Arriving in the Desert, Finding the Heavenly Flame Passage, and Encountering the Snake-People Tribe

The Tagor Desert.

Deep within it.

Vast Dou Qi enveloped Xiao Ce and Xiao Yi Xian, keeping all the desert's windblown sand and waves of heat outside.

Xiao Ce had not wasted time traveling. He had simply had the Ninth Grade Golden Pill cross space and bring him and Xiao Yi Xian into the depths of the Tagor Desert, seeking to find the green lotus core flame as quickly as possible.

Now, Xiao Ce tapped his chest and asked the mysterious yellow flame within him through a soul transmission, "Mysterious Yellow, can you sense the heavenly flame here?"

The mysterious yellow flame immediately replied, "The mysterious connection between heavenly flames lets me sense that the heavenly flame is indeed in the Tagor Desert, but it's too far away for me to sense its exact location yet. I can only sense its general direction."

After a moment of silence, the mysterious yellow flame said, "I'm sorry, Master. I'm so useless."

Xiao Ce had no intention of blaming the mysterious yellow flame. In fact, being able to pinpoint a direction was already quite good. Otherwise, who knew how much time he would have to spend finding the green lotus core flame on his own?

"Mysterious Yellow, you've already done wonderfully. As long as we have a definite direction, finding that heavenly flame is only a matter of time," Xiao Ce comforted her.

The mysterious yellow flame emerged from Xiao Ce's body and hugged him under Xiao Yi Xian's gaze. "Thank you, Master."

Then she returned to Xiao Ce's body.

Xiao Yi Xian, standing beside him, knew nothing at all. All she knew was that the mysterious yellow flame had inexplicably come out to hug Xiao Ce.

Xiao Yi Xian did not dare say much and continued walking with Xiao Ce.

Xiao Ce rubbed his chest, feeling that the mysterious yellow flame really liked hugging him, always finding all sorts of reasons to do so.

The mysterious yellow flame... could she be emotionally neglected?

Xiao Ce's thoughts wandered, but his footsteps did not stop.

After they had traveled for another stretch, the blazing sun set, and the temperature throughout the desert rapidly cooled. Suddenly, Xiao Ce heard the mysterious yellow flame speak from within him.

"I can sense it more clearly now, Master. Turn a little to the right and keep going," the mysterious yellow flame said.

Xiao Ce immediately perked up considerably and said to Xiao Yi Xian, who had been walking beside him for half a day and was clearly rather tired, "Hang in there a little longer. We'll be there soon."

Xiao Yi Xian nodded, her face somewhat deathly pale. Her health had never been good, and after walking with Xiao Ce for half a day, she truly could barely keep going.

Xiao Ce stopped and looked at Xiao Yi Xian's deathly pale face, realizing that estimating her exhaustion based on his own physique, which rivaled a Sixth Rank magical beast's, was simply too foolish.

Although the Dou Qi barrier kept the desert's windblown sand and waves of heat from troubling her, Xiao Yi Xian was ultimately just a frail young woman, and her cultivation was not particularly high. Having followed him through the desert for a full half day, she was truly holding on through willpower alone.

At this thought, Xiao Ce mused inwardly, Perhaps I shouldn't have been so impatient, coming straight to the Tagor Desert to search for a heavenly flame as soon as I left the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

I should have gone to Mo City to see Hai Bodong first, then visited Stone Desert City to catch up with my two older brothers, leaving Xiao Yi Xian there along the way while I came out to search for the heavenly flame alone.

"Rest here." Xiao Ce did not say it aloud, but in his heart, he already regarded Xiao Yi Xian as a burden.

He tapped the Ninth Grade Golden Pill and had it set up a Dou Qi barrier here to keep Xiao Yi Xian protected.

Unwilling to hold him back, Xiao Yi Xian tried to put on a brave front and continue. "I'm fine, Senior."

Xiao Ce took some food and water from his Storage Ring and placed them in Xiao Yi Xian's hands, saying firmly, "Rest here. This food and water will last you a while. I'll come back once I find the heavenly flame."

Xiao Yi Xian did not know Xiao Ce had classified her as a burden and was deeply moved. "Thank you, Senior."

Xiao Ce waved a hand and continued onward alone.

With the mysterious yellow flame guiding him, Xiao Ce kept traveling in the right direction.

As for how he judged whether the direction was correct, naturally, it was by sensing whether the heavenly flame was drawing closer.

After all, he had also absorbed the emperor flame and the myriad beast spirit flame. Although these two heavenly flames were still relatively weak, with a sensing range smaller than the mysterious yellow flame's, they still possessed the special connection between heavenly flames.

As he drew closer and closer to the green lotus core flame, the clearest sign was that Xiao Ce sensed both the emperor flame and the myriad beast spirit flame within him beginning to show a special response.

The mysterious yellow flame went a step further, sensing the green lotus core flame's exact location.

Finally, after traveling for roughly a dozen minutes and crossing a sand dune, Xiao Ce saw around a dozen Snake-People guards standing watch beside a cave entrance.

Even the weakest of these guards had Da Dou Shi cultivation, and three were Dou Ling. In addition, a Snake-People commander with Dou Wang cultivation was also guarding the place.

At that moment, all these Snake-People were surveying their surroundings with solemn expressions, allowing no living creature near the enormous, pitch-black cave entrance. Even sand scorpions beneath the sand would be found by the Snake-People guards and skewered until they burst with the spears in their hands.

The Snake-People Tribe? Xiao Ce did not act rashly, analyzing inwardly, A dozen or so Snake-People with Da Dou Shi cultivation, three Dou Ling, and one Dou Wang. That Dou Wang is most likely a commander of the Snake-People Tribe.

That means the Snake-People Tribe isn't searching anymore. They're guarding a Snake-Person of higher standing.

Someone who could have even a Snake-People commander serve as a guard could only be Queen Medusa, right?

Xiao Ce had not expected such a coincidence, actually running straight into Queen Medusa.

He placed his hand on the Ninth Grade Golden Pill at his chest, hesitated, and ultimately refrained from having it steamroll this place.

Just as he himself had thought, if he kept relying on the Ninth Grade Golden Pill and the mysterious yellow flame to act, he would never grow. No matter how many resources he obtained, he would still be a useless dependent being provided for.

With this thought, Xiao Ce had the Ninth Grade Golden Pill withdraw the Dou Qi barrier and used the Breath-Concealing Technique to hide his presence and cultivation completely.

He bent low and slowly approached the cave entrance under cover of the desert night.

To catch the bandits, first capture their king. The strongest Snake-Person guarding the entrance was the one with Dou Wang cultivation. With Xiao Ce's physique rivaling a Sixth Rank magical beast's, as long as he could take her out first, none of the other guards would be his match.

Beside the cave entrance, Yue Mei surveyed her surroundings, her senses fully extended, letting no magical beast escape her notice. Even if one was merely passing by, she would not let it go!

At one moment, without any sign, without any warning, without any alert.

Yue Mei suddenly felt an irresistible force strike her lower back. The force was tremendous, as though a Sixth Rank magical beast had smashed into her there head-on with all its strength.

Yue Mei instantly lost all ability to resist, her entire body turning into a cannonball that slammed heavily into a distant sand dune as she spat out a mouthful of blood.

The supremacy of the Breath-Concealing Technique revealed itself here.

At the same time, only after Yue Mei was struck did the other Snake-People guards belatedly discover that a figure had actually slipped unnoticed to the edge of the cave entrance and sent Commander Yue Mei flying!

"Attack together!" a Snake-People guard with Dou Ling cultivation commanded.

Xiao Ce clenched his fists and smiled. "Your strength is just right for letting me see how my Dou Technique training has gone."

"Come and fight!" With a low shout, he met the Snake-People guards head-on.

Beneath the pit, within the Magma World.

Queen Medusa abruptly raised her head, her gaze icy. "Someone's here!"