Inside the Cave
The cave was strewn with jagged rocks, its vast interior stretching widely. The ceiling soared over ten meters high.
In a corner of the stone wall, a large depression in the ground was covered with white fur, surrounded by oversized footprints—clearly the Snow Demon Sky Ape's usual resting spot.
Xiao Bai's eyes flickered with light as he scanned the area, shaking his head. The Earth Core Tempering Body Milk wasn't here.
Sensing carefully, he approached the depression. With a sweep of his sleeve, he cleared the fur, revealing a layer of darker sand beneath.
His palm extended, yellow lightning crackling across it.
"Thunder Shock, Break!"
A massive, illusory palm glowing with yellow light slammed into the sand.
Boom!
The cave shook with a resounding crash, the walls trembling as fragments of stone rained down. Sand surged outward, revealing a dark, subterranean entrance.
Such potent earth energy!
Feeling the dense earth pulse energy erupting from the underground opening, Xiao Bai took a deep breath. His spleen blazed with light, and the Wu Earth Nether Thunder pulsed with an eager, craving sensation.
With a soft chuckle, Xiao Bai leaped into the entrance, swiftly navigating the winding underground passage.
The tunnel was pitch-black, but this posed no obstacle. His red-black glowing eyes clearly discerned every detail.
After several minutes of traversing the twisting path, a glaring white light appeared ahead.
Stepping to the passage's mouth, Xiao Bai gazed around, awestruck by the sight.
A subterranean world unfolded, filled with stalactites. Milky-white formations stretched endlessly, their tips pointing downward like an inverted forest. Some spanned a few meters, others reached a hundred, each emitting a faint glow. Refracted through crystalline surfaces, multicolored lights bathed the underground realm in vibrant splendor.
What a subterranean marvel!
Xiao Bai admired the scene briefly before weaving through the stalactite forest, heading in a specific direction.
Though earth pulse energy permeated the area, he sensed its densest concentration at the center.
"Patience! We'll get there, and you can absorb all you want!" Xiao Bai quelled the restless Wu Earth Nether Thunder within, his form trailing long streaks of yellow lightning as he moved with near-teleporting speed.
Moments later, a colossal pillar loomed into view.
This stalactite, anchored to the cavern's ceiling, hung like an inverted greatsword, nearly piercing the ground. At nearly two hundred meters tall and thick enough for several to encircle, it glowed with pristine white light, resembling a crystal column.
It stood as the sovereign of this stalactite realm, commanding the reverence of countless smaller formations.
Beneath it, Xiao Bai felt its ancient weight, marveling at nature's wonder and time's power. Forming such a massive stalactite would take tens of thousands of years.
His gaze drifted downward to where the stalactite's tip nearly touched the ground. There, a large bluestone, half-buried, lay directly beneath.
At its center, under the stalactite's point, was a small, bowl-sized groove.
Within the groove, a few inches of milky-white liquid shimmered, wisps of white mist swirling above it. Miraculously, the mist didn't disperse, hovering only over the groove.
Worthy of a spiritual treasure with marrow-cleansing and bone-tempering effects. Even this diluted Earth Core Tempering Body Milk can affect my physique!
Inhaling the mist, Xiao Bai felt a subtle heaviness in his bones—faint, almost illusory, but undeniable. This was the milk's power.
"Let's begin!"
With a wave of his hand, the milky liquid rose in a thin stream, flowing into his mouth.
Instantly, a deep thunderous rumble echoed within him, laced with a comfortable, almost moaning undertone.
Sitting cross-legged on the bluestone, Xiao Bai closed his eyes, hands forming seals. Strands of lightning arcs spread from his body, creeping along the ground.
One hundred meters.
Five hundred meters.
A thousand meters.
As the arcs expanded, Xiao Bai, linked to the Wu Earth Nether Thunder, felt a vast, majestic force surge back through the arcs. Yellow light burst from his body, radiating intense earthen glow.
In moments, he resembled a statue carved from earth essence, his withered flesh gradually swelling.
Within, the Prop Fire, bolstered by Yi Wood, and the Gui Water, strengthened by Geng Metal, clashed fiercely. Sensing the earth element's exponential growth, they erupted as if threatened, unleashing waves of devouring force to absorb the other four elements' energies.
___
Outside the Cave
The little golden dragon was animatedly boasting to Zi Yan, leaving the white-clad girl wide-eyed, nearly forgetting to eat her fruit.
"Little Gold?!"
A clear, elegant voice, tinged with uncertainty, rang through the valley.
"Who's that? Can't you see I'm busy—" The dragon turned irritably, only to freeze, its expression shifting to eager flattery. "Hah, it's Young Mistress!"
"Young Mistress, Fairy Mistress, long time no see—I've missed you dearly!"
"How'd you get so big?" Xun Er and Xiao Yi Xian stared at the colossal creature, shocked.
"Haha, this dragon's recently made great strides. Impressive, right?"
The dragon glanced nervously at Zi Yan, its eyes darting as it flexed a sturdy claw, showing off.
"Ugly as sin. Not cute like before!" Xun Er, catching its shifty look, knew it was spouting nonsense again. She curled her lip in disdain.
"…" The dragon rolled its eyes, choked.
"Heh." Xiao Yi Xian stifled a laugh, consoling, "Not as cute, but definitely more majestic!"
"See? Fairy Mistress has taste!" The dragon beamed, then shot Xun Er a sidelong glance. "Unlike some people, just like that no-good master, always criticizing!"
"Where's Brother Xiao Bai? Why isn't he here?" Xun Er ignored its grumbling, asking directly.
She'd rushed over with Xiao Yi Xian after hearing reports of a golden dragon in the back mountains, a rumor buzzing through the inner academy.
"There, in that cave!" The dragon jerked its head toward it.
"Wasn't he secluded in Thunderfall Valley? Why's he here?" Xun Er surveyed the valley, puzzled.
Did he kill that giant ape? And who's that little girl?
The dragon was about to answer when the valley trembled. Countless yellowish-gray lightning arcs surged from the ground, spreading in all directions, reaching them in an instant.
"Damn it, my lord's gone mad! Young Mistress, Fairy Mistress, hop on, I'll fly you up!" The dragon, sensing the arcs' power, knew it could handle them, but the others couldn't.
As it panicked, the rapidly spreading arcs reached them, only to swerve around their position, continuing outward as if sensing something.
"That's… Xiao Bai's gege thunder?" Xun Er murmured, staring at the surging arcs.
Before they could process the ground's phenomenon, they looked up. Above the valley, countless energies rapidly converged, forming a small whirlwind. Closer inspection revealed a blend of scorching fire energy and gentle water energy.
The whirlwind's influence kept expanding, faint, eerie fluctuations rippling outward.
___
Jia Nan Academy, Inner Academy
At the bottom of the Heaven-Burning Qi Refining Tower, behind a massive iron gate, a vast, dark cavern yawned.
Around its edge, eleven white-haired elders sat cross-legged, exhaling in relief.
Suddenly, space rippled, and a white-haired, white-bearded elder appeared in the air above the cavern, his voice grave. "How's the seal?"
"This outburst was suppressed by you, Great Elder. We eleven spent three days repairing the seals damaged in past breaches, but…"
"The underground seals, patched over years, aren't very stable. In two or three years, they may no longer hold it."
An elder stood, bowing with a weary expression.
Another, noting Su Qian's grim face, smiled. "No need to worry, Great Elder. Even if this first seal breaks, the tower's surface bears the dean's original seal. The Fallen Heart Flame would struggle to break free."
Su Qian frowned, scolding, "Don't underestimate the Fallen Heart Flame. This Heavenly Flame embodies the ultimate destructive force of heaven and earth. Over countless years, it's grown stronger in its lava world, its home turf. If provoked, its unleashed power is terrifying!"
"A single misstep could destroy the entire inner academy in an instant. Jia Nan Academy cannot bear such a cost!"
The elders' faces flushed with shame.
Indeed, if disaster struck, they might escape, but the academy and its students couldn't. If only the elders remained, would it still be Jia Nan Academy?
"You're the tower's guardian elders. No slacking, or we'll lose this sanctuary!"
"We heed the Great Elder's teachings!" The elders bowed in unison.
Su Qian smiled warmly, his tone softening. "Good. Stay vigilant. Signal me at the slightest disturbance, and I—"
His words cut off as the underground space surged with heat. Crimson light seeped in from nowhere, bathing the dim cavern in red.
The air blurred, each breath like inhaling flames.
"Damn it, that beast's at it again!" An elder's face paled, exclaiming.
"What's going on? The Fallen Heart Flame just erupted, and now again?"
"No time for questions! Strengthen the seal—don't let it break through!"
As the elders' auras surged, a visible energy dome, like an inverted bowl, capped the dark cavern. Its surface shimmered with intricate patterns, radiating violent fluctuations, with ripples of immense energy spreading endlessly.
Above the dome, Su Qian sat cross-legged in the air, eyes narrowed.
His vast Dou Qi enveloped the tower, sensing every minute disturbance.
Suddenly, he turned, his gaze piercing the void toward the back mountains, where a colossal energy was coalescing.
"Who's that? Is the Fallen Heart Flame's unrest tied to this?"
Sensing the clashing water and fire energies, Su Qian's brows furrowed, worry clouding his eyes. I hope they're not after the Fallen Heart Flame. Otherwise…
His expression hardened. If someone had deliberately triggered this, the academy's Death Spirit Tree would gain a few more corpses.
Thump!
A faint sound, like a heartbeat, echoed from below the cavern, making listeners' hearts skip.
Su Qian's brows tightened, his eyes glowing faintly as he peered into the dark abyss beneath the dome.
At the unseen depths, a new scene emerged—a sea of lava.
Unlike typical lava, this was dark red, like endless blood mixed within, exuding an eerie aura.
Thump!
Another heartbeat-like sound rang out, louder, its impact stronger. Many elders' faces flushed faintly red.
In the boundless lava world, the dark red magma churned violently, brimming with ferocious energy.
Splash!
The calm lava surface erupted in waves. Amid blazing red light, a massive head, over a zhang wide and coated in magma, broke through.
As immense energy shook the space, the air itself quivered.
"Hiss!"
An ethereal fire python, its body stretching endlessly in the lava, raised its colossal head. A piercing screech, carrying sound waves that could stun a Dou Ling, spread rapidly.
The Fallen Heart Flame eyed the energy dome that had trapped it for years. Instead of attacking, its head tilted, its triangular, flame-filled eyes locking onto the dome, sensing something intently.
It could feel some of its scattered flame energy being absorbed by another fire-attributed entity.
An instinct told it that devouring that entity would bring immense benefits.
And that entity was just above the dome!