Chapter 97: Li Huo Fen (Blazing Fire Burn)
"This entrance was originally blocked by yellow sand. If it hadn't been for Qinglian detecting a trace of abnormal energy here, we probably never would have found it," one of the mercenaries said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuan turned his gaze toward Qinglian. His little maid's body was covered in dust and sand, but her delicate face was lit up with a joyful smile.
It seemed that after helping him change clothes earlier, she had rushed over to assist in the search.
Noticing Xiao Yuan's glance, Qinglian met his eyes for a moment. Her face flushed red before she cheekily winked at him.
"Hehe, well done, Qinglian!" Xiao Yuan gave her a thumbs-up, and as he saw the radiant smile brighten her face, he returned a gentle one of his own.
Beside him, Xiao Yan also gave her a warm smile and a grateful nod before approaching the pitch-black tunnel entrance. With a flip of his palm, he retrieved a moonlight stone and tossed it in.
The faint light rolled through the darkness, illuminating the tunnel briefly before quickly vanishing.
Seeing the light disappear so fast, Xiao Yan frowned slightly. "Looks like the tunnel isn't straight," he said quietly.
"Yeah, we had someone do some initial exploration. There are at least a dozen different passageways down there, all winding and twisting like paths made by a massive serpent," the mercenary who had led them here said with a bitter smile.
"I see. So the path was burrowed out, likely by force," Xiao Yuan mused, already guessing that Queen Medusa had passed through and possibly taken the Heavenly Flame.
According to Qinglin, the abnormal energy reaction here had occurred about three months ago. That meant…
"Should I send some men down to investigate each tunnel one by one?" Xiao Ding asked, his voice sounding from behind.
Xiao Yan turned and saw Xiao Ding and Xiao Li approaching. He shook his head and said, "We don't know what dangers are hidden down there. The mercenaries have already gone to great lengths to help me find the entrance, and I'm very grateful. If something happened and people got hurt… that's not something I'd want to see."
"Hehe, Fourth Commander, don't worry! No one in the Mo Iron Mercenary Group is afraid of a challenge!" one of the surrounding mercenaries called out with a laugh.
"Let's do this, Big Brother. I'll go down with Xiao Yan. You trust my strength, right? I'll mark the way as we go. If too much time passes and we don't come back, you can follow the trail and bring a team down," Xiao Yuan offered with a grin.
"That works. If even your strength isn't enough down there, then we wouldn't be of much help either. You two are the hope of the Xiao family—stay safe!" Xiao Ding said after a moment of thought, his face serious.
Both Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan nodded in agreement.
"Um… Young Master… That person's presence from three months ago still lingers faintly in the tunnels. I might be able to help locate the correct one," Qinglian said softly as she tugged at Xiao Yuan's sleeve.
"Oh? That so? Then come with me," Xiao Yuan replied without hesitation. He reached out and wrapped an arm around her slender waist, patting her gently on the back, signaling her to hold on tight.
"Mm!" With her face reddened from being trusted and held close, Qinglian let out a soft hum and clung tightly to him.
"Xiao Yan, I'll go first. You follow and mark the path," Xiao Yuan called back.
His Earthforce Scripture had already been cultivated to a solid degree, and with his earth attribute Dou Qi, he could stabilize the tunnel and sense the underground terrain with precision.
"Alright!" Xiao Yan nodded eagerly, brimming with anticipation.
"Big Brother, Second Brother, we're counting on you to hold things up top!" Xiao Yuan said firmly, giving the two elder brothers a final nod.
"Don't worry. No one's getting through us!" Xiao Ding smiled, slapping Xiao Yuan's shoulder.
"Qinglian, hold on—we're going in!" Xiao Yuan murmured to the girl in his arms.
She nodded obediently and felt her body shift into free fall. Reflexively, she tightened her grip.
Inside the pitch-black tunnel, Xiao Yuan held Qinglian tightly as their bodies slid downward. He used the tunnel's slope and deployed his earth-type Dou Qi along the path to strengthen the walls.
Behind them, Xiao Yan followed cautiously, eyes sharp for danger. Luckily, with Yao Lao silently monitoring things from the shadows, there was little to fear.
As Xiao Yan's eyes traced the tunnel walls, he was surprised to see that the passage was astonishingly smooth—almost no rocks jutted out. It looked as though the tunnel had been blasted through by a colossal energy beam.
After sliding for nearly three minutes, Xiao Yuan spotted the bottom of the passage. He landed smoothly and looked ahead, quickly identifying the dozen or so branching tunnels mentioned by the mercenaries.
He turned and smiled at Qinglian. "Try sensing it."
"Mm." Still clinging to his neck, Qinglian looked around. Her green eyes blinked once, and then three faint green dots shimmered in her pupils.
Her rare Green Snake Three-Flower Eyes made her extremely sensitive to serpentine auras, although she herself was unaware of this ability.
Xiao Yan, having good sense, kept quiet and didn't interrupt.
After a moment of silence, Qinglian raised her hand and pointed toward one of the leftward tunnels.
"Young Master, several tunnels have traces of that person's presence, but this one is the strongest. I think they stayed here the longest three months ago," she whispered.
Xiao Yuan tried sensing the path himself. While nothing felt amiss on the surface, deeper down, the earth attribute energy was nearly absent—suppressed by a wave of searing fire energy.
This had to be the one.
Without hesitation, Xiao Yuan led the way into the tunnel.
Xiao Yan followed closely behind.
"Xiao Yan, I think our odds of actually finding the Heavenly Flame this time… aren't very good," Xiao Yuan said calmly as they walked.
"It's because Queen Medusa's already been here, isn't it?" Xiao Yan asked, his voice tightening.
"Yeah. Only someone at the peak of Dou Huang like her could pull something like this off. The flame likely ended up in her hands."
"What does she want with it?" Xiao Yan asked.
"My guess? She's trying to advance to Dou Zong. I read that when a serpent queen like her reaches peak Dou Huang, she has a chance at an evolution. If successful, she can take on human form freely and ascend to Dou Zong."
"…But the success rate is low, and it requires a Heavenly Flame," he added.
"So if she succeeds, the serpent race will gain another Dou Zong…" Xiao Yan exhaled sharply, alarmed.
"She might not succeed. We don't even know for sure she got the flame," Xiao Yuan said, trying to remain optimistic.
As they ventured deeper, the temperature steadily climbed.
Xiao Yan's spirits lifted at the heat, but Xiao Yuan remained calm. If anything, the presence of a powerful flame beast was possible—and Medusa might have been injured while trying to subdue it.
Which meant… there might be room to negotiate.
He was so deep in thought that he didn't even realize his Fire Origin Art had begun circulating on its own.
But soon, the oppressive red glow and rising heat snapped him back to reality.
Standing at the tunnel's end, Xiao Yuan stared wide-eyed at the world of molten fire that unfolded before him.
No matter how many stories he'd heard, nothing could have prepared him for this.
A massive underground cavern stretched out before them. Rivers of molten lava flowed sluggishly, occasionally bubbling and bursting in fiery geysers that glittered like fireworks.
Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yan, and Qinglian stood at the edge of the tunnel, dumbfounded. They swallowed hard, staring into the breathtaking inferno.
Fwoosh!
The heat made Xiao Yuan uncomfortable, so he summoned Dou Qi. A thin veil of fire-type Dou Qi, blended with his dual-colored flames, enveloped him and channeled the fire energy into his red-fire Qi palace.
A bold idea struck him: he could cultivate here.
The fire energy here was even denser than in the Tagore Desert. It was the perfect training ground for a fire-type cultivator.
Beside him, Xiao Yan also formed a layer of purple fire Dou Qi to withstand the scorching heat.
Qinglian, on the other hand, showed no signs of discomfort. Her snake bloodline seemed to grant her resistance.
"Third Brother, should I go down and take a look?" Xiao Yan asked.
"I've got an Heavenly Flame too, so I could go with you—but then Qinglian would be left alone. Better you go alone, but be careful."
"Don't worry, I'll be fine," Xiao Yan nodded.
"Young Master Xiao Yan, wait—there's something in the magma!" Qinglian suddenly warned.
Xiao Yan froze, scanning the lava—but saw nothing.
"It's down there. I can barely sense it. It's strong."
Her green eyes glowed faintly, seemingly piercing through the lava to something hidden below.
"Qinglian, how strong is it?" Xiao Yan asked quickly.
"Hmm… stronger than that Rob guy," she said after thinking.
"Probably at the Dou Ling level," Xiao Yuan concluded.
"Brother, if something can live inside magma, it might be as dangerous as a Dou Wang," Xiao Yan said gravely.
"It's fine. I'll handle it. When I draw its attention, you go search for the treasure," Xiao Yuan said calmly.
"That thing's a Dou Ling!" Xiao Yan said, worried.
"Relax. Just don't take too long—I might need you to refine medicine for me later," Xiao Yuan said with a smirk, summoning his yin-yang dual flames.
"And I'm not planning to kill it—just stall. My movement skills are more than enough for that."
His Purple Cloud Wings unfolded behind him, lifting him into the air.
"Dou Qi wings? Wait—Third Brother, you're already a Dou Wang?!"
Xiao Yuan laughed. "Nah, just a flying Dou Technique. Slower than real wings, but combined with wind-type Dou Qi, it's decent."
"Alright, now I feel a bit better," Xiao Yan said, shaking his head.
"Get ready. I'm going in."
Xiao Yuan soared upward and released his dual flames, hovering above the lava as he formed a complex seal.
The black-and-white fireballs dropped into the magma, absorbing the intense fire energy.
His sharp senses quickly detected a massive presence rising from the depths.
"Come out!"
Xiao Yuan growled. The dual flames exploded into a wave of black-and-white fire that crashed down on the lurking creature.
(END CHAPTER)
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