Chapter 132: Scorched Earth Flame Lord! Meeting the Ex-Girlfriend Again

Evening, entrance of Tan Mansion.

A taxi stopped by the side of the road, and Zhang Fan took a taxi for the first time.

After all, the courtyard left to him by the Snake Bai Yujing was rented out, and he could get at least 32,000 in rent every month. After deducting the property management fee, he still had a surplus of more than 20,000. Counting his salary, he was also a person earning 30,000 a month, so it wasn't impossible to be extravagant.

"Why rent here?"

Zhang Fan stood at the entrance of the residential area. Tan Mansion wasn't far from Hongfu Garden, but the grades of the two were worlds apart.

Not to mention anything else, the greenery at their entrance was more lush and dense than all the landscaping in their residential complex combined.

Tan Mansion was where Shi Shougong and Su Shiyu were staying.

After all, these were two demons, and now, in name, they were following Zhang Fan, so he naturally had to come and see. Otherwise, if an accident happened, the blame would inevitably fall on him.

"Leave the takeout at the door..."

Just as he arrived at the entrance, before Zhang Fan could speak, the security guard in the security room didn't even look up and said casually.

"Do I look like a delivery guy?" Zhang Fan curled his lips.

At this time, the security guard finally looked up and scanned him: "Fixing the air conditioner?"

"..."

"Looking for someone."

"Visitors fill out information first."

As he spoke, the young security guard handed over a registration form. After Zhang Fan finished filling in the visitor information, he finally opened the access gate.

"In terms of professionalism, it still has to be Uncle Liu."

Zhang Fan glared fiercely at the young security guard and walked straight into the complex.

"Building 137..."

Zhang Fan looked at the address Su Shiyu had sent. After wandering around the maze-like complex for a long time, he finally found the right door.

"Brother Fan is here."

The door opened. Su Shiyu was wearing loose loungewear and stepping on a pair of soft slippers, her long, fair legs particularly eye-catching.

Seeing Zhang Fan, she showed a sweet smile, took his arm, and welcomed him in.

"Boss Fan, you've graced us with your presence so late."

Shi Shougong walked out of the room, his lukewarm words ringing out faintly. His cheeks were covered with dense scales, but the moment he saw Zhang Fan, they faded away at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"You... what kind of demon are you acting like!?" Zhang Fan looked at Shi Shougong's abnormality, glared fiercely, and said sternly.

If this appearance were discovered by someone outside, or even spread on the internet, the people of the Daoist Alliance would surely be like dogs smelling feces...

Don't dare to think about it, don't dare to think about it! "He was just practicing," Su Shiyu also glared and hurriedly explained.

When demons and ghosts practice, they must enter a deep state, and often their original form is revealed.

However, this alienation can be controlled, which is different from the situation Su Shiyu had on the high-speed train that day.

Hearing this, Zhang Fan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Still need to be low-key and cautious."

"Don't worry, the soul has entered the body. Even if we are demons, ordinary Daoist priests can't tell," Shi Shougong said lightly.

When spirits and monsters possess a human body, they become demons. In this way, except for the wild alienation during special periods when they reveal their original form, they are almost indistinguishable from humans, and even Daoist priests with deep cultivation find it difficult to tell with the naked eye.

Hearing this, Zhang Fan nodded and leaned back on the sofa.

"Diligent practice is not a bad thing."

As he spoke, Zhang Fan glanced at Shi Shougong intentionally or unintentionally. From the moment he entered the door, the latter's gaze toward him had been filled with intensity—not hostility, but fighting spirit.

Obviously, although Shi Shougong was now under Zhang Fan's command in name, he was still brooding over his defeat in Gusu.

"Are you afraid I'll catch up to you?"

Shi Shougong's mouth curled slightly, his long tongue like a black shadow, quickly flicking in and out.

At the same time, his hair stood up slightly, the hairs on his body also stood on end, and a slippery, cold airflow rose on the surface.

Su Shiyu's delicate brows furrowed. She knew the habits of animals like geckos; every time they hunted prey, the surrounding temperature and humidity would change accordingly.

This is a special ability to transform the environment to adapt to their survival and hunting.

"I just like your confidence." Zhang Fan leaned on the sofa, his eyelids lifted slightly, revealing a gentle smile.

Rumble...

Almost at the same moment, a terrifying fluctuation rose from within his body. True Yang stirred with wild nature, dragon steaming and tiger leaping in the furnace fire.

"This is..."

Su Shiyu's beautiful face lost its color, and she subconsciously took a step back, only feeling a red light burning before her eyes. Observing with her soul, she saw Zhang Fan's whole body glowing with flame light, illuminating the night with the Dharma.

"Daoist True Fire!"

Shi Shougong's face trembled violently. The smile that had been slightly provocative just a moment ago quickly solidified, replaced by a trace of fear.

He could feel the temperature in the room rising rapidly, and the moisture was constantly being lost and dissipated. The corners of his mouth even began to dry out, cracking open.

As a gecko, his perception of temperature and humidity was the most acute.

"Daoist fire method... he's stronger than last time." Shi Shougong's expression was ugly, and a voice seemed to be whispering in his heart.

Last time in Gusu City, Zhang Fan had an epiphany and comprehended the fire method, but it was just an instinctive subtle use that shocked Shi Shougong back.

Now, he found it very difficult to enter that state, but sitting still, just with a single thought, it was as if a great fire were burning, which made Shi Shougong feel a more terrifying pressure than last time in Gusu City.

"Fan... Brother Fan, he... he was just joking with you," Su Shiyu said tremblingly.

Rumble...

Just at this moment, that terrifying pressure receded like a tide.

Drip...

The air conditioner's cooling system started, and cold wind blew, causing the indoor temperature to slowly drop.

At this time, a bead of sweat the size of a bean dripped from Shi Shougong's forehead.

"I was also just joking."

Zhang Fan smiled lightly: "Why do you all have this expression? You're not humorous anymore."

"Heh... hehe... I'll go make you some fruit salad."

Su Shiyu broke the deadlock and turned to walk into the kitchen.

"Sit."

Zhang Fan took out his phone, didn't lift his eyelids, and patted the sofa.

Shi Shougong stared at Zhang Fan with quite a bit of trepidation. After a slight hesitation, he still sat down.

"Your fire method has reached great success!?"

"Great success..."

The movement of Zhang Fan's hand paused slightly, but he sighed in his heart.

Is the Daoist fire method so easy to master? Daoist cultivation only nourishes the soul and does not refine the body, like building a hanging building; only refining the body and not nourishing the soul is just being a corpse-guarding ghost.

Nourishing the spirit and refining the body—the method lies in the Inner Elixir Method.

The Inner Elixir Method Zhang Fan practiced was 【North-South Sect Source】, belonging to the orthodox Daoist school, gathering the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth as "medicine." The so-called spiritual Qi of heaven and earth is called Heavenly Light by the Pure Yang Ancestor in the 【Great One Golden Flower Principle】.

Gathering the great medicine requires fire refining!!!

The so-called True Fire manifests as heat energy, which is the source of life.

Before a person dies, a breath held in the throat is the last Yang Qi in the body, which is the last wisp of life energy. After death, once this breath dissipates, the body temperature drops rapidly.

True Fire is the ignition of the little bit of Yang Qi scattered in the body, naturally formed.

In the practice of the Inner Elixir Method, the fire timing is crucial and is a secret not passed down in the Daoist school.

The ancients said: "Passing the medicine but not passing the fire" refers to "medicine is not produced without fire, and fire is not born without medicine." In practicing the Inner Elixir Method, "when the medicine is ripe, it is transformed by fire; when the fire arrives, the medicine is formed by itself."

Only by refining medicine with fire can one refine the body, nourish the soul, refine away the Yin dregs in the spirit, and achieve Pure Yang Limitless.

For ordinary Daoist priests, even grasping this bit of fire timing is extremely difficult, and they struggle for a lifetime without finding the method, let alone "forming a method with fire." Not to mention that the 【Fire Dragon Elixir Sword】 Zhang Fan practiced was not an ordinary great method; it was a mystery comparable to the 【Five Thunder Orthodox Method】.

Now, Zhang Fan was still exploring. If he could really master the 【Fire Dragon Elixir Sword】, he could truly step into the 【Spirit Commissioner】 rank, and the next step would be to impact the 【High Merit】 rank.

That was the realm he dreamed of.

Once he achieved 【High Merit】, Zhang Fan might be able to take out the True Martial Jade Tablet in his body, and at the same time, he could set off for Yujing City to find the Evil God.

"You think it's that easy?" Zhang Fan said lightly.

"Since ancient times, thunder and fire have been the hardest to practice..." As a demon, Shi Shougong naturally knew the terror of these two methods.

Thunder and fire are like calamity punishments, vast and hiding heavenly might; they can forge the Golden Elixir and also create murderous karma.

Because of this, among the Daoist schools in the world, there are very few masters who practice thunder and fire methods, and those who have achieved great success are even rarer. Looking back thirty years, those who practiced fire methods and had a fierce reputation...

"I have heard of one..."

Shi Shougong remembered; he had once heard Yun Jianyue, that is, Bai Yujing, say it.

Although Daoist True Fire is difficult to refine, more than twenty years ago, there was one such person in the seven southeastern provinces who was known for being proficient in the fire methods of a hundred schools. With a single thought, a nameless fire would rise, turning a hundred miles into scorched earth, known as...

"Scorched Earth Flame Lord!"

"Scorched Earth Flame Lord!?" Zhang Fan was hearing this name for the first time.

"It is said that this person's fire method was so subtle that it was no longer confined to methods and seals; with a single thought, fire would rise."

Shi Shougong whispered in a focused voice: "Let me put it this way..."

"If you had his cultivation, you wouldn't need to refill the gas tank at home."

"..."

"Difficult..." Zhang Fan sighed in his heart.

This step is extremely difficult.

That he could comprehend the subtlety of True Fire and comprehend the 【Fire Dragon Elixir Sword】 was most likely related to that night with the 【Millennium Old Demon】.

But after that day, the 【Millennium Old Demon】 seemed to have disappeared, never coming online again.

Zhang Fan opened the "Little Yellow Book" app and clicked on the following list; the 【Millennium Old Demon】's avatar was still gray.

"If you're not dead, can you make a sound?"

Zhang Fan was a bit annoyed and sent a message to the 【Millennium Old Demon】 at will.

"Sorry, you have been added to the blacklist by the other party..."

Looking at the prompt that popped up from the system, Zhang Fan was completely stunned. He had been blacklisted by the 【Millennium Old Demon】 again, and it was blacklisted without any warning.

"This damn thing is purely sick... blacklisting at every turn..."

"Aquarius!?"

Zhang Fan was speechless to the point of his consciousness stirring.

"Here."

Just at this moment, Su Shiyu walked over. In the crystal bowl were mangoes, watermelon, bananas, oranges... drizzled with thick yogurt.

"You guys were quite fast, finding a place so quickly." Zhang Fan picked up a metal fork, picked up a piece of watermelon, and chatted while eating.

"We looked at many places, this place is closest to where you live..." Su Shiyu looked at Zhang Fan softly, as if watching him eat was also a kind of enjoyment.

"Not cheap, right?" Zhang Fan said casually.

"Twelve thousand," Shi Shougong said lightly: "A month..."

"What? Twelve thousand?"

Hearing this number, Zhang Fan almost jumped up. Twelve thousand was almost equal to his three months' salary.

Even with the rent from that courtyard in Gusu City, he couldn't be so wasteful.

"You are raising two demons, after all..." Shi Shougong looked at Zhang Fan's appearance and curled his lips.

"Do you know what our treatment in the Wu Wei Gate is like?"

In ancient times, demons and ghosts were rare, not to mention today.

The rarity of a demon is not below that of a High Merit. They have huge potential and many tricky methods. Especially great demons over three hundred years old can call the wind and rain, terrifyingly so.

They have always been the target of recruitment by the Wu Wei Gate, and at the same time, they are also a major threat in the eyes of the Daoist school.

"You guys still get a salary in the Wu Wei Gate?" Zhang Fan was stunned for a moment, then showed a strange expression.

"Who would sell their life without benefits?" Shi Shougong couldn't help but say.

Although from ancient times to the present, because they are also studying the soul, demons and ghosts have always relied on the Wu Wei Gate, but they must also have benefits to truly sell their lives for it.

After all, compared to ordinary Daoist priests, the cultivation of demons and ghosts consumes more resources. Mountain essence great medicine is indispensable, and there are too many places where money is needed.

"Not only do we get a salary, but we also pay social security," Su Shiyu smiled lightly.

"..."

The Wu Wei Gate also has many members who have climbed into the upper class of society, with industries covering all walks of life.

Many Wu Wei Gate disciples are affiliated with these enterprises. On one hand, they can cover their tracks and are not easily detected; on the other hand, practicing in this era also requires a way to accumulate wealth.

"Forget it, I'm too lazy to care about these things." Zhang Fan shook his head and exhorted again.

"This is Yujing City, the headquarters of the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance is here. You guys still need to be careful. You must be low-key and cautious in your daily life."

After chatting for a while, Zhang Fan got up to say goodbye.

Tan Mansion was only two streets away from Hongfu Garden, so Zhang Fan walked back leisurely.

Along the way, he was burdened with worries.

After all, Zhang Fan already knew that his old man had entered the calamity of "The Great Night Does Not Brighten" and had not yet escaped it. This was a very dangerous signal.

Besides that, his 【Fire Dragon Elixir Sword】 was also delayed, as if he had encountered a bottleneck.

Screech...

Just at the street corner, a sudden screech of brakes broke the silence of the night.

The behemoth coming at high speed made Zhang Fan instinctively step back. Fortunately, that car braked in time, avoiding a tragedy of car destruction and human death.

"Driving so fast, in a rush to reincarnate?"

Zhang Fan looked at the ten-meter brake mark on the ground and then at the car that was close at hand.

A trident hook, a luxury car, worth more than two million.

"Zhang Fan!?"

Just at this moment, a pleasant and slightly surprised voice came from inside the car.

Zhang Fan looked up and saw a familiar figure sitting in the passenger seat—beautiful eyes and white teeth, bright features, loose hair, trembling red lips, seemingly having an indescribable surprise to tell.

"Xu Zhixia!?" Zhang Fan was stunned.

He had only learned from Li Yishan that morning that Xu Zhixia had returned to Yujing City. Who would have thought he would run into her at night, and in such a scene.

At this time, Zhang Fan's gaze shifted slightly, and he saw a tall, thin young man in the driver's seat, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and a white shirt, looking refined and cultured—at a glance, he was a young talent, a successful person.

"Your friend?"

The young man just glanced at Zhang Fan and then turned to look at Xu Zhixia.

Xu Zhixia stared at Zhang Fan, lost in thought, and then nodded.

"Anything wrong? Do you need me to take you to the hospital? Or pay you some money?"

The young man sat in the car, didn't get out, held the steering wheel, and asked lightly.

"No need."

Zhang Fan glanced sideways and turned into the street next to him.

Meeting again, his mood was unprecedentedly calm. Sure enough, things change with the heart, and realms are born from the heart. All the past events were like passing clouds, and it was already difficult to let him have any more thoughts.

In Zhang Fan's eyes, he had his own path, and Xu Zhixia had her own life; the two were no longer in the same world.

"Let's go."

Xu Zhixia sat in the car, watching Zhang Fan's back as he walked further and further away, and slowly withdrew her gaze.

The car drove all the way, and half an hour later, it appeared in front of a villa in the suburbs.

Xu Zhixia got out of the car and walked straight to the back garden of the villa.

"I heard... you just met your ex-boyfriend?"

Just as she stepped into the garden, an indifferent voice came from the pavilion in the distance. The clear gauze swayed with the wind, reflecting that hazy figure.

Xu Zhixia stopped her steps, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.

"Whose girl is she at twenty-eight, where is the gentleman at ninety-three? Calling themselves wood liquid and gold essence, meeting earth to form three surnames. Borrowing Ding Gong to forge, husband and wife begin to tie the joy of love, the river cart dares not stay for a moment, transported into the peak of Kunlun..."

Just at this moment, the indifferent voice came from the pavilion again.

"This poem by the ancestor of Long Hu Mountain is well written... transporting fire to refine medicine through three passes, refining spirit into emptiness and walking the mud pill..."

"Cultivating the Dao is so wonderful, why are there still people obsessed with the love between men and women... it's truly ridiculous."

The night wind rose suddenly, blowing the clear gauze, and the faint voice echoed in the garden, revealing a trace of ridicule.

"He is just an ordinary person, and I have nothing to do with him anymore..." Xu Zhixia clenched her jade hands, her silver teeth biting tightly.

"Don't you touch him!!!"

(End of chapter)