Six-Star Dou Master

Su Zhao let out a low shout and thrust out his right hand, plunging through layer upon layer of flames to seize the fire seed in his palm!

Sizzle—!

A teeth-grinding burning sound rang out. Even with the origin flame covering his hand, the terrifying heat of the fire seed still scorched his palm until the flesh curled back, and white smoke rose from it.

Su Zhao gritted his teeth fiercely, veins bulging on his forehead. His five fingers clamped tightly around the restless fire seed. Without the slightest hesitation, he yanked it over and threw back his head, swallowing it whole!

"Ugh, aaah—!!!"

The instant the fire seed entered his stomach, he felt a terrifying heat explode within him, as though he had swallowed a miniature sun!

That violent fire-attributed energy rampaged through his meridians, roaring with beastly savagery as it tried to tear apart his internal organs and burn through his dantian.

If not for his Fire Spirit Physique, which granted him an innate affinity and tolerance for flames, this alone would have burned him to ashes from the inside out!

Su Zhao clenched his teeth, enduring the searing agony raging through his body as he sat down cross-legged.

He closed his eyes, focused his mind, and circulated the Scarlet Origin Heaven-Burning Art with all his strength!

The moment the cultivation art began to circulate, the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame seed rampaging through his body seemed to come under invisible suppression, and its agitation instantly subsided considerably.

The Scarlet Origin Heaven-Burning Art had been tailor-made for a Fire Spirit Physique, with specialized strengthening effects for devouring flames.

Once activated, it was like an invisible net spreading through his dantian, slowly gathering and binding the restless fire seed.

Now's my chance!

Su Zhao did not dare relax in the slightest. He immediately controlled the origin flame in his dantian and sent it to surround the fire seed.

The fire seed visibly shuddered upon touching the origin flame, instinctively trying to resist. But under the suppression of the Scarlet Origin Heaven-Burning Art, its resistance was already far weaker.

One circulation, two circulations...

Within Su Zhao's meridians, the power of the fire seed was guided by the cultivation art as it slowly circulated through his body.

With each circulation, a portion of the fire seed's energy was devoured by the origin flame and dispersed throughout his limbs and bones, transforming his meridians and flesh.

The temperature within his body was frighteningly high. His skin had turned bright red, and the instant sweat seeped out, it evaporated into white mist. He looked like a humanoid statue seated within a furnace.

Only after the third circulation did the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame seed, wrapped within the origin flame, arrive at the deepest part of his dantian.

The final step!

Su Zhao's eyes flew open, and crimson light surged within them!

"Merge for me—!"

Boom!!

Within his dantian, the origin flame seed suddenly erupted, transforming into an overwhelming sea of crimson fire that swept toward the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame seed!

Even though the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame seed had been suppressed layer upon layer, faced with this final devouring, it still unleashed an instinctive burst of strength like a desperate death throe.

But!!

Now that you've entered my dantian, how can I allow you to resist!

The Scarlet Origin Heaven-Burning Art circulated at full force, and the pressure within his dantian abruptly skyrocketed.

Though the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame seed resisted madly, it was still helplessly wrapped layer upon layer by the origin flame, then devoured layer upon layer!

Its flames dissolved, its spirituality was ground away, and its energy fused bit by bit into that crimson origin flame, becoming nourishment for its growth.

Su Zhao's body trembled slightly as the devouring continued for roughly the time it took to burn an incense stick!

When the final wisp of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame was completely swallowed by the origin flame, a violent rumble suddenly erupted from within Su Zhao's body. Inside his dantian, only a single flame remained!

After devouring the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame, the origin flame had expanded by an entire circle. Its color had deepened from pure crimson, and as it rose and flickered, countless tiny beastly shadows could faintly be seen flashing in and out of the fire, like a stampede of myriad beasts charging across a sea of flames.

That was the imprint left behind after the origin flame absorbed and fused the innate characteristics of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame. From this day onward, Su Zhao's origin flame possessed the traits of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame as well!

At the same time, strands of pure energy flowed out from his dantian and coursed through his meridians toward his limbs and bones.

This was the feedback returned to Su Zhao after the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame had been completely refined.

That energy was gentle yet abundant, entirely unlike the former violent fury of the fire seed. Like spring rain nourishing all things, it nourished his meridians, bones, and flesh.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed.

Over those three days, Su Zhao remained seated cross-legged in the center of the cave. His aura rose and fell unpredictably, while the crimson origin flame around his body flickered in and out of view. Occasionally, tiny beast shadows flashed through the fire, but the overall trend was gradually stabilizing.

Little Doctor and the others had initially stood guard nearby in nervous concern. But as time passed and they saw that Su Zhao's aura showed no signs of weakening—rather, it steadily climbed and grew increasingly solid—they gradually relaxed.

As long as he was unharmed, nothing else mattered. From the looks of it, Su Zhao had clearly succeeded in devouring the strange flame. All that remained was the process of refining and absorbing it.

At this moment, the transformation within Su Zhao's body had slowly come to an end.

His meridians were a full size wider than before, like a long-dried riverbed that had been broadened and deepened, capable of carrying an even more powerful torrent of Dou Qi.

The walls of his meridians had become tougher as well, carrying a faint crimson sheen like refined iron tempered by flames. Anyone who saw them would have to marvel. Such meridian strength had already far surpassed that of Dou Masters of the same rank, even approaching that of a Great Dou Master.

His physical condition and bodily strength had improved in tandem.

His bones had become denser, his muscles more compact, and beneath his skin seemed to flow a thin crimson glow. This was the mark left behind by the growth of his Fire Spirit Physique after devouring the strange flame.

The first devouring of a strange flame was an extraordinarily terrifying enhancement for a Fire Spirit Physique. Like sweet rain after a long drought, every bit of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame's essence had been greedily absorbed, fused, and transformed by the Fire Spirit Physique into nourishment for its own growth.

And the most obvious manifestation was the surge in his cultivation.

Su Zhao had now reached the level of a six-star Dou Master, only one step away from entering the seven-star rank.

He had risen by seven stars in one leap!

One had to know that this was while most of the energy had been used to transform his body, broaden his meridians, and improve the quality of his origin flame.

If all that energy had been used to break through realms instead, he would likely already be standing at the threshold of Great Dou Master.

Within his dantian, that origin flame burned brilliantly. Its color was deep, and it was more solid and weighty than before the devouring. Amid its rising flames, countless beast shadows could faintly be seen rushing and tumbling within.

Yet in the very next moment.

The origin flame trembled lightly.

In an instant, that flame actually split into two!

One remained the crimson origin flame, deep in color and still as an abyss. The other was dark crimson. As its flames danced, countless tiny phantom beasts churned and roared within, radiating a savage and ferocious aura. It was unmistakably the form of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame.