"Rumble!"
The roaring inside the furnace was louder than ever before, as though some terrifying Ancient Savage Beast were awakening, frantically battering the furnace walls to break out of its cage.
The towering pillar of fire lit the entire underground space as brightly as day, and the temperature around them soared at a visibly alarming rate.
"My lord, the furnace looks like it's about to explode. Is the boss coming out?" Xing Meng asked urgently.
Su Ye did not even glance at the rampaging furnace. His gaze swept across the surrounding rock walls as he said, "Ignore it. Xing Meng, send out the Cleaner Drones immediately. Have them lift the floor slabs in the four corners of this area."
"Yes!"
Though puzzled, Xing Meng obeyed Su Ye's orders without question.
Four Cleaner Drones swiftly flew toward the corners to the north, south, east, and west. Their mechanical arms extended and forcibly lifted the heavy stone slabs on the ground.
As the slabs came away, a hidden compartment appeared in each corner, each containing a strangely shaped black crystal.
The drones retrieved the four crystals and hovered outside the Gale Ranger's window.
"Put them into the recesses on those four walls."
Su Ye pointed at the unusual recesses in the rock walls.
Xing Meng nodded and immediately guided the Cleaner Drones in four directions, precisely slotting the crystals into the recesses.
"Hum..."
The next instant, all four walls trembled faintly, and the recesses holding the crystals lit up with a dark red glow.
Then a gap suddenly opened in a steep rock wall a short distance to the Gale Ranger's right, revealing a dark passage leading downward.
"Wait here. I'm going down," Su Ye said, then stepped out of the Gale Ranger.
The moment he left the cabin, a terrifying wave