Lin Chen's hand was cold and steady.
It clamped firmly around Xiao Xun'er's slender wrist.
The instant their skin touched, Ling Ying, hidden in the shadows, did not move.
He had not sensed the slightest killing intent from Lin Chen.
And confident in his own strength, he was certain he could intervene in time whenever necessary.
But what happened next was beyond anyone's understanding!
"Bzz!"
An indescribably ancient will of flame, as though from the dawn of creation,
surged through Lin Chen's fingertips and violently forced its way into Xiao Xun'er's meridians!
This will was not a frenzied force of destruction. Instead, it carried an unrivaled power of purification and dominion!
It ignored the innate defenses of the Ancient Clan treasure within Xiao Xun'er.
Perhaps its rank was simply too high, or perhaps it was the nature of the Karma Fire Red Lotus.
Like a hot knife through butter, it charged straight at the Child Flame of the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame, which was running rampant through her meridians, radiating an aura that could incinerate all things!
A strange scene unfolded!
The Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame had been so violent that even Ling Ying, a Dou Emperor, had been utterly helpless.
He had been unable to soothe it in the slightest.
But under the impact of that ancient will, accompanied by a shadow of a dark-red lotus, it suddenly halted as though it had met its natural nemesis and sovereign!
The frenzied aura that could burn the heavens and destroy the earth
was doused like a blazing fire struck by a bucket of ice water, abruptly subsiding and growing feeble!
The Karma Fire Red Lotus burned away sin and severed karma. It possessed an innate power to suppress and purify all flames in the world!
Though the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame was powerful, its Child Flame was currently uncontrolled and thrashing about as it turned on its host.
Before this wisp of the primordial Karma Fire's source will, it was utterly subdued, though that will was incomparably faint!
What was more, after intimidating the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame, the will of the Karma Fire Red Lotus did not dissipate.
Instead, it spread like a web, winding around the flame in countless wisps!
It even began to draw in the pure Fire Energy released by the Child Flame of the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame!
The process was incredibly subtle, but Xiao Xun'er, who was enduring the pain,
felt it with perfect clarity!
The searing agony that had nearly torn her soul apart receded like a tide!
The terrifying energy that had been rampaging through her, seemingly on the verge of exploding, instantly became docile and calm.
It even... conveyed a strange mix of "fear" and "attachment"?
Almost instinctively, Lin Chen began circulating the Blood Scripture.
Pure Blood Origin Dou Qi flowed slowly through their joined wrists and into Xiao Xun'er's body.
The Dou Qi was of exceptional quality, brimming with vigorous vitality and a cool, soothing force.
It flowed through her meridians, which had been scorched by the Heavenly Flames and left damaged and fragile!
Wherever it passed, it was like sweet rain falling on parched earth.
It quickly nourished and repaired the slightest injuries, bringing a cool, soothing comfort.
Xiao Xun'er's eyes flew wide open.
Reflected in her pupils was Lin Chen's face, close at hand, still masked but intent.
In truth, Lin Chen was focused on controlling the Karma Fire Red Lotus and his Dou Qi with all his might.
Her pale lips parted slightly, and her pupils contracted.
All her pain and dazedness were replaced by utter shock!
What... what kind of power was this?!
It could instantly suppress the Heavenly Flames' backlash that had made her wish she were dead...
And the Dou Qi flowing into her body...?!
Xiao Xun'er's attention was completely captured by that wisp of Blood Origin Dou Qi Lin Chen had sent into her.
That Dou Qi... was condensed, pure, weighty, and nimble...
It seemed to contain boundless vitality and a certain ancient, domineering will!
Its quality was far beyond anything she could have imagined!
Born into the Ancient Clan, she had seen the elders who cultivated Heaven-tier techniques circulate their Dou Qi.
It was already as vast as the sea, with boundless power.
But... but it still seemed to lack the innate nobility and perfection
that this faint wisp of Dou Qi before her possessed!
It was as though... as though it were the ultimate form, forged through countless refinements, with all impurities stripped away!
How could a five-year-old child cultivate such Dou Qi in a place like Wutan City?!
In the shadows, Ling Ying, who had long been poised to risk his life to save his charge,
stood frozen, as if bound by a spell.
Beneath his hood, his old face was filled with horror and disbelief!
"Suppressing the Heavenly Flames?!"
"What... what kind of power is this?!"
"And that Dou Qi... Miss..."
Ling Ying's spiritual perception was countless times sharper than Xiao Xun'er's.
He could better sense the terrifying quality of Lin Chen's wisp of Dou Qi, as well as the fleeting flame-will whose rank was so high it made his soul tremble!
"This child... this child is no mere prodigy!"
"How terrifying is his constitution?!"
In just a few breaths, the pain in Xiao Xun'er's body had vanished completely.
In its place was a comfort she had never felt before.
Her meridians were even a little sturdier and wider than before the backlash!
The Child Flame of the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame had grown exceptionally docile and lay quietly dormant.
Lin Chen felt the satisfaction transmitted by the Karma Fire Red Lotus.
The trace of Fire Energy it had absorbed from the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame far surpassed what it gained from burning dozens of sinful souls.
He immediately drew in his aura, snatched his hand back as if burned, and took a step away.
The whole process had been as quick as lightning. From grabbing her wrist to letting go, no more than ten breaths had passed.
The cool touch vanished from her wrist, and Xiao Xun'er unexpectedly felt a faint, inexplicable emptiness.
She breathed softly. Color quickly returned to her pale cheeks, which looked even more radiant and lustrous than before.
She looked up, her glassy eyes fixed on Lin Chen, filled with conflicting emotions.
Shock, confusion, gratitude, and a curiosity she could not quite name shone within them:
"You..."
Her voice was still hoarse with the aftermath of her ordeal, but no longer weak:
"Thank you."
She did not ask why he had suddenly acted, nor did she dwell on the somewhat presumptuous touch.
After such extreme pain and the intense relief that followed, any words of gratitude seemed inadequate.
She simply gazed at Lin Chen, as if she wanted to see through him, inside and out.
Lin Chen's expression softened, the gravity of his earlier exertion fading.
His tone was calm, yet naturally polite:
"It was nothing. I'm just glad you're all right."
With that, he gave a slight nod and turned to leave.
His pace was unhurried. He neither kept his distance deliberately nor lingered unnecessarily.
He needed to find somewhere at once to digest what the Karma Fire Red Lotus had gained!
Watching the slight figure gradually disappear into the night, Xiao Xun'er stood rooted to the spot.
Only after a long while did she gently stroke the wrist he had just held.
It seemed to retain a trace of strange coolness... and heat?
"Elder Ling."
She called softly in her heart.
"Miss, this old servant is here."
Ling Ying's voice was heavy with lingering fear and solemnity.
"Just now..."
"This old servant... couldn't fully see through it either."
Ling Ying's voice was bitter.
"He used a kind of flame power... one this old servant has never seen before, yet one of extremely high rank."
"It seemed to naturally counter the Heavenly Flames and forcibly soothe the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame."
"And the Dou Qi he sent into your body... its quality was beyond comprehension!"
"It could not have been cultivated through any ordinary technique!"
"This old servant suspects... that child must possess some legendary, heaven-defying constitution!"
"And one exceptionally suited to controlling fire, with innately superb Dou Qi quality!"
"Only that could explain everything!"
Xiao Xun'er fell silent.
A special constitution?
That did seem to be the most reasonable explanation.
Otherwise, how could a five-year-old child possess such abilities and such Dou Qi?
The Xiao Clan could never have provided the resources or techniques he needed!
His movements were perfectly clear, and he had never even left Wutan City.
There was no way to explain it as mere good fortune!
"His future shouldn't be confined to this little Wutan City."
Xiao Xun'er murmured to herself.
A faint glimmer flashed through her eyes.
Her desire to recruit him grew stronger.
A prodigy like this... if she could bring him into the Ancient Clan...
But she would have to take her time. She absolutely could not rush things!
Before you continue