My Crazy Upgrade System

With permission granted, Yi Tianyun nodded and headed for the Phoenix Cave up ahead. It didn’t take long for the others to notice what was happening, especially the few elders at the very front.

"Elder Luo, what is that guy of yours playing at? Why is he coming over here? Is he insane!?" Elder Lei found it incredibly strange as he watched Yi Tianyun approach. A few more steps and he’d be right in the middle of those piles of Immortal Fire. The slightest misstep would see him burned to ash.

The strangest part was that the Great Elder wasn’t stopping him, but was simply watching from behind.

Elder Luo was stunned as well. They were already in the process of absorbing the Immortal Fire and couldn’t break away to stop him, so they could only watch from where they stood.

"What are you doing over here? Get back, now!" Elder Luo shouted.

"Elder Luo, I’ve come to help you deal with this Immortal Fire," Yi Tianyun said with a faint smile. "The Great Elder gave me permission."

"’The Great Elder gave you permission?’" Both of them were stunned and turned to look at the Great Elder.

They saw the Great Elder’s eyes twinkling, and he was even smiling. This struck them as very odd. ’What on earth is going on?’

Before they could react, Yi Tianyun extended his hand and, with a twist of his wrist, unleashed the Heaven-Devouring Divine Technique. A massive amount of Immortal Fire surged toward him, and the volume he absorbed was easily several times greater than theirs.

This scene truly shocked everyone. Others absorbed the fire bit by bit, but he was taking in so much at once. ’Does he have a death wish?’

Elder Luo and the others wanted to stop him, but it was too late. They could only watch as the Immortal Fire engulfed him. They had expected Yi Tianyun to be burned until not even a speck of ash remained. To their astonishment, however, the Immortal Fire was rapidly drawn into his body. A large portion of it vanished in the blink of an eye, and he continued to absorb it without pause, completely unlike them, who had to stop periodically to recover.

’One thousand Skill Level... two thousand Skill Level... three thousand Skill Level...’

The Skill Level for his Immortal Fire was skyrocketing, and this frantic pace showed no signs of stopping. At this rate, breaking through to the high-grade Earth Level for his Immortal Fire wouldn’t be difficult at all. In fact, it would be quite simple. As of now, his Immortal Fire had not yet reached the high-grade Earth Level.

Fortunately, absorbing it wasn’t difficult. Since it was the same type of flame, the process was simpler. Most importantly, his own cultivation base was strong. With both of these factors combined, absorption was effortless.

Everyone was stunned by this scene. They had thought Yi Tianyun would be devoured by the Immortal Fire, but instead, he was effortlessly absorbing a huge amount of it. It looked as if he could keep going indefinitely, with no need to stop at all.

"’No way... The Immortal Fire has no effect on him at all?’" They were all dumbfounded. The same Immortal Fire that was excruciatingly painful for them was being absorbed with ease by Yi Tianyun, who didn’t even seem to be breaking a sweat.

"Everyone, there’s no need to worry. He could already wield the Immortal Fire, so there’s no danger of him being burned to death." The Great Elder walked over, leaning on his cane, and said with a smile, "I never expected this young friend to be a lucky star for our Phoenix Race. Not only did he bring back Elder Luo’s granddaughter, but he can also absorb the Immortal Fire with ease... To be able to control the Immortal Fire usually means one possesses a physique of Supreme Yang. Such a constitution is a one-in-ten-million rarity!"

"’He can control the Immortal Fire? That can’t be... Isn’t our King the only one who can control the Immortal Fire? Throughout our history, very few of our own race have been able to control it.’" They were all stunned, especially Elder Lei, whose feelings on the matter were particularly complex.

’I kept insisting there was something wrong with Yi Tianyun, but what’s so suspicious about him now? He’s even helping us deal with this Immortal Fire, and far faster than we ever could.’

Elder Luo, on the other hand, was beaming. "He really is a lucky star! I told you he was special. From the very first moment I saw him, I knew he was different..."

"Brag all you want. If he hadn’t brought back your granddaughter, would you really think so highly of him?" Elder Lei’s tone had softened, losing its previous confrontational edge.

"What’s it to you?" Elder Luo stroked his beard, watching Yi Tianyun with a wide grin. The more he looked, the more pleased he was.

Yi Tianyun just smiled faintly, not joining their conversation. He continued to rapidly absorb the Immortal Fire, and soon, all the flames outside the cave had been drawn into his body and converted into a significant amount of Skill Level. However, he was still a long way from an upgrade. Increasing the Skill Level of his Immortal Fire had always been incredibly difficult; only now was he able to make such rapid progress.

He couldn’t accumulate enough for an upgrade all at once. His Skill Level was just over the halfway mark, so he had to keep absorbing.

However, to continue absorbing, he would have to go deeper inside. There were plenty of flames just past the cave’s entrance.

Yi Tianyun looked over at the Great Elder and asked, "May I absorb the flames further inside?"

"You may," the Great Elder authorized. "Keep absorbing until you reach the entrance to the main passage, then you can stop."

Yi Tianyun nodded, walked to the edge of the entrance, and resumed his devouring. The open space just inside was filled to the brim with Immortal Fire, far more than there had been outside. ’Looks like there’s plenty more to absorb.’

Without another word, he resumed his frantic absorption, taking in all the fire without reservation.

The other elders were much more relaxed now. They weren’t needed at all. For them, absorbing the Immortal Fire offered no benefits, only harm.

"’How monstrous... Is he really completely fine?’" Elder Lei sized Yi Tianyun up. He didn’t seem to be just putting on a brave face; his complexion was unchanged and perfectly normal.

"What could possibly be wrong with him? Didn’t you hear the Great Elder? He can control the Immortal Fire!" Elder Luo said with a laugh. "And he’s the one I brought back. I never thought he’d be able to help us out like this."

"’The one you brought back’? He came here on his own, didn’t he?" Elder Lei laughed in exasperation. ’How can Elder Luo take credit for this?’

"Weren’t you the one who wanted to drive him away a moment ago? If I hadn’t insisted he stay, we’d still be stuck here dutifully absorbing this fire!" Elder Luo glared at him, still annoyed as he recalled their earlier argument.

"This..." Elder Lei was suddenly at a loss for words, feeling incredibly awkward. He had a point. If they had driven Yi Tianyun away, they really would still be stuck here.

"Alright, you two, stop bickering," the Great Elder said in a solemn voice. "In any case, this young friend has done us a great service. Without him, who knows how long it would have taken us to absorb all this, let alone get inside. We might have had to ask the Celestial Nether Divine Kingdom for help in the end, and that’s a situation none of us would want to see."

"Yes..."

They nodded in complete agreement with the Great Elder. Seeking help from the Celestial Nether Divine Kingdom would come at a staggering cost—an outcome they desperately wanted to avoid.

"Once he’s finished, we will thank him properly, offer him our finest hospitality, and treat him as an honored guest of the Phoenix Race! Anyone who can master the fire of Supreme Yang cannot have a treacherous heart. We must be sure to forge a strong friendship with him." The Great Elder looked at them and said sternly, "Do you understand?"

"Understood!" Elder Lei’s gaze was no longer filled with hostility. It had changed significantly, now tinged with a sense of shame.

’I always suspected he harbored ill intentions,’ he thought. ’It seems I was overthinking things...’