Chapter 749: Earthfire Passage

Zhang Xuan turned his head to look.

It was a young man in his thirties, with five stars shining brightly on his chest — a five-star master teacher!

“Senior Brother Luo Yan!”

Upon seeing him, the young woman named Li Xuan was startled and couldn't help but shiver.

“Haha, Senior Brother Luo Yan is a top ten master teacher in the fourth grade, and among the five-star peak artifact forgers of the Artifact Forging Institute, he's one of the best. Isn't this guy just asking for a scolding, being so presumptuous in front of him?”

“Indeed, so arrogant at only twenty-something years old. Where did this guy even come from?”

“I've met all the well-known figures from the first and second grades; I've never heard of anyone like him!”

“He's probably just a delusional person, intentionally trying to attract attention...”

The Record Passage represents milestones for artifact forgers at the Master Teacher Academy. Only top experts in artifact forging dare to come here. Typically, these individuals come to ponder and research how to break through limits, not often to conduct personal experiments.

When this guy arrived and immediately declared, “It can be done, it's just a bit troublesome,” it was impossible for him not to draw attention. So many renowned artifact forging prodigies in the academy wouldn't dare speak like that. For this guy, barely twenty, to say such a thing, it's a wonder he wasn't immediately surrounded and lectured.

“Replying, Senior Brother, this... this is...”

Seeing the famous fourth-grade student staring at her, Li Xuan trembled. “He's a new student who just enrolled this year; he wanted to come and observe...”

“A new student?”

He had thought it was someone formidable, but upon hearing “new student,” Luo Yan shook his head. “Young people nowadays are truly becoming more and more disrespectful! The Record Passage is a monument left behind by countless academy predecessors who poured endless effort into it. How can just anyone come here to observe and criticize?”

His eyebrows rose as he spoke, his voice stern and sharp. “Now, withdraw!”

“Yes...” Li Xuan quickly nodded and tugged at Zhang Xuan beside her, but he didn't move. Instead, he looked at the senior student nearby with a helpless expression. “Are you the dean of the Artifact Forging Institute?”

“No...” Luo Yan was momentarily stunned, and the other onlookers didn't understand what he meant, looking on with confusion.

“One of the Ten Great Master Teachers?” Zhang Xuan continued to ask.

“Not that either...”

“Then you're an academy elder?”

“Even less so... What are you implying?” Luo Yan's gaze darkened.

“You're not the dean of the Artifact Forging Institute, nor one of the Ten Great Master Teachers, nor even an academy elder, so what are you making a fuss about?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “I was talking to someone else. What business is it of yours? You're really meddling!”

“Agh...” Li Xuan had expected him to say something else, but upon hearing this, her body swayed, almost scared to death on the spot. *Do you even know who this person in front of you is? How can you talk like that? He's a fourth-grade student, a five-star high-rank master teacher whose strength has already reached the eighth realm of Mortal Transcendence! You're just a new student; aren't you afraid of being beaten to death on the spot for speaking like that?*

The others also exchanged bewildered glances, their eyes nearly popping out. They had seen arrogant new students before, but never one so brazen!

Luo Yan's face flushed crimson, almost exploding with rage. “What did you say?”

“Nothing much, just telling you to go do whatever you're supposed to be doing and don't waste my time earning academic credits!” Too lazy to bother with the other party, Zhang Xuan continued to look at the wall.

Having studied countless artifact forging texts, his understanding of artifact forging had reached an extremely profound level. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the dean of the Artifact Forging Institute's artifact forging skills were inferior to his. The only thing he lacked was cultivation. If he reached the Saint realm, he could definitely break all the records cleanly, leaving none untouched. However, with his current strength, it might be a bit difficult.

“This one will do!”

He quickly chose one, and after some thought, Zhang Xuan felt very confident he could accomplish it. Only then did he look at Li Xuan nearby. “Help me apply. I want to challenge a record!”

“Challenge?” Li Xuan was startled. *Don't you know nothing about this? Challenge what record? Do you really think these records can be broken so easily?*

The onlookers around them also exchanged bewildered glances. Not only did he offend a senior student the moment he arrived, but now he also wants to challenge a record? This guy is utterly reckless! With a personality like this, how did he even manage to pass the master teacher exams and get into this academy?

“Yes, I want to attempt this Earth Flame Passage. How do I apply?” Zhang Xuan said calmly.

The Earth Flame Passage is a scorching hot area formed by harnessing ground fire. The longer one stays inside, the stronger their physical body is, and the better they can remain conscious when scorched by charcoal fires during artifact forging. It's a type of physical aptitude test for artifact forgers. He chose this particular challenge because he had cultivated the Five Splendor Golden Body and tempered his physique using ground fire. Although this place was formidable, he believed enduring it for a while wouldn't be difficult. All things considered, it seemed much easier than challenging other records.

“The Earth Flame Passage?”

“Does this guy even have a brain? Choosing this... does he think his life is too long?”

“I don't know, maybe he's new and doesn't understand.”

“I thought he could actually break a record; turns out he's just an idiot...”

Upon hearing what he intended to challenge, everyone looked at him as if he were a fool. Even Luo Yan, who had just been furious and wished to slap him to death, widened his eyes in disbelief.

The Earth Flame Passage, known as the 'Death Passage' or 'Death Record,' was infamous. Historically, anyone who attempted this record, even if they survived, was practically crippled. For instance, Liu Han, the six-star artifact forger who set the current record by staying for seventeen minutes, had his entire body severely scorched, damaging his foundations, and he died before he was 150 years old. For a six-star artifact forger who had reached the Saint realm, dying at such a young age was undeniably an early demise.

Luo Yan himself had attempted this record in the past, but he couldn't endure it for more than three minutes and actively fled. Even those who hadn't entered it themselves had heard the rumors and knew its horror. If the records marked on the wall were categorized, this one would undoubtedly rank first among those people least wanted to break! Everyone feared it like a viper, yet he chose it the moment he arrived... and then presumptuously claimed he could pass. Did he want to die faster?

“The Earth Flame Passage has countless flames gushing out; there's no dodging them, and the heat is unbearable... Are you sure you want to consider this?” Li Xuan, also startled, quickly said. Although the person in front of her seemed foolish and knew nothing, she had brought him here, and she couldn't just watch him seek death.

“No worries! Just make the arrangements. If I can't endure it, I'll come out,” Zhang Xuan said, understanding her concern.

“This...” Seeing his insistence, Li Xuan knew she couldn't dissuade him. She finally said, “Actually, to attempt a record, you don't need to apply. You just need to place your palm on the entrance of the Record Passage, then state which record you want to break, and the mechanism will automatically transport you to the corresponding location!”

Zhang Xuan nodded. “Thank you!” With that, he lifted his foot and walked towards the passage.

“Newcomer, what's your name?” Seeing that the guy was truly heading for the Earth Flame Passage, Luo Yan snorted. “If you can come out alive and last more than three minutes, I'll overlook your earlier offense!” Although this new student was incredibly arrogant and seemed foolish, daring to attempt the terrifying Earth Flame Passage showed courage. It was still admirable.

“Challenger to the Record, Zhang Xuan!” With a faint smile, he pressed his palm against the entrance. The Record Passage then creaked open, and Zhang Xuan stepped inside.

As soon as he entered the passage, the door closed, and the area instantly became pitch black.

“I challenge the Earth Flame Passage record!” Standing still, Zhang Xuan declared.

Creak!

As his words ended, he felt the ground beneath his feet shaking continuously, as if a mechanism had been activated. Artifact forgers have connections to heavenly craftsmanship, so the two institutes are quite closely related. This passage clearly had an extremely precise mechanism, capable of understanding human language and transporting individuals to their desired location.

A moment later, it stopped. Zhang Xuan looked up and found himself in an even wider passage. It was completely dark; he couldn't see his hand in front of his face.

Just as he was about to activate his Eye of Insight to discern his surroundings, a ball of flame ignited directly in front of him. Immediately, raging fires blazed all around him—front, back, left, and right—and an immense wave of heat surged forth, seemingly intent on scorching his skin.

“So hot!” Zhang Xuan's expression hardened, his face grave.

He had originally thought this Earth Flame Passage would be like the Core Flame in the Cleansing Pool, containing magma, allowing him to absorb spiritual energy and temper his physical body while inside. Now, it seemed he had been overly optimistic! Flames surrounded him on all sides; he barely had enough time to maintain his true qi to resist the fire, let alone cultivate! He felt as if he had fallen into an oven. If his true qi stopped circulating even for a moment, he would likely be roasted alive.

No wonder everyone looked at him with sympathy when they heard he chose this challenge; it was truly terrifying.

“At this rate, forget seventeen minutes, I'll struggle to last even two!” Maintaining his true qi to fend off the surrounding heat, Zhang Xuan's brows furrowed. He had thought it would be an easy trial, but now it seemed far from it. Even though he had been cultivating day and night recently, making his true qi increasingly robust, he wouldn't be able to last long in here.

“That's not right; normal ground fire shouldn't be this scorching!” As he mused, he was also filled with perplexity. Under normal circumstances, even in the depths of magma, with his peak strength at the sixth realm of Mortal Transcendence, Bridge Heaven Stage, he could withstand it to some extent, even swim in it, without being scorched. This, however, clearly exceeded that range. Furthermore, the temperature of this flame wasn't just scorching his physical body; it was even damaging his soul.

“If it truly comes to it... I'll let my clone out to stay for a while, and I'll take shelter first...” He rubbed his temples.

Although he couldn't last long, he wasn't overly concerned about breaking the record. Even if this ground fire was terrifying and his main body couldn't withstand it, his clone would definitely be fine. It would just feel a bit like cheating.

“No rush, let's first figure out what's going on with this ground fire!” After struggling with the decision for a moment, he suppressed the urge to release his clone. Zhang Xuan's eyes flashed, and fine lines appeared around them. “Eye of Insight!”

Under the illumination of the patterns, he quickly discerned what was wrong. “This isn't a naturally formed passage; it's a man-made formation. The formation base is... four flame stones... No, these aren't flame stones, they're...” After observing for a moment, Zhang Xuan's eyes suddenly lit up, and his entire body trembled with excitement. “Core Flood Rock!”