Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower

The base of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower.

The heavy iron door was slowly pushed open, and a strong smell of magma rushed out.

Su Qian and Huo Yuhao walked down a winding stone staircase.

Huo Yuhao's gaze inadvertently swept over the deep, dark hole in the center.

With his eyesight, he could clearly spot the giant serpent formed from invisible flames Fallen Heart Flame above the magma at the bottom.

So this is the true form of the Fallen Heart Flame. Huo Yuhao understood, calmly withdrew his gaze, and continued to follow behind Su Qian, his footsteps echoing softly on the rough stone steps.

"Sigh—" Su Qian's aged voice echoed in the silent passage, carrying a deep sense of the passage of time. "How many years have passed since the discovery of this Heavenly Flames, and the establishment of the Canaan Academy Inner Academy with it as its core?"

His tone was less of a question and more of a recollection. The dean was rarely seen, and the vice dean was only in charge of the Outer Academy. Since taking over the position of Grand Elder from Bai Lao Qian Lao, Su Qian had been the de facto leader of the Jia Nan Academy.

He had devoted himself entirely to the academy, even having to put aside his own cultivation. It wasn't until Huo Yuhao emerged and resolved the academy's crisis, becoming the chief elder, that the burden on his shoulders was finally lifted somewhat.

"The Fallen Heart Flame brought glory to the Canaan Academy Inner Academy." Su Qian's voice lowered, carrying a complex and indescribable meaning. "But it itself is also a bomb that has been buried for many years."

He paused, as if carefully choosing his words: "For years, the academy has forcibly suppressed and extracted its power through seals in order to utilize its inner fire tempering effect. Its hatred for the academy is unimaginable. Now that you can subdue it, it may be a relief for both it and the academy."

Su Qian's words revealed his complex feelings towards the Fallen Heart Flame. To be precise, he had spent more time with the Fallen Heart Flame than most of the elders in the Inner Academy.

Now that Huo Yuhao has set up a level-five Spiritual Formation, the Fallen Heart Flame is no longer so important.

"Using inner fire to condense Dou Qi is indeed a very good method," Huo Yuhao nodded in agreement.

Not long after he entered the bottom of the tower, the Fallen Heart Flame seemed to sense a threat and kept trying to release its heart fire into Huo Yuhao's body.

Ignoring the Fallen Heart Flame's probing, Huo Yuhao pondered: Over-reliance on the Spiritual Formation to enhance strength could easily affect a student's ability to control their Dou Qi.

If the Spiritual Formation and the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower's tempering abilities work together, it will greatly benefit the cultivation of the academy's teachers and students.

"Elder," Huo Yuhao asked, "If we lose the Fallen Heart Flame, will the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower become completely useless? Are there any other means to maintain its effects?"

Upon hearing this, Su Qian gave a wry smile, "Before the Dean left, he did leave behind a spare container. By periodically injecting a portion of the Fallen Heart Flame into it, the tempering effect of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower can be maintained."

"This is only a temporary measure," Huo Yuhao shook his head. "I'll study it again in a while and see if I can construct a formation with a similar effect."

Silence fell for a moment, with only the echo of their footsteps remaining. After a few minutes, light appeared ahead.

"We've arrived." Su Qian stopped in her tracks.

Emerging from the narrow, dimly lit passage, a vast and astonishing underground space suddenly appeared before me.

An omnipresent dark red light seeped from the cracks in the rock walls and below, illuminating the entire space in a crimson glow. The air was distorted and scorching hot, and every breath felt like swallowing flames.

At the center of the space was the bottom entrance to the enormous, deep cavern, where dark red magma, like viscous blood, flowed and churned slowly, emitting a chillingly high temperature and a sulfurous odor.

A massive, semi-transparent energy shield firmly sealed the entire lava lake within. Complex runes flowed across the surface of the shield, radiating powerful sealing energy.

"Grand Elder! Chief Elder!" Two figures emerged from the shadows like Gui Mei, the two tower-guarding elders stationed here. They bowed respectfully to Su Qian and Huo Yuhao, their expressions solemn.

Su Qian nodded in return, "Thank you both for your help. The Chief Elder and I have important matters to attend to, so please leave for the time being and do not allow anyone else to enter the tower."

"Yes!" Without the slightest hesitation, the two elders vanished from the entrance of the passage, their auras rapidly dissipating from the bottom of the tower.

After confirming that the tower-guarding elder had left, Su Qian looked at Huo Yuhao with a solemn expression. "Do you need me to join forces to suppress it? Once this guy senses a threat, it will definitely launch a frenzied counterattack."

"That won't be necessary," Huo Yuhao smiled.

Before he finished speaking, the space around him rippled slightly, like water. His figure instantly became somewhat blurry and transparent. Then, his aura became even more concentrated and powerful. Huo Yuhao's true form had arrived here!

Within the spiritual realm, the Guardian Mirror's consciousness leaped over. "Why is your true form here? Weren't you still in seclusion?"

Huo Yuhao explained, "My seclusion is over. I've now broken through to the Dou Emperor."

"It's over?!" The sphere of light in the Guardian Mirror froze for a moment, then asked in confusion, "Not a sound at all?! When those old men in your academy broke through to the Dou Emperor, weren't they all full of momentum? Why do you seem so weak?"

Huo Yuhao flicked his finger, sending the Guardian Mirror flying. "I relied solely on the energy from the pills to advance; there's no need to cause any commotion."

The Guardian Mirror wasn't angry. After landing, it rolled back and said, "Aren't you afraid of ruining your foundation by consuming pills like this?"

There wasn't much worry in its tone, after all, it could go to the Great Thousand World and use spiritual power to assimilate and refine itself, then no problems would exist anymore.

Huo Yuhao's projection curled into a slight smile, "It doesn't matter. With my current level, no matter how mixed the energies of these pills are, they won't affect my Dou Qi."

Outside, Su Qian sensed Huo Yuhao's true form descending. His aura seemed to have become more profound and restrained, yet it also carried a faint, indescribable sense of oppression.

Suppressing his doubts, Su Qian sighed, "That's right. With your strength, subduing it is indeed not a difficult task."

He paused, finally unable to contain himself, looking at Huo Yuhao with utter bewilderment, as if he were looking at something that defied common sense. "Elder Huo, I really can't understand it. As far as I know, your cultivation technique is only at the Earth Grade, and your Dou Technique are about the same level—how exactly did you manage to defeat High-Rank Dou Zong while only being at the Peak Dou Wang?"

"At the Dou Zong stage, everyone has Earth Grade Cultivation Methods and Combat Skills!"

Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao scratched his head. "The level of my cultivation technique is indeed currently only equivalent to the mid -Earth Grade Rank. However, the quality of my Dou Qi should be much stronger than the Dou Qi cultivated from High-grade Earth-tier Cultivation Method."

Huo Yuhao paused, a hint of difficulty on his face, and tried to organize a clear explanation. "As for fighting beyond one's level—many factors influence strength. For me, there are two key points."

"Firstly, there's the difference in soul abilities; secondly, there's my control over the energy of heaven and earth."

Huo Yuhao's gaze swept across the scorching magma space. "My ability to control external energy far surpasses that of opponents at the Dou Zong stage."

"I see," Su Qian said, merely satisfying his curiosity. He knew all too well that the path of every genius was unique and could not be replicated.