Martial artists can never be ultimately insulted.

This...this shouldn't be right, right?

This was Mai Shiranui's initial idea.

According to the records in the Scroll of Flame, by constantly honing and strengthening the 'Nen Fire Circuit', it can withstand the high temperature of Nen Fire... This is the safest way to master the art of Nen Fire.

But now, the protective layer created by the 'Mind Fire Circuit' has melted away...

This was completely different from the fire magic that Mai Shiranui remembered, but for some reason, Mai Shiranui showed absolutely no intention of stopping.

As for the reason...

"...So comfortable."

Mai Shiranui subconsciously narrowed her eyes, and her voice softened involuntarily.

She felt the main meridians in her body that formed the Mind Fire Circuit were enveloped by a very thin layer of warmth. Even though the protective layer that formed the Mind Fire Circuit was melted, she felt extra comfort and peace of mind.

It's as if... as if a swordsmith dips a red-hot steel blade into oil, making it dense, homogeneous, and indestructible from the outside in.

Subconsciously urging her Nen Fire, before Mai Shiranui could stop in fear, she noticed that the energy flowing through her meridians was smoother than usual.

Sensing something was slightly off, Mai Shiranui subconsciously looked at Yuan Chen.

Yuan Chen didn't pay attention to Mai Shiranui's gaze. Instead, he looked at his hands, feeling the highly condensed and violently activated life energy within them, accompanied by leaping golden flames. A hint of contemplation appeared in his eyes.

Although it was learned through the art of fire mind, Yuan Chen could sense that, if you really wanted to calculate it, the fire mind technique only accounted for about 10% of the composition of the golden flame.

In other words, in the energy conversion that generates the golden flame, the Fire Mantra acts like a lighter.

Once the ignition source is lit, it's no longer of any use.

The golden flame is actually composed of three parts: one is Yuan Chen's own Qi and intention, another is the life energy within Yuan Chen's body, and the third is something similar to solar energy, which is transformed through the solar rune.

After removing the technical support of the Fire of Thought technique, Yuan Chen's own Qi and intention accounted for 45% of the golden flame, his life energy accounted for 45%, and the remaining 10% was the special energy transformed from the Sun Rune.

This energy is not much, but it acts as a lubricant, allowing the Qi, intention, and life energy of Yuan Chen to merge, rise, and transform into golden flames in the Mind Fire Circuit.

Although he still had many questions in his mind, Yuan Chen could sense that this should be the next form of life energy.

Or rather, compared to the previous crude way of using it, this is a more efficient way of using it now.

As it stands, Jin Yan has three abilities.

The first is the same healing and activation as the previous life energy—except that after it turned into golden flames, both the healing and activation effects were significantly improved.

The second is the 'devouring' ability that it gains after transforming into its flame form.

This ability is not simply about harming or engulfing, but about converting the opponent's energy into life energy for one's own use.

Similar to healing while fighting? No... because to be precise, it should be that while healing while fighting, you are also constantly applying a weakening buff to the opponent, continuously consuming their energy.

The third type is like Mai Shiranui... who, under certain circumstances, guides life to grow in the 'right' direction.

The emergence of these abilities... aside from the inspiring energy conversion brought about by the Fire of Thought technique, is also due to the boost from the Sun Rune.

Without the assistance and neutralization of the Sun Rune, I would probably still be practicing according to the logic of the Fire of Thought Technique, trying to let my body replace the meridians, so as to achieve the purpose of transforming them into fire of thought through bursts of energy, accelerated metabolism, and other means.

As he pondered, a hint of understanding appeared in Yuan Chen's eyes.

At the same time, his gaze fell upon the sun rune on the back of his hand, which only he could see...

So this was Ingrid's real gift to herself?

Give yourself a push at crucial moments when you might miss them.

Thinking this, Yuan Chen felt a little moved.

Although this old woman seems cynical and likes to tell dirty jokes to tease the younger generation... she is actually very dedicated.

Old woman! I'll never call you old woman again!

While moved, Yuan Chen also felt somewhat helpless.

Since their parting in Hong Kong, the old woman said that finding Yuan Chen was just a matter of "opening a door," but she never appeared again after that. She only left a message from Old Yuan saying, "I have something to take care of," and then disappeared.

Perhaps they've returned to the infinite multiverse beyond this universe?

Things that Ingrid can handle herself... well, there's no need to think about them too much; they're still too far removed from my own life.

Thinking this, Yuan Chen could only silently pray that the little loli old woman could remember human time and not make the mistake that immortal beings all make, waiting until he was old to come back and see him...

After his death, he took two young people, a red-haired man and a purple-haired woman, and embarked on a journey to find traces of the Martial God Yuan Chen.

Looking up and noticing Mai Shiranui's gaze, Yuan Chen briefly explained his guess.

"Let life grow in the 'right' direction..." Upon hearing Yuan Chen's explanation, Mai Shiranui was stunned for a moment, then said somewhat blankly, "Doesn't that mean... the Nen Fire I cultivate is wrong?"

"do not know."

Yuan Chen glanced at the Flame Scroll and said, "But it has indeed been cut a lot... It seems that in order to avoid certain special things, some rough methods were deliberately chosen."

Upon hearing this, Mai Shiranui recalled the words Yuan Chen had spoken to Hanzo Shiranui before he read the Scroll of Flame.

A thousand years ago, Shiranui Town was attacked by people who possessed special flames...

"Wow, I'm suddenly so angry... I thought it was just a story." Mai Shiranui crossed her arms, a look of surprise on her face.

He then stretched and said, "But the flow of Qi is indeed much smoother now... I didn't feel it before, but compared to now, before, when I was circulating Qi, it felt like carrying a huge rock back and forth. Hmm... but it just feels a little easier, there aren't many other changes?"

Hearing what Mai Shiranui said, Yuan Chen shrugged: "After all, it was just a simple correction. It would probably take a long time to completely cure it."

Mai Shiranui has been practicing the art of fire magic for over ten years, which is a true testament to her early training.

It is clearly impossible to restore the art of fire magic to the righteous path of the Shiranui-cho era with just a wisp of golden flame.

Realizing this, Mai Shiranui blinked, and then her expression began to look a little off.

What... this new guy... who should be my junior brother, is stronger than me, and I seem to have something very important to ask him?

The thought that she might have to beg Yuan Chen to pour golden flames into her to get the Nen Fire Technique back on track made Mai Shiranui feel a sense of resentment.

Damn it! Being defeated with a single punch was bad enough, but I could at least use my experience in the Fire Manipulation technique to offer some guidance… but now! I haven't even had a chance to show off my senior sister status! And now I'm expected to have this junior brother give me a good beating…

Looking at Mai Shiranui, who was clutching her fan with a face full of resentment, Yuan Chen just tilted his head, unable to understand what this woman was thinking for a moment.

In contrast, Genryusai Maki remained silent, instead focusing on the changes within her own body.

Compared to the Shiranui-ryu, which specializes in energy conversion, ki, and ninjutsu, Genryusai Maki, as a member of the Mushin-ryu, is more skilled in taijutsu and melee combat.

Although his father, Elder Genryusai, was a key figure in reviving the Martial God School, in reality... Elder Genryusai was a complete weakling.

Or perhaps, he's the classic martial arts theory master, but a weakling in practice.

Even so, we cannot deny Elder Genryusai's contribution to the Martial God School—if it weren't for Elder Genryusai's timely changes to some of the Martial God School's philosophies, the Martial God School might have gradually disappeared into the long river of history, like many other unknown schools...

After all... objectively speaking, the lineage of the Martial God School is inherently problematic. It is basically a one-on-one transmission, and the slightest mistake could lead to the lineage being cut off.

Elder Genryusai was a contemporary of Gen and Shiranui Hanzo, but unlike Shiranui Hanzo, Elder Genryusai had a daughter late in life, which is why Genryusai Maki was the same age as Shiranui Mai and became friends with her.

However, in terms of talent... Genryusai Maki is not even as good as Mai Shiranui.

This lack of natural talent is one of the sources of pressure for Genryusai Maki...

Now, if Mai Shiranui is experiencing more of a correction of her meridians, then Maki Genryusai is experiencing a revitalization of her physical body.

This allows for a more detailed and comprehensive experience of one's own body...

Is this... the world of geniuses?

Not just any genius like myself, merely a genius compared to ordinary people, but a true genius among geniuses, perceiving the world as...

At that moment, Genryusai Maki suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of despair and suffocation.

The tragedy of a genius is that he makes mediocre people realize their own mediocrity.

This is undoubtedly a great cruelty.

Because Genryusai Maki clearly realized that things she had never felt or noticed before... were commonplace in Genji's mind, and even in Mai Shiranui's mind.

Thinking this, Genryusai Maki lowered her head slightly, a hint of confusion in her eyes. She didn't even want Yuan Chen to join the Martial God School, because she felt... Yuan Chen might not need her guidance?

Just like now, with just a quick glance at the Flame Scroll, which has been passed down for thousands of years by the Shiranui lineage, one can discover many secrets, flaws, and omissions that even the current direct descendants of Shiranui cannot find... and then correct them.

While pondering this, Genryusai Maki even found it somewhat laughable.

When Shiranui Hanzo directly took out the Flame Scroll for Yuan Chen to read, Genryusai Maki was still wondering if it was a bit inappropriate to just show the ancient secret manual to a newcomer.

But now it seems... that my confusion was just the thinking of a mediocre person.

While Genryusai Maki was still lost in thought, she suddenly felt the sky darken before her eyes.

She subconsciously looked up, only to see Yuan Chen already standing in front of her.

Looking at Genryusai Maki, Yuan Chen asked, "You don't look well?"

"...It's alright, I should say it's better than ever before."

Looking at Yuan Chen standing in front of her, his back to the sun, tall and imposing, his shadow alone enough to completely cover her, Genryusai Maki smiled wryly and said:

"It's just... the light is too bright. I feel like my eyes, which are used to the dark, are going to get burned!"

Volume 1: Chapter 126 - The Final Boundary Between Life and Death, the Golden Flame Endures

Sensing Genryusai Maki's wry smile, Yuan Chen pondered for a moment before understanding her thoughts.

Because Genryusai Maki's state is very similar to Hibiki Takeshi's... except that, unlike Hibiki Takeshi, Genryusai Maki has not completely given up yet, but after personally experiencing the world of geniuses, she felt a sense of despair and powerlessness.

Thinking this, Yuan Chen remained silent for a moment, unsure of what to say.

Because... Genryusai Maki's talent is indeed average. Even in SNK, she is considered a forgotten character. She is completely incomparable to Mai Shiranui, who debuted in Art of Fighting and rose to prominence in the King of Fighters series.

Putting everything else aside, just search their names on any pink or green website, and the number of notebooks that pop up is on a completely different level.

Even when the perverts learned that Genryusai Maki and Mai Shiranui were competing against each other, they were all shocked.

Many people inquired about the identity of Genryusai Maki.

In fighting games, if you're not popular, you're no good. Mai Shiranui was initially just someone who used explosives, but after she became popular, they added a backstory saying she came from the ancient town of Shiranui and later acquired the ultimate power of crimson flames.

Without popularity... being forgotten, and then falling behind in version updates and lacking power-up patches, it's only natural that one's strength will lag behind.

But Yuan Chen didn't just wait there. Instead, he looked at Genryusai Maki and said, "I... can more or less understand what you're thinking."

"...Can you really understand?" After a brief silence, Genryusai Maki looked at Gen Chen with some helplessness, while Gen Chen said, "Since I have decided to study under the Martial God School, I will naturally not do it without paying anything... Consider the Golden Flame as tuition."

Upon hearing this, Genryusai Maki was slightly taken aback, looked at Yuan Chen with disbelief in her eyes.

Yuan Chen, however, stated matter-of-factly, "Although I am not familiar with the scriptures of the Martial God School, in essence... it is about 'intention', isn't it?"

“…Hmm.” Genryusai Maki didn’t pay much attention to Yuan Chen’s question, after all, she had just discussed the issue of martial arts specializations with Shiranui Hanzo. In addition, it was quite normal for Yuan Chen, who came from the lineage of the Sangji Assassination Fist, to know some information about the Martial God Style.

“If it’s about intention, then it’s either about implementation or about having the resolve to completely destroy and rebuild.” Yuan Chen extended his hand to Genryusai Maki and said:

"Although I don't know you very well yet, how should I put it... I do know something about 'bōsōzoku' (motorcycle gangs), and I can feel the indomitable spirit in you... so I believe in you."

"What biker gang... "

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Genryusai Maki turned her face away in embarrassment, wondering why Yuan Chen had suddenly brought this up.

But then again... that was definitely the time when I felt most glorious, happiest, and most comfortable.

As she pondered, seemingly recalling some past events, a hint of a smile appeared in Genryusai Maki's eyes. She then nodded and said, "Then I'll leave it to you—I will certainly answer all your questions about the Martial God School to the best of my knowledge!"

"Ah."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Chen nodded in agreement.

Subsequently, Yuan Chen continued to differentiate the golden flames, allowing Mai Shiranui and Genryusai Maki to continue experiencing the effects of the activated golden flames.

Although he had only grasped the basics, through years of using life energy, even though the life energy had now transformed into a higher form of energy like golden flames, Yuan Chen was still mastering this new ability at an astonishing speed, relying on his original foundation.

As the three of them were engrossed in their cultivation, the restless blood energy around Shiranui Hanzo gradually calmed down.

This immediately attracted everyone's attention.

As the first person Yuan Chen tried to activate using the Golden Flame, Shiranui Hanzo had the most intense reaction. After initially looking completely incredulous, he entered a meditative state, and his complexion and overall condition improved steadily.

Now, with Hanzo Shiranui opening his eyes, while others might be overlooked, Mai Shiranui was definitely the first to notice the changes in Hanzo Shiranui.

"Grandpa! You...you've gotten younger?!"

The changes in Shiranui Hanzo are indeed quite obvious.

The first thing that caught the eye was his skin.

Those wrinkles that were once deeply etched into her face like knife cuts have now visibly become much shallower. And this fading is not a crude smoothing like cosmetic surgery, but rather a result of being filled in from the inside with plump flesh and blood.