55: Chapter 55 Subduing the Eight Desolate Annihilation Flame

After Yan Feng left, Hun Feng was in no rush to enter seclusion. He placed the Red Flame Crystal Jade Box on his desk and stared at it for a long time. The Eight Desolation Destruction Flame was pulsating restlessly inside the box. Even through the thick crystal walls, he could still feel the violent dark golden light thrashing about. Every impact caused the sealing runes on the surface of the box to flicker violently, as if something inside was desperately trying to tear the box apart. Ranked sixth and approaching the mid-stage Seven-Star Dou Sheng level, the Yan Clan had hidden it for thousands of years, yet no one had been able to refine it—not because they didn't want to, but because no one could suppress it. He reached out and tapped lightly on the surface of the box. His fingertip was scorched with a small red mark, but he didn't care, merely curling his lips slightly.

Yao Yao leaned against the doorframe of the study, holding a plate of freshly cut spiritual fruit. She skewered a piece with a bamboo pick and held it to his lips. Hun Feng opened his mouth to take it, and after chewing twice, mumbled, "This seclusion might take quite a while."

"When has it ever been short?" Yao Yao rolled her eyes at him, set the fruit plate on the desk, and bent down to straighten the crooked crease on his collar that he had pulled awry himself. "That time with the Purification Lotus Demon Flame, you nearly lost your life. Now it's the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame's turn. Next time, are you planning to subdue the number one Di Yan?"

"Di Yan has long since ceased to exist." Hun Feng chuckled, reached out to wrap his arm around her waist, and pulled her onto his lap. He rested his chin in the crook of her shoulder, his breath fanning against her neck, making her shrink back from the ticklish sensation. "However, this time is indeed trickier than the Purification Lotus Demon Flame. The Purification Lotus Demon Flame has intelligence, so one can strip away its sentience before subduing its origin. The Eight Desolation Destruction Flame has no intelligence; it only possesses a pure instinct for destruction—it won't negotiate with you, it won't weigh the pros and cons, it will only burn everything that tries to approach it into ashes. This type of Heavenly Flame is actually more dangerous to subdue; there are no shortcuts. It's just a head-on collision, seeing who breaks first."

"So, how do you plan to subdue it?" Yao Yao picked up a piece of spiritual fruit and popped it into her mouth, her cheek bulging slightly.

"Brute force." Hun Feng's tone was indifferent, as if he were discussing what to have for breakfast tomorrow. "Using the Sea Heart Flame and the Purification Lotus Demon Flame for dual suppression, combined with the devouring power of the Void Devouring Flame Sub-flame, I will lock down its origin core from three directions simultaneously. No matter how violent the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame is, it is still just a cluster of energy; there will always be a time when it is exhausted. Once it is drained, my opportunity will come."

Yao Yao fell silent for a moment, swallowed the spiritual fruit in her mouth, and the playfulness in her peach-blossom eyes faded slightly. Having been with him for so many years, she knew all too well how dangerous the things he described so casually actually were. She still remembered clearly the scene in the Demon Flame Space where he was nearly burst by the Purification Lotus Demon Flame—at that time, blood was seeping out of every pore on his body, and he was as red as a piece of iron just pulled from a furnace. She had watched helplessly from outside the light barrier, not even realizing that her fingernails had dug into her palms until they bled. Although the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame was not ranked as high as the Purification Lotus Demon Flame, its destructiveness was even greater. She placed her hand on his shoulder, her fingertips unconsciously rubbing the edge of his collar, and said softly, "Cai Lin and I will take turns protecting you; don't even think about enduring this alone this time. During the Purification Lotus Demon Flame incident, I stood outside the light barrier for half a month until my legs were swollen—this time, I want to be inside."

"It's more dangerous inside."

"I don't care if it's dangerous, I'm staying inside." Yao Yao's tone was uncharacteristically uncompromising. "I am a Six-Star Dou Sheng now, not the little maid from back then who could only worry anxiously outside. I can help."

Hun Feng glanced at her and did not refuse again. He simply reached out and pulled her tighter into his embrace, rested his chin on the top of her head, and fell silent for a while.

The next day, East Courtyard training room.

The heavy stone door slowly closed, and the soul-devouring iron runes embedded on the four walls of the room lit up one by one, with dark red light flowing silently across the stone walls. Hun Qian personally led people to set up three layers of soundproofing barriers outside the training room and added two teams of guards around the courtyard walls, completely isolating the East Courtyard from the outside world. Medusa stood on the left side of the stone room, having changed her matte white dress into a dark-patterned martial outfit suitable for movement, her long hair pinned up high with a jade hairpin, revealing her slender, fair neck. Yao Yao stood on the right, a bone whip wrapped around her wrist, the usual playfulness gone from her peach-blossom eyes, every line of her expression filled with readiness for battle. Hun Feng sat cross-legged on the cold jade platform in the center of the stone room, the seal of the Red Flame Crystal Jade Box in front of him already undone.

The Eight Desolation Destruction Flame burst out from the box. The entire stone room was instantly illuminated as bright as day by the dark golden firelight. It was a dark golden flame the size of a fist, wreathed in a destructive, violent aura. Tiny golden lightning arcs constantly burst from the edges of the flame, and every explosion caused the surrounding air to tremble violently, emitting a low, rumbling sound, like the first roar of an ancient beast after being imprisoned for thousands of years. The high temperature scorched the soul-devouring iron runes on the four walls of the stone room, causing them to flicker violently. The nearest barriers had already begun to emit piercing alarms, the buzzing sounds reverberating within the sealed stone chamber.

Hun Feng did not hesitate. The deep blue of the Sea Heart Flame surged from his right palm, turning into an extremely fine thread of fire that wrapped around the main body of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame. The moment the dark golden flame was touched, it exploded violently, and a visible golden shockwave swept across the entire stone room, blowing Yao Yao's skirt and Medusa's cuffs until they snapped in the wind, while several weaker barriers on the stone walls shattered directly into points of light. However, Hun Feng's left hand was raised at the same moment, and the pink halo of the Purification Lotus Demon Flame transformed into a second cage, inverted from above to form a dual suppression with the deep blue threads of the Sea Heart Flame. With two Heavenly Flame powers ranked in the top ten acting upon it simultaneously, the violent momentum of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame was finally suppressed for an instant—but only for an instant. It seemed to sense the approaching danger, and the dark golden flame suddenly expanded several times over, causing the two fire cages to deform violently, emitting a piercing sound of metal twisting.

It was during this moment of stalemate that a jet-black flame silently surged from the center of Hun Feng's forehead. The Void Devouring Flame Sub-flame transformed into countless extremely fine black threads, drilling through the gaps between the Sea Heart Flame and the Purification Lotus Demon Flame into the core of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame, beginning to frantically devour that destructive, violent energy. The speed of devouring was far from the speed at which the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame released energy, but with every mouthful consumed, the expansion of the dark golden flame slowed down by a fraction.

Time became blurred during the refinement. Three days passed, and the dark golden light of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame did not weaken in the slightest; instead, it became even more violent in its desperate situation. The entire stone room was baked by the high temperature until even the air began to distort. Fine beads of sweat seeped from Medusa's forehead, but she stood motionless in place. Seven days passed, and the dual suppression of the Sea Heart Flame and the Purification Lotus Demon Flame finally began to gain the upper hand. The expansion of the dark golden flame was compressed by nearly half, but Hun Feng also added a dozen new wounds scorched by the golden lightning arcs. The deepest one was on his left shoulder, which had burned through his robes and skin, revealing the reddish muscle texture underneath, and a scorched smell permeated the stone room. Half a month passed, and the devouring power of the Void Devouring Flame Sub-flame began to gain the upper hand—the energy output of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame was finally exhausted to a critical point, and the dark golden light began to shrink at a speed visible to the naked eye. That cluster of once arrogant dark golden flame now resembled a trapped beast being slowly drained of its strength, with every struggle weaker than the last.

After a full month, the figure sitting cross-legged in the center of the stone room suddenly shuddered violently. A pillar of dark golden fire erupted from within his body, smashing through the dome of the training room and shooting straight into the sky of the Soul Realm. The destructive pressure contained within the fire pillar stirred the black mist above the entire East Courtyard into a huge vortex. The origin of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame was finally thoroughly tamed—that dark golden flame, which had been violent for thousands of years, was now quietly floating in front of Hun Feng, like a completely conquered trapped beast, emitting a very faint, low hum.

Hun Feng stood up, shirtless. The scars he had added a month ago had all scabbed over and fallen off, and his new skin had a faint dark golden luster. His bones and bloodlines had become tougher than before under the tempering of the Heavenly Flame. He looked down at the dark golden flame dancing in his palm, closed his hand, and the flame dissipated silently. Then, he raised his eyes, and those eyes reflected two figures at the entrance of the stone room.

Medusa leaned against the stone wall, her expression slightly weary, but she straightened up the moment she saw him rise.

Yao Yao leaped over from the other side, retracted her bone whip to her waist, and stood with her hands behind her back, tilting her head to look up at him.

They had barely closed their eyes for an entire month; unable to enter the stone chamber, they could only take turns sensing the movements inside from the doorway.

Every time the energy of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame went berserk, Medusa would use the bloodline power of the Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python from the outside to help Hun Feng suppress a portion of the shockwave; meanwhile, Yao Yao would stimulate the wisp of Void Devouring Flame Sub-flame within her body to create a remote resonance with Hun Feng inside the stone chamber, helping him shoulder the excess energy accumulating in his meridians.

This burden-sharing was not without its price—every time Hun Feng experienced a violent energy fluctuation, they would simultaneously endure a portion of the backlash, often feeling a needle-like stinging pain in their meridians.

Yet, at this moment, neither of them showed any trace of pain on their faces. Only when Yao Yao glanced at the newly healed scar on his shoulder did a flash of heartache quickly dart across the depths of her peach-blossom eyes, only to be promptly hidden back behind her playful demeanor.

"Seven-Star." Hun Feng looked down at his hands, where faint golden bloodline patterns were subtly visible beneath the skin of his palms. "The destructive power of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame is truly overbearing. The shock from the refinement process alone forcibly pushed my Dou Qi from the peak of Six-Star Dou Sheng to the early stage of Seven-Star Dou Sheng."

"It's not just you." Yao Yao extended her hand, her slender fingers curling slightly in the void, and a wave of Hun Clan blood-attribute Dou Qi, far more dense than before, silently overflowed from her palm.

She didn't intentionally release the pressure of a Seven-Star Dou Sheng, but that single curl of her fingers caused fine ripples to spread through the surrounding space. "Every time you were backlashed by the Heavenly Flame, I used the Void Devouring Flame Sub-flame outside to help you share the burden. After that backlash force traveled through my meridians, it actually pushed me upward instead. Look for yourself—early stage of Seven-Star Dou Sheng. I never imagined in my life that I could stand at this level."

Medusa did not speak, simply tucking a strand of her falling hair back behind her ear.

Her cultivation, which was originally close to the peak of Four-Star Dou Sheng, had seen the bloodline power of the Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python further stimulated after a month of bloodline resonance, naturally loosening the bottleneck.

Peak of Five-Star Dou Sheng—she was simply less talkative than Yao Yao, but Hun Feng could tell that the satisfaction in her eyes was more genuine than any words.

She reached out to gently press her wrist pulse, feeling the Dou Qi, now several times more abundant than before, circulating silently through her meridians, and a faint smile appeared at the corners of her lips.

Years ago, she had spent months in solitary cultivation at the bottom of the Nine Serene Yellow Springs to break through from the peak of Dou Zun to a Four-Star Dou Sheng; back then, she thought that was the fastest cultivation speed she would ever achieve in her life.

Now, staying by his side, she had leaped from the peak of Four-Star Dou Sheng to the peak of Five-Star Dou Sheng in merely a month.

She suddenly recalled what he had said to her at the Nine Serene Yellow Springs— "Following Xiao Yan has no future" —at the time, she only took it as the arrogance of a lecher, but now thinking back, every word he said had come true.

When the three of them walked out of the stone chamber, Hun Qian, who was waiting outside, subconsciously swept a glance at Yao Yao, his pupils contracting slightly—this former personal maid now possessed an aura so deep that he could not see through it at all.

He paused, then came back to his senses. When he bowed to offer his congratulations, his tone remained as respectful as ever, but the movement from bowing to standing straight was a half-beat slower than usual, as if he were trying to adapt to a brand-new realization.

A Seven-Star Dou Sheng was enough to rank among the top in the history of the Hun Clan.

And Lady Yao Yao had been by the Young Master's side since she was five, walking from an orphan who was picked up to this point today. He had lived for so many years, having seen countless geniuses rise and countless geniuses fall, but the cultivation speed of this couple still left him, an old steward who had seen all kinds of storms, feeling a sense of unreal bewilderment.

East Courtyard, side courtyard.

Gu Xun'er sat on the stone stool; the cup of tea in her hand had been changed three times, yet she had not taken a single sip.

It had been over a month, and the energy fluctuations coming from the direction of the East Courtyard's main hall grew more violent with each passing day. Every time a dark golden shockwave spread out from the direction of the cultivation chamber, she could clearly feel the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame instinctively leaping within her body—that was the resonance between Heavenly Flames of the same origin.

She was also of the fire attribute, and her Heavenly Flame ranked even higher than the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame. She could sense the entire process of that dark golden flame from being berserk to being exhausted, and from being exhausted to being tamed.

And just a moment ago, when that final erupting pillar of dark golden fire shot into the sky, the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame on her fingertips had uncontrollably leaped out on its own, as if paying tribute to a newly born kin.

She retracted the flame into her body, but her fingertips were still trembling slightly.

Xiao Yi Xian stood up from the edge of the flower bed, brushed the dirt off her skirt, and walked over to sit by the stone table.

She was quieter than Xun'er, but her eyes also held an unconcealable shock.

She was not of the fire attribute and could not sense the resonance between Heavenly Flames, but she had the instinctive perception of the Calamity Poison Body.

For an entire month, she had been able to detect the energy fluctuations coming from the East Courtyard's main hall climbing at a nearly savage speed.

And just now, that fluctuation had finally broken through a critical point she could not detect, stabilizing at an intensity that made her feel suffocated.

When Yao Yao pushed open the door of the side courtyard and walked in, her face still carried the weariness from finishing her closed-door cultivation, but her peach-blossom eyes were astonishingly bright.

Xun'er looked up at her, knowing what had happened without needing to ask.

Yao Yao didn't play games, taking a large gulp of the tea handed to her by Xiao Yi Xian, and only after catching her breath did she speak: "My husband has reached Seven-Star. Sister Cai Lin is at the peak of Five-Star, and I am at the early stage of Seven-Star. The Eight Desolation Destruction Flame has been subdued."

Xun'er's fingers gripping the teacup tightened slightly.

Seven-Star Dou Sheng, twenty-eight years old.

Her Brother Xiao Yan was still struggling at the Two-Star Dou Sheng, while the person she had cursed as a bastard countless times was already standing on the threshold of Seven-Star.

She had always thought that the things Hun Feng said in the main hall—the Emperor's Path, the Great Thousand World, Source Qi—had some elements of exaggeration.

Saying and doing were two different things; the distance between drawing a pancake and baking one was as vast as the entire Soul Realm.

Yet he was truly moving forward step by step, each step faster and steadier than the last.

It had taken less than two years to go from the peak of Six-Star Dou Sheng to Seven-Star.

At this rate, reaching the peak of Nine-Star Dou Sheng or even attempting the Emperor Realm was not impossible.

Xiao Yi Xian was silent for a long time, gently placing the newly sprouted poisonous herb seedling in her hand onto the stone table.

She recalled what Hun Feng had said to her in the main hall— "Your constitution is not a curse, it is a legacy."

She had chewed on that sentence countless times, each time feeling that he was merely trying to persuade her to stay.

But now Yao Yao was sitting right across from her, jumping directly from Six-Star to Seven-Star; with this living example before her eyes, she suddenly felt that perhaps every word that man said was serious.

He needed her Calamity Poison Body, not out of greed for her beauty, but because he truly needed it—just as he needed Yao Yao's blood-attribute Dou Qi, needed Cai Lin's Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python bloodline, and needed Xun'er's Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame.

In his hands, every bloodline could unleash value far exceeding what its owner had anticipated.

She had lived for so many years, from the Qingshan Town to the Izumo Empire and then to the Central Plains, everyone treated her constitution as a curse; only Xiao Yan said he could help her control it, and only Hun Feng said it was a legacy.

And now, the person who said it was a "legacy" was using facts to tell her—he had not lied to her.

"What does he plan to do next?" Xun'er's voice was very light, as if she were asking casually, but Yao Yao could hear the weight in those words.

"The Red Lotus Karma Fire, the Nine Nether Golden Ancestor Flame. The Yan Clan hasn't relented yet, but he already has plans."

Yao Yao put down the teacup and stood up. "You don't need to think too much. He will fulfill the things he said step by step himself. Sister Cai Lin and I just took a step earlier than you; your bloodlines are equally indispensable. Especially you—"

She looked at Xun'er, a flash of meaningfulness that only a woman would understand darting through her peach-blossom eyes. "Your Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame will sooner or later become the most crucial piece of the puzzle on his Emperor's Path. By that time, the glory the Ancient Clan gains will be more than just superficial."

After Yao Yao left, Xun'er sat alone on the stone stool for a long time.

She recalled the words her father said before leaving— "This person, you should take another look at him."

She recalled the resolution of the Council of Elders, recalled Gu Dao's words, "Twenty-eight-year-old peak of Six-Star Dou Sheng, God-Grade Bloodline," and recalled the look in Hun Feng's eyes when he said to everyone in the main hall, "I firmly believe that I will definitely ascend to that legendary Dou Di realm."

At the time, she thought it was arrogance, but looking back now, perhaps it was just certainty.

She looked down at the golden flame leaping on her fingertips and suddenly whispered a sentence that even surprised herself: "Perhaps this guy really can make me stronger than I am now."

Xiao Yi Xian did not answer, merely lifting the poisonous herb seedling from the stone table back into her palm, gently fiddling with the tender green leaves with her fingertips.

Her silence was different from Xun'er's—Xun'er was struggling, while she was waiting.

Waiting for that man to prove that every word he said was true, waiting for him to prove that her Calamity Poison Body was truly a legacy and not a curse.

And before that...