Chapter Fifty-One: The Heavenly Furnace Blaze

Tang Tian felt a sudden chill surge up his back. The opponent moved so swiftly that all he could see was a blurred shadow. Damn it!

“Heavenly Furnace!” Tang Tian roared, and his black iron gauntlet erupted in crimson flames. Instinctively, he channeled all his true force to its limit. This time, even his Second Crane Body seemed to sense the danger, circulating at a speed never seen before.

Without thinking, Tang Tian threw his strongest and most familiar punch—Avalanche!

For the first time, Tang Tian unleashed Avalanche while wearing the black iron gauntlet. Instantly, he sensed something different: a warm current flowed from the gauntlet back into his body, then surged with his true force and returned to the gauntlet.

This warmth swept away all his fear.

The punch seemed ordinary, even the strange crimson flames on his fist appeared gentle.

Mr. Wu was now truly spent, and Tang Tian’s punch landed squarely on his chest, unavoidable.

A soft sound as fist met flesh, the crimson flames instantly burrowed into Mr. Wu’s body. He froze, his expression stiffening. He stared blankly at Tang Tian, unbelieving that such a punch could strike him.

Only then did the crowd react.

Boom!

Crimson flames suddenly erupted from Mr. Wu’s body. In a flash, dazzling firelight consumed him entirely.

“Heavenly Furnace Flame!” The Beast Principal cried out in shock.

North Yan Principal and Crystal Principal stared dumbfounded at Tang Tian.

Everyone gazed in astonishment at Tang Tian and the pile of flames before him. The sudden blaze, almost demonic in its intensity, burned fiercely.

Under the firelight, the boy’s face, flushed and breathless, flickered with an intimidating power.

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“It truly is the Heavenly Furnace Flame!” North Yan Principal murmured. “The lower the grade of a Heavenly Furnace weapon, the harder it is to summon its flames. The odds of a black iron Heavenly Furnace weapon calling forth fire are less than one in ten thousand!”

Even the Crystal Principal could barely conceal his shock. “Legend has it, once the Heavenly Furnace Flame is summoned, the black iron weapon can begin to refine itself and advance.”

“That’s just a legend; I’ve never seen it myself.” Old Wei said, though his face brimmed with pride as he snapped his fingers. “Amory, come, show off your Heavenly Furnace Flame.”

Morley raised his black iron blade and intoned, “Heavenly Furnace!”

Whoosh, crimson flames enveloped the blade.

In a blink, the eyes of the other three principals turned red with envy, their expressions as if they might snatch Morley at any moment—especially the Beast Principal, who was nearly beside himself.

When the flames faded, Mr. Wu had been reduced to ashes, not a trace left behind.

“This guy was really poor!” Tang Tian gaped in disbelief.

As expected, the rotten beam corrupts the whole structure…

All the principals who had been full of praise just moments before now lost their admiration, the shock in everyone’s eyes vanishing simultaneously.

“Not even a scrap left!” Old Wei’s eyes widened in frustration.

Crystal Principal finally spoke, “What do we do now?”

“We should report to the City Lord,” North Yan Principal replied gravely. “This matter involves the Black Soul, and is of utmost importance.”

The principals quickly decided to report to the City Lord together.

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The impact of this event was far greater than Tang Tian had imagined—Warpeace Star was enveloped in tension. That a dark force like Black Soul had started to extend its claws to a peripheral planet like Warpeace was alarming. City Lords across the region began to unite, preparing to invite some members of the Light Martial Society for assistance.

But none of this concerned Tang Tian.

Returning to Sacima Academy, the first thing he did was dive into the Southern Cross Light Gate.

Sure enough, Tang Tian found Bing inside.

“Hey, how did you get in here?” Tang Tian couldn’t help but ask. Bing was shrouded in mystery, and like squeezing toothpaste, you could only get answers bit by bit—sometimes not at all.

Bing remained silent.

Indeed, nothing could be squeezed out this time.

Seeing this, Tang Tian simply started training on his own.

“Southern Cross, you’re using it wrong.” Bing suddenly said flatly.

“Using it wrong?” Tang Tian paused, eyeing Bing suspiciously. “Then tell me, how should it be used?”

Bing replied, “You need to strike the Mist Wall.”

“Mist Wall?” Tang Tian’s gaze fell upon the Mist Wall.

There were two gaps in the Mist Wall—one from Lightning Kill, one from Avalanche. He knew the wall could be smashed, but had always focused on training, never paying it much mind.

Strike the Mist Wall?

Tang Tian examined it anew, and suddenly thought of a question. “How do you know?”

Bing remained silent.

Tang Tian glared at Bing, who was unmoved. Tang Tian withdrew his gaze, then realized—ah, this was actually a good training method.

He stood before the Mist Wall and began practicing Shadow Fragment Palm against it—thump, thump, thump, training in earnest.

Compared to Avalanche, Shadow Fragment Palm was much weaker, yet Tang Tian still chipped away at the Mist Wall bit by bit.

He almost smacked his forehead—why hadn’t he thought of this before? Training by punching empty air alone was foolish.

The godlike youth was once again filled with energy!

Having experienced firsthand the power of a melee specialist, Tang Tian felt boundless strength in his body. If he could perfect the other four martial skills and then master their killing moves—wow, that would be incredible!

Last time, in the Maze of Souls, he heard Crystal Principal mention that summoning the Heavenly Furnace Flame might allow the black iron gauntlet to advance. So he made a special trip to the quarry to find Brother Stone. When Stone learned Tang Tian could summon the Heavenly Furnace Flame, he was astonished and delighted, and told him the method for refining and advancing the black iron gauntlet.

The method was simple: wear the gauntlet, summon the Heavenly Furnace Flame, and keep punching and attacking. The flame would continuously refine the gauntlet until it advanced.

Since then, Tang Tian never took off the gauntlet.

The Heavenly Furnace gauntlet was flexible and light, fitting every joint perfectly. Whether using palm, fist, or claw, Tang Tian found it effortless.

Before, without a reference, Tang Tian hadn’t noticed the difference. Now, training daily against the Mist Wall, the gauntlet’s power was evident. Using Shadow Fragment Palm with the gauntlet boosted its power by at least twenty percent.

The black iron gauntlet was so formidable that Tang Tian now looked forward to the bronze treasure.

His gains this time were enormous—besides some silver cards, he had acquired a bronze treasure.

The Little Horse Bronze Treasure—Little Horse Flying Boots.

The Little Horse constellation was southwest of Pegasus and north of Aquarius, a very small constellation, just slightly larger than the Southern Cross.

Tang Tian liked these Little Horse Flying Boots very much. The bronze metal boots were engraved with cute little horses, their surface matte and inconspicuous, but extremely comfortable to wear. With a light push off the ground, Tang Tian felt his body become much lighter.

When he infused his true force, he moved as swiftly as the wind, and the explosive power of Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada improved significantly.

For Tang Tian, this was a highly practical treasure.

Through constant exploration, Tang Tian finally understood the nature of treasures. Each one contained something akin to a martial soul—the source of its power. Simply infusing true force would awaken the soul. Each treasure was different; some souls excelled at combat, others at support, some enhanced true force, others could project it externally.

But the higher the grade of the treasure, the stronger its soul.

The soul of a bronze treasure was far more powerful than that of black iron. The soul of the Little Horse Flying Boots was a miniature little horse. When Tang Tian infused it with true force, the little horse would gallop joyfully—very peculiar.

Since none of the silver cards suited him, Tang Tian simply sold them all for star stones, the true currency on the Heavenly Road.

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“Hey, Basic Tang, did you hear? The Light Martial Society has sent people!” Amory was visibly excited.

Tang Tian didn’t even lift his head. “So what if they have?”

“But it’s the Light Martial Society! Their minimum requirement for entry is fifth-level strength!” Amory was full of envy—for Warpeace Star, fifth-level strength was the mark of a true expert.

“Oh, I need to train.” Tang Tian kept his head down.

After more than ten days of frenzied training, Tang Tian finally perfected his Shadow Fragment Palm. He decided to perfect Eagle Claw Technique, Linked Joint Technique, and Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada, then move on to fourth-level martial skills.

“Hold off on training for now.” Old Wei suddenly appeared.

Tang Tian stopped, his curiosity piqued.

“The Light Martial Society has arrived,” Old Wei said.

Tang Tian was puzzled. “What does that have to do with us?”

“Hmm, walk and talk,” Old Wei replied.

As they walked, Old Wei explained, and Tang Tian finally understood the situation.

Warpeace Star was a peripheral planet, outside the Heavenly Road, and neither the Light Martial Society nor Black Soul cared much for it. But with Black Soul causing such a stir, Warpeace Star immediately became tense and contacted the Light Martial Society, who sent people specifically to investigate.

“The Light Martial Society is one of Black Soul’s main rivals,” Old Wei explained. “They also have another task—to select gifted youngsters. This is one of their traditions. The City Lord values this highly; if anyone is chosen, Warpeace Star will automatically come under the Society’s protection.”

“I want to go find Chihui,” Tang Tian retorted, looking at Old Wei as if he were an idiot.

“You’re underestimating the Light Martial Society. Perseus is within their sphere of influence,” Old Wei countered with disdain.

“So impressive?” Tang Tian was stunned. In his mind, Perseus was a major constellation.

“Of course!” Old Wei continued, “If you guys can get into the Light Martial Society, I’ll be at ease. They’re exceptional at cultivating young talent, and their internal martial skills are nothing like our basic fare. Their teachers are top-tier. That Wu fellow from the other day would just be an ordinary member in the Society. Black Soul’s reputation is poor; the Light Martial Society is much better.”

When Tang Tian and Amory arrived at the City Lord’s mansion with Old Wei, the place was packed.

Sima Xiangshan, Han Bingning, Liang Qiu, and others were present.

After the last incident, Tang Tian’s reputation soared. The Soul-Seeking Spear Silver Soul General was definitely fourth-level, with near-masterful spear technique—terrifying, yet Tang Tian had defeated him. Mr. Wu, burned to ashes, was even more powerful, reportedly fifth-level, though there had been considerable luck involved.

But fifth-level…

That’s a strength worthy of awe!

Such brilliant achievements made Tang Tian the number one figure in Starwind City. Previously, he was called the worst student ever, mocked by many. Now, not a single person dared ridicule him. Tang Tian’s ruthless decisiveness when he killed Zhou Peng had spread among the students who witnessed it.

Never offend him!

Never provoke him!

Above all, never be deceived by his stupid-looking appearance—it’s a disguise, absolutely a disguise!

Tang Tian called himself “the godlike youth” every day; don’t think it’s a joke. It’s true, and if you don’t believe it, you’re the fool!

When Tang Tian appeared, the previously noisy students fell silent. All eyes turned to him, filled with awe. The crowd parted on its own, forming a path for him.

“Hm?” On the balcony, a middle-aged man observing the students from afar noticed the unexpected scene.

Students were a simple group; for them to behave this way, it must be someone they truly respected.

He began to study Tang Tian closely.