While Cao Yun and Cangfeng talked, Shaman Heiyan was particularly attentive. Ash Bringer was Emperor Nuwa, a human who had founded the Hongchen Kingdom. Learning that she had vanquished Demon God Da Mo made Shaman Heiyan proud. But then, he found out that she had left and had never come back. There was almost no way she would actually come back, especially after hearing about the time dilation between their realms. Shaman Heiyan realized that this journey was almost a one-way trip for Cao Yun. When he returned home, many, if not all, of the people that he had ever known might be dead. Of course, Shaman Heiyan then remembered that some humans could live extremely long thanks to cultivation.
Just as Shaman Heiyan was thinking about that, Cao Yun touched upon the subject.
"Cangfeng, I am confused. Although your kind clearly cannot follow the path of the Three Jade Saints, you should be able to cultivate. In fact, you should even have a much longer longevity than humans in the first place. Your kind's life fire could literally be rekindled with external fire, unlike our essence. Our prenatal Jing and your life fire have similarities, but I don't perceive any real distinction between prenatal and postnatal life fire. At least, such a difference should be minimal. So long as you increase your understanding of the Dao of Fire, you should be able to improve upon your life fire. Your longevity should grow in accordance with your comprehension of Fire itself. And yet, it seems like everyone accepts that you're forced to never progress. You simply live like mortals. And it isn't by choice. You simply don't know any better. This is baffling to me."
"Young noble, you are absolutely right. Legends of the past talk about powerful Flameborns who became Fire Immortals or even Torch Gods. Unfortunately, even in my time, they were past myths. I don't think that anyone actually believes in any of those anymore. I remember that my parents talked about this. Indeed, my grandmother and my grandfathers were alive when the Ash Bringer was in our lands. Apparently, she had the same doubts you have now. I don't know whether she assuaged them or not. However, my parents always talked about a great shadow that they saw once in the black clouds. It was so somber and ominous that it blackened even the abyss of the sky. All flames dimmed, and Flameborns knew cold that day.
"My parents never elaborated any more than that. I think that some of Ash Bringer's legends with the Sun-Severing Spear come from there, but I cannot be sure as I wasn't of an age to understand. I don't even remember that day in particular. However, my parents did, it got burned into their memories. More than that, they told me that Ash Bringer herself was shocked by this shadow and muttered something about a demonic tree."
Cao Yun was surprised because Emperor Nuwa had never talked about the Withering Fusang Tree doing anything to the Broken Fire World. But what Cangfeng described looked similar to the breakthroughs Cao Yun had witnessed in the Hongchen Kingdom. From his understanding, the Withering Fusang Tree was feeding off fate by cutting the connection between humans and the Dao. Such a feeding method could have even more impact on beings so closely related to the Dao of Fire. The Withering Fusang Tree might get more strength from them while diminishing theirs by so much that they essentially became mortals.
After hearing about Yanzhen's experience, it made perfect sense. Although Cao Yun wasn't sure whether the Withering Fusang Tree was actually sentient or not, it had a form of intelligence, maybe simply instinctive. Anyway, it was clearly keeping them alive and was letting them access the Dao of Fire to become stronger so that they wouldn't stop. But when they reached a certain degree of strength, it devoured most of it during their cultivation, while never eradicating it completely so that they wouldn't cease cultivation altogether.
All the Flameborns were the Withering Fusang Tree's nutrients, and they didn't even realize it. Obviously, this didn't sit well with Cao Yun. After all, this might be the fate of his own Hongchen Kingdom. His own children, his brothers and sister, his friends, his people, they were all potential victims. No! They were victims, just not to this degree. The Withering Fusang Tree was just slowed in the Hongchen Kingdom for whatever reason. Eventually, all those worlds would be devoured whole by the Withering Fusang Tree. One way or another, Cao Yun knew what he had to do. But he needed strength.
Thankfully, Cao Yun could now finally look for what he wanted.
"Cangfeng, I need to gain access to the Pillar of the End of the World."
This was within Cangfeng's expectations, but it shocked Shaman Heiyan.
"So this is why you came to our miserable world...? I take it that you are a 3rd-grade Sage, as I do not believe that you are a 9th-grade Sage yet."
"That is correct. The Pillar of the End of the World is the treasure I will use as the foundation of the third floor of my inner pagoda. Of course, I don't intend to steal the Pillar of the End of the World from your Broken Fire World, nor could I even if I wanted. A mere fragment of the Pillar of the End of the World will be enough. Not only will it advance my cultivation, but it will also help me improve my understanding of the Dao of Fire. In turn, it will help me progress even faster."
"Then, you know that only the Fire Thearch can give anyone permission to access the Pillar of the End of the World."
"Yes, but each tribe is given a spot every decade in order to cultivate there and to seek understanding from the Pillar of the End of the World itself, the very heart of your world."
Hearing this, both Cangfeng and Shaman Heiyan were dejected.
"Sadly, our tribe has failed to secure a spot for more than forty years. To be fair, fifty years ago, we were barely able to secure a spot, thanks only to some residual renown our Ancient Obsidian tribe still had. We were hoping to send Yanzhen next year, but we fear that it will be difficult."
"Nonsense. We subjugated the Raging Volcano tribe. Anyone who refuses a spot to my Ancient Obsidian tribe will suffer the consequences. I will make sure that Yanzhen gets a spot as well. That kid is talented and not conceited. Ironically, the meager state of your Ancient Obsidian tribe probably prevented him from being arrogant with so much talent."
Shaman Heiyan noticed that Cao Yun seemed to make a distinction between his Ancient Obsidian tribe and theirs. Honestly, even Cangfeng could understand it. In less than a few months, Cao Yun had already done more for the tribe than several generations of leaders. No matter what, they had to make the three leaders listen to reason. If they couldn't, they might have to do something more permanent. What truly mattered was the survival of the Ancient Obsidian tribe. Unfortunately, it was clear that Cao Yun would not stay forever. In fact, he was literally planning to go into seclusion for ten years at the Pillar of the End of the World. Afterward, he would probably leave for good, never to return again.
There was still a bit more than a year before the Pillar of the End of the World opened again. Every ten years, Flameborns were sent to cultivate inside the very heart of the Broken Fire World, at the Pillar of the End of the World. There, the Dao of Fire was much more potent, and Flameborns could cultivate in a mere decade what most Flameborns couldn't achieve in a lifetime. Obviously, the spots were sought after with avidity. Unfortunately, not everyone could access the Pillar of the End of the World at once. Since the spots were limited, tribes were fighting to get them. A few tribes had automatic spots, but the Ancient Obsidian tribe had lost this privilege.
First of all, Cao Yun had to earn this privilege back. He could always try to force his way into the Pillar of the End of the World. However, this would result in an absolute war of all the tribes against him. Even if Cao Yun could somehow win, he didn't want to eradicate an entire people because he had violated their laws. Moreover, those laws weren't even unfair. Allocating limited resources was perfectly understandable. And no one had suppressed the Ancient Obsidian tribe out of malice. They had fallen from grace on their own.
"I imagine that the process changed a lot in a few centuries."
"Indeed. There are twenty spots. The four largest tribes all get two spots, the Fire Thearch also has two spots he can give to anyone. So there are ten spots left. Because of some treaties with the demons, we have to give them three spots in total. So only seven spots are left for the taking. Some tribes are given spots by the Fire Thearch himself. Usually, he only gives out five spots that the tribes he has chosen can share as they see fit. Several tribes often make agreements on how to share the spot they're given. I don't want to get down into it too much as it's muddy politics.
"But something important is that spots can be bought and exchanged. It's not unheard of for a tribe to bet a spot, but it's a precious treasure, so they would require something as equally precious in return."
"How are those tribes chosen? And what about the last two spots?"
"Well... The Fire Thearch simply chooses the tribes that distinguished themselves the most. Most of the time, he refers to the four largest tribes and a few medium-sized tribes in order to make his decision. He also bases his decision on which Flameborn should be helped for the betterment of the entire Broken Fire World. This was why we hoped that Yanzhen could obtain a spot. Maybe it even pushed other tribes to notice us more. Having a good youngster can be a double-edged sword indeed. In the end, the decision for those spots only takes place a few months before the actual event.
"When it comes to the two other spots, there are competitions. As soon as all the spots have been given away, a competition is held throughout the Broken Fire World. One competition is based on the understanding of the Dao of Fire alone, while the other competition is based on overall strength. As a matter of fact, this second competition was created to appease the demons as well. Although they are a minority, they can still be dangerous. Most Fire Thearchs have tried to make some form of peace with them. Our best outcome is when we don't mix with demons at all. But the Dao of Fire is also important to them, so we came to this agreement to avoid unnecessary violence."
Cao Yun was slowly piecing a plan together.
"The spots are given to tribes, not to individuals, except for those last two spots, correct?"
"Indeed."
"But they are also given based on certain individuals within the tribe. Have there been assassinations in the past in order to weaken a tribe so that they wouldn't obtain a spot?"
"It's rare but not unheard of. However, it's usually very obvious."
"I see... I'm trying to figure out what the tribes could do to increase the odds. Do some bribe the Fire Thearch?"
"Rumors exist. But actual attempts have been made, and they were harshly punished by the Fire Thearch himself. Of course, it's impossible to say that bribing never happens, as bishops under the Fire Thearch could also be bribed. Let me just say that if it happens at all, it's extremely rare and limited."
"Good. I don't think we can count on the spots given by the Fire Thearch. Even in a bit more than a year, it would be difficult to raise the strength of our Ancient Obsidian tribe to the level of the four largest tribes. As such, there is no guarantee of getting a spot from the Fire Thearch. If we work under this assumption, we should target the two competitions. While I'm confident in my strength, I don't think I'll win based on the Dao of Fire. However, Yanzhen actually might. We'll need to find a good spot to work on his Dao of Fire and overall strength."
Shaman Heiyan thought of something.
"Well, there is a hunt very soon. It might even be a way for our Ancient Obsidian tribe to distinguish ourselves. Trying to secure more spots isn't a bad idea, in my opinion."
Speaking his mind before Cao Yun and Cangfeng wasn't easy, but Shaman Heiyan was confident in his idea.
"You're talking about the hunt into the Weeping Summits? Yes, it's not a bad idea at all. Many local tribes will gather to collect precious materials and hunt rare fire beasts. Usually, there are even demons present. It happens almost every year. It should begin in a couple of months."
Cao Yun knew about the Weeping Summits and what could be found there. In fact, he was thinking of something that could be there without anyone ever noticing. If he was right, he absolutely had to go there.
"Are those tribes powerful?"
"A few of them are much more powerful than the Raging Volcano tribe, but most of them are on the level of Rong Shan's tribe. However, it's far from our Ancient Obsidian tribe... So the Sun-Severing Spear won't really be as effective there."
"Do not worry about this. I do not intend to overuse this artifact. In the end, I must rely on my own strength. So it is decided, I will train and cultivate with Yanzhen until the hunt in the Weeping Summits begins. Then, we'll go train there. Whether we win spots or not, we'll take part in the two competitions. Anyone getting in our way will submit or be crushed by our momentum. I can assure you that the Ancient Obsidian tribe won't be ashamed of us."