"Quick, reach your hand into the center of the flames. There's a cluster of cyan fireseed there—grab it!" Yao Lao urged again.
Was he joking?
Xiao Yan's mouth twitched violently.
Was this for real? The Azure Lotus Core Flame was so scorching, yet he was supposed to let his flesh-and-blood body touch it? Wasn't that just courting death?
But out of trust in Yao Lao, although Xiao Yan's heart trembled, he did not think Yao Lao was deceiving him.
Looking at the blood-red keratin layer that was on the verge of collapsing, Xiao Yan knew this was not the time to hesitate. Though he had no confidence at all, he gritted his teeth and reached out his hand.
The closer he came to the Azure Lotus Core Flame, the more the temperature rose exponentially. The keratin layer on his hand melted away, and drops of crimson liquid fell one after another, as if mocking Xiao Yan's overestimation of himself.
"To hell with it!" Xiao Yan was ruthless too. To become stronger, he was willing to pay any price.
He viciously plunged his hand into the center of the Azure Lotus Core Flame, ready to grab the fireseed at its core and pull it out.
The Azure Lotus Core Flame seemed to sense the danger. The flames, which had been relatively calm, erupted completely. Strands of fire coiled around Xiao Yan's arm, crazily winding around it like maggots clinging to bone. The immense fire energy melted the blood-red keratin layer, and crimson liquid dripped continuously until only a thin layer remained.
"Sizzle!"
The flames were simply too powerful. Their terrifying force burned through the blood-red keratin, leaving the defenses on Xiao Yan's hand riddled with holes like a honeycomb. Countless wisps of flame energy, like sharks smelling blood, rushed through those