The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

Compared to other relics of the Daqing Empire, the runes here have a more ancient and primitive feel, with bold lines that reveal a certain regularity.

After descending the sand dune, he walked towards the edge of the ruins, where he saw a stone door half-buried in the sand.

He took out the black token and walked to the stone door. The gold patterns on the stone door immediately lit up, and with a soft "creak," a gap appeared at the bottom of the stone door, just big enough for one person to pass through.

Xiao Fan dodged to the side and slipped into the crevice.

This is a hall that is half buried by quicksand. The walls of the hall are inlaid with black crystals, which, although covered in dust, still shimmer with a faint light.

In the center of the main hall is a high platform made of grayish-white stone, on which sits a palm-sized bronze box.

He walked to the box and gently opened it. Inside the jade box was a piece of jade as blue as the sea, smooth and delicate, exactly the same as the white silk in the secret chamber of Burning Bone Abyss.

He pressed the jade slip to his forehead and probed it with his divine sense. Instantly, a massive amount of information flooded into his mind.

This is a cultivation technique called "Extreme Fire Abyss Technique," which describes how to use oneself as a container to absorb fire-attribute spiritual energy that is free in the world when spiritual energy is extremely scarce. This energy is continuously compressed and tempered, turning the dantian into a spiritual energy furnace.

The cultivation method of the Extreme Fire Abyss Technique is completely different from any other cultivation method he has ever seen.

It doesn't pursue the accumulation of spiritual energy, but rather maximizes the capacity and conversion efficiency of the dantian. Once mastered, it can generate spiritual energy on its own, even in the harshest environments. This is precisely what he needs most for his journey to the far west.

He carefully put away the jade slip, closed the bronze box, and placed it back in its original position. He turned and walked out of the stone gate, stood on the top of the sand dune, and raised his hand to shield his eyes from the glaring light.

The blue jade slip felt cool and heavy, and the amount of information it contained was not something that could be digested in a short time.

The desert shimmered with golden light under the sun, stretching as far as the eye could see.

Three days after Xiao Fan obtained the "Extreme Fire Abyss Technique," he was sitting on a sand dune recording something when he suddenly felt a slight vibration.

He immediately closed the notebook, stood up, and scanned the area with his divine sense. He saw three streams of spiritual energy rapidly approaching from a distance behind the western sand dunes, with sand and dust billowing up above them.

He neither dodged nor avoided. Three figures emerged from behind the sand dunes, landing on the ground dozens of feet away, kicking up countless specks of dust.

Leading the way was a lean, bald man in a tattered leather jacket, shirtless. Behind him, two other men, their faces similarly covered in dust, had sharp eyes, like wild beasts hunting their prey.

"From the east? You have quite a few good things on you." The bald, burly man licked his dry lips, his gaze falling on the bulging leather pouch and short staff at Xiao Fan's waist, a greedy glint in his eyes.

Xiao Fan looked at them calmly.

These three were all at the second or third rank of the Tribulation Realm, making them ruthless bandits who roamed freely in this desolate desert.

However, he soon discovered that these people's spiritual energy circulation had a common flaw: although they had a lot of sand-attribute spiritual energy, it was too impure and its circulation was somewhat slow.

"I have a lot of things," he said, pointing to the leather bag. "Sand of Fire, Fire Sand Ore, Fireproof Staff, and some other items you can't name."

The bald man grinned. "Hand over the stuff, and we'll spare your life."

Xiao Fan shook his head helplessly. "I'm in a hurry and don't have time to waste with you. I can kill you in less than three moves."

The bald, burly man's smile froze instantly. The two men behind him exchanged a glance, then pounced on him in a mixture of shame and anger.

One of them slapped Xiao Fan across the face, while the other, wielding a sand-colored dagger, lunged towards Xiao Fan's abdomen. The bald man remained unmoved, forming a hand seal, and a thick pillar of sand rose from beneath Xiao Fan's feet.

The three attacked simultaneously.

However, at that moment, Xiao Fan suddenly vanished from their sight. He shifted his feet, dodging the blade, and with a flick of his right hand, a silver light flashed, striking the wrist of the man wielding the knife.

With a hiss, the dagger fell from his hand and embedded itself hard in the sand.

This is the second point. He raised his left hand and gently pushed the person in front of him. A concentrated and unyielding force of sand and fire exploded between the two, making the person unable to open their eyes. They staggered back seven or eight steps before regaining their balance.

The third sword strike was the same.

After saying that, he turned around and slammed his short staff on the ground. A dark golden arc of light extended from the end of the staff and precisely wrapped around the bald man's feet. The man struggled desperately, but couldn't break free and fell to the ground.

In less than twenty breaths, the three were utterly defeated: one wounded, one trapped, and one lost his weapon.

Xiao Fan walked over, squatted down in front of the bald, burly man, and said calmly, "How many people did you rob on the road?"

The bald man's expression changed. Xiao Fan didn't ask any more questions, put away his staff, and dusted off the dust from his sleeves.

"I'm already on my way to this today. From now on, those who travel the path will suffer less and accumulate more merit."

The three men were left looking at each other, none of them daring to step forward. The endless sand dunes and the blinding sunlight made it impossible for him to open his eyes as he walked along the undulating dunes into the distance.

Five days later, Xiao Fan finally found a weathered natural cave in a desert. The cave wasn't very large, but it was relatively dry and wouldn't be blown away by the wind. Over the next few days, he planned to cultivate the Extreme Fire Abyss Technique to the first level.

He found a dry sandy spot deep in the cave, sat down cross-legged, took out the blue jade slip again, pressed it to his forehead, and silently recited the incantation for the first level of the technique.

The first level of the "Extreme Fire Abyss Technique" involves using the dantian as a container to slowly and steadily absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the dantian, continuously compressing and condensing it until it finally forms a "spiritual core." Around this spiritual core, spiritual power is generated and circulated on its own.

This sounds simple, but to do it requires immense patience and self-control. Xiao Fan closed his eyes, focused his mind, and sank his thoughts into his dantian, drawing in the faint fire-elemental spiritual energy around him.

As the first stream of spiritual energy was compressed, a tingling sensation came from his dantian. He stabilized his rhythm, remaining calm and composed, and continued to guide the second, third, and so on.

This process was slow, taking a full two hours before he could completely condense the small fragment of spiritual energy. Finally, when he had formed a thin layer of spiritual core foundation in his dantian...