In the pitch-black passage, Xiao Yan held Qing Lin tightly in his arms. Their bodies slid down the slope of the tunnel, and in Qing Lin’s small hand, a moonlight stone was held aloft, emitting a soft, gentle glow that allowed Xiao Yan to see if there were any obstacles ahead. Not far behind them, more than a dozen faint lights followed closely, with the sound of their bodies scraping against the tunnel walls echoing slowly within the passage.
As they slid down, Xiao Yan’s gaze swept over the cave walls on either side. After a moment, he was surprised to find that the passage was extremely smooth, with no protruding stones at all. It seemed as though it had been forcefully carved out by some immense energy.
After sliding for nearly two to three minutes, Xiao Yan could see the bottom of the passage. He bent his legs slightly, and with a slight thud, he landed in a bow-like stance, absorbing the impact of the fall effortlessly.
After landing, Xiao Yan released Qing Lin from his embrace and pulled her forward a few steps. His gaze swept over the path ahead, and indeed, he found that there were more than a dozen dark, inky-black passages.
Shaking his head helplessly, Xiao Yan smiled at Qing Lin. “Can you sense it? Otherwise, it would take several days to search through all these passages.”
“Okay.” Qing Lin nodded lightly, her small hand holding onto Xiao Yan’s. Her eyes blinked, and around her emerald pupils, three tiny green dots silently appeared. Due to the dim light in the passage, even Xiao Yan did not notice the change in Qing Lin’s eyes.
As Qing Lin slowly closed her eyes to sense the atmosphere in the passage, the surroundings once again fell into silence. A few moments later, a series of faint thuds came from behind. Xiao Yan knew that Xiao Ding and the others had arrived.
Turning his head slightly, he made a silencing gesture to Xiao Ding and the others who had just landed, then pointed to Qing Lin, who still had her eyes closed. Seeing this, Xiao Ding nodded slightly and signaled the others, who swallowed their questions.
Placing the ropes they had brought, Xiao Ding and the other members of the Desert Iron Mercenary Corps slowly drew their weapons and moved quietly forward, forming a protective barrier around Xiao Yan and Qing Lin. They scanned their surroundings with cautious eyes.
After a brief period of silence, Qing Lin gradually opened her emerald eyes. She pointed to a passage on the left and said softly, “Young Master, although there are some residual traces of energy in the other passages, this one has the strongest presence. It seems the person stayed here the longest half a year ago!”
Hearing this, Xiao Yan’s gaze shifted to the black passage. This passage was clearly very long, and looking ahead, it was a deep, inky black. Seeing this, Xiao Yan’s brows furrowed slightly.
Turning to Xiao Ding, they exchanged a glance, and Xiao Yan took a deep breath, about to step forward, but was suddenly stopped by Xiao Ding.
“Hold on…” Xiao Ding shook his head slightly at Xiao Yan and then turned to a burly man. “Ham, go and check if there’s anything hidden in this passage.”
“Okay.” Ham nodded and walked up to the dark passage. He then crouched down, pressing his cheek to the sand and thrusting his palms into it.
“What is he doing?” Xiao Yan asked in surprise.
“Ham’s attribute is a variant form of earth—sand. In the desert, he can sense hidden energies that others cannot detect,” Xiao Ding explained. “In unknown places, we must be careful. Rushing in recklessly isn’t wise.”
“Ah, the Desert Iron Mercenary Corps has quite a few unique individuals. Teamwork like this is much better than me rushing in alone,” Xiao Yan said with a smile, feeling impressed.
“Just some survival tricks,” Xiao Ding shrugged and looked up at Ham. “How is it?”
“Not done yet…” Ham shook his head, frowning. “I checked about five hundred meters and didn’t find any hidden energies. But when I tried to go further, I discovered that deeper in, the earth energy disappeared, replaced by extremely hot fire energy. In such an environment, my sensing abilities are useless.”
“Earth energy disappeared?” Xiao Yan and Xiao Ding were both startled. In the depths of the desert, where earth energy should be the strongest, how could it have vanished completely?
“It seems there’s something strange here,” Xiao Yan murmured, his dark eyes igniting with a fierce flame. The stranger it was, the higher the chance of finding a Heavenly Flame. For Xiao Yan, who had been searching for it, this was exhilarating news.
Seeing Xiao Yan’s expression, Xiao Ding shook his head helplessly, swallowing his words of caution. “Let’s go. If we find something amiss, we should retreat and plan again. We already know the location, so we can reach our goal with time.”
Xiao Yan smiled, stroking the Heavy Profound Ruler on his back, and exhaled lightly. He placed Qing Lin behind him and led the way into the dark passage.
Entering the dark passage, Xiao Yan felt a sudden chill. Licking his lips, he narrowed his eyes, scanning the smooth walls. He scratched his Storage Ring, quickly putting a Recovery Pill in his mouth. This had become a habitual action for him, as even a little bit of Dou Qi could make a life-or-death difference.
“Remember, place a moonlight stone every fifty meters on the wall,” Xiao Yan heard Xiao Ding instructing the mercenaries. Xiao Yan couldn’t help but click his tongue; his brother was meticulous, ensuring nothing was overlooked.
The group, using the light from the moonlight stones, walked slowly in the dark passage, maintaining silence due to the unknown dangers. The only sound was the soft shuffling of their feet.
In the endless darkness, there seemed to be no concept of time. They continued stiffly, the passage seeming to have no end. It felt as though they were walking endlessly towards the center of the earth.
As they ventured deeper, Xiao Yan suddenly noticed the chilling sensation dissipate, replaced by a faint, growing heat. Stopping, he turned to Xiao Ding and the others, licking his lips. “It’s not that the earth energy disappeared, but the fire energy is so strong that it suppresses the earth energy to undetectable levels.”
“Even here, the fire energy is so strong. What will it be like further down? Is there really a Heavenly Flame down here?” Xiao Ding said, shocked.
Xiao Yan’s eyes burned with desire. A Heavenly Flame, the ultimate treasure he had been seeking since he started practicing the Flame Decree, was finally within reach. This sudden happiness made him tremble with excitement.
“Let’s continue. Everyone, if you can’t bear the heat, stop. Continuing might cause spontaneous combustion,” Xiao Yan said, taking a deep breath and turning to the others seriously.
“Okay,” they nodded, seeing his serious face.
“Qing Lin, if you feel you can’t go on, tell me,” Xiao Yan said, looking at her intently.
“Okay,” she nodded, her face showing no signs of discomfort from the heat.
With instructions given, Xiao Yan clenched his fists and stepped forward, heading deeper into the passage. As they went deeper, the fire energy grew stronger, and a few weaker members chose to retreat. Only Xiao Yan, Xiao Ding, and Qing Lin continued, while the others, unable to withstand the increasing heat, all withdrew.
As they delved deeper, Xiao Yan’s face grew more serious, but there was also a trace of joy. He could feel the Flame Decree’s route in his body activating automatically, driving the Purple Flame Dou Qi to circulate rapidly, a first in his practice.
“We’re almost there,” Xiao Yan whispered, seeing red light at the end of the passage. His body trembled with excitement as he wiped the sweat from his brow.
Accelerating, the three swiftly covered the remaining distance and reached the end of the passage. Standing at the end, they gazed at the fiery world before them, filled with awe.
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