Having entered my Fire Element form, I had essentially overcome all the physical weaknesses of a normal human being.
Because my body was composed of flames, even if my head were blown off or my heart pierced, it would do little more than temporarily distort me. Poisons were of course ineffective, and chemical weapons were useless as well.
I was still fully capable of seeing and hearing normally and could pick up objects as long as I so intended. Since whether flames would damage an object depended on my volition, I didn't have to worry about causing destruction when handling things.
In this form, I could even merge my spirit with the natural thermal energy in the environment.