Devour

Yao Lao gave the Black Demon Cauldron a light tap, and a ghostly, forest-white flame rose vigorously within it.

A moment later, Yao Lao tossed the Blood Lotus Essence inside.

Next came the Ice Flame Spirit Grass and the Tier 4 Ice-Type Magical Beast Core.

Time flowed on without pause.

"Done." Yao Lao placed a round pill, the size of a dragon's eye and exuding a medicinal fragrance, into a Rouge Jade Bottle.

Yao Lao casually tossed the jade bottle to Xiao Yan. "See how the quality is."

Xiao Yan caught the bottle and peered inside; three faint pill patterns shimmered on the surface. Just as he was about to offer his assessment, a series of knocks sounded at the door.

"Master, the Ice Spirit Cold Spring has been found," came the voice of Hai Bo Dong from outside.

"So fast?" Xiao Yan and Yao Lao exchanged a look of pleasant surprise.

Xiao Yan opened the door and looked at Hai Bo Dong. "You've already found the Ice Spirit Cold Spring?"

"Yes, Master." Hai Bo Dong handed over a snow-white jade bottle, its surface radiating a faint chill.

Xiao Yan took the bottle; it was bone-chilling to the touch, and he had to circulate his Purple Flame to feel comfortable.

Opening the bottle, he saw swirling mist inside, with layers of fluid-like crushed ice resting at the bottom.

"It really is the Ice Spirit Cold Spring. Where did you get this, Hai Bo Dong?" Xiao Yan asked.

"I searched the entire city for the Ice Spirit Cold Spring and found nothing. If it weren't for Mo City being located on the very edge of the Tagor Desert, serving as a trade hub where merchants from all over the continent gather, it would be a place where many rare treasures converge."

"In the end, the Mo City Lord heard I was looking for it, so he took the initiative to gift me the Ice Spirit Cold Spring he had spent a great price to trade for from a continental merchant twenty years ago," Hai Bo Dong said triumphantly.

"Heh, that was a lot of trouble for you," Xiao Yan said with a smile.

Watching Hai Bo Dong depart, Yao Lao spoke from within the Storage Ring: "Since everything needed to swallow the Heavenly Flame has been gathered, take these two days to rest and adjust your state of mind. Don't keep that string in your brain pulled so tight. We will swallow the Heavenly Flame in two days."

"Understood, Teacher," Xiao Yan replied.

Xiao Yan opened the door and looked at the patch of sunlight spilling into the room, feeling as though his mood had never been better.

"Brother Xiao Yan!" "Brother Xiao Yan!"

Just as Xiao Yan was stretching his limbs, two crisp, youthful voices rang out from the courtyard.

Xiao Yan looked up to see two little girls bouncing toward him and laughed. "So it's Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin."

Xiao Yan looked at the two of them not far away, momentarily lost in thought.

Perhaps both girls appeared slightly delicate and pitiable in temperament, but there were subtle differences. Xiao Yi Xian was soft on the outside but firm on the inside, hiding a powerful heart beneath a fragile exterior. Qing Lin, due to her background, had been bullied and looked down upon since childhood, so her nature was truly fragile, making her all the more in need of care and protection.

"Xiao Yi Xian, I told you to take care of little sister Qing Lin; have you been bullying her?" Xiao Yan caught the two little girls as they pounced on him and patted Xiao Yi Xian's head.

Before Xiao Yi Xian could answer, Qing Lin, face flushed red, shyly denied it. "No, no, Sister Xiao Yi Xian hasn't bullied me."

"Hmph, bad brother, you don't even know how to play with us, you just know how to stay cooped up in your room or fly around in the sky," Xiao Yi Xian complained, hugging Xiao Yan's waist.

"Haha, I'm here now, aren't I? Let's go, let's go to the front courtyard and see what that old man Hai Bo Dong is up to." Xiao Yan draped an arm around each of the little girls' shoulders and walked toward the front.

When the three of them reached the front, they found Hai Bo Dong still hunched over the counter, quietly drawing maps as he had before.

Xiao Yan chuckled in disbelief. "Hai Bo Dong, you've broken your seal and returned to the Dou Emperor realm, so why are you still drawing maps? Don't tell me you plan to stay in Mo City forever, guarding these 'Ancient Map's and drawing maps for the rest of your life?"

Hai Bo Dong calmly set down his pen, looked up at Xiao Yan, and said, "Master, you might not believe it, but before I took over the Miteer Clan at twenty, my dream was always to be a cartographer."

"..."

"So the Ice Emperor Hai Bo Dong's hidden profession is actually a map-drawing artist? No, this must be the wrong way to open Dou Po." After a few seconds of confusion, Xiao Yan gave up on the thought, as he had promised the two little girls he would take them to the Marketplace today.

Seeing this, Hai Bo Dong lowered his head and continued quietly drawing his maps.

After two full days of wandering around, Xiao Yan finally adjusted his mindset to a state of complete relaxation.

In the afternoon.

In an open space in the courtyard, Xiao Yan and Yao Lao sat facing each other.

"Yan lad, let's begin," Yao Lao said, then took the Rouge Jade Bottle containing the Blood Lotus Pill and the snow-white jade bottle containing the Ice Spirit Cold Spring from his Storage Ring.

Finally, Yao Lao flicked a gray light from his fingertip, which landed on the ground and transformed into a thumb-sized gray stone—the Spirit Container.

"Is this the Spirit Container? What a miraculous creation; a tiny gray object can actually open up a mysterious space within a person's body to house a Heavenly Flame," Xiao Yan murmured as he looked at the glowing gray stone.

"Take out the Green Lotus Core Flame," Yao Lao said, placing the green lotus pedestal in front of Xiao Yan.

"Understood." Xiao Yan nodded solemnly.

Xiao Yan held the pedestal and carefully removed the green flame that was burning quietly upon it.

"Hoo." Xiao Yan let out a small breath.

"Consume the Blood Lotus Pill and extract the Coreflame from the center of the Green Lotus Core Flame," Yao Lao commanded calmly.

Xiao Yan poured out the fragrant, round Blood Lotus Pill and swallowed it in one gulp.

As soon as the pill entered his mouth, it melted within Xiao Yan's body, transforming into pure energy that surged to every part of him. It spread to his bones, meridians, and skin, forming layers of blood scabs that tightly wrapped around him.

Xiao Yan looked down at his hands, seeing himself transformed into a bloody monster, and gave a self-deprecating smile. Without further hesitation, he reached straight into the center of the Green Lotus Core Flame that was burning wildly before him.

"Boom!" Under the violent stimulation of an external force, the Green Lotus Core Flame began to expand, sparks flying everywhere. Stray flames constantly splashed onto Xiao Yan.

"Pfft," "Pfft." Fortunately, they were all blocked by the blood scabs formed by the Blood Lotus Pill.

A mass of forest-white flame erupted from Yao Lao's body, wrapping around him and isolating the sparks from the Green Lotus Core Flame. Then, a surge of powerful energy leaked from Yao Lao, circling the two of them and completely enclosing them, sealing them off from the outside world.