Capturing the Solar Essence Fire! Refining the Zhangyang Water!

Beneath this red mist area, within the earth's ley lines, dwell many fire-attribute demonic beasts, a diverse array in number.

It is said that there are many high-level ferocious beasts of level six or seven among them, and there are even rumors that there are stronger monsters lurking and sleeping in the deeper lava lake.

Once surrounded by a dozen high-level demonic beasts, even a cultivator in the early Nascent Soul stage might perish here with resentment.

However, these monsters, which others considered extremely dangerous, were utterly harmless to Zhou Yuan, like clay chickens and earthen dogs.

Back then, in the battle on Biling Island, he single-handedly slaughtered millions of demonic beasts with his sword, causing rivers of blood and mountains of corpses. He had experienced such scenes of carnage, so what was this little spectacle compared to that?

Later, in the battle on Origin Island, he faced seventy or eighty top-tier demons in the transformation stage without changing his expression, chatting and laughing as he dealt with them, and ultimately escaped unscathed.

These low-level demonic beasts, which lack intelligence and only act on instinct, are not even a warm-up for him.

Next, Zhou Yuan, clad in a fire-resistant suit, unleashed his powerful divine sense without reservation, spreading outwards in all directions like a tidal wave.

Ordinary cultivators in this place are greatly restricted by the influence and suppression of the red mist environment, and it is considered good if they can detect more than ten miles.

However, Zhou Yuan's divine sense was already far stronger than that of other cultivators of the same level. In addition, he had cultivated a variety of secret techniques to enhance his divine sense. Even though he was affected by the strange red mist environment of this place, his divine sense could still extend horizontally for more than a hundred miles, allowing him to see every rustle and movement in a large area around him.

Not long after he started walking, a few feet long, pale red demonic bird appeared not far ahead, seemingly sensing the presence of Zhou Yuan, the outsider.

It let out a sharp cry, flapped its wings, and transformed into a streak of light, fiercely swooping down on Zhou Yuan.

The sharp beak gleamed coldly, as if it wanted to peck his head through.

Zhou Yuan didn't even bother to look at the demonic bird; he simply raised his hand casually.

A highly refined golden sword light shot out from his fingertips in an instant, as if teleporting, disappearing in a flash, and piercing the demonic bird through its chest with perfect precision.

Before the demonic bird could even utter a scream, it exploded into a cloud of blood mist.

Zhou Yuan continued to delve deeper.

Not long after.

Five or six more fire apes, each several meters tall and engulfed in raging flames, leaped out of the lava pool below. They pounded their chests and stomped their feet, letting out deafening roars. Wielding fists the size of millstones, they attacked Zhou Yuan, trying to tear him to shreds.

Without exception, Zhou Yuan didn't even move his feet; he simply flicked out a few sharp magical sword lights.

Those seemingly ferocious fire apes were easily shattered by the incomparably sharp sword light, their demonic bodies turning into countless sparks and dissipating without leaving a trace.

However, the fire-attribute demonic beasts in this fiery hell seem to have extremely low intelligence and are incredibly violent due to the long-term influence of the scorching fire spiritual energy here. They seem to have no idea what fear or death is.

Despite Zhou Yuan's overwhelming strength, a constant stream of demonic beasts relentlessly blocked his path, one after another, seemingly endless and causing him considerable annoyance.

Zhou Yuan frowned. Although these demonic beasts couldn't hurt him, their relentless attacks were quite annoying and wasting his time and energy.

He thought for a moment, then patted his storage bag, summoning a small, ancient, fiery red cauldron. This cauldron was entirely crimson, its surface engraved with intricate flame patterns, radiating an ancient yet intense aura; it was the treasure he had obtained from Kunwu Mountain.

Immediately afterwards, Zhou Yuan pointed his finger and cast a spell on the body of the cauldron, causing the lid of the fire cauldron to fly up automatically.

The next moment, a clear cawing sound rang out from the cauldron, and a palm-sized fire crow flapped its wings and flew out of the cauldron. Its body was a cold, silvery-white color, which was the fire spirit transformed from the Taiyin True Fire!

After the fire crow, formed from the true fire of the moon, took flight, its size increased rapidly as it faced the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it became a huge firebird with a wingspan of more than ten feet, its wings spread out and covering the sky.

It let out an excited cry, swooped down, opened its mouth wide, and like a whale sucking in water, tore apart the fire beasts of various shapes that appeared in front of it, then swallowed them into its belly and converted them into its own power.

Some of those fire beasts were in the form of fire demons with ferocious faces; some were in the form of fire birds with their wings flapping flames; and some were in the form of fire pythons, slithering and moving about.

However, they were completely vulnerable to the Taiyin True Fire, and were no match for it at all. They were all devoured and completely destroyed, leaving not even a trace.

With the Taiyin True Fire clearing the way, Zhou Yuan's speed increased significantly, and no more foolish demonic beasts dared to bother him.

Next, Zhou Yuan arrived at a more central area.

There are no longer any volcanoes here, and the ground is no longer scorched rocks. In its place is a boundless lake of molten lava, with red lava flowing slowly, emitting suffocatingly high temperatures that distort the air itself.

This lava lake stretches for tens of thousands of miles.

It resembled an ocean of flames.

Previously, the reason why Master Hanli did not come here to capture the Solar Essence Fire, even though he knew it was here, was because the mana consumption here was too great. Moreover, this lava lake was extremely wide and deep. To find that tiny wisp of Solar Essence Fire in such a vast area was like looking for a needle in a haystack. It was too risky and would take an unknown amount of time to find it.

However, Zhou Yuan was different. He obtained the Taiyin True Fire and had completely refined it, allowing him to control it with ease.

As the saying goes, yin and yang attract each other.

He could rely on the Yin True Fire to lure out the Sun Essence Fire hidden deep within the magma, and then wait for it to come to him.

Zhou Yuan commanded the fire crows formed from the Taiyin True Fire to circle in the sky, constantly releasing their aura to attract the attention of the Taiyang Essence Fire.

Every few days, he would change his location, moving thousands of miles to expand the search area. In this way, he waited patiently for almost half a year, without being impatient or agitated.

Finally, one day, when the Taiyin True Fire once again hovered and danced above the lava lake, the lava below suddenly began to churn and fluctuate abnormally, as if something was about to burst out of the lava.

Immediately afterwards, a dazzling silver ball of light shot out from the depths of the magma and hovered in mid-air.

It was a winged pony, only a few inches in size, pure white as jade, as if formed from the purest moonlight.

Although the pony is extremely small, its form is lifelike and vivid, especially its pair of small wings, which are silvery and shimmering, exuding a sacred and fiery aura.

As soon as the horse burst out of the lava, it immediately locked onto the Taiyin Firebird in the sky, letting out a silent neigh. With its wings flapping vigorously, countless tiny silver sparks immediately emerged from its wings, like a rain of flowers, beautiful yet deadly.

These silver sparks rushed towards the Taiyin Firebird, as if to completely devour and refine it. It was, of course, the true spirit fire transformed from the legendary essence of the sun!

Upon seeing this, Zhou Yuan was overjoyed. Hard work pays off, and he had finally gotten what he was waiting for!

Now, Zhou Yuan's mastery of formations, after years of research and practice, has placed him among the most outstanding figures in the human realm, with few able to match him.

Without hesitation, he took out more than a dozen pre-prepared array flags from his storage bag, and with his hands moving swiftly like butterflies flitting among flowers, he accurately inserted these array flags into the lava and ground below, setting up a massive array.

After these dozen or so array flags were inserted, they immediately formed a huge light blue shield that covered an area of ​​several thousand feet in radius, completely sealing off this region.

This formation is purely ice-based, radiating a chilling aura. As soon as it was set up, even the churning, boiling magma below began to rapidly condense a thick layer of frost on its surface, as if it had been frozen!

Zhou Yuan did this because he was worried that the solar essence fire was too slippery and might escape if he wasn't careful, which would mean all his previous efforts would be wasted.

After completing all these preparations, Zhou Yuan began to tidy up the solar essence fire.

The silver pony, formed from the essence of the sun's fire, was startled by the enormous spiritual energy emanating from Zhou Yuan's palm. Realizing the danger, it immediately tried to turn and flee, burrowing back into the depths of the magma.

However, as soon as it turned around, it crashed hard into the light blue ice-attribute light barrier, making a dull thud. It was bounced back by a powerful force and could not break through this solid barrier at all.

Finally, with the cooperation and suppression of the Taiyin True Fire, Zhou Yuan used several powerful restrictive techniques and spent a lot of effort to finally capture this unruly wisp of solar essence fire and imprison it firmly.

Then, Zhou Yuan carefully opened the lid of the fire cauldron and put the sealed solar essence fire into it.

Once he gets back, he'll find some time to slowly refine it and make it his own.

After doing all this, Zhou Yuan let out a long sigh of relief, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.

Having achieved his greatest goal, he lingered no longer, immediately leaving the inferno and returning the way he came.

Having returned to the central region of the Great Jin Dynasty, Zhou Yuan naturally wouldn't go back empty-handed.

To save time and energy for his next trip to the Great Jin Dynasty and avoid the hardship of a long journey, he planned to find a secluded location near the center of the Great Jin Dynasty and build his own remote teleportation array to connect with his secret cave in the Southern Frontier.

Therefore, he stayed in Dajin for another six months, carefully selecting a site, collecting materials, and setting up formations.

Six months later, the teleportation array was finally completed and hidden by him with layers of restrictions. After doing all this, Zhou Yuan used the newly built teleportation array to return to his underground cave in the Southern Frontier, and then used the teleportation array in the Southern Frontier to return to the Tiannan Ascension Sect.

Upon returning to the sect, Zhou Yuan briefly greeted Zi Ling, Yuan Yao, and the other women, reported that he was safe and sound, and then went straight to his private secluded cultivation chamber to prepare for the next step of his plan.

His first task during this seclusion was to refine the solar essence fire he had just acquired.

This process is neither particularly difficult nor particularly easy; it requires some time and effort, and one must carefully and persistently work to completely subdue it.

The time required to refine the solar essence fire was not too long.

Six months later, Zhou Yuan had already gained initial control over this wisp of solar essence fire, nurturing it within his body and integrating it with his own magical power, making it as easy to use as an extension of his own arm.

Next, Zhou Yuan planned to do something big: refine a legendary, heaven-defying elixir—the Rejuvenating Water!

This is a heaven-defying elixir that can increase a cultivator's lifespan. Its effects are extremely amazing, increasing a cultivator's original lifespan by a quarter!

Moreover, the higher one's cultivation level, the better the effects after consuming it, and the greater the increase in lifespan. For those old monsters nearing the end of their lifespan, this is simply a priceless treasure.

The specific prescription was given to him by the Great Evolutionary Lord before his death as a reward; it was part of the culmination of that senior's life's work.

The main ingredient for refining the Rejuvenating Water is the legendary Cold Marrow!

Zhou Yuan had obtained the Cold Marrow in both the Void Heaven Cauldron and the capital of the Great Jin Dynasty, although he had used a few drops of it to cultivate several transformed demonic beasts.

However, the remaining quantity was still enough for him to refine several batches of Rejuvenating Water.

There is an extremely demanding condition for refining the Rejuvenating Water: it is necessary to gather two completely opposite spiritual fires of heaven and earth, namely, the True Yin Fire and the Essence Fire of the Sun, and refine them using the method of harmonizing Yin and Yang.

This condition is too demanding; in the human realm, no one has been able to successfully refine it for countless millennia.

After adjusting his condition, Zhou Yuan officially began refining pills.

He carefully put several ancient medicinal herbs, which had disappeared from the outside world, into the alchemy furnace as auxiliary materials, and used the solar essence fire and the yin true fire to heat them alternately to extract their essence.

Then, the most important main ingredient, Cold Marrow, is added to it using a special method.

The entire process of refining medicine is extremely complex and tedious, requiring a very high level of control over the heat. The slightest mistake could ruin everything.

After half a month of tireless and meticulous refining, an extremely rich and exotic fragrance began to permeate the secret chamber.

The fragrance is so refreshing that just one whiff makes one feel invigorated, and even the magical power within one's body seems to become more active.

Finally, at the bottom of the alchemy furnace, a crystal-clear, milky-white liquid, resembling fine nectar, condensed. This liquid was sometimes icy cold and sometimes scalding hot, emitting a strange aura.

Zhou Yuan carefully observed the liquid and estimated that this batch of Rejuvenating Water was enough for five people.

He nodded in satisfaction, took out five fine jade bottles that he had prepared in advance, and carefully divided the Yang-restoring water into five portions.

He himself did not intend to take the Yang-restoring water now.

Since he is still at the Nascent Soul stage and has plenty of lifespan, even if he takes it now, the lifespan increase would be considerable, but it still feels somewhat unwise.

He planned to consume the quarter of his lifespan increase after his cultivation broke through to the Nascent Soul stage. That way, he would gain more lifespan and the cost-effectiveness would be higher.

After completing these tasks, Zhou Yuan did not stop to rest. Instead, he immediately took out various materials for making the Taiyi Huaqing Talisman, preparing to strike while the iron was hot and make this life-saving talisman.

Furthermore, he reached out and patted one of the spirit beast pouches at his waist. A flash of purple light summoned the sleeping Little Purple from the pouch.

After Xiao Zi came out, she was still a little dazed. She rubbed her eyes with her little paws and looked at Zhou Yuan curiously.

"Little Purple, I need to make a very important talisman, and I need a little bit of your blood to help me. It won't be much, don't worry."

Zhou Yuan looked at Xiao Zi with a smile, trying to keep his tone gentle so as not to frighten the little guy.

Although Xiao Zi was somewhat surprised and didn't understand why its master wanted its blood, it had followed Zhou Yuan for many years and had already established a deep trust and affection for him.

It blinked its bright, large eyes, and without the slightest hesitation, nodded sharply and extended its little paws, indicating that Zhou Yuan could make his move.

Zhou Yuan felt a warmth in his heart. Without being polite, he carefully used a specially made silver needle to prick Xiao Zi's fingertip, squeezed out a few drops of essence blood with a purple luster, and put it into a small jade bottle that he had prepared in advance.

There really wasn't much; it was just a small bottle.

"Hey little one, here, have some!"

Seeing Xiao Zi's slightly listless appearance, Zhou Yuan felt a pang of heartache. He quickly took out several high-quality, high-grade spirit stones and stuffed them into Xiao Zi's arms, letting it hug and gnaw on them.