Little Grace entered the fiery cave and immediately began sweating profusely from the heat. After thinking for a while, she returned to the small cave, refusing to come back in no matter what, and instead darted away, running off to play somewhere else.

James Walker didn’t try to persuade her. Instead, he carried his basket and walked quickly forward. He could guess that this place was likely connected to the interior of Black Flame Peak, and perhaps there would be a suitable spot for tempering and dispersing.

After walking a short distance, he came upon a spacious area, not knowing where it led. The ground was pitted and uneven, and the heat here was even more intense. James Walker could even feel the scorching heat beneath his feet.

He hesitated briefly, and just as he was about to set his foot down, a sudden wave of heat erupted, making James Walker cry out in surprise and retreat repeatedly. His pupils contracted as he saw a thick arm-sized flame burst out from a pit in the ground ahead, instantly illuminating the cave in firelight.

James Walker took a deep breath and retreated again until he was pressed against the cave entrance. Only then did he focus his gaze, watching for half an hour. The flames gradually subsided, but before long, another pit erupted with fire once more.

This cycle repeated, continuing without end.

“Fire…” James Walker stared at those pits, his eyes gradually shining with brightness and surprise.

“There really is fire here! But it appears intermittently, not as a stable eruption…” After his initial excitement, James Walker pondered for a moment, feeling a bit regretful.

“Oh well, although entering the mountain directly from the summit might lead to a better spot, this place is more hidden, and if there’s danger, I can escape quickly.

So, for now, I’ll make this my very first tempering cave!” James Walker looked excited, muttering as he glanced around.

“There’s fire, but I still need a crude cauldron… I can make one myself!” James Walker set his sights on the scattered stones on the ground.

“These rocks have been here for so many years without being burned to ash, so they must be extremely heat-resistant. They should work for tempering…” James Walker scratched his head, adjusted the herbs under his feet, jumped down again, and chose a large stone that seemed suitable. After hesitating for a moment, he touched it and found it wasn’t too hot, just warm.

Having decided to use this large stone as material, James Walker took out his medicine knife. The blade was very sharp, as he often sharpened it. With all his strength, James Walker began to scrape and chop at the stone.

It was a tedious process, but James Walker was long used to it and showed no impatience. While working, a sudden idea flashed in his mind. He glanced at the nearby python bones, especially the black horn on its skull.

After a moment’s thought, James Walker walked over quickly and examined the skull for a while. He struck the python bones, and with a clattering sound, the bones immediately crumbled into powder, scattering all over the ground.

Amid the fragments, only a single black bone horn remained unbroken.

“This horn really is extraordinary. I was just wondering how that python managed to get in here.” James Walker picked up the bone horn and scraped it against the wall, immediately leaving a notch. This didn’t surprise James Walker.

“I just don’t know why that horned python insisted on forcing its way in back then…” Unable to figure it out, James Walker took the bone horn to the large stone and began working on it.

With the help of the horn, after several hours, a tempering stone furnace that resembled the crude cauldron in James Walker’s memory took shape, about fifty or sixty percent similar. He even made a lid to keep the heat from escaping.

“Let’s give it a try first.” James Walker was excited, pushing the newly made cauldron to the pits, calming his mind, and waiting patiently.

Several more hours passed. After several eruptions of flame, finally, in a pit close to James Walker, fire burst forth.

Almost at the instant the flame erupted, James Walker quickly pushed the tempering stone furnace, covering the flaming pit with the cauldron.

James Walker was tense; whether he could temper or not depended on whether the cauldron could withstand the high temperature.

Soon, the stone furnace turned red, heat waves radiated, and cracking sounds echoed. Cracks appeared all over its surface, making James Walker’s heart skip a beat, but after a while, seeing the stone didn’t shatter, he finally relaxed.

“One hour… Each tempering session only lasts an hour, which probably isn’t enough…” James Walker looked thoughtful. He had racked his brains for this tempering process.

“I can do it this way!” James Walker took a few steps back. Although he had an idea, he didn’t act rashly. Instead, he stood in a spot on the ground that wasn’t too hot, staring intently at the pits. He watched for an entire day.

During this time, Little Eric came by, found it too hot, left some wild fruits, and ran off to play again.

As for the stone cauldron, it withstood the test, never shattering despite several blasts of flame.