Beast Flame Fusion, Minor Mastery of a Dou Technique

Xiao Yan rose and walked deeper into the cave. After proceeding down a passage for some distance, he turned right.

The cave had not been large to begin with, but ever since he started refining medicine here, he had dug out and opened up quite a few stone chambers for ripening medicinal herbs.

The green liquid condensed by the Palm-Heaven Bottle was extraordinarily effective. Most of the herbs he needed did not require much age, only maturity. Once diluted with water, that green liquid could make herbs planted today ready for use tomorrow. However, the herbs in this stone chamber on the right were somewhat special.

Before Xiao Yan even entered, a dense aura of life washed over him, as though he were stepping into a lush forest.

The cave was a sea of emerald green. The wood-attributed medicinal herbs within had never been harvested, and under constant ripening, they had all accumulated considerable age, beginning to affect the environment of the stone chamber.

If someone who cultivated wood-attributed Dou Qi saw this, they would surely be overjoyed. Having an alchemist refine the herbs in this cave would greatly benefit their cultivation.

Xiao Yan took out his tools from his Storage Ring and harvested every last herb. He then returned to the cave entrance and began refining Replica Vein-Guarding Pills.

This pill differed somewhat from the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid he understood. For the latter, he knew all the required materials but not the exact refining method. For the former, he knew only some of the herbs, though he had no complete formula and only understood portions of its refinement description.

Following the method, Xiao Yan tossed an Evergreen Flower into the medicinal cauldron and doubled the flame's temperature. Within a few breaths, he burned the verdant branches and leaves to a scorched yellow.

At that moment, he abruptly lowered the flame's temperature and switched to roasting the herb.

This was a drastic shift. It was easy to ruin the material by failing to adjust in time.

Xiao Yan had accumulated vast experience in herb extraction, and after practicing flame control for four months, he could manipulate fire with ease. Such changes in flame intensity could not stump him.

The flame remained neither too hot nor too cool, and droplets of liquid seeped from the surface of the Evergreen Flower's branches and leaves. He successfully extracted the Evergreen Flower in a single attempt.

Xiao Yan struck while the iron was hot, extracting all the Evergreen Flowers he had grown for later use before moving on to refine the second ingredient, the Tanling Fruit.

This time, he did not know the details, so he lacked the luck he had enjoyed with the Evergreen Flower. Only after several failures did he gradually figure out the method.

After preparing the two ingredients, Xiao Yan picked up three differently colored herbs beside him.

He did not know the remaining three herbs required, but he remembered one detail: the three medicinal ingredients were different colors. Combining that with the effects of the Vein-Guarding Pill, he made a deduction.

Xiao Yan had spent six years growing herbs. Though it had originally been to conceal his herb-ripening and make it easier to collect seeds, maintaining that persona for so long had given him a deep understanding of the properties of all sorts of medicinal herbs.

The three herbs he selected might not have been exactly the same as those in the genuine Vein-Guarding Pill, but their medicinal effects were similar.

He had an enormous quantity of herbs and was not afraid of losses. Magic Cores, however, were limited, so he had to be careful.

Extracting second-tier Magic Cores was far more difficult than extracting first-tier ones. Xiao Yan keenly felt his Dou Qi draining away. Of ten attempts, three failed, while seven Magic Cores were successfully extracted.

After restoring himself to peak condition, Xiao Yan began the final fusion. He threw the essences of several herbs into the medicinal cauldron at once and raised the flame's temperature to its limit.

Under the fierce blaze, the ingredients gradually fused together, forming a strange, multicolored caltrop-shaped object. Alchemists called it a pill embryo.

Seizing the right moment, Xiao Yan poured in a bottle of Magic Core extract. A mass of white paste coated the pill embryo. At this point, the flame required a precise sequence of cool—hot—cool, and the timing had to be exact.

With those details to support him, Xiao Yan's success rate was fairly good. The materials from seven Magic Cores allowed him to refine three Replica Vein-Guarding Pills, and after the pills were completed, quite a bit of medicinal essence remained unused.

Xiao Yan let out a breath. This success eased the pressure in his heart somewhat.

Although he only knew that the Iceheart Pill formula required a Magic Core, that alone was already of great help.

One point was especially worth noting. The Vein-Guarding Pill used an ice-attributed Magic Core, while the Iceheart Pill used a wood-attributed Magic Core. It was somewhat similar to the misleadingly named Battle Spirit Pill, which was actually a pill that increased a Dou Wang's strength.

The Iceheart Pill used a wood-attributed Magic Core, yet it produced an icy effect and protected the mind. Xiao Yan's range of herb choices immediately narrowed considerably.

After harvesting another caveful of herbs from the cave on the left, Xiao Yan began extracting ingredients such as Ice-Continuing Grass and Spirit-Awakening Flower. Some of the seeds for these herbs had come from that treasure-filled cave, saving him quite a bit of effort.

Through experiments without regard for losses, Xiao Yan used up an entire caveful of herbs, refining one Replica Iceheart Pill and leaving behind one portion of Magic Core extract.

With everything ready, Xiao Yan followed the principle of wasting nothing. He poured the leftover extracted materials into a wooden bucket filled with clear water, creating protection both inside and out alongside the pills. Only then did he swallow the golden Lionheart Sacred Flame.

Under the protection of the two medicinal effects, a thick white membrane of energy formed over his meridians.

After swallowing the Beast Flame, Xiao Yan immediately wrapped the Lionheart Sacred Flame in a large amount of Dou Qi. His Dou Qi was extremely pure. Although the Lionheart Sacred Flame was violent, after burning through and consuming Dou Qi, its remaining force could no longer penetrate the medicinal protection over his meridians.

Looking inward, Xiao Yan clearly saw the golden light of the Lionheart Sacred Flame travel along with the circulation of his technique, heading straight for his Dou Qi Vortex.

At that moment, Xiao Yan swiftly swallowed a Replica Heart-Guarding Pill. A bone-chilling coolness spread through his entire body, and his mind became clearer than ever before.

While controlling the Lionheart Sacred Flame with Dou Qi, he also urged his Dou Qi to carve out an empty space within the vortex according to the notes left by Master Gu Ni.

Master Gu Ni had possessed great ambitions in his youth. Like every alchemist, he had wanted to obtain Heavenly Flames. Later, as he grew older and the fire in his heart weakened, he settled for second best and planned to fuse with a Beast Flame.

However, his talent was limited. In the end, he stopped at the second tier, and as his body aged, his Dou Qi cultivation slowed. He could only devote himself to researching recorded texts, organizing his insights on Beast Flame fusion into a written account.

This account was inferior to guidance from an alchemy grandmaster, but Beast Flame fusion was not uncommon in the Jia Ma Empire. Using these notes to refine a fifth-tier Beast Flame would not be a problem.

The Dou Qi Vortex spun at high speed. Xiao Yan opened up an empty space in its center large enough to fit a fist, wrapped the Lionheart Sacred Flame in Dou Qi and soul force, then forced it into the hollow.

The Lionheart Sacred Flame was quite violent. It had only been controlled for a short time, and the moment it entered that hollow, it broke free from Xiao Yan's control. The fire's power spread outward, causing Xiao Yan's Dou Qi Vortex to tremble.

With that tremor, strands of fire-attributed Dou Qi began passing through the hollow where the Lionheart Sacred Flame was placed.

As Xiao Yan watched, he discovered that after passing through the golden flames, the quality of his Dou Qi improved slightly, and its pale golden glow became a little stronger.

The Dou Qi continued flowing through without pause. Growing increasingly vigorous, it caused the Dou Qi Vortex carrying the Lionheart Sacred Flame to spin rapidly.

The Sacred Sun Technique cultivated by Xiao Yan was a technique that pursued Dou Qi quality. After refining the Lionheart Sacred Flame, his Dou Qi would be purified, compressed upon entering the Dou Qi Vortex, and then tempered once more by this Beast Flame, becoming even more refined.

Furthermore, the scorching temperature it emitted increased his refining speed, accelerating the cultivation process somewhat.

After cultivating for an entire night, Xiao Yan opened his eyes in satisfaction. In his excellent condition, he slowly extended his palm and began practicing First Sun Scorching Sky.

Only after practicing this Dou Technique did Xiao Yan begin to understand why Xiao Xun'er had used it only during the Dou Qi stage.

First Sun Scorching Sky was greatly helpful for controlling flames, but bringing it to the point of taking shape was truly difficult. Xiao Xun'er had probably believed that once she could make use of Heavenly Flames, continuing to practice it would offer little benefit, so she gave up.

Xiao Yan had few opportunities to encounter high-grade Dou Techniques, so he had persisted for four months.

Nearly brilliant golden Dou Qi raced through his meridians and swiftly gathered in his palm. Xiao Yan controlled it with utmost focus. More and more Dou Qi accumulated, like smoke rising from flat ground. A golden whirlwind carrying intense heat slowly revolved above his palm.

He had practiced this step countless times, and it was now utterly different from the inconsistent duration he had at the beginning.

Xiao Yan felt especially smooth today and did not begrudge the expenditure of his Dou Qi.

The golden whirlwind grew increasingly violent. More and more Dou Qi gathered, accumulating into an ever denser mass. Gradually, a golden sphere formed as it floated above his palm.

A drop of dew fell from the cave ceiling onto it, immediately producing a sizzling sound.

Looking at the stable fireball in his palm, Xiao Yan knew that he had reached the minor mastery level of First Sun Scorching Sky. He was incredibly excited. At last, he had learned a Dou Technique.

Moreover, he had fused with a Beast Flame. According to Xiao Xun'er, the power of this Dou Technique had reached the level of the Advanced Profound Peak.

After drying himself off, Xiao Yan put on a clean black robe. Having fused with the Beast Flame, he felt stronger throughout his body.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Xiao Yan went to open it, finding a young woman standing gracefully outside.

Xiao Xun'er's silky black hair was adorned with a brilliant golden hair ornament. Her well-fitted green dress outlined her supple curves, while a pair of fair, slender legs extended below its hem. Her cool and tranquil temperament made her appear especially pure.

Xiao Yan smiled. "That little girl from back then has grown into such a lovely young woman today."

"The genius who cultivated at the age of four has become even more of a genius now." Xiao Xun'er let out a playful, sweet laugh. "A Six-Star Dou Practitioner—Brother Xiao Yan's recent cultivation results are truly astonishing."

"You aren't bad either, Xun'er. With only Dou Qi stage strength, you saw through my level right away." Xiao Yan raised a hand and touched his nose. "Is today some special day?"

Xiao Xun'er smiled. "The Mittel Auction House has received a batch of unusual auction items. Uncle Xiao asked us to go and take a look as well."