After dozens of rounds, Tana was drenched in sweat, her breathing heavy.

Seizing an opening, she leaped back to create some distance, propped her Heavy Hammer on the ground, and yelled, out of breath, "I’m done! I’m done! What’s gotten into you? How did you suddenly get so much stronger?"

Xu Wuyi relaxed his stance, his breathing steady. Only a few fine beads of sweat dotted his temples.

He smiled but didn’t answer directly. "Just a minor breakthrough, that’s all."

Tana eyed him suspiciously from head to toe and pouted. "Yeah, right! The scale of this breakthrough is terrifying. I feel like you could smash Luo Liang’s turtle shell to pieces with just your brute strength now."

Though she complained, her eyes glinted with the thrill of the hunt.

The stronger her opponent, the more excited she became.

"Looks like I’ll have to be more careful when we spar from now on." Tana rubbed her aching wrists. "But this is what makes it fun! On our next mission, I’m counting on you to take the lead!"

...

After his spar with Tana, Xu Wuyi’s consciousness returned to reality.

The joy of his breakthrough slowly faded, and he knew he needed to test the Melting capabilities of his Body Furnace on actual resources.

He took out a C-Level Life Potion, uncorked it, and tilted his head back, downing the pale green liquid.

As the Potion entered his stomach, a familiar warmth instantly spread, and pure Life Energy rushed toward every corner of his body.

However, unlike before, this time, before the Energy could fully disperse, the cluster of dark golden Heart Fire in his Dantian pulsed faintly.

An intangible "Melting" force, centered on his Dantian, instantly radiated throughout his entire body.

The surging Life Energy was seemingly thrown into a vast, formless furnace, where it was swiftly and evenly broken down and put through Purification.

Even some of the inert energy components, which his body previously struggled to absorb, were forcibly "activated" by this power and integrated into his Qi and Blood.

The entire process was both efficient and gentle, with almost no waste.

Xu Wuyi closed his eyes, carefully observing the process, stunned.

’The absorption efficiency has increased by at least fifty percent!’

’And it’s faster, putting less strain on my body.’

After just one Potion, he could clearly feel a significant increase in his Qi and Blood. The effect was comparable to drinking one and a half Potions, or even more, in the past.

’As expected of the ability granted by reaching Minor Success in the *Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace*...’ Xu Wuyi opened his eyes, a sharp glint flickering within them.

This meant that in his hands, the same resources could yield far greater value.

Whether it was the Potions distributed by the school or other cultivation resources he might purchase with points or Federation currency in the future, their cost-effectiveness would be dramatically higher.

For someone like him, who was not flush with resources, this was a godsend.

He suppressed the urge to immediately drink another Potion, knowing full well that too much of a good thing could be harmful.

The Body Furnace was powerful, but it still needed time to process everything. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

He turned his attention back to cultivating the Minor Success Realm of the *Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace*.

In the Minor Success Realm, his Qi and Blood circulated on their own, running slowly without any conscious effort, but the efficiency was much higher if actively driven.

The Cultivation Technique also began to cover how to more proactively use the "Melting Furnace" trait to refine and absorb external energies, including those from certain minerals and special plants.

He had already acquired this knowledge when he first obtained the Cultivation Technique, but his Realm hadn’t been high enough to practice it.

Now was the time to study it in depth.

Over the next few days, Xu Wuyi completely immersed himself in consolidating his Realm and familiarizing himself with his new abilities.

...

「On Tuesday afternoon.」

Xu Wuyi arrived at Han Mo’s residence right on time.

Although Han Mo’s severed arm had regenerated, he hadn’t suggested they meet on the Battle Network, and Xu Wuyi knew better than to ask.

The door to the small, off-white building was ajar. After Xu Wuyi knocked twice, he heard Han Mo’s calm voice from inside. "Come in."

He pushed the door open and stepped inside. Han Mo was sitting on a bamboo chair in the living room, his newly grown right arm moving naturally as he poured himself some tea.

His complexion was much better than the last few times they had met, and the profound aura of a Quasi-Grandmaster had returned.

"Teacher Han." Xu Wuyi bowed respectfully.

Han Mo looked up, his gaze sweeping over Xu Wuyi. A flash of surprise crossed his calm face before transforming into a satisfied smile.

"It seems you haven’t slacked off while I’ve been in seclusion. Your Qi and Blood is perfectly integrated and contained, like hidden lead and mercury. The Melting Furnace’s fire is stable in your Dantian... The Nine Transitions of Heart Fire is complete. Excellent. You’re much faster than I imagined."

’Teacher Han saw through my progress with a single glance.’ Xu Wuyi was filled with admiration.

He nodded. "Yes. I was fortunate enough to complete the Nine Transitions of Heart Fire a few days ago, and the *Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace* has officially entered the Minor Success Realm."

"There is no luck on the path of Martial Arts." Han Mo repeated the same words he and Dean He Yifeng had said before, his tone firm. "This is the natural result of your hard work."

He motioned for Xu Wuyi to sit down and personally slid a cup of tea toward him. "How do you feel, now that you’ve reached Minor Success?"

Xu Wuyi sat down as instructed and briefly described the sensation of his body becoming its own furnace and the massive increase in his refinement efficiency, especially the remarkable improvement in his Potion absorption rate.

Han Mo listened quietly, nodding slightly. "To have such an effect right after the furnace’s formation proves your foundation is exceptionally solid."

"As your Realm increases, this ’Melting’ ability will continue to grow stronger. It will be effective whether you’re consuming Elixirs, absorbing Heaven and Earth Energy, or even neutralizing Alien True Qi and toxins."

"In fact, the original *Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace* didn’t have such effects. It could only refine Qi and Blood. This version is the result of Grandmaster Yue’s own improvements, which he made after achieving the Grandmaster Realm."

’So that’s how it is...’ A flicker of understanding dawned on Xu Wuyi.

No wonder he’d always found the power of the *Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace* to be unbelievable. He had assumed all B-Level Body Refining Techniques were this potent, but he never expected it was the result of Grandmaster Yue’s personal modifications.

Xu Wuyi committed this to memory. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, a look of confusion crossed his face as he brought up the main reason for his visit.

"Teacher Han, during this breakthrough, in addition to reaching Minor Success in my Cultivation Technique, I also comprehended a second True Intention of Martial Arts."

"Oh?" Han Mo’s eyebrow twitched, his interest clearly piqued. "Tell me about it. Was it ’Fire’? Or ’Melting’?"

Xu Wuyi shook his head, his voice laced with uncertainty. "Neither. The True Intention I comprehended was... ’Incineration’."

He carefully described the will he had naturally perceived at the very moment he achieved Heart Fire Nine Revolutions Perfection—an intent of "all things are equal, to be incinerated completely."

"I don’t quite understand." Xu Wuyi’s brow furrowed slightly. "By my own reckoning, I am not a cruel or tyrannical person. Why would I comprehend such a domineering, almost extreme Intention of ’Incineration’?"

"It seems to be the complete opposite of the ’Mountain’ True Intention I comprehended before, which is all about stability and profoundness."

After hearing him out, Han Mo didn’t answer right away. He lifted his teacup, gently blew the foam from the surface, and posed a question in return: "Do you believe that a person’s innermost thoughts are always something they can be fully and clearly conscious of?"