Chapter 388: Successful Check-in

"Husband!" Mu Chen replied.

"Husband?" Zi Yan furrowed her delicate brows.

"Yes," Mu Chen responded.

"Husband? Old man? Why would you like such a strange term? You're still so young, do you really want to grow old?" Zi Yan asked with a puzzled smile.

Slap

Mu Chen patted Zi Yan's buttocks and scolded, "How dare you speak to your husband like that. 'Husband' means 'spouse,' and I'll call you 'wife,' okay?"

"No, please don't call me that," Zi Yan replied while rubbing her buttocks, her face blushing. Despite being teased by Mu Chen, she wore a joyful expression.

"Why?" Mu Chen asked.

"I don't want to grow old. If you keep calling me that, you'll make me feel old," Zi Yan said.

"But don't you want to grow up?" Mu Chen asked.

"Idiot, I want to grow up, but I don't want to grow old. Besides, I'm very satisfied with my current appearance and age," Zi Yan retorted.

Slap

As soon as Zi Yan finished speaking, her buttocks were once again under attack. This time, Mu Chen didn't just pat her; he also gave her a firm squeeze.

"Husband!" Zi Yan's face turned red as she looked at Mu Chen with a pout.

"Daring to call your husband an idiot deserves a spanking," Mu Chen said with a smug smile, feeling quite pleased with himself as he looked at his right hand.

Zi Yan didn't cry or make a fuss; instead, she showed a happy expression. Suddenly, Zi Yan's heart skipped a beat, and her gaze turned toward a direction in the lava.

"What's wrong?" Mu Chen asked with concern.

"I can feel something calling me from there," Zi Yan replied.

"Something? What is it?" Mu Chen asked.

"I don't know," Zi Yan shook her head.

"Take me to see it," Mu Chen said.

Zi Yan nodded. Now that she had the Strange Fire, she glanced at the endless lava with a serious expression, but she no longer felt the fear she once had.

Possessing the Strange Fire allowed Zi Yan to be unafraid of the scorching temperature of the lava. Additionally, her true form as the Void Ancient Dragon enabled her to withstand the intense pressure of the lava.

Following her instincts, Zi Yan dived deeper into the lava. As the resistance behind them grew stronger, both she and Mu Chen knew they were heading deeper into the lava.

Following Zi Yan, Mu Chen arrived beside a faintly glowing transparent ring of light. The ring appeared in the midst of a lava vortex. The vortex in the lava was far more terrifying than one in water; once caught in it, even a Battle Emperor or a Martial Ancestor-level expert would be lucky to escape with their life.

"It's inside there," Zi Yan pointed at the transparent ring of light.

As soon as Zi Yan finished speaking, the faint transparent ring of light fully emerged from the lava. Both she and Mu Chen immediately scanned the strange transparent ring.

Since the ring was transparent, Zi Yan and Mu Chen could see everything inside it. Within the ring lay a skeleton that had turned into white bones. The skeleton emitted a faint fluorescent light. Note, this wasn't the ordinary glow of bones, but a transparent flame, as if it were something intangible.

"Fallen Heart Flame."

Zi Yan blurted out. The transparent flame was none other than the Fallen Heart Flame.

"In this lifeless world of magma, not only are there others present, but there is also a second Fallen Heart Flame."

Zi Yan looked astonished because Strange Fires regard each other as enemies, so only one type of Strange Fire can exist in a place, never two. The scene before them undoubtedly refreshed their understanding of Strange Fires.

"Who is it?"

Zi Yan looked at Mu Chen curiously and asked, "Who could survive in this lifeless world of magma?"

Mu Chen held Zi Yan's hand and said, "If you want to know, let's go in and find out."

Mu Chen led Zi Yan forward, stepping into the transparent light circle. His eyes scanned the surroundings and finally rested on the mysterious floating skeleton in the center.

"Fallen Heart Flame? I didn't expect... it to be tamed by someone..."

A hoarse voice sounded, and then a red soul aura drifted out from the white skeleton. Finally, it condensed into an elderly man with white hair and beard, dressed in a white robe, standing before Mu Chen and Zi Yan.

"Huh, you two aren't the least bit surprised by my appearance?"

The old man looked at Mu Chen and Zi Yan in astonishment.

"Just a soul body, nothing to be afraid of," Mu Chen said indifferently.

"Exactly," Zi Yan said with a curled lip, her eyes filled with disdain.

The old man examined Mu Chen, then Zi Yan. He could sense the terrifying aura emanating from Mu Chen and also felt that Zi Yan must have an extraordinary background.

"Do you know who I am?" the old man asked casually, as if making small talk.

"Aren't you the previous owner of the Fallen Heart Flame?" Zi Yan said.

"You know me?" the old man looked at Zi Yan in surprise.

"No," Zi Yan replied.

"Then how did you know I was the previous owner of the Fallen Heart Flame?" the old man asked, dumbfounded.

"Isn't it obvious? What you just said makes it hard not to think so," Zi Yan answered.

"What a clever child," the old man stroked his beard, praising Zi Yan.

"Old sir, I want this small Fallen Heart Flame," Zi Yan asked politely.

Zi Yan's adoptive father was Elder Su Qian, and she had stayed in the inner academy for a long time, knowing the importance of the Fallen Heart Flame to the inner academy. If the inner academy lost the Fallen Heart Flame, it would be equivalent to destruction.

The Fallen Heart Flame that had been kept in the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda had already been obtained by Zi Yan and could no longer be given to the inner academy. If they could get this small Fallen Heart Flame, the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda of the inner academy could continue to exist.

Although this small Fallen Heart Flame was smaller, with someone at the Dou Zong level like Su Qian using Dou Qi to catalyze the flame's power, it could fully sustain the normal operation of the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda.

"Alright, but I have one condition," the old man agreed.

"No. Calling you 'old sir' is a sign of respect. In your current state, you have no right to bargain with us," Zi Yan said coldly, her tone carrying a faint, unsettling fluctuation that made the old man's heart tremble.

"Ding Dong!"

"Congratulations, you have completed the mission and signed in at the tomb of the Heavenly Flame Venerate. Reward: Your Qi cultivation level has directly increased by one level, current level 89 (Nine Revolutions Battle Venerate). Reward item: Profound Yellow Flame."

Xuanhuang Flame: Ranked twenty-third on the Strange Fire Ranking. Although it is the lowest-ranked on the Strange Fire Ranking, this flame not only possesses the terrifying temperature characteristic of Strange Fires but also has a peculiar defensive ability akin to solid rock. It is the most stable and intense flame on the Strange Fire Ranking. It takes ten years to form a spirit, a hundred years to take shape, and a thousand years to become a flame. At its peak,

its color leans towards yellow, and it moves like a giant peak, hence it is also known as the Giant Peak Flame.