Crossing Over: The Strongest Mage

The ten years spent in the stone tower actually only equated to half a year outside. However, things were not as simple as they seemed. As one progressed, the effects of the spiritual pills became weaker. For instance, for Yan Huo's current cultivation level, trying to advance to the mid-Golden Core stage would render the pills ineffective. Yan Huo understood this, so he ceased his cultivation.

**"Haha! I never expected to reach the early stage of the Golden Core,"** Yan Huo laughed in joy. **"Another step closer to the path of immortality!"** Sitting before the stone statue, he waved his hand lightly, and the heavy stone statue, weighing tens of thousands of pounds, slowly moved.

This feat proved the current extent of Yan Huo's power. Ten years ago, moving the stone statue had required great effort. But now, he could do it effortlessly with just a wave of his hand. Looking at the stone statue that had barely moved to the correct position, Yan Huo was not entirely satisfied. He muttered to himself, **"It seems my soul power has not yet reached the mid-Golden Core stage. Rushing progress has its flaws."** He shook his head and thought, **"Forget it. Let me see what Fox White is doing. I need to have a good meal and rest for a bit. The next steps are to study the formation and refine my soul power."**

Although Yan Huo's cultivation no longer required food or rest, he felt the need to take a break. For cultivators at high levels, the strength of their spiritual artifacts mattered as much as their cultivation. For example, a Golden Core cultivator wielding a top-grade spiritual artifact could contend with a Nascent Soul cultivator wielding a mid-grade artifact. The key to victory often lay in how well one controlled their spiritual artifact, and that control depended heavily on one's soul power.

Yan Huo's soul could now extend over a range of several thousand meters, but the formation inside the stone tower restricted his soul's search. So, in order to find out what Fox White was up to, he had to leave the tower.

**"Why hasn't that fox come into the tower to check on me?"** Yan Huo wondered as he descended the tower. But when he exited through the hidden door of the **'Escape the Heavens Five Elements Formation'**, he froze in shock. **"What... What is this?!"**

What stood before him was no longer a fox, but a round, fat little piglet. The once tranquil cave had been replaced by the overpowering stench of alcohol and meat. Hundreds of empty wine jars and over a thousand pounds of beef were gone.

**"Senior Brother!"** Yan Huo stared at the scene, unsure of what expression to make.

**"Oh! Junior Brother, you're finally out."** Fox White, drunken and sprawled across a pile of wine jars, lifted his head with effort. From his round belly, he glanced at Yan Huo. **"Ouch! Come help me up."**

**"Look at you!"** Yan Huo's temper flared. He shouted, **"Look at what you've done to Master's place!"**

At the sound of Yan Huo's shout, Fox White awoke from his stupor. He looked like a child caught in the act of mischief and began to stammer an explanation. **"Junior Brother... It's not like that. I... I only wanted to eat a little bit, but the wine and meat were so tempting, so I..."**

**"You still have an excuse?!"** Yan Huo's anger surged. **"If I hadn't come out, who knows what you'd have turned into. Now I understand why, after hundreds of years of cultivation, you're still stuck at the Golden Core stage. If you continue like this, you'll still be at this level after a few hundred more years."**

**"Let's go! Come with me into the stone tower to cultivate."** Yan Huo said coldly, no longer willing to rest.

**"I... I don't want to."** Fox White replied, clearly unwilling to work hard at cultivation.

Yan Huo's anger flared again. After all, Fox White was now his senior brother, and Yan Huo didn't want his senior brother to be a lazy, gluttonous, and round figure. It would disgrace Master Chongyang's reputation. In his frustration, Yan Huo used a bit of true energy and shouted, **"You dare?!"**

Perhaps Yan Huo hadn't realized it, but Fox White, being a cultivator who had practiced for hundreds of years, had a heightened sense of perception. He immediately sensed an overwhelming, unyielding force coming from Yan Huo—an aura of authority, a kingly presence.

**"I… I'll go, alright."** Fox White now seemed a little afraid of his younger disciple.

**"You're calling me lazy, but aren't you the same? While I'm out here living freely, you aren't exactly in the tower grinding away either. You're probably angry because I ate all the food, and after practicing for so long, your cultivation is still in the Dao Solidification stage."** Fox White mumbled under his breath, but Yan Huo still caught it.

**"Dao Solidification stage?! I've already reached the early Golden Core stage!"** Yan Huo couldn't help but feel confused.

**"Senior Brother! Can you now see my cultivation level?"**

**"Yeah!"** Fox White sneered.

**"That's strange. When I was at Dao Solidification, you couldn't even tell I was a cultivator. Now that I've clearly reached the early Golden Core stage, you still say I'm at Dao Solidification… What's going on?"** Yan Huo muttered to himself, puzzled.

However, one thing was certain: there was a clear way to confirm his current cultivation level. Cultivator realms were divided into several stages: Entry, Dao Solidification, Core Formation, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Void Return, Emptiness, Tribulation Transcendence, and Great Completion. As for the true fire, it was categorized into seven levels: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, and Violet. Each level was further divided into three sub-levels.

The Dao Solidification, Core Formation, and Golden Core stages used red true fire, while Yan Huo, now at the early Golden Core stage, was capable of using the orange-level one-flame true fire.

Yan Huo activated his cultivation, pointing his finger forward. A shallow orange true fire surged from his fingertip, and the intense flames instantly raised the temperature around them by dozens of degrees.

**"Stop! Stop! Stop!!!"** Fox White yelled in alarm, sweating and recoiling. As a cultivator in the Core Formation stage, he wasn't able to withstand the heat from Yan Huo's true fire so close to him.

**"Senior Brother! Is it only cultivators at the Golden Core stage who can use orange true fire?"** Yan Huo asked.

**"Are you trying to kill me?! That moment you released your true fire, your power indeed matched the Golden Core stage. But right now, your cultivation has reverted to the Dao Solidification stage. How did you practice?"** Fox White questioned, his confusion evident.

**"That's strange. I've been following the *Xiaoyao Heart Method* all along. Could something have gone wrong in the process? Or was it the spiritual pills I used?"** Yan Huo immediately used his soul power to check his body. When he focused on the golden ball inside him, he couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

**"Senior Brother! Is there a difference between cultivating as a cultivator and cultivating as a demon?"** Yan Huo asked, his voice tinged with curiosity.

Fox White, being a demon cultivator, wasn't entirely sure but still answered ambiguously, **"I guess so."**

Yan Huo fell into deep thought for a moment. Suddenly, he grabbed Fox White's body.

**"What are you doing?!"** Fox White's face turned pale in shock, thinking that Yan Huo was about to do something drastic.

**"Don't move. I'm going to use my soul power to check your dantian. I need to confirm if there's any difference between your dantian and mine. Don't resist."** Yan Huo said seriously.