The already unstable Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot were completely ignited by this powerful, pure external primordial energy, triggering an earth-shaking reaction, as if someone had poured ice water into a cauldron of boiling oil.
The ice-blue current was no longer a gentle flow, but turned into a roaring ice dragon. Wherever the current passed, meridians were instantly frozen and made brittle; even the flowing blood solidifying into tiny ice crystals.
The crimson flames were like an awakened volcano. Violent fire-attribute energy crashed against everything, as if it were going to scorch the meridians, evaporate blood and qi, and turn the internal organs to ash.
The two energies went berserk in a tug-of-war inside his body, turning his flesh into the cruelest of battlefields. A thick layer of ice emanating a ghostly blue light rapidly spread over his skin at a speed visible to the naked eye, sealing him inside a massive block of amber. His life force grew so weak it was almost extinguished.
But in the very next instant, a blazing red light erupted from deep within his viscera, like subterranean flames breaking through rock. With a crisp cracking sound, the ice shell shattered to pieces, white mist billowed up, and the skin beneath was revealed.
Yet it was no longer its original color; instead it was a dark, ominous crimson, like a hot iron brand just taken out of the forge, burning and sinister.
The Third Elder had already rushed forward several times involuntarily, wanting to pull the child out of this desperate situation. Even without tempering his body with water and fire, he firmly believed this child could still climb to the summit.
"Wait."
The Great Elder's deep, hoarse voice carried an unquestionable authority as it reached his ears. An aged yet steady hand landed on the Third Elder's slightly trembling shoulder.
The Great Elder appeared calmer than the Third Elder, but in the eyes of someone who had witnessed the vicissitudes of life, there was a solemnity and concern unlike anything before.
Seeing Chen Yi's wretched state, how could the Grand Elder not worry?
Chen Yi's talent and temperament were unparalleled in his lifetime. More importantly, he bore the inheritance of a god, and was the key to the rise of the Body Sect.
But now, Chen Yi's body had fallen into the most perilous state of energy balance. Any external interference, even with good intentions, might become the final straw that broke the camel's back—shattering this fragile equilibrium in an instant, sending the energies completely out of control, and causing his body to explode, leading to certain death.
No one knew how much time had passed. Just as the two Elders were about to break down, the violent energy fluctuations of the spring's water seemed to undergo a subtle change.
The raging ice and fire were no longer as chaotic as at the beginning, nor did they seem intent on mutual annihilation anymore. After Chen Yi's body had been destroyed and reconstructed again and again, it was as if it had begun to adapt. Amid this ultimate confrontation, the medicinal powers of the two immortal herbs had at last found a strange point of symbiosis.
The internal circulation that had once been unstable but barely maintained was, with great difficulty, finally taking shape.
The ice and fire on Chen Yi's body surface gradually fused with the external spring energy, forming an even greater and more complex balance of forces. The frequency of the alternating surges of ice and fire on his body surface dropped sharply, and the amplitude of the fluctuations also weakened significantly.
The Great Elder's tightly pressed lips loosened slightly, and an undisguisable look of relief appeared in the depths of his eyes.
The Third Elder's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and only then did he notice that his back was soaked with cold sweat. He raised a hand and vigorously wiped his face, as if trying to shake off the immense fear that had just swept over him.
In the spring water, Chen Yi's blurry consciousness slowly regained clarity. He clearly felt his physical body and meridians—once shattered by the clash of ice and fire—being reconstructed and repaired by a mighty life force.
The newly formed body possessed strength far surpassing anything he had ever felt, as if he could casually crush metal and stone in his grip. His meridians had expanded many times over, like wide, resilient rivers, able to contain a far more intense soul power. His soul power, which had long since reached its limit, let out a thunderous roar as it broke through the newly formed bottleneck, like floodwaters breaching a dam, shattering the already weakened barrier—
Level 38!
A powerful emotion surged through Chen Yi's entire being.
"Xiao Yi, come up quickly!"
The Elder took a deep breath as well, and prepared to urge him to leave this still-unknown spring at once.
However, when Chen Yi looked up at the shore, there was no look of relief at having narrowly escaped disaster on his face. Instead, it was a mixture of intense curiosity and a firm determination to explore further. His gaze sharpened, piercing through the turbid and yet crystal-clear spring water, as if it were about to reach into the lightless, unfathomable abyss below.
He would never forget that the Yin-Yang Ice-Fire Well was not only one of the three great treasure troves of that era, but also the burial site of two of the Nine Dragon Kings—the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King.
The strange nature of the Yin-Yang Ice-Fire Well was inextricably linked to those two fallen Dragon Kings. Now that such a great opportunity was right before his eyes, how could he just pass by this mountain of treasures and let the chance slip away?
"Please don't worry, Elders, I'm fine."
Chen Yi's voice came through the spring water, mixed with a strange buzzing resonance caused by the energy changes, sounding unusually calm.
"The origin of this Yin-Yang Spring is truly mysterious. I seem to feel something below calling and pulling me downward. I really want to go and personally see what secrets are hidden at the bottom of this spring!"
Before he finished speaking, he didn't give the two Elders any chance to refute or question him. Like a fish perfectly adapted to the water, he twisted his body lightly, dove head-first into the depths, stirring up strings of tiny bubbles. In an instant, his figure was swallowed by the dense, chaotic spring water.
"No! No!"
Seeing Chen Yi disappear into the water, the Third Elder cried out in shock and rushed forward, wanting to jump into the spring after him.
What's wrong with this kid?
He'd just escaped with his life—how could he act so reckless again!
He stared at the now-calm yet unfathomably deep spring, his expression cycling through intense changes. Worry, confusion, expectation… all these emotions eventually merged into a heavy sigh.
"Let him go… This child has an extraordinary fate, and his ambition far surpasses that of his peers. Perhaps… what lies dormant at the bottom of this spring is his destiny, and we may not be qualified to stop him."
However, the fingers of the hand clasped behind his back dug deep into his palm, drawing blood. It was clear that his inner turmoil was far greater than his outward composure suggested.
He did not know whether what awaited Chen Yi in that deep water would be a blessing… or a curse.