Chu Xiu stood beside the magma pool, his entire body burning under the waves of heat. Sweat evaporated the instant it seeped from his pores.
Just as he was about to dry out completely, the Magma Bear finally finished his bath and climbed out of the magma.
"Fuck, if you hadn't come out soon, I would've been roasted into human jerky."
Chu Xiu cursed under his breath and quietly shifted a short distance to the side.
He waited along the Magma Bear's inevitable path. The moment the bear reached the shore, he extended his Wolverine Claws and plunged them toward the bear's heart.
Shluk!
The Wolverine Claws pierced the Magma Bear's chest. The wounded bear let out an anguished roar of fury and swung a paw at the head of Chu Xiu, who had appeared out of nowhere.
"ROAR!"
If that blow landed, survival would be out of the question for Chu Xiu. He might not even leave an intact corpse.
In desperation, Chu Xiu immediately pulled out his Wolverine Claws and retreated.
Then his figure flickered, and he concealed himself again.
"ROAR! ROAR!"
The Magma Bear roared furiously and turned, intending to leap back into the magma.
This was his home. No Spirit Beast dared to set foot here lightly, and the magma could help heal his wounds. Even with his heart pierced, he could slowly recover given enough time.
But how could Chu Xiu possibly give him that chance?
Taking advantage of the Magma Bear turning his back on him, Chu Xiu sprang up and swept four razor-sharp claws viciously across the bear's thick neck.
The flesh around the Magma Bear's neck was thick, and it was wrapped in a heavy layer of magma.
Chu Xiu struggled to cut through with that strike, but in the end, the Wolverine Claws proved superior.
The Wolverine Claws sliced through most of the Magma Bear's neck. Steaming blood sprayed out, splashing onto the ground with a sizzling sound like sulfuric acid.
"Holy shit, can this blood really be used to water crops?"
Chu Xiu was a little dumbfounded.
The Magma Bear's blood was absurdly dangerous. Even people would be injured by touching it, let alone plants.
"No wonder Ah Yin was so nervous. Still, whatever the case, since I've already killed him, I'll take it back and give it a try."
Chu Xiu waited for about a minute, until the Red Flame Bear stopped moving completely.
The blood on the bear's body gradually cooled, and the magma covering his skin solidified. Only then did Chu Xiu grip one of his hind paws with both hands and drag him away with all his strength.
This Magma Bear stood a full three meters tall and weighed over half a ton.
He was about the size of an adult polar bear.
Although Chu Xiu had twice the weight, dragging the bear was still extremely difficult. After just twenty or thirty meters, he was nearly collapsing from exhaustion.
"Chu Xiu, are you all right? Where are you hurt?"
Ah Yin had waited outside for so long without Chu Xiu returning that she could not help coming in to look for him.
"I'm fine, just a little dehydrated. Hurry and help me drag him out."
Chu Xiu's mouth and throat were parched, and even speaking a single sentence left him gasping.
Ah Yin hurried over. Ignoring the scorching heat, she picked up the bear's other foot and worked together with Chu Xiu to drag him beyond the magma pool's baking heat.
A hundred meters away.
Chu Xiu and Ah Yin both collapsed onto the ground.
Ah Yin sat while Chu Xiu lay flat.
Both had completely exhausted their strength.
Chu Xiu in particular had barely exerted himself killing the bear, but hauling the corpse out had nearly worked him to death.
Only after resting for a long time did they recover a little strength.
"Go get some water. I'll cut up the bear's corpse first." Chu Xiu struggled to get up, walked back a short distance, and picked up the leaves he had taken off earlier.
Then he returned to the bear's corpse and used the leaves as containers to drain its blood first.
The bear had already lost most of his blood earlier, but there was nothing he could do about that.
The bear had still been alive then, and his blood had been so hot that the tough leaves could not have withstood it. Even if Chu Xiu had drained it, he would have had no way to collect it.
By the time he had drained a whole large bundle of blood, Ah Yin had returned with several Water-Storage Vines.
"Here, have some water."
Ah Yin handed Chu Xiu a vine.
Chu Xiu bit off a large chunk and chewed it. Cool, slightly bitter fresh water flowed down his throat, sending a refreshing chill through his body.
"That hits the spot!"
Chu Xiu laughed and said to Ah Yin, "Take off the leaves you're wearing too. There's still plenty of Spirit Beast blood. It'll go to waste if we don't take it back."
"Mm."
Ah Yin hesitated for only a second before agreeing.
After all, they had made this trip for Spirit Beast blood.
They had not expected the Magma Bear to be so large and heavy. They had assumed they could take the entire corpse back, so they had not prepared any tough leaves.
They collected two more bundles of blood, making three large bundles in total.
Chu Xiu tied up the bundles of blood with thin vines, then used his Wolverine Claws to cut apart the Magma Bear's corpse.
He no longer had the strength to take the entire bear corpse back, but he had to take the Core. Otherwise, it would be a huge loss if another Spirit Beast ate it.
"Found it. It's still hot."
After rummaging around inside the bear's corpse for quite a while, Chu Xiu finally pulled out a sphere with flowing flame patterns.
[Magma Bear Core] Age: 1,400 years Mutation: magma Effect: Grants a fire spiritual root upon use, providing an innate affinity for flames and greatly increasing fire resistance. --------
"Only fourteen hundred years?"
Chu Xiu exclaimed in amazement. He had not expected the Magma Bear to be only fourteen hundred years old. Earlier, both he and Ah Yin had assumed the bear was a Spirit Beast at least thirty thousand years old.
That meant the mutated Magma Bear was even stronger than an ordinary thirty-thousand-year Spirit Beast.
It showed just how absurdly powerful his bloodline was.
And...
The effect description was also different from those of the previous Spirit Beast Cores. Rather than granting a particular Spirit Beast's innate bloodline talent, it granted a fire spiritual root.
Other people might not know what a spiritual root was.
But how could Chu Xiu not know?
It was essential for immortal cultivation. Without a spiritual root, cultivating immortality was impossible.
Gulp!
Chu Xiu swallowed the Core in one gulp. In the next instant, a scorching heat rose from his stomach and immediately ravaged his entire body.
"AAAH!"
Chu Xiu cried out in pain, feeling as though clumps of fire were burning beneath his skin.
His muscles tensed and his veins bulged. Beads of sweat once again seeped from the pores of his already somewhat dehydrated skin.
"Chu Xiu, what's wrong? Don't scare me."
The sight of Chu Xiu frightened Ah Yin as well.
Normally, taking a Core should not have caused such a severe reaction.
Chu Xiu had no chance to speak. He felt as though his entire body had been set ablaze, especially his brain, as if even his breath could spew flames.
He had no idea how much time passed.
Chu Xiu felt the flames within his body gradually subside.
His mind cleared, and he slowly opened his eyes. A pair of pale, heavy, ripe fruits was right before him.
One of them was at his mouth.
"You're finally awake."
There was no embarrassment on Ah Yin's face, only relief at seeing Chu Xiu wake up.
Chu Xiu's condition had been perilous. Although Ah Yin did not know what was happening inside his body, she could sense his life force evaporating.
In her desperation, she had thought of her own Blue Silver Emperor trait.
The Blue Silver Emperor's sap possessed an extraordinarily powerful life force.
It could nourish all living things, even bring withered wood back to life and grow flesh over bare bones.
Naturally, it should also be able to keep Chu Xiu alive.
Before you continue