Events beneath the tower

"Bang!"

A deafening roar erupted once more from the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, and cracks began to spread from the top of the tower downwards. Even Su Qian, who had been somewhat prepared, turned pale at this sight. The reason was none other than the sheer power of the Fallen Heart Flame!

The square was filled with students, both seniors and freshmen from the Outer Academy. When they saw this scene, their faces turned pale. It looked like the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower was about to explode!

"Boom!"

Sure enough, with a final, deafening roar, the incredibly sturdy Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower shattered, and a pillar of crimson magma tinged with pale blue erupted like a volcanic eruption, shooting straight into the sky before crashing down onto the plaza.

Just as all the academies were in turmoil upon seeing the sky filled with lava, the lava suddenly solidified in mid-air, as if time had stood still!

"Hahaha, I'm out! I, Xiao Yan, am out again! Hahaha!"

A clear laugh slowly spread across the sky, filled with ecstatic joy, but it left everyone present stunned.

Just as everyone was stunned into silence, Xiao Yan's laughter brought them back to their senses. Wu Hao and Lin Yan, who had come with him, were overjoyed. Wu Hao and Lin Yan had entered the Inner Academy together, and Lin Yan and Xiao Yan had a very good relationship. Although they knew that Xiao Yan was at the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, they couldn't help but be worried.

Now that Xiao Yan is out, I can finally relax completely. "I knew this guy would be alright, right? This kid made us worry for nothing!" Lin Yan laughed.

As Xiao Yan appeared, a beautiful figure quickly followed him out from the bottom of the tower. Upon closer inspection, it was none other than Nalan Yanran, who had entered the tower with Xiao Yan!

Great Elder Su Qian was slightly taken aback, but quickly recovered and looked at Xiao Yan with a light laugh, "You little rascal, you've finally come out! If you hadn't, I was worried something might have happened to you down there!"

Xiao Yan laughed heartily, "Haha, I've worried the Great Elder. I've had some good fortune down there, and it's time for me to come out. It's been a long time since I last saw you, Great Elder, you're even more vigorous than before!"

As Xiao Yan spoke, he lightly waved his sleeve, and the magma that filled the sky mysteriously retreated in the direction it had come from. Amidst countless shocked gazes, the massive column of magma crashed down along the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, and then returned to calm once more.

This move caused Su Qian, who was standing opposite Xiao Yan, to narrow his eyes slightly. It seemed that he had devoured the Heavenly Flames. Otherwise, the Fallen Heart Flame would not be so obedient. When Su Qian thought of this, he couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. That was the foundation of the Inner Academy!

"So you've subdued this Fallen Heart Flame?" Su Qian asked tentatively.

Xiao Yan scratched his head slightly, a little embarrassed, and said, "Yes!"

As he spoke, Xiao Yan opened his palm, and a bluish-green flame appeared before the two of them. Su Qian frowned slightly and said, "Huh, this flame of yours seems a little different from the Fallen Heart Flame. Could it be that the Fallen Heart Flame can change form after being subdued?"

Hearing Great Elder Su Qian's words, Xiao Yan couldn't help but shake his head and smile, saying, "It's just that it changed into another form by chance. It's just that the color has changed and the power has increased slightly!"

Su Qian nodded slightly and said, "Indeed, even I felt a sense of apprehension from this flame. It seems you've gained a lot this time!"

Xiao Yan smiled but didn't speak. He had no intention of revealing that he had absorbed the Fallen Heart Flame and the Sea Heart Flame. It wasn't that he didn't trust them; it was just that the fusion of two Heavenly Flames within one person was too astonishing, so the fewer people who knew about it, the better!

Su Qian glanced at the cracked Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower and said, "I wonder if the new Fallen Heart Flame that Xiao Yu mentioned is real. If it is, then this Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower wasn't wasted!"

"By the way, Xiao Yan, you'll need to stay at the academy for a while longer. The Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower needs some of your primordial fire to allow students to continue cultivating inside!" Su Qian said, looking at Xiao Yan.

Since Xiao Yan absorbed someone else's Heavenly Flames, it was only natural that the host would make some requests, so he readily agreed.

Su Qian didn't say much, and then left. However, as she left, her gaze lingered for a moment on the obedient woman behind Xiao Yan before she left directly.

After Su Qian left, Lin Yan, Wu Hao, Xiao Yu, Hu Jia, Xiao Mei, and Xiao Ning all came to greet him. More than a year had passed, and Xiao Mei and Xiao Ning had now entered the Inner Academy. Moreover, their cultivation speed was also very fast. In this year, Xiao Yu crossed the Dou Ling level and broke through to the Dou Wang!

Meanwhile, Xiao Mei and Xiao Ning had also cultivated to the Peak Dou Ling. All of this was thanks to the Xiao Clan's ancestral bloodline, which had brought the entire Xiao Clan to a new level of strength.

Lin Yan slammed his fist into Xiao Yan, and just as he was about to speak, he suddenly hissed.

"Damn, that's hard! What level has your strength reached now?" Lin Yan withdrew his fist, which was now covered in a large red mark, demonstrating the incredible hardness of Xiao Yan's body!

Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing, who had rushed over from the side, also witnessed this scene and immediately gasped in shock. Lin Yan was now a genuine Dou Wang, yet he had managed to injure himself like this with just one punch. It seemed that Xiao Yan's improvement in strength was truly outrageous!

Xiao Yan shrugged and chuckled, "It should be the Dou Emperor realm. I'm inherently Fire Attribute, and at the bottom of the tower, I was not only scorched by the Fallen Heart Flame, but also had a continuous supply of Fire Attribute energy to support my cultivation. So I've grown quite a bit this year!"

The people around him stared at Xiao Yan in disbelief. In just one year, he had leaped over an entire major realm, a speed that filled them with envy.

Lin Yan exclaimed, "Damn, I should have gone down with you! Maybe I could have broken through to the Dou Emperor realm too!"

Liu Qing, however, chimed in, "With your talent, you'll at best remain Dou Wang at best!"

"You! Can't you speak properly!" Lin Yan glared at Lin Yan and said angrily.

However, no one noticed that Nalan Yanran, standing behind Xiao Yan, had a slightly flushed face. It was because she had impulsively followed him that the subsequent events had caught her somewhat off guard.

The initial period after descending was fine, but after a while, the magma at the bottom of the tower suddenly began to churn without warning. Then, Nalan Yanran saw Xiao Yan, with bloodshot eyes, leap out from behind the magma and engulf Nalan Yanran at the bottom of the magma.