A searing flame, more ferocious than any before it, burst from Wei Zhao's right fist and took the shape of a magnificent fire dragon. The violent fire coalesced in midair into a blazing sphere and hurtled toward the stone wall of the cave.

Yet no sooner had Wei Zhao unleashed this strike than a twinge of guilt pricked at his conscience. He knew the power of the first four stances of the Wildfire Fist all too well, and now that he had loosed this one, he reckoned the cave wall of the Great Fire Lion would likely be blasted into a gaping crater.

"Whoosh..." The Great Fire Lion lunged straight at it. The moment it opened its jaws, the great fireball Wei Zhao had conjured was swallowed whole into its belly, as though it had just enjoyed a hearty meal, deeply satisfied.

"That works too?" Wei Zhao withdrew his stance and stared at the Great Fire Lion in astonishment.

"To me, that's energy!" said the Great Fire Lion.

"Energy..." A wry smile flickered at the corner of Wei Zhao's mouth. "This thing can be used as energy?"

"It can. With this energy, plus what I've stored up before, I estimate I can finish crafting one more Fireflow Divine Pellet by the time you descend the mountain," said the Great Fire Lion. "Though to be honest, that you could unleash the fifth stance of the Wildfire Fist in such a short time—you really are a genius the likes of which I see perhaps once in a thousand years..."

"A genius, am I..." Wei Zhao smiled bitterly. Whether he was truly a genius, he could not say for certain, but the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art and the "martial technique" that accompanied it were, without question, a genius's heart method and a genius's martial art!

"At the very least, I have never heard of anyone able to unleash a new martial technique in such a brief span of time," said the Great Fire Lion.

"I'm heading up the mountain tomorrow. How do I use this Fireflow Divine Pellet?" Wei Zhao asked.

"Just hold it in your hand, and then—like so—unleash it together with the fifth stance of the Wildfire Fist." The Great Fire Lion explained how the Fireflow Divine Pellet was to be used. "I had thought you would stay a while longer, but you have already unleashed the fifth stance of the Wildfire Fist. So I won't urge you to linger. Take care of yourself in all things!"

"My thanks!" Wei Zhao said from the bottom of his heart. The Great Fire Lion had not only given him three Fireflow Divine Pellets, but Wei Zhao's greatest gain had been that martial arts manual of the Wildfire Fist! So it turned out this martial art had thirty stances, not twenty.

"No need for thanks. For your lifesaving kindness to the Little Fire Lion, our Fire Lion clan will remember it forever. Should you ever have need, you may come find us in the Wulonghaote Mountains at any time," said the Great Fire Lion.

"Once the Fireflow Divine Pellets are used up, may I come get more?" Wei Zhao's heart stirred at the Great Fire Lion's words.

"You may!" The Great Fire Lion nodded without hesitation. "Though I'm afraid I can only craft one more this year. Come back this time next year, and I can provide you at least three more!"

Wei Zhao had not expected the Great Fire Lion to be so mindful of kindness and eager to repay it, and he was moved at heart. By any reasonable account, Wei Zhao had helped the Little Fire Lion, yet at the critical moment the Great Fire Lion had also helped him deal with the Fifth Protector. And on top of that, it had gifted him three Fireflow Divine Pellets and a manual of the Wildfire Fist—this debt of gratitude far exceeded what Wei Zhao had given!

All Wei Zhao had done was heal the Little Fire Lion's wounds when it was hurt. The Great Fire Lion's magnanimity surpassed anything Wei Zhao could have imagined!

It seemed the Fire Lion clan truly believed that a drop of kindness should be repaid with a gushing spring.

"Very well—since you treat me thus, I shall give your Fire Lion clan some benefit in return!" Wei Zhao quickly made up his mind. "If I'm not mistaken, neither the Little Fire Lion nor the lioness has yet set foot upon the Yellow Rank, have they?"

"That is so..." The Great Fire Lion did not quite understand what benefit Wei Zhao meant, but hearing his question, it answered truthfully all the same. "The lioness is merely an ordinary lion with somewhat greater aptitude and spiritual intelligence than a normal lion—there is still some gap between her and a true Fire Lion. But of our Fire Lion clan, I am the only one left of a lineage passed down a thousand years. To breed offspring, I could only find a lioness of higher aptitude... The Little Fire Lion's bloodline, on the other hand, is comparatively pure, but the cultivation of us spirit beasts depends on consuming rare treasures of heaven and earth to accumulate power; the spiritual essence of heaven and earth does little to help us advance... The fruits and rare treasures used for cultivation are limited in the Wulonghaote Mountains, and that is the very reason for the conflict between our Fire Lion clan and another spirit beast clan..."

Wei Zhao nodded. He had long known this—the Thunder Pig had, in its day, advanced by devouring rare treasures of heaven and earth within the ancient tomb. "Little Fire Lion, come here a moment."

Though the Little Fire Lion was somewhat puzzled, it obediently trotted over at Wei Zhao's summons. Wei Zhao scooped it up in his arms and entered the space of the jade pendant, then set the second layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art's heart method into motion...

In an instant, pure and immense energy surged into the Little Fire Lion's body, and the Little Fire Lion was startled! Yet it soon understood that Wei Zhao meant it no harm—on the contrary, Wei Zhao was using a most wondrous method to channel true qi into it so that it might advance!

The Little Fire Lion's strength abruptly soared, and in no time it broke through the threshold of the Yellow Rank, becoming a spirit beast of the early Yellow Rank!

The Great Fire Lion and the lioness both sensed the change in the Little Fire Lion, and when they saw that in but a short while it had become an early Yellow Rank spirit beast, their astonishment knew no bounds!

Only the Thunder Pig and Sun Jingyan showed no surprise—they both knew Wei Zhao's abilities.

Beneath the amazed gazes of the Great Fire Lion and the lioness, the Little Fire Lion's strength continued to rocket upward, shooting straight from the early Yellow Rank to the peak of the early Yellow Rank, and it did not stop there—it promptly entered the mid Yellow Rank!

This rate of advancement thoroughly frightened the Great Fire Lion! It had lived a thousand years, and now as a Heaven Rank spirit beast it was among the rarest of existences among spirit beasts. After all, the spiritual essence of heaven and earth in this world was now so thin that it had scarcely any effect on spirit beasts; the only way for them to advance was to consume vast quantities of rare treasures of heaven and earth.

In its youth and younger years, the Great Fire Lion had several strokes of fortune, swallowing a few of the finest rare treasures of heaven and earth, and only thus had its strength risen with such astonishing speed. Even so, it had taken a thousand years to step into the Heaven Rank...

And now, with its own eyes, it witnessed its child, the Little Fire Lion, transform from a spirit beast with not even a rank to a mid Yellow Rank spirit beast in an instant... no, it was already at the peak of the mid Yellow Rank...

Soon the Great Fire Lion discovered that the Little Fire Lion had become a late Yellow Rank spirit beast, and then the peak of the late Yellow Rank!

It stared at all that was unfolding before its eyes in disbelief. Was this real?

Yet while the Great Fire Lion hesitated, wondering whether all it saw was truly happening, the Little Fire Lion had already smoothly attained the perfect consummation of the peak late Yellow Rank!(To be continued)RQ