Chapter 855: Opening the Cauldron

"Commence the Cauldron!"

When Xi Jing's clear, steady voice resounded through the heavens and earth, countless gazes turned towards Mount Dayan. The torrent of lava there began to boil, and from within the lava, a colossal object slowly ascended.

It was an enormous cauldron. Its body was a transparent, glazed color, and its interior was vast, seeming to contain rolling mountains. It was precisely the Skyflame Cauldron! With its appearance, Sect Master Xuankun also nodded faintly.

Ninety-nine streaks of light flashed out, appearing beneath the Skyflame Cauldron, where ninety-nine lava platforms were located. They immediately sat cross-legged upon them. These figures radiated powerful Genesis Qi fluctuations, and faintly, a brilliant sun could be seen shimmering behind each of them. They were ninety-nine Heavenly Sun Stage experts.

Zhou Yuan gazed at this scene from afar, a sense of awe welling up within him. The Tianyuan Region indeed possessed profound foundations. If Heavenly Sun Stage experts were in the Cangxuan Sect, they would be sufficient to become sect elders. Yet, even if all the Heavenly Sun Stage experts in the entire Cangxuan Sect were combined, they wouldn't amount to ninety-nine. But now, in the Tianyuan Region, the Tianling Sect alone could gather this many. This demonstrated just how formidable the overall strength of the Tianyuan Region was; with the power of a single region, it could even contend with the entire Cangxuan Heaven. And all of this was simply due to the prosperity of the Hunyuan Heaven's destiny.

As Zhou Yuan mused, the ninety-nine Heavenly Sun Stage experts simultaneously let out a low roar. Their shouts, like thunder, shook the heavens and earth, and the sun of Genesis Qi behind them grew increasingly brilliant. When the light reached its peak intensity, golden flames could be seen burning fiercely. Zhou Yuan's eyes burned with fervor; this was Heavenly Sun Flame, unique to Heavenly Sun Stage experts! If the Divine Palace Halo was the mark of the Divine Palace Stage, then Heavenly Sun Flame was the mark of a Heavenly Sun Stage expert. Once Heavenly Sun Flame was born, it could continuously refine one's Genesis Qi and physical body day and night. This meant that as long as one entered the Heavenly Sun Stage, even those with the weakest physiques would gradually become formidable, like a furnace, under the refinement of the Heavenly Sun Flame. Though Zhou Yuan had cultivated the Profound Saint Physique and achieved some physical mastery, he might not necessarily surpass some ordinary Heavenly Sun Stage experts in a direct physical confrontation. Of course, if Zhou Yuan were to one day enter the Heavenly Sun Stage, his physical foundation would naturally be far beyond that of ordinary Heavenly Sun Stage experts.

Blaze! As the Heavenly Sun Flame above the ninety-nine suns of Genesis Qi grew increasingly intense, the suns finally rotated, directly spewing forth ninety-nine pillars of fire that surged towards the enormous Skyflame Cauldron. Ancient Genesis Runes writhed on the body of the Skyflame Cauldron, eventually transforming into a massive vortex that swallowed all the fire pillars into the cauldron. As the Skyflame Cauldron engulfed the Heavenly Sun Flames, the sky inside the cauldron turned golden. Countless golden flames poured down like a cascade; these golden lights were now even purer, having been purified by the Skyflame Cauldron. Within the shimmering golden flames, golden fire lotuses began to materialize. Gazing at these golden fire lotuses, all the Divine Palace Stage experts present showed expressions of covetousness.

On the highest lava lotus platform, Xi Jing observed this scene and nodded slightly. The appearance of the golden fire lotuses signified the true commencement of the Skyflame Ritual. "Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain Pavilions, prepare to send your souls into the Skyflame Cauldron," she announced, her clear voice resonating with hidden authority in everyone's ears across the heavens and earth.

As soon as her voice fell, all members of the Four Pavilions respectfully assented, then swiftly sat down cross-legged. Humming! The souls of the Four Pavilions' members glowed between their eyebrows. The next moment, tens of thousands of souls soared skyward, creating an extremely spectacular sight. Zhou Yuan's soul was among the thousands of souls from the Wind Pavilion. However, compared to the surrounding souls, his appeared exceptionally solid, and the soul fluctuations it emitted were far beyond what others could match. These souls headed directly towards the Skyflame Cauldron. At this moment, the cauldron's lid opened a crack, like a celestial chasm, from which a suction force erupted. With a single gulp, it swallowed the tens of thousands of approaching souls.

Throughout the heavens and earth, countless gazes were fixed on the interior of the Skyflame Cauldron, their faces filled with curiosity and anticipation. They knew that the most exciting part of the Skyflame Ritual was about to begin. On the highest lava lotus platform, Xi Jing's bright eyes shimmered faintly as she watched the Skyflame Cauldron. Beside her, Sect Master Xuankun's aged face held an indifferent expression as he asked, "Elder Xi Jing, who do you think will be the biggest winner in this Skyflame Ritual?" Xi Jing, sitting cross-legged with her slender upper body and jade-like face, replied, "The Fire Pavilion should be the strongest, but that's not very interesting. A dark horse appearing would be much more surprising and exciting." Sect Master Xuankun chuckled faintly, "Dark horses often lack inherent advantages; I fear they might not be up to par." Xi Jing neither confirmed nor denied, refraining from further verbal sparring with him. Instead, she directed her gaze into the Skyflame Cauldron. "Words are useless," she stated. "Let the facts speak for themselves."

The moment Zhou Yuan's soul was drawn into the Skyflame Cauldron, he felt his vision blur. The next instant, waves of heat surged around him. He quickly focused, finding himself in a different world. In this world, majestic mountains stood tall. The trees within them were not green but reddish, like fiery copper. A golden fire lotus drifted past his eyes. Zhou Yuan's soul force surged out, directly grasping it and pulling it before him. The golden fire lotus slowly rotated, its golden flame emitting peculiar fluctuations. This flame seemed tiny, but if it came into contact with Genesis Qi, it was like adding fuel to fire, capable of incinerating a wisp of Genesis Qi in just two or three instances.

"Is this Heavenly Sun Flame?" Feeling the extremely pure fire essence contained within this golden fire lotus, Zhou Yuan's eyes flickered with astonishment. Although he wasn't a Heavenly Sun Stage expert, he had encountered enough to naturally discern that the Heavenly Sun Flame within this golden fire lotus was far purer than the Heavenly Sun Flame generated by Heavenly Sun Stage experts themselves. Crucially, there were no extraneous thoughts or intentions mixed into this golden fire lotus, making it suitable for anyone to refine and absorb. Even though his soul had left his physical body, Zhou Yuan could still feel the intense craving emanating from his flesh. It was like a parched person seeing a divine elixir. "This Skyflame Cauldron is quite a treasure as well," Zhou Yuan couldn't help but exclaim.

As Zhou Yuan marveled, thousands of souls rapidly converged on him from all directions. Leading them were Ye Bingling, Yi Qiushui, and others. The souls of the Wind Pavilion members were all gathering at this moment. Zhou Yuan's gaze extended to the distance, where the forces from the other three pavilions were also beginning to assemble. The contest of the Skyflame Ritual had, in effect, already begun.

Zhou Yuan took a deep breath. Feeling the intense heat within the Skyflame Cauldron, he swept his gaze around and stated gravely, "Everyone, listen to my command! First, occupy a mountain, cut down the red copper trees, and forge red copper umbrellas and flame-gathering platforms!" Having thoroughly caught up on his studies, Zhou Yuan was now extremely familiar with the Skyflame Ritual. He knew that inside the Skyflame Cauldron, as more and more Heavenly Sun Flame poured in, the temperature would continuously rise, eventually even causing harm to souls. To avoid being scorched, they would have to use the red copper trees within the Skyflame Cauldron as material to refine red copper umbrellas. Only by holding red copper umbrellas could they move freely within the Skyflame Cauldron and collect Heavenly Sun Flame everywhere. Furthermore, red copper umbrellas also had the function of drawing in and gathering Heavenly Sun Flame, allowing a small amount of it to be collected within the umbrella, which facilitated collection. The flame-gathering platforms were even more crucial. Since their souls had entered the Skyflame Cauldron, they had no containers for the Heavenly Sun Flame. They couldn't possibly use their souls to continuously draw it in, could they? Not only would that limit the number of Heavenly Sun Flames they could attract, but it would also restrict their soul power, leaving them hampered if a confrontation occurred. Therefore, in this Skyflame Ritual, the most important task was not to immediately engage in combat, but to first forge the red copper umbrellas and flame-gathering platforms.

Under Zhou Yuan's leadership, thousands of souls surged down with a mighty roar, directly choosing a mountain densely covered with red copper trees and descending upon it en masse. Upon landing on the mountain, Zhou Yuan waved his hand, and Ye Bingling and Yi Qiushui swiftly assigned tasks: some for vigilance, some to begin collecting the golden fire lotuses floating down from the sky, and the rest to quickly fell the red copper trees. Thus, on this reddish mountain, thousands of souls drifted about, creating an oddly lively atmosphere.

Zhou Yuan stood at the highest point, his gaze fixed on the distant direction of the Fire Pavilion. A cold glint flickered in his eyes. "Next, let's see what Lu Xiao will do."