From Cellar to Throne: Zen's Quest for Immortality
Chapter 24 Black Flames And Dragon Scales

The vivid yellow lotus flames became unusual golden red, and each flare emitted intense heat.Since the fire's strength had grown steeply, it would be impossible to withstand, and Zen's facepaled as he watched the red lotus flames shot at him.

As expected, the fire was far more potent than it was earlier.

Searing pain coursed through Zen as the golden-red flames slammed him. Just like the day he wasin the cellar, Zens body inexplicably turned to dark red.

Usually, any average person ravaged in such a high-temperature fire would mummify as themoisture sizzled into the air leaving the dried husk burning until it exploded raining ashes and sooteverywhere.

However, Zen's body was anything but average. Instead of being destroyed by the lotus flames, heslowly turned red hot, glowing like an excellent mysterious weapon.

Small golden foils that lay deep in Zen's skin were drawn out and hovering over his skin. Nowcovered in gilded shimmering fragments, Zen's entire body sparkled brilliantly gleaming.

While his body glowed bright red, the golden flecks became ornate obscure tadpole text and spun.The speed they spun increased faster and faster at a hypnotic rate until, unexpectedly, smallwhirlpools formed on the surface of Zen's skin.

As the whirlpools grew, the suction they produced drew the lotus flames from the furnace to Zenand sucked into the whirlpools.

The fire was refining his body!

Surprisingly, his body drove all the fire into him.

One after another, flames were absorbed into Zen's body through every pore on him, including hisarms, legs, and neck ...

Since it was only the essence of such a treasure that initiated a single dragon scale, Zen imaginedhow many it would take to light up thousands of them. “Even if all the treasures in the entire easternregion were smelted, it would barely light up all the cyan dragon's scales, and not even touch theother eight dragons above the cyan dragon, *

concluded Zen silently as he discerned. He needed to analyze everything thoroughly and not acthastily.

Determined to guard himself against arrogance and impatience, Zen sat cross-legged in the blazingfire, as the golden whirlpools on his skin sucked in more lotus flames, and continued to forge hisbody.

Outside the furnace, Evil Lan was looking in, with an expression of doubt as he watched the strangescene. Unable to sense the presence of his Hell Fire Sword any more, he wondered if it had beenmerged into the boy. Evil Lan couldn't sense the boy's life energy either though.

Noticing that the fires he released into the furnace were dwindling, Evil Lan was curious about whatwas going on in there.

Maybe, he managed to create his spiritual weapon! Was it possible he succeeded?

As every weapon refiner knew, when the refining process neared completion, it entered thecondensing stage which was when the treasure absorbed a large quantity of fire before it came out.The amount of fire consumed during the condensing stage varied depending on the rank of thetreasure. The higher the level, the more fire the weapon would devour.

Thinking back to when he forged the Hell Fire Sword, Evil Lan remembered that during thecondensing stage it absorbed fire for two hours before it was completed.

Three hours had already passed today...

Since the higher the class of the weapon meant the more fire it needed to absorb in the condensingstage, and therefore the more time it took, Evil Lan thought it was highly likely that the new treasurein the furnace was a spiritual weapon!

Thinking about it excited Evil Lan and his heart suddenly started racing as he concluded, “Yes! It hasto be! Only a spiritual weapon can absorb as much fire as this throughout the condensationprocess.

Without hesitation, Evil Lan immediately breathed more fire from his body into the furnaceimmediately.

Though Evil Lan sent a ton of fire into the furnace, it appeared there was a small black hole in thefurnace which devoured as much fire as Evil Lan sent in.

Six hours later, Evil Lan was panting and drenched in sweat.

As a weapon refiner, Evil Lan was further along than other refiners and maintained more controlover fire than the others his rank. While being a half-step into the nature level, releasing too muchfire at once was still difficult for him.

At the same time, Evil Lan was concerned about whether or not he had done enough. A weaponrefiner knew precisely how vital the condensing stage was. If he didn't correctly refine the weaponduring the condensing stage, the weapon within the furnace wouldn't be forged successfully!Impatient as he was, Evil Lan could only grit his teeth as he waited and fed the dying fires.

Twenty hours later...

Squeezing the final fires out of his body, when Evil Lan couldn't keep himself up anymore, heplopped down to the ground, exhausted and gasping for air.

He sat slumped on the ground gulping in air and recovering for some time, and then, he got upslowly. Evil Lan took several black pills out and popped them into his mouth. It wasn't too long forhim to feel rejuvenated, and replenished after he swallowed the pills and headed for the furnace.Still unsure whether or not he had succeeded, Evil Lan had a puzzled look on his face as he stood infront of the furnace.

Reaching out tentatively, Evil Lan turned the handle and opened the door. He could not senseanything still, which gave him an unsettling sensation. Just as the door swung open fully, a goldenfist slammed into his face with the brutal force AMAAAAAMANAA