Trapped

His body was covered in serious injuries and he could not move. Only his arm trembled faintly.

With a turn of his hand, he took out a Blood Bodhi. As Tian Ling'er had said, Blood Bodhi was a healing medicine and should be able to ease his injuries somewhat.

With great difficulty, he tossed the Blood Bodhi into his mouth.

He swallowed it gently. As expected, the Blood Bodhi transformed into a vast, searing energy that rapidly filled his entire body. Now that he was at the Innate Fourth Stage, he could naturally resist the energy of the Blood Bodhi. Once he could withstand it, he realized that the searing energy was not as violent as he had imagined. It seemed to be constantly nourishing his body.

One hour—only one hour—and his body had already improved greatly. His sunken chest had completely recovered as well. However, Tian Ling'er was still lying sound asleep against his chest.

With a wry smile, Zhong Shan slowly sat up and straightened Tian Ling'er. Her clothes were disheveled, and her garment had come loose, leaving two snow-white mounds playfully bouncing in the air.

Zhong Shan shook his head and gently covered her up, lest Tian Ling'er wake later and feel embarrassed.

However, while he was wrapping her up, his fingers inevitably brushed against her, causing Zhong Shan's old face to flush involuntarily.

Finally, after the time it took an incense stick to burn, he finished arranging Tian Ling'er's clothes and then looked down at himself.

His clothes had already been torn to shreds by Tian Ling'er.

Shaking his head, Zhong Shan propped Tian Ling'er against a large stone and let her lie there.

He rose gently, tore off his clothes, and threw them into the Magma Pool. Then, naked, he took another set of clothes from his Storage Bracelet and slowly put them on.

Tian Ling'er had not woken earlier, but when Zhong Shan propped her against the large stone, she had stirred awake in a daze. It was as though she had been having a dream—a very shameful dream. In it, Tian Ling'er had dreamed that she stripped off her clothes, stripped Zhong Shan naked as well, and then hugged him, kissing him again and again.

When Tian Ling'er woke, her face flushed crimson. Why did I have a dream like that? What happened earlier? Suddenly, Tian Ling'er seemed to remember something.

She remembered Zhong Shan crashing into the wall and getting injured. Then she had thrown herself at him. Not only had she failed to save him, she seemed to have stripped his clothes off, stripped off her own clothes, and even kissed his chest. At that thought, Tian Ling'er went completely rigid.

No, no, this can't be. How could I have done something like that? It must have been a dream. Right, it was a dream. It must have been a dream.

Tian Ling'er kept hypnotizing herself.

Just as she was hypnotizing herself, she suddenly heard a strange sound.

"Riiiiiip~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

It sounded like clothes tearing. Rip, rip, rip.

The string of noises finally made Tian Ling'er open her eyes. Curiously, she looked toward where the sound had come from.

At a glance, she saw Zhong Shan with his back to her, naked, throwing the clothes he had just torn off into the Magma Pool.

Tian Ling'er went dumb at the sight. Her little mouth fell open, and she nearly cried out. Then she quickly shut her eyes.

I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything at all. Tian Ling'er kept shouting inwardly.

But when the rustling sound of Zhong Shan getting dressed came from ahead, Tian Ling'er opened her eyes without even knowing why, narrowing them into a slit as she stared at Zhong Shan's body nearby.

Zhong Shan's body looks so good! A thought popped into Tian Ling'er's mind involuntarily.

The moment she thought it, her face burned. She hurriedly closed her eyes. What's wrong with me? I can't look, I can't look. Tian Ling'er squeezed her eyes tightly shut.

Zhong Shan quickly finished dressing and turned around, just in time to see Tian Ling'er with her eyes squeezed shut. Zhong Shan was speechless. Her eyes were shut so tightly that wrinkles had appeared around them. What kind of idiot wouldn't know she was awake?

"When did you wake up?" Zhong Shan asked.

"I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything at all," Tian Ling'er immediately said.

Looking at Tian Ling'er, Zhong Shan was speechless once more, a strange feeling filling his heart. Recalling how shameless Tian Ling'er had been earlier, Zhong Shan could only shake his head helplessly.

"All right, I know. You didn't see anything."

Tian Ling'er gently opened her eyes. Seeing Zhong Shan's smile, she immediately said, "I didn't see anything."

Her tone, however, was much weaker.

"Mm. My injuries haven't fully healed yet. I'll meditate for a while first. You should change your clothes," Zhong Shan said.

After speaking, Zhong Shan found a corner and sat down cross-legged.

Only then did the dazed Tian Ling'er realize that her own clothes were in an even more revealing state.

"Ah! How did this happen?" Tian Ling'er cried in alarm.

"They got rubbed against the ground during the fight," Zhong Shan said, then closed his eyes and began meditating.

Could he really say that she had torn them herself? Zhong Shan naturally would not say such a thing.

Tian Ling'er stopped looking for the old man as well. She quickly found a corner, avoided Zhong Shan's gaze, took out a set of clothes, and changed.

Zhong Shan resumed meditating. Half an hour later, he woke up. His body still hurt somewhat, but it had ultimately improved a great deal. When he opened his eyes, he happened to see Tian Ling'er looking anxious.

"What is it?" Zhong Shan asked as he rose.

"Zhong Shan, what exactly happened while I was unconscious? Where's that old bastard? Also, our last way out is gone. This Mountain Cave has been completely sealed off. What are we going to do?" Tian Ling'er asked worriedly.

"That old bastard? He accidentally bounced into the magma and died," Zhong Shan said with a trace of speechlessness. Indeed, the old man had died an absurdly miserable death. He had fallen into the magma? Even Zhong Shan could not help wiping away a cold sweat for him.

"He fell in?" Tian Ling'er immediately looked toward the magma.

Zhong Shan came over to take a look as well. The moment he did, his eyes suddenly lit up. What was that?

The old man had fallen in and died beyond dead—he was gone without even a trace of his bones. Even with his heaven-shaking cultivation, he had been in a daze and had not put up any defenses. After falling into the magma, how could he not have melted into slag?

Yet in the magma where the old man had fallen, a scrap of paper was now floating.

Paper? How could that thing remain intact in the magma?

Tian Ling'er swept out her hand and drew it over from a distance. The scrap of paper surged ashore together with a mass of magma.

It landed at Zhong Shan's feet, splashing a large amount of magma around.

Only after the magma had dried did Zhong Shan dare to pick it up gently. Tian Ling'er came over as well to take a look. On the scrap of paper, made from some extraordinary material, were rows of tiny characters.

Fourth Grade Pill Formula: Berserk Pill.

Those were the words on the topmost line. Beneath them were large amounts of medicinal ingredients, along with the method of refinement.

"A Fourth Grade Pill?" Tian Ling'er cried out in surprise.

"What is it?" Zhong Shan asked, frowning.

"What kind of paper is this? It wasn't damaged even in the magma. Fourth Grade Pill formulas are rare, but they aren't so outrageously rare. I think this paper is more precious than the formula itself. What extravagance." Tian Ling'er shook her head and commented endlessly.

Seeing Tian Ling'er's expression, Zhong Shan found it amusing. With a gentle turn of his hand, he put it away.

A Fourth Grade Pill formula had been written on such fine paper. Perhaps it had some unexpected use.

As for Tian Ling'er, she did not say anything when she saw Zhong Shan put away the formula. She merely spat toward the magma several times—ptui, ptui, ptui—still seething with resentment toward the old man.

"Zhong Shan, how are we getting out? The Mountain Cave has collapsed, and we can't leave." Tian Ling'er became anxious again.

Zhong Shan walked over for a look. Sure enough, the Mountain Cave had completely collapsed, making escape impossible. It was over a thousand meters deep, and even if they climbed up at an angle, the distance would still be several thousand meters. Zhong Shan was speechless.

Clearly, returning by the way they had come was impossible now.

What were they supposed to do? Zhong Shan looked around. There was no other exit. There was only a passage directly above the Magma Pool, leading up to the volcano's crater.

Zhong Shan looked upward.

A thousand meters? No, three thousand meters. From this opening, going upward would require at least three thousand meters. Moreover, the four walls were incomparably smooth and hard. H-How were they supposed to get up there?

The passage below was completely blocked. There was only this straight passage stretching three thousand meters upward.

"Ling Er, what about your Red Silk? Can it carry you into the air?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Red Silk is damaged. It will take at least two months to repair it. After two months, it can carry only me. But can we hold out for two months?" Tian Ling'er said, her face full of distress.

Looking at Tian Ling'er, Zhong Shan felt helpless. He quickly checked his own food, then checked Ling Er's food and water as well. In the end, he could only reach one conclusion: one month. They could last at most one month. Their food and water would only last a month, while Tian Ling'er would not be able to leave until two months later.

What were they going to do?

"Right, did your father give you anything for saving yourself in an emergency?" Zhong Shan asked with a frown.

"He gave me powerful treasures, like that jade talisman from the other day, but nothing that can carry me into the air. We can't fly out. What should we do? Zhong Shan, are we going to die here?" Tian Ling'er immediately asked anxiously.

"Let me think. Let me think." Zhong Shan frowned as he pondered. What should they do?

They could not fly up. Fly? A hot-air balloon? Make a hot-air balloon? Forget it. Although the temperature here was high and hot air rose, how could they possibly make a hot-air balloon in time? Besides, he did not know how to make one. And after the Mountain Cave had been sealed, the air inside was growing thinner and thinner. Even if they had a hot-air balloon, it would not be able to fly up.

Heat? Thin air?

At that thought, Zhong Shan's eyes suddenly lit up. A bold idea abruptly surged into his mind.

"Zhong Shan, have you thought of a way?" Tian Ling'er seemed to have developed a blind faith in Zhong Shan. The moment his expression changed, she became excited as well and quickly asked.

"Wait. Let me think." Zhong Shan was excited as he turned that mad idea over in his mind again and again.

"Mm." Tian Ling'er immediately nodded in reply, watching him with eager patience.

Finally, after repeatedly weighing and reweighing it, Zhong Shan confirmed that it would work. He let out a long breath.

"Well?" Tian Ling'er immediately pressed him.

"My remaining injuries haven't healed yet. Tomorrow, I'll take you out." Zhong Shan smiled mysteriously.