As Xiao Yan's form broke through that layer of transparent light, he clearly felt an unusual ripple scanning over his body—this ripple swiftly dissipated upon making contact with the fallen heart flame within him, and Xiao Yan's body smoothly entered the space. At the very moment of transition, the intense crimson filling his vision gradually faded, replaced by a soft, diffused glow. He stabilized himself, carefully scanning the surroundings before finally settling his gaze on the mysterious, floating skeleton at the central position. The space here clearly matched the light shield he had previously observed, though perhaps due to visual perception, it now appeared noticeably more spacious, yet still easily accessible. Turning his head, Xiao Yan first glanced outward through the light shield, where he noticed the arrival of several flame lizard beings with bodies of blood-red hue. This caught him off guard, as he had not expected the mysterious magma-dwelling race to truly possess such formidable warriors. Clearly, these blood-red lizard beings were stronger than the one he had previously defeated—Xiao Yan estimated they had already reached the peak of the Battle Emperor tier. This only deepened his sense of caution, for who could say whether there weren't even more powerful members within the flame lizard clan? Should such warriors exist, the situation would indeed become quite dire. Though the unique power of the hetero-fire maintained his strength within this magma realm, not significantly diminished, this was still the enemy's home ground, and with their numbers being so vast, should he be surrounded and attacked, even Xiao Yan himself would likely face grave peril. "Damn it," Xiao Yan muttered, "this magma world is far from what it seemed on the surface." Bitting her teeth, Xiao Yan softly cursed. The flame lizard people outside the light shield seemed unaware of its presence, wandering around for a while before finally dispersing under his watchful gaze. Only when the last red silhouette vanished into the molten rock did Xiao Yan finally exhale, relieved. Though he had defeated many flame lizard people during the battle, the toll had been significant. Floating in this vast, misty space, Xiao Yan rested briefly, allowing his inner qi to recover slightly before standing up and carefully making his way toward the mysterious skeleton. As he drew nearer to the skeleton, the sense of summons within him grew stronger and more vivid. Now he finally understood— the call he had felt atop the lava must have originated from this mysterious skeleton—or perhaps from that fallen heart flame bloom. His gaze drifted slowly over the mysterious skeletal remains, and then his eyes inevitably turned toward the intangible flame hovering atop the bones. This flame, the fallen heart flame, was only the size of a head. While the temperature it emitted was far less than that of the fallen heart flame within Xiang Yin's body, if Xiang Yin's internal flame could be likened to a mature, fully developed one, then the one before him was clearly in its early, juvenile stage. Of course, whether in its juvenile or mature phase, this was still an unusual flame—formed by rare and difficult processes that required countless years of accumulation. Yet this seemingly gentle, intangible flame had evidently existed for a considerable duration. What remained puzzling, however, was the fact that two identical fallen heart flames had appeared side by side in the very same location. Such a rare and extraordinary phenomenon, Xiang Yin had never encountered before. His gaze was firmly locked onto the fallen heart flame. After taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan realized that while this young-bodied heterofire might offer some benefit to the "Burn Technique," it probably wouldn't be significant—after all, the evolution of the Burn Technique required a remarkably powerful energy, and clearly, this small flame still lacked that level. With his palm gently rubbing his chin, Xiao Yan pondered for a moment. Then, his palm suddenly stilled, and a look of delight appeared in his eyes. Though this young-bodied fallen heart flame wasn't particularly useful for him personally, it represented an absolute blessing for the Inner Courtyard. As long as this flame was available, the Heavenly Burn Qi Tower could be reactivated once more, with its effectiveness not diminishing much compared to before. As long as strong cultivators continuously supplied energy or qi to it, the Inner Courtyard could once again activate the famed "Qi Acceleration Tower." Moreover, this not only benefits the inner courtyard—this young-bodied Shattering Heart Flame will gradually evolve, and with time, surely will mature into a fully developed Shattering Heart Flame. Furthermore, since this flame has been nurtured from an early age, it will be easier to tame in the future, avoiding the rebellious nature seen in the earlier mature-bodied Shattering Heart Flame. Perhaps within a century, a smoothly evolved Shattering Heart Flame could even become a significant asset to the inner courtyard. After all, all the unique flames will eventually develop their own spiritual intelligence, eventually reaching parity with ordinary humans. At that point, the flame will naturally regard the inner courtyard—the very place that has nurtured and catalyzed it—as its own home and protect it as such. Thus, wouldn’t the inner courtyard then have a powerful, unique guardian? Thinking of all the benefits this would bring to the inner courtyard, Xiang Yan felt a surge of excitement. He had long been troubled and deeply regretful over how to completely resolve the issue of the Tianfen Qianqi Tower's dwindling vitality. Now, with the emergence of this young, fledgling Shunluo Xin Yan, the problem would be perfectly solved—his lingering sense of guilt would finally dissipate. As he thought of this, Xiang Yan couldn't help but smile warmly and took a steady step forward, curving his palm as if to capture the young Shunluo Xin Yan. The body that had grown rigid caused rapid changes in Xiao Yan's facial expression. As thoughts of escape raced through his mind, the white light before him slowly pulsed and eventually solidified into a translucent, elderly figure. The ethereal figure paid no attention to Xiao Yan's politeness, merely gazing at him for a moment before extending a hand. Under the elder's gesture, Xiao Yan was suddenly struck with astonishment—his fallen heart flame, which had been fully refined within him, began to drift freely, eventually settling into the elder's hands. "Mr. Elder, what is the meaning of this?" Xiao Yan's voice grew firm with rising anger as he felt his heart sink at this unexpected turn. The fallen heart flame now curled like an invisible serpent, gracefully circling and pausing upon the elder's palm—so obedient, so attentive. Xiao Yan's face betrayed a subtle shift in expression. He had long since fully integrated the flame into his own essence; how could it now behave so docilely before a stranger? "Is this not surprising?" "Seeming to sense Xiao Yan's doubt, the elder glanced at him, a faint, enigmatic smile playing on his lips, and spoke softly, 'Since I was the previous owner of this Fallen Heart Flame, even though you have absorbed it, it still hasn't shown much resistance to me. As for fire control—do you really think you can outdo me, an old man like this?' 'The previous owner?' Hearing this, Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed slightly, then chuckled dryly, 'Heh, Elder, please don't tease the young lad. When I first acquired the Fallen Heart Flame, I never realized it had a prior owner.' 'You naturally wouldn't have noticed, for right before I passed away, I released it into freedom. At that time, calling it unowned was quite accurate.' The robed elder smiled. Xiao Yan swallowed a lump in his throat. He hadn't expected to meet the previous owner of the Fallen Heart Flame here. If the elder's account were true, then the time of his death must have been quite some time ago—perhaps even decades—since Su Qian, the Senior Elder, was completely unaware of it. However, what worried Xiao Yan most was whether this elder would reclaim the Fallen Heart Flame. The异fire was the very essence of his life; if it were forcibly taken away, it would deal a severe blow to him. Therefore, should such a thing happen, no matter how hard he struggled, he would have to keep it. Though the white-robed elder had once been an absolute master of his caliber, now he existed only as a soul body. And judging by the frailty of his soul, it seemed he had left behind little strength. "Rest assured, I won't take away your fallen heart flame. In fact, I've already been a deceased being for many years—my soul has long since been worn thin and nearly extinguished. What you now see is merely a faint trace of residual soul energy, incapable of doing you any harm." The elder spoke calmly. Having his thoughts laid bare, Xiao Yan exhaled in relief, yet felt a touch of embarrassment. He promptly smiled and said, "Your kind words are most generous. Might I ask your name, esteemed elder?" The white-robed elder smiled, his expression radiating an innate pride. "My name is Yao Tian Huo. Others sometimes refer to me as the Heavenly Huo Sovereign." "Sovereign?" Upon hearing this title, Xiao Yan's heart surged with a sudden leap. He understood immediately what this designation signified—this enigmatic elder, dwelling deep within the molten core, had once been a renowned Supreme Sovereign of the continent!