The much-anticipated Qingyuan Market hall meet finally came to an end, but its unexpected turn made it a popular topic that countless people in Qingyuan Market delighted in discussing. For some time afterward, whenever it came up, they spoke of it with great enthusiasm.
Thunderfire Hall was naturally the biggest winner.
Lu Ming's stunning performance at the hall meet made him famous. Now, everyone in Qingyuan Market knew that Thunderfire Hall had produced a high-grade heaven's chosen even more outstanding than Zhang Yue.
The negative effects of Zhang Yue's departure from the hall were finally wiped away completely.
Over the past two days, a steady stream of disciples had come to Thunderfire Hall seeking admission, causing its number of disciples to soar. Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei were run off their feet and exhausted as a result.
But when they saw the unprecedented number of disciples in the training grounds and those young faces looking at them with anticipation, they instantly felt full of vigor again.
Lu Ming had exhausted himself greatly in the hall meet battles. Moreover, forcibly using Fire Lotus Yuan Qi to raise the realms of several divine abilities had left his body somewhat injured. At Lu Jin's insistence, he had spent the past two days resting without concerning himself with hall affairs.
That left many new disciples who had come because of his reputation somewhat disappointed.
Inner courtyard.
When Lu Ming opened his eyes from cultivating in his room, he saw Lu Mengmeng carrying large and small bowls by herself, neatly setting the steaming food on the table.
"Brother, are you hungry? Come eat!"
When she saw Lu Ming open his eyes, Lu Mengmeng's face lit up with joy. She said proudly, "You just rest easy. I promised Father and Mother that I'd take perfect care of you."
The hall had been so busy these past two days that even Zhong Ying had had to go help. Lu Mengmeng had volunteered to take on the important task of looking after Lu Ming while he recovered.
"Mm, very capable."
Lu Ming praised her with a smile and sat down at the table, but first he poked through the food twice with his chopsticks.
"What are you looking for? I didn't hide any Qi Refining Pills in there this time," Lu Mengmeng said unhappily.
Lu Ming rolled his eyes in exasperation. And you're the one who's unhappy? If I told Father and Mother what you did, wouldn't they beat you till you cried? But since she had made an effort to care for him these past two days, he let it go.
Brother and sister ate together at the table. Lu Mengmeng chattered nonstop, excitedly describing how lively the hall had been these past two days, while Lu Ming chatted along with her now and then.
"Huh?"
At that moment, Lu Ming's expression suddenly changed a little. He had sensed the Primordial Qi between heaven and earth grow denser.
"Has the Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi in Thunderfire Hall's area been raised to the upper level?" Lu Ming was pleasantly surprised. This was the reward for taking first place that Market Master Zhou Xuan had promised. After two days of preparation, Zhou Xuan had finally set the Yuan Qi Earth Veins in motion and adjusted the Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi in the area belonging to Thunderfire Hall.
At the same time, Lu Ming heard countless cheers coming from Thunderfire Hall's training grounds in the outer courtyard. Presumably, the disciples had also noticed the obvious change and grown excited.
The increase in the concentration of Thunderfire Hall's Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi was wonderful news for all its disciples. From now on, cultivating at Thunderfire Hall would yield somewhat better results than before.
The improvement might not be very noticeable over a short period, but accumulated over a year, it was not to be underestimated.
So many new disciples had poured into Thunderfire Hall over the past two days not only because of Lu Ming's stunning performance at the hall meet, but also because many had come for the advantage of the hall's "upper-level" Primordial Qi environment over the coming year.
For the next year, this "upper-level Primordial Qi" would be Thunderfire Hall's strongest calling card.
"It's finally here."
A trace of anticipation also appeared in Lu Ming's eyes. Over the past two days, he had not only been recovering from his injuries, but had spent even more time adjusting his condition. His purpose, of course, was to obtain the Flame of Life inside the black ring space.
This upper-level Primordial Qi environment would also allow him to prepare more thoroughly.
"Mengmeng, I'm going to cultivate. Don't let anyone disturb me."
"Okay! Don't worry, Brother. I won't let anyone in!"
Hearing this, Lu Mengmeng hurriedly took the initiative to clear away the bowls and chopsticks. Then she carried over a little chair and sat up straight on guard outside the room, scanning her surroundings with vigilance and care.
Lu Ming sat cross-legged on the bed. Looking at the black ring mark on his finger, he could not hide the anticipation welling up in his eyes.
Flame of Life...
This day had finally come!
He half-closed his eyes and touched the ring mark with his consciousness. The next moment, his consciousness appeared once more in the mysterious black ring space.
Lu Ming glanced at the surrounding mist, then headed straight for the Flame of Life without hesitation. Inside the light barrier on the stone platform, a flame seed floated silently. It resembled a jade-green medicinal herb, with jade-green flames brimming with vigorous vitality flowing over it.
Lu Ming took a deep breath, suppressed the excitement in his heart, and reached out to touch the light barrier. Then, with a thought, his divine ability bone rumbled and shook. The Primordial Qi in his body poured out and crashed into the barrier.
Hum!
The light barrier trembled violently, and its glow dimmed a little.
Compared to when he had first come here a month ago, Lu Ming's Primordial Qi had grown enormously stronger, and his efforts to break the light barrier were noticeably more effective.
Lu Ming continued to unleash his Primordial Qi, wearing down the power of the light barrier in wave after wave.
With the Primordial Qi environment at Thunderfire Hall now raised to the upper level, his Primordial Qi also recovered a little faster, allowing him to keep going longer.
And so, under Lu Ming's continuous assault, the light barrier around the Flame of Life grew dimmer and dimmer.
Crack!
At last, just as Lu Ming began to feel that the Primordial Qi in his body was running low, a faint cracking sound suddenly rang out.
Lu Ming's heart trembled. He saw a tiny crack appear in the light barrier. It continued to spread, covering the barrier in just a few breaths.
Finally, with a bang, the light barrier, which had existed for who knew how long, shattered and vanished under Lu Ming's excited gaze.
The heavy mist in the black ring space seemed to stir slightly at that moment, as though moved by the flame seed, sealed away for countless ages, seeing the light of day once more.
With the light barrier broken, the jade-green flame seed within slowly rose and floated silently before Lu Ming, its slender, herb-like stems and leaves gradually unfurling.
The flame seed, radiating vigorous vitality, was reflected in Lu Ming's eyes as he swallowed. Rather than grabbing it impatiently, he carefully straightened his clothes, cupped his fists, and gave the flame seed before him a solemn bow.
It was a gesture of respect for this opportunity that would allow him to defy the heavens and change his fate.
The jade-green flame seed's stems and leaves swayed gently, as though it possessed a mysterious intelligence. It drifted lightly forward and slowly touched the space between Lu Ming's brows.
A trace of nervousness rose in Lu Ming's heart. Although the Flame of Life looked gentle, it was still a wondrous spiritual flame with extraordinary power. If he rashly took it into his body, wouldn't it burn him to death?
While Lu Ming's thoughts ran wild, a warm, searing sensation arose between his brows. The next moment, the flame seed known as the Flame of Life quietly merged into his forehead.
The moment the Flame of Life entered his body, before it could release its flames, a suction force erupted from Lu Ming's divine ability bone and drew it straight in.
With a slight thought, Lu Ming sensed his divine ability bone. He then saw a cluster of jade-green flames appear in the "Fire Lotus Mark" called Buddha's Fury Flame Lotus.
It was the Flame of Life.
Its jade-green flames spread out, occupying one petal of the Fire Lotus and adding a touch of mystery to it.
The process of subduing the Flame of Life had gone unbelievably smoothly. No, perhaps it could not be called subduing it at all. It was more like "returning to the nest"...
Perhaps that Fire Lotus Mark was where the Flame of Life had originally belonged.
Lu Ming secretly breathed a sigh of relief. When taking such a wondrous spiritual flame into one's body, a single mistake could reduce even the physical body to ashes. Fortunately, the existence of the "Fire Lotus Mark" had allowed him to skip that most dangerous part entirely.
Hum!
After taking in the jade-green Flame of Life, the Fire Lotus Mark began to change. Not only did its lotus patterns grow clearer, but as the Fire Lotus rotated, it even spouted jade-green flames.
The flames flowed along the divine ability bone. Wherever they passed, some of the tiny golden markings on the bone melted, eventually turning into wisps of fine, scattered glazed light.
The scattered glazed light rose and flowed into the sixth strand of Glazed Heavenly Light surrounding the divine ability bone. This strand had only recently formed, and its radiance was much dimmer and thinner than that of the previous five. But now, as the jade-green flames refined the bone, some of the scattered golden markings on it melted, causing the sixth strand's radiance to suddenly become dazzling.
In terms of strength, it was now no weaker than the previous five strands of Glazed Heavenly Light!
The change delighted Lu Ming. He had not expected that after the Flame of Life entered the Fire Lotus Mark, it would greatly improve its effect of refining and upgrading the bone as well.
At this rate, it probably would not be long before Lu Ming gained a seventh strand of Glazed Heavenly Light. His Sub-Heaven-Grade Divine Ability Bone would then be a great step closer to the true heaven grade.
And the benefits did not seem to end there.
Lu Ming discovered that as the Flame of Life spread through his body, the vigorous vitality it carried nourished the flesh and blood throughout him, causing them to respond with yearning and delight.
Lu Ming could clearly sense hidden injuries in his body. Some might have been caused by medicinal power accumulating when he refined pills; others might have been minute wounds left by divine abilities when he cultivated them. Still others had been sustained when he fought people at the hall meet. These injuries were so slight that even Lu Ming himself could not detect them. Only when they accumulated to a certain point one day would they erupt.
But at this moment, as the gentle flames rose, every one of those nearly imperceptible injuries was quietly eliminated.
The Flame of Life could extend one's lifespan and heal injuries, and was adept at nurturing all manner of herbs.
The information about the Flame of Life flashed through Lu Ming's mind, and he focused on its healing effect. He could not help feeling delighted. With the Flame of Life inside him, wouldn't he be able to use it to heal himself in the future, no matter how fatal his injuries were?
A flame that could heal injuries!
In a fight to the death, if he and his opponent each landed a slash on the other, his opponent's blood would keep flowing, while he could simply use the flame to heal himself. Wouldn't his opponent break down on the spot?
His ability to survive had soared!
Lu Ming was thrilled. The Flame of Life's effects were even stronger than he had expected.
"The Flame of Life is already this powerful. Just how monstrous are the other two, more dangerous flame seeds?" Lu Ming could not help turning his gaze to the two stone platforms behind him. Two flame seeds remained on them.
The Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.
The Void Devouring Flame.
Compared with the gentle Flame of Life, those two mysterious flame seeds inspired some apprehension in Lu Ming.
Lu Ming went over to the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame's stone platform. He looked at the milky-white flame seed, then circulated all his Primordial Qi and tried to blast the light barrier.
The light barrier did not budge, and its glow did not even flicker.
Lu Ming was a little embarrassed. By his estimate, he would probably have to reach the Divine Ability Master realm to obtain this flame seed.
Sorry to disturb you.
He shook his head. His consciousness withdrew, and his figure vanished from the black ring space.