201: Chapter 200 Three Fire Cycle

Inside the cultivation room, Jiang Hanzhou sat cross-legged with his eyes slightly closed.

A tri-colored flame burned quietly in the center of his palm.

Dark gold, dark red, and invisible—the three colors intertwined, slowly flowing within the flame.

With every rotation, a trace of warm aura escaped from the flame, leaving faint scorch marks on the walls of the cultivation room.

He stared at this flame for a long time.

Samadhi True Fire.

Although it was only a prototype and far from reaching Perfection, it was indeed the Samadhi True Fire.

Using the Lihuo True Flame as the Essence Fire, the Heart Blade's will as the Spirit Fire, and the Dragon Blood Power to simulate the Qi Fire, the three merged in an endless cycle.

With a slight thought, he triggered it.

The tri-colored flame suddenly expanded!

From the size of a fist, it swelled to the size of a bowl, then to the size of a washbasin!

The flames surged, and the tri-colored light flickered wildly, illuminating the entire cultivation room!

But the moment it expanded to the size of a washbasin—

The flame suddenly shuddered.

The stable tri-colored flow became chaotic at that instant.

The dark gold light flared up, the dark red light struggled frantically, and the power of the invisible Spirit Fire began to vibrate violently.

The three colors lost their balance.

The flame exploded with a bang!

Countless tiny sparks splattered in all directions, hitting the walls, the floor, and the prayer mat, leaving behind innumerable small scorch marks.

Jiang Hanzhou let out a muffled groan, his face turning slightly pale.

Inside his body, the newly formed power of the Samadhi True Fire was like a runaway horse, rampaging through his Meridians!

The cracks in his Meridians that had originally healed were torn open once again at this moment!

Blood seeped from the ruptures, only to be instantly evaporated by the violent flame power, turning into a bloody mist that merged into the out-of-control True Fire, making it even more berserk!

He gritted his teeth and desperately circulated the Li Huo Golden Body Art.

Dark gold Lihuo True Flame surged out from his blood core, flowing frantically through his Meridians to surround, suppress, and force back the out-of-control Samadhi True Fire power layer by layer!

Simultaneously, deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the Heart Blade hummed softly.

An invisible blade light slashed out from the Heart Blade, striking directly at the agonizing pain that was tearing through his Meridians!

The pain was severed.

His consciousness became clear once more.

He took a deep breath and guided the Lihuo True Flame, forcing the out-of-control Samadhi True Fire power back into his Dantian bit by bit.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, those violent flame powers finally settled down completely, lying dormant deep within his Dantian once more.

He opened his eyes and looked down at his hands.

His hands were trembling slightly, with several small scorch marks remaining on his palms.

He closed his eyes to inspect his internal state.

Several key Meridians were now covered in fine cracks.

Some cracks were very shallow and would only take a day or two to heal; others were extremely deep, almost penetrating the entire Meridian, requiring at least five days for a full recovery.

The most severely torn Meridians were the ones that had borne the brunt of the impact when the Samadhi True Fire went out of control just now.

He remained silent for a long time.

Then, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

"Still not stable enough..." he murmured softly. "The Three Fires Cycle is too fragile. One slight slip and it loses balance."

He looked up and gazed out the window.

The night was deep, and the sky was filled with stars.

There were still fifty days left until the Dragon Gate Trial.

Fifty days.

It wasn't exactly long, but it wasn't short either.

If he could completely stabilize this Samadhi True Fire and turn the Three Fires Cycle from 'barely maintained' to 'natural'—

Then his ultimate move would have a Foundation.

He closed his eyes and activated his Cultivation Technique again.

This time, he was in no rush to trigger the Samadhi True Fire; instead, he first used the Lihuo True Flame to nourish his damaged Meridians.

The dark gold flames were like warm spring water, slowly flowing through every Meridian, smoothing over the fine cracks and nourishing the torn wounds.

Under the nourishment of the Lihuo True Flame, those cracks began to heal slowly.

It was slow, but they were indeed healing.

The night passed in silence.

The next morning, Jiang Hanzhou opened his eyes.

The Meridians in his body had mostly healed. Although a few key Meridians still needed time, he was no longer in any serious trouble.

He stood up and walked out of the cultivation room.

In the courtyard, Qing Zhu was sweeping fallen leaves. Seeing him come out, she hurriedly bowed.

"Senior Brother Jiang, Elder Xue was here just now."

Jiang Hanzhou's brow twitched slightly. "Master was here?"

"Yes," Qing Zhu nodded. "He came around the hour of the dragon, stood outside the courtyard for a while, but didn't come in. He said for Senior Brother to go find him at Lihuo Hall after ending your seclusion."

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a moment before nodding.

"Understood."

He turned and walked out of the courtyard.

—

Lihuo Hall still stood majestic, its vermilion doors wide open, and the massive plaque above the lintel sparkled in the morning light.

Jiang Hanzhou stepped through the hall doors.

Inside the hall, Master Xue Mu stood by the window with his hands behind his back, looking at the surging sea of clouds outside. Hearing footsteps, he didn't turn around, simply saying calmly:

"You've come?"

"Disciple greets Master." Jiang Hanzhou stepped forward and gave a respectful bow.

Master Xue Mu turned around and looked at him.

Those deep eyes lingered on him for a long time.

Then, Master Xue Mu smiled.

The smile carried a hint of relief, some praise, and an indescribable... amazement.

"You have mastered the Samadhi True Fire Art."

His voice was calm, but his tone betrayed a trace of irrepressible surprise.

Jiang Hanzhou shook his head slightly. "It is only a prototype, far from being mastered."

"A prototype?" Master Xue Mu walked over to him, looking him up and down. "Do you know how difficult that technique is to practice?"

Jiang Hanzhou said nothing.

Master Xue Mu continued, "In the eight hundred years since Red Fire Peak was established, no fewer than a hundred Disciples have obtained the Samadhi True Fire Art. But only seven have truly mastered it."

"Seven people."

"And those seven were all geniuses who possessed all three fires: Essence, Qi, and Spirit. Before they even began cultivating it, they had either already condensed their Qi Fire or had a special Opportunity to make up for the lack of Qi Fire through other means."

He paused, looking directly at Jiang Hanzhou.

"Did you have a Qi Fire before you started cultivating?"

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a moment before saying slowly, "No."

"Then how did you succeed?"

Jiang Hanzhou looked up at him. "This Disciple used the Dragon Blood Power to simulate the Qi Fire."

A sharp glint flashed in Master Xue Mu's eyes.

"Dragon Blood Power?" he murmured. "The Dragon Blood Baleful Qi you absorbed in the Dragon Blood Pool?"

"Yes."

Master Xue Mu remained silent for three breaths.

Then, he threw his head back and laughed loudly.

The laughter echoed in the empty Lihuo Hall, carrying a sense of gratification, relief, and an indescribable... pride.

"Good!" He stopped laughing and looked at Jiang Hanzhou. "What a brilliant idea to simulate Qi Fire with Dragon Blood Power! What a bold and unconventional move!"

He patted Jiang Hanzhou's shoulder with moderate force.

"Kid, do you know what you've done?"

Jiang Hanzhou shook his head slightly.

Master Xue Mu looked at him and said word for word:

"You have blazed a new trail."

"The cultivation of the Samadhi True Fire Art originally had only one path—Essence, Qi, and Spirit, all three fires present. Not one could be missing."

"But you used Dragon Blood Power to replace the Qi Fire, forcibly constructing the Three Fires Cycle."

"In eight hundred years, no one has ever walked this path."

"Because Dragon Blood Power is too violent and overbearing; the balance between it, the Essence Fire, and the Spirit Fire is extremely difficult to grasp. One slip and the three fires lose balance, leading to Qi Deviation."

"But you made it through."

He paused, his gaze full of admiration.

"Even though it is just a prototype and not yet stable, you have indeed made it through."