167: Chapter 166 Harmony, Water and Fire in Harmony

He gritted his teeth, exerting all his strength to channel his remaining Tidal True Intent, condensing it into a cerulean light screen behind him!

"Hiss—!"

The instant the Sword Qi pierced the light screen, a faint tearing sound was emitted.

Tidal True Intent was indeed the Water-element power capable of encompassing all things; although that Sword Qi was sharp and fierce, it was ultimately dissipated into nothingness under the layers of weakening from the cerulean light.

But Jiang Hanzhou's expression became even uglier.

Because the appearance of that Sword Qi had once again broken the already precarious balance!

The pale golden cracks on his Physical Body suddenly expanded in that instant!

Golden light surged wildly from the cracks, like a bursting flood, unstoppable!

He gave a muffled groan, and a wisp of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

The moment that blood seeped out, it was evaporated by the surrounding high temperature, turning into a faint mist of blood.

But he could not care about these things.

His entire focus was locked onto the flickering figure outside the crevice.

A dark cyan robe.

A stern face.

It was that young man from Heavenly Sword Peak.

At this moment, the person was standing in the cavern, gazing across the narrow crevice at Jiang Hanzhou on the fire-eye stone platform.

His gaze was calm, so calm that it was as if that Sword Qi from just now hadn't been released by him, as if he were simply watching a play that had nothing to do with him.

Yet, a faint smile hung on the corner of his mouth.

In that smile, there was probing, playfulness, and—provocation.

Jiang Hanzhou stared at him intensely, cold light like blades in his eyes.

He wanted to make a move.

He wanted to draw the tiger soul saber and slay this person with one strike.

But he could not.

Because the Golden Sharpness True Intent within him was still running wild, because the cracks on his Physical Body were still expanding, and because he couldn't even stand up right now.

He could only watch that person helplessly, watching that dark cyan figure, watching that trace of disgusting smile on that stern face.

Just at this moment.

A familiar voice suddenly resonated deep within his Sea of Consciousness!

"Focus."

The voice was very soft, yet it exploded in his Sea of Consciousness like a thunderclap!

It was Master Xue Mu!

"Master—" Jiang Hanzhou whispered in his heart.

"Do not be distracted." Master Xue Mu's voice remained calm. "Listen to me."

"Metal is the edge of fire, not the enemy of fire."

Eight words.

A mere eight words.

Yet, it was like a sudden enlightenment, making Jiang Hanzhou instantly understand something.

Golden Sharpness True Intent is not the enemy of fire.

It is the "sharp edge" of fire.

Fire itself only has intensity, burning, and the ability to consume all things.

But what if one were to add an edge to the fire?

Then it would no longer be a simple fire, but—a fire saber. A fire sword. A weapon of fire.

Jiang Hanzhou suddenly realized.

He had thought about it wrong before.

He had thought of "fusing" the Golden Sharpness True Intent into the Lihuo True Flame, letting the two become one.

But metal and fire are inherently mutually destructive; forcing a Fusion would only lead to mutual destruction.

The true method is not Fusion, but—coordination.

Use the Lihuo True Flame as the blade body, and the Golden Sharpness True Intent as the sharp edge.

The two perform their own duties, complementing each other.

And to achieve this, one needs a medium—Tidal True Intent.

Use water as the medium to balance the violence of fire, guide the sharpness of metal, and let the two form a perfect coordination under the reconciliation of water.

Jiang Hanzhou closed his eyes.

He expanded his Divine Sense to the limit.

Deep in his Sea of Consciousness, three rays of light lit up simultaneously!

Cerulean as the sea—Tidal True Intent, 20%!

Crimson gold as the sun—Pure Yang True Intent, 20%!

Brilliant as gold—Golden Sharpness True Intent, 15%!

He no longer tried to fuse the Golden Sharpness True Intent into the Lihuo True Flame, but instead used the Tidal True Intent as a bridge, letting the metal and fire form a subtle balance under the reconciliation of the tide.

The Tidal True Intent surged out first, forming a layer of cerulean light film within his body.

That light film was soft as water, encompassing all things, slowly soothing the rampaging Golden Sharpness True Intent, and gently guiding the manic Lihuo True Flame.

Then, he guided the Lihuo True Flame to flow slowly along his Meridians.

Wherever that crimson golden flame passed, his Physical Body was scorched and tempered, becoming tougher.

At the same time, he guided the Golden Sharpness True Intent to attach to the outer layer of the Lihuo True Flame.

Not Fusion, just attachment.

Just like adding a golden edge to a blade condensed from fire.

In that instant—

Boom!!!

The aura within his body suddenly surged!

The Lihuo True Flame on his Physical Body suddenly changed color at this moment!

It was no longer purely crimson gold, but within the crimson gold, there was an extra layer of brilliant golden radiance!

That golden radiance was extremely faint, yet extremely sharp.

When the Lihuo True Flame burned, the golden radiance danced along with it; every time it danced, it was as if an invisible blade slashed through the Void Realm, leaving behind tiny cracks.

Crimson and gold, two colors.

There was metal within the fire, and fire within the metal.

Jiang Hanzhou suddenly opened his eyes!

Deep in his pupils, two crimson golden flames were burning fiercely; within the flames, one could faintly see golden sharpness flowing!

He raised his head and looked at the dark cyan figure outside the crevice.

Then—he smiled.

The expression of the young man in the dark cyan robe finally changed.

He sensed it.

He sensed that aura coming from the fire-eye stone platform—

That aura was intense as fire, yet sharp as a blade.

In that aura, there was the long-lasting nature of the tide, the intensity of Pure Yang, and even more, the sharpness of the Golden Sharpness.

The three True Intents coexisted perfectly on him, forming a balance that made one's heart palpitate.

And at this moment, those eyes burning with crimson golden flames were staring intensely at him.

The young man subconsciously stepped back half a step.

Immediately, he realized what he had done, and his expression became extremely ugly.

He, a dignified Inner Sect Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak at the Yuan Xiang middle stage, had actually been scared back half a step by a young brat who had just entered the Primal Elephant Realm?

If this were to spread, where would he save face?

He took a deep breath, steadied his mind, and was about to say something—

On the fire-eye stone platform, Jiang Hanzhou had already withdrawn his gaze.

He no longer looked at that person.

He simply closed his eyes and continued to guide the flow of True Intent within his body.

The crimson golden flames burned fiercely around him; the flames were more intense, purer, and more—dangerous than before.

The golden sharpness flickered in and out of the flames; every flash made the surrounding Void Realm tremble slightly.

The young man in the dark cyan robe stood in place, his expression uncertain.

He stared at that figure sitting cross-legged, stared at the crimson golden flames, and stared at the golden sharpness flickering in the flames—

Finally, he snorted coldly and turned to leave.

The sound of footsteps gradually faded away.

The cavern returned to silence.

On the fire-eye stone platform, Jiang Hanzhou still sat cross-legged with his eyes closed.

His heart and mind were completely immersed in that subtle balance within his body.

The Tidal True Intent was like water, flowing slowly, separating the Lihuo True Flame from the Golden Sharpness True Intent, without letting them be completely separated.

The Lihuo True Flame was like fire, burning fiercely, tempering his Physical Body and strengthening his Qi and blood.

The Golden Sharpness True Intent was like an edge, attached to the outer layer of the fire, ready at any moment to transform into the sharpest blade to slay all enemies.

The three True Intents performed their own duties, coordinating tacitly.

That feeling was incomparably wonderful.

It was as if he were no longer a simple "Martial Artist possessing three True Intents," but—a true system.

A combat system with Tide as the foundation, Lihuo as the blade, and Golden Sharpness as the edge.

He immersed himself in it, feeling, polishing, and perfecting it over and over again.

He did not know how much time had passed.

He opened his eyes.

The crimson golden flames on his Physical Body slowly receded, surging back into his body, returning to the True Flame quietly burning deep within his Dantian.

He looked down at his hands.

A wisp of flame quietly emerged in his palm.

The flame was still crimson gold, but within the crimson gold, there was an extra layer of faint golden luster.

That gold was extremely faint, so faint it was almost invisible, but Jiang Hanzhou knew it was there.

That was the trace of the Golden Sharpness True Intent.

It was the eternal mark left after he used the tide as a medium to reconcile metal and fire.

From this point on, his Lihuo True Flame had an edge.

He stood up and walked down from the stone platform.

He looked back at the fire-eye that was still flowing with dark red light, a trace of gratitude flashing in his eyes.

Then, he lifted his foot and walked toward the outside of the crevice.

This time, the crystallized rock walls on both sides of the crevice were no longer a threat in his eyes.

When he walked past the cavern, the bare-chested man and the woman in the fiery red long dress were still in their original places.

The man saw him, a flash of surprise in his eyes, then nodded slightly, which counted as a greeting.

The woman was still facing away from everyone, not moving a muscle.

Jiang Hanzhou did not stop.

He walked straight through the cavern, stepped onto the winding stone steps leading upward, and left the Earth Fire Cave.

The moment he walked out of the Earth Fire Cave, the night was already deep.

The sky was full of stars, like countless brilliant gemstones inlaid on the ink-black canopy of the sky.

The mountain breeze brushed his face, carrying the fragrance of grass and trees, forming a sharp contrast with the intense heat in the Earth Fire Cave.

Jiang Hanzhou took a deep breath, feeling refreshed all over.

He raised his right hand.

His thoughts stirred slightly.

A wisp of flame emerged from his palm.

The flame was crimson and gold, burning quietly in the night wind.

On the edge of the flame, one could faintly see extremely fine golden sharpness flowing; every time it danced, the surrounding air twisted slightly.

He looked at this wisp of flame, a smile slowly curling at the corner of his mouth.

The smile was faint.

Yet it contained an indescribable joy.

The three True Intents had finally formed a perfect coordination within his body.

Although it was only an initial coordination, and although it still needed countless times of polishing and perfecting—

But this step had already been taken.

From now on, his path would become wider and wider.

He clenched his fist, and the flame dissipated.

Then, he took a step and walked toward his Immortal Cave.