Because the source of the cold yin power within Gongyi Tianheng couldn’t be found and it was only sensed that it was continuously damaging Tianheng’s body, Gu Zuo practically lost his head in a panic.
What should be done? He had undoubtedly read many item books, and even knew how to nurse and treat the Tiandu Body after reaching the Immortal Realm. But unfortunately, he wasn’t able to figure out his dear big brother’s current ailing condition.
If things continued like this…
Suddenly, Gu Zuo’s heart jumped.
Immediately following which, he sensed that his own body was becoming scorchingly hot. Each bone pearl started to produce intense heat. Like countless strings, the silk threads of that Earthen Core Flame started to stir restlessly within his body.
Gu Zuo’s understanding of the current situation became less and less clear, but the swelling ache in his body told him that he needed to do something… Then, those threads of the Earthen Core Flame converged, and rays of orange light burst forth from his fingertips. Following that, each of his acupoints that contained bone pearls emitted lines of fire. It interweaved in front of him, formed a large, flaming net, and issued a spirited and scorching fire power!
At this moment, Gu Zuo discovered that Tianheng’s originally flushed skin suddenly turned an ashen color. Soon after, this ashen color gradually became deathly pale, which further turned into a type of morbid pallor — Even the qi emissions of his entire body seemed to become a cold yin!
Tianheng’s gaze still hadn’t wavered. Only, his lips had likewise lost their pink, healthy color.
The fire net in front of Gu Zuo burned even more vigorously.
The Earthen Core Flame seemed to be both expecting and confronting something.
Tianheng exerted himself to open his mouth: “Ah Zuo, cut open my elbow…”
Gu Zuo was alarmed.
But in the end, he trusted Tianheng. After hearing these words, he didn’t hesitate much and promptly released his psychic power and transformed it into a sharp Spirit Piercing Awl. He sliced open Tianheng’s robe sleeve as well as the skin of his elbow.
In the blink of an eye, the meridian in that area emitted a wisp of lustrous-green flames.
This flame was very peaceful, but the instant it emerged, it seemed to alternate the temperature of the entire room for quite a few times — One moment, it was ruthlessly hot. The next moment there was a bitter cold. Then, it changed back to a torrid heat. It would leave one’s heart very uneasy.
Gu Zuo was astonished.
Why had this flame burrowed its way out of his big brother’s body? This didn’t make any sense!
But, this was clearly the truth&#k2026;
Tianheng’s expression didn’t change: “Ah Zuo, cut half an inch below the Quchi Acupoint.”
Gu Zuo was well aware of the situation. In accordance with Tianheng’s statements, Gu Zuo cut open another thin wound at the site he designated. Sure enough, another wisp of lustrous-green flames burrowed its way out from there.
Closely following that, Tianheng continuously issued instructions and Gu Zuo continuously followed those instructions.
Within a brief fifteen minutes, Tianheng’s limbs were already full of bloody holes. At each bloody hole, a lustrous-green flame was burning. It seemed as if this flame was using Tianheng’s body like a nourishing candlestick. It didn’t want to leave at all.
Merely, since those lustrous-green flames were forced to show themselves, there was also a reaction.
They leaped up like they were being provoked, and suddenly turned into motes of fluorescence. The motes dashed out and pounced towards that orange net of fire!
One of the motes of lustrous-green flames moved with the fastest speed. The instant that it touched the fire net, it was like the mote had been doused in a ball of cold water. With a shrill hissing sound, it dissipated.
…Or rather, it had been wrapped up by that fire net and was completely assimilated. It only brought about a reaction in that moment and nothing else.
Immediately following that, those lustrous-green flames seemed to pause. Soon after, they gathered together and formed a ball of flames the size of a clenched fist. The ball emitted a radiance that seemed both icy and blazing hot. Then, it stretched out, forming a short spear, and thrusted at the large, orange-colored net!
The next moment, the short spear and the large net struggled with each other. One wanted to pierce through the latter and the other wanted to engulf the former. It seemed like they were in a deadlock.
At the same time, the lines of fire within Gu Zuo were still spurting out unceasingly, which constantly increased the fire power of the orange net of fire. Also, in spite of the injuries to his limbs, Tianheng braced himself and sat upright. At this time, Tianheng took out a dagger and cut small wounds in the vicinity of the acupoints on the rest of his body. And in those wounds, the lustrous-green flames began to stir. They swiftly rushed out and strengthened the short spear’s power. Gradually, once the orange lines of fire and the lustrous-green flame’s radiance no longer made any more reappearances, the clashing of the short spear and the large net became more and more ferocious. Finally, after a few abrupt collisions, the momentum of the battle slowly waned.
In that instant, Tianheng tossed out an object in his hand.
That object let out a splendorous light, and the lustrous-green short spear was immediately sucked in. At the exact same moment, Gu Zuo’s thoughts turned, and the large, orange net was also rapidly gathered up. At once, it returned to his body and reverted into silk threads, which entered the bone pearls condensed in his acupoints.
Peace at long last…
Gu Zuo broke out in a full-body cold sweat.
It was truly too frightening just now. He realized that the thing originally inside of his big brother’s body was actually a type of Wondrous Fire!
Previously, Gu Zuo hadn’t recalled it.
Of course, <<Great Sights of the World — Earth Fires>> had already recorded within it all the flames that were borne from ley lines. These flames were Earth Fires, but were also Wondrous Fires. Coincidentally, this type of lustrous-green flame was one type of Earth Fire.
The flames of the world burned all living things. It went without saying that a flame’s property was to be hot, but some flames produced from special environments carried different properties and spiritualities. For example, this Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame was a flame with extreme yin. As a result, the property it carried was cold yin.
When it burned, its nature was sometimes icy cold and sometimes scorching hot.
At this moment, Tianheng had sealed that Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame, and then he rubbed his forehead.
Gu Zuo didn’t bother with his own retaking of the Earthen Core Flame, and hurriedly rushed over. He took out a top grade Revitalization Pill and gave it to his pitiful big brother who was covered all over with cuts and bruises.
Actually, all these wounds were superficial injuries. As far as martial artists were concerned, they weren’t worth mentioning. In the end, however, they appeared rather frightening. Gu Zuo was looking at Tianheng, and felt pain in his heart.
Tianheng naturally received Gu Zuo’s kind intentions. After he swallowed the top grade Revitalization Pill, the bloody holes across his whole body healed completely at speeds visible to the naked eye. Soon after, he lifted his eyes, reached out a hand, and fiddled with the thing that sealed the Wondrous Fire.
Gu Zuo saw it clearly at a glance. Wasn’t this heavy thing the secret key that opened the Human King’s tomb? But just what was going on?
With the suspicions in his mind, Gu Zuo naturally asked.
Tianheng shook his head slightly: “Today, when I was operating my inner cultivation method, this thing, which I had previously taken out and placed next to me, had flames spurt out for some reason. The flames directly charged into my meridians, damaged my internal organs, and injured my foundations. Afterwards, you arrived here and the Earthen Core Flame suddenly burst forth. This lustrous-green flame grew more and more agitated as if it wanted to escape from my body. Only, it was easy for the flames to go in, but difficult to come out. Therefore, it was extremely unbearable. Once I cut open the places where the flames were moving, it broke out of my body and struggled with the Earthen Core Flame. Thus, allowing me to escape this calamitous fate.”
Gu Zuo finished listening, and his heart held lingering fears.
What would’ve happened if he came back late? Wouldn’t his big brother have received even worser injuries? Or would he have been killed by this Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame?
Although he believed in the luck of the Tiandu Body, luck was an illusory thing. One couldn’t place their thoughts upon it.
— Merely, why was the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame inside the secret key?
Tianheng sighed and said: “It’s my negligence. Previously, when we were on the flying ship, I once heard that some Immortal Realm martial artists were burned to death by a green fire when they tried to enter the Great Tomb. But I only thought that the green flame had been enclosed within the Human King’s tomb and had disappeared along with it. I didn’t expect that it had actually been thrown into the secret key.”
Originally, there wasn’t a Wondrous Fire inside the secret key. As such, the Wondrous Fire had only entered the key afterwards. Although they didn’t know why, the flame was probably a treasure left behind by Human King Yan Ruo… Unfortunately, the Wondrous Fire had rebelled for some reason. Otherwise, in the future, Tianheng and the others would’ve probably sensed the Wondrous Fire’s existence one day. At that time, they naturally would’ve been able to subdue it. It wouldn’t have been like now where they were caught unprepared.
As for why the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame had gotten into a dispute with the Earthen Core Flame, it was probably because both sides were very powerful Wondrous Fires. When the two collided, they both wanted to swallow up and consume the other. This also allowed Gu Zuo to sense the Earthen Core Flame’s strange mood.
However, in Gu Zuo’s current bone pearls, the Earthen Core Flame was already tyrannically occupying all the positions. Just then, the Earthen Core Flame and the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame had been fighting so ferociously. If he wanted to utilize the Heavenly Fire-Submission Seal to subdue the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame, then that was impossible. If Gu Zuo didn’t want to make his bone pearls explode, he absolutely couldn’t do such a thing — After all, relying on his current strength to subdue one type of Wondrous Fire was already extremely rare.
When he made consecutive breakthroughs in the future and reached the Immortal Realm, perhaps it would be logical for him to accommodate the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame into his qi ocean.
Gu Zuo was still a little puzzled: “Big brother, you were only doing your usual cultivation practice. Why did the Will-O-Wisp Yin Flame suddenly rebel?”
Tianheng’s gaze sank slightly.
He spread out his palm, and in the center of his palm was a ball of reddish-gold radiance: “Perhaps, it has something to do with this power.”
Gu Zuo’s gaze fell upon this ball of radiance.
The might of this type of power was very formidable. It had helped his big brother out many times. Now, he also knew that what this power contained should’ve been the power of the sun — To put it plainly, it was solar energy.
Was it really caused by this?
T/N: I’ll be retroactively changing True Apprentice to True Disciple. The retroactive edits will come with the eventual volume edits.
Thanks for the correction, Charysa.
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