. Or if you think you can defeat Dou Ling, you can try fighting me. Of course, whether you agree or not, your Fire Energy will be depleted after the fight."

After saying that, Xiao Yuan inserted the Azure Fire Crystal Card into the groove in front of him. Immediately, a faint light shone out, and three days' worth of Fire Energy was deducted from the card! Then, ignoring the gazes of the two people beside him, Xiao Yuan gradually closed his eyes, formed cultivation hand seals in front of him, and after a while, his breathing gradually became steady, and he entered a state of cultivation.

The two frowned slightly as they looked at Xiao Yuan's fearless demeanor. They had never heard of such a person in the Inner Academy before.

However, this domineering demeanor didn't seem like something that could be faked. After hesitating for a moment, the two still chose to continue their cultivation.

In the quiet and desolate mind, only the long and steady sound of his heartbeat echoed slowly. After entering a meditative state, Xiao Yuan's perception of the energy in the surrounding world became more and more acute. He could feel the incredibly rich and intense heat in this cultivation room. Those who cultivate fire-attribute techniques in such a place will undoubtedly achieve more significant results than others.

However, Xiao Yuan is currently cultivating only Profound Rank High Level fire attribute technique, the Fire Essence Art. For a typical Da Dou Shi, this is already quite good, but for Xiao Yuan, who already possesses some Earth Rank Cultivation Method, it is somewhat insufficient.

It seems I'll have to ask my teacher for the secret technique later. After thinking to himself, Xiao Yuan began to circulate the Fire Essence Art.

"Puff"

Suddenly, a low, subtle sound arose, and then, a seemingly invisible flame, yet radiating an unusual fluctuation, appeared without warning not far from Xiao Yuan's heart, slowly emanating warmth and steaming inside Xiao Yuan's body.

With the appearance of this projected body of the Fallen Heart Flame, the burning pain in his meridians that had appeared before began to reappear. However, this time, Xiao Yuan did not use the Yin Yang Dual Flames to isolate it. Instead, he gritted his teeth and endured the burning pain in his body, and began to cultivate.

Xiao Yuan's indulgence only made the invisible flame rise even more joyfully, with terrifying high temperatures seeping out from it, making Xiao Yuan's body like a furnace, where all his organs and even meridians were being tempered and strengthened in the process!

The burning pain caused by the high temperature caused Xiao Yuan's meridians to twitch very slightly from time to time, but fortunately, compared to the Heavenly Flames, this high temperature was not unbearable.

At the same time, Xiao Yuan's mind sank into his Qi Mansion, and streams of Dou Qi poured out from it like a floodgate being opened. After passing through his meridians, they were poured directly into the invisible flames. After being tempered, they returned to his Qi Mansion.

Feeling his internal Dou Qi being refined and purified bit by bit, Xiao Yuan was quite pleased. This speed was truly delightful! He had been worried that the large amount of Dou Qi required for advancement would affect his cultivation speed, but now, with the help of the Heavenly Flame Training Pagoda, the problem of cultivation speed was temporarily solved! To completely solve this problem, he would probably need to work on the Fallen Heart Flame.

In the spacious and brightly lit room, a dozen elderly men sat. Under the soft light, the badges on their chests were clearly visible, badges that only elders were qualified to wear.

Although the room was large, the atmosphere was somewhat somber. After a long while, an elderly man whose face was not clearly visible, sitting at the head of the table, coughed softly, breaking the silence of the room. His aged voice slowly echoed within the room, "These past few days, that thing has started to become somewhat unstable again."

Upon hearing his words, the other elders all frowned.

"After observing it for a period of time, I have found that the fluctuations it emits are much more intense than before, and judging from the emotions it exudes, it is becoming more and more irritable." The old voice continued to speak to itself, "Judging from this situation, it will probably launch another major counterattack in the next few years. If it is not handled well, it may cause a great deal of trouble."

Upon hearing this, some elders' expressions turned extremely grim, and many even suggested that the dean be invited back.

"The Dean is still traveling outside, rarely seen, so it's probably difficult for him to make a move." The leading old man shook his head helplessly. After a moment of silence, he suddenly looked up at an old man in the corner and asked, "Elder Liu, how is that little fellow with the Heavenly Flames doing now?"

"He is currently cultivating on the third level. Perhaps because he also possesses Heavenly Flames, he is not afraid of the corrosion of Fire Poison. I have also given him enough care as instructed by the Great Elder."

Elder Liu quickly stood up and respectfully replied.

"Elder Qing, where is the other little fellow who possesses Heavenly Flames?"

The elderly man at the head of the group then asked.

"These two brothers are quite lucky to be cultivating on the second level; they both possess Heavenly Flames."

Upon hearing this, Elder Qing quickly stood up and replied.

"Elders, if you encounter these two little fellows, please do your best to help them. Perhaps, we will need their strength when the Fallen Heart Flame erupts in the future. Alas, we cannot underestimate the energy of the Heavenly Flames. Such a rare thing is born from the essence of heaven and earth and possesses destructive power. If we are not careful, the Inner Academy may be in danger of destruction!"

The Great Elder Su Qian, who was completely shrouded in a black robe, sighed and said.

"Yes!"

The dozen or so elders below, who were greatly respected by the Inner Academy students, all stood up and respectfully responded.

"Alright, everyone go your separate ways. Oh, and remember to keep an eye on the movements of the major powers in the Black-Corner Region to the north."

The Great Elder waved his hand, coughed a few times, and said.

The elders nodded slightly and then left.

After everyone in the room had disappeared, Su Qian slowly stood up and then disappeared silently, arriving at the third floor of the Heavenly Flame Training Pagoda.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yuan had been cultivating in the Qi Refining Tower for a full five days.

But in these five days, he had already reached the bottleneck of the Dou Ling.

For most people, getting a touch is one thing, but advancing to the next level is another.

But Xiao Yuan's cultivation has no bottlenecks at all!

Feeling his internal Dou Qi swell to its peak, Xiao Yuan decisively took out the Golden Punishment Pill that Xiao Yan had refined for him from his Storage Ring and swallowed it in one gulp.

At the same time, the metal-attribute cultivation technique obtained from Yao Lao began to operate, and streaks of pale golden light appeared around Xiao Yuan.

The cultivation room was now empty.

The two people who were originally here have left because they could not withstand the burning heat in their hearts.

As for why no one entered afterward, Xiao Yuan couldn't figure it out either.

But he was happy to be undisturbed.

Within the Platinum Qi Gathering Palace, a faint golden light continuously flowed in, transforming into white Dou Qi with a metallic sheen. At the same time, Xiao Yuan's chest bulged and contracted continuously. As time passed, even his internal organs and meridians gained a metallic sheen!