Han Li flicked his sleeve, and another small blue cauldron shot out. After a similar buzzing sound, it expanded in size and, under the guidance of his divine sense, floated leisurely toward the top of the massive formation, stopping only when it reached a height of over twenty zhang.
A flash of silver light later, a humanoid puppet appeared atop the cauldron, standing motionless on one corner, as steady as Mount Tai.
Han Li nodded slightly and suddenly slapped a spirit beast pouch at his waist. A gust of icy white wind surged out, revealing twelve four-winged centipedes, each several feet long.
These were the Twelve Six-Winged Frost Centipedes.
As soon as they emerged, the centipedes swayed their heads and tails, spewing cold wind. Wisps of white mist quickly spread through the air, concealing their forms. The mist then swirled and dispersed to every corner of the formation.
With everything set, Han Li finally relaxed slightly.
However, he dared not let his guard down. He carefully inspected the formation once more, confirming that everything was in order, before standing at a specific spot. With a hand seal, a layer of purple flames enveloped his body, and his figure gradually sank into the ground like a phantom, vanishing without a trace in an instant.
Inside the massive glowing cage, only the motionless humanoid puppet atop the cauldron and the drifting white mist remained.
Meanwhile, dozens of zhang underground, Han Li found himself amidst a sea of crimson magma.
The scorching heat, which could reduce a person to nothing, had no effect on him under the protection of the Violet Extreme Flame. However, the alternating forces of extreme heat and cold produced continuous thunderous rumbles nearby, grating on his nerves.
This wasn’t because Han Li didn’t want to switch back to the fire-attribute barrier he had used earlier. Circumstances had changed—while a fire-attribute barrier could easily blend with the surrounding magma, maintaining a stable temperature inside while enduring such extreme heat would drain far more spiritual power than the cold-attribute barrier. Until he found the Sun Essence Flame, he naturally wouldn’t take such a risk.
Even with his divine sense extended to its limit, his range of perception was drastically reduced underground, barely reaching a hundred zhang.
Realizing this, Han Li couldn’t help but sigh.
No wonder Frost Li the Transcendent, despite knowing the Sun Essence Flame was here, had never succeeded in capturing it over the years. In the end, he had even abandoned the idea entirely.
In such an environment, even a late-Nascent Soul cultivator would find it nearly impossible to capture a sentient Sun Essence Flame. Only a Deity Transformation cultivator might stand a chance.
Despite all his preparations, Han Li still had no certainty of success.
He suddenly patted the motionless Lunar Firebird perched on his shoulder. The bird spread its wings and flew out of the purple barrier, diving straight into the magma and disappearing without a trace.
The entire process was silent, as if the magma’s scorching heat posed no obstacle to it.
Seeing this, Han Li was momentarily speechless, then inwardly delighted.
The Lunar True Flame, despite being the coldest substance in the human world, was completely unaffected by the magma. It seemed this flame, hailed as one of the Three Great True Spirit Flames, held mysteries he had yet to uncover. If given the chance, he would have to study it further.
On another note, the Lunar True Flame and the Sun Essence Flame were polar opposites—one born of extreme heat, the other of extreme cold. Under the principle of yin and yang attraction, if the Sun Essence Flame was nearby, it would naturally be drawn to the Lunar True Flame.
Now, it was just a matter of luring it to the surface.
With this in mind, Han Li followed the firebird from a distance through their mental connection, circling the volcanic crater in an expanding search pattern.
One day, two days, several days passed. Han Li had scoured nearly ten thousand li underground, especially the spots where Frost Li the Transcendent had once detected traces of the Sun Essence Flame. Yet, to his great disappointment, he found nothing.
Frustrated, Han Li had no choice but to widen his search. But the Sun Essence Flame seemed nonexistent, leaving no trace whatsoever.
A month later, while searching tens of thousands of li away from the crater, Han Li’s face remained expressionless, but his heart was growing anxious.
Anyone forced to traverse magma day after day, seeing nothing but endless crimson while straining their divine sense to scan the surroundings, would eventually reach their limit.
Just as Han Li considered returning to the surface to recover his spiritual power, his expression suddenly changed. His eyes flashed with excitement.
Without hesitation, he slapped a storage pouch at his waist, summoning the black vial containing the Five Ghosts of the Same Heart. The vial tumbled in the magma, releasing the five ghosts.
Though uncomfortable in the magma, the ghosts, shrouded in grayish-white demonic energy, were not truly afraid of the heat.
Han Li chanted an incantation, and the five ghosts transformed into spectral heads, darting into the depths of the magma and vanishing.
With another flick of his sleeve, he released over a dozen fire dragon pillars, forming a crimson barrier around himself. His figure then blurred, merging seamlessly with the surrounding magma until he disappeared entirely.
The area fell silent, save for the occasional sound of flowing magma.
After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, a streak of red light flashed—the Lunar Firebird, encased in crimson, shot out from the magma and disappeared into another section.
Almost simultaneously, the nearby magma churned violently, its temperature doubling in an instant. A silver streak flashed past, chasing after the firebird.
As the silver light vanished, the magma calmed, though the intense heat lingered. At that moment, a red glow flickered, and Han Li reappeared within his barrier, his eyes gleaming with excitement as he watched the direction the silver light had gone. Without hesitation, he transformed into a streak of red light and gave chase.
Thus, the three raced at full speed, covering tens of thousands of li in just half an hour, arriving near the volcanic crater where the formation was set.
But trouble arose.
Though the Lunar Firebird was agile in the magma, its speed was no match for the silver light behind it. After such a long chase, just over ten li from the crater, the silver light finally caught up.
With a sudden pounce, the silver light clashed with the crimson glow of the firebird.
Han Li dared not approach recklessly, fearing he might scare off the silver light. But through his mental connection with the Lunar Firebird, he finally got a clear look at the silver light’s true form.
It was a small winged horse, several inches long, its body as white as jade, with a pair of silver-glowing wings.
As soon as it caught up to the firebird, the horse flapped its wings, releasing countless silver sparks that surged toward the Lunar Firebird.
This was none other than the Sun Essence Flame, taking the form of a True Spirit Flame.
When the Lunar Firebird had first been born, it was extremely weak, allowing Han Li to capture it easily. But after devouring endless amounts of ten-thousand-year Profound Jade Cold Qi in the Xuan Jade Cave of the Small Extreme Palace, its power had grown significantly.
In terms of raw power, the Lunar Firebird was not inferior to the Sun Essence Flame.
However, in this magma-filled environment, the white horse could draw upon the endless heat, boosting its strength by a third. Meanwhile, the firebird had to expend energy resisting the magma’s heat. Despite spewing crimson cold flames in desperate defense, it quickly fell into a disadvantage.
Seeing this through his divine sense, Han Li frowned.
Neither he nor the five spectral heads could intervene without risking scaring off the Sun Essence Flame. From Frost Li the Transcendent’s memories, he knew this flame had developed sentience long ago and would flee at the slightest disturbance. Worse, its fire-escape technique was incredibly elusive in the magma—once it fled, there would be no hope of catching it again.
If startled even once, even with the Lunar Firebird as bait, Han Li had no confidence the flame would fall for the same trick again.
Thus, despite seeing the firebird at a disadvantage, he dared not act rashly or summon the five ghosts for help. His expression darkened as his mind raced for a solution.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. With a series of hand seals, he opened his mouth and spat out a white, misty orb—the Snow Crystal Pearl, which had been tempered by the Violet Extreme Flame.
Han Li sent several incantations into the pearl, causing it to spin rapidly before shooting forward as a streak of white light.
Moments later, the pearl appeared near the battling firebird and white horse. With a slight tremble, it descended toward them.
The small horse startled, its wings fluttering as it vanished into the magma, reappearing over twenty zhang away. It stared at the pearl with wary eyes.
But the Lunar Firebird made no move to dodge. Instead, it seized the opportunity to lunge upward, swallowing the pearl in one gulp. Its crimson glow intensified.
Without hesitation, the firebird turned and fled once more.
The silver-winged horse hesitated, its eyes darting around. Detecting no further anomalies, it finally spread its wings and gave chase again.
This time, however, the Lunar Firebird, empowered by the Violet Extreme Flame hidden within the Snow Crystal Pearl, moved much faster. The horse couldn’t close the gap.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the base of the massive volcanic crater.
The firebird changed direction, shooting straight upward.
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