Underground

At his current cultivation level, he could at most create a magical beast several dozen zhang in size, equivalent to a Dou Emperor.

But Xiao Kun was only creating the Amethyst Winged Lion King as a means of transportation, so the cultivation level of a Dou Wang was more than sufficient.

Seeing that Qing Lin was no longer afraid of the Amethyst Winged Lion King he had created, Xiao Kun smiled and said gently, "After this, we'll ride this magical beast to search for the place where you sensed something unusual! So get ready—we're going up."

Without waiting for Qing Lin to agree, Xiao Kun scooped her up in a bridal carry amid her surprised cry, then leaped lightly onto the Amethyst Winged Lion King's back.

Xiao Kun then gently set down Qing Lin, whose face had already turned bright red.

"Sit tight. If you get thrown off later, don't blame me!" Xiao Kun joked.

At his words, Qing Lin's rosy little face immediately turned somewhat pale again. She hurriedly straightened her posture, looking utterly nervous.

Seeing this, Xiao Kun knew it was Qing Lin's first time flying and that she was somewhat afraid of heights. He smiled and sat cross-legged behind her.

With a thought, the Amethyst Winged Lion King received his command. It rose to its feet, spread its wings, and flew into the wind amid Qing Lin's scream as she covered her eyes.

After a while, Qing Lin finally adapted and curiously looked down at the various things below, all of which had become tiny.

"Qing Lin, I'll have to trouble you to point out the exact place where you sensed the anomaly earlier!" Xiao Kun asked after seeing that she had adjusted.

"Okay, Young Master!" Qing Lin replied cheerfully, her fear of flying having turned into curiosity.

A quarter of an hour later.

"Qing Lin, are you sure it's here?" Xiao Kun stared somewhat dumbfounded at the flat stretch of desert before him. The terrain here was utterly ordinary, without a single distinguishing feature that could draw anyone's attention.

There were practically countless stretches of flat desert terrain like this throughout the desert. Yet this inconspicuous place actually bore traces of a Heavenly Flame.

Faced with Xiao Kun's question, Qing Lin was somewhat timid, but she still gathered her courage and looked at him, saying softly, "Young Master, according to my senses, the place where the disturbance occurred more than a month ago really was here."

At that, Xiao Kun's brows furrowed slightly.

He vaguely remembered that the Green Lotus Core Flame was hidden underground. But with the desert above so featureless, finding a route below would still be somewhat difficult.

It seemed he would have to rely on Qing Lin again. With a change of thought, Xiao Kun smiled at her and said:

"Mm, I believe Qing Lin! But the area is still too large, so it'll be difficult to search. I'll have the Amethyst Winged Lion King fly close to the ground, and we'll search carefully, bit by bit."

"Okay, Young Master!" Hearing that Xiao Kun trusted her judgment, Qing Lin answered happily.

An hour later, Qing Lin and Xiao Kun were seated on the back of the Amethyst Winged Lion King, which was flying slowly one meter above the ground as they searched for an opening leading underground.

They had been searching continuously like this for an hour. Xiao Kun was fine due to his high cultivation, but Qing Lin, whose cultivation was low, was already drenched in sweat beneath the blazing sun.

During their search, quite a few mercenaries passed by. Seeing the two of them constantly searching for something,

they became curious, assuming some treasure had appeared in this stretch of desert, and began gathering here one after another.

Seeing more and more people crowding around, Xiao Kun knew this would interfere with his search for the entrance.

He directly ordered the Amethyst Winged Lion King to release the aura of a Dou Wang. Seeing that the magical beast they rode was already at the Dou Wang level, the spectators were utterly shocked. Who knew how powerful the two themselves were? What were such experts doing here?

After the Amethyst Winged Lion King released its aura, everyone understood it as a warning. If they refused to leave, they might lose their lives. They immediately suppressed their curiosity and scattered in all directions.

After those people left, word spread that an expert capable of commanding a Dou Wang-level magical beast was searching for something in this area. No one dared approach again.

Xiao Kun was able to resume searching for the entrance in peace.

"Qing Lin, you're tired, aren't you? Let's rest for a while before we continue searching!" Seeing that Qing Lin was soaked in sweat, Xiao Kun intended to find a shaded place for them to rest before continuing.

"No, Young Master, I'm fine! I want to keep looking a little longer." Qing Lin wiped her flushed face, reddened from the heat, and replied resolutely.

Hearing this, a warm feeling passed through Xiao Kun's heart, and he said nothing more.

A moment later, as the two passed over an ordinary patch of desert,

"Stop! I can sense some unusual lingering aura here!" Qing Lin cried urgently.

Hearing Qing Lin's words, Xiao Kun immediately ordered the Amethyst Winged Lion King to stop.

"Are you sure?" Xiao Kun looked at the unremarkable desert below.

"I'm sure!"

Receiving her affirmative answer, Xiao Kun rose slightly into the air and directly flung a one-zhang-wide ribbon of Dou Qi at the desert below.

With a bang, a wave of sand several zhang high surged up from the desert. Once the sand settled, a pit three zhang wide came into view, with an opening about half a meter wide appearing within it.

Looking at the pitch-black opening, Xiao Kun gave Qing Lin a thumbs-up and praised her with a smile. "Hehe, Qing Lin, well done!"

Afterward, Xiao Kun sent his vast, ocean-like Soul Power into the opening. He discovered more than ten passages within, each twisting and winding like tunnels carved by enormous serpents.

Seeing this, Xiao Kun divided his Soul Power into more than ten portions and sent each one down a different passage.

A minute later, he discovered a lake of magma in one of the passages. Xiao Kun knew this was the place he sought, so he withdrew his Soul Power.

Now that he had confirmed the location, it was time to head underground, and there was no longer any need for the Amethyst Winged Lion King.

After landing, Xiao Kun directly dismissed it. He then said to Qing Lin with a solemn expression, "Qing Lin, we're going underground next!"

Seeing that Qing Lin had no objections, Xiao Kun walked to the pitch-black cave entrance and beckoned to Qing Lin beside him.

Seeing Xiao Kun's gesture, Qing Lin hurried over in a small jog. Her pair of unusual jade-green eyes stared at Xiao Kun with lively curiosity.

Xiao Kun's gaze briefly swept over those enchanting jade-green pupils, and he sighed in amazement inwardly.

Then he extended an arm. Amid Qing Lin's startled expression, he pulled her into his embrace and smiled. "Hold on tight!"

Held in Xiao Kun's arms, Qing Lin's little face gradually flushed crimson. She lowered her head and nodded softly.

Seeing this, Xiao Kun leaped into the pitch-black cave.

Within the dark passage, Xiao Kun held Qing Lin tightly in his arms and continuously slid downward with the slope of the tunnel.

Xiao Kun used his Soul Power to observe the path ahead in the darkness.

Two or three minutes later, Xiao Kun finally saw the bottom. He circulated the Dou Qi within his body, and a buoyant force instantly acted upon him, allowing him to slowly descend to the ground.

After landing, Xiao Kun released Qing Lin from his arms and swept his gaze across the road ahead. Sure enough, he found more than ten passages.

After finding the passage on the left that he had previously identified, he summoned a ball of Heavenly Flame. The dark passage was illuminated brightly as he took Qing Lin's hand and walked forward.

As they went deeper and deeper, Xiao Kun suddenly sensed a trace of scorching heat in the air.

Seeing this, Xiao Kun knew they were getting closer and quickened his pace.

After a while, standing at the end of the passage, Xiao Kun looked at the fiery-red world before him and could not help marveling at the wonders of nature.