Base

"Fossil!"

Snake pits are not good terrain for fighting.

Not to mention the stench and putrid smell that far surpassed the initial experience of entering the snake pit, the sparse layer of feces nearly ten centimeters thick on the ground made it difficult to take a step.

The limited space makes it difficult to maximize the advantages of techniques such as leaping and bounding.

Zhang Xuezhou rubbed a layer of stone dust off the Qin Meng Secret Stone to temporarily seal off the Spiritual Qi leaking out of the stone, and then applied a layer of snake dung on top.

The emergency lights were turned off, and Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Yisheng both hid behind the Qin Meng Secret Stone.

The sound of footsteps, sometimes deep, sometimes shallow, approached from the snake pit.

For legless snakes to roam freely in the harsh environment of a snake pit, they must either possess exceptional agility and skill like Zhang Xuezhou and his companions. Otherwise, two-legged and four-legged creatures would be forced to tread on snake droppings within the snake pit.

Zhang Xuezhou praised Ren Yisheng's greatly improved flying skills for this reason; not every skilled flyer can adjust their flying direction and altitude as easily as walking.

Anyone whose leaping skills are inferior will inevitably stumble and bump into things in the snake pit, making walking a more stable option than flying.

A glimmer of red light caught Zhang Xuezhou's eye, and his eyelids twitched, his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, suddenly relaxed.

He watched as a naked man, holding a red ray of light, continued to move forward.

The man resembled Zhang Xuezhou in appearance, but his robust physique was clearly mismatched with Zhang Xuezhou's.

It's somewhat like a combination of Zhou Xin's body and Zhang Xuezhou's head.

Compared to a normal human body, the man's body was gray, making him look somewhat strange.

"You damned piece of trash, what use is your body to me!"

Seemingly extremely dissatisfied with his body, the man continued to curse as he approached.

Zhang Xuezhou didn't need to guess; he knew perfectly well that the other party was inextricably linked to the Void Furnace.

Compared to its previous stick-like spiritual form, the Void Furnace now possesses a physical body, making its movement much faster.

"We were always quite polite when we met before, but I never expected that you would come and dig up my grave after I've only been dead for a few decades. You forced me to hastily attempt to erode my physical body, resulting in a disastrous defeat. In the end, I could only choose a useless piece of trash to temporarily fill the gap. What am I going to do now?"

There were curses, resentment, and confusion.

Xu Lu was even panting a bit, clearly extremely unaccustomed to the harsh environment of the snake cave.

He carried the torch as he walked, getting closer and closer to the Qinmeng Secret Stone where Zhang Xuezhou and the others were located.

Just as Zhang Xuezhou was about to make a move against the Void Furnace, he saw the Void Furnace rush forward a few steps, stepping onto the Qin Meng Secret Stone, which resembled a stalactite, and then leaping upwards with the fire seed in its hand.

A crimson glow appeared, and the illusory furnace had already leaped into the air.

An extremely intense, scorching heat emanated from the snake dung, which dried visibly on the Qin Meng Secret Stone.

This intense heat wasn't just about temperature; Zhang Xuezhou could sense the comfort that lingered within it.

Like the Qin Meng Secret Stone, this aura brought comfort and repair to the body; it was a type of Spiritual Qi familiar to Zhang Xuezhou.

"It's a secret location!"

This fiery Spiritual Qi was almost identical to the secret realm of the Venerable Zhu Jiuyin; Zhang Xuezhou had never expected that such a region was hidden inside the snake cave.

Compared to a secret place brimming with Spiritual Qi, even the Qin Meng Secret Stone pales in comparison.

In the lingering glow of the red light, Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Yisheng exchanged a glance, and then leaped up together.

"You..."

In this small secret space of less than ten square meters, Xu Lu had just stomped his foot and turned around as if to close the entrance when Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Yisheng jumped in together.

Upon seeing Zhang Xuezhou's face, Xu Lu's expression changed drastically.

Xu Lu had no feelings for Ren Yisheng, but he suffered a great loss and almost perished at the hands of Zhang Xuezhou, which made him extremely fearful of Zhang Xuezhou.

"I surrender!"

Before Ren Yisheng could strike with his palm, Xu Lu, who was completely unprepared to retaliate, had already raised his hands.

"I didn't expect this place to be so nice!"

Zhang Xuezhou exclaimed in admiration and looked around.

This ten-square-meter space is limited in size, but it is almost completely filled with various sharp, red, rhomboid crystals.

It is precisely because of these red crystals that this place exudes a blazing Spiritual Qi.

Zhang Xuezhou had seen Soul Jade and Spirit Jade before, and he had also seen the Qin Meng Secret Stone weighing several tons under his feet, but he had never seen an area inlaid with this kind of special Spirit Jade.

This is almost identical to the tortoiseshell bed in the Pingyang Marquis's mansion; what is precious in the eyes of others becomes commonplace in the hands of a select few.

"You looked down on my base before, what do you mean now?"

Upon seeing that Zhang Xuezhou also recognized him with a physical body, Xu Lu replied dejectedly.

If not through violent destruction, only those carrying the flame can enter this place. The Void Furnace considered many things, but the one thing it didn't consider was being followed in.

This can only mean that Zhang Xuezhou and his group had been lying in ambush here for a long time, and they entered almost simultaneously when the place was opened.

"It's nothing, we just happened to run into each other," Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand and said.

"You two know each other?"

Ren Yisheng, whose hands were swirling with mental storms, asked in a low voice. He kept glancing at the naked man in front of him, feeling that the man was physically strong but seemed to be all show and no substance.

If they became enemies, he was certain he could slap the other person to death.

Ren Yisheng asked Zhang Xuezhou in a low voice, and only after Zhang Xuezhou nodded did Ren Yisheng's wariness lessen somewhat.

Clearly, Zhang Xuezhou experienced a great deal during the two days he was away from the port; it was far more than just finding Dingkui.

"Since you've run into us, we can divide these things into two portions, and you can keep one for me!"

Xu Lu pointed to the ground, where there were three remnants that looked like felled tree stumps, but also seemed to be burning inside, faintly emitting a red glow.

"What is this?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"This is our most precious legacy," said Xu Lu.

"Another spark?" Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously, "Do you have many sparks?"

"Only these three remain," Xu Lu said, his face ashen. "The rest can only be harvested after I am completely dead, but my embers are definitely inferior to these three!"

"Are these sparks from your ancestors?"

"Ancestors?"

Zhang Xuezhou was taken aback, and Xu Lu didn't understand for a moment either.

After both of them had processed what was happening, Zhang Xuezhou repeated his explanation, and Xu Lu finally nodded.

"The embers of our fire will not go out for hundreds of years after our deaths. They are useful whether used for cultivation or for burning, and they are often hunted by powerful individuals," Xu Lu said solemnly. "According to your titles, this is my great-grandfather, this is my grandfather, and this is my father!"

"Your life in Tianwaitian wasn't as good as I imagined," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"Only those included in the Hundred Clans are considered strong clans. Our Voidfire Clan is not included, so we haven't been doing very well," Void Furnace nodded.

Not much different from the international situation today, a few major powers hold the dominant position, while other smaller countries are merely supporting players.

The Void Furnace race is not unable to survive in the Outer Heavens world, but rather lacks a voice.

In a world where the strong prey on the weak, those who lack a voice are destined to be suppressed and can only swallow their anger. Even if they are killed in a conflict, it is difficult to retaliate. Apologizing to the powerful is already considered giving face.

After a brief explanation, Zhang Xuezhou immediately understood why Xu Lu's temperament was the way it was.

If one's strength is inferior to Xu Lu's, Xu Lu will act swiftly and decisively, while when facing a powerful enemy, the opponent will submit very quickly.

Zhang Xuezhou had just thought that Xu Lu's mentality would make it difficult to become a strong person, but he suddenly remembered that he hadn't changed much over the years, so he immediately put away his thoughts.

Ultimately, regardless of strength, survival is the primary objective; the weak have no choice.