144: The Flame Realm Arrives, Fire Refines True Gold

The sensation of being teleported through the spatial vortex vanished, and an indescribable heat instantly enveloped Xiao Chen’s entire body. He felt as if he was in a giant furnace, with the air filled with the smell of sulfur and flames; even the air he breathed in through his nose and mouth was scorching hot. Beneath his feet was a crimson crystal ground, radiating astonishing heat, and all around him were endless fiery mountains and rivers of magma. The sky was not blue, but an eternal crimson, as if billions of flames were burning. This was the dwelling place of the Yan Clan—the Yan Realm!

“Such dense fire-attribute energy!” Xiao Chen was shocked. The concentration of fire-attribute energy here was hundreds of times greater than the outside world! For those who cultivated fire-attribute techniques, it was simply paradise. But for him, the omnipresent heat was a test; if his physical body wasn't powerful and he didn't have the Star Immortal Body protecting him, he would probably be incinerated in an instant.

He steadied himself, and his Heavenly Realm Soul Power quietly spread out, cautiously probing his surroundings. The entrance to the Yan Realm had randomly teleported him into this barren fiery mountain range, and he hadn't yet found any trace of the Yan Clan.

“I must first find the core settlement of the Yan Clan.” Xiao Chen took out the jade slip given to him by Xuan Kongzi and reconfirmed the information. The jade slip recorded that the core area of the Yan Realm was called “Yan Emperor City,” the location of the Yan Clan’s royal family and main forces. However, the specific direction needed to be found on his own.

He reined in his aura, chose a direction with relatively strong energy fluctuations, and used his movement technique to fly at a low altitude. Everything he saw along the way was a world of flames. There were giant flame trees burning entirely, fire-scaled beasts playing in the magma, and even some Fire Spirits completely condensed from fire energy wandering around. These Fire Spirits were not weak; the weakest were equivalent to human Battle King level, and there were even powerful existences at the Battle Emperor and Dou Zong (Fighting Sect) Rank levels.

Xiao Chen did not want to cause trouble, so he carefully avoided these Fire Spirits and moved quickly. However, the environment of the Yan Realm was far more harsh than imagined. From time to time, ground fire erupted, and magma descended like waterfalls; the fiery poisonous miasma in the air could erode Dou Qi and soul; even more terrifying, space was extremely unstable, with spatial firestorms often raging, powerful enough to tear apart a low-star Dou Zun (Battle Venerable)!

Along the way, Xiao Chen encountered dangers several times, and only by relying on his powerful strength and the early warning of his Heavenly Realm Soul was he barely able to turn danger into safety. But this also gave him a deeper understanding of the perils of the Yan Realm.

After flying for about a day, a huge fiery canyon appeared ahead. Deep within the canyon, energy fluctuations were unusually intense, and faint sounds of fighting and beast roars could be heard.

Xiao Chen’s heart stirred. He suppressed all his aura and quietly approached. Inside the canyon, an intense battle was underway! The two sides fighting were, on one side, three young men and women dressed in crimson tight-fitting clothes with fierce auras. Judging by their cultivation techniques and bloodline fluctuations, they were indeed from the Yan Clan! Their strengths were not weak; two were at Peak Nine-Star Dou Zong, and one was an early One-Star Dou Zun!

Their opponent was a massive, ferocious magical beast covered in dark red scales and with a single horn on its head—an eighth-tier low-level Lava Earth Core Lizard! Its strength was equivalent to a human One-star Dou Zun Peak! The Lava Earth Core Lizard had tough skin and flesh, immense strength, and could also manipulate ground fire and magma, making it extremely difficult to deal with!

At this moment, the three Yan Clan youths were in a bitter struggle. The early One-Star Dou Zun youth wielded a flaming spear with sharp spear techniques, seemingly the main attacker; the other two Peak Nine-Star Dou Zong women, one casting a flame barrier for defense and the other manipulating flame chains to interfere, coordinated perfectly. But the Lava Earth Core Lizard was immensely powerful and incredibly defensive, so the three of them could not break through its defenses for a long time. Instead, they were forced into dangerous situations, and several wounds had already appeared on their bodies.

“Big Brother Yan Lie! This beast is too strong! We can’t hold on much longer!” The woman casting the flame barrier anxiously shouted. Her barrier violently fluctuated under the Lava Earth Core Lizard’s impact, on the verge of shattering.

“Hold on! There’s a Earth Core Fire Lotus in this Earth Core Lizard’s nest! As long as we get it, I can break through to Two-star Dou Zun!” The youth named Yan Lie gritted his teeth, his spear’s flames surging. A ‘Yan Dragon Break’ fiercely stabbed towards the Earth Core Lizard’s eye, but was blocked by its thick eyelid, sending sparks flying.

“Roar!” The Lava Earth Core Lizard was enraged, sweeping its massive tail with immense force towards the three!

“Not good!” Yan Lie’s face changed drastically; it was too late to rescue them!

Just as the three were about to be severely injured, a figure in a green shirt appeared like a ghost before the giant tail!

“Bang!”

A muffled thud! That giant tail, powerful enough to split mountains and crack stones, was steadily blocked by the newcomer’s single hand! The figure remained motionless, while the Lava Earth Core Lizard let out a pained roar, its tail scales cracking, and fresh blood dripping!

The one who struck was none other than Xiao Chen!

He originally didn't want to meddle, but thinking about needing to contact the Yan Clan, helping out might be an opportunity. Moreover, the strength of this Lava Earth Core Lizard was just right to test his current physical body’s intensity.

“Who are you?!” Yan Lie and the other two were both shocked and overjoyed, looking at Xiao Chen with awe. To single-handedly withstand an attack from an eighth-tier magical beast? What terrifying physical strength was this?!

Xiao Chen did not reply, his gaze calmly fixed on the pained and enraged Lava Earth Core Lizard. He felt the immense power coming from his palm and was satisfied. After merging with the dragon phoenix essence blood and the Star Immortal Body, his physical body’s intensity was indeed comparable to that of a dragon of the same rank!

“Roar!” The Lava Earth Core Lizard went completely berserk, opening its mouth and spewing out a scorching pillar of Earth Core magma fire, powerful enough to melt metal and stone!

Xiao Chen neither dodged nor avoided, pointing his fingers like a blade, and with a hand-chop imbued with Power of Starlight, he struck!

“Hiss!”

Where the hand-chop passed, space slightly twisted, and the violent magma fire pillar was actually split in two, grazing both sides of Xiao Chen’s body and melting two deep holes in the mountain wall behind him!

“Shatter!”

Xiao Chen, not letting up, took a step, instantly appearing above the Lava Earth Core Lizard’s head. Power of Starlight flowed around his fist as he delivered a simple, direct punch downwards!

“Dong!”

A colossal thud like a drumbeat! The Lava Earth Core Lizard’s massive head suddenly sank, the sound of its skull shattering clearly audible! It let out a mournful wail, blood flowing from its seven orifices, and its enormous body crashed to the ground, twitching a few times before falling silent.

One punch to instantly kill an eighth-tier low-level magical beast!

Yan Lie and the other two were dumbfounded, looking at Xiao Chen as if he were a monster. That was a Lava Earth Core Lizard, equivalent to a One-star Dou Zun Peak! And yet this person killed it with a single punch?! This strength, even some elders in their clan might not be able to achieve!

Xiao Chen slowly landed, his aura steady, as if he had done a trivial thing. He looked at the three still-shaken individuals, cupped his hands, and said, “I am Xiao Chen. I stumbled into this place and saw that the three of you were in danger, so I intervened.”

Yan Lie was the first to recover, quickly putting away his spear and bowing respectfully: “I am Yan Lie of the Yan Clan. Thank you, Big Brother Xiao, for saving our lives! These two are my younger sisters, Flame Heart and Fire Spirit.” His attitude was extremely polite, clearly completely awed by Xiao Chen’s strength.

“Big Brother Xiao, you’re amazing!” The lively Fire Spirit blinked her big eyes, full of admiration. The more composed Flame Heart also gave a slight bow to express her gratitude.

“It was merely a small effort, no need to be so polite,” Xiao Chen said indifferently. “Do the three of you happen to know the direction to Yan Emperor City?”

“Big Brother Xiao wants to go to Yan Emperor City?” Yan Lie’s eyes lit up. “We are just about to return to our clan. If Big Brother Xiao doesn’t mind, you can travel with us! It would be a perfect opportunity for us to show you our hospitality and repay your life-saving kindness!”

Xiao Chen’s heart stirred; this was exactly what he wanted. He nodded and said, “In that case, I will trouble you.”

“That’s great!” Yan Lie was overjoyed. He quickly stepped forward to deal with the Lava Earth Core Lizard’s corpse, extracting the magic core and the precious lizard heart. He then carefully plucked a seven-leaf fire lotus radiating pure fire energy from the nest and handed it to Xiao Chen: “Big Brother Xiao, this Earth Core Fire Lotus is your rightful trophy.”

Xiao Chen did not decline, taking the fire lotus. This item would also be beneficial for his cultivation of the Heaven Burning Furnace Art.

The four rested briefly, then set off together. Along the way, Xiao Chen learned from Yan Lie that they were disciples from an outer branch of the Yan Clan, who had come out for training this time, unexpectedly encountering the powerful Lava Earth Core Lizard. Yan Lie was utterly impressed by Xiao Chen’s strength, speaking with great enthusiasm and continuously asking about Xiao Chen’s origins.

Xiao Chen did not reveal too much, only saying that he was from the Pill Tower in the Central Region and was traveling here. Yan Lie’s eyes grew even more eager upon hearing of the Pill Tower, clearly aware of its prestige.

As they delved deeper, the surrounding flame energy became purer and more violent. Some natural hazardous areas formed by the condensation of flame laws even began to appear, such as rivers of flowing fire and screens of heaven burning furnace, which were extremely dangerous. However, under Yan Lie’s guidance, they avoided many perilous regions.

Several days later, a majestic giant city, entirely constructed from crimson flame divine crystals, appeared on the horizon! Above the city, nine illusory fiery suns floated, emitting endless light and heat, and a powerful array formation enveloped the entire city! This was the core of the Yan Realm—Yan Emperor City!

“Big Brother Xiao, that’s Yan Emperor City ahead!” Yan Lie said excitedly, “My father is a commander in the city guard. I’ll take you to see him now, and he’ll arrange accommodation for you!”

Xiao Chen nodded, but secretly remained vigilant. Entering Yan Emperor City meant truly coming into contact with the higher echelons of the Yan Clan, and the task of persuading them to join the Anti-Alliance would truly begin. And the shadow of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion had probably already fallen here. The road ahead remained full of unknowns and challenges.