Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Fire Spirit Black Obsidian

The group still in the passage remained where they were, staring at the deep pit before them, unsure whether to jump or not.

"What are you all dawdling for? Was everything I said just a waste of breath? What’s there to be afraid of? If you’re scared of losing your life while treasure hunting, why don’t you just go home and breastfeed your kids!" Luo Xiaowen said, looking at the group of cowards.

"Forget it. You can all just wait here. I’m leaving!" Luo Xiaowen didn’t want to waste any more words on them and jumped straight down.

Watching Luo Xiaowen disappear, Wu Mengqi glanced at the pitch-black, bottomless cavern. A little scared, she asked Yang Yu, "Brother Yang, what should we do?"

Yang Yu took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and said, "Let’s go! We’re going down too!" With that, he squeezed his eyes shut and jumped. Wu Mengqi quickly followed.

The rest of the group looked at one another, then all jumped down as well.

"Oh? And here I thought you were all going to run back home in fear!" Luo Xiaowen sneered after Yang Yu and the others landed.

"Hmph!" Wu Mengqi could only snort coldly in response. Luo Xiaowen’s background was not ordinary; she was not someone Wu Mengqi could afford to provoke.

"Where are Shen Haoran and the other one?" Wu Mengqi looked around but didn’t see any sign of them. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"Damn it. They must be trying to hoard all the treasures in the Spirit Emperor’s Tomb for themselves! That’s why they didn’t wait for us!" Wu Mengqi said venomously.

"Hey, you venom-tongued woman, you were all up there dilly-dallying like cowards, and now you’re blaming others for not waiting for you? How can someone like you even exist in this world!" Luo Xiaowen retorted sarcastically.

"You..."

"Me what? If you ask me, you should learn some restraint. A girl like you will definitely never get married!" Luo Xiaowen cut Wu Mengqi off before she could even speak, leaving her speechless.

"Alright, stop arguing. The priority right now is to find Shen Haoran and Ji Lingxuan. Otherwise, there really won’t be anything left for us in the Spirit Emperor’s Tomb!" Yang Yu interjected, stopping the two women.

"Tch!" Hearing Yang Yu, Luo Xiaowen scoffed and walked straight ahead.

Watching Luo Xiaowen completely ignore his command, Yang Yu’s expression darkened. ’Hmph, you can be smug for now,’ he thought. ’Once I obtain the Spirit Emperor’s inheritance, I’ll make you beg for mercy beneath me!’

"Brother Yang, what should we do?" Wu Mengqi couldn’t make up her mind.

"Follow her!" Yang Yu snorted coldly and went after Luo Xiaowen.

While Luo Xiaowen and her group searched for treasure in the tomb, Shen Haoran and Ji Lingxuan, led by Elder Yan, arrived at the bottom of the cliff.

Shen Haoran and Ji Lingxuan stared at the scene before them, so shocked they were speechless.

Before them lay a sea of black fire. The scorching heat warped the very space around them. Plumes of black flame churned endlessly, and waves of heat washed over them, causing sweat to pour down like rain.

"This... It’s magnificent! Such a terrifying temperature!" Shen Haoran couldn’t help but exclaim in awe. The heat was so dreadful that even though he had consumed the Red Flame Jade Marrow, making his body extremely compatible with Fire Attribute energy, he still found the high temperature emanating from the Fire Spirit hard to bear.

Hearing Shen Haoran’s exclamation, Elder Yan chuckled softly and then performed a Seal Technique. The sea of black fire began to churn and contract, finally coalescing into a small wisp of flame under the astonished gazes of Shen Haoran and Ji Lingxuan.

"This is a true Primordial Spirit of the Fire Element! The Fire Spirit Black Obsidian!" Elder Yan said, his eyes filled with nostalgia as he gazed at the wisp of flame.

"Fire Spirit Black Obsidian?" Shen Haoran murmured.

"That’s right. Hei Yao. That is his name!" Elder Yan said proudly.

"Elder Yan, it seems you can control this Fire Spirit!" Shen Haoran asked. He had just seen the sea of fire churn and condense into this wisp of flame after Elder Yan performed the Seal Technique.

"Of course. This Fire Spirit Black Obsidian was my most powerful weapon back in the day!" Elder Yan said smugly.

"Does that mean you have performed Refinement on this Fire Spirit, Elder Yan?" Ji Lingxuan, with her sharp mind, immediately grasped the key point.

"Yes. Back then, I went through countless hardships and even risked my life to complete its Refinement, after which I named him Hei Yao! But I was later ambushed by a villain and gravely injured. To prevent him from falling into the wrong hands after my death, I left him here at the bottom of this subterranean cliff!" Elder Yan said in a low voice, his eyes filled with the vicissitudes of time.

"However, after I died, the connection between me and the Fire Spirit was severed. He is now considered an ownerless entity, so you can perform Refinement on him. This is my gift to you for becoming my disciple!" Elder Yan said with a smile.

"Really?" Shen Haoran stared at the wisp of flame, his gaze fervent. If he could complete its Refinement, he could re-apply the Seal on the Nine Nether Qi in Ji Lingxuan’s body. At the very least, she wouldn’t have to worry about an outbreak of Nine Nether Qi before she reached the Spirit Emperor realm.

"However, this Fire Spirit is incomplete. The Fire Spirit Pearl it nurtured has been missing for many years!" Elder Yan said with some regret.

"Fire Spirit Pearl? What’s that?" Shen Haoran asked, confused.

"How should I put this? Let me use you as an analogy. For the Spiritual Power in your body to unleash its greatest strength, it must be released through your physical body. The Fire Spirit Pearl is equivalent to this Fire Spirit’s body. Only when the Fire Spirit Pearl and the Fire Spirit are combined can the true power of an Elemental Spirit be unleashed!" Elder Yan explained with a vivid analogy.

"But losing the Fire Spirit Pearl is actually a good thing for you. The Fire Spirit is not in its Peak state right now, so the Refinement will be relatively easier for you!" Elder Yan said with a smile.

"Then what should I do?" Shen Haoran asked.

"Swallow it!"

"Ah!" Hearing Elder Yan’s words, Shen Haoran was dumbfounded.

"Swallow it? Elder Yan, you must be mistaken! A person’s insides are their most vulnerable part. With the Fire Spirit’s terrifyingly high temperature and the power it contains, it could probably burn Brother Haoran to ashes in an instant!" Ji Lingxuan said with a frown. She didn’t want Shen Haoran to take such a risk.

"There is no other way. This is the only path to completing the Refinement of an Elemental Spirit. I’m sure your Cultivation Technique explains it in detail!" Elder Yan said helplessly.

"Yes!" Shen Haoran mentally reviewed the Chaos Heaven-Dominating Technique and nodded.

"Elder Yan, what was it like when you performed the Refinement on this Fire Spirit?" Shen Haoran asked.

"I obtained the complete Fire Spirit. Although I was thoroughly prepared at the time, even with my strength as a Tier Eight Spirit King, I was still almost burned to ashes!" Recalling the situation, Elder Yan still felt a lingering fear. But he was not willing to hide anything from Shen Haoran.

"Hiss!" Shen Haoran couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath. He had no concept of what the strength of a Tier Eight Spirit King entailed, but to become a King among men, it couldn’t be anything to scoff at. Yet this Fire Spirit had nearly incinerated Elder Yan, which showed just how unusually terrifying it was.

"But you don’t have to worry too much. Without its Fire Spirit Pearl, the Fire Spirit’s power is reduced by at least thirty percent. Plus, with the Ice Jade Marrow and the Red Flame Jade Lotus you have, your success rate will be at least twenty percent!" Elder Yan comforted him.

"What? Only twenty percent?" Shen Haoran said with a frown.

"Don’t push your luck, kid! Do you have any idea what’s in front of you? This is an Elemental Spirit! It was formed from the accumulation of Fire Attribute Spiritual Power over millions of years. Even an ordinary Spirit Emperor Powerhouse would have less than a ten percent chance of success. A twenty percent chance for you is already heaven-defying, you know!" Elder Yan shot Shen Haoran a look. If he’d had a twenty percent chance back then, he wouldn’t have had to suffer so much!

’So, twenty percent is already considered heaven-defying?’ Shen Haoran gave a wry smile. ’It seems that completing the Refinement of an Elemental Spirit is truly no simple matter.’ But he had no intention of giving up. This was about Ji Lingxuan’s life, the safety of the Shen Family, and his own dignity!

The two-year agreement was only half a year away. If he wanted to defeat Zuo Chuan, the genius disciple of the Spirit Crane Sect, he had to take an unconventional path. Today, he, Shen Haoran, was determined to conquer this Fire Spirit Black Obsidian!