Chapter 91: One Year Later

Wei Yang was already at the peak of a six-star Dou Wang, not too far from reaching seven stars. As for Xian'er, she had long been at the pinnacle of a nine-star Dou Wang. Even Qing Lin had become a three-star Dou Zhe after cultivating the low-level Xuan-class non-attribute technique Wei Yang prepared for her. On this day, Wei Yang was ready to officially begin devouring the Black Sun Heaven-Burning Flame.

At dusk, after having dinner with the two girls in the cave mansion, Wei Yang said, "Tonight, I plan to devour the Heavenly Flame." Upon hearing this, Xian'er and Qing Lin both trembled slightly, with a hint of worry flashing in their eyes. "It's finally starting," they thought to themselves. Although they had great confidence in Wei Yang and had mentally prepared, they couldn't help but worry. Devouring a Heavenly Flame was very dangerous, even if it had already been tamed. This was because the first impression of the Black Sun Heaven-Burning Flame a year ago and its formidable power during its outburst were still fresh in their memories.

However, they knew Wei Yang had made many preparations and sacrifices for this day and would not back down. Therefore, they said no more. "Brother Yang, be careful." "Young Master, be careful," they said with a smile.

Wei Yang nodded with a smile, pulled them into his arms, and rubbed their heads, saying, "Don't worry; I won't fail. I'm confident there's at least an eighty-percent chance of success." The two girls nodded.

Night fell. As the sun set, the scorching heat of the desert rapidly dissipated. A bright moon slowly rose from the horizon, casting its cold light and bringing a chill to the desert. In front of the cave, Xian'er and Qing Lin had no heart for cultivation. They stood there, gazing into the distance at the black, upright figure sitting cross-legged on a hilltop several miles away, bathed in the cold moonlight.

Wei Yang sat cross-legged with closed eyes, not cultivating, but completely emptying his mind and entering a state of ethereal tranquility, almost like a state between sleep and wakefulness. He was adjusting his condition to reach the peak state of spirit, energy, and soul. Any negligence was unacceptable when devouring a Heavenly Flame. The cold moonlight bathed him, seemingly draping a layer of silver gauze over him. He chose to devour the Heavenly Flame outside at night to leverage the environment for even a slight increase in success probability.

By now, the outside temperature had plummeted to about minus twenty degrees. A gust of cold wind howled, blowing Wei Yang's hair and waking him from his ethereal state. He was fully awake, with a gleam of light flashing through his eyes, emanating an energized and vibrant presence.

Then he opened his mouth and spat out a small black sun the size of a fist, which hovered in the air before him. The sun began to quickly expand, instantly growing to the size of a washbasin, its surface crackling with black flames. The chill was dispelled immediately, and the surrounding temperature became warm.

Wei Yang lightly brushed his finger across his Na Ring and took out a slightly transparent small jade bottle. Inside the bottle lay a blood-red pill the size of a dragon's eye, emitting a faint red glow. The light through the bottle allowed Wei Yang to vaguely see shadows within the blood pill, and as the jade bottle slightly shook, the pill rotated, with what seemed like liquid swirling inside.

This blood-red pill was one of the necessary items for devouring a Heavenly Flame: the Blood Lotus Pill! Originally, Wei Yang didn't necessarily need the Blood Lotus Pill, as he didn't require manual extraction of the flame. However, he didn't intend to save it because the Blood Lotus Pill not only protected the skin from being burned but also safeguarded the meridians inside the body.

After placing the Blood Lotus Pill aside, Wei Yang took out a washbasin-sized white jade box from his Na Ring. As the jade box settled on the smooth stone surface, a faint cold air spread across the surface, forming a thin layer of frost. Opening the jade box revealed a bed of layered ice blocks, with a snow-white jade bottle securely nested in the center. A white mist swirled around the jade bottle, giving it a mysterious and ethereal aura. Upon opening the jade box lid, the cold mist rose, causing the surrounding temperature to plummet.

Inside the snow-white jade bottle was Ice Spirit Cold Spring!

Finally, Wei Yang took out the last necessary item for devouring the Heavenly Flame: Na Ling! It was a thumb-sized gray stone, smooth as jade, flawless, and gem-like in appearance. Within its core, a faint blue luminescent light slowly swirled, akin to a firefly sealed in amber, seemingly possessing life.

"Na Ling, given my situation, should be unnecessary," Wei Yang pondered. His body, already refined with the sub-flame of the Black Sun Heaven-Burning Flame, had its Dou Qi infused with its aura. With a year of nurturing, the sub-flame's potency had grown from a peak Da Dou Shi to a peak Dou Ling level. The main flame, long tamed and familiarized over the past year, no longer repelled him but rather grew closer. The main flame possessed peak Dou Wang power, and Wei Yang was a six-star Dou Wang, making them almost equal in rank.

"Might as well keep it ready," Wei Yang casually set Na Ling aside. Having it and using it were two separate matters.

Taking a deep breath, he fixated his gaze on the hovering black sun nearby. "Black Sun Heaven-Burning Flame, come now, integrate with me, become a part of me..." Wei Yang murmured. The black sun quivered lightly, the flames dancing as if responding, yet still appearing vague and naive. Without much intelligence, it didn't comprehend Wei Yang's words. Its simple consciousness only recognized Wei Yang communicating with it and excitedly responded.

"Let's begin!" Immense soul power surged forth from Wei Yang's brow, rapidly infiltrating the black sun, entering the small world composed entirely of black flames. At the heart of this small world floated a fist-sized black sphere, appearing nascent, dazzling, yet tender. This was the essence of the Black Sun Heaven-Burning Flame!

Wei Yang's soul power surged, enveloping it and drawing it out. Externally, the black sun quietly hovered, emitting a faint, ghostly glow, and just then, a fist-sized black sphere, exuding pure black light with pure black flames encircling it, was forcibly extracted from the black sun's body. Upon being pulled out, the black sphere momentarily appeared bewildered, as if stupefied.

Suddenly appearing in the external world, separated from its body, was akin to a person having their soul forcibly extracted, exposed to the air outside their body. Instinctively overcome with fear, lacking its body made it feel insecure. Thereupon, it began to retaliate instinctively. Even with limited intelligence, it fought back naturally.

The fist-sized black sphere trembled, attempting to return to its body, but Wei Yang's soul power firmly bound it, instead drawing it farther from the black sun. Concurrently, Wei Yang continuously tried to communicate with it via his soul, seeking to soothe its restless and fearful emotions.

He felt a wave of guilt surge in his heart, but quickly, he shook it off. Devouring a Heavenly Flame was inherently like this! At this time, there could be no room for sentimentality.