Golden Portal, O'Brien's Laboratory

Ronan stood on the solidified rock. The innate abilities granted by his Phoenix Bloodline allowed him to control the flow of the viscous, Blood Plasma- like lava beneath him to a certain extent.

The floating island rocks, imbued with the power of frost, drifted by, leaving cracked, cooled crusts on the surface of the rolling river of lava, only to be torn apart by the newly surging golden-red fire in the next second, spewing out sparks like rain.

The surrounding air fluctuated due to the high temperature, making everything appear as if viewed through a broken lens, with the distant rock walls blurred into trembling black shadows.

Ronan slowly approached a rock wall, reached out and dug out a large piece of scorching black rock, which quickly crumbled into crimson quicksand between his fingers.

Ronan looked down and saw streaks of gold, like amber snakes, flowing with the flames in the magma near the rock wall.

That's Magic Magnetic Gold fused into the magma, and there's a lot of it.

Ronan tried Itai to engulf it, but the terrifying high temperature became an obstacle, and it was also difficult to retrieve and collect it, so he had to give up.

Unable to discern directions within the collapsed Fire Leaving Realm, Ronan slowly made his way forward, groping his way along the edge of the rock face.

In a low-lying area where magma converged, he saw a naturally collapsed Spatial Rift.

Like a deep, bottomless black hole, countless magma flows into it, their final destination unknown.

The edges of the rift were filled with extremely unstable spatial fluctuations. Ronan reached out his hand and felt a strong stinging sensation from his skin.

The rift concealed a powerful spatial tearing force. His eyes flickered, and after weighing the options for a moment, he ultimately abandoned his plan to take the risk.

Ronan drifted forward along the "river" above the lava.

He encountered several similar Spatial Rift afterward, but like the first one, the exits formed by natural collapse had unstable internal passages and no idea where they ultimately led, so he dared not attempt to enter them rashly.

Time passed day by day.

Two weeks later.

"Snap—"

A void suddenly cracked open, revealing huge fissures like tree branches. Streams of blazing fire flowed down the cracks in the space, and combined with the relatively narrow terrain around it, it looked like a fiery red canyon where molten gold was falling down.

A small floating island drifted downstream along the lava river and slowly flowed through the "canyon".

On the floating island, a tall and imposing bald young man, completely naked, quietly watched all of this.

It was Ronan had been searching for a way Fire Leaving Realm for twenty days.

Ronan manipulated the magma, guiding the floating island beneath him to carefully avoid the streams of fire falling from both sides and overhead.

Over the past two weeks, he felt he had traversed most of the Fire Leaving Realm, but still hadn't found a suitable exit.

To Ronan, the current Fire Leaving Realm was like a dilapidated old house, leaking everywhere, on the verge of collapse, and full of danger and instability.

This Secret Realm Space is already in the process of complete collapse. This process may take decades or even centuries, or it may happen in a few days, or even the next second. No one can predict it.

Once the space collapses, the Fire Leaving Realm, having completely lost its power support, will rapidly collapse inward. At that time, the raging flames and spatial turbulence will cause Ronan to perish, and even with his Phoenix Bloodline, he will find it difficult to survive.

"We still need to leave as soon as possible. We've endured nine years of pain and torment; we can't just be trapped here and die."

If you can't find an exit after going around in circles, you'll just have to try and find a spatial rift to get out.

Ronan thought to himself.

Just then, a golden-red ray of light drifted lightly past Ronan's eyes on the heatwave.

Ronan instinctively reached out and grabbed it, his eyes flickering as he looked at the small, umbrella-like crystalline fragments in his hand.

He quickly manipulated the lava to propel the floating island forward.

This is a winding lava riverbed, and as Ronan continues forward, more and more golden-red umbrella-shaped crystal fragments drift in from afar.

A surge of impulse welled up within Ronan, and he continued to increase the speed of his rafting.

As he rounded a bend, the rapidly flowing lava abruptly came to a standstill.

Ronan released his control over the river of lava and stood on the floating island of solidified rock, looking at the scene before him, suddenly losing all words.

Countless golden-red fragments floated silently on a calm lava riverbed, like tiny golden-red suns shattered into countless pieces. Their remains emitted a faint but gentle light, presenting a lonely and tranquil scene.

Ronan's eyes gleamed with an inexplicable light as he let the lava flow naturally, propelling him into the riverbed.

He examined every speck of golden-red light suspended in the air, wanting to reach out but not daring to touch it, for fear of shattering this last remaining tranquility and beauty.

He remembered the origin of these glowing crystals—the hillside covered with Flame Dandelions in the Fire Leaving Realm, which Moriel had taken him to before.

It's unimaginable that, despite the fact that the entire Fire Leaving Realm was almost completely swallowed and destroyed by lava, some scattered dandelion fragments still remain here.

Ronan's arrival seemed to disturb the tranquility of the area.

Countless tiny, umbrella-like crystal fragments suddenly scattered, then transformed into a stream of light that flew rapidly forward.

Ronan followed, chasing the dissipating streams of light, knowing full well that he couldn't stop them from flowing away, yet still wanting to do something futile.

After passing a fork in the road where lava flowed, the light stream quietly turned into a narrow side passage.

Ronan instinctively followed, even abandoning the floating rock beneath him and running quickly across the lava.

Until the light stream completely dissipated into the rolling heat waves in the air, Ronan stopped in front of a protruding black rock wall, carefully bent down, stretched out his hands, and held the last crystal fragment in his palms as if it were a precious treasure.

Tiny, umbrella-like crystals melted like snow in Ronan's palm, and the last trace of Moriel in this world vanished.

A wave of sadness washed over Ronan. The blood of the Undying Bird burned within him, making him feel an urge to cry.

At that moment, Ronan looked up and was shocked to see an object, seemingly cast in gold, embedded diagonally in the black rock wall just a few steps away. The fiery red runes flowing on it seemed to be watching him silently, like eyes.

"This is... that Golden Portal?!"

Ronan instantly recognized the object as the Golden Portal to the dwarf treasure that Moriel had shown him on the edge of a volcano!

Ronan's spirits lifted, and he leaped over quickly. His powerful spiritual energy burst forth, and the black rock wall in front of him immediately crumbled into large chunks of quicksand that cascaded down.

Soon, the entire golden sphere was fully revealed to Ronan.

Ronan had only seen it from afar a few times before, but now he was able to see its full appearance.

It is about the size of three or four people who can hug it. Its entire body is like ancient mithril, and its surface is engraved with complex fiery red runes. It is a whole piece with a strong dwarven forging style.

When the Fire Leaving Realm was intact, Ronan couldn't get close. But now that the entire Fire Leaving Realm is about to collapse, he has a chance to access the entrance again.

The world is full of wonders.

Ronan took out the Golden Slate that he had originally intended to keep as a souvenir. As soon as the tablet was taken out of the Mist Space, it resonated strangely with the portal in front of him.

The Golden Slate disintegrated naturally in Ronan's hands a second time, then reformed into a strangely shaped Golden Key.

The golden sphere began to roll on its own, and the countless fiery red runes on its surface glowed one by one, continuously absorbing the abundant Fire Element energy from the surrounding air.

Perhaps because it had been soaked in the magma for too long, there were some signs of melting on the bottom of the sphere. Ronan was initially worried about whether the portal could be opened normally. However, when he saw a groove resembling a keyhole appear on the surface of the sphere, Golden Key in his hand could be inserted into it without any obstruction and fit perfectly, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Snap—"

With the twisting motion, the entire golden sphere suddenly collapsed, then melted like molten gold amidst a surge of intense runic energy, finally transforming into a low portal only half a person's height in front of Ronan.

Ronan had previously entered the Mechanical Heart Ruins, which actually made him more at ease about this.

He glanced back one last time at the magma prison behind him, then without hesitation crouched down and stepped into the portal.

The brief sense of spatial displacement hadn't fully stabilized Ronan's vision when he was first hit by a strong, pungent odor, a mixture of sulfur, coke, and several strange spices burning together. The air here seemed even hotter than outside.

He then saw an enormous black pyramid, with a giant black and dark red furnace suspended at its top, burning with flames, like a miniature sun that had been unfortunately captured, pulsating with dazzling light in a regular pattern.

"Call--"

Ronan exhaled softly, but the voice of Alazan echoed in his mind.

"You actually found it?"

Ronan was taken aback.

"What?"

"Here."

A wisp of Alazan's Soul Power drifted out from between his brows, his tone carrying an unexpected sentiment, "O'Brien's Laboratory."

However, it looks a little different now; it must have been slightly modified.

"Is this O'Brien's Laboratory?"

"Is O'Brien's Laboratory the same place as the dwarfs' treasure trove?!"

Ronan froze for a moment, then his expression hardened, and he rushed out quickly.

This Secret Realm Space wasn't particularly large. Ronan quickly scanned the entire space in a short time, finally stopping in front of the hexagonal giant furnace at the top of the black pyramid.

The furnace was not sealed; its hollow interior was empty except for some inextinguishable flames that scorched the air on their own.

Although he had already guessed this outcome, Ronan still couldn't help but feel a slight sense of disappointment.

"Why"

O'Brien's Laboratory and the location of the dwarf treasure are the same, so it's clear that O'Brien got there long ago.

The "Golin's Hammer," which the dwarves of the Mechanical Heart kept here, should have been obtained by O'Brien long ago, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Alazan said that the lab still showed signs of being modified, so Ronan wasn't just a step behind, he was many steps behind.

This treasure trove has changed hands many times; heaven knows who has the Golin's Hammer now.

"Valitz?"

Valitz was the last master of the Fire Leaving Realm; even Moriel knew the entrance to this place, so it's impossible that he hadn't been here.

Ronan's eyes flickered as he pondered.

Unfortunately Valitz was already dead, and his body was taken by the White Wizard King and his party.

Ronan can only hope that the "Golin's Hammer" will not fall into Valitz's hands either, and that it will be lost during O'Brien's era.

"Although the Golin's Hammer was not found, the other items left behind are not entirely without value."

Ronan looked at the enormous hexagonal furnace in front of him, wondering if he could move it into the Mist Space.

This enormous furnace may have been the vessel that once held the Golin's Hammer, or it may have been a smelting tool crafted by O'Brien. It is of exceptional quality, and every rune pattern engraved on the surface of the furnace bears the rich marks of ancient creation, not limited to Dawn.

However, this giant furnace seems to be integrated with the black pyramid below, relying entirely on the energy continuously supplied by the pyramid to keep the fire burning.

To take the furnace away, the giant pyramid would have to be moved as well, which is a huge undertaking that Ronan might not be able to accomplish.

Damien, come here.

Just as Ronan was pondering how to pack up and take away this forge that appeared to be of the Twilight rank, he heard Alazan's summoning voice.

He temporarily suppressed his thoughts and walked in the direction Alazan had indicated.

He had just circled the entire secret realm, only briefly glancing over many places without thoroughly exploring them.

Now, looking around the entire laboratory, I have a clearer impression in my mind.

——

The black pyramid and the giant furnace are located at the very center, the heart of the entire laboratory.

To the west of the pyramids are a cluster of enormous octagonal iron cages, made of some unknown material, which look incredibly [Fortify]. Each cage contains chains and shackles engraved with runes, but of course, there is nothing inside except dust.

To the north was a massive metal statue of a dwarf, its base melted and half-collapsed on the ground. It was almost identical to the enormous dwarf statue Ronan had seen in the Mechanical Heart. A huge experimental table in front of the statue was made of the same material. It was estimated that the missing lower half of the dwarf statue had been melted down and made into this.

The south side is an inward-facing structure, which Ronan briefly explored when he passed by before; it's a place for storing books.

Alazan directed him to the east side of the pyramid, which was indeed the most worthwhile area to explore, as it contained the most artifacts.

After descending the black pyramid, Ronan slowly walked forward along several man-made, dried-up energy channels. The first thing that appeared before him was an ancient observation instrument with a brass hue. Its surface was covered with extremely intricate and exquisite patterns, which, upon closer inspection, could be seen to be composed of countless tiny runes.

Several tiny flames were burning out of thin air on the observation instrument's platform, constantly changing shape, as if trying to condense some kind of pattern, but each time they failed and stopped at a certain crucial step.

Ronan walked over and, through the shattered crystal lens of the observatory, seemed to vaguely see something.

Unfortunately, the instrument had been broken for an unknown period of time, making it impossible to glean any original experimental results.

Next to the brass instrument were several pieces of parchment, on which strange symbols and data were haphazardly recorded. Ronan touched them slightly with his mental power, and the ancient papers immediately crumbled into dust.

That was a long time ago.

He sighed softly, imagining that countless years ago, a powerful wizard named O'Brien stood in this very spot, using his magical instruments to observe and casually recording precious data.

Breaking free from his brief reverie, Ronan reached out and picked up a bottle of fiery red potion that Alazan had been directing him to pick up, which was placed on the table beside him.

Crystal Bottle, whose specific material was indistinguishable, was a thick, golden-red liquid that was not much different from lava.

It is just unusually pure.

Ronan held the vial in his hand and shook it gently. The liquid inside immediately condensed into beautiful, amber-shaped beads.

If you get close to the bottle, you can faintly hear the roar of a dragon coming from it.

"Fire Dragon Marrow".

Ronan let out a soft breath and glanced around. There were dozens of similar medicine bottles containing Fire Dragon Marrow, just like the one in his hand, neatly arranged on the table.