67: Fire

Several searchlights lit up the area, clearly revealing the various precision instruments arranged within the space.

But now, they had all ceased functioning, covered in a layer of dust.

"This place... is the hidden secret of Azure Dragon Beast Taming University? This is where my parents conducted their research, isn't it?" Su Ze asked, turning around after witnessing the shocking scene before him.

Lin Xi did not answer, instead walking forward with trembling steps.

He walked through the stalled machinery, reaching out to brush the dust off them.

"Since that day, I haven't been here in a long time. At most, I've just caught a few little mice that accidentally wandered onto the path ahead."

He walked all the way to the earthen wall, looking at the massive dragon skeleton embedded within it.

Only now could one truly feel what 'massive' meant; an adult human was not even as large as a single phalanx on its dragon claw.

Su Ze followed behind him, feeling the awe inspired by the dragon skeleton.

However, as Su Ze looked up, he also discovered something extraordinary about this skeleton.

It wasn't simply embedded in the soil; half of its body was trapped in the earth of this world and had decayed into bone.

The other half of its body was hidden within a pitch-black void. Looking closely, it seemed as though one could see flesh and blood on the other side of the space through that layer of darkness.

Seeing that Su Ze had noticed the anomaly, Lin Xi spoke from the side: "As you can see, this Dragon Corpse is not entirely in our world; its lower half is in another world."

"Its strength must have been immense, far exceeding any monster beast we currently know. We call them Divine Beasts!"

"In the beginning, it wasn't just a skeleton. We also obtained a piece of flesh and blood, using every means possible to extract a small amount of Divine Beast Essence Blood."

"Those fellows from Fusang went to such great lengths last time just to obtain the Divine Beast Essence Blood to achieve a certain goal of theirs."

Thinking of this, Lin Xi laughed. "But their calculations were wrong; we used up the Essence Blood we obtained back then in experiments long ago."

Su Ze wanted to ask more, but Lin Xi stopped him, saying, "Ask your questions later. Do you still want that egg to hatch?"

Su Ze had no choice but to suppress the questions in his heart. He could feel that he was getting close to the truth behind his parents' disappearance.

Lin Xi led him toward one of the many instruments, saying as they walked, "The egg in your hand is the product of a Golden Feather Phoenix Bird's halfway Nirvana. Nirvana is a unique skill of monster beasts with Phoenix bloodlines."

"It is said that a pure-blooded Phoenix can be resurrected from a sea of fire instantly after death, and can even become stronger. But that is a Divine Beast on the same level as a dragon, and one has never appeared in our world."

"There are only monster beasts like your Golden Feather Phoenix Bird that possess a sliver of Phoenix bloodline. Their Nirvana, therefore, has a major flaw; they cannot resurrect immediately, but instead turn back into an egg that needs to be hatched."

"The hatching conditions for the egg become more demanding each time. However, as long as it hatches successfully, it can become stronger just like a true Phoenix Nirvana, and its bloodline will be purified as a result!"

Su Ze held the egg and said, "When she hatched before, it was in the lava of Tianyun Volcano, and the Fusang Dark Guards even added an eightieth level monster beast crystal core. If the conditions are even more demanding than that..."

Su Ze's mouth hung open as he realized the implications. This meant he would need at least a ninetieth level monster beast crystal core!

A monster beast crystal core of that level could probably only be obtained if a Level 100 War God took action.

So, he could only place his hopes on Lin Xi, hoping he would have a solution.

Su Ze had now also confirmed Lin Xi's identity: he was the mysterious former president of Azure Dragon Beast Taming University.

It was said that very few people had seen his true face, but no one ever questioned his formidable strength.

Lin Xi brought Su Ze to a machine that looked like a furnace, reaching out to pat it, which sent thick dust flying.

Then, he pulled open the furnace door with one hand, looked inside, and said, "Good, after all these years, the fire hasn't gone out. You're in luck, kid. Hurry up and throw the egg in!"

Su Ze walked over to look. The furnace did not contain the roaring, terrifying flames exceeding the temperature of lava that he had imagined.

Instead, there was only a tiny flame, seemingly constrained by something invisible, floating in the air and swaying with the wind.

It wasn't even as large as a candle flame. The only thing that felt extraordinary about it was its pure golden color.

Su Ze said somewhat skeptically, "Such a small flame... can the energy it provides really exceed the lava in a volcano and an eightieth level monster beast crystal core?"

Seeing Su Ze's disbelief, Lin Xi said disdainfully, "A volcano is nothing. Do you know what kind of flame this is? This is a Dragon Flame Fire Seed taken from that dragon's mouth!"

"Even though it has been dead for who knows how many years, it's still burning. We used countless methods just to extract it and place it in this furnace."

He said proudly, "No matter what kind of material you throw in, it can be burned to ashes in an instant!"

He then added with a bit of embarrassment, "However, precisely because its temperature is too high and it burns too fast, it's impossible to control. So the furnace we originally had high hopes for ended up becoming a trash can for disposing of waste in the laboratory..."

Su Ze's face was lined with frustration. As expected, the research team Lin Xi led was just as unreliable.

However, Su Ze no longer doubted the temperature of the flame. He carefully placed the egg into the furnace.

The egg then actively rolled toward the flame as if it were alive, floating in the center of the furnace alongside the fire.

The Fire Seed also carefully enveloped the egg and began the hatching process.

Lin Xi watched from the side and said, "Hmm... my guess was right. A diamond rank Phoenix Bird's egg can indeed withstand the burning of a Fire Seed that has been depleting for decades. This is the first time I've seen something that can withstand Dragon Flame."

Su Ze instantly straightened up and stared at him.

So you weren't sure if the flame's temperature would be too high either!

In other words, Su Ze had almost turned Feng Qingyi into a roasted egg!

He took a deep breath to calm himself and asked, "Teacher, how long will this hatching take?"

Lin Xi shrugged and said, "How should I know? This is your monster beast. Anyway, there's no one else here, so just wait here."

With that, he started to walk away.

Seeing this, Su Ze hurriedly stepped in front of Lin Xi to block him, saying, "Teacher, if I'm not mistaken, this is where my parents did their research, right?"

"Since you've already brought me to such a secret place, is it still necessary to keep what happened back then from me?"

Looking at Su Ze's determined expression, Lin Xi finally sighed and said, "Fine, it's time to tell you the truth."