Battle Through the Heavens: Marry Cao Ying, Reward is Devouring Ancestral Symbol

Strange FireSu Qian’s curiosity grew even stronger, and he couldn’t help but ask, ”Then, Young Friend Shen, what other business brings you to seek me out this time?”

Shen Wen picked up his teacup, his fingertips lightly tracing the warm surface of the cup, and looked up at Su Qian, his tone calm: ”Originally, it was for the sake of Zi Yan.”

”But after seeing the Fire Poison on Lin Yan and the others, I discovered some interesting clues.”

”Fire Poison?” Su Qian was slightly taken aback. ”Cultivating in the Qi Refining Tower involves heart-fire for Body Tempering, so accumulating some Fire Poison is quite common...”

”Common Fire Poison would not erode the heart Meridians, nor would it leave a Douling Peak student helpless.”

Shen Wen interrupted him, his voice still steady but carrying an unquestionable penetrating power. ”That Fire Poison is insidious and stubborn, like a maggot on a bone; it is by no means formed by ordinary earth fire or energy embers. If I am not mistaken...”

He paused slightly, looking straight at Su Qian, and said slowly: ”The core of your Sky Burning Qi Refining Tower is not some earth-vein heart-fire at all. What is sealed beneath it is the Fallen Heart Flame, ranked fourteenth on the strange fire ranking list, is it not?”

As his voice fell, the air in the room seemed to freeze for a moment.

The expression on Su Qian’s face froze completely, his fingers gripping the teacup tightened unconsciously, his knuckles turning slightly white.

He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but failed to make a sound.

After a long while, he seemed to recover his voice, dryly spitting out a few words: ”You... how could you possibly know?”

Shen Wen did not answer directly, simply putting down his teacup, the bottom of which touched the wooden table with a faint ”tap.”

He looked at Su Qian and continued: ”I had no intention of probing into the academy’s secrets. It is just that the nature of the Fire Poison is too obvious, as are the characteristics of the Fallen Heart Flame.”

”Formless and intangible, tempering the body and refining the heart, yet it is also the easiest to trigger heart-fire and breed poisonous miasma.”

”It matches the symptoms of these students perfectly.”

Su Qian was silent, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to deepen at that moment.

In the shadows behind him, two originally hidden auras fluctuated slightly, but soon returned to silence, though their gazes fell upon Shen Wen’s back like tangible objects.

Shen Wen seemed unaware, still looking at Su Qian, but his tone shifted: ”However, your Fallen Heart Flame seems to have developed a problem.”

Su Qian’s brows knit tightly together. Sharp light suddenly shot from those usually gentle and wise eyes. Although his aura did not erupt, an invisible pressure quietly permeated, and the temperature of the entire room seemed to drop by a few degrees.

The two auras behind him also became distinct again, carrying vigilance and scrutiny.

Shen Wen seemed unaware, his tone remaining flat, as if stating the simplest of facts: ”If the Seal were intact and the power of the Fallen Heart Flame were guided in an orderly manner, students cultivating with it would at most feel the burning of heart-fire and bloating pain in their Meridians, which could be resolved with a little adjustment of their breath.”

”It is impossible for Fire Poison to accumulate to the extent it has in Lin Yan, or even invade the heart Meridians and damage his Foundation.”

He looked up, his gaze clear: ”For the Fire Poison to have spread so widely and eroded so deeply, it can only point to one problem.”

”The barrier Sealing the Fallen Heart Flame has already loosened. Or rather, the violent activity of the strange fire itself is intensifying.”

Su Qian stared fixedly at Shen Wen, his chest rising and falling slightly.

The room was silent, with only the faint sound of wind coming from outside the window.

After a long while, his shoulders slumped slightly, and the invisible pressure quietly dissipated.

A complex smile appeared on his face—a smile containing shock, helplessness, and a hint of weary relief.

”As expected...” Su Qian sighed long and deeply, his voice low. ”Nothing can be hidden from a Genius who came out of the Pill Tower.”

”Young Friend Shen, you are right. The thing beneath the Sky Burning Qi Refining Tower is indeed the Fallen Heart Flame. And it... in recent years, has become increasingly restless.”

Shen Wen touched his teacup and said: ”It seems the barrier left behind by Dean Mang has been damaged.”

Su Qian’s hand holding the teacup paused imperceptibly.

Shen Wen continued: ”Although I do not know how much longer that Seal can hold, in my opinion, that thing at the bottom of the tower... I fear it will soon completely break free from its restraints.”

He paused, looking at Su Qian’s suddenly grave expression, his voice still steady but every word clear: ”Once the Seal completely collapses and the power the strange fire has accumulated over many years erupts, its might... I fear it will be enough to completely wipe the entire Inner Academy, and even the entire Jia Nan Academy, off this mountain range.”

Su Qian’s fingers tightened, and the tea in his cup rippled slightly.

He was not ignorant of the Fallen Heart Flame; the Dean had given solemn instructions before leaving. It was just that although there had been fluctuations in the tower over these years, no major chaos had occurred, so it was inevitable that he had harbored a sense of wishful thinking.

Shen Wen was not exaggerating to scare him. He had seen the true power of strange fire.

The might of strange fire far exceeds what ordinary people imagine.

The first two times he refined it: once was because Cao Ying’s own Cultivation Technique was special, and he had assisted from the side using the Flame Ancestral Symbol. Furthermore, the Green Lotus Core Flame still had the lotus pedestal as a carrier to maneuver with, and Cao Ying’s own Soul had reached the Spirit Realm. Only with the combination of these multiple factors did it barely succeed.

The second time was due to Xiao Yi Xian’s Opportunity. The Netherworld Poison Flame itself was not as violent as the Fallen Heart Flame, and he had suppressed and guided it from the side.

Moreover, the poison fire and her Physique and Cultivation Technique restrained each other, forming a delicate balance, which allowed her to narrowly pass.

He looked at Su Qian and said: ”And this Fallen Heart Flame, having been suppressed and kept at the bottom of this tower for many years, I fear it has long since developed intelligence.”

”Years of accumulated resentment, plus the power of the counterattack built up by the forced suppression of the Seal... the horror of its eruption cannot be resolved by those two Douzong Peak experts behind you.”

Su Qian was silent; for a moment, only the faint sound of wind remained in the study.

The usual gentleness and composure on his face had completely dissipated, his brows knit tightly together.

In his mind, he couldn’t help but recall the muffled impacts that occasionally came from deep beneath the tower, which made his Soul tremble, as well as the increasingly frequent and restless scorching fluctuations in recent years.

In the past, he only thought this was the normal state of the strange fire. Now, hearing Shen Wen’s analysis, he realized with a shock that those might be the footsteps of approaching destruction.

”Developed intelligence... accumulated power...” Su Qian repeated mutely, his throat dry. ”Young Friend Shen, do you mean that this Fallen Heart Flame has now... become a volcano that could erupt at any time? And we, Jia Nan Academy, are sitting on this crater?”

Shen Wen nodded lightly, giving a concise yet heavy answer: ”Yes.”

Shen Wen left, leaving two difficult problems for Su Qian. He did not say he could solve it like he did with Zi Yan.

The Fallen Heart Flame was the Foundation of Jia Nan Academy. If he himself offered to solve it, it would certainly make Su Qian think he was planning to scheme for the Fallen Heart Flame.

Although he was indeed thinking that, the problem was that there is a difference between someone asking you to solve a problem and you saying you want to help them solve it.

These are two different concepts.

Moreover, Shen Wen did not think Xiao Yan currently had the ability to solve the problem of the Fallen Heart Flame.

If Su Qian continued to delay, destruction would very likely be the result for Jia Nan Academy.

When they discovered that the Fallen Heart Flame was not something they could solve, they would naturally come seeking help.

Walking on the street, Shen Wen revealed a faint smile.