The spirit gently guided a slender strand of emerald flame, slowly circulating it, and along its path, the ice layers formed by the Ice Spirit's cold spring were continuously melting. With careful attention, he guided this small emerald flame through various meridians, and as it passed, other strands of emerald flame gradually drew near, attracted by his companion. Leveraging the mutual attraction between the emerald flames, Xiao Yan controlled the strand of Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire circulating within his meridians, and the scattered emerald flames throughout his body began to slowly recombine and merge. When finally, after considerable effort, Xiao Yan gathered the last strand of emerald flame together, the flames gradually fused, and shortly thereafter, coalesced into a fine stream of emerald molten rock. Gazing at this newly formed emerald magma, Xiao Yan forcibly suppressed the wave after wave of spasms radiating through his meridians, gritting his teeth, and steadily guided it through the channels. The integrated Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire had undoubtedly become more furious and terrifying. Along its path, ice layers that had previously been able to hold their own against the earlier pale blue flames now began to falter. As the blue molten rock flowed over them, the thick ice layers thinned down to mere thickness of a thumb, and the cold mist vaporizing from them was completely incinerated by the vibrant blue flames. With their supply systems severed, the ice layers could no longer withstand the relentless erosion of this unusual fire. The effects of the Ice Spirit's Cold Spring were gradually diminishing. During one particularly explosive surge of Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire, a segment of meridian ice was entirely melted away. A droplet of blue molten rock pierced through the ice barrier and landed directly upon the exposed meridian. Instantly, the meridian contracted like a freshly stimulated eel, tightening sharply, and a deep, soul-shaking pain surged through it—so intense that Xiao Yan choked and spat out a fountain of blood. The teeth of the two were tightly clenched, and the sudden, intense pain sent a dizzying sensation through Xiao Yan's head, which only gradually subsided. Without even having time to wipe away the bloodstains, he quickly gathered his focus once more, guiding the jade-like lava along his meridians. As the flow continued, Xiao Yan's control over the Qinglian Earth-Heart Flame grew increasingly refined. Yet precisely because of this mastery, the temperature radiating from the blue flame grew more and more formidable. Now, within his body, the Ice Spirit Cold Spring was steadily retreating under the relentless assault of the flame, and it was only a matter of time before it was completely dissolved. Holding his teeth tightly, Xiao Yan desperately dragged the small streak of azure magma, its intense heat radiating through his meridians, seeping through his bones, directly causing fine white bubbles to form on the surface of his body. As these bubbles burst, revealing beneath them the crimson flesh, delicate cracks spread across the tissue, eventually spreading over his arms and entire body, making him appear like a porcelain doll shattered into pieces—quite alarming. Watching Xiao Yan's skin rupture all over, the elderly pharmacist's eyes could hardly contain their tremor. This skin fragmentation clearly indicated that the intense heat had fully permeated his body. All the hot energy flowing outward had to first rupture his skin before it could escape through these fissures. Usually, when this situation arises, it indicates that the internal condition is not particularly favorable, as any surge of energy at this point would very likely blast萧In's skin surface right off. The elderly face rapidly changed expressions, and the Elder Medic's hands tightened and relaxed repeatedly, then settled finally, as he calmly waited by, silent and still, not daring to make the slightest sound that might disturb萧In. Focusing entirely on the jade-like molten stream that was nearly completing a full circulation through his meridians,萧In paid no attention to the changes occurring on his body surface. When the jade-like molten stream flowed out of a primary meridian, it finally completed a perfect cycle. At that moment,萧In clearly sensed that the connection between his mind and the Qinglian Earth-Heart Flame had grown a little more harmonious. As the final surge of the blue magma concluded, a sudden ripple surged through Xiao Yan's qi, causing a ripple effect that affected the entire body. A mere slight tremor in the qi triggered a violent surge of intense heat, which then erupted violently over Xiao Yan's arms, blasting a large section of skin and flesh right off. The abrupt, severe pain caused Xiao Yan's soul to tremble, and cold sweat poured down his forehead like a steady stream, soaking his clothes. Taking several deep, refreshing breaths, Xiao Yan reached into his storage ring, pulled out a vial of healing medicine, sprayed it haphazardly onto the wound, and then focused his mind once again on the blue flame within his body. Within the body, as the Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire completed one cycle of circulation, the purple flame combat energy swirling within suddenly surged and rippled. Under the guidance of the mind, streams of purple combat energy flowed out from the vortex and enveloped the jade-like magma. Although each time the purple combat energy came into contact with the strange fire, it was instantly consumed and vanished, fortunately, a continuous supply of such energy sustained the flow. Thus, the Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire, having just completed its cycle, began to be driven once again along the path prescribed by the Burned Decree Technique. As the Qinglian Earth-Heart Fire was pushed into this path, it seemed to sense an underlying unease, and the once gentle flame, having circulated through the entire circuit, suddenly grew turbulent once more. Deep green flames surged upward from the magma, fiercely scorching the meridians encased in ice. Where the flames passed, the meridians were nearly transformed beyond recognition, appearing as though they had sustained severe injuries. This relentless consumption of the Qinglian Earth-Core Flame had allowed Xiao Yan to truly grasp its terrifying power. Even before the process was fully completed, his body had been nearly devastated, its internal structure laid waste. With the current injuries sustained, despite the various internal healing pills at his disposal, he would likely need several months of rest to recover to his former condition—this time, the damage was truly severe. For an ordinary person, such injuries might render him completely incapacitated. Within his meridians, the purple flame combat energy was being continuously burned away into nothingness, while the energy vortex relentlessly channeled combat energy as if it were determined to give everything it had. For every unit of energy consumed, the vortex supplied an equal amount. Though this intense effort was visibly depleting the energy reserves within the vortex, the Qinglian Earth-Core Flame was successfully being guided along the pathways of the Fengjie cultivation technique. Within the meridians, the ice layer formed by the Ice Spirit's cold spring had, over prolonged exposure and consumption by the heterogenous flames, gradually thinned from thick to shallow, and then to nearly translucent—now almost entirely losing its defensive function. As the ice layer dissipated, the already severe condition within Xiao Yan’s body worsened significantly. The intense heat scorched the meridians, causing them to constantly warp and twist, while finer sections began to form knots, resulting in considerable blockages during the flow of combat energy. Even now, having drawn upon nearly all of his reserves, Xiao Yan could only grit his teeth and tirelessly channel the Qinglian Earth Heart Fire, meticulously following the path of the Burned Technique. Only by doing so could he ensure a perfect return on this investment; otherwise, should the heterogenous flames reverse their effect, he would likely be reduced to powder at once. “Pfft….” A slender streak of blood suddenly burst open on his face, flowing steadily and soaking half of his face crimson, making him appear once again like a pale-red spirit creature. With his eyes closed, Xiāo Yīn was entirely unaware of how terrifying his current appearance had become. He could only vaguely sense a sharp, intense pain radiating across his face, followed by a renewed focus on channeling his qi, steadily dragging the increasingly rebellious blue molten rock along the final path prescribed by the Burned Decree technique. After prolonged exposure to the strange flames, the swirling purple qi within the vortex had nearly been depleted, leaving only seventeen droplets of liquid purple energy still circulating. Once the final stream of gaseous qi was released, Xiāo Yīn hesitated slightly before beginning to draw out the liquid energy from the vortex, directing them to encircle and tightly grip the blue molten rock, desperately pulling it forward. The liquid energy within the cyclone truly outshone the gaseous energy—each tiny droplet of purple liquid resisted the incineration from the hetero-fire for over twenty seconds before gradually evaporating. Witnessing such a remarkable effect, Xiao Yan was energized and immediately began drawing out one droplet after another from the cyclone, guiding the cyan magma strands along the final stretch of the journey. When only three droplets of purple liquid energy remained from the original seventeen, the cyan magma finally broke through the final pathway of the Burned Decree technique. As the cyan magma flowed through this final meridian, a gentle warmth and coolness surged through Xiao Yan’s head, which had been nearly numb from intense pain, restoring a sense of calm and clarity. At this moment, after traversing the pathways of Fengjie's cultivation technique, the intense, destructive heat emanating from Qinglian's heart flame gradually contracted and settled, almost entirely merging back into the molten rock within a brief while. The fierce turbulence subsided, leaving only a gentle, steady warmth, subtly radiating outward. "It's successful, then," murmured the elderly pharmacist, gazing at Xiao Yan—who now had not a single intact patch of skin remaining. With a deep, relieved breath, he smiled warmly, nodded slightly, and with a gentle flick of his finger, the small Nalings on the stone surface transformed into a shimmering gray streak, which then directly entered Xiao Yan's body.