Chapter 158: Red Fire Burning the Body

Zhang Nuo's door had not been opened for half a month. Although Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen did not know what he was doing, the waves of heat radiating from the room made them afraid to underestimate the situation.

Ever since they had acknowledged Zhang Nuo as their Senior Brother, he had given them almost no guidance; their cultivation had always been a matter of self-exploration. Although they did not say it aloud, both young women harbored some grievances in their hearts.

Zhuge Qing was walking along the streets of the Nanxuan Sect with nothing to do when, without realizing it, she found herself at Zhang Nuo's residence. She pursed her small mouth slightly and shook her head helplessly; she had not seen Zhang Nuo for a long time, and she wondered how he was doing now.

With a turn of her figure, she arrived before the main gate and reached out to knock on the door knocker. Before long, Bai Xiu opened the door. Upon seeing it was Zhuge Qing, she immediately called out very politely: "Young Sect Master!"

Zhuge Qing merely waved her hand slightly and then walked slowly into the courtyard. The moment she took her first step, a wave of heat surged toward her. The feeling was as if she had suddenly transitioned from winter into the scorching heat of summer!

The young woman's expression froze. She walked quickly for a few steps, and when she reached the door to Zhang Nuo's room, she felt it was even more terrifyingly hot. In just a moment, fragrant sweat had already begun to flow.

"What is he doing inside?"

Turning her head back, the young woman looked at Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen in surprise, only to see that after the two looked at each other, they both shook their heads!

"Senior Brother hasn't come out for nearly half a month. During this time, such high temperatures have persisted inside his room. I don't know if something might have gone wrong?"

Xun Zhen's expression was somewhat unsightly as she said this with extreme worry.

"Half a month!"

Zhuge Qing was somewhat astonished. Under such high temperatures, she might not have been able to endure for even a day. She had not expected Zhang Nuo to stay inside for a full half-month; what a degree of endurance this was!

Suddenly, she recalled that half a month ago, Zhang Nuo had borrowed Spirit Stones from her to buy a Red Glow Fire Seed.

"Could it be! Has he really started Dharma-Body Dual Cultivation?"

Muttering to herself in an extremely low voice, Zhuge Qing found it hard to believe that Zhang Nuo, this fellow, actually did what he said he would! He had started so quickly.

*Plop*—a crystal-clear drop of sweat slid off the young woman's face and instantly hit the ground. However, the sweat did not last long on the ground; it quickly turned into wisps of white vapor and vanished!

Stepping back a few paces, Zhuge Qing took a deep breath of the scorching air. Zhang Nuo's room was now like a giant furnace. If it was like this from the outside, one could imagine how terrifying the temperature inside must be!

"I'm afraid something might have happened to Senior Brother. Why don't we go in and take a look!"

Xun Zhen walked up to Zhuge Qing and said very solemnly.

"No need! I can feel his Spirit Power fluctuations, which means he is still alive! It's just that the Spirit Power fluctuations are very weak, as if he is at the most critical juncture. It is better not to disturb him!"

The young woman stopped Xun Zhen and repeatedly warned the two that if Zhang Nuo did not call them in, they must not break in privately, otherwise, there could be a danger to their lives.

This was not Zhuge Qing trying to scare them. Judging solely by the outward intensity, Zhang Nuo's refining of the Red Glow Fire Seed was already terrifying. With the Qi Refining Stage cultivation of Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen, as soon as they entered the room, they would be unable to endure the high temperature within; at best, their bodies would be damaged, and at worst, their lives would be lost!

The two women nodded, keeping Zhuge Qing's words firmly in their hearts. However, when they looked toward Zhang Nuo's room, they felt somewhat uneasy! After all, the temperature inside was too high, having almost exceeded the temperature a person should be in.

"During this time, your Senior Brother probably has no time to guide your cultivation. How about this—since I have nothing to do today anyway, I will guide you instead!"

Upon hearing this, Xun Zhen's face immediately broke into a smile; to have the Young Sect Master's guidance was truly something she could only wish for! The two women then invited Zhuge Qing into their room.

Although she was guiding the two, Zhuge Qing's heart was always preoccupied with Zhang Nuo, and from time to time, she would look toward his room.

In the blink of an eye, a day passed, and there was no movement in Zhang Nuo's room. When Zhuge Qing left, she cast a meaningful glance back.

However, the next day, she came again. Nominally, it was to guide Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen in their cultivation, but in reality, she was constantly observing Zhang Nuo's movements.

At this moment, Zhang Nuo was inside his room. His clothes had long since turned to ash, his bare body was a fiery red, and every breath he took brought out rolling waves of heat!

After half a month, more than half of the Red Glow Fire Seed in his hand remained, but the fire seed had become dim and lusterless. The faintly burning flame was even more devoid of vitality, as if it would be completely extinguished if a light breeze blew past it.

"Hoo!"

Zhang Nuo opened his mouth in a very dull manner, and a mist like ash was exhaled. At the same time, the scorching high temperature caused the surrounding air to ripple in circles.

"Boy Zhang, can you still hold on?"

Inside the Sword Box, Chunyangzi's voice was very low. Based on his view of the Red Glow Fire Seed, Zhang Nuo's body had now reached its limit. If he were to forcibly refine it further, it was very likely that an accident would occur.

"I'm fine!"

The dry voice lacked any moisture, as if it had come from a desert. Zhang Nuo slowly opened his eyes; his crimson eyes were equally dry, and in the depths of his pupils, it seemed as if a ball of fire was burning.

"Don't force it! Back in the day, my Pure Yang Divine Art belonged to the type that was 'Extreme Yang'; you cannot hide the feeling of it from me!"

Inside the Sword Box, Chunyangzi's voice grew increasingly low. Having played with fire his whole life, he knew the feeling of being burned by intense flames better than anyone!

"A mere cluster of fire seed! I don't take it seriously! Let's continue!"

As he spoke, Zhang Nuo pointed a finger at the Nine Dragon Sword Case in front of him. With a faint dragon roar, a dragon carving on the Sword Box raised its head, and as the dragon's mouth opened and closed, streams of pure Spiritual Qi were released.

Taking a deep breath of the appearing Spiritual Qi, he inhaled it all into his mouth in one go. At the same time, Spirit Power erupted from Zhang Nuo's hands, and with a sweep, he took away a bit of the Red Glow Fire seed!

Chunyangzi felt all of this, and even he had to admire Zhang Nuo's tenacious perseverance. Although he had the help of the Nine Dragon Sword Case and his own guidance, if it were anyone else, without the support of a powerful mental strength, they would likely have given up long ago.

If this child could safely refine the Red Glow Fire Seed, his future prospects would be limitless; it all depended on whether he could make it through this hurdle!

Zhang Nuo's internal organs had almost no moisture left. Now, his entire body was like a furnace; if it weren't for the constant nourishment of sufficient Spirit Power, he would have turned into a pile of ash in an instant!

At his dantian, a very faint, crimson-red flame was burning slowly. Below it, the Double Spirit Sea was continuously supplying Spirit Power, fearing that this fire would go out!

In the blink of an eye, a mass of spiritual light wrapped around a Red Glow Fire seed that was almost invisible to the naked eye and converged it onto the crimson-red flame. Zhang Nuo did not know how many times he had repeated such an action! But his body was already numb; apart from the scorching heat, he could no longer feel anything else.

Looking at the Red Glow Fire seed gradually growing larger within his body, Zhang Nuo could feel a trace of accomplishment. However, to completely refine the fire seed into his body would still require an extremely long process, and during this process, more pain awaited him!

Time flies like an arrow, days and months pass like a shuttle! In the blink of an eye, five months passed. During these five months, Zhuge Qing would come to Zhang Nuo's residence every day, but each time she saw only the scorching room and the increasingly unsightly expressions of Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen.

To leave a person in such high temperatures for a long time—one might ask, apart from cultivators above the Golden Core stage, who below the Foundation Establishment stage could endure it?

Zhuge Qing was truly somewhat worried. If Zhang Nuo met with any accident, the Nanxuan Sect would lose a pillar of talent. She somewhat hated the person who sold the Red Glow Fire seed to Zhang Nuo! She even hated herself a little—why had she lent him Spirit Stones to do such a dangerous thing?

After such a long time, Bai Xiu and Xun Zhen also discovered that the Young Sect Master was not specifically coming to guide their cultivation, so for the following month or two, they did not pester Zhuge Qing with questions, but instead sensibly hid to the side.

On this day, Zhang Nuo's palms suddenly closed together. At the same time, with a massive inhalation of Spiritual Qi, he sucked in the remaining bit of the Red Glow Fire seed at the center of his palm.

His eyes snapped open, and he spat out a mouthful of ash. After a low, angry shout from Zhang Nuo, the last bit of the Red Glow Fire seed also reached his dantian, wrapped in Spiritual Qi!

At this time, a crimson-red fire cluster the size of a soybean had already appeared in Zhang Nuo's dantian. This fire cluster was nurtured by countless amounts of Spiritual Qi, and the faint flame was much more vigorous than it had been a few months ago!

"Success!"

A smile appeared on Zhang Nuo's face, but the moment his facial expression changed, a layer of ash peeled off from it. The skin that had been scorched by high temperatures for months shed quite a bit of dead skin!

"I really succeeded!"

Zhang Nuo shouted loudly with almost all his might, but his voice still sounded barely audible. Apart from the smoke that would spray out every time he opened his mouth, which could prove he was speaking, even if someone were standing by his side at this moment, they would not hear a sound.

"Boy! Don't get too happy yet; stabilize the fire seed in your body first!"

A wisp of Divine Sense fluctuation was transmitted into Zhang Nuo's mind. It was Chunyangzi's voice; fearing that Zhang Nuo might get carried away and fail at the last moment, he hurriedly reminded him.

Having been suppressed for too long, Zhang Nuo had never felt so comfortable in his body, even though the interior of his body was now in tatters. If anyone were to touch him even slightly, it would immediately shatter like dry wood snapping.

But he understood in his heart that after the baptism of his body by the Red Glow Fire Seed, his body had already changed; this was what was mentioned in the Red Glow Fire Technique Jade Slip: destruction followed by reconstruction! To be brought to the brink of death and then return to life!