"This meditation period might have lasted quite a while..." Under the sky filled with flames, Xiao Yan looked around. Although the realm here was much the same as it had been before his retreat, he could still sense subtle differences. "Hmm." Xun'er nodded gently as well. The Pure Lotus Demon Flame was no ordinary thing; without sufficient time, even together, neither she nor Xiao Yan could have fully refined it. "Now, I believe Xiao Yan's strength must be quite formidable," Xun'er said with a warm, smiling gaze. "Meeting the Hall Master of the Soul Palace again and defeating him—nothing particularly difficult." Xiao Yan smiled softly, his voice filled with strong confidence. Having successfully refined the Pure Lotus Demon Flame, he had gained immeasurable advantages. According to his own sense of strength, he now stood at the early stage of Five-Star Stellar Saint—quite a leap from his mid-Two-Star level before the retreat, spanning three entire levels! This remarkable leap in strength—something that even Xiao Yan first noticed with astonishment—was truly hard to believe. As a Dao Saint, he was especially well aware of how difficult it was for Dao Saints to advance in rank. For a typical Dao Saint to climb three levels through steady cultivation would normally take several decades. Yet, this time, thanks to the power of Jinglian Demon Flame, Xiao Yan achieved a dramatic surge in strength in a single go. In the entire realm, few if any other spiritual treasures could enable Dao Saints to rise three levels consecutively. Indeed, only the top three Demon Flames possessed such extraordinary power. "There's a saying that when one becomes enlightened, even the chickens and dogs rise with him. This time, however, I've truly benefited from my brother Xiao Yan's good fortune, and my strength has grown significantly," Xun'er said softly, smiling. During the process of refining the pure lotus demon fire, the vast energy had also flowed through her body, bringing her substantial gains. Though her strength had not yet reached the peak of five-star battle sage, it had surged to the late stage of four-star battle sage. Indeed, the results of this period of seclusion were truly eye-opening for both of them. Naturally, Xiao Yan was delighted by Xun'er's remarkable progress. While he might have further refined his own strength if he had absorbed the pure lotus demon fire alone, without Xun'er's assistance, he likely would have been overwhelmed and destroyed by the fire's counter-effects long before achieving such a state. "I don't know what has become of the strange flames now within me..." Xiao Yan's mind quickly returned to the most pressing matter. At the very moment, he was startled to find that the strange flames that had once filled his body had completely vanished. This sudden change caused a slight shift in his expression—the strange flames were essential to his survival. Should they disappear, it would indeed be a significant blow. "Xiao Yan, what's wrong?" Xun'er, observing his changed demeanor, promptly asked. But at this moment, Xiao Yan had no time to attend to her voice. He settled his mind and carefully examined his body, only after a long while did he suddenly sense something subtly present deep within. "Come out!" With a firm grasp of his hands, Xiao Yan issued a low command. A soft pink flame surged suddenly from his palm, and along its edges, golden light shimmered, like fine golden flakes. The rosy flame appeared, and the space around it began to warp rapidly. Yet suddenly, the flame began to move fluidly, and within the stunned gaze of Xiao Yan and Xun'er, it transformed into a baby only half a foot in size. "Iwa! Iwa!" As the little fire-infant emerged, its large, glowing pink eyes turned toward Xiao Yan. It then extended its plump little hands, grasping his palm and continuously rubbing against it, displaying an unusually affectionate demeanor. "This...?" Both Xiao Yan and Xun'er were staring in wide-eyed astonishment at the fire infant. Though not large—only slightly bigger than a palm—the creature looked round and plump, like a small ball. A single high ponytail crowned its round head, and it wore a soft pink bodice that revealed a smooth, bare backside. A delicate pink lotus-shaped flame mark adorned its forehead, making it appear especially endearing. At least, Xun'er's eyes sparkled with soft emotion, her gaze overflowing with maternal warmth. "Iwa! Iwa!" As Xiao Yan and Xun'er were still stunned by this sudden development, the fire infant gently rocked back and forth, holding onto Xiao Yan's hand, and emitted a fresh, unfamiliar, childlike sound. "What on earth is going on?" Xiao Yan finally regained his composure, gazing at the infant who clung tightly to his hand, his expression full of bewilderment. Yet, in response to his puzzled question, Xun'er merely shook her head, hesitated a moment, before saying, "Could this perhaps be the new flame formed within you, when multiple hetero-flames have fused together?" If one included the Pure Lotus妖fire, there were six distinct hetero-flames within Xiao Yan's body. Now, with all six fully integrated, the resulting transformation remained entirely unknown—indeed, no one in the world had ever attempted to fuse six hetero-flames before, let alone witnessed the outcome. "This thing... it's truly the strange fire within me." At this moment, Xiao Yan nodded seriously, now certain that the Fire Infant was indeed the newly formed strange fire resulting from the fusion of the Pure Lotus妖fire within him. Yet he still found himself puzzled as to why this transformation had occurred. "I sense some familiar notes on this little creature—somewhat like my Golden Emperor's Burn-Heaven Flame," whispered Xun'er at the same time. "During the process of refining the pure lotus demon's flame, your Golden Emperor's Sky-Consuming Flame also played a significant role, which in turn caused certain fundamental flames of the Golden Emperor's Sky-Consuming Flame to integrate into my body..." Xiang Yin explained, his gaze steadily fixed on the flame-infant with a towering braid of fire rising from his palm. Essentially, his five unique flames had fully merged with the pure lotus demon's flame—though if one were to be more precise, it might be said that his original five unique flames had been absorbed and incorporated into the demon's flame. Although his original five unique flames were numerous, they clearly lacked the strength to make an impact against the sheer power of the pure lotus demon's flame. As Xiang Yin's unique flames began to merge with one another, they offered little resistance and were entirely absorbed into the demon's flame. Had it not been for the fact that he had already employed the Burn Technique to refine the demon's flame prior to the integration, he would have surely experienced the regret of 'missing the chicken and losing the grain' instead. Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then suddenly his mouth twitched as if remembering something. "Then, when I fight others, how shall I deploy the Buddha's Wrath Fire Lotus?" He had just checked his body and found that the unusual flames, which had always been readily available, had vanished completely. Now, with nothing left to draw upon, how could he possibly form the fire lotus and engage in battle? "Iwa! Iwa!" Hearing Xiao Yan's words, the small creature that had been gazing at him with drooling eyes now brightened its gaze. With a gentle lift of its little hand, flames gathered in its palm, swiftly coalescing into a perfect fire lotus. "The Buddha's Wrath Fire Lotus!" Seeing the lotus, Xiao Yan's eyes nearly bulged out. This was a technique he had personally created—until now, only he had been able to perform it. Yet here, this small creature formed it effortlessly, with such speed that even as the originator of the technique, Xiao Yan found himself struggling to keep up. "This little thing has even managed to steal your combat techniques!..." Xun'er also smiled softly, covering her mouth. "Iwa! Iwa!" It seemed as though it had sensed Xiao Yan's astonishment; with a bright, proud expression on its youthful face, the creature gently squeezed and released its tiny hands, and instantly, a continuous stream of two-toned Buddha-angry fire lotuses formed on its palm, drifting gracefully around it and spinning continuously. "Ten Buddha-angry fire lotuses!" Watching this, Xiao Yan took another deep breath, and managed to gather ten such lotuses at once—something he had never accomplished before! Though these lotuses were merely formed by combining two distinct hetero-flames, the sheer volume and the unbroken succession of them released with such force made their impact exceptionally powerful. "Iwa! Iwa!" However, Xiao Yan's astonishment did not end there. After gathering ten Buddha-angry fire lotuses, the small creature waved its hand, and suddenly, the ten lotuses collided fiercely, then rapidly fused together. Within just a moment, a magnificent fire lotus rose steadily amidst the surging flames, one that moved Xiao Yan and Xun'er to a profound sense of awe.