The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

This autumn is much warmer than before. The ginkgo leaves in the yard fell later than last year; it won't be until mid-October that we can see a golden expanse.

Han Fei swept up the fallen leaves as usual, and after Gu Yuan finished reading a few old books on talismans, he found a pile of new talisman paper and slowly began to polish it.

Yun Ruoxi sat on a low table under the eaves, flipping through the geography book she had read last year and a travelogue about southern Xinjiang, and then flipping through it again.

Xiao Fan wasn't in a hurry. Occasionally, he would visit Chen Yuan's library to exchange basic knowledge with unfamiliar cultivators who came to see the "Tai Xu Collection".

The library gradually filled up with people, and every now and then someone would pick up "The Collection of the Great Void" and read it with great interest, the rustling sound of turning pages echoing in the quiet reading room.

One evening at the end of the season, Xiao Fan walked alone to the viewing platform outside the courtyard. As dusk fell, the villages at the foot of Danta Mountain were brightly lit, with wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys, casting a greyish hue over the twilight. The distant mountains stood silently in the afterglow of the setting sun.

He leaned against the railing of the observation deck, remaining motionless for a long time, until dusk turned from orange to blue, and the lights in the valley became denser and brighter.

A night breeze blew in from the foot of the mountain, carrying the fragrance of grass and trees. It passed through my clothes, making me shiver, yet also feeling warm and cozy.

He turned and walked slowly along the mountain path. The bedroom door was ajar, and he could vaguely see the dim light from the living room and hear the faint sounds of Han Fei cooking.

Master Gu Yuan was tidying up the talisman paper that had been dried that day, folding the remaining few sheets and putting them into a box. He pushed open the door and went inside.

As he spoke, he stepped into the courtyard. When he crossed the threshold, it was already dark behind him.

One day after winter began, Chen Yuan rushed to the Pill Tower with an urgent document from the Imperial Fire Dao Alliance. The letter stated that the ruins of an ancient fire dao arena had been discovered three thousand miles northwest of the Great Qing Empire, in the Cangwu Mountains.

The seals surrounding these ruins, weathered over thousands of years, have begun to crumble, revealing the complete structure within.

According to reports from scouts, the arena is well-preserved, and a huge stone tablet called the "Ten Thousand Fire Ranking" stands in the central square, recording the names and achievements of hundreds of ancient fire cultivators.

After an emergency discussion between the Alliance and the Federation, it was decided to hold a large-scale "Ten Thousand Fires Gathering" to invite fire cultivators from all directions to come here and exchange skills.

The entire process will be simultaneously broadcast in squares of dozens of cities around Daqing through "fire-viewing mirrors" specially made by the Fire Road Federation.

The document concludes with the statement: "On the Myriad Fire Ranking, there is a trace of spiritual energy left by an ancient fire-path expert. The better a contestant performs on the arena, the more the trace on the stone tablet will be recorded, and the corresponding spiritual energy will be given in return."

In other words, this is not just a competition, but a grand event that can directly improve one's cultivation level.

After reading the document, Xiao Fan placed it on the table and tapped the surface with his finger.

Chen Yuan, who was standing next to him, added, "According to the advance team, the space inside this arena is several times larger than it appears from the outside. It must have been expanded by ancient cultivators using spatial arrays."

Besides the arena, there are several passages leading underground, but the entrance restrictions are not yet activated. The Alliance suggests you go there.

Xiao Fan thought for a moment, nodded, and said, "Okay." The spiritual energy imprint on the Myriad Fire Ranking stele can be directly converted into an increase in cultivation level. In addition, the possibility of the restrictions within the arena being activated is extremely high. This trip has been worthwhile.

This time, he took Yun Ruoxi and Gu Yuan with him, while Han Fei stayed in Danta. The carriage traveled northwest, passing fewer and fewer villages along the way, until finally, only a stretch of gray-blue hills and withered shrubs remained for the last two days.

The Cangwu Mountains were much more vast than Xiao Fan had imagined. The entire mountain was made of dark gray granite piled up and covered with dark green moss.

The advance team set up camp at the foot of the mountain, where dozens of people had already gathered. Representatives of various forces in Daqing sat in twos and threes in their respective tents.

Several "fire-watching mirrors," several meters high and circular in shape, stood in the center of the camp. They were in standby mode and not activated.

After Xiao Fan gave his name, the cultivator in charge of registration showed a respectful expression and quickly led him to a tent at the very front of the camp.

Some people around him recognized him, and whispers drifted in through the gaps in the tent, but no one made a loud noise.

After putting down his luggage, he didn't rest and headed straight for the entrance to the arena. It was an arched stone gate that was at least three zhang wide, covered with intricate flame patterns. In the very center of the patterns was a circular groove the size of a fist, which was exactly the size of the Thunderfire Token.

He didn't rush to put the Thunderfire Token inside. Instead, he stood in front of the gate and carefully observed the patterns on it, confirming that this restriction was the same system as the stone chambers in Burning Bone Abyss and Azure Cloud Mountain, only it was older.

He turned around and went back to his camp to prepare for tomorrow's game.

Early the next morning, all the fire-watching mirrors in the entire camp were lit up. The alliance's cultivators announced the start of the Ten Thousand Fires Gathering, and ten participants from each group were assigned to the arena for testing.

Xiao Fan, on the other hand, was in the third group.

He walked through the archway, passed through a short corridor, and came to a huge circular plaza.

The square was paved with black stone slabs, and in the middle stood a gray-blue stone tablet, about three zhang tall, covered with names and battle achievements.

The names at the top are somewhat blurred, but the writing behind them is becoming clearer and clearer, indicating that people have left their mark here over the years.

The first and second rounds of the competition continued, with the ten people divided into five different arenas for a fierce battle.

Xiao Fan stood aside and watched. He noticed that each contestant's outstanding performance would light up a spot on the Wanhuo Ranking, representing their performance.

At the same time, live broadcasts were simultaneously being conducted on viewing mirrors in dozens of city squares within Daqing.

The square was packed with onlookers, who looked up at the giant screen on the big screen, and some even cheered for the monks they knew.

After the third group of people entered, Xiao Fan came to the front of the Myriad Fire Ranking and placed his hand on the stone tablet.

The bluish-gray stone tablet was slightly warm, and a new line of words was newly engraved on it: "Successor of the Great Qing Taixu, Xiao Fan." These words emitted a calm and warm light, attracting everyone's attention.

In the first match, his opponent was a rogue cultivator from the north, a fourth-grade Tribulation Realm cultivator. Xiao Fan used the Sand and Fire Dao to condense a sand shield, blocking the opponent's ice and fire spiritual power. Caught off guard, the rogue cultivator was forced back several steps by his own spiritual power and admitted defeat.