Tiger's Maw, Snatching the Prize

The instant his body came into contact with the magma, Yi Yun circulated his internal energy to its maximum, while simultaneously connecting his mental power to the Purple Crystal to protect his entire body.

"Thump!"

The lava was viscous and heavy. Yi Yun jumped in, he didn't make a ripple. He quickly sank into the depths of the lava.

A terrifying burning sensation followed, and Yi Yun could clearly feel his Protective Vital Energy being rapidly devoured.

The temperature of this magma is absolutely incomparable to that of ordinary magma.

Moreover, this magma is not only scorching hot, but also contains surging Pure Yang Power. Pure yang is the power of the sun. When a martial artist is hit by this power, his Protective Vital Energy will shatter instantly, and his internal organs and meridians will be burned to a crisp, leaving not even bone fragments.

However, Yi Yun possessed Pure Yang Body, and the energy circulating within him was also Pure Yang Vital Energy. It was through the fusion of the same kind of energy and his understanding of the laws of pure Yang that he was able to continuously counteract the scorching heat of the magma on his body in this lava canyon.

However, even so, Yi Yun still found it very difficult.

Compared to the Pure Yang Power within the magma, Yi Yun's Pure Yang Vital Energy was like a small boat adrift on a vast ocean, constantly at risk of being capsized by the waves.

The deeper you go into the lava canyon, the higher the temperature becomes. Yi Yun chose a spot about three meters deep, which was deep enough for him to conceal himself, and the pressure and temperature were relatively easy to bear.

His internal energy was being depleted very quickly; he had to hurry.

The lava was incredibly heavy, creating immense resistance, and flowing downwards. Swimming upstream under the immense energy impact was extremely difficult, Yi Yun simply clung to the canyon walls, like a gecko, and climbed towards the lava lake above.

Yi Yun chose a location only a few dozen meters away from the lava lake, and he quickly climbed upstream to the entrance of the lava lake at the top of the mountain.

Yi Yun held his breath, his heart pounding. The Three-legged Monster Bird was still fighting the Giant Turtle, and each of their attacks caused the earth to tremble.

Under these circumstances, no strange bird could discover Yi Yun hiding in the magma.

Coo coo coo!

Lava churns and currents surge.

Yi Yun finally entered the lava lake!

Upon entering the lava lake, Yi Yun felt that the temperature here was much higher than that of the lava canyon below, and his Protective Vital Energy was being consumed at a faster rate.

Yi Yun estimated that he could only hold on for another fifteen minutes at most.

Beneath the lava lake, even with the protection of vital energy, one can only see a bright white expanse if they open their eyes; it's like being blind!

Yi Yun activated his Energy Vision used it to sense the location of the red lotus.

Within the Energy Vision, there was also pure Pure Yang Power shining brightly everywhere. However, in the very center of the lava lake, in the direction of the red lotus, the Pure Yang Power was the most intense, like a bursting sun. Yi Yun could still easily lock onto it.

Yi Yun was only a few dozen feet away from it.

"Hurry!"

At this point, Yi Yun could no longer rely on clinging to the rock face to move forward. He had to swim to the very center of the lava lake. He had no thought of retreating. He gathered his true energy and swam forward at an accelerated pace.

Fortunately, the lava flow in the lava lake is relatively calm, unlike the rapid flow in the canyon.

As we get closer to the Crimson Lotus, the lava lake gets hotter the closer we get to the center.

When Yi Yun reached the central area, he had less than 60% of his vital energy remaining, and this energy was needed to support his return.

Yi Yun dared not delay for even the slightest moment and began picking lotus flowers!

Looking down into the magma, Yi Yun could see that the red lotus's roots were exceptionally long, extending downwards. At the bottom of the magma lake, there was a protruding rock, and the red lotus grew on the tip of this rock, its roots deeply embedded within it, forming a single entity.

Yi Yun hesitated for a moment, then took out the Crimson Lotus Blade from his Space Ring.

In terms of quality, Shentu Nantian's sword is no worse than the Red Lotus Blade, but in terms of slashing, the blade is more suitable than the sword.

The Crimson Lotus Blade emitted an eerie, blood-red light within the magma, its brilliance mirroring the crimson lava itself. As a treasured sword Granny Thousand Hands, it was naturally immune to being melted by the lava.

With his sword in hand, Yi Yun mentally recited the Thirty-two Sword Dao Characters, and slashed down at the roots of the Red Lotus!

"Clang!"

The roots of the red lotus emitted a clear chirping sound. Yi Yun felt as if his knife had struck a steel bar, failing to sever the roots at all.

Yi Yun's heart sank. Truly resilient!

He had already guessed that the roots of the Red Lotus, such a rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, were not so easily severed. If he tried to pick the lotus on the surface of the lava lake, he would not be able to do so in a short time, which would be tantamount to suicide. He would have been eaten by the Three-legged Monster Bird long ago.

Even beneath the lava lake, Yi Yun dared not make any major moves. Although he could unleash even more powerful sword techniques, he could not guarantee that the surface of the lava lake would remain completely still, nor could he prevent the red lotus on the lake's surface from swaying.

Given the Three-legged Monster Bird's alertness, it will surely discover it.

There was no way to cut it down by force, so Yi Yun gritted his teeth, aimed at the long stem of the red lotus, and swam downwards into the lava lake.

Success or failure hinges on this!

As Yi Yun swam downstream, the temperature of the magma rose sharply. The magma here had turned into a strange reddish-gold color, and no temperature could be seen at all. However, through his Protective Vital Energy, Yi Yun could feel his skin cracking and his meridians aching.

This is yang poisoning.

When Pure Yang Energy becomes too strong, it becomes a deadly poison for martial artists whose cultivation level is not high enough.

Using Purple Crystal as a guide, Yi Yun transformed the yang poison in the magma into wisps of Pure Yang Energy. What couldn't be transformed was pushed aside, but the yang poison was too concentrated, and it still slowly seeped into Yi Yun's meridians.

His internal energy was being depleted faster and faster, already down to only 50%. Along with driving the Purple Crystal, Yi Yun's mental energy was also being rapidly consumed. Once he could no longer hold on, he would not be able to return.

Yi Yun remained focused and did not back down. He swam steadily toward the small hill at the bottom of the lake. Only when he finally landed on the top of the hill did Yi Yun see the large rock clearly.

Its entire body is like black glass, with a bright luster, containing Pure Yang Power, and its texture is extremely hard. It has been soaked at the bottom of a lava lake for millions of years, and its body has been burned by Pure Yang Fire every night. Even though it was originally just soil and stone, it has been burned into real gold.

The stone itself has become a treasure, and can be used to refine weapons.

Normally, finding such a large rock would be a stroke of luck, but for Yi Yun, it left him speechless.

He had to cut through such a hard stone!

With the Crimson Lotus Blade in hand, Yi Yun could faintly sense a chilling aura emanating from it, which seemed to slightly lower the temperature of the surrounding magma.

"What a fine knife!" Yi Yun's heart stirred. The treasured knife that the old woman had collected had truly not disappointed him.

Clang!

Yi Yun swung his blade, slashing at the rock. Sparks flew, but the blade of the Crimson Lotus Blade remained undamaged. However, the black stone was left with only a white mark.

"This stone is really hard!" Yi Yun frowned. This was not beyond his expectations. At this moment, the vital energy in his body was getting less and less.

Yi Yun infused the blade with pure Yang True Qi, imbuing it with the Thirty-two Sword Dao Characters: Slaughter as the Heart!

A fierce sword strike, three consecutive slashes!

Ding ding ding!

Sparks flew everywhere, but Yi Yun was deep inside the lava lake, where neither sound nor fluctuations of energy were blocked by the incredibly heavy lava with its sea-like energy.

The Three-legged Monster Bird and the Giant Turtle, caught in the fierce battle, were completely unaware, and had no idea, that a weak human boy was snatching treasure from their jaws in that pool of lava!

After three slashes, the rock finally broke open, and some gravel fell down. However, the opening was only a few inches wide, and the roots of the red lotus were still deeply buried under the rock.

Yi Yun panicked. He only had a little over 40% of his vital energy left, and he still needed to go back.

At this rate, it would be impossible to completely split the stone and retrieve the Red Lotus in less than a quarter of an hour; he definitely couldn't hold out that long.

Even when he was completely exhausted, he still couldn't retrieve the Red Lotus.

Having come this far, should we give up?

Just then, a flash of inspiration struck Yi Yun. With a thought, he flipped his right hand, and a rusty, broken sword appeared in his hand.

The broken sword obtained by the Pure Yang Sword Palace looked like scrap metal, on the verge of decay.

But after it appeared, strangely enough, Yi Yun suddenly felt a lightness all over his body, and the consumption of his internal energy slowed down considerably.

It seems that a large amount of Pure Yang Energy was absorbed by this broken sword...

This is...

Yi Yun's eyes lit up. After obtaining this broken sword, Yi Yun had hardly used it except to comprehend the Dao of Sword. This was because the broken sword contained a mysterious will that made it difficult for Yi Yun to activate. Secondly, Yi Yun did not want the broken sword to be discovered and bring about his death.

However, this time, with the broken sword in hand, Yi Yun faintly felt a slight connection between himself and the sword, seemingly a change that occurred after he comprehended the Sword Intent of the Green-robed Swordsman.

This filled Yi Yun with immense joy; now, everything depended on this sword!

With the broken sword in hand, Yi Yun didn't have time to fully comprehend its power. He wielded the broken sword and slashed at the rock.

Snap!!

With a soft sound, the broken sword in Yi Yun's hand became unstoppable, piercing diagonally in one strike!

With a forceful slash, Yi Yun carved a deep gash into the incredibly hard black glass stone.

Yi Yun was overjoyed. He drew his sword repeatedly, cleaving the black rock in large chunks!

At the same time, Yi Yun activated his Energy Vision to see the entire red lotus beneath the rocks, so as not to sever its roots.

Finally, after Yi Yun pried open a large black rock with his sword, he saw a lotus root hidden under the rock. This was the root of the Red Lotus!

It's done!

After putting in so much effort, walking on the edge of death to lure the Giant Turtle, risking life and death to enter the bird's nest to retrieve lotus seeds, and then taking a desperate gamble by diving into the lava pool to collect red lotuses, now, all these treasures are finally in our hands!

...(To be continued~^~)