Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Qin Yu frowned deeply, looking slightly indignant.

He was gone!

Close Saint was someone who had lived for many years and had numerous tricks. Qin Yu was ninety percent sure he would be able to get rid of Close Saint. He never thought that being caught unprepared would allow Close Saint to disappear out of sight.

It was always better to thoroughly destroy enemies. Especially those who were extremely powerful and lost severely to you before, as they would have hatred built up within them.

If not, there would be a lot of trouble!

And now, Qin Yu was impatient and annoyed.

Stone Pagoda coughed, "Master, you don't have to be like this. As they say, good situations may turn bad and bad situations may have good endings…no one can predict everything that happens.

"Since Close Saint has escaped, so be it. The heavens are not willing to let him die now. Perhaps it is because he is not done contributing. Maybe the next time you meet him, he will give you a surprise."

This explanation…fine, it was good!

Close Saint had already been fleeced once. If it happened once more, Qin Yu would not even need to do anything and Close Saint might explode in anger.

Fine. Let him escape then. There was no point in thinking further. What if Stone Pagoda was right?

Taking a deep breath and letting it out, Qin Yu turned back, looking hesitant.

If he wanted to get rid of Soft Peach, this was the best opportunity. Should he go?

He only hesitated for a second before making a decision. He turned and went in the opposite direction.

Although Soft Peach seemed like a friend, strictly speaking, she was just an avatar. Once Peachy was involved, they were bound to fight.

Moreover, there was a high possibility that the item in the Mountain of Flames was the Ruler's inheritance. What would they do if they found it together? Qin Yu would definitely not give it to Soft Peach and likewise for her.

So since he had the opportunity to leave, it would be better to split early and they would both rely on their skills.

The darkness faded like water flowing away and eventually reentered Soft Peach's body. She opened her eyes. They were completely white. She looked in the direction that Qin Yu had left in.

The both of them were a distance apart yet it felt as if she could feel his movements…if it were true, it would be truly scary!

All of a sudden, Second Personality spoke, "This is the man you chose. Isn't he too heartless?"

There was silence, as if listening to something. Second Personality continued, "Can you endure this?"

Another silence before continuing, "Believe me, he won't stand on your side." A pause before the last sentence. "If he still persists, I will kill him."

Second Personality then closed her eyes. After a few moments, the eyes opened once more. Soft Peach's conscience returned and gained full control of the body.

She was panting and her face was pale. She muttered, "You are right but I still want to try. What if I succeed?"

She looked in the direction Qin Yu had left in as she bit her lip. She then took two steps back, disappearing into the raging flames.

……

Soft Peach was not chasing him!

Qin Yu sighed in relief but felt a slight disappointment within himself. This realization made him frown slightly as his face turned sour.

Alas, it was the right decision to split with Soft Peach. They only interacted for such a short period but he had unknowingly started becoming influenced by her.

If he continued to stay with her, Qin Yu would not dare to guarantee that he would persist with his current decision.

Shaking his head, he suppressed his thoughts as he looked forwards, "You are saying that these flames are fake?"

Stone Pagoda replied, "Not exactly. These flames are real but they lie in between illusion and reality. There must be some kind of great divine way relating to illusions and reality in play. I don't really know much as it is the ability of the Ruler. I only heard some things."

"Then?"

"Then, since Master wants to get the Inextinguishable Flame, these flames existing between illusion and reality are of no use. You have to find the main body."

Qin Yu rubbed his eyebrows, "As you can see, this is not the Inextinguishable Flame. Everywhere feels the same; we can't sense anything out of the ordinary."

Stone Pagoda replied, "We have the furnace and the Fire Spirit."

Qin Yu nodded, "You are right…so did the both of you hear that? It is time for both of you to do something. Hurry and tell me if you noticed something!"

Buzz -

Buzz -

The furnace vibrated as it sent out an urgent feeling. This feeling was filled with urgency and other than sensing its impatience, there was nothing else.

Qin Yu pressed it, "Okay, you stay quiet for a while. Fire Spirit, you can speak."

After a short silence, a gentle voice could be heard, "Yes, Master."

A female?!

Qin Yu's eyes widened, how did he not realize that Spirit Arrays had different genders?!

Stone Pagoda coughed lightly and explained, "It is because of the origin of the Fire Spirit. I don't know the details…cough cough, basically, I just found out as well."

He could not say that it was because the Fire Spirit had witnessed the attitude you had towards Soft Peach and chose to be a female right?

Although Qin Yu had a relatively good temper, Stone Pagoda knew that he would definitely get in trouble if he had said that! Having a good temper did not mean that he was shameless.

Fire Spirit continued, "I can sense the main body of the Inextinguishable Flame. However, it seems to be existing in a special state and hence, I can only sense a general direction."

Qin Yu reigned in his shock. The gender did not matter. It was not that he could do anything to the Spirit Array right? As long as she was useful!

"Where?"

Fire Spirit pointed in a direction.

Woosh -

Qin Yu shifted and flew in that direction.

But not long after he flew forth, his expression changed.

Boom -

He stopped and threw out a punch. The incredible force spread outwards, causing the flames to split and revealing a strange fire creature within.

It was described as a fire creature because its entire body was made of flames. Its aura was also very similar to the flames around it and was hard to detect.

It was thanks to Fire Spirit's warning that Qin Yu was able to attack first before the fire creature snuck up on him.

The fire creature cried out and flew backwards from the impact of Qin Yu's fist. Before it landed, its body disintegrated.

At this moment, Qin Yu's heart pounded. He flew horizontally and narrowly missed the flames that burst forth. He turned back to look at the fire creature that he had just destroyed. It appeared once more, looking perfectly fine. It was nearing him.

Fire Spirit spoke, "Master, be careful. This strange creature born from the flames contains a flame crystal nucleus within. Only by breaking the crystal nucleus can it truly be killed. If not, as it is born from flames, it is almost immortal. Even if it is killed a thousand times, it will be revived."

Qin Yu spoke lowly, "Main point!"

Stone Pagoda smirked. Master, where was the tender heart you had towards females? Tsk, tsk, Fire Spirit has such a nice voice yet you treat her like this. He he, who knows if Fire Spirit will regret choosing to be female.

Having obviously been growled at, Fire Spirit paused for a while before continuing, "The crystal nucleus will appear when the fire creature is destroyed. But it only appears for a very short time before it will borrow the power of the flames to move. You have to be very fast to catch it."

As his feet landed, Qin Yu punched out once more. The fire creature immediately shattered.

With Fire Spirit's warning, he detected the strange aura that appeared in the moment that the fire creature was destroyed.

Fire crystal nucleus!

Woosh -

In the moment that Qin Yu detected it, the aura disappeared.

It was extremely fast!

Bom -

An intense flame blasted in Qin Yu's direction. The fire spirit that had been destroyed was revived once more.

Narrowing his eyes, Qin Yu punched out once more. The fire spirit looked at him mockingly.

But this time, it was different. In the moment that the fire creature was destroyed, the furnace was summoned.

Buzz -

A shapeless restricting power fell like an ice cage, trapping the fire crystal nucleus within!

The furnace activated its absorption power. It opened its mouth, directly absorbing it.

Buzz -

A vibration could be felt from the furnace.

Qin Yu's eyes lit up. His intuition had been right. This fire crystal nucleus was the true Inextinguishable Flame!

Although the quantity was minimal, it confirmed their earlier guess. The main body of the Inextinguishable Flame was here.

Buzz -

Buzz -

The furnace continued to vibrate, sending out several urgent messages. Swallowing this fire crystal nucleus was like switching his hunger valve open. It was hard to contain his anxiousness.

"Fire Spirit, continue to find fire creatures. Tell me once you detect them!"

No matter how small mosquitoes are, they are still food. Until they found the main one, this was some kind of consolation.

Moreover, if there were sufficient fire creatures…a mountain could be made out of sand. As long as he patiently killed all of them, he would reap significant rewards.

After all, no one knew what kind of state the main body of the Inextinguishable Flame was in now. Successfully absorbing it was another issue.

Instinct told Qin Yu that it would not be easy!

"Yes, Master." Fire Spirit's voice was still gentle and respectful.

As it went, Qin Yu's decision was proven to be right. Of course, huge credit had to be given to Fire Spirit's strong detection abilities.

There were many fire creatures within the Mountain of Flames. Especially as Qin Yu neared the main body of the Inextinguishable Flame, the number of fire creatures increased and became stronger.

Of course, the fire crystal nucleuses obtained after killing them contained more Inextinguishable Flame as well.

The furnace was eating happily. Its only regret was that the amount was too little. As it enjoyed the small amounts, it was also resisting the increasing hunger it felt.

Keke, the taste was too good!

Fire Spirit was in charge of detecting, Qin Yu killing, and the furnace focused on suppressing.

The three knew their duties well and their efficiency was astounding. If it were someone else, it would be difficult for them even if they were as strong as Qin Yu in terms of cultivation.

On the contrary, if they could not locate the fire creature or were unable to suppress the fire crystal nucleus, they would be severely held back. After all, within the Mountain of Flames, as long as the fire crystal nucleus was fine, they would be the Inextinguishable Flame!

It was fine if it was just for a short while. But once their energy was depleted, it would become dangerous. Truthfully, the fire that was shot out by these fire spirits was pretty threatening.

The reason why this was not obvious when Qin Yu was fighting was that before they could become a threat, they were destroyed by him.

Perhaps it was Qin Yu's intense massacre that angered a strong being in the Mountain of Flames. A Fire Phoenix attacked him!

Although it was still just a fire creature, it contained a huge amount of energy to be able to form a phoenix.

Fire Spirit had almost been fooled by it and was not able to give any warning. If Qin Yu's reactions were not so quick, he would have suffered.

The phoenix was comparable to a True Saint. In the Mountain of Flames, it had strong attributes and the Fire Phoenix was truly horrifying.

Thankfully, the furnace was able to block the burn from the flames, and along with Fire Spirit's pressure and Qin Yu's Rule System Body, they were able to prevent being burnt.

This was the most dangerous situation Qin Yu had faced ever since entering the Mountain of Flames. They fought for almost an hour before they finally killed this Fire Phoenix.

Not needing any prompting, the furnace rushed to suppress the fire crystal nucleus, which was as big as a human head, after the phoenix was killed.

Buzz -

Buzz -

The furnace vibrated violently as if it was going to be overturned. Clearly, suppressing this fire crystal nucleus had not been easy. Thankfully, the furnace won in the end and was not overturned!

Qin Yu let out a long breath as his eyes had hints of his fear. Luckily the furnace was able to suppress the crystal nucleus, otherwise, all his efforts to kill the Fire Phoenix would have gone to waste when it was reborn. If he had to do this three or four more times, his energy would be depleted too!

"Wait!" Fire Spirit suddenly spoke.

Qin Yu paused and reacted. Who was she referring to? "Furnace, stop!"

But it was too late…

How much Inextinguishable Flame would such a big fire crystal nucleus contain? How could the furnace, which was struggling to suppress its hunger, be able to resist? It had already swallowed it in one mouthful.

Hearing Qin Yu's order, it blinked its nonexistent eyes as it looked at Qin Yu in confusion.

It seemed to say, what did you call me for?

Fire Spirit said, "Master, this fire crystal nucleus does not seem normal, perhaps it has another use."

Qin Yu extended his hand, "Spit it out."

The furnace continued to blink its nonexistent eyes.

Qin Yu took in a deep breath, "Hurry, I just want to have a look. I will return it to you!" The furnace seemed to be able to detect the force in Qin Yu's voice as well as his impatience. It coughed a few times before spitting out the fire crystal nucleus unwillingly.

But in the short time that this conversation happened, it had already shrunk quite a bit and was only about half its original size. Its shiny and outstanding appearance was now bumpy like a stone taken out of acid.

Frowning, Qin Yu held it in his hand. The flame suddenly wriggled and a woman's silhouette appeared.

The flame's figure was hazy and was just simple lines, but there were clear bumps in the silhouette, looking clearly overbearing!

Stone Pagoda coughed. Fire Spirit really did things thoroughly; even the shape it chose was one that suited Qin Yu's taste.

Keke, effort. It was really putting in effort!

Fire Spirit bent over slightly as she extended her fingers made of flames. She touched the strange-looking fire crystal nucleus. After a few moments, she sighed, "Master, my feeling was right. This fire crystal nucleus is not normal…it is most likely a pass to enter some restricted area. Unfortunately, it has been broken."

Qin Yu frowned, "Is it completely useless?"

Fire Spirit thought about it, "Not completely, please wait a while. Let me try to activate its other abilities." Fire Spirit's delicate outline then formed a ball surrounding the broken fire crystal nucleus.

Hmm…this scene resembled a horror movie and it really ruined the good feelings.

Stone Pagoda silently shook his head as he deducted ten points from his unprofessional evaluation of Fire Spirit!

Qin Yu did not think of such useless thoughts like Stone Pagoda as he waited, slightly frowning.

Thankfully, it did not take a long time. Fire Spirit spoke, "It is done."

The flame flew back and turned into the delicate figure once more. She hesitated slightly, "Master, I could only repair it slightly and it is not perfect. So I cannot say how effective it will be right now…"

Qin Yu waved a hand and cut her off, "We will know when we try. I won't blame you no matter how it turns out."

"Then Master, please do not resist. I will now activate it and see if it can bring us in." Fire Spirit touched the fire crystal nucleus. The ugly and uneven surface of the nucleus lit up with small light dots.

It flickered and was not connected, exposing the lacking areas which had been swallowed by the furnace.

The remaining light dots struggled to link up by twisting. 'Buzz', a strange wave surrounded Qin Yu.

Woosh -

His entire body disappeared.

The next part of the journey was like taking a bumpy mountain train and multiplying that feeling by ten times.

Even though Qin Yu's physical body was strong, he felt sore. It was as if a person had just run a marathon and his legs were sore and weak.

Pak -

As his legs landed on the ground, he looked around. The corners of his mouth pulled upwards and he smiled. Although the process felt horrible, the ending was quite good…they had entered!