Volume 4: Hidden Battles – Chapter 238: One Unified Whole

Just as everyone was stunned, a red glow flashed and spread instantly. The Illusory Flame True Pulse in the container and that piece of warm jade had already turned into a mass of crimson light, emitting intense heat waves and powerful forces that forced those at the periphery to retreat step by step.

Liu Xiangshi, who was in the front line, was pushed back several steps by the heat waves. Sparks began to appear on his clothes, and his phone in his pocket exploded with a loud crack. It was only Liu Xiangshi who was lucky; if it had been an ordinary person, they might have been injured on the spot.

Faced with such an unexpected turn of events, Chu Tianyu was even more shocked. Although he instinctively stepped back a few steps while holding Tai Nianran, his eyes remained fixed on the dazzling red light in the sky, his face showing a thoughtful expression.

Suddenly, a loud “pop” woke Chu Tianyu up. He looked down and saw that the pocket of his pants had been blown open, with a wisp of smoke rising and a foul burnt smell spreading. It turned out that the satellite phone Chu Tianyu carried had also exploded under the intense heat, following in Liu Xiangshi’s footsteps! This puzzled Chu Tianyu greatly. If it were just heat, at most the phone’s casing would soften, and its delicate electronics would unlikely explode to such an extent. Moreover, modern phones no longer used explosive batteries but relied on solar energy—there was no reason for an explosion!

At that moment, explosions from phones or electronic devices also occurred in the pockets of Chu Tianyu’s two uncles and Zi Yi, Fei Fei, and the others…

“Electromagnetic waves!” A series of noises made Chu Tianyu suddenly realize what was happening.

Before he could think further, the situation changed drastically. The Illusory Flame True Pulse seemed to resonate with something, moving rapidly and irregularly in the sky. As the light mass moved, it produced a sharp whistling sound. To everyone’s ears, it sounded like cheers of joy and liberation, filled with pride and ease!

When the red light surrounding the Illusory Flame True Pulse stopped in the sky again, a tremendous suction force appeared, as if all the life energy of the forest was flowing toward this area. Even Chu Tianyu’s uncles had to summon all their strength and rely on the towering ancient trees around them to resist.

Chu Tianyu didn’t need any external aid to hold onto Tai Nianran; this suction force posed no threat to him, and his thoughts were not focused on it at the moment. His mind was racing with concerns about the sudden changes in the Illusion Flame True Pulse and its current behavior.

At that moment, with a loud splashing sound, the entire lake seemed to boil. Against the immense suction force, water surged out, forming a huge circular water curtain centered around the Illusion Flame True Pulse. As it approached the pulse, the water turned into vapor due to the high temperature, swirling around it, while more water kept flowing in, quickly forming another layer of white mist around the pulse. There were also sounds of wind and thunder, along with flashes of lightning, as if rain was about to fall. The scene was truly breathtaking.

“Bad! Rain generation, illusion dissolution, rebirth! Tianyu, the Illusion Flame True Pulse is using its own energy and heat to refine itself. Look at that rising mist—it’s like the cooling water used in steel forging…” Liu Xiangshi cried out anxiously upon seeing this.

“It’s over. This must be the time for absorption. With such high temperatures, we can’t even get close. The power of heaven and earth truly cannot be resisted or controlled by mere mortals…” Shi Shu Xian Tian said, struggling against the endless heat waves.

“Yes, Tianyu…” Liu Xiangshi tried to persuade Chu Tianyu to give up, but before they could finish, Chu Tianyu suddenly was enveloped in a layer of yellow light. Holding Tai Nianran, he soared like a giant bird to a small island in the lake. Without stopping, he dived straight into the red glow already shrouded in mist.

By now, the red glow had grown far larger than before, becoming a huge sphere large enough to hold five or six people. Its surface contracted and expanded as if something was being nurtured within, with lightning flashing and thunder rumbling, making it intimidating.

Chu Tianyu wasn’t shaken by this scene. He stubbornly followed his decision from moments earlier, diving headfirst into the red glow with Tai Nianran in his arms!

As he broke through the outer red light, even Chu Tianyu gritted his teeth, channeling 120% of his strength to resist the waves of heat and the attacks of lightning and thunder.

Especially that heat made Chu Tianyu feel as if he were back in the moment when he struggled against the Illusory Flame. Although the temperature now was nowhere near as high as back then, for Chu Tianyu, even using all his energy was barely enough to resist it. Moreover, he had to divert some of his energy to take care of Tai Nianran, so this time he fought against the heat on equal terms and gained no advantage at all. Fortunately, once they broke through the red glow and entered the sphere, the heat diminished significantly, allowing Chu Tianyu to breathe a huge sigh of relief. Now he felt that even without using his energy to resist, there would likely be no major impact. Despite the illusory sphere being surrounded by red light and mist, its interior seemed like a completely different world—filled with colorful lights, a sense of life everywhere, and a warm yet gentle energy… What surprised Chu Tianyu even more was that this energy seemed alive; after their arrival, it exhibited two completely opposite emotions—familiarity and fear—and it moved erratically, as if two children were hiding somewhere, spying on Chu Tianyu and Tai Nianran, these uninvited guests. In fact, Chu Tianyu’s sudden action this time was also a bold gamble in a crisis. Especially when he saw that the life force generated by the Illusory Flame True Vein emitted energy waves—something that current scientific knowledge couldn’t explain as to what kind of radiation it was or how it could cause such explosive effects on electronic devices like phones—Chu Tianyu concluded it was an electromagnetic wave, of the same nature as Nianran’s innate special ability. In short, it was the energy produced by the Illusory Flame True Vein, which might well suit Nianran’s constitution. It was precisely this realization that led Chu Tianyu to make this crazy move in a moment of urgency… And as the saying goes, great skill brings great courage. Chu Tianyu was full of confidence in his own abilities. Although he was facing unknown natural forces, he was absolutely confident enough to take Nianran on this adventure. If things went wrong, with the merged energy of heaven and earth within him, he should be able to protect himself and escape unharmed! Entering the red glow, Chu Tianyu felt even more confident—so far, nothing unexpected had happened. On the contrary, it was “calm and peaceful,” filled with a serene atmosphere, giving Chu Tianyu ample time to observe the place.

Faced with this surge of energy showing two distinct emotional vibes, Chu Tianyu naturally knew that one of these emotions came from the warm jade he had originally worn, while the other originated from the Illusionary Flame True Vein he had fought against. Now, however, they had merged together, resulting in this strange phenomenon.

He never expected that the Illusionary Flame True Vein could indeed rely on the power of the similarlyattribute warm jade to transform anew in the Land of Life. According to the research he and his senior brothers had conducted, this stage should be a process of filtering out the impurities and retaining the essence. It seemed they hadn’t fully merged yet, otherwise, only one emotion would have been present.

As he thought about this, Chu Tianyu sensed the fluctuations in the surrounding energy and life force. He immediately set down Nianran in his arms, sat cross-legged, wrapped his arms around Nianran’s soft body, and channeled all his energy into it. In the blink of an eye, Nianran’s body was enveloped in a yellow glow.

Next, following the absorption procedure they had discussed countless times, Chu Tianyu slowly infused his energy into Nianran’s body while gradually reducing the surrounding glow, leaving only a small area on her back to support her chest and maintain necessary energy while monitoring her internal condition.

Once all preparations were done, Chu Tianyu controlled the energy within Nianran to start circulating, forming a vortex-like path within her body. Relying on the energy he had infused into her dantian, he began to absorb the life force and essence of the red glow.

This was also the result of days of discussion among them: first absorb the supplementary energy surrounding the Illusionary Flame True Vein to cut off its source and prevent it from gaining sufficient power. Then, when it was trapped with no way in or out, they would take action. Perhaps by then, once Nianran had absorbed enough life energy, the Illusionary Flame True Vein would appear on its own!

At first, since Nianran herself had no independent energy, she could only rely on Chu Tianyu’s indirect control, making the absorption process extremely slow. The Illusionary Flame True Vein didn’t seem too concerned about the slight loss of energy from the red glow and instead accelerated its solidification process, causing a surge of life force to rush in rapidly, flowing straight toward the core formed by the Illusionary Flame True Vein and the warm jade.

Chu Tianyu sensed this change and grew anxious, so he slightly sped up the absorption process. He also diverted some of his energy to spread around his own body, attempting to absorb the passing energy and compete with the Illusionary Flame True Vein for it…

As a result, the energy within the red glow instantly changed direction and surged toward Chu Tianyu’s body. This caused the Illusory Flame True Meridian to become agitated immediately. Anyone facing such a situation of having to serve others’ interests would be furious, let alone something as sentient as this.

However, Chu Tianyu, who was reaping the benefits of “others’” labor, was also in a difficult position. The massive energy flowing in continuously struck against his meridians, creating an uncontrolled, natural flow of energy that circulated throughout his body. This caused Chu Tianyu immense suffering. Moreover, this energy recklessly tried to approach the sealed Purple Void Dragon Core, but before it could get close, it was repelled by the external energy radiated by the core. It seemed as if the energy sensed an irresistible dragonic power, forcing it to retreat to its original path and never dare cross that boundary again.

Yet even this brief contact between the Dragon Core and the energy generated such a huge shock that Chu Tianyu almost spat blood on the spot. His meridians trembled, and his chest was filled with chaotic energy, leaving him in utter distress.

But Chu Tianyu had no choice but to accept this setback. After all, he had interfered and snatched away what belonged to someone else, so it was only natural if there were consequences or side effects.

It took a long time before Chu Tianyu managed to stabilize the chaotic energy in his body. When he finally regained his senses, he was shocked to find that, aside from the massive energy now operating on its own path, he had also lost control over the energy within Tai Nianran’s body. The energy he had retained in his chest had automatically withdrawn to cope with the recent fluctuations.

Alarmed, Chu Tianyu quickly tried to channel energy back into Tai Nianran’s body, but another sudden change occurred. Before his energy could enter Tai Nianran’s body, it was repelled by another massive force. The intensity of this force caused his already stabilized internal energy to fluctuate again, making his body sway involuntarily under the impact.

Before Chu Tianyan could react, Nianran’s body was also pushed away by the rebound force and drifted to a nearby area, where it gradually came to a stop.

Faced with this sudden change, Chu Tianyu didn’t have time to regulate the chaotic energy within his body. He immediately prepared to rush forward and pull Nian Ran back into his arms, but even at such a short distance, he couldn’t get any closer—as if an invisible barrier was preventing him from moving or exerting any force. Moreover, Nian Ran’s body seemed rooted in place; no matter how hard Chu Tianyu tried to exert force from afar, she neither moved forward nor recoiled under the pressure.

Just as the standoff continued, a red glow appeared. A fiery, oval-shaped object appeared in front of Nian Ran and began to float around her as if it had a will of its own. Along its path, sparks flashed, emitting a “zzz…” sound, with some of the electric currents even shooting directly into Nian Ran’s body. These energies vanished outside her body—either blocked and gone or somehow penetrating inside her.

Chu Tianyu realized this was the Fusion Flame True Vein, which, lacking sufficient energy, had chosen to take the initiative. The massive amount of energy surrounding Nian Ran was exactly what it needed, and since its fusion process was at its critical stage, it wouldn’t give up easily. So it followed the flow of energy, taking shape again and reorganizing its absorption and control of energy around Nian Ran.

Chu Tianyu understood this all too well. But what puzzled him was how, in such a short time, Nian Ran’s body had gathered so much vital energy and essence of heaven and earth. He had already absorbed nearly half of this energy. If things continued like this, including the energy within Nian Ran’s body, wouldn’t the Fusion Flame True Vein, which was trying to transform and be reborn, end up getting nothing at all?

“No wonder it’s so eager to take action and take shape—it must be desperate!” Chu Tianyu concluded in his mind after realizing the key point.

Although he still didn’t know Nian Ran’s condition for now, the fact that he could disrupt the Fusion Flame True Vein’s rebirth process and force it into this situation seemed to align perfectly with the steps and plans he had discussed with his mentors and senior brothers. It even felt like a stroke of luck!

Yet, there was no room for carelessness or relaxation at this moment. The Fusion Flame True Vein was moving faster and faster, with electric sparks shooting out in all directions, gradually penetrating Nian Ran’s body like silk being unwound from its cocoon.

Chu Tianyu also quickly put aside all his thoughts, not daring to slack off or be careless in the slightest. He immediately began to regulate the energy still swirling within his body and tried to guide that uncontrollable flow of energy to move slowly through his arms, hoping to force it out and draw the Illusion Flame True Meridian to his side. By releasing all his energy at once, he aimed to regain control, absorb its energy, stop its process of transformation and aggregation, and fully assimilate it as pure energy to reshape Nianran’s entire meridian system and create endless vitality!

Just as Chu Tianyu managed to calm the energy within his body, a long groan suddenly came from afar. He quickly opened his eyes and saw Tai Nianran, enveloped in a red glow and flashes of lightning, having already opened her eyes. Her gaze was sharp and intense, so much so that even someone with Chu Tianyu’s skill level found it hard to look directly at her. Her arms were stretched wide, her veins bulging, and her face showed evident pain…

Meanwhile, the Illusion Flame True Meridian, wandering outside her body, had reached a state of extreme intensity, radiating intense heat. As it circled, it spun rapidly, creating a small magnetic field that allowed the energy on Tai Nianran’s body to be absorbed, aided by intermittent flashes of electricity.

At this moment, Chu Tianyu fully understood that Tai Nianran could wake up because the energy she had absorbed was being reshaped by the Illusion Flame True Meridian, reconstructing her body and repairing her meridians. However, this unconscious repair process wasn’t necessarily gentle and gradual—it was likely drastic, which was why Tai Nianran was in such pain!

So Chu Tianyu didn’t hesitate. He gathered all his energy, guided the absorbed energy into his arms, and charged straight at Tai Nianran with a loud shout. With a “boom,” as he broke through the obstacle, he felt the energy within him surge like a flood breaking its banks, pouring entirely into Tai Nianran’s body. A bridge seemed to form between them, and their thoughts resonated, merged, and became one in that instant…

“Tianyu, is it you? I… I’m in so much pain…” Tai Nianran’s trembling voice sounded.

Chu Tianyu had never heard Tai Nianran speak like this before. It turned out that beneath her aloofness, her heart was incredibly tender. At this moment, she was like a helpless little girl in need of help and compassion.

“Yes, it’s me. It’s okay now, everything’s fine. All you need to do now is relax, Nianran. I’ve got everything under control!” Chu Tianyu comforted himself in his heart.
With a soft “Mm…”, Chu Tianyu felt an immediate sense of relaxation and reliance from Nianran. Then, she even fell asleep peacefully at such a critical moment.
After calming Nianran, Chu Tianyu immediately checked on their situation. He and Nianran embraced each other again, this time face to face, closely pressed together. The energy he absorbed and the energy within Nianran had fully merged, flowing continuously within them both.
Outside, they were surrounded by a nearly transparent light barrier. Beyond the barrier lay the continuously spinning Illusion Flame True Veins, which emitted strong suction forces, still trying to absorb the energy from Nianran’s body.
But now, aside from spinning faster, these forces were useless. Not only was there the immense resistance created by the combined energies, but Chu Tianyu’s own vital energy had also been released to protect the new energy within them, preventing any absorption or intrusion.
Faced with this situation, the Illusion Flame True Veins outside were clearly panicked, but they were utterly powerless. Chu Tianyu could now relax and focus on checking Nianran’s condition instead.
Though it was called exploration, in reality, Chu Tianyu could observe their conditions as if they were his own, without any obstacles or difficulties.
The results were almost as he had predicted earlier—Nianran’s meridians and tissues had indeed been fully healed. However, the healing process had been somewhat “rude.” Under the impact of such massive energy, her meridians, though repaired, were damaged again due to the strain of handling that energy.
Fortunately, Nianran’s body originally had the unique ability to store electromagnetic energy. At this moment, her entire body was filled with this energy, greatly reducing the pressure on the flow of energy within her. This turned out to be exactly what Chu Tianyu had guessed right.
But now, Nianran’s physical condition was no longer a problem for Chu Tianyu. He wasn’t thinking about treating her injuries anymore; instead, he was considering how to absorb all the energy within her and make it his own. Only after that could he consider dealing with the Illusion Flame True Veins outside through a comprehensive strategy…