Chapter Sixty-Four: The Tempering of Body and Mind

The body of the Azure Dragon Guardian slowly faded away within that dazzling radiance, dissolving like melting snow. A colossal image of an azure dragon spun in the air, enveloping Dongfang Jun and the three guardians within its coils. At that moment, Hu Mo spotted a formation similar to the one that had previously spirited him away—it was another wondrous teleportation array.

“Who exactly are these people? These teleportation arrays are too incredible,” Hu Mo muttered in astonishment, now several miles away and staring back in the direction of Dongfang Jun.

“What’s there to be surprised about? If their powers hadn’t been suppressed, they wouldn’t have needed to make such sacrifices. That young man from the Azure Dragon Tribe burned up all his Azure Dragon energy, using that mighty force as leverage to activate his clan’s ancestral teleportation array, the ‘Azure Dragon Defies Heaven.’ Otherwise, how could they have escaped? We need to leave quickly—some juniors are on their way, though their speed is... frankly pathetic!” Cang Ling snorted impatiently, grabbed Hu Mo, and in the blink of an eye, vanished from the spot.

Hu Mo found himself increasingly convinced that Cang Ling was a firebrand—there seemed to be no one she hadn’t scolded. As expected, just as they disappeared, three figures radiating multicolored light descended from the sky. When the glow faded, their features became clear. Cang Ling had been right: all three appeared youthful-faced with snow-white hair and flowing sleeves, though there was nothing “small” about them.

“Senior brother, this is the place,” said an elder in green robes, his tone deep and grave.

“Very well, let’s take a look.” The man addressed as senior brother was dressed in white, exuding a calm and steady presence, his expression utterly unflappable. Beside him, a dark-faced elder squinted suspiciously, scanning the area with the air of a thief.

The ground here, ravaged by the final Azure Dragon teleportation array, now bore a deep crater. The black-faced elder seemed to be searching for something, ceaselessly investigating every inch. After a while, his eyes suddenly widened, tension written all over his face.

“Third brother, have you found something?” The white-robed elder asked in a low voice, clearly having waited for this very outcome and so had held his silence until now.

“A teleportation array—this is a teleportation array from the Mysterious Continent!” The black-faced elder exclaimed, his face filled with utter disbelief.

“The auras of Azure Dragon, Vermillion Bird, Black Tortoise, and White Tiger—the Four Divine Beasts—are all present. Though not entirely pure, they are definitely connected to the Four Beasts. Besides those, there’s also a bizarre earth-attribute power just as formidable as the divine beasts. Judging by the evidence, this battle was anything but simple! Senior brother, could something be wrong with the seal? Aren’t these things only found on the Mysterious Continent?” The green-robed elder spoke in a quieter voice, calmer and more grounded than his black-faced counterpart.

The white-robed elder gently shook his head. “The matter of the seal isn’t within our control. That’s the concern of the envoys of the Sacred Temple. But there’s something you don’t know—the seal isn’t absolute. If enough power is gathered, people from the Mysterious Continent can use a teleportation array to come straight through.”

“What! Didn’t the Sacred Temple’s envoys guarantee it was absolutely secure? How could they possibly cross over directly? Senior brother, there’s definitely something wrong with the Sacred Temple—they—”

“Silence! Do you have no regard for your life? Don’t shout nonsense in this place!” The white-robed elder snapped, his once genial face now darkening with anger. “The affairs of the Sacred Temple are not for us to discuss. Our Fire God Valley cannot afford to provoke them.”

“Yes, I understand, senior brother,” the black-faced elder replied quietly, cold sweat soaking his back.

“For now, we must first report this to the Sacred Temple and see how they intend to handle it. Second, we have to find the ones who fought with those people—anyone capable of forcing them to such extremes is certainly no ordinary opponent. Fire God Valley’s situation is already precarious; Icewave Sect and Golden Hao Manor have been increasingly active lately. I fear this person may belong to either sect. If so, it could spell great trouble for us!” The white-robed elder’s voice was grave. His skill in analysis commanded genuine respect, and after hearing his words, the other two had no objections.

“We’ll follow your lead, senior brother. Ah, if only Master and the other elders would emerge from seclusion—our burdens would be so much lighter,” one of them sighed.

“Yes, if Master and the elders return, Fire God Valley’s strength will surely soar above all other sects!” Pride flickered in the black-faced elder’s eyes as he gazed fervently at the senior brother.

“Second and third brothers, our priority now is to improve ourselves. Master has entrusted Fire God Valley to us for the moment, and it’s our duty to manage it well. What changes may come after Master and the elders return isn’t for us to worry about now. Let’s go back and deal with the immediate issues.” With that, the white-robed elder glanced southwards and soared away. The other two exchanged glances, then transformed into streaks of light and vanished.

Elsewhere, in a small village a dozen miles away, Hu Mo was finally set down safely, though Cang Ling had been clutching him like a chicken the entire way, making him feel thoroughly humiliated. No matter how he protested, he received nothing but a cold glare or a mocking remark, driving him to the edge of madness.

Fortunately, Cang Ling, moved by “love,” didn’t hold it against him and simply tossed him into a village house to recover on his own.

The abruptness of the landing left Hu Mo dizzy, nearly aggravating his injuries. But what could he do? Even if he wasn’t hurt, what difference would it make? To go against someone regarded as a living legend was sheer suicide.

Just as Hu Mo was preparing to sit cross-legged and start healing, the door opened once again. Cang Ling entered, her expression icy, clutching a handful of unknown herbs.

“Eat these, or don’t blame me if you’re left with lifelong aftereffects,” she said, tossing the herbs to him. When Hu Mo hesitated, she “kindly” forced the medicine into his mouth herself.

The moment the herbs touched his tongue, a searing spiciness tormented his innards. It was a thousand times hotter than the fiercest chili pepper. Hu Mo could feel his very body about to combust, while an infernal black flame seemed to rise atop his Divine Wood Cauldron.

“Quick, absorb the medicinal power and strengthen your Chaos Flame. Fire Bodhi Root is only effective the first time you take it—miss this chance and you’ll regret it forever. Listen to me: circulate the Fire God Transformation and absorb every bit of this fire energy, don’t waste a drop!” Cang Ling barked, suddenly agitated. Though she knew Hu Mo was suffering, he had to endure it for his future growth.

Hu Mo could only groan in pain. Under normal circumstances, he might have grit his teeth and made it through, even if it meant shedding layers of skin and sweat. But now, his body was in an extremely weakened state, racked with pain despite the lack of obvious wounds. The Divine Wood Cauldron’s power was depleted, and the agony and fatigue gnawed at his very soul. Now, forced to ingest the blazing Fire Bodhi Root, he was tormented both body and spirit, his screams soon echoing through the room.

Cang Ling stood by his side, her expression utterly unmoved.

“This is what you must endure. You gave me hope, and I believe in you,” she murmured to herself, then sat cross-legged beside him.

Multiple layers of wards had been placed on the room, preventing the surging fire energy from escaping. Zhu Xinyue had been settled in a villager’s home, where, under Cang Ling’s enchantments, she had been sleeping peacefully for some time.

Hu Mo felt as if his very heart was plunged into magma, the scorching, frenzied heat devouring his flesh and gnawing at his soul. He longed to succumb to unconsciousness, but the pain kept jolting him awake—a true cycle of death and resurrection.

The power of fire symbolized destruction, the most devastating of the five elements. The Chaos Flame stood supreme among destructive forces, rivaled only by the chaotic forms of gold, wood, water, and earth—other energies were pitifully feeble in comparison.

Had anyone seen the room’s current state, they would have been dumbstruck: the Chaos Flame filled the space with an inky black fire. Yet, under Cang Ling’s suppression, it failed to spiral out of control, merely tempering Hu Mo’s body.

“Damn it, I refuse to lose to you!” Hu Mo roared inwardly. Suddenly, a tiny figure clad in golden armor appeared within him—it was the manifestation of his fire power, his Battle Spirit.

With the Battle Spirit’s emergence, Hu Mo’s absorption of the medicine accelerated severalfold, and so did his suffering, the pain sharper than if his flesh were flayed from his bones.

Yet Hu Mo never entertained the thought of giving up. A smile tugged at his lips as he monitored his cultivation—the rate of improvement was rising at an astonishing, almost monstrous pace.

Though his cultivation had reached the first rank of Battle King for some time, no matter how quickly the Three Treasures converted energy, further progress had come only slowly, as was natural—advancement always slowed at higher levels.

But now, the potent fire of the Fire Bodhi Root was pushing his cultivation upward once more; in a short time he reached the peak of the second rank of Battle King, and was still climbing.

After about three hours, Hu Mo suddenly let out a piercing scream. Darkness swept over his vision and a wave of dizziness crashed upon him—no wonder, for his spiritual energy was utterly drained.

He collapsed, falling into a soft, welcoming embrace. Cang Ling looked down at him and smiled faintly. “Not bad,” she murmured. “Just barely passing.”