The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

Xiao Fan stored his half in his spatial artifact, and also took a few hard scales and two sharp fangs from the fire lizard, just in case.

As they climbed out of the cave, the sunlight shone directly on them.

Master Cheng dusted off his shoulders and pointed northwest: "There's a fairly large site there. I saw it from afar a few days ago, but I was repelled by a barrier as soon as I got close. Since you were able to come in through the spatial rift, perhaps you can break through that barrier too."

Xiao Fan looked in the direction he pointed and could see a dark outline on the northwest horizon, with varying heights, resembling a large group of abandoned buildings.

It took the two of them half a day to reach the edge of the complex.

From a distance, it appears as a blurry outline, but upon closer inspection, one discovers that the scale of this site is beyond imagination: dozens of buildings of varying sizes are scattered across the surrounding area for miles, the largest of which is a stone tower that is seven or eight meters high and has been tilted, yet it still stands firm.

Sure enough, there was a transparent barrier around the complex, almost invisible in the sunlight, but when Cheng Xiushi reached out to touch it, he found that his palm was repelled by a strong force.

Xiao Fan stepped forward and placed his hand on the barrier. After the Creation Flame entered the barrier, he saw a restriction similar to the stone wall of the Burning Bone Abyss, only it was older and cruder in its construction.

He closed his eyes, and a brief resonance occurred between the frequency of his spiritual core and the barrier.

With the resonance, the barrier trembled slightly, and a gap about the height of a person appeared in the palm of his hand.

Master Cheng stared at the gap in shock.

"It can be opened after all. Your cultivation method is really wild."

The two walked through the gap.

A surge of fire-elemental spiritual energy, several times more concentrated than that of the Heavenly Fire Plains, rushed towards them. When Xiao Fan's inner core came into contact with this fire-elemental spiritual energy, it began to spin wildly, like a starving beast seeing delicious food.

They continued along the main road, seeing some buildings that were still relatively intact along the way.

In one of the best-preserved stone halls, Xiao Fan discovered a mural hanging on a wall. The mural depicted a group of cultivators dressed in ancient robes performing some kind of ritual around a circular altar. Floating on the altar was a angular crystal, the shape of which was somewhat similar to the spirit crystal on the fire lizard, but more regular.

Master Cheng also joined in: "The history here is longer than that of any tribe in our Heavenly Fire Plains. I heard that this area used to be inhabited by fire-path cultivators, but for some reason, everyone disappeared."

Xiao Fan memorized every detail of the mural, especially the shape of the crystal and the structure of the altar.

The crystal was sharply angular, unlike ordinary spirit cores, and seemed to have been artificially processed.

They continued deeper into the ruins, where, at the very center, there was a well-preserved circular altar.

The altar was made entirely of black rock, with a smooth surface and densely engraved runes along its edges, but it didn't seem to have anything special about it.

In the very center of the countertop, there is a palm-sized groove, the shape of which is exactly the same as the fire lizard's spirit core.

Xiao Fan took out half of his inner core, hesitated for a moment, and then placed the inner core into the groove.

The moment the spirit core entered the groove, the entire altar emitted a deep hum, and the runes on the altar lit up one after another. Then, a bronze cylinder split open from the middle.

He removed the cylinder, opened the lid, and inside was a thin sheet of metal covered with densely packed small characters.

This is a complete process for crafting a Heaven-Rank Spiritual Artifact using a Fire Lizard Spirit Core.

This list of auxiliary materials for the weapon-refining method includes many minerals and materials from exotic beasts native to the Heavenly Fire Plains.

Xiao Fan carefully put the leaf away, and then took out the half of the inner core.

As he removed the spirit core, the runes on the altar gradually dimmed.

Seeing this, the cultivator Cheng stroked his chin and said, "Are you really planning to forge a set of Heaven-Rank spiritual artifacts here? These materials are incredibly valuable. Even I wouldn't dare to touch some exotic beasts so easily."

Xiao Fan put away the cylinder and turned to look into the depths of the ruins.

"Same to you, no rush."

According to the list of auxiliary materials on the metal sheet, the first type of ore required is "Crimson Flame Iron Essence" from a place called Crimson Flame Valley in the north of Tianhuo Plain.

After leaving the ruins, the two traveled north for two days. The surrounding terrain had changed from dark red to rugged and uneven, the golden patterns on the ground had become thicker, and the heat had become more intense.

At the entrance to Crimson Flame Valley, people were already waiting.

At the entrance to the valley stood three men and two women, all dressed in silver outfits with a short hammer hanging from their waists.

Leading the way was a young woman with a cool and aloof face and a high ponytail. Her sharp eyes swept over Xiao Fan and the cultivator Cheng.

"You two look unfamiliar. Are you also here to collect Crimson Flame Iron Essence?" she asked in a scrutinizing tone.

Cheng Xiushi clearly recognized the other party's attire and explained in a low voice, "There's an organization called the Silver Hammer Society in the northern part of Tianhuo Plain that monopolizes the mining rights in this area. We can't afford to offend them."

Xiao Fan walked up to the woman, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "We do need some Crimson Flame Iron Essence. The quantity is not large, just enough to forge one spiritual weapon."

The woman glanced at him, then at the badge on his waist, and raised an eyebrow slightly.

"The token, you came through a spatial rift?" Her tone softened slightly, but carried a hint of scrutiny. "Although this vein produces Crimson Flame Iron Essence, the yield is limited. If you want a small portion, you can come with us, but you can only collect the rest."

Xiao Fan nodded in deep agreement.

As the group entered Crimson Flame Valley, the temperature inside suddenly rose a few degrees.

The rocks on the wall gleamed with a dark red luster, as if they had endured thousands of years of high temperatures, with patches of dark golden mineral veins exposed.

The five members of the Silver Hammer Society immediately dispersed and began to busy themselves, the sound of hammering against the rock wall echoing through the valley.

Xiao Fan did not compete with them for the main vein, but instead followed the cracks and edges of the mountain wall to search for the fallen fragments.

Master Cheng followed closely behind, and the two worked together seamlessly.

Xiao Fan found a dark gold ore in a narrow passage. The ore was not large, but its color was much darker than that of the ore in the main vein, and its spiritual energy was contained.

He carefully knocked the ore off and examined it closely in his palm.