My internet at home went down today, so I can only post from an internet café. I'm really sorry.
There was no telling how long the journey in had taken, but Huo Hai needed less than a day to return. Even that was only because he ran into two more monsters along the way.
Most of that time went into dealing with those two monsters. Once they were dead, Huo Hai immediately entered the unusual passage that severely suppressed his perception. "Ah, it looks like this isn't the place recorded on the treasure map. I'll have to keep looking." By now, he was almost certain this place had not been built by anyone.
Even someone with cultivation at the Spirit Saint Realm probably could not create such a seamless, flawless environment. More importantly, there wasn't the slightest trace of human handiwork here, much less anything left behind by earlier visitors.
Huo Hai was now fairly certain that he had stumbled across an unusual place by chance. The location marked on the treasure map was actually somewhere else. Never mind; he would find those ruins first.
Huo Hai wasn't annoyed at all. Such a tremendous haul was already more than worthwhile. After absorbing so much flame power, his origin fire seed had grown increasingly strong. His astral flame no longer required him to deliberately strengthen the fire seed to improve it. As long as his cultivation kept pace, the flame's power would naturally keep pace as well.
Still, after absorbing so much pure flame this time, Huo Hai felt that the quality of his astral flame had improved considerably.
Soon, Huo Hai emerged from the passage. The moment he stepped out, he felt a fluctuation within his Inner Space. He frowned, then noticed a translucent crystal inside it glowing.
"This is...