First Sight of the Fallen Heart Flame

"Hiss~~"

An unusual hissing sound echoed from the dark cave entrance as Lin Ming left the Cultivation Room.

The previously dimly lit passage suddenly brightened after the hissing sound rang out. The already high temperature in the air then rose rapidly.

Sensing the anomaly in the passage, Lin Ming looked toward the Black Hole.

At this moment, the space around the cave entrance could be clearly felt to be distorted. The pitch-black cave entrance was no longer pitch black, and a bright light shone from within. An extremely terrifying and ancient aura emanated from the cave entrance.

Sensing this terrifying and intimidating aura, even in the sweltering passage, Lin Ming's forehead was still covered in cold sweat, and his throat involuntarily bobbed.

At this moment, a colossal object was surging within the Black Hole, which was now radiating intense light. Although it was invisible to the naked eye, Lin Ming, with his powerful Spiritual Strength, was still able to roughly sense its presence.

In Lin Ming's perception, the giant object in the passage was more than three zhang wide and thick, and he could only sense its length up to its head, but he didn't know where its tail was.

Lin Ming recognized the enormous creature inside the passage as Fire Spirit Giant Python born from the Fallen Heart Flame, a description found in the original novel.

But even knowing it was true, Lin Ming was still awestruck by the enormous fire python when he personally sensed it.

Almost everyone has seen whales on television in their past lives. The television shows described whales as weighing 30 to 40 tons and being tens of meters long. Many people are probably familiar with this information.

But those who know about whales are still awestruck by their enormous size when they actually see them at sea, and Lin Ming is experiencing that feeling now.

A gigantic, invisible fire python, with a triangular, ferocious snake head, its tongue lolling out.

Lin Ming was now certain that if an elephant from his previous life were thrown into this cave right now, the fire python would swallow it whole, just as easily as a tiger swallowing a chick.

"Hey you, what are you standing there for? Get out of here!" At this moment, an old man's voice startled Lin Ming.

Startled awake by the sound, Lin Ming looked at the old man walking towards him. It was Elder Xiong, who managed the second floor of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. Lin Ming had seen Elder Xiong when he entered the second floor.

"Elder Xiong!" Lin Ming addressed him.

Elder Xiong had been looking stern, softened his expression somewhat upon seeing that the person was Lin Ming, but his tone remained serious as he said, "Lin Ming, there's a problem with the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. All students need to leave. Don't delay, get out of there quickly."

Seeing Elder Xiong's serious expression, Lin Ming began to explain.

"Elder Xiong, Lin Ming immediately came out to leave after hearing the sound of departure. However, upon reaching the passage, he was intimidated by an aura, which caused him to hesitate for a moment."

"Thanks to Elder Xiong's reminder, Lin Ming was able to break free from the state of intimidation. Lin Ming, please go out now."

Elder Xiong's expression softened somewhat after hearing Lin Ming's words.

However, the Fallen Heart Flame inside the passage was still relentlessly pounding against the seal, and Elder Xiong didn't have time to chat with Lin Ming any longer. He said, "It's dangerous inside the tower now, get out quickly."

Lin Ming said no more, clasped his hands in greeting to Elder Xiong, and then headed towards the first level of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower.

Before long, Lin Ming arrived outside the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. At this time, a large number of students were gathered not far from the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower.

"Junior brother." Lin Ming heard his senior brother call out.

Seeing his senior brother Xu Shilin at the front of the crowd, Lin Ming also walked over.

"Junior brother, why are you so late?" Xu Shilin asked as Lin Ming walked up to him, since Lin Ming was almost the last person to leave the tower.

"I was cultivating too intensely, and by the time I heard the elder's reminder and came out, it was already this late," Lin Ming replied. As for why Lin Ming was delayed by the Fallen Heart Flame, Lin Ming naturally wouldn't mention it.

"Alright! It's good that everything's alright." Xu Shilin said after hearing Lin Ming's explanation.

"Brother Xu, this young man must be Lin Ming, the top student of this year's freshmen and the youngest 4th Grade Alchemist in the history of the Jia Nan Academy, right?" A man dressed in white spoke up next to Xu Shilin.

"Junior brother, let me introduce you. This is Brother Qin Zhongtian, currently ranked fourth on the Strong Ranking." Senior brother Xu Shilin introduced the man in white to Lin Ming.

"Brother Lin Ming truly lives up to his reputation as the youngest 4th Grade Alchemist. Meeting you today, you are indeed extraordinary," Qin Zhongtian said to Lin Ming.

"Brother Qin, you flatter me," Lin Ming replied, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

"With Brother Lin Ming's current achievements, he deserves praise. If I ever need Brother Lin Ming's help in the future, I hope you will be able to do me a favor." Qin Zhongtian returned the gesture with a fist and palm salute and spoke again.

This is Lin Ming's first meeting with Qin Zhongtian. He can't refuse Lin Ming's offer to do him a favor, but it wouldn't be good if he didn't refuse either.

If you refuse, it doesn't look good to reject someone who's Strong Ranking as a friend.

If I don't refuse, firstly, Senior Brother Lin Ming is still here; secondly, if I accept, it's equivalent to directly avoiding Senior Brother Xu Shilin, and what will Senior Brother think then?

Secondly, Lin Ming will need to spend time cultivating in the future, and he probably won't have much time for alchemy. If he agrees now but doesn't have time to refine the pills later, wouldn't that make things unpleasant for both of them?

Faced with Qin Zhongtian's words, Lin Ming hesitated for a moment before replying, "Brother Lin Ming, the only thing I can offer right now is my alchemy skills."

"If Brother Qin wishes to refine medicine, he can entrust the task to the Medicine Gang. Once the Medicine Gang accepts the task, someone will naturally complete it."

Lin Ming replied with the Medicine Gang, which neither meant he refused nor did it address the concerns he had.

The Medicine Gang already accepts tasks of Pill Refining. When Qin Zhongtian comes to the Medicine Gang Pill Refining, it will depend on whether I or my senior brother has time to refine them for him.

Qin Zhongtian's Qin Zhongtian changed slightly upon hearing Lin Ming's answer, but overall, he still wore a smile.

"Brother Xu, do you know what happened to the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower that caused the tremors that occurred more than two years ago?"

"You mean it's an earthquake? But the shaking only happens inside the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. Once you leave the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, the shaking stops. An earthquake wouldn't just pick one tower to shake, would it?"

"But if it wasn't an earthquake, then what could cause such a large tower to shake without warning?" Qin Zhongtian asked Xu Shilin.

"It's probably not an earthquake, but only those within the academy know the exact reason. However, I suspect it's related to the flames we use for cultivation," Xu Shilin said after a moment's thought.

During his conversation with his senior brother Xu Shilin and Qin Zhongtian, Lin Ming learned that the Fallen Heart Flame had previously erupted, and that the original prophet and those who could still use the Heart Flame for cultivation had all had their previous eruptions sealed and suppressed.

However, Lin Ming was somewhat surprised that his senior brother Xu Shilin could guess that the reason for the vibration of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower was related to the flames they used for daily cultivation.

However, it's normal for Lin Ming to be able to sense the Fire Python that the Fallen Heart Flame has taken form, as his senior brother Xu Shilin, who is now 4th Grade Alchemist, can also sense it through his Soul Power.

"Oh, Brother Xu, how do you know?" Qin Zhongtian asked with some skepticism about Xu Shilin's claim that the vibrations of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower were related to the flames he usually cultivated.

"Alright, Brother Qin, this probably involves the academy's secrets. Let's not discuss it anymore," Xu Shilin said with a slight smile.

Seeing that Xu Shilin had already said so, Qin Zhongtian stopped pressing for details and moved on to other matters.

"Junior brother, now that we're out, I'll go back to the Medicine Gang. I wonder if you'd like to come back with me or stay here and wait for the tremors to subside before re-entering the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower to cultivate?" Senior brother Xu Shilin asked Lin Ming.

"Senior brother, I can hold on a little longer, so I'll stay here and wait for the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower to reopen. I won't be going back to the Medicine Gang with you," Lin Ming replied.

Lin Ming has been cultivating for more than three days now, and he still has more than one day to cultivate, so Lin Ming doesn't want to waste it.

"Alright then, junior brother, you wait here for the tower to reopen! Senior brother will head back to the Medicine Gang." Xu Shilin nodded, said this, and then left, heading towards the Medicine Gang.

After Lin Ming waited there for more than half an hour, the bell for opening the tower finally rang, and then the gate of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower reopened.

Upon seeing the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower reopen, Lin Ming, who was ahead, entered the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower at almost the fastest speed, then went down to the second floor and returned to his previous Cultivation Room.

After closing the door to the Cultivation Room, Lin Ming reinserted the Fire Crystal Card into the groove on the stone platform, then sat cross-legged and entered a state of cultivation.

After entering the cultivation, Lin Ming felt that the Heart Flame in his body was more active than before, and the corresponding cultivation effect was also better.

This phenomenon is likely due to the recent eruption of the Fallen Heart Flame, which allowed the Heart Flame Fallen Heart Flame to have a better cultivation effect.

Normally, the Fallen Heart Flame lies dormant deep within the magma, accumulating energy. But when the Fallen Heart Flame feels it has accumulated enough energy, it will erupt, attempting to break through the seal of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower and escape.

At this point, the Fallen Heart Flame is not only awakened, but it is also located at the top of the magma, near the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. This results in better activity of the reflected Heart Flame, leading to better cultivation effects.

The fact that the Fallen Heart Flame has now been suppressed means that the energy it accumulated to break through the seal has been used up. The Fallen Heart Flame will soon go deep into the magma to accumulate energy again.

The effects of cultivating the Heart Flame would likely revert to their previous state by then, so Lin Ming seized the opportunity while the effects of cultivating the Heart Flame were still better and began cultivating as soon as possible.