There is a distance of over 10,000 zhang between here and the surface. And yet, the temperature here is already so high. If so, how much higher is the temperature down below? Could it be directly connected to the earthen fire within the earth’s core? Chen Feng pondered.

It seemed there were no seals down below. Sage Enigma Flame ignored Chen Feng and simply descended rapidly. Flashing down a few times, he reached the bottommost level of the cave.

“This old man is fast.” Chen Feng smiled.

“He wants to test your strength. Forget Concealed stage cultivators, even the average Sky Human stage cultivators would be incapable of handling the intensity of this place’s earthen fire. This chubby old man found himself a pretty decent spot. The earthen fire here is connected to the Enigma Flame from the earth’s core. Add his Fire Flow Constitution to the mix and his cultivation would naturally rise fast,” Tower said amusedly.

“Is the Enigma Flame the gold-coloured spark that he used to burn He Minghui?” Chen Feng asked.

“Yes. Although it is just an ordinary type of Enigma Flame, this chubby old man’s talent is decent. He is also very proficient in fire techniques. He he. How should I put this? He can be considered an expert amongst those on the same level,” Tower said with a chuckle.

Chen Feng chatted with Tower as he was descending. By the time he was 1,000 zhang down the cave, the astral energy shield around him had been burned away.

Next, the magic robes Chen Feng wore began burning. However, Chen Feng’s flesh was still able to endure it.

“Kid. The earthen fire here is suitable for tempering your fleshly body. Didn’t you take this old man as your master? You should just stay here in the future,” Tower suddenly said.

“Temper the fleshly body.” Chen Feng’s heart gave a thump.

“Yes. I too, can use the Enigma Flame here to temper my body.” Tower said.

“In that case, I will bring it up with the old man,” Chen Feng replied smilingly.

Finally, Chen Feng felt a searing sensation spreading through his entire body. The heat was beginning to scorch his hair. It was then that the body armour that had become one with Chen Feng’s body unleashed its defensive powers. Slowly, it emerged to envelop Chen Feng’s skin.

As it was the body armour forged using the hide and scales of the Two-headed Icefire Wyrm, it contained the power of both ice and fire. Immediately, the heat invading Chen Feng’s body disappeared and a refreshing sensation washed over him.

At the same time, strands of warm energy melded with the body armour. Next, the body armour channelled the warm energy into his body.

“This is, pure power of fire!” Chen Feng said happily. He immediately spurred the Five Elemental acupoints’ Fire acupoint to absorb the fire essence flowing into his body.

“Heh! That was a high-level Great Yao, after all. The materials from his body will naturally have some functions. At present, your cultivation base is insufficient, so you cannot activate them on your own. Due to the surrounding pressure, however, it automatically unleashed its power,” Tower said.

The power of ice and fire circulated within the body armour on Chen Feng’s body. The power of ice protected Chen Feng’s body from the invasive heat while the power of fire absorbed the external power of fire for him.

With the body armour, Chen Feng no longer feared the high temperature below. The rate at which he was descending increased.

It did not take him long to land within a spacious cave.

It seemed this was where Sage Enigma Flame lived and used to cultivate himself. It was very unique.

Firstly, the cave was very spacious and the spiritual energy and earthen fire there were very thick. It was a very good place for cultivation. However, with the exception of those two points, the place looked no different from a real cave.

There was nothing else. Not even a chair could be found there, let alone other cultivation and daily items.

Chen Feng was dumbfounded. More, he was rendered speechless. The exterior of the mountain had been utterly bare. Unexpectedly, even its interior was bare.

“I say, master. This is your grotto-mansion?” Chen Feng deliberately emphasized the word grotto-mansion.

“Ha ha, yes! How is it? Not bad, right? If you like it, you can stay here. The spiritual energy here is high. Most importantly, it is quiet. No one will disturb you here.” Sage Enigma Flame laughed.

“Not bad, yes, not bad.” Chen Feng simply nodded his head.

“Eh? Kid, no wonder you can make it down here unscathed. It turns out you are wearing a top-grade armour. You have quite a number of good items, kid,” said Sage Enigma Flame, who stepped forward to feel the body armour covering Chen Feng’s body.

“He he. I acquired this by a stroke of fortune.” Chen Feng snickered.

“Tsk, tsk. A grade 9 Prized artefact. With this armour, you are practically invincible against your enemies. However, you will be incapable of resisting if they utilize soul attacks. Right now, the most important thing for you is to cultivate up to the Sky Human stage,” Sage Enigma Flame said.

“He he. Master, back then, you said that I will need 100 years to reach the Sky Human stage. What do you think now?” Chen Feng said with a grin.

“You brat! You still remember that? Back then, I saw that you had condensed out your Soulflame despite your low cultivation level. Thus, I had thought of you as just a talent. Unexpectedly, you could cultivate all the way up to this level so quickly. I didn’t think I could make such a mistake,” Sage Enigma Flame said smilingly, shaking his head.

“Now, this Demon Sealing Sword of yours contains the will of a Human Immortal. It will be of help to me. Lend me this sword for a bit so I can study it,” Sage Enigma Flame then said.

“Not a problem. Even if master wants it, I can give it to you as an apprenticeship gift,” Chen Feng said with a smile.

“Kid, how can I want my apprentice’s item? I just want to study it for a bit. The final knowledge needed for me to break through to the Human Immortal stage might be inside this sword, you know?” Sage Enigma Flame laughed out. Clearly, he was very happy with Chen Feng’s answer.

“However, I have to say. You were too stingy back then, master,” Chen Feng said all of a sudden.

“Stingy? How so?” Sage Enigma Flame was taken aback.

“No matter how you cut it, you are someone who is on the verge of reaching the Human Immortal stage. Back then, you only gave me a bottle of Scarlet Blood Pill for a meeting gift. Not to mention, they are only Human-tier pills. That is unbefitting of your status,” Chen Feng said with a grin.

“Cough! Cough! Err. Back then, your cultivation base was too low. Even if I had given you some high-grade medicinal pills, you would be incapable of taking them. Scarlet Blood Pill is more suited for your cultivation.” Sage Enigma Flame appeared somewhat embarrassed.

“What about now? I am willing to lend you this Sacred artefact. Surely, you can give me some goodies, right?” Chen Feng said.

“Little brat! There are who knows how many disciples in the sect who would cry their hearts out so that I would accept them as an apprentice. But you? You are actually dissing master? Fine! I will give you some goodies.” Sage Enigma Flame waved his hand and a fiery-red bottle fell into Chen Feng’s hands.

“What is this? Does it contain medicinal pills?” Chen Feng asked, looking at the bottle in his hand.

“Hey, look carefully! Those are Enigma Flame Extract. They are the fire essence I painstakingly extracted from earthen fire. If this bottle appears outside, countless Sky Human stage cultivators will be smashing in each other heads to snatch it.” Sage Enigma Flame chuckled smugly.

“Enigma Flame Extract? Fire essence? What can it be used for?” Chen Feng figured it was best to ask.

“Didn’t you open up your Fire acupoint already? Do you need me to teach you how to absorb them? However, you will need to exercise caution when refining them for yourself. Even a strand of the Enigma Flame Extract within the bottle would take a level 1 Sky Human stage cultivator some time to refine,” Sage Enigma Flame said.

“All right. Now, I will tell you how to open this grotto-mansion’s seal. You will be able to freely enter and leave.” After saying that, Sage Enigma Flame tapped Chen Feng’s forehead. Instantly, Chen Feng felt a magic formula enter his sea of wisdom. It was none other than the way to get past the grotto-mansion’s seal.

“All right. I have this sudden stroke of inspiration. I want to cultivate for a bit. You go cultivate on your own first. If there is nothing, don’t disturb me.” After saying that, Sage Enigma Flame sat down cross-legged. With both hands holding onto the Demon Sealing Sword, he slowly closed his eyes.

What an irresponsible master. Chen Feng silently criticized.

Forget it. I’ll check out this place first. Chen Feng then walked around the cave.

The cave was truly wide and spacious. It was unknown whether or not Sage Enigma Flame had been the one to dig out this cave. It did not take Chen Feng long to find a passageway leading further down.

It was an inconspicuous, circular hole on the ground. Thick earthen fire kept gushing out from the hole. Even with his body armour, Chen Feng felt a searing sensation assailing his body.

“Impressive! If it were not for my body armour, this place would have incinerated me to ash. This old man is cultivating within such an environment? What a monster,” Chen Feng said.

“Kid, I am going down to absorb some earthen fire to temper my body. You go do your thing.” Tower’s voice rang within Chen Feng’s mind. Next, the Longevity Tower transformed into a stream of light and flew into the hole.

“Don’t get incinerated!” Chen Feng reflexively used his soul power to talk to Tower.

“Don’t worry! Even if the earthen fire here is 10,000 times stronger, it cannot melt me,” Tower replied disdainfully.

Huh! There are still two months before the sect’s Grand Competition. Should I go take the assessment for becoming core disciple now? Chen Feng pondered.

Forget it. I should cultivate myself here for a bit first. Let’s see just how effective the Enigma Flame Extract is. Chen Feng opened the bottle and shook it slightly. A strand of yellow-coloured flames flowed out from the bottle. Next, Chen Feng reached out with his hand to grab the strand of flames.

Circulating the Heavengulping Absorption Technique, Chen Feng immediately absorbed the strand of Enigma Flame Extract into his body. Next, Chen Feng felt as though there was a fire snake wandering through the meridians inside his body while emitting fiery energy, desirous of burning Chen Feng to ash.

Thankfully, I already have the experience of absorbing earthen fire before. Additionally, I have also opened up my Fire acupoint. Although this strand of Enigma Flame Extract is powerful and extremely pure, all it can do is help improve my power. Chen Feng smiled.

The strand of Enigma Flame Extract swiftly wandered through Chen Feng’s eight extraordinary meridians. However, after just going through part of them, it had lost a great deal of its power. Next, Chen Feng absorbed it into his Fire acupoint, where he took his time refining it.

In less than half a day, Chen Feng finished absorbing the strand of fire essence, all of it. He then began working on the second strand.

As Chen Feng was refining the second strand, he was able to gauge how much Enigma Flame Extract was inside the bottle. There were roughly 100 strands.

The old man is truly stingy. He only gave me this little. When he is done with his cultivation, I must get more from him, Chen Feng thought.

1 zhang = 3.333 m