224: Chapter 223 Refining

The Ice-Fire Black Tortoise's Inner Core.

The essence of a Late Stage Primal Form Realm beast.

Jiang Hanzhou took out the Inner Core and put it into his sumeru pouch.

Then, he turned around and looked at Teng Yuzhi.

"Senior Sister Teng, this Inner Core—"

Teng Yuzhi waved her hand.

"It's yours." Her voice was calm. "You contributed the most. Besides, what I need is insights into the Ice True Intent, not the Inner Core."

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Thank you."

Teng Yuzhi looked at him and suddenly asked:

"What do you plan to do with it?"

Jiang Hanzhou looked down at the red and blue Inner Core in his palm, fell silent for a moment, and slowly said:

"Stabilize my True Intent."

He looked up toward the churning mist of ice and fire deep in the valley:

"My Heavenly Fire True Intent is too unstable. My Tidal True Intent isn't pure enough either. This Inner Core contains the purest power of ice and fire. If I can refine and absorb it—"

He paused and said word by word:

"Perhaps, I can truly achieve the Fusion of those two True Intents."

Teng Yuzhi looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

Then, she smiled slightly.

That smile was more pronounced than before, carrying a hint of inexplicable—appreciation.

"Jiang Hanzhou."

"Hmm?"

"During the Inner Sect Minor Competition, I will be watching you."

She turned and walked toward the valley's exit.

After a few steps, she suddenly stopped and said without looking back:

"Don't lose."

With those words, she strode away.

Jiang Hanzhou stood there, watching her departing figure, and remained silent for a long time.

Then, he lowered his head and looked at the Inner Core in his palm.

Within the Inner Core, the red and blue colors swirled slowly, emitting a gentle glow.

He gripped the Inner Core and turned to walk deeper into the valley.

There was a natural ice-fire cave there.

The cave wasn't large, but it contained extremely dense power of ice and fire.

He sat cross-legged in the cave and placed the Inner Core in front of him.

Then, he closed his eyes.

Inside his body, four types of True Intent circulated slowly.

Tide was like water, Pure Yang was like fire, Metal Sharpness was like a blade, and Heavenly Fire was like—Fusion.

He took a deep breath and began to circulate his Cultivation Technique.

The refining began.

Inside the ice-fire cave, Jiang Hanzhou sat cross-legged, surrounded by red and blue light.

That light wasn't his own aura, but the ice-fire power dissipating from the Ice-Fire Black Tortoise's Inner Core in front of him.

The Inner Core hovered three inches above his palm, rotating slowly. With each rotation, a wisp of crimson fire baleful energy and a wisp of deep blue icy chill were stripped from the core, entering his body through his palm.

The fire baleful energy entered his body, scorching like lava.

The icy chill entered his body, bone-chilling like a blade's edge.

Two diametrically opposed forces flooded in simultaneously, rampaging and savagely tearing through his Meridians.

It felt as if half of his body was suffering in a sea of fire while the other half was frozen in an ice cellar, both extreme pains assaulting his Divine Soul simultaneously.

But he did not back down.

He simply gritted his teeth, desperately circulating the Li Huo Golden Body Art and Tidal True Intent, trying to bring these two forces into some kind of balance.

On the left, the Lihuo True Flame burned wildly, wrapping, refining, and absorbing the incoming fire baleful energy layer by layer.

Under the scorching of the Lihuo True Flame, the power of the fire baleful energy gradually lost its violence, transforming into wisps of pure fire-element Spiritual Qi that merged into his vital energy and blood.

On the right, the Tidal True Intent was as continuous as water, channeling, neutralizing, and fusing the incoming icy chill layer by layer.

Under the guidance of the Tidal True Intent, the power of the icy chill gradually lost its bone-chilling cold, transforming into wisps of pure water-element Spiritual Qi that merged into his True Intent.

One fire, one water.

One blazing, one continuous.

The two forces circulated simultaneously within his body, yet they were always separated by a faint boundary—a "barrier" he had condensed using the Golden Sharpness True Intent.

That barrier was like an invisible dividing line, temporarily separating the water and fire Qis, allowing them to circulate and grow in their respective territories without directly colliding.

But this balance was too fragile.

So fragile that every breath could potentially break it.

Jiang Hanzhou's brow was furrowed, and fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead. As soon as they appeared, they were evaporated by the surging fire baleful energy within him, turning into wisps of mist that drifted through the cave.

Time passed slowly.

One hour.

Two hours.

Three hours.

Suddenly—

The Inner Core in front of him suddenly jolted!

The Inner Core, which had been rotating slowly, suddenly accelerated! The red and blue lights flashed wildly, like two meteors chasing, colliding, and entangling within the core!

Jiang Hanzhou's expression changed slightly.

He could sense that the ice-fire power within the Inner Core was spiraling out of control.

The forces that had been orderly stripped away were now like wild horses breaking their reins, flooding into his body! The fire baleful energy and icy chill were no longer entering in turns but were surging, impacting, and tearing at him simultaneously!

The "barrier" between the Tidal True Intent and the Lihuo True Flame began to tremble under this surging impact!

First, a slight tremor, like a spiderweb in the wind.

Then, violent tremors, like a tattered cloth in a storm.

Finally—

Boom!

The "barrier" condensed from the Golden Sharpness True Intent collapsed with a bang!

Without the barrier, the Tidal True Intent and Lihuo True Flame collided directly!

Water and fire are incompatible!

This is a fundamental law of heaven and earth!

The moment the two forces collided, an indescribable pain exploded within Jiang Hanzhou! That pain was not physical; it was a tearing from the depths of his Meridians, his vital energy and blood, and his True Intent!

His Meridians began to crack at this moment!

The cracks that had previously healed tore open again! And they were deeper, wider, and more lethal than before!

Blood seeped from the ruptures and was instantly evaporated by the violent fire baleful energy, turning into blood mist that merged with the wildly surging power in his body, making it even more violent and uncontrollable!

His face contorted.

His body was trembling.

His consciousness began to blur under the impact of the intense pain.

But just then—

Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the Heart Blade trembled slightly.

The tremor was extremely faint, yet it was like a clap of thunder exploding in his chaotic Sea of Consciousness!

On the dark-gold blade, the dragon-like patterns suddenly lit up! Radiant golden light surged from the blade, illuminating the entire Sea of Consciousness!

The light condensed into an invisible blade light.

The blade light did not strike the violent power within his body.

Instead, it struck—

The pain itself.

The moment the blade light cut into the pain, the agony that was nearly tearing him apart suddenly lessened.

It hadn't disappeared, but rather, it had been severed.

The severed pain was like a dammed river; although it still surged, it was no longer continuous or lethal.

His consciousness cleared again.

He opened his eyes and looked down at his hands.

His hands were covered in fine cracks. Within those cracks, dark-gold light could be seen flowing—it was the Lihuo True Flame desperately repairing his body.

He took a deep breath, suppressed the wildly surging power within him, closed his eyes, and tried again.

This time, he didn't force the water and fire to coexist.

Instead, he let them—circulate.

Centered on the Dantian, the Lihuo True Flame circulated on the left while the Tidal True Intent circulated on the right. The two forces flowed in opposite paths, slowly circulating through his Meridians.

On the left, fire baleful energy entered and was absorbed by the Lihuo True Flame, turning into blazing vital energy and blood that flowed toward the right through the Meridians.

On the right, icy chill entered and was absorbed by the Tidal True Intent, turning into continuous True Intent that flowed toward the left through the Meridians.

The two forces met at the Dantian.

At the moment of intersection, there was no collision, but rather—

Intermingling.

Fire borrowed the momentum of water, and water borrowed the might of fire.

Blazing and continuous, at this moment, they were no longer enemies but companions.

A sharp light flashed in Jiang Hanzhou's eyes.

He understood.