Devouring the Green Lotus Core Flame! Seven-Star Dou Huang!

This was a massive underground space.

In the very center was a pool of magma, where crimson lava churned and bubbled. Waves of heat surged forth, one after another, scorching the air until it warped.

Right in the middle of the magma pool stood a protruding rock.

Growing on that rock was a cyan lotus.

The lotus was not large, only about the size of a washbasin, but it was translucent throughout, as if carved from jade. Its petals were layered, and at its very center rested a cluster of cyan flames.

The flame burned silently, yet the temperature it radiated made the entire underground space feel like a steamer.

Green Lotus Core Flame!

Ye Xiu stared at that cluster of flames, and the Dou Qi within his body began to stir restlessly.

It was not fear, but excitement.

He took a step forward.

"Wait." Medusa spoke suddenly.

Ye Xiu turned to look at her.

Medusa said, "This Queen will wait for you outside. If you die, I will collect your corpse. If you come out alive, the Green Lotus Core Flame is yours."

Ye Xiu smiled. "Deal."

Medusa looked at him, her gaze flickering as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she remained silent and turned to walk away.

Ye Xiu turned back to look at the cyan lotus in the center of the magma pool.

Taking a deep breath, Ye Xiu swallowed a Blood Lotus Pill, and a layer of blood-colored scabs quickly covered his body.

Then, the Dou Qi Wings on his back unfurled with a boom, and he flew toward the center of the magma pool.

The moment he landed beside the Green Lotus, Ye Xiu felt as if he had been thrown into a furnace.

It was too hot.

This heat was not ordinary; it was the kind of heat that burned from the depths of his soul. His Dou Qi began to circulate frantically, his blood began to boil, and his entire body felt as if it were about to ignite.

But just then, an unexpected change occurred.

The blood within his body suddenly grew restless, just as it had when he consumed the Companion Amethyst Source last time. That agitation surged directly toward the surface of his skin, flowing wildly beneath it.

And then—

The burning sensation lessened.

It did not disappear, but it lessened. It lessened to a degree he could endure.

Ye Xiu looked down at his hands, then back at the cluster of cyan flames.

Could the Innate Medicine Body really suppress a Heavenly Flame?

Although it could not produce the complete crushing effect he had experienced when devouring the Purple Flame, the current situation was still far beyond Ye Xiu's expectations.

Of course, he had no time to dwell on other things now.

The Green Lotus Core Flame seemed to sense something; the flames suddenly surged, lunging toward him!

Instead of retreating, Ye Xiu advanced, reaching out to grab the source flame and swallowing it in one gulp.

Boom!

The cyan flames instantly engulfed his entire body.

Ye Xiu felt as if he had been thrown into the magma, with every inch of his skin burning. But his blood flowed frantically, wrapping around the flames that had burned their way in, dragging them into his meridians, dragging them into his Dantian.

It hurt.

It hurt like hell.

It was a hundred times more painful than when he consumed the Companion Amethyst Source.

But Ye Xiu gritted his teeth, not making a sound.

He knew this was the most critical moment. If he endured, the Heavenly Flame would be his. If he failed to endure, he would lose his life here today.

The Dou Qi in his body began to circulate wildly, and the purple-gold flames rushed out from his Dantian, colliding with the cyan flames.

The two flames began to fight inside Ye Xiu's body.

The Purple Flame was refined from the Companion Amethyst Source; although it was not weak, compared to the Green Lotus Core Flame, it was not even in the same league. The moment they made contact, the Purple Flame began to retreat.

Ye Xiu gritted his teeth, forcibly driving his Dou Qi to push the Purple Flame forward!

But it was useless.

The Green Lotus Core Flame was too strong, so strong that the Purple Flame could not block it at all.

Just as the Purple Flame was about to collapse, Ye Xiu's blood moved again.

The blood seemed to come alive, surging from his limbs and bones to throw itself directly at the cyan flames.

At first, the Green Lotus Core Flame did not care at all, continuing to rampage. But the moment the blood wrapped around it, the flame clearly faltered.

It was as if it had sensed something terrifying!

Layers of blood wrapped around the flames, sealing the Green Lotus Core Flame tightly. The Green Lotus Core Flame began to struggle, fighting desperately, but it could not break free. The blood seemed to have a sticky quality, wrapping tighter and thicker with every layer.

Ye Xiu could feel that blood slowly seeping inward.

Bit by bit, inch by inch.

The Green Lotus Core Flame began to shrink.

Ye Xiu widened his eyes.

Was his blood actively devouring the Green Lotus Core Flame?

Ye Xiu could feel the absorbed flames flowing through his blood throughout his entire body, finally converging into his Dantian. The Dou Qi in his Dantian had been on the verge of collapse, but as soon as those green flames entered, his Dou Qi surged instantly.

The Purple Flame no longer retreated at this moment; instead, it took the initiative to meet the green flames, mingling with them.

The two flames began to merge.

Ye Xiu closed his eyes and circulated his cultivation technique with all his might.

Time passed bit by bit.

He did not know how much time had passed, but the Green Lotus Core Flame finally grew docile.

Those green flames no longer rampaged; instead, they flowed obediently along with the blood, eventually pouring entirely into his Dantian. The Purple Flame moved closer, mingling with the green flames and beginning to fuse.

Ye Xiu could feel the two flames permeating each other.

The Purple Flame had originally been the suppressed party, but after the Green Lotus Core Flame was refined by the blood, its violent nature vanished, and it began to coexist peacefully with the Purple Flame.

During the fusion process, Ye Xiu's meridians began to repair themselves.

The meridians, which had been riddled with holes from the Heavenly Flame just moments ago, were now healing at a speed visible to the naked eye. Furthermore, the healed meridians were wider and tougher than before.

Where the green flames flowed, a faint green light shimmered on the surface of his meridians.

The Heavenly Flame was remodeling his body.

From now on, his Dou Qi would carry the properties of the Green Lotus Core Flame, making his flames stronger when refining medicine and more powerful when fighting.

The final step was to make the Heavenly Flame completely acknowledge its master.

This process was by no means simple.

Although the Green Lotus Core Flame had not yet developed sentience, it possessed a trace of spiritual instinct.

Ye Xiu took a deep breath and extended his soul power into his Dantian.

Inside the Dantian, the cluster of green flames burned quietly. The purple-gold flame sat beside it, the two clusters pressed together, slowly merging.

Ye Xiu's soul power approached and gently touched the green flame.

The green flame shuddered, and a sense of resistance was transmitted back.

Ye Xiu did not rush; he simply touched it slowly, over and over again. With every touch, he transmitted a little bit of his own aura.

This was the method Yao Lao had taught Xiao Yan in the original story: using soul power to communicate with the Heavenly Flame and letting it become familiar with his aura.

Time passed bit by bit.

He did not know how much time had passed, but the cluster of green flames finally stopped resisting. It flickered gently and then actively leaned toward Ye Xiu's soul power.

At that moment, Ye Xiu felt a wondrous connection established between himself and the flame.

It was as if it had become a part of his own body.

BOOM!

A terrifying aura exploded from Ye Xiu's body!

His cultivation realm suddenly began to soar!

After being tempered by the origin of the Heavenly Flame, his realm finally stopped at Seven-Star Dou Huang! He had jumped three stars in a row!

Ye Xiu opened his eyes.

He looked down at his hands.

With a "poof," a cluster of green flames erupted from his palm.

It was a success!