The seventh day in the dungeon was as quiet as a tomb.
Shen Qingqiu leaned against the damp, cold wall, her clothes stained with dust and dried blood. But her eyes, those eyes that had always been closed, were now trembling violently beneath her eyelids.
In the virtual network constructed by her **[Overclocking Vision]**, the entire Heavenly Craft Pavilion was no longer a majestic immortal mountain, but an intricate and vast "energy pipeline map."
Red lines represented the flow of magma, blue nodes represented cooling centers, and the "Divine Fire Palace," frantically consuming energy, was the most bloated and vulnerable high-pressure valve in the entire network.
"Found it." Shen Qingqiu suddenly opened her eyes. Her golden pupils lit up in the darkness, like two ghostly flames.
"The so-called mountain-protecting formation is nothing more than a massive geothermal regulation system."
"Old thief Crimson Flame, you diverted 80% of the entire sect's energy to that furnace just to refine Seventeen."
"Since you like heat..." Shen Qingqiu stretched out her slender fingers and clenched them tightly in the void, as if crushing an invisible heart.
"Then I'll give you a—full-power overload."
[Command sent: Valves fully open.]
[Cooling system: Forced offline.]
[Warning: Core temperature exceeds critical value!]
... Rumble—!!!
Without warning, the entire mountain range where the Heavenly Craft Pavilion was located let out a painful groan.
The ground began to tremble violently, and cracks spread across the plaza like a spider web.
"What's going on? The earth dragon has turned upside down?"
"Oh no! The earth fire is out of control! Run!" Countless disciples discovered in horror that the once docile spiritual energy had now turned into violent steam, gushing out from every crack in the ground. Buildings collapsed, flying swords malfunctioned, and alarms blared through the sky.
Deep within the dungeon.
The massive black iron gate, inscribed with defensive runes, was warped and deformed by the twisted rock layers during the violent tectonic shift, revealing a gap large enough for someone to crawl through.
Shen Qingqiu stood up.
She tore a strip of red cloth from her sleeve and slowly tied her disheveled long hair up high.
She didn't rush to escape.
From her storage space (which she had previously smuggled from the Scripture Pavilion), she retrieved a set of tools that seemed out of place in this world:
a black iron forging hammer weighing a hundred pounds, and the unfinished bottle of **"Flowing Gold Fire Essence"**.
"Seventeen, I've come to get you."
She picked up the hammer and walked step by step out of the dungeon.
Going against the flow of panicked fleeing people, she headed towards the Divine Fire Palace, where the shaking was most intense and the flames were highest.
The blood-stained robes fluttered in the firelight, like a crimson lotus blooming in purgatory.
...Inside the Divine Fire Hall, a scene of purgatory had emerged.
The Crimson Fire Immortal was frantically trying to suppress the turbulent earth fire. He couldn't understand why this millennia-old array had suddenly backfired.
"Sect Master! The temperature of the Divine Refining Furnace has gone out of control! It's exceeded the 'Divine Transformation Level'!"
"That puppet inside... it's probably going to turn into molten iron!"
The Crimson Fire Immortal's face was ashen: "Don't stop! That's my avatar! Recharge my spiritual power, stabilize it!"
Just then.
Boom—!
The heavy door of the Divine Fire Hall was blasted away by a hammer blow.
The massive bronze door spun as it flew in, shattering the black ice on the ground and revealing the roaring magma beneath.
"Who?!" The Crimson Fire Immortal turned around furiously.
The dust settled.
A woman in red, wielding a massive hammer, stood at the entrance of the main hall. Behind her, flames and thick smoke filled the sky; beneath her feet, the earth cracked and crumbled.
"Heavenly Craft Pavilion, Shen Qingqiu."
"Come and add fuel to the fire for my man."
Shen Qingqiu didn't waste any words. With a light touch of her toes, she moved like a ghost past the elders who tried to stop her, heading straight for the enormous Refining Furnace in the center of the hall.
"Seeking death!" Crimson Fire True Person unleashed a palm strike, the palm wind of a Nascent Soul cultivator like a tidal wave.
Shen Qingqiu neither dodged nor evaded.
Her golden eyes flashed, instantly locking onto the trajectory of the palm's spiritual energy.
[Logical flaw: The frequency of spiritual energy transmission resonates with the earth's fire.]
She swung her black iron hammer, not at Crimson Fire True Person, but instead slammed it down on a certain array node beneath her feet.
Clang!
A crisp sound rang out.
The magma beneath the ground seemed to hear a command, suddenly spewing forth a pillar of fire, precisely blocking Crimson Fire True Person's palm wind.
"This is... a backlash from the formation?! You can actually control the earth fire?!" Crimson Fire Immortal was utterly horrified.
Shen Qingqiu sneered, using the shockwave to leap directly to the top of the Refining God Furnace.
The furnace lid was scorching hot, hot enough to instantly cook flesh.
But Shen Qingqiu activated the energy shield (though weak) she had "copied" from Seventeen, and withstood it.
"Open!" She swung her giant hammer, slamming it down hard on the furnace lid's latch.
One, two, three.
Each hammer blow carried immense force, and also her raging fury.
Crack.
The latch snapped.
Shen Qingqiu kicked the furnace lid away.
Whoosh— A plume of platinum-gold flame shot into the sky.
Shen Qingqiu didn't back down; she peered into the furnace.
For a moment, tears welled up in her eyes.
At the bottom of the furnace, Seventeen was still bound by chains.
But he was no longer human.
The extreme heat melted his skin, revealing the silvery-white bones and intricate wiring beneath. His chest cavity was exposed, the blue core reactor flickering wildly, threatening to extinguish at any moment.
His prized "golden right arm" was now crimson red from the intense heat, even dripping golden droplets.
He curled up, desperately protecting his head (the memory chip).
"Seventeen…" Shen Qingqiu's voice choked.
She heard a familiar voice.
The nearly charred "scrap metal" at the bottom of the furnace stirred slightly.
His left eye struggled to open, and when it saw the red-clad figure at the furnace opening, a fleeting glimmer of light burst forth from the ashen data stream.
"Don't… come down…" His voice came through the mental link, weak as a breeze, "It's hot…"
"Hot is good." Shen Qingqiu took a deep breath, wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes.
Her gaze became more fervent and resolute than ever before.
"Seventeen, this fire, though poisonous, is also the best furnace."
"They want to cripple you, but I'll use this fire to forge you into a god!"
With that, Shen Qingqiu did something that drove everyone mad.
She didn't pull Seventeen up.
Instead, she leaped into the God-Refining Furnace, powerful enough to melt metal!
"Madwoman! She's insane!" Crimson Fire Immortal roared outside.
...Inside the furnace.
She didn't instantly turn to ash as expected.
Because the moment Shen Qingqiu jumped, Seventeen unleashed his last strength.
He opened his scorching right arm and caught her without hesitation.
His "Absolute Defense Matrix" (the talisman Shen Qingqiu had drawn earlier) activated at full power, isolating all the flames three inches from Shen Qingqiu's body.
He used his melting body to create a small safe zone for her.
"Fool..." Shen Qingqiu stepped on his scorching knees, cupping his face, now revealing metal bones, in her hands.
"I'm not afraid of getting burned."
"Now, follow my commands." Shen Qingqiu pulled out the bottle of "Flowing Gold Fire Essence" from her bosom, along with "Extraterrestrial Meteorite Iron," "Dragon Bone Fossils," and even various rare materials she had stolen from the Heavenly Craft Pavilion.
"Open your mouth." She shoved all those rare materials into Seventeen's mouth (or directly into the core of his furnace in his chest cavity).
"Devour!"
"Run the Devouring God Technique at maximum power!" Seventeen obeyed.
At this moment, he was a machine devoid of pain, only capable of craving.
With the infusion of those rare treasures, coupled with the endless earth fire energy around him,
Seventeen's body began to undergo visible changes.
[Warning: Body is being reconstructed.]
[Material Upgrade: Mortal Iron -> Divine Metal.]
[Energy Core Upgrade: Nuclear Fission -> Fusion.]
"Not enough." Shen Qingqiu looked at the still-flowing metallic liquid on his body.
These liquids need forging, need impurities removed, to become the hardest bones.
"Seventeen, bear with it." Shen Qingqiu raised the black iron forging hammer in her hand.
In the raging flames.
Within the narrow, scorching furnace.
She was like a mad blacksmith, and like a tender lover.
She swung the hammer, striking his newly formed bones.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Each strike sent golden sparks flying.
Each strike forged his body into greater perfection.
It wasn't forging iron.
It was striking his soul.
"This strike, to hell with your mortal form."
"This strike, to hell with your servility."
"This strike, I'll make you remember, you are my god, not anyone's dog!" The firelight illuminated Shen Qingqiu's sweat-drenched face; her red dress blazed like fire, her hammer wielding like a dance.
At this moment, she was breathtakingly beautiful, beautiful with immense power.
Seventeen looked up at her.
Though his body was being rebuilt in excruciating pain, his core code cheered and trembled.
He felt it.
With each strike she struck, his power multiplied.
His original silver bones turned dark gold.
His previously exposed wiring was now covered by newly formed, obsidian-like bio-armor.
The "Xingtian Grip" had completely merged with his body, extending into imposing shoulder armor and dorsal fins.
Finally.
Shen Qingqiu threw away the hammer.
She bit her tongue, spitting a mouthful of her heart's blood onto the newly formed core in his chest.
"Using blood as a catalyst, imbue it with intelligence."
"Seventeen, wake up!"
Buzz—!!!
A sword cry powerful enough to shatter the heavens erupted from within the Refining God Furnace.
Before the Crimson Fire True Man outside the furnace could react, he saw countless cracks suddenly appear on the surface of the seemingly indestructible Refining God Furnace.
The cracks did not emit firelight.
Instead, it shone with golden light.
Boom!
A deafening roar.
The Divine Refining Furnace exploded.
Amidst the shattered fragments, a black-gold figure soared into the sky, hovering in mid-air.
The figure was nine feet tall, with wildly flowing black hair, his entire body covered in streamlined black-gold armor, his right arm a monstrous dragon claw.
His face wore a newly formed mask of flames, revealing only his eyes.
His left eye was a deep, dark blue.
His right eye was a savage, crimson gold.
And the woman in red sat sideways in the crook of his right arm, like a queen ruling over demons.
Seventeen lowered his head and glanced at Shen Qingqiu in his arms.
Then, he slowly raised his head, looking at the terrified Crimson Fire True Man.
He raised his hand and snapped his fingers lightly.
Snap.
The raging magma beneath their feet, as if responding to a king's command, instantly transformed into a colossal fire dragon, roaring as it charged towards the people of the Divine Fire Palace.
"Old man." Seventeen's voice changed.
No longer a mechanical hoarseness, but possessing a metallic magnetism and majesty.
"Your furnace isn't hot enough."
"But this fire of mine... should be enough for you to suffer." The flames blazed sky-high.
That day, the disciples of the Heavenly Craft Pavilion witnessed a miracle.
A man emerged from the furnace fire, embracing his red-clad goddess, burning this thousand-year-old immortal mountain into a crimson ruin.
Using his own body as a furnace, he was reborn from the ashes.
He finally became the divine weapon in her hands, capable of severing all shackles.