Breaking the Masked Man

Here, only a handful of people from Canaan Academy can freely enter and exit, including Su Qian, the Grand Elder of the Inner Court.

With a solemn expression, he walked into the tower and headed towards the deepest part of the Heavenly Flame Refining Tower. Soon he arrived at a sealed area, which was a completely different scene from the previous floors. The scorching temperature rose in the vast space, making the vision slightly blurry and illusory.

If someone were weaker, they would probably have their lungs burned by the fire-attribute energy that filled the world after just a couple of breaths.

For some unknown reason, the surrounding walls were permeated with a rich red glow, illuminating the world. In the center, there was an extremely spacious deep cave, much wider than the caves on the upper levels of the Heavenly Flame Refining Tower. However, it was not filled with an endless blackness, but with a strange deep red, like the color of congealed blood, which was extremely eerie.

Above it was an energy barrier filled with mysterious patterns, which sealed it tightly. However, this seal seemed to have lasted for too long, as there were some winding indentations on it, allowing wisps of powerful energy ripples to spread out from it.

Even this small amount of energy leakage caused the surrounding air to explode continuously.

Su Qian's eyes narrowed slightly, and a few glints of light appeared on his pupils. With the support of his battle qi, the extremely violent energy did not obscure his vision, allowing him to see through the seal and the surrounding violent energy to the real scene at the bottom.

It was a dark red world of magma, but unlike ordinary magma, the magma in the very center was an extremely dark red, as if it were formed from congealed blood, with bubbles constantly rising from it, giving it an indescribable eerie and terrifying feel.

This place is where the Fallen Heart Flame was born, and its true form is hidden deep within this crimson magma.

Seemingly sensing someone's arrival, the already raging energy below instantly boiled over, surging upwards and finally crashing violently against the seal. This caused the patterns on the seal to emit a dazzling halo, while simultaneously causing the surrounding temperature to soar. A terrifying heat wave surged towards Su Qian, as if greeting him.

However, this way of greeting is clearly not friendly.

Su Qian didn't move an inch, his gaze coldly fixed on the crimson magma below, as if he were staring back at the Fallen Heart Flame itself. The surging heat wave didn't shake him in the slightest; the moment it approached his body, it was blocked by an invisible spatial force.

"If that's all, I'll begin reinforcing the seal," Su Qian said coldly.

He came here today to reinforce the seal. The seal left by the Dean back then has become weak due to the erosion of the Fallen Heart Flame. If it weren't for the continuous reinforcement of the seal by the elders of each generation, the Fallen Heart Flame would have broken out long ago. But now Canaan Academy needs the Fallen Heart Flame and it is impossible to release it. This has deepened the conflict between the two sides.

"Roar~" With a deep roar, the dormant blood-red magma suddenly erupted, and then an extremely violent and powerful energy surged out from the bottom of the magma, causing the magma to churn up a fiery wave that was more than ten feet high, and smashed fiercely towards Su Qian.

Su Qian was no stranger to this, and seemed to know the temperament of the Fallen Heart Flame very well. He simply raised his hand to form a seal, controlling the seal in the area to suppress the Fallen Heart Flame.

"Boom~"

The moment the two collided, the terrifying energy fluctuations caused the magma below to churn, revealing a fiery red giant python. Its diamond-shaped snake eyes stared savagely at Su Qian, filled with a desire to destroy everything, devoid of any rationality or composure for communication.

As soon as the Fallen Heart Flame appeared, it roared and pounced on Su Qian, its posture extremely ferocious, like a mad beast.

"Boom!"

However, such an attack was destined to be futile. It crashed heavily into the seal, and was immediately suppressed by a force far exceeding its own strength, forcing it to fall back into the magma, splashing up countless magma. In response, the Fallen Heart Flame became even more irritable, controlling the surrounding magma to continuously bombard the seal, and condensing streams of scorching invisible energy from its mouth to continuously bombard the seal.

This scene plays out almost every month, forcing Su Qian to stay in the inner courtyard. As the seal becomes weaker, he can only continuously reinforce it to delay the opponent's speed of breaking free, while also preparing new seals on the outside. However, all of this obviously requires time to prepare.

Ultimately, it's also related to those two old guys who went into seclusion. After all, this was the work that should have been done by the two of them, but after their strength reached the Nine-Star Dou Zong level, the two of them almost stopped paying attention to the affairs of Canaan Academy.

Su Qian and the Fallen Heart Flame were locked in a stalemate for two or three hours before the turbulent Fallen Heart Flame finally calmed down and returned to the magma.

With the fall of the heart flame, the condition stabilized.

A hint of fatigue flashed in Su Qian's eyes. Even though he possessed the strength of a two-star Dou Zong, he couldn't withstand the drain from the Fallen Heart Flame. His opponent, being in his birthplace, had almost endless energy and didn't hold back on the energy within him. In comparison, he found it difficult to sustain himself.

"If this beast gets any stronger, it will be difficult to deal with..." Su Qian thought to himself.

Although he was unwilling to admit it, he knew very well that once the Fallen Heart Flame's strength grew to the Dou Zong level, the seal here would also become ineffective.

He pondered for a moment.

Su Qian shook his head, raised his hand and used his spatial power to repair the damaged seal. After finishing these tasks, he dragged his tired body outside. Even though he knew that the Fallen Heart Flame would break through the seal one day, he could only delay it one day at a time, since Canaan Academy couldn't do without it.

Once a person becomes dependent, it is very difficult to break the habit.

Canaan Academy was established thanks to the Fallen Heart Flame. Without it and the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, how could Canaan Academy attract the elites of the outside world and continue to develop? It is no exaggeration to say that the Fallen Heart Flame is the pillar of Canaan Academy.

After leaving the Heavenly Flame Refining Tower, Su Qian returned to the courtyard where Zi Yan was in seclusion. The spatial seal here had not been removed, and Zi Yan was still in the process of advancing. However, the energy shell on her body no longer absorbed the spatial energy from the outside world and was in an extremely quiet state. The only thing that could be felt was Zi Yan's vigorous vitality. Compared to her previous 'weak' appearance, she seemed to have made up for something now, making her more perfect.

"According to that kid, she should need another one to two months..." Su Qian muttered to himself as he examined the eggshell that Zi Yan had transformed into.

Thinking of that perverted kid, he couldn't help but shake his head, wondering what kind of trouble that kid would eventually cause.

Just now.

A streak of light flashed in the distance, and moments later, Hu Qian's figure appeared in Su Qian's sight. He rushed into the courtyard and looked at Su Qian with a solemn expression, saying, "Something terrible has happened outside!"

"No matter how big the matter is, you can't be in such a hurry~" Su Qian said with a bit of a wry smile. If she hadn't broken the spatial seal just now, Hu Qian would probably have run into a brick wall.

"I'm not in the mood for jokes. Something really bad has happened in the Black Corner Region. That Medicine King Han Feng has joined forces with the Demon Flame Valley and seems to be plotting something. The target is very likely our Canaan Academy!" Hu Qian frowned, waved his hand impatiently, and said in a deep voice.

"kindness?!"

Upon hearing this, Su Qian also looked puzzled and asked, "How did Han Feng get involved with Demon Flame Valley?"

Demon Flame Valley is an old power in the Black Corner Region and has many grudges with Canaan Academy. Back then, the two elders, Qianbai and Erla, even beat up the Valley Master of Demon Flame Valley, which led to a very bad relationship between the two sides. However, according to the two elders, that old thing should not dare to provoke Canaan Academy again, so why has he reappeared?

"It's not just Demon Flame Valley. Besides them, at least three other forces have also been persuaded by Han Feng. We don't know what they are plotting yet, but in the entire Black Corner Region, the only one worth dealing with like this seems to be Canaan Academy!" Hu Qian said in a deep voice.

His deductions are not nonsense, but highly probable.

"Logically speaking, this shouldn't be the case..." Su Qian muttered in confusion. If Han Feng hadn't obtained the Sea Heart Flame yet, he might have been worried. But Han Feng had only been refining the Sea Heart Flame for a few years. Even if he knew about the existence of the Fallen Heart Flame, he shouldn't have come knocking on his door.

Although the Sea Heart Flame is not as good as the Fallen Heart Flame, it should be enough for Han Feng, a sixth-grade alchemist. Why would he set his sights on Canaan Academy again? Isn't he afraid of getting himself into big trouble?

"This matter seems to be related to one of Han Feng's senior uncles, who appears to be a seventh-grade alchemist. However, whether this information is true or not cannot be verified at the moment."

Hu Qian dropped another bombshell, but he himself wasn't entirely sure about it.

"Martial Uncle?!"

Su Qian looked surprised and suspicious. Han Feng's master was the renowned Medicine Venerable of the entire Central Continent, and his fellow disciples were at least high-level Dou Zong, and their alchemy ranks were definitely no weaker than the seventh grade. Why would such beings come to the Black Corner Region? Could it be because of the Medicine Venerable's death?

After all, the Medicine Venerable died from the backlash of alchemy back then, which caused quite a stir. Yet Han Feng arrived in the Black Corner Region without a sound, which must be suspicious.

"Do you think it's possible that his uncle is after the Fallen Heart Flame?" Hu Qian suddenly asked.

"..."

Hu Qian's words undoubtedly silenced Su Qian, because the possibility was extremely high. The news that Canaan Academy possessed a different kind of fire was not a secret in the outside world, and many people knew about it.

Over the centuries, Canaan Academy has produced tens of millions of students. Many of them come from small and medium-sized forces in the Central Continent, and some are even first-rate forces. It would be strange if these people didn't spread the news about Canaan Academy.

The Heavenly Flame Refining Tower is such a bizarre object that it is an extremely rare cultivation artifact, even in the Central Plains.

Those with insight can naturally deduce some information from it.

"Don't be silent, say something!" Hu Qian urged, looking at the silent Su Qian, hoping that the other party could make a decision.

"Let's wait and see. If it really involves his uncle... I will ask the two elders to come out of seclusion."

Su Qian remained silent for a moment before giving his answer. In the end, the Dou Qi Continent still values ​​strength above all else. Only those with strength have the confidence to speak. The greatest source of confidence for Canaan Academy is undoubtedly the two elders, Qian Bai and Er Lao.

Will the two elders, Qianbai and Erlao, emerge from seclusion?

Hu Qian said somewhat uncertainly that since he entered Canaan Academy, he had rarely seen these two elders emerge from seclusion. He could only sense their presence when recruiting new students, confirming that they were still alive. Apart from that, he could not see them at all, let alone expect them to deal with enemies.

If he could summon them at any time, he wouldn't be stuck at the peak of the Nine-Star Dou Huang realm.

"...I'll give it a try." Su Qian wasn't very confident. For those two old guys, breaking through to the Dou Zun level was the most important thing. Nothing else mattered, including the Fallen Heart Flame of the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower. The two of them had even said that the Fallen Heart Flame would break free sooner or later, and that keeping it sealed was not a good thing.

That's quite true. The Fallen Heart Flame has been sealed away for so long, which is no less than having a bomb that could explode at any moment planted in Canaan Academy. But the fact that these two people said it makes one feel a little helpless, after all, they are family.

"I'll try my best, but I hope I'm overthinking it."

Hu Qian sighed helplessly, then looked at the 'egg' that Zi Yan had transformed into, and said uncertainly, "Is this Zi Yan?"

Although the shape has changed, the aura remains the same, making it easy to distinguish.

Su Qian nodded.

"Has she advanced? This is the first time I've ever seen a magical beast advance like this!" Hu Qian became interested and examined Zi Yan's egg. He could even see some mysterious patterns on it, subtly spreading across the surface of the eggshell, seemingly containing the mysteries of space, but they didn't look real and he couldn't understand them.

“Zi Yan’s true form must be an extremely powerful magical beast. Her advancement process even requires absorbing spatial power. I have never seen such talent before in my life.” Su Qian couldn’t help but sigh upon hearing this.

"What a little monster... just a bit worse than Yao Yan." Hu Qian clicked his tongue.

Yao Yan's identity as a seventh-grade alchemist is truly frightening.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but look at Su Qian, his eyes lighting up, and said, "Where is that kid? Since he's an alchemist, he should be familiar with Han Feng's uncle. Why don't we ask him if it's true?"

"They've gone out," Su Qian said in a deep voice.

"Where are you going?!"

Hu Qian was stunned, clearly not expecting Su Qian to let such a genius escape; it was truly a foolish act.

"Black Corner Region..."

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 163 Gathering

They went to the Black Corner Region?!

Hu Qian was slightly taken aback by the answer, then remembered what they had talked about before and said, "Is he going to the Black Corner Region to establish his power?"

"That's what he meant, but I didn't ask about his specific purpose." Su Qian nodded and said softly. He didn't get too involved in Yao Yan's private affairs. Just as Canaan Academy wouldn't get involved in the power struggles in the Black Corner Region, maintaining neutrality has always been the standard of operation for Canaan Academy.

If possible, Su Qian even hoped that this situation could continue indefinitely, but the people of the Black Corner Region did not seem to think so.

Just thinking about what Hu Qian had just said gave Su Qian a headache. If Han Feng really did have a senior uncle who was at least a seventh-grade alchemist and had his eye on Canaan Academy, then their troubles would definitely be significant.

Upon hearing this, Hu Qian asked, "Can you contact him?"

"He said he's going out to take a look, and if nothing unexpected happens, he'll be back in a month to three months at most," Su Qian said softly, glancing at the energy egg that Zi Yan had transformed into. He could sense that Yao Yan valued Zi Yan highly, perhaps because of Zi Yan's true form.

"One to three months? Looks like we can't count on this kid." Hu Qian said helplessly.

“Canaan Academy has never relied on anyone else since its inception…” Su Qian said calmly, then pondered for a moment before adding, “Notify all students in the inner and outer academies that from today onwards, no one is allowed to leave the area. Peace Town is also temporarily closed, and no one is allowed to enter or leave until we confirm Han Feng’s purpose.”