113: Danta stronghold, news about the Tianji Order

The core of the Central Region, the Pill Tower's stronghold, was not located on the five floating mountains but rather in a relatively quiet district in the southwestern part of the city cluster. It was a vast, ancient-style manor, with the four characters "Pill Domain Branch" elegantly carved on its plaque. Guards with steady auras stood at the entrance, and a faint medicinal fragrance wafted out.

Xiao Chen arrived at the manor gate and presented his token as Xuan Kongzi's personal disciple. After verifying it, the guard's expression immediately became extremely respectful. He bowed and said, "So it's Junior Brother Xiao! Please come in quickly! Senior Sister Han Xue and Senior Brother Qiu Ji arrived a few days ago and are waiting in the Inner Academy."

Xiao Chen nodded slightly and followed the attendant into the manor. Inside, there were pavilions, terraces, and flowing water, arranged with elegant simplicity. The energy concentration was also much higher than outside, clearly indicating the presence of a spirit-gathering array. Many disciples wearing Pill Tower attire moved about, casting curious and reverent glances at Xiao Chen. Clearly, his deeds in the Northern Region had already spread here.

Passing through several corridors, they arrived at a secluded courtyard. In the courtyard, Han Xue, Qiu Ji, Ye Chong, and more than ten other core disciples of the Pill Tower were discussing something. Seeing Xiao Chen enter, everyone stood up to greet him.

"Junior Brother Xiao!"

"Brother Xiao, you've finally arrived!"

Han Xue was still in her moon-white tight-fitting attire, a rare smile gracing her cold face. Her aura was more refined than when she was in the Meteor Space, having stabilized at Peak Eight-star Dou Zong. Qiu Ji's body faintly flickered with lightning, and his cultivation had also reached Peak Seven-Star Dou Zong, seemingly having made further progress in puppetry. Ye Chong's aura was steady, and his alchemist's soul fluctuations were even more harmonious. The other disciples had also made progress.

"Senior Sister Han, Senior Brother Qiu, Brother Ye, all Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters." Xiao Chen cupped his hands in return, feeling a warmth in his heart from their sincere concern. In the crisis-ridden Central Region, the camaraderie among fellow disciples was especially precious.

"Junior Brother Xiao, we've all heard about your matters in the Northern Region." Han Xue's beautiful eyes held a hint of worry. "The Soul Hall is now searching for you like mad dogs. Did you encounter any trouble on your way here?"

"Some minor troubles, already resolved." Xiao Chen smiled faintly, not mentioning the dangers of the Valley of Buried Soldiers. His gaze swept over everyone. "Seeing the auras of all Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, you must also be here for the Heavenly Secret Ancient City, right?"

"Exactly." Qiu Ji interjected, his expression solemn. "The Heavenly Secret Ancient City opens once every hundred years, offering rare opportunities. However, our Pill Tower has a limited number of heavenly secret tokens this time, only ten. Besides us core disciples, some outstanding disciples recommended by the Inner Academy elders will also participate. The competition is quite fierce."

Ye Chong added, "Moreover, with the ancient city opening this time, the Soul Hall and Heavenly Nether Sect will definitely send their strongest lineups. Especially the Soul Hall, it is rumored that their newly emerged young master, Soul Jade, possesses terrifying strength and may have already broken through to One-Star Dou Zun! Junior Brother Xiao, you are now a thorn in their side, so this journey will be extremely dangerous."

Xiao Chen nodded; this information matched what he had previously obtained. He asked directly, "Regarding the distribution of the heavenly secret tokens, does the sect have a plan?"

Han Xue and Qiu Ji exchanged glances and said, "Our master (Xuan Kongzi) has decreed that the distribution of the heavenly secret tokens will not be based on seniority but entirely on strength. In three days, an internal selection will be held at the manor's training grounds. The top ten will receive a heavenly secret token."

"Internal selection?" Xiao Chen raised an eyebrow slightly. This was a fair method.

"Junior Brother Xiao, with your extraordinary strength, obtaining a heavenly secret token is naturally not a problem." Qiu Ji smiled. "However, this selection will likely not be peaceful. The Soul Hall's bounty order has already spread throughout the Central Region, so it's inevitable that some greedy individuals, or even those bribed by the Soul Hall, might try to harm you during the selection."

"No matter." Xiao Chen's eyes were calm. "It's a good chance to stretch my muscles."

Seeing Xiao Chen's confidence, Han Xue and the others also felt relieved. They knew Xiao Chen's strength well; even an ordinary Nine-star Dou Zong would likely not be his match.

"Besides the selection, there's one more thing." Han Xue lowered her voice. "Our master secretly sent a message, asking us to pay attention to a mysterious organization called 'Heaven's Secret Pavilion'. It is said that the opening of the Heavenly Secret Ancient City this time is greatly related to this pavilion. The Soul Hall also seems to be secretly contacting them."

"Heaven's Secret Pavilion..." Xiao Chen noted down the name. Teacher Xuan Kongzi had also mentioned this organization before, saying it was mysterious and required extra caution.

Afterward, everyone exchanged information about the latest situation in the Central Region and the talents of various factions, only dispersing to rest when night fell.

Xiao Chen was arranged in an independent, elegant small courtyard. After setting up restrictions, he did not rest immediately but instead took out the incomplete diagram of the ancient ruins he had obtained from Lin Xiao of the Flowing Cloud Pavilion.

His soul power carefully probed the incomplete diagram. The lines on it were winding and intricate, pointing to an area called the "Crimson Flame Mountain Range." This mountain range was located at the border of the Central Region and the Meteor Desert, sparsely populated, and rumored to have active ground fire and frequent appearances of powerful fire-attribute demonic beasts. On the edge of the incomplete diagram, there was also a blurry flame totem mark, emitting faint scorching fluctuations.

"Flame ruins... Perfect, my Soul Heart Flame hasn't devoured other flames to advance in a long time." Xiao Chen's heart stirred. If he could find powerful beast flames or even clues to heavenly flames in these ruins, it would be a huge boost to his strength. Moreover, exploring ruins itself was a form of training, allowing him to better familiarize himself with and control the power of his Peak Nine-Star Dou Zong.

"The Heavenly Secret Ancient City selection is in three days, which is enough time to investigate this Crimson Flame Mountain Range." Xiao Chen made his decision. He needed to quickly improve his strength to deal with the powerful enemies in the ancient city.

The next morning, Xiao Chen informed Han Xue and the others of his plan to go out for training, only saying he was going to the nearby mountains to familiarize himself with the environment, without mentioning the ruins. Although Han Xue and the others were a bit worried, they also knew Xiao Chen's formidable strength, so they simply admonished him to be careful and gave him a more detailed map of the Central Region and a communication jade slip.

Leaving the Pill Tower branch, Xiao Chen restrained his aura and blended into the bustling crowd in the city, then quietly left the city and, following the map's guidance, sped towards the Crimson Flame Mountain Range.

The Crimson Flame Mountain Range was about several thousand miles away from the Pill Tower branch. At Xiao Chen's current speed, he could reach it in half a day. Along the way, he did not rush at full speed but sometimes used his movement techniques, sometimes comprehended the world, familiarizing himself with the unique energy environment of the Central Region.

In the evening, a vast, undulating mountain range with dark red mountains came into view. A faint smell of sulfur permeated the air, the temperature had noticeably risen, the ground was cracked, and vegetation was sparse. Deep within the mountain range, faint flames shot into the sky, accompanied by low beast roars.

"Such dense fire-attribute energy!" Xiao Chen's soul perception spread out, clearly feeling the active and violent fire elements in the mountain range. Following the incomplete diagram's guidance, he chose a secluded canyon to enter the mountain range.

Inside the canyon, strange rocks protruded, and waves of heat assailed him. From time to time, red lizard-like demonic beasts, mostly at the fourth or fifth rank, darted out from the cliffs on both sides and were easily dealt with by Xiao Chen. He ignored these low-level demonic beasts, his soul perception fully searching for the ruins entrance marked on the incomplete diagram.

After going tens of miles deep into the canyon, Xiao Chen stopped in front of a seemingly ordinary rock wall. The mark on the incomplete diagram pointed here, but to the naked eye, the rock wall showed no abnormalities.

"Concealment array?" Xiao Chen's Spirit Realm Soul power carefully probed and indeed found an extremely faint energy fluctuation on the rock wall's surface, perfectly blended with the surrounding environment. Without the incomplete diagram's guidance and his Spirit Realm Soul, it would have been impossible to detect.

He pointed his fingers like a blade, and a wisp of Dou Qi containing the "Void Breaking" intent gently touched a node of the energy fluctuation.

"Buzz..."

The rock wall twisted, rippling like water, revealing a deep cave entrance just wide enough for one person. A more pure and scorching fire-attribute energy, mixed with an ancient and vicissitudes of life aura, surged out from within the cave.

"This is it!" Xiao Chen's eyes lit up, and without hesitation, he flashed into the cave.

The cave entrance quickly closed and returned to its original state after he entered.

The cave was not completely dark but glowed with a faint red light. The passage sloped downwards, and the temperature grew higher and higher. The cave walls on both sides were crystalline, as if they had been melted by high temperatures. Xiao Chen cautiously advanced deeper, his soul perception vigilantly scanning his surroundings.

After about an incense stick's worth of time, the view suddenly opened up, revealing a huge underground cave. In the center of the cave was a boiling magma lake! Bubbles rolled on the lake's surface, emitting terrifying high temperatures. And in the center of the magma lake, there was a small stone platform. Above the stone platform, a constantly leaping deep purple flame floated! The flame was only the size of a fist, but the energy fluctuations it emitted made Xiao Chen's soul tremble slightly!

"This is... earth core poison fire?!" Xiao Chen recognized this flame. The earth core poison fire, born deep within the earth's core magma, contained potent poison and extremely high temperatures. It was an extremely violent seventh-tier beast flame! Its power was enough to threaten a low-star Dou Zun (Battle Venerable)!

"Good stuff!" Xiao Chen was overjoyed. If he could devour this earth core poison fire, his Soul Heart Flame would greatly increase in power! Moreover, the potent poison contained within this flame, if he could control it, would also be a great weapon against enemies!

However, just as he was about to move to collect the flame, a sudden change occurred!

"Hiss—!"

The magma lake churned violently, and a giant python, covered in purple scales and with a single horn on its head, slowly rose from the lake. Its cold snake eyes locked onto Xiao Chen, emitting a terrifying aura of a low-grade eighth-tier (equivalent to a One-Star Dou Zun) demonic beast!

"Purple Scaled Poison Fire Python! The guardian beast of this earth core poison fire!" Xiao Chen's expression changed slightly. He hadn't expected such a powerful demonic beast to be guarding these ruins!

"Human, dare to covet this venerable one's poison fire, you seek death!" The Purple Scaled Poison Fire Python spoke in human tongue, its voice hoarse and cold, carrying intense killing intent. It flicked its massive tail, and a purple torrent of poison fire swept towards Xiao Chen! Where the poison fire passed, even space emitted sizzling corrosive sounds!

Facing this terrifying blow comparable to a Dou Zun (Battle Venerable), Xiao Chen's eyes erupted with fierce battle intent!

"Perfect! I'll use you to test my Peak Nine-Star Dou Zong strength!"

He let out a long roar, advancing instead of retreating, and the phantom of his dark-gold battle axe instantly condensed!

"Nine Axes of Heaven Opening—Fourth Form, Meteor!"

A fierce battle between man and python, fire and axe, erupted violently in this underground cave!