Chapter 185: Advanced Earth-Tier Combat Skill—Extreme Refinement!

The pitch-black cave remained as lifeless as ever. However, deep within, a conspicuous silver-white flame was fiercely burning. In the midst of this flame, a completely naked Huo Yuhao sat cross-legged, his eyes closed in deep meditation.

The fusion of the two strange flames was a slow and prolonged process, but no matter how slow, there would always be a moment when it reached its conclusion. When that time came, it would be akin to a butterfly breaking out of its cocoon or a carp leaping over the dragon gate.

Suddenly, a faint, unusual sound emerged from Huo Yuhao's dantian. With this sound, the burning flow of the Flame Mantra soul power in his meridians abruptly halted.

Opening his eyes slowly, Huo Yuhao looked around in confusion. Then, with a thought, the scene within his dantian appeared in his mind.

Inside his dantian, the previously mixed silver and icy white flames had completely vanished. In their place was a single radiant silver-white flame. This flame moved gently, resembling mercury, but it exuded an incredibly intense and terrifying heat.

"Is it… successful?"

Staring blankly at the silver-white flame for a long time, Huo Yuhao finally took a deep breath, and an overwhelming joy filled his heart.

How long had he waited to absorb this silver flame?! And now, he had finally obtained his second heavenly fire!

The roaring emotions in his heart slowly faded, and Huo Yuhao's excitement began to calm down. Carefully, using his mental power, he controlled the silver-white flame and directed it into the core of his dantian.

Once the silver-white flame was fully absorbed into his spirit core, Huo Yuhao let out a long sigh of relief. This second strange fire had finally been successfully refined!

"Success?" A flash of light from the ancient black ring revealed Yao Lao, who appeared with a delighted expression.

"Teacher, I didn't disappoint you!" Huo Yuhao replied joyfully.

"How much has your Flame Mantra evolved? Take a look!" Yao Lao, appearing more anxious than Huo Yuhao, urged him eagerly.

Closing his eyes, Huo Yuhao carefully sensed the improvement in his soul power's quality and its flow speed. Then, opening his eyes again, he said in surprise, "Earth-tier, low level!"

"Earth-tier?!" Yao Lao's face showed shock.

Initially, he had only expected the Flame Mantra to advance to the peak of the Mysterious-tier. He hadn't thought it would leap directly to the Earth-tier.

It might seem like only a single rank separates the Earth-tier from the Mysterious-tier, but in terms of overall attributes, the gap was enormous.

After thinking it over for a moment, Yao Lao nodded in agreement.

After all, the Spirit-Devouring Flame was a unique heavenly fire condensed from the laws of a necromantic demiplane. Although the laws of that plane were incomplete, the concentrated result was undoubtedly of high quality.

The fact that this fire, formed from the demiplane's essence, was of such high quality was indeed understandable.

"Moreover, my soul power has greatly increased. I estimate I'm now between levels 34 and 35, reaching the middle stage of the Soul Elder rank," Huo Yuhao said with a smile. "Once I absorb my third soul ring, I'll likely reach the Soul Ancestor level."

"Don't rush. The strength of a thousand-mile dam can be undone by an ant's nest. Build a solid foundation," Yao Lao cautioned solemnly.

Huo Yuhao nodded in understanding. He knew very well that only by establishing a solid foundation now could he speed up his soul power cultivation in the future.

If he only sought quick gains, like Dai Huabin, who even resorted to forbidden drugs to raise his cultivation, it would undoubtedly affect his future progress.

"Speaking of building a foundation, I have a combat skill that you're now ready to cultivate," Yao Lao suddenly grinned mischievously, sending a chill down Huo Yuhao's spine.

"What tier of combat skill is it that makes you so secretive?" Huo Yuhao asked curiously.

"Advanced Earth-tier combat skill. If mastered to its peak, it could even rival Heaven-tier combat skills!" Yao Lao chuckled.

"What? Heaven-tier combat skills?!" Huo Yuhao almost choked on his own saliva. He quickly stretched out his hand, "Teacher, please teach me! I really need this!"

"Hehe, don't rush. Let me explain the effect of this combat skill first, so you won't give up halfway and waste your effort!" Yao Lao laughed.

"This combat skill is a body-refining technique, created by a Dou Saint powerhouse from our continent. It's called Extreme Refinement! From what you've mentioned before, it seems you can endure extreme pain that others cannot, which is good, because Extreme Refinement will push you to your limits! Always remember, you must stay conscious. Never pass out! If you lose consciousness, you'll never wake up again!"

"This Extreme Refinement wasn't originally a body-refining technique for humans! The one who created it was not only a Dou Saint but also a powerful alchemist and forger. Even the Heavenly Cauldron he used, ranked among the top, was forged by his own hands."

"And this Extreme Refinement was originally a technique he used to temper divine weapons. It's a refining technique for forging weapons with heavenly fire!"

"After its creation, only this Dou Saint used Extreme Refinement to temper his own body. And the reason I said you're ready to cultivate it is that to practice Extreme Refinement, you need at least an Earth-tier cultivation method and at least one heavenly fire."

"The principle of Extreme Refinement is similar to tempering divine weapons. It uses the scorching heat of heavenly fire to first refine the impurities within the body, and then channel the power of the strange fire into the meridians and bones. The fire's energy is then distributed throughout the body, and with focus, you merge with the heavenly fire, repeatedly burning your bones, tendons, flesh, organs, and even every inch of skin!"

"I've seen many body-refining techniques before, but Extreme Refinement is the most sinister and dangerous. To be honest, I never practiced it myself because the process is far too painful and risky. One mistake, and the violent power of the strange fire will reduce you to ashes!"

"However, if you can endure it, Extreme Refinement will be the most effective and fastest body-refining technique. As long as you remain conscious, I'm confident I can help you build a solid foundation quickly!"

"And according to the notes left by that Dou Saint, Extreme Refinement seems to have no upper limit. The more types of strange fire you possess, the higher its level becomes! Now that you have two strange fires, its level can already reach near Heaven-tier!"

"Teacher, I understand. I'm willing to cultivate this technique!" Huo Yuhao's expression showed no hesitation. Smiling, he waved his hand.

"I'll practice this advanced combat skill no matter how painful it is because I won't miss any opportunity to strengthen myself."

"After all, the enemies I'll face in the future will be beyond imagination!"

---

Huo Yuhao stepped out, looking around the familiar room. He let out a long breath.

"It's finally done."

He flipped onto the soft hotel bed, feeling utterly relaxed. The tension and fatigue from absorbing the Holy Spirit-Devouring Flame completely vanished, replaced by a deep sense of drowsiness.

By the time he opened his eyes again, it was already noon.

After taking a shower and changing into a fresh set of black combat clothes, Huo Yuhao opened the door and stepped out.

Suddenly, his brows furrowed. Before him, a figure had appeared.

"Kid, hand over the divine artifact, or else…"

"Die!"