"It worked! Haha, not bad at all. In time, the Sub-flame of Fallen Heart Flame inside him will grow into a true Fallen Heart Flame," Mang Tianchi said, stroking his beard.
"Then, Dean, the Fallen Heart Flame in the Sky Burning Qi Refining Tower is still there, right?" Su Qian asked, stepping to Mang Tianchi's side.
"That's right."
"What if the Fallen Heart Flame goes berserk again? Below us is a vast world of magma—plenty of energy for it to recover." Su Qian felt the danger hadn't been removed.
Mang Tianchi: "That's no longer a problem. Xiao Li has subdued the Sub-flame of Fallen Heart Flame; once his cultivation is sufficient, he can use it to seize the Fallen Heart Flame's Origin and weaken it again.
That way we won't have to worry about it running wild. It will strengthen the Origin of Xiao Li's Fallen Heart Flame while keeping the Sky Burning Qi Refining Tower running—a win-win!"
Brilliant! Truly brilliant! Worthy of a Dou Zun Expert, worthy of our Dean—what a move!
"How long does the Dean plan to stay this time?" Su Qian inquired.
"I'd meant to stay a few days, but now a year or two sounds nice. It's been ages since I was back; the academy really is the most comfortable place." Mang Tianchi stretched lazily.
Su Qian exhaled in relief; it would be good if the Dean stayed longer—at least his own load would lighten.
"Dean, why not make Xiao Li an Elder of Jia Nan Academy? Anyway, he's already a five-star Dou Wang; making him an Elder fits. Keeping him as a student is just bullying."
Mang Tianchi said meaningfully, "Makes sense. Let him be an Elder. His road is still long—bone age of eighteen and five-star Dou Wang. Even in the clan, unless the Bloodline is eighth-grade or higher, no one can compare."
The Two Elders Qian Bai exclaimed, "Could it be an Imperial clan?"
Su Qian was puzzled: "What Imperial clan?"
Mang Tianchi: "A Family that once produced a Dou Di. I'll explain later; I come from such a line myself, but I hate that identity!
All my efforts end up credited to Bloodline! Damn it! One line—'your Bloodline made you'—and my centuries of work are erased. Damn it!"
As he spoke, Mang Tianchi grew furious—something tied to his own past.
(The following is the author's creative aside—just enjoy the ride.)
Mang Tianchi was born in the Thunder Clan, a common clansman. His talent was excellent; the main line noticed him and tested his Dou Di Bloodline—fifth-grade, not bad.
He cultivated hard and reached Dou Zong while still young, only for the main line to mock that all his feats came from Bloodline regression—without it, he'd be a nobody for life!
Naturally hot-tempered, Mang Tianchi beat the fellow up and left the Thunder Clan, abandoning its resources to roam the central plains alone.
Decades later, when the Thunder Clan found him, he had already broken through to Dou Zun. The Elders' council immediately appointed him an Elder.
Yet some idiot again declared that with mere fifth-grade Bloodline he could never become a Dou Saint—not even a Half-Saint!
Mang Tianchi has nursed this grievance ever since. Are his achievements truly only due to Dou Di Bloodline? He believes that even without it, he can still become a powerhouse!
After that he seldom stayed in the Thunder Realm, ignoring the clan unless summoned. Now he presses toward the fabled Dou Saint Realm.
During this time he discovered the Fallen Heart Flame in the Black-Corner Region and conceived the idea of founding an academy to nurture geniuses of the Fighting Qi Continent.
He hopes his students can reach Dou Saint without Dou Di Bloodline, to slap the faces of those Bloodline-obsessed Old fellows!
Alas, though Jia Nan Academy has produced plenty of geniuses, none have been truly peerless—no one has even caught up to Mang Tianchi's pace.
Now marching toward the Dou Saint Realm, having reached Nine-Star Dou Zun, he finally understands how vast the gulf between Dou Zun and Dou Saint truly is!
To become a Dou Saint without special Opportunity, one must walk the nine-revolving path: nine cycles of condensing and compressing Dou Qi.
At Peak Dou Zun, when the body's Dou Qi is full and can increase no further, one must condense and compress it all, creating space for new Dou Qi; when full again, repeat.
Currently Mang Tianchi has completed seven compressions—making him, by Realm, a seven-revolving Dou Zun!
The remaining two revolutions, he feels, can be finished within a dozen or so years, then step forward to Half-Saint—but that step has blocked countless people.
Even within Imperial clans, many are stuck at this stage.
He plans to stay at Jia Nan Academy for a year or two, then travel in search of a suitable place—if he can find a Void Lightning Pool and refine a couple of Black Demon Lightning bolts, his path to Dou Saint will be secure!
...A month has passed since Xiao Li began absorbing the strange flame. Actually, on the seventh day Mang Tianchi had already sensed Xiao Li had successfully subdued the Fallen Heart Flame; he simply hadn't awakened.
"Hmm, using the Fallen Heart Flame's trait of refining Qi and forging bone to thoroughly digest the piled-up medicinal strength? And he didn't convert all of that strength into cultivation.
Instead he fused the medicinal power into his body to further raise his innate talent. Haha, this kid hasn't lost himself in rapid advancement.
With the medicinal strength accumulated in him he could reach Dou Huang. Haha, interesting lad—perhaps one day the central plains will see a formidable Dou Zun Expert."
Given Mang Tianchi's cultivation, he naturally saw what Xiao Li was doing and felt it was the right choice.
Xiao Li had consumed too many Medicinal Pills; the residual power had become a burden. He could only digest it, yet direct cultivation gain, while good short-term, might not serve him long-term.
That strength could at most make him a Dou Huang, and personally he felt Dou Huang was only two or three years away—no rush; with the Fallen Heart Flame he could binge pills later.
He chose to merge the medicinal strength into his body to enhance his talent—he knew the difference between Dou Zong-level talent and Dou Zun-level talent.
Besides, Elder Wang had done so much to help Foundation Establishment; he couldn't very well sabotage himself.
Huu—
Xiao Li exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, the sound instantly waking the surrounding Elders.
The Elders had waited an entire month to Protector him; none had left—after all, witnessing a strange flame fully subdued was worth it.
"Hmm, eight-star Dou Wang—very good. Your Foundation is solid; the flame forging body has transformed your physique, Dou Qi, and Soul, pushing your Soul to the Late Stage of the Mortal Realm. Excellent, excellent."
Mang Tianchi patted Xiao Li's shoulder in satisfaction, then thought of something.
"Boy, you don't have a Body Refining Dou Technique yet, do you? With a body like yours, not refining it would be a waste." From his storage ring he produced a scarlet scroll.
"Earth Rank Intermediate Dou Technique: Sky Burning Flame Devil Body, a fire-attribute Body Refining art. Decent power—and since you already have a strange flame, training this Body Refining art with it will yield even better results."
Throwing an arm over Xiao Li's shoulder, Mang Tianchi pressed the scarlet scroll into his hand.
"Thank you, Dean."
"Hey—no need for thanks with this Dean. When you head to the central plains later, stir up some trouble and make this old man proud, alright?" Mang Tianchi said with a grin.