The Sacred Ruins

Chapter 336: Fiery Pupils

Translator: Alsey Editor: Chrissy

"I have sinned. I have sinned," Chu Feng recited twice in his mind. He had just "accidentally" witnessed a scene that would easily make him grow a sty. It was simply too stimulating.

But just as he had finished reciting, he couldn’t help but raise his head once again.

He consoled himself by saying that it couldn’t be blamed on him because had to observe the situation outside.

"Oh my, I wonder if I’ll be struck by lightning?!" Chu Feng muttered as he gazed forward with golden light flowing within his eyes.

The group of people was also staring at him. For instance, Jiang Luoshen was quite suspicious. Seeing him surrounded by flames, she thought he was about to face a calamity but why did she feel his situation wasn’t quite right. That gaze of his was too evil!

"Amitabha Buddha, excellent, excellent!" Chu Feng lowered his head and repented. Who knows if he had the slightest bit of sincerity.

He felt his nose itching and suspected whether he was about to have a nosebleed.

Fortunately, what came out of his nose were flames and not scarlet blood. It was just the heat within him.

"Curse it, I’m overheating!"

Chu Feng’s expression was bitter as he recited the Thunderous Breathing Technique and focused on his physical condition. The outside world was too "dirty", so he wanted to "cleanse" himself.

He felt certain changes coming over his body. There were flames encircling him and would occasionally enter his body. It seemed as if he was being immolated.

Fortunately, the extraordinary Revered Eight Trigrams Furnace had filtered the evil intent within the flames, and as such, they didn’t cause him any mortal harm.

It was mentioned on the stone carvings from the ocean floor that this kind of profound geography and this kind of revered divine furnace was most suitable for nurturing weapons and refining pills. This kind of theory was indeed logical.

How would one refine pills if flames containing evil intent rushed in? The medicinal herbs would be burnt to ash.

It was just that the flames raged with increasing vigor as energy interweaved continuously. Chu Feng didn’t feel too confident because he was about to be drowned in flames.

Strands of cool air extended towards his eyes as the furnace continued to refine them. The golden glow in his eyes was becoming increasingly magnificent.

"Could it be that I’m going through monkey Sun’s experiences?!"

Chu Feng was apprehensive because he had never eaten any Nine Transformations Golden Pill. Would he encounter danger if the refinement were to continue? [1]

"Ah, crap! The smell of flesh is becoming even more prominent!" he oddly cried out.

There was a fragrance of roast meat along with the scent of pills. It was too bizarre. Chu Feng wondered if he would be cooked through or refined into a pill first.

He felt that the human body was a great medicine in and of itself. This kind of refinement was perhaps beneficial and might be able to push him towards evolution.

For instance, his increase in vision might be due to the refinement of his body into a pill.

"I have to hold on. I’ll stop when I can’t hold on anymore!" Chu Feng set an alert level beyond which he would decisively cut off the furnace flames. He wouldn’t take the risk.

The surface of his body was somewhat black now. It seemed as if his skin had been scorched, but he found that the insides were sparkling and lustrous. The purest of energy accompanied his blood flow.

His fleshy body had suffered burns but it had also become sturdier.

At the same time, Chu Feng noticed that the black and white grinding stone was coagulating and being remodeled. Its perfection was close.

Suddenly, the furnace flames roared vigorously and enveloped him.

The people in the outside world were shocked. No small number of people gasped, feeling that Chu Feng was in danger.

Even Chu Feng himself was shocked out of his wits at the sudden change. A torrent of blazing flames roared within the eight trigrams furnace and completely covered the whole area.

The black and white grinding stone completely took form and began to spin rapidly, drawing in the flames and energy within the furnace like a bottomless hole.

"That’s the cause!"

Chu Feng was amazed. The black and white grinding stone was approaching perfection and was now undergoing its final refinement. It was wildly absorbing the furnace flames to remove all of its defects.

He was now somewhat nervous as he gazed at the object within his body.

Chu Feng had laid down such a gigantic array, activated the ancient domains, and ignited the Revered Eight Trigrams Furnace just to nurture the grinding stone and allow it to take form completely. This would be the solution to the hidden danger within his body.

Now was the most critical moment!

The small grinding stone spun within his body. Although it was a mere ten centimeters, it possessed an extraordinary aura. It gave one a majestic feeling that it could grind myriad objects and crush all obstructions.

Flames, mist, and dense energy came together to form a hazy shroud around it.

In the end, the grinding stone began to lustrously glow. It had been formed completely.

At this moment, Chu Feng felt extremely comfortable in both body and spirit. The weakness he had felt for so long had disappeared. Energy flowed in from the outside and, after being compressed by the grinding stone, rushed towards his limbs and bones.

At this time, the quality of energy within his body was astonishingly high. He was now one level stronger than before!

That was because his energy was now purer than ever and his might after activation was even greater.

Additionally, he had a feeling that, as long as he was willing, he could borrow this momentum to sever the next shackle and break through immediately.

However, he didn’t want to act recklessly in such a situation. He didn’t want to be exposed.

The black and white grinding stone was now harmless after completing its formation.

In truth, the small grinding stone, at present, was bringing him great benefits. Within moments, he was able to draw in large amounts of energy and have it purified within seconds.

At the same time, his bones and tendons were vibrating slightly after colliding with the little grinding stone. It seemed as if they were being hammered and polished into becoming sturdier.

Chu Feng learned that what Yellow Ox said was, in fact, true. This kind of material was indeed the key fortune to becoming a sage. The benefits of having one in the body were simply too great!

It was no wonder those golden Bodhisattvas and demonic sages would do their best to leave such items to their descendants.

Later on, Chu Feng discovered that the revolution of the grinding stone had slowed down and its luster had dimmed down. It now appeared simple and unadorned.

Chu Feng was shaken. According to ancient records, this was a sign of divine treasures hiding their ability!

It had already taken form and had no more problems, but now it was "aging" itself. It was now looking even older and unadorned as if it had passed through the vicissitudes.

"Eh?!"

Later on, it became enshrouded in mist and isolated itself from the outside world.

"Is it really necessary? Is it trying to hide itself because it’s too extraordinary?" Chu Feng was amazed.

Very soon, he found something odd. The mist was glowing and finally formed something like an embryonic sac which enveloped the little grinding stone.

At the same time, the energy in his body flowed rapidly and was absorbed by the grinding stone.

"What’s happening? It’s hibernating and absorbing outside energy?" Chu Feng was suspicious.

Later on, the grinding stone cut off its connection to the eight trigrams furnace. It hid within Chu Feng’s body and only borrowed his energy as if it was doing a final round of refinement.

Right now, his body was full of energy and was even more powerful than in the past.

Chu Feng felt that it was best to go through this period in peace. He wasn’t in a rush to sever the remaining shackle. He wanted to wait till the grinding stone was completely perfected.

That was because he feared his blood would surge too violently and affect the final metamorphosis of the grinding stone.

He began to observe his body after everything within calmed down and returned to normal.

Flames were still flickering within the furnace. The diamond chakram had become even more dazzling. In the end, it fell to the ground with a clang—the resplendent patterns glowing on its surface eventually receded into its interior.

The refinement of this great killer weapon had been completed within the eight trigrams furnace.

Chu Feng picked it up and noticed something different about it. The shining bracelet now seemed to have a greater connection to him. He felt that it could find it with a mere thought after shooting it.

At the same time, its might had also increased!

But the exact changes would need to be tested out in the field. It was definitely not the same as before.

Chu Feng felt quite relieved. He felt that he need to fear no other weapon with the diamond chakram in hand.

"Just holding it gives one such a feeling. Could it be that it had become powerful to such an extent?" Chu Feng wondered.

Ding!

Following which, the scarlet flying knife also fell to the ground. It was also quite different from before. It had shrunk from a palm-sized blade to a finger-sized glistening red knife.

There was a large number of red particles on the ground which had been shed from the weapon. Apparently, the Revered Eight Trigrams Furnace had optimized and refined it to an astonishing level.

Chu Feng held it in his hand and felt the terrifying sharpness. Its quality had been raised by a lot!

He believed that he could decapitate enemies with a single slash. Even top-grade experts with six severed shackles would immediately lose their heads. When he mobilized the weapon ever so slightly, a burst of scarlet brilliance rushed out and died the whole place red.

Additionally, the purple gold lightning hammer had also shrunk by quite a bit. There were fragments of it on the floor and the weapon itself was now encircled by arcs of lightning. Doubtlessly, it had received an amazing upgrade to its might.

Surprisingly, the Pristine Jade Bottle’s exterior showed no changes. Just like the diamond chakram, there were no changes to its texture and no impurities were shed.

"This bottle is indeed not simple!"

As for the black dagger, he didn’t bring it out for refinement because he felt that the red flying knife was enough. Additionally, the item once belonged to an outer realm expert. He was worried someone would recognize it and bring him unwarranted trouble.

At this time, his eyes were flowing with golden light and his vision was even more astonishing.

"They’ve really formed the Fiery Eyes?" Chu Feng was astonished.

He wasn’t in a rush to leave and waited for a while longer until he felt baptized from head to toe and there were no more changes to his vision.

Additionally, the pill fragrance on his body was no longer changing. If he went on, only the scent of roasted meat would increase.

"How painful!"

Only now did Chu Feng feel his skin dry and painful. He was too engrossed just now and forgot about his burn wounds.

But comparatively, the flames purified by the Revered Eight Trigrams Furnace was free of evil intent. His wounds were so much lighter than those outside.

"Eh?! Where’s everyone?" Chu Feng glanced over and found that those who had charged had all been burned to nothingness.

After focusing in detail, he found that there were still people in two places. The old woman was still being burnt and had lost half her body but she was still alive. A mass of green light was lingering around her heart and protecting her.

"There really is no lack of good items on her." Chu Feng smiled. However, he knew that the old woman was no longer a threat because she had been crippled by the flames.

The old Taoist was somewhat astonishing. He had actually extinguished the flames on his buttocks and was gazing at him with a smile. This old fogey was somewhat terrifying.

"Granddaughter, this grandpa will, once again, use himself as an example to tell you how weak these so-called domain researchers are. Come and see how I’ll deal with him."

The old man’s Taoist robe was burnt at the buttocks. Hence, he changed into a new purple robe. He stood there putting on airs with evil designs, claiming he would deal with Chu Feng and educate him.

"What is that?!"

Chu Feng revealed an astonished expression. His Fiery Eyes possessed astonishing visual prowess—he saw a black shadow appear below the area.

"Senior, you should leave immediately," Chu Feng persuaded the old Taoist.

"Brat, weren’t you moaning ecstatically just now? Didn’t you ignore this Taoist grandpa’s cries for help? Now, this grandpa is gonna settle the scores and let you understand why the flowers are so red!" The old Taoist laughed out loud.

Chu Feng extinguished the flames around him and persuaded, "Senior, please retreat quickly. That place is very dangerous."

"Ha, are you afraid now?! It’s too late!" The old Taoist rolled his eyes and said to his granddaughter, "Watch closely now and see what it means to be an utterly frail existence, a meat on a platter."

He wanted to teach Chu Feng a lesson and vent his anger.

However, the ground suddenly cracked open at this time. Stone and mud flew out in all directions as a black furry hand emerged from within and grasped at the old man.

At this moment, everyone was stunned. The hand was extremely terrifying. It was jet black and full of long dark fur. It emanated the power of extreme yin which almost distorted the air.

"Aiyo!"

The old Taoist rapidly reacted and leapt up.

However, he was still scratched in the buttocks. That place was already burnt badly just now. The old man’s face seemed to turn green as he cried out in pain and recited a string of curses.

"Old man, maybe you didn’t check the almanac when you came out today? You’re quite a classical villain who always fails. This is too humiliating. I’m feeling embarrassed for you," the problem-lady shouted from afar.

"Dammit, this Taoist grandpa is suffering from eight lifetimes of misfortune today. How can there be such a corpse on earth? Run!" The old Taoist limped and hobbled as he fled without a trace.

"Oh god, it’s the corpse from the legendary tomb!" Qi Honglin from the Pre-Qin Research Institute cried in astonishment as he turned to run.

After seeing the situation, people began to run away from Mount Zhijin in shock.

That was because the power of extreme yin was too terrifying. Black clouds blotted out the skies as if an unrivaled demonic god had revived and was about to destroy the sun, moon, and stars.

Chu Feng also began to run, but he stopped after a few steps because he saw the black hairy hand return to the depths of the ground.

He sighed in relief. The Revered Eight Trigrams Furnace likely wasn’t formed naturally. It was a human-made landscape made for nurturing.

"A genuine and naturally-formed Lao Ze’s furnace geography would probably be able to refine immortal pills and nurture sage weapons," Chu Feng guessed.

In the end, he walked out at a steady speed. The old grandmaster came to find him and sighed in relief after seeing him safe.

Following which, the Dragoness also appeared.

"Ah, my eyes!" Chu Feng’s eyes were stinging after he saw the Dragoness. She possessed a wonderful figure and her skin was white and lustrous. She was the picture of grace and elegance. The scene was too glaring for him.

At this time, many people returned after sensing that the power of extreme yin had disappeared.

They revealed astonished expressions as they looked at Chu Feng. So many experts had been burnt to death, yet why was he able to live?

"Your body has the scent of pills on it. Oh heavens, Elder Brother Chu, have you refined yourself into immortal flesh?" The problem lady ran over and glanced at Chu Feng curiously with her large bright eyes.

How did the old Taoist’s family raise their kids? Chu Feng’s eyes were somewhat dazzled. This figure was simply too curvaceous! Her early maturity was outrageous. He had to cover up his all-seeing Fiery Eyes because he couldn’t bear to look at her.

The top brass of the various great powers had also arrived. They glanced at Chu Feng, hoping to receive an explanation.

"Why are you covering your eyes?" a top-grade expert inquired.

"I’m afraid I’ll be struck by lightning," Chu Feng replied.

The people were momentarily astonished.

"He’s feeling guilty because he’s harboring ulterior motives!" Jiang Luoshen had also arrived and mumbled from a distance.

"Who’s feeling guilty?!" Chu Feng immediately removed his hands and gazed at everyone boldly.

But very soon, he rubbed his nose a couple of times. He was afraid the internal heat would cause a nosebleed. At the same time, he tried to hide his situation with words, "Jiang Luoshen, you sure have a big chest." [2]

The puzzled Jiang Luoshen glared at him and said, "What are you talking about?"

"I’m saying you’re very gracious and kind," Chu Feng replied seriously.

The group of people was dumbfounded. What was going on?

At this time, Chu Feng saw Lin Naoi walk over. His expression immediately turned unnatural. As more and more people were gathering around him, he felt that he was innocent and helpless.

"Why are your eyes golden?" Someone asked.

"They were burnt!" Chu Feng replied.

"Why do you always keep gazing at the sky?"

"I’m checking to see when lightning will strike at me. I have to be prepared for a tribulation."

...

[1] Refer to Sun Wukong’s story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Wukong#Havoc_in_Heaven

[2] 胸怀开阔, literally a big chest, means gracious and forgiving.