Han Jue carefully stored the severely damaged Star-Eating Grass, relieved that the supplies he carried were sufficient for its recovery. Though the damage looked extensive, the Thousand-Vine configuration possessed remarkable regenerative capabilities, given time and proper resources, it would heal completely.
Deep beneath the lava lake, Han Jue had been battling the puppet swarm, methodically cutting through the collection device when he sensed the anomaly erupting above. The surrounding puppets had vanished instantly, their controlling mechanisms apparently disrupted by Qi Yunxian's desperate gambit.
Upon returning to the surface, Han Jue discovered the aftermath: Qi Yunxian had forcibly ignited the Water-Sky Holy Flame, unleashing peak World Master power at tremendous cost. The backlash had severely damaged Han Jue's Star-Eating Grass. While the Thousand-Vine Star-Eating Grass was only at the first level of World Master cultivation, it had still withstood the onslaught of peak World Master power, a testament to its innate resilience.
Fortunately, considering the Star-Eating Grass's massive size and distributed structure, the damage wasn't catastrophic. It would recover after a period of rest, though this setback would significantly delay its journey to the ninth level of World Master cultivation.
Han Jue extracted the core from the destroyed lava puppet, while Yaoguang Ye supported the injured Qi Yunxian. Together, they limped toward the central tower that had been their objective since entering this treasury.
Han Jue inserted the final core into its socket.
The tower's massive gates swung open with a grinding rumble, revealing the true heart of the Void Emperor's treasury, the accumulated wealth of a lifetime.
"Master Yaoguang once said that the Void Emperor possessed no fewer than three Holy Flames," Qi Yunxian warned, his voice strained with pain and exhaustion. "There may be other defensive mechanisms within the treasury. My lord, please exercise extreme caution."
Qi Yunxian's condition was deteriorating, and Han Jue hadn't given him any healing supplies, leaving the injured World Master to slowly recover on his own. The Moshu Poison Fruit ensured his cooperation, healing could wait.
Entering the tower, Han Jue found the first floor filled with an enormous stockpile of Spark Crystals. A quick estimate put the quantity at several hundred thousand cubic meters, worth billions of Spark Coins. The sheer volume was staggering, more wealth than most Domain Lords would accumulate in ten lifetimes.
Yaoguang Ye followed Han Jue closely, helping count the exact number with practiced efficiency.
After completing the inventory, Yaoguang Ye couldn't contain his excitement. "Big Brother, there are a full 285,000 cubic meters of Spark Crystals here, more than the tax revenue of some prefectures over a hundred years!"
"These are probably the least valuable items in this treasury," Han Jue observed calmly, already mentally cataloging more significant treasures. "Store them for now."
The second floor of the tower contained weapons and armor, spoils from the Void Emperor's lifetime of conquests. Swords, spears, axes, shields, and various exotic armaments hung on display racks or lay carefully organized in storage cases. Most were Universe Level or Domain Lord grade equipment, though a few World Master weapons caught Han Jue's attention.
The third floor housed high-quality metals and rare materials. These could probably be sold at excellent prices in the broader universe markets. Han Jue stored everything systematically, already calculating potential returns.
The fourth floor contained mechanical parts and unfinished puppets, works in progress that the Void Emperor never completed. While interesting from a technical perspective, they weren't particularly valuable without the knowledge to finish them.
The fifth floor.
Han Jue stopped here.
Seven stone platforms shaped like ceremonial torches stood arranged in a circle. On three of these platforms, flames of different colors danced with ethereal beauty.
Blue. Green. Rainbow-hued.
They represented the Water-Sky Holy Flame, the Wood-Sky Holy Flame, and the Light-Time Holy Flame respectively, manifestations of fused fundamental laws given physical form.
On the opposite side of the chamber stood a massive stone tablet, its surface covered with densely carved text. Han Jue didn't immediately approach the Holy Flames. Instead, he moved to read the inscription first, his Six Eyes processing the Seven Flames Palace script effortlessly.
The words revealed themselves:
"I, Void Emperor, once served as City Lord of Void Emperor Main City. I witnessed the Holy Spirits many times and even participated in the Holy Pillar Trial. I broke through to the third level of the Holy Pillar and obtained Origin Fire! But unfortunately, the peak of World Master cultivation is the upper limit of this world. Unless one of the seven Holy Spirits dies, no one can ascend to the Holy Spirit realm."
"Before my death, I once dared to challenge a Holy Spirit. My target was the Floating Life Holy Spirit, who controls the Light-Time Holy Flame. He is recognized as the weakest Holy Spirit, but I still failed."
"Even though my body could withstand the simultaneous eruption of three different Holy Flames and unleash eight times the power of a peak World Master, I still could not reach the level of a Holy Spirit."
"The Floating Life Holy Spirit did not blame me for my provocation. Instead, he gifted me three additional Holy Flames and encouraged me to continue practicing and growing stronger. But I knew my talent had reached its limit, so I created this treasury, hoping that someone strong enough could inherit my legacy."
"The greatest regret of my life is that among the seven Holy Flames, there exists no Holy Flame matching my Fire-Sky affinity."
"I hope whoever inherits my legacy will attempt to gather all seven different Holy Flames. I speculate that by simultaneously igniting all seven, one should be able to unleash 128 times the power of a peak World Master in a short burst, surely enough to slay a Holy Spirit!"
"Also, among the seven Holy Spirits, the weakest isn't actually the Floating Life Holy Spirit, but rather..."
The weakest Holy Spirit's name had been deliberately obliterated from the stone, apparently by someone trying to save face or avoid embarrassment.
Han Jue contemplated the mathematics. If a peak World Master's power could be considered 1x baseline, then 128x represented an enormous amplification. However, his knowledge of the broader cultivation hierarchy tempered his expectations.
The weakest Immortal Army Lord possessed over 100 times the power of a peak World Master. With such a small difference, 128x versus 100x, actually killing an Immortal would be nearly impossible. The gap between power levels and actual combat effectiveness wasn't linear.
"Do you know anything about the Holy Pillar Trial?" Han Jue asked, turning to his companions.
Yaoguang Ye shook his head immediately, clearly unfamiliar with the concept. Qi Yunxian thought for a moment before speaking carefully.
"My lord, the Holy Pillar Trial is supposedly a prerequisite for obtaining Origin Fire. Every thousand years, one epoch in Original Universe timescale, the City Lord of each major city has the opportunity to challenge the Holy Pillar. The higher the number of levels they overcome in the trial, the better the reward. Legend states that even a Holy Spirit cannot pass the entire Holy Pillar Trial. Those who do will be recognized by the true Holy Flame itself."
The true Holy Flame?
Han Jue filed that information away for future investigation. This Seven Flames Palace world was more complex than it initially appeared, with deeper power structures and cosmic connections than the natives fully understood.
For now, let's see what benefits these Holy Flames provide.
Han Jue walked over to the pale blue Water-Sky Holy Flame, its cold fire casting azure shadows across the chamber.
"My lord, the process of absorbing a Holy Flame requires enduring the pain of the flame's burning," Qi Yunxian reminded him urgently. "If your will isn't strong enough, even a World Master can fail the fusion and die on the spot!"
"I understand," Han Jue replied calmly, his confidence absolute.
His will had been tempered through countless battles, refined through cultivation of the Absolute Original Mind state, and strengthened beyond measure through his mastery of spatial laws. Pain was merely data to be processed and overcome.
Han Jue reached out and plunged his hand directly into the Holy Flame.
WHOOSH!
Azure fire erupted violently, racing up Han Jue's arm and flooding into his body like a tidal wave of frozen lightning. The flames appeared in his dantian, establishing residence at the core of his cultivation base.
The Water-Sky Holy Flame symbolized the fusion of water and space, two fundamental laws intertwined at their deepest levels. The "flame" appearance was merely manifestation, unrelated to the fundamental law of fire itself. This was precisely what had troubled the Void Emperor, whose natural affinity was Fire-Sky, leaving him unable to fully utilize this particular Holy Flame.
Han Jue closed his eyes as the Holy Flame's presence within his body instantly deepened his understanding of law fusion. His consciousness touched the fourth diagram of the Ice Peak Chaos Monument, which spoke extensively of fusion law principles.
Previously baffling concepts suddenly resolved themselves with crystalline clarity. Problems that had seemed insurmountable now appeared trivial. With the Holy Flame's assistance, Han Jue felt his comprehension of fusion law increase dramatically, at least half a level of advancement accomplished in moments.
What even his [Analysis] ability couldn't fully achieve, this tiny Holy Flame accomplished effortlessly.
"Hmm."
After a long moment, Han Jue exhaled slowly and opened his eyes, the azure glow of the Water-Sky Holy Flame now permanently residing in his dantian alongside his other powers.
The harvest was immense!
He collected the remaining two Holy Flames, the Wood-Sky and Light-Time variants, and stored them carefully. While they wouldn't directly aid in cultivating fusion law like the Water-Sky Holy Flame did, they could still be deployed in combat or used for other purposes. Each Holy Flame could temporarily amplify his power to peak World Master levels when ignited.
More importantly, he could use these two Holy Flames that didn't match his primary affinity to complete subsequent mission objectives.
That represented a hundred thousand points in the Virtual Universe Company treasury system, enough to purchase significant cultivation resources.
If igniting a single Holy Flame was the test, Han Jue felt confident that with his current physical fitness, he should be able to perform slightly better than Qi Yunxian. Unlike the injured World Master, Han Jue would still retain considerable physical strength after unleashing a peak-level World Master attack.
As Han Jue collected the three Holy Flames, the World Master realm around them began to destabilize. The Void Emperor's treasury had been sustained by the power of these flames, with them removed, the pocket dimension's integrity was failing.
A spatial crack appeared above the tower, revealing brilliant light, the exit to the outside world.
Han Jue grabbed Yaoguang Ye and Qi Yunxian, launching himself through the widening fissure. They escaped just as the dimensional collapse accelerated, reality fragmenting behind them in cascading waves.
The outside world.
Luowu Gorge.
BOOM!
The stone wall exploded outward in a shower of rubble and dust. Fragments flew in all directions as Han Jue and his companions emerged from the collapsing treasury entrance.
"Big Brother, where should we go next?" Yaoguang Ye asked, his voice filled with both excitement and uncertainty.
Both he and Qi Yunxian understood clearly now, their lives were in Han Jue's hands. The Moshu Poison Fruit ensured absolute obedience. Resistance would bring only agonizing death.
"Let's head to your Tianyan Prefecture City," Han Jue decided after a moment's consideration.
Yaoguang Ye's upcoming position as Prefecture City Lord represented a useful asset. Having an authority figure under his control would facilitate future operations in the Seven Flames Palace world. Besides, establishing a proper base of operations made more strategic sense than wandering aimlessly.
With his objectives in this region accomplished, it was time to consolidate gains and prepare for the next phase.