In Hand

After a while, he had composed himself.

Wei Yang stepped back and looked at the slender roots left behind.

"I'll take the green lotus and leave the roots here, preserving a sliver of life. Perhaps after a thousand years or more, another Green Lotus Core Flame will be born here..."

Apart from the top three flames on the Heavenly Flame Ranking, which were unique, there was more than one of every other Heavenly Flame.

Wei Yang took out a small jade vial and carefully removed the eleven lotus seeds from the lotus platform, placing them inside for safekeeping.

Then he took a specially prepared empty Storage Ring from his robes. Its interior was roughly ten square meters, with a height of about one story.

The space inside looked about the size of a room.

He placed the green lotus into the Storage Ring.

When a Heavenly Flame erupted, it could burn even the space within a Storage Ring completely clean.

Yet within this lotus platform, the Green Lotus Core Flame was remarkably quiet and showed no resistance at all.

Clearly, although this Green Lotus Core Flame had developed a trace of sentience, its intelligence was not high. It possessed only instinct.

Otherwise, it would have erupted in resistance when Wei Yang picked the green lotus.

After finishing all this, Wei Yang put away the Storage Ring and finally let out a long breath.

His heart relaxed as well.

After all this effort, the Green Lotus Core Flame was finally in his hands.

Er, no. For Wei Yang, the most important thing was that he had finally obtained the lotus seeds.

Honestly, if he were destined to absorb only one Heavenly Flame, the Green Lotus Core Flame would not satisfy Wei Yang all that much.

If he had another choice, he would definitely choose a Heavenly Flame ranked higher or one better suited to himself.

For now, Wei Yang regarded the Green Lotus Core Flame merely as a backup option.

Thus, he had no intention of hurriedly refining it at present.

His fingers casually brushed over the Storage Ring on his index finger.

Inside was a map obtained from the Cliff Cave Opportunity, one that recorded a route deep into the Endless Sand Sea.

At its final destination, there seemingly existed another unknown Heavenly Flame.

Wei Yang shook his head and stopped thinking about it. He would explore it after some time, once his strength had improved.

After all, entering the depths of the Endless Sand Sea meant venturing into an absolute Life Forbidden Zone. It required careful consideration.

He slowly stretched his body and looked around. With the green lotus gone, the layer of azure light that had shrouded the area was gradually fading as well.

Wei Yang turned to look at the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake waiting nearby. A graceful figure in white stood prettily atop it, smiling as she waited for him.

Wei Yang smiled, then flashed toward her.

The silent Magma World.

Every so often, a bubble rose and burst with a pop, sending gray-white smoke drifting through the air.

Suddenly.

Splash!

A massive two-headed snake emerged from beneath the magma. Standing atop one of its heads were two figures, one clad in black and the other in white.

Carrying them on its body, the snake slowly swam to the shore, raised itself up, and stopped with its head at the edge of the platform.

Holding Ye Xian'er, Wei Yang lightly leaped down onto this temporarily carved-out platform.

"Congratulations, Brother Yang! After being busy for so long, you've finally gotten what you wanted!" Xian'er congratulated him with a grin.

"Haha." Wei Yang beamed as well, very satisfied with how smoothly this journey had gone.

In high spirits, he lowered his head and lightly pecked Xian'er's rosy lips.

"Mm!" Caught off guard, Xian'er cried out softly. Her little face immediately flushed red, and she shyly buried her face in his chest, letting out a coquettish complaint that carried both embarrassment and delight.

Wei Yang affectionately rubbed her long hair, his gaze growing slightly unfocused. Before he knew it, Xian'er was nearly fifteen already.

There was a sense of accomplishment in raising her.

Wei Yang smiled, then turned to the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake beside them. It had stretched out its heads, and a trace of anticipation showed in its snake eyes. Smiling, he said, "You've troubled yourself this time. Don't worry, I keep my word."

In any case, it was only a fourth-tier magical beast. Wei Yang had no other intentions toward it.

He held out his hand. "Give me two of your Sub-Flames, and I'll let you leave freely."

The Beast Flame of a peak fourth-tier magical beast would be enough for him to practice with during the early stages.

At his words, hesitation immediately flashed through the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake's eyes. Separating two Sub-Flames from its body would cause considerable damage to its origin, so naturally it was reluctant.

"What?" Wei Yang raised a brow. "You're unwilling?"

It would recover that tiny loss of origin after soaking in this magma for a year or so. It was unwilling even to do that?

Was it taking me for too kindhearted?

Xian'er also turned around, her beautiful eyes fixed fiercely upon it.

The Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake shuddered, feeling as if all its hair stood on end... though it did not have hair. Still, that was the feeling.

It felt like crying but had no tears. It was deeply aggrieved. Ever since meeting these two humans, it had suffered one misfortune after another.

It had once lived perfectly well in this Underground Lava Lake, carefree and happy, its days full of joy. But ever since these two villains arrived, they had bullied it...

It was hard to put into words.

Was this not truly bad luck beyond measure?

Helpless, it wriggled its body, then opened both massive mouths. Two palm-sized dark crimson flames slowly floated out.

These were two Sub-Flames separated from the Beast Flame at the core of its body.

After separating the two Sub-Flames, its aura visibly weakened.

Its injuries had yet to heal, and now things were even worse.

Wei Yang gave it a look that said, At least you know what's good for you. With a flip of his hand, he took out two jade vials and sealed the flames inside.

Then, with a wave of his hand, he withdrew the restrictions planted in its soul.

These restrictions had merely been forcibly planted by Wei Yang using his powerful Soul Power. There was nothing complicated about them, so removing them was simple—he merely had to will them back.

Xian'er also raised a hand and drew a stream of gray-white air from the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake's heart, then put it away with a flip of her hand.

"Alright, off you go." Wei Yang waved at it with a smile. "We may be staying here for a while longer. Come play with us when you have time."

Upon hearing this, the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake turned and plunged headfirst into the magma. Its massive body twisted as it swiftly vanished, and even its aura gradually faded away.

Clearly, it had slipped deep into the magma and never wanted to see Wei Yang and Xian'er again.

"Hehe." Seeing this, Ye Xian'er could not help laughing, a sly glint flashing in her eyes.

Like a mischievous young girl, she wore the smug little expression of someone whose prank had succeeded.

Wei Yang smiled and shook his head. They must have tormented it quite badly before.

He handed Xian'er one of the jade vials containing the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake's Beast Flame.

Wei Yang smiled. "This is one of the Sub-Flames separated from its body. Its power is passable for now—it's Lava Core Flame. Refine one for yourself too, so you'll have another means of attack."

"Mm." Xian'er blinked and accepted the jade vial, looking rather interested.

Who would have thought that someone who played with poison like her would one day be able to play with fire too?

The Dou Qi in her body had already been completely converted into Fire Poison Dou Qi. She now possessed both fire and poison attributes.

Refining the Beast Flame of a peak fourth-tier magical beast naturally would not be a problem.

"Don't celebrate just yet. There's this too." A mysterious smile appeared at the corner of Wei Yang's lips. He took out the jade vial containing the lotus seeds, poured out a lotus seed gleaming with azure light, and handed it to her.

"This is the lotus seed you took from that green lotus?" Xian'er curiously accepted it. She could clearly sense that this jade-green lotus seed, only about the size of a fingernail, contained incomparably pure and immense fire-attribute energy.

"Mm. This lotus seed contains pure, immense energy. With your current realm, you cannot swallow it directly. It's best to hold it in your hand and absorb it slowly. Once its energy has diminished somewhat, you can swallow and refine it directly."

Wei Yang smiled as he continued, "This is an exceedingly rare natural treasure—the Companion Lotus Seed of the Green Lotus Core Flame. Didn't you always dream of becoming an alchemist?"

"Now that you possess the fire attribute, if you gain even a trace of the wood attribute... perhaps it won't be entirely impossible."

"Brother Yang, you mean!" Xian'er's body trembled at his words. She clenched the lotus seed in her hand and stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

"Green Lotus Core Flame, Green Lotus Core Flame... You can tell from its name alone that it's a flame containing the wood attribute!"

Wei Yang blinked. "And this Companion Lotus Seed not only contains vast, pure fire-attribute energy, but also incomparably pure wood-attribute energy. If you swallow and refine it..."