Volume Two – The Revelation of the Nine Provinces, Initiation into the Spirit Ruins Chapter 131: The Power of Fire Walking

"You... you aren't dead..." Seeing the person who had arrived, Zhu Gui was thoroughly panicked, his entire body trembling with fear.

"Dead? How could that be?" Chen Yu smiled calmly. "You didn't think I was truly that foolish, did you? Or perhaps you were the ones who were too naive, thinking such a petty trick could deceive me."

"You... what do you mean by that?" Zhu Gui’s face changed, and he cried out in a fluster.

"In the Great Qing State, it was you all testing me... no, it was you all wanting to kill me, wasn't it?" Chen Yu sneered. "Did you think I wouldn't notice you following me the whole time? You didn't really think I would believe it was just a coincidence that we ran into each other, did you?"

"Evidence? Where is the evidence?" Zhu Gui said shamelessly. "Otherwise, you are simply murdering a fellow disciple."

Chen Yu explained nonchalantly: "When I first met Xu Xiu, I attacked her from behind. And yet? She was so terrified that she called out my name without even turning her head. You can surely imagine what that implies. Furthermore, the one who attacked me in the Great Qing State that night was Guo Ming, wasn't it? Although he concealed himself well that day, the power he had previously revealed betrayed him."

Chen Yu then added, "As for your talk of murdering a fellow disciple, that is a matter of perspective. Senior Brother Zhu, please be on your way."

"Wait..." Zhu Gui called out in a hurry.

"Does Senior Brother have any final words?" Chen Yu smiled, closing the distance step by step.

"I clearly saw you die just now; how is this possible? Even if I am to die, I want to die knowing the truth," Zhu Gui asked, staring at Chen Yu in frustration.

"Oh, that. Before I came with Xu Xiu, I secretly employed a technique." Chen Yu smiled and tossed a bean onto the ground. Within moments, it transformed into the likeness of Chen Yu before Zhu Gui's very eyes.

"Spreading beans to create soldiers? So that’s it." Zhu Gui suddenly understood. Looking at the approaching Chen Yu, his eyes filled with malice, and he suddenly prepared to lunge. "You dog..."

But before Zhu Gui could make a move, a sharp sword shot from behind him, piercing through his heart.

"Sword control... the art of sword control. How... how do you possess a magical artifact?" Zhu Gui collapsed, filled with resentment.

"Did you really think I was giving you time to recover? I was merely diverting your attention," Chen Yu said with disdain. "I expected this to take some effort, but I didn't expect it to be solved so easily."

Chen Yu quickly cleaned up the battlefield. The wealth on Zhu Gui's body alone was a pleasant surprise for Chen Yu, not to mention Feng Yu's belongings. It was a pity that the treasures of Guo Ming and the other two had been reduced to ashes. Even so, Chen Yu was quite satisfied.

From them, Chen Yu harvested seventy or eighty Spirit Gathering Pills, as well as a few Aperture Opening Pills. There were also Shaoyang and Shaoyin Pills, which were useful for cultivation in the Yin-Yang Realm. In addition, he obtained the Five Elements Blazing Fire Sword manual, the Five Elements Rain-Forming Sword manual, dozens of yellow talismans, and a thousand taels of gold...

Furthermore, the Red Mountain Ape possessed a Yin-Yang Realm physical body, and its demon core contained powerful energy that far surpassed ordinary pills. The Fire Crow, though inferior, still possessed the cultivation of a First Realm, Five Apertures practitioner.

"Hehe... these are all good things," Chen Yu said excitedly.

After clearing the area, Chen Yu left quickly and settled down in a relatively safe place. Now that he had ample resources, he could cultivate here to raise his level and take the opportunity to ponder the Five Elements Great Escape.

Chen Yu took out the Five Elements Blazing Fire Sword and studied it carefully.

The Five Elements Blazing Fire Sword was not particularly profound and lacked the power of the Taizhu Sword Technique. However, it served as a foundation for containing the power of the Fire Element.

Perhaps it was because he had already spent time pondering the Five Elements Great Escape that Chen Yu did not find the Five Elements Blazing Fire Sword difficult to comprehend. He easily grasped its mysteries.

But this was not the true reason Chen Yu studied the sword technique. His original intention was to use it to gain insight into the power of the Fire Element.

Though he was unsure if he would succeed, Chen Yu understood that all great paths lead to the same destination. Both the sword technique and the fire-element escape technique contained the foundations of fire power; they must surely be interconnected.

Chen Yu rehearsed the Five Elements Blazing Fire Sword in his mind while simultaneously comparing it with the fire-element escape technique. Before he knew it, he became fully immersed.

He suddenly stood up and began to dance with his sword. The natural energy of heaven and earth gathered with the wind of his strikes. Flowers of flame coalesced upon the blade, and his long sword turned crimson, becoming scorching hot. Yet, the hand holding the sword felt not a trace of heat.

*Snap...* Chen Yu slashed his sword against a nearby stone. Unexpectedly, the sword did not split the rock; instead, it bent under the force.

Chen Yu woke up in an instant. He stared blankly at the bent sword in his hand, feeling immensely stirred: The power of the Fire Element? Is this the power of the Fire Element?

As Chen Yu circulated his mana, the vital energy of heaven and earth seemed to be drawn toward him, rapidly converging in his hand. A flame hovered in his palm, yet it could not harm him in the slightest. This fire-element power was far more potent than the water-element power he had previously grasped, and he had only just begun to scratch the surface.

In a mere moment, more than half of the mana in Chen Yu's body had been consumed. He could not help but shake his head, sighing: "The power of the Five Elements is not something I can wield just yet. Perhaps only after reaching the Yin-Yang Realm will I be able to manifest it. Moreover, ordinary blades cannot withstand the power of the Five Elements; only magical artifacts can bear it."

"No rush, my path is still long. Slow and steady," Chen Yu adjusted his mindset. While he still felt the lingering clarity of his epiphany, he once again began to contemplate the power of the Fire Element.

This time, he even consumed a Fire-Immersion Seed, hoping to successfully master the fire-element escape technique.

A wave of intense heat surged from within his body, and Chen Yu felt as though he were being incinerated by flames. He dared not be careless and immediately activated the Nine Breaths Qi-Swallowing Method and the Hunyuan Sutra to refine the energy of the seed.

As the medicinal power spread through his body, he felt an unprecedented sense of comfort. The burning sensation mellowed, and his understanding of the Fire Element deepened significantly.

Ten days passed. The five Fire-Immersion Seeds had been consumed one after another. The mana in Chen Yu's body grew stronger, and his grasp of the fire-element escape technique reached its peak.

At this moment, steam rose from Chen Yu's entire body. Upon closer inspection, it was the "collision" between his own mana and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. The steam instantly transformed into the power of the Fire Element, which surged into his body.

Chen Yu first frowned in pain, but then his expression smoothed out. He slowly opened his eyes, as if nothing had happened.

He laughed excitedly: "The fire-element escape technique, it is done!"