Chapter Thirty: The Divine Sunfire

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Zhou Qi had identified countless medicinal herbs. At first, he managed to remember them somewhat, but as he went on, he felt increasingly exhausted, his mind turning to mush. Memorizing these texts was truly a torment. Fortunately, he had refined a fair amount of soul-restoring herbs, and with Master Tian Xuan’s assurance that he’d be fine and could handle the assessment, Zhou Qi was finally able to relax, though he had no idea what was happening outside.

The man in black led Han Qiaoman out from the teleportation array. Gazing upon the Sacred Hall of the Medicine Immortal before him, he let out a cold laugh. Setting Han Qiaoman down, he said, “You’re safe now. I cannot bring you along forever. Take care of yourself.”

“Thank you for saving my life. May I ask your name, benefactor?” Now that she had reached the Immortal Hall and could use her spiritual power again, Han Qiaoman took out a Living Dead Immortal Pill from her storage ring. Her crippled limbs were instantly restored.

“My name is Di Yi. Until we meet again,” he replied, and strode toward the gate of the Immortal Hall. The mighty dragon atop the stone pillar did not sense his presence. With a flicker, he vanished into the hall.

At last, seeing the Immortal Hall, Han Qiaoman’s heart ached with sorrow. Of the fifteen who entered, only she remained. Zhou Qi’s fate was uncertain. Had Di Yi not saved her, she would have ended up no better. She stepped forward toward the hall, and a massive dragon soared into the air, flying straight at her.

Long Feiyu and the others, who arrived soon after, were also awestruck by the Sacred Hall of the Medicine Immortal, and soon became participants in the assessment.

Unbeknownst to Zhou Qi, the month-long assessment period had come to an end. The room full of herbs vanished, the scene shifting before his eyes, and one after another, medicinal plants appeared before him. Zhou Qi had to speak their names and properties.

“Fire Lotus Fruit, a fire-attributed spiritual herb, can be taken orally or used to refine Body Tempering Pills, with wondrous effects on tempering the flesh; also dispels cold poison.”

When Zhou Qi finished, the Fire Lotus Fruit disappeared, signifying a correct answer.

“Phantasmal Heart Grass, induces hallucinations, used to refine Phantasmal Pills.”

“Blood Lotus Essence, a blood-nourishing spiritual herb, used to make blood-replenishing pills.”

“Spirit Gathering Grass, an auxiliary herb for Returning Spirit Pills.”

…

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Zhou Qi identified herb after herb. Whenever he forgot one, Master Tian Xuan’s voice would sound in his mind. After five hours, he had finished identifying a hundred thousand medicinal plants. A message came from his token: “Zhou Qi, herb identification test complete. All correct. Score: 10 points. Forty-one herbs destroyed, minus 2 points. Current total: 8 points.”

Hearing this, Zhou Qi’s face darkened. So much for being able to cover things up.

Sensing his mood, Master Tian Xuan said, “Be content, boy. If those two points hadn’t been deducted, would you have passed this test?”

“Master jests. Of course I’m happy. I only regret not refining a few more herbs. If your soul could be restored, I wouldn’t mind even getting zero points.” Zhou Qi was startled, blaming himself in secret. Master Tian Xuan had helped him so much—without this cheat, he wouldn’t have gotten anywhere. How could he harbor resentment?

“Heh,” Master Tian Xuan chuckled without a word.

As Zhou Qi walked out of Testing Room Ten, a wave of searing heat hit him. Before him stretched a sea of fire, flames of various kinds darting to and fro. His token relayed new instructions: in this trial, he must subdue a divine fire, testing his affinity and control over flames. The higher the flame’s grade, the higher the score. Should he fail, the fire would consume him, body and soul.

“Boy, I’ll teach you a fire control technique. Listen closely: Heaven trigram thrice unbroken, Earth trigram six times broken, Li for fire, Kan for arrow…” Master Tian Xuan’s voice rang in his mind.

Zhou Qi hurried to memorize it, then used the fire control technique as instructed, extending his spiritual sense to probe the flames. He first touched a seemingly gentle flame; a sense of kinship emanated from it. With a thought, Zhou Qi found the flame obeyed his will and he drew it into his body. But according to the token, the higher the grade of the flame, the higher the score. Subduing only ordinary fire would hardly earn him many points.

Patiently, Zhou Qi tried contacting other flames. One after another hovered around him, encircling him. Clearly, Master Tian Xuan’s fire control art was extraordinary.

Seeing such results, Zhou Qi no longer rushed, but patiently observed. If he was to subdue one, it must be the strongest.

Among the myriad flames, he spotted a white fire blooming like a lotus, quietly floating at the center of the sea of fire. The other flames circled it as if in reverence.

Zhou Qi tried extending his spiritual sense toward it, but a scorching pain shot through him, as if even his soul could be burned. What kind of fire was this, possessing such an extraordinary aura?

He tried approaching it again, activating the fire control technique. Suddenly, the lotus flared, and a wisp of his spiritual sense was instantly incinerated. Had he not severed the connection in time, the fire would have surged toward him. Once the link was cut, the flame resumed its lotus form, serenely beautiful.

Zhou Qi dared not be reckless. Clearly, this was the mightiest flame among the myriad. A mere wisp had nearly drawn disaster upon him. He would not attempt it again lightly.

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“Master, what is this flame? It’s so powerful.” Zhou Qi was amazed. When in doubt, he always asked the master.

“Hm, I didn’t expect to see such a thing. This is a treasure! Boy, seize it. With this, whether it’s alchemy or battle, your efforts will yield twice the result for half the effort,” Master Tian Xuan said excitedly.

“But this flame is too powerful. It can burn even my spiritual sense, and the fire control art can’t get close. How am I supposed to subdue it?” Zhou Qi asked.

“This is the Flame of the Gods. It may have already gained a wisp of sentience. With your cultivation still at the Qi Refining stage, it looks down on you. Use the fire control technique to drag it into your sea of soul, and leave the rest to me,” said Master Tian Xuan.

“Is it dangerous?” Zhou Qi asked.

“Of course. But don’t you have a Living Dead Immortal Pill? As long as you have a breath left, you can recover instantly. How can you expect to gain without paying the price? If cultivation were that easy, why do so many perish with regret? The strong are those who grow through peril,” Master Tian Xuan’s tone was earnest. “Your only flaw is being too cautious, lacking boldness.”

Fine. It was worth a gamble. If he died, Master Tian Xuan would perish as well—there was no reason for him to deceive Zhou Qi. He took out the Living Dead Immortal Pill and held it in his mouth, ready to bite down at any moment.

Zhou Qi released his spiritual sense, using the fire control technique to approach the Divine Sunfire. Instantly, his spiritual sense ignited, and his body was wreathed in flames, searing pain coursing from every part of him.

Gritting his teeth against the agony, Zhou Qi wrapped his spiritual sense entirely around the flame. Though it was relentlessly consumed, he ignored the danger and forced the Divine Sunfire into his sea of soul with the fire control art.

The Divine Sunfire raged, unleashing its full force. Zhou Qi was engulfed in flame, even his sea of soul set ablaze.

“Hmph.” Master Tian Xuan released a trace of his aura. The Divine Sunfire trembled, transforming once again into a lotus and floating quietly in Zhou Qi’s battered sea of soul.

Zhou Qi’s body was burned beyond recognition, but seeing the Divine Sunfire pacified, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and crushed the Living Dead Immortal Pill in his mouth.