At first, there was no change. Meng Qi and Li Che stood side by side, watching the world around them fall silent. Above the clear sky, clouds drifted by. Occasionally, a breeze brushed past them, lifting a strand of hair that had fallen on Meng Qi’s cheek. The profound-grade spirit stones she had just thrown were emitting a faint glow on the ground, far from the brilliance they should have shown. In the large array embedded with profound-grade spirit stones, the Netherworld Thorns gently swayed its leaves, looking as relaxed as ever.
Li Che waited for a while, but there was still no reaction. He couldn’t help but glance at the Netherworld Thorns, then turned to look at Meng Qi. The girl stood calmly in place, her expression unchanged, her small chin slightly raised as if everything was under her control.
Suddenly, the spirit stones burst into a dazzling light, as if countless pure white flames ignited between heaven and earth. The flames burned fiercely along the lines of the array Meng Qi had drawn earlier, instantly enveloping the Netherworld Thorns completely.
Meng Qi raised her right hand, and with a slight flick of her fingers, her Five Spirit Cauldron flew forward, silently hovering just outside the array. The pure white flames continued to burn silently, their dazzling light eventually fading away, leaving only a faintly glowing fire that didn’t seem particularly remarkable.
At first, Li Che didn’t think much of it, but a moment later, his eyes widened suddenly. Standing beside him, Meng Qi raised her hand again, throwing another handful of profound-grade spirit stones into the array.
“Is it still necessary…?” Li Che almost murmured, perhaps more to himself rather than Meng Qi. His lips moved as he looked at the array, which hadn’t changed much. Throwing in a large number of profound-grade spirit stones didn’t seem to make the white flames any more brilliant.
On the contrary, the light of the flames grew softer. Li Che wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but the flames seemed even smaller than before. The white flames that had been about as tall as the Netherworld Thorns were now almost only half the height, and their glow was clearly dimmer. Amidst the firelight, the Netherworld Thorns were still stretching their tender leaves comfortably in the occasional breeze, as if mocking Meng Qi’s useless attempt.
“Meng Qi…” Li Che murmured again, watching as Meng Qi raised her hand and threw yet another handful of profound-grade spirit stones. Clicking his tongue, he took out a few profound-grade spirit stones from his own storage space item and handed them to Meng Qi.
Before he left, his master had given him these profound-grade spirit stones to be prepared for any situation. His sect was far from as affluent as the Feng Alliance, and even though they ranked among the top ten in the Southern Realm, it was only because medical cultivation had gradually declined there.
Meng Qi cast Li Che a slight glance but didn’t hesitate to take the spirit stones from his hand. She casually threw another handful of profound-grade spirit stones, and by now, the array had consumed nearly two hundred. This time, the light of the Lihuo Array grew even dimmer. The pure white flames that once filled the array were now only slightly above the ground, barely reaching a quarter of the height of the Netherworld Thorns. The light grew even softer, and if it weren’t for their proximity, along with the occasional flicker on the array, it would be almost impossible to tell that there were still flames burning.
Meng Qi didn’t seem to care in the slightest. Half an incense stick time later, she threw another handful of profound-grade spirit stones. The pure white flames became smaller with each batch of spirit stones she threw into the array. Now, they were only as high as a fist, almost spread flat on the ground, relying on Meng Qi’s continuous supply of spirit stones to stay ignited. Li Che couldn’t help but suspect that the flames would be completely extinguished if the wind blew any stronger.
He turned to look at Meng Qi and saw that she remained calm, her expression unchanged from earlier. He was unsure if they had failed once more or if there was any hope left, but he didn’t dare to ask.
At worst…
Li Che slightly curled his fingers. At worst, they still had other options. As he had said earlier, he could always retrieve the Netherworld Thorn himself…
“What on earth is that girl doing?” The black-robed sword cultivator sat back down at the edge of the cliff, bending his left knee and resting his chin on his left hand as his eyes glued to Meng Qi’s figure. The blue-robed girl was throwing handful after handful of profound-grade spirit stones, noticing that with each throw, the intensity of the flames seemed to weaken. Unable to contain his curiosity, he turned to look at the two companions standing behind him, almost as if talking to himself, “Is she showing off her wealth now?”
The man was clearly joking, and there was no hint of mockery in his tone. Even he didn’t think that so many profound-grade spirit stones were being used for showing off. After all, those spirit stones she had been throwing were truly consumed by the array.
The white-haired medical cultivator blinked slowly as he responded, “When we medical cultivators refine medicine, success depends mainly on the type of cauldron we use and the quality of ingredients. Sometimes, special ingredients are also required, and…” He looked quietly in Meng Qi’s direction, continuing, “…we also depend on the fire.””
“For some high-grade formula or extremely rare, legendary spiritual materials, ordinary fire simply cannot refine them. It’s extremely difficult to bring out their medicinal properties, let alone refine them into medicines.”
“Hmm?” The black-robed sword cultivator raised an eyebrow, “I know that, but look at her fire; it’s practically about to go out.”
“It won’t go out,” the white-haired medical cultivator shook his head, his gaze growing brighter, even showing a faint hint of yearning.
“It won’t?!” Unlike his typical response, the black-robed sword cultivator didn’t jump up to refute his companion or raise his voice. “But look at that fire… even with so many profound-grade spirit stones, it’s getting smaller and smaller.”
“Yes,” the white-haired medical cultivator nodded casually. He continued to watch in Meng Qi’s direction, and when he spoke again, even his tone was tinged with faint yearning, “After all… that’s Lihuo.”
“Li… Lihuo?!” This time, the black-robed sword cultivator did jump up in shock, “Did you say Lihuo?! Are you really talking about Lihuo Fire?!” His voice grew louder with each word, his eyes blazing as he looked at his white-haired colleague.
“Lihuo Fire indeed,” the white-haired medical cultivator nodded slowly. When it came to the special flames of the Three Realms, few would understand them better than a medical cultivator.
“Lihuo… it’s actually the Lihuo Fire…” The black-robed sword cultivator turned abruptly to look again in Meng Qi’s direction, “But how could she summon Lihuo… Isn’t it… isn’t it…”
“Heh…” The white-haired medical cultivator chuckled lightly. He understood why his colleague reacted so strongly at the name of ‘Lihuo.’
“What are you laughing at?” The black-robed sword cultivator didn’t turn around; he sat back down at the cliff’s edge, gently tapping the rock wall with his fingers, murmuring, “Lihuo… to actually summon Lihuo with an array… Even if it takes hundreds of profound-grade spirit stones each time, it’s a tremendous gain.”
“Heh.” The white-haired medical cultivator chuckled but said nothing. It was more than just a gain—the ability to summon Lihuo would tempt even an ancient medical cultivator like him. If someone told him that Lihuo could be summoned with an array, he had no doubt that many medical cultivators of his generation would be willing to give up everything in exchange for such an array.
“Is it really Lihuo?” The black-robed sword cultivator was still in disbelief, turning again to look at his companion, suspicion in his eyes, “But her flame is nearly extinguished.”
“Extinguished?” The white-haired medical cultivator, usually the most reserved and gentle of the three, rarely showed such a strong reaction, “Even if you returned to your prime and struck with all your strength, you wouldn’t be able to extinguish her flame.”
“To use Lihuo as the array, and the earth as the cauldron… Amazing…” The white-haired medical cultivator shook his head lightly, his eyes glowed with yearning, “No wonder Xiao Yan chose her as a successor. But her talent in arrays clearly surpasses her medical skill. If the Ji clan saw such exceptional potential, they would stop at nothing to take her as their disciple.”
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White haired bro.. you are really not well informed