Chapter Summaries

After defeating Bai Han in the Fire Energy Hunting Tournament, Lu Heng collected his rewards and took most of Bai Han’s Fire Energy. He and the new students divided their spoils before Hu Gan led them toward the Inner Academy.

• Hu Gan awarded Lu Heng fifty days of Fire Energy and the ingredients for a Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill.
• Bai Han recovered from Lu Heng’s attack, and Lu Heng demanded the Fire Energy they had wagered.
• Bai Han handed over his Crystal Card, and Lu Heng took most of its 458 days of Fire Energy, leaving him with eight.
• Lu Heng shared the tournament spoils with Han Yue, Lin Xiuya, Lin Yan, and the other new students while the Inner Academy elders watched.
• Hu Gan urged the group to enter the Inner Academy as a clamor rose from beyond the silver spatial gate.

Lu Heng led the freshmen into Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy after defeating Bai Han and Hei Lie, drawing shocked attention from the veteran students. Hu Gan told Great Elder Su Qian about Lu Heng’s extraordinary strength, four-element constitution, and alchemy skills, leaving them to consider his possible role in dealing with the threat beneath the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower.

• Lu Heng led Han Yue and the other freshmen through the Inner Academy gates, where veteran students gaped at Bai Han and Hei Lie being dragged behind them.
• Hu Gan arranged lodging for the freshmen, warned Lu Heng to be cautious, and then went to report to Su Qian.
• Hu Gan told Su Qian that twelve-year-old Lu Heng had crushed Bai Han despite being a One-Star Da Dou Shi.
• Hu Gan revealed that Lu Heng was a Fourth-Grade Alchemist whose body circulated four complementary types of Dou Qi through a profound cultivation art.
• Su Qian speculated that Lu Heng might eventually gain the missing Water Attribute and said his potential could be beyond estimation.
• Hu Gan suggested that Lu Heng might be able to subdue the thing beneath the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower if it broke free.

After earning an independent courtyard in the Inner Academy, Lu Heng settled in beside Han Yue and began refining the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill. As Han Yue watched, he carefully extracted the medicinal essences, leaving the pill refining underway.

• The elder awarded Lu Heng and Han Yue separate independent courtyards for their tournament performance, and they followed Lin Xiuya, Liu Qing, and Lin Yan to see them.
• Lu Heng inspected his courtyard, where the dense energy and bluestone training platform suited cultivation and pill refining.
• Han Yue explained the Inner Academy's Fire Energy-based resources and warned Lu Heng that factions might target him after he robbed the White Fiend and Black Fiend.
• Lu Heng brought out the ingredients for the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill and decided to refine it despite having recently fought two battles.
• Lu Heng heated the Mystic Yuan Li Fire Cauldron, purified the Purple Spotted Vine, and began processing the remaining medicinal ingredients as Han Yue watched.

Lu Heng finished refining three Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pills just as Zi Yan broke into his courtyard, drawn by their scent. He won her over with sweet failed pills and made a deal for her to help him find Yao Cai in the Back Mountain, but she warned him that men in white were gathering outside his gate.

• Zi Yan jumped down from Lu Heng's courtyard wall and charged at his pill cauldron, but Lu Heng secured the three pills before she could reach them.
• Lu Heng recognized the powerful, purple-haired girl as Zi Yan and refused to give her a Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill.
• Lu Heng offered Zi Yan sweet failed pills, and she eagerly ate several of them.
• Lu Heng proposed that Zi Yan take him to find Yao Cai in the Back Mountain in exchange for pills, and she agreed.
• Zi Yan told Lu Heng that several men in white with a foul medicinal scent were waiting outside the gate, apparently planning to surround the courtyard.

Lu Heng learned that Alchemist Department members had come to his courtyard, but Zi Yan drove them off before they could confront him. After Lu Heng gave her candy pills, he casually patted her head, leaving Han Yue shocked and Zi Yan stunned.

• Han Yue warned Lu Heng that the Alchemist Department might seek to recruit him or warn him because he was a Fourth-Grade Alchemist.
• Zi Yan went to the gate and frightened Han Fei and his companions into fleeing by cracking a stone pillar with one slap.
• Zi Yan returned to Lu Heng and demanded the candy pills he had promised her.
• Lu Heng gave Zi Yan a vial of pills, and she happily ate one while telling him she preferred his refined pills to medicinal herbs.
• Lu Heng rubbed Zi Yan's purple hair, making Han Yue gape and leaving Zi Yan frozen in surprise.

Lu Heng befriended Zi Yan after realizing his aura from the Seven-Colored Phantom Dragon Saliva Grass made him smell familiar to her, and he promised to reveal the reason if she helped him find high-grade Yao Cai. Their plans to visit the Back Mountain were interrupted when Liu Qing arrived asking for Lu Heng’s help.

• Lu Heng comforted Zi Yan by patting her head and calling her cute, while Han Yue teased him for liking lolis.
• Lu Heng introduced himself and Han Yue to Zi Yan, who then sniffed him and said he smelled familiar and tempting to bite.
• Lu Heng suspected the Seven-Colored Phantom Dragon Saliva Grass had given him a faint dragon aura that Zi Yan recognized.
• Lu Heng promised to explain his scent if Zi Yan helped him find high-grade Yao Cai, and Zi Yan eagerly suggested a red fruit guarded by a bear in the Back Mountain.
• Liu Qing called for Lu Heng from outside the courtyard, and Zi Yan asked if she could send him flying.

Lu Heng stopped Zi Yan from attacking Liu Qing and kept her occupied with pills when Liu Qing visited. Liu Qing presented three medicinal ingredients and asked Lu Heng to refine an Earth Origin Spirit Pill so he could attempt a breakthrough in the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower.

• Lu Heng restrained Zi Yan when she tried to punch Liu Qing, then gave her pills to keep her from causing trouble.
• Han Yue opened the gate for Liu Qing, who entered the courtyard and felt intimidated by Zi Yan.
• Liu Qing recognized Zi Yan as the legendary Brute King and sat down with Lu Heng.
• Liu Qing showed Lu Heng three fourth-tier medicinal ingredients and asked him to refine an Earth Origin Spirit Pill.
• Liu Qing explained that he planned to cultivate in the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower and use the pill to help break through.

Lu Heng accepted Liu Qing’s medicinal ingredients and refined Earth Origin Spirit Pills while considering how to obtain Earth Core Body Tempering Milk. After planning to visit the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower with Han Yue, he finished the night with two pills from three batches.

• Liu Qing asked Lu Heng to refine three batches of Earth Origin Spirit Pills, and Lu Heng accepted while warning that the pills might fail.
• Zi Yan teased Liu Qing, took a bottle of pills from Lu Heng, and left to settle scores with a bear on Back Mountain.
• Lu Heng considered seeking Earth Core Body Tempering Milk and thought Zi Yan might help him face its Snow Demon Sky Ape guardian.
• Lu Heng and Han Yue agreed to visit the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower the next morning before pursuing the dangerous treasure.
• Lu Heng refined Liu Qing’s ingredients overnight and produced two pale-green pills from three batches.

Lu Heng and Han Yue visited the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, where the Fallen Heart Flame’s Heart Fire struck them at the entrance. Lu Heng’s Li Fire Dou Qi refined the Heart Fire into energy and strengthened his meridians, while Elder Liu watched in surprise at his rapid progress.

• Lu Heng and Han Yue reached the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower and found senior students gathered outside its open bronze doors.
• When Lu Heng entered the doors’ range, the Heart Fire attacked him from within, but his Li Fire Dou Qi wrapped around and refined it.
• The refined Heart Fire strengthened Lu Heng’s meridians, while Han Yue struggled to counter its heat with her Ice Attribute Dou Qi.
• Elder Liu appeared at the entrance and noticed that Lu Heng was gaining strength instead of suffering from the Heart Fire.

Lu Heng quickly adapted to the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower’s Heart Fire, then absorbed the fire poison tormenting Han Yue and saved her from collapsing. After Elder Liu warned them about the stronger Heart Fire deeper inside, Lu Heng and Han Yue entered the tower together.

• Lu Heng suppressed the Heart Fire in under five minutes and surprised the older students and Elder Liu with his strength.
• Han Yue endured the Heart Fire for twenty minutes until she neared her limit, prompting Elder Liu to prepare to intervene.
• Lu Heng grabbed Han Yue and absorbed the fire poison from her body with his Li Fire Body, stopping her from collapsing.
• Han Yue recovered in Lu Heng’s embrace, and Lu Heng kissed her before Elder Liu interrupted them and questioned his unusual constitution.
• Elder Liu warned them that the Heart Fire grew stronger deeper in the tower, and Lu Heng led Han Yue farther inside.

Lu Heng took Han Yue to train beside the fourth-floor fire eye, promising to absorb the flame poison that her ice attribute Dou Qi could not withstand. After seeing his confidence and special flame, Han Yue accepted his help and kissed his cheek before they began training.

• Lu Heng used his Green Fire Crystal Card to take Han Yue past the crowded first floor and down to the fourth floor.
• Lu Heng explained that Han Yue should absorb the heart fire to temper her body and direct excess heat and flame poison toward him.
• Lu Heng showed Han Yue his dark red flame and assured her that taking in her flame poison would also help him temper his meridians.
• Han Yue kissed Lu Heng on the cheek, called it a reward, and said she would listen to him.
• Lu Heng teased Han Yue about a more direct kiss, then the two settled down to train beside the fire eye.

Lu Heng devoured Heart Fire in the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower and absorbed Han Yue’s fire poison, drawing the attention of Great Elder Su Qian. Su Qian decided to watch Lu Heng’s limits while the Fallen Heart Flame beneath the tower stirred in response.

• Lu Heng drew a crimson pillar of Heart Fire into himself, easing the pressure Han Yue felt as she cultivated beside him.
• Elder Liu told Su Qian that Lu Heng had refined Heart Fire in under five minutes and absorbed the fire poison from Han Yue’s body.
• Elder Liu reported that Lu Heng had taken Han Yue to the fourth floor, where their Training Room consumed Fire Energy at three times the usual rate.
• Su Qian decided to let Lu Heng continue cultivating, monitor him, and eventually send him deeper to test his limits.
• The ground trembled beneath the pavilion, and Su Qian and Elder Liu sensed a growl from the direction of the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower.

Lu Heng drained the Fallen Heart Flame through the tower’s Fire Eye and advanced to Two-Star Da Dou Shi, provoking the flame’s rage and throwing the tower into chaos. As the Fallen Heart Flame’s will surged back at him, Lu Heng chose to suppress it rather than retreat.

• The Fallen Heart Flame sensed Lu Heng greedily siphoning its energy and lashed the magma sea in fury.
• Lu Heng’s Li Fire Body filtered the flame’s energy, helping him break through to Two-Star Da Dou Shi.
• Han Yue woke refreshed after Lu Heng removed the Flame Poison from her, then saw the raging Heart Fire and retreated to the Training Room’s corner.
• The Heart Fire turned violent throughout the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, forcing students to flee their Training Rooms.
• Lu Heng sensed the Fallen Heart Flame’s will resisting him, but summoned his Dou Qi to suppress it and swallowed the incoming Flame Poison.

Lu Heng’s cultivation in the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower provoked Fallen Heart Flame into a violent eruption, which Su Qian and the elders suppressed. After discovering Lu Heng had absorbed the surrounding Fire Energy and advanced to Two-Star Da Dou Shi, Su Qian summoned him to discuss his unusual physique and its potential role in subduing the flame.

• Lu Heng’s absorption of Fire Energy enraged Fallen Heart Flame, causing the tower to shake as the fire python battered its seal.
• Su Qian and the elders reinforced the seal and forced Fallen Heart Flame back into the magma.
• Lu Heng emerged from cultivation unharmed and newly advanced to Two-Star Da Dou Shi, while Han Yue reacted with astonishment.
• Elder Liu reported that Fire Energy had concentrated around Lu Heng’s Training Room, and Su Qian realized Lu Heng had triggered the eruption.
• Su Qian considered using Lu Heng to subdue Fallen Heart Flame and ordered Elder Liu to bring him to his study.
• As Lu Heng and Han Yue left the tower, Elder Liu stopped Lu Heng and told him that Su Qian requested his presence.

Elder Liu escorted Lu Heng to meet Great Elder Su Qian after the disturbance in the tower, and Lu Heng insisted that Han Yue accompany him. Su Qian recognized Han Yue’s cultivation progress and studied Lu Heng’s unusual aura, leaving the meeting poised for his questions.

• Elder Liu told Lu Heng that Great Elder Su Qian had summoned him, and Lu Heng persuaded Han Yue to come along.
• Elder Liu led Lu Heng and Han Yue to Su Qian’s pavilion and left them to enter his study.
• Su Qian praised Han Yue’s cultivation as a Nine-Star Da Dou Shi and heard her credit Lu Heng for her progress.
• Su Qian sensed Lu Heng’s unusual, powerful aura, and Lu Heng greeted him while still holding Han Yue’s hand.

Lu Heng revealed that he could sense the Fallen Heart Flame’s consciousness, prompting Su Qian to explain the danger beneath the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower. Su Qian gave Lu Heng the tower’s highest-authority purple fire crystal card, and Zi Yan appeared in the study as Lu Heng and Han Yue were leaving.

• Su Qian questioned Lu Heng about the fire energy on the tower’s fourth layer, and Lu Heng claimed he had sensed spiritual eyes beneath it.
• Su Qian explained that the tower stood over a magma sea where the intelligent Fallen Heart Flame was sealed, and that its seal was weakening.
• Lu Heng asked whether the Inner Academy could withstand the flame’s escape, and Su Qian said the elders were struggling to reinforce the seal.
• Su Qian gave Lu Heng a purple fire crystal card allowing him to cultivate at the tower’s deepest levels, warning him not to provoke the Fallen Heart Flame yet.
• Lu Heng and Han Yue prepared to leave Su Qian’s study, but Zi Yan appeared through a spatial ripple and greeted them.

Zi Yan tore through the barrier to visit Lu Heng, traded him rare medicinal ingredients for sweet pills, and Su Qian entrusted Lu Heng with preparing her food. Zi Yan then took Lu Heng to the Back Mountain to seize a treasure guarded by a powerful white-furred monkey.

• Zi Yan opened a spatial rift into Su Qian's study and rushed over to Lu Heng for pills.
• Lu Heng gave Zi Yan sweet pills, and she dumped rare herbs and fruits onto Su Qian's desk as payment for more.
• Lu Heng accepted the ingredients, and Su Qian asked him to refine Zi Yan's medicinal finds into suitable pills, with the academy covering the costs.
• Zi Yan grabbed Lu Heng and invited him to the Back Mountain to claim a treasure from a white-furred monkey she could not defeat.

Lu Heng agreed to help Zi Yan seek Earth Core Body Tempering Milk guarded by a Fifth-Rank Snow Demon Sky Ape, despite Han Yue's warnings about the danger. After returning to his courtyard, Lu Heng proposed a plan using Zi Yan to distract the beast while he infiltrated its den, and Han Yue reluctantly accepted.

• Lu Heng agreed to go with Zi Yan to find the treasure, and Su Qian let them leave while warning Zi Yan to protect him.
• Zi Yan hurried toward the Back Mountain with Lu Heng, and Han Yue caught up and learned the guardian was a Fifth-Rank Snow Demon Sky Ape.
• Han Yue warned that the beast could overwhelm them, but Lu Heng decided to pursue the treasure and led the others back to his courtyard to plan.
• Lu Heng explained that Zi Yan would distract the beast while he used his Purple Cloud Wings, soul power, and Lost Track Powder to reach the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.
• Han Yue reluctantly accepted the plan after Lu Heng assured her he was ninety percent confident he could get out.

Lu Heng prepared Han Yue and Zi Yan for a dangerous expedition to steal treasures from a fifth-tier Snow Demon Sky Ape, while the two stayed with him as he began refining pills. The chapter ended with Lu Heng starting work on Berserk Beast Blood Spirit Pills ahead of their departure the next morning.

• Lu Heng assigned Han Yue to set up an ice formation to slow the Snow Demon Sky Ape and help them escape if it attacked.
• Zi Yan interrupted Lu Heng and Han Yue's kiss, misunderstood it as a way to exchange Dou Qi, and asked to try it before Lu Heng gave her a sugar-coated pill.
• Lu Heng announced he would refine Berserk Beast Blood Spirit Pills, Energy Recovery Pills, and Lost Track Powder before they set out early the next morning.
• Zi Yan claimed Lu Heng's bed to guard him and get first access to his pills, while Han Yue chose to stay and cultivate nearby.
• Lu Heng began refining Berserk Beast Blood Spirit Pills to prepare for the expedition into the forbidden forest.

Lu Heng prepared pills and scent-concealing powder for the group’s attempt to raid the Snow Demon Sky Ape’s lair, while Zi Yan’s mistaken belief in his invented dual-cultivation technique led her to kiss him. Lu Heng, Zi Yan, and Han Yue set out for the Inner Academy’s Back Mountain to seek Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.

• Lu Heng refined blood-red pills, enhanced Energy Recovery Pills, Lost Track Powder, and powerful rough pills intended as snacks for Zi Yan.
• Zi Yan woke to the medicinal fragrance, ate a pill, praised Lu Heng’s cooking, and kissed him while trying to test the supposed dual-cultivation technique he had described.
• Zi Yan questioned why she could not feel Dou Qi from the kiss, and Lu Heng hastily claimed the technique required greater mutual understanding as Han Yue watched with amusement.
• Lu Heng gave Zi Yan and Han Yue Lost Track Powder and explained that it would conceal their scents from the Snow Demon Sky Ape.
• Zi Yan led the way toward the Back Mountain, and Lu Heng and Han Yue followed to search for Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.