"The temperature of this magma is extremely high, but with your defenses, as long as you activate Fireshift, you can fully withstand it. Plus, you have Jade Chu and Tom Chu with you—if anything goes wrong, they'll protect you." said the Sword Spirit.
"Alright, I'll give it a try. I can't even imagine what it's like to jump into magma for the first time—back in the day, I'd never have dared." Evan Chu gave a bitter smile. For anyone else, this would be pure suicide.
Taking a deep breath, Evan Chu steeled himself and leapt straight into the blazing magma, unleashing Fireshift to merge his body into the molten flow. Even so, he felt a kind of unprecedented heat torturing him, far more intense than when he first dove down.
Evan Chu glanced around the magma and saw countless glowing red particles scattered inside. Even with Lord Frostbane's memories restored, he couldn't identify them, so he couldn't help asking the Sword Spirit: "Big Sis Luna, what are these glowing things? They feel pretty powerful."
"Those are Flameheart Crystals—one grade higher than the Fire Crystals you got before. But they aren't much use to you right now. Just keep diving deeper and see if you can find any Glassfire Crystals in the earth-fire below." Luna replied.
At this moment, Evan Chu felt as if he were made of fire. If he appeared on the surface, the surrounding temperature would skyrocket. Enduring the agony wracking his body, he kept sinking downward, only stopping after about half an hour.
By now, there was barely any magma left—just endless, boundless flame. He didn't dare to use his spiritual sense for fear of it being damaged by the earth-fire. This was already Evan Chu's absolute limit; if he went any deeper, he'd be burned to ashes.
But to find Glassfire Crystals, he had to use spiritual sense to search. For a moment, Evan Chu was stuck. "Jade, can you use your spiritual sense to check the earth-fire and see if there are any Glassfire Crystals inside?" he asked.
"Big Brother, what is this place? The temperature is insane—even I don't dare use my spiritual sense here. Try to think of another way!" Jade Chu communicated with Evan Chu in his mind.
"If even you can't do it, then maybe there's really no way. Am I supposed to just walk into the earth-fire and search bit by bit? That's way too much trouble—and with my current defenses, there's no way I could even get inside," Evan Chu said helplessly.
"Big Brother, the temperature of this earth-fire really is insane. Ordinary people couldn't even get close. The fact that you made it here is already incredible. But Tom Chu and I can ease your pain and let you walk inside the earth-fire for about an hour. Use that time to search. Good thing it's earth-fire—if it were Heavenfire, we'd be helpless." Jade Chu said.
"Alright, looks like that's our only option. If you can't hold out any longer, just let me know so I can get out of the earth-fire." Evan Chu replied.
Immediately, two light barriers appeared around Evan Chu—one cyan, one yellow—and the pain in his body eased up a lot. After glancing at the earth-fire ahead, Evan dove straight in.
The barriers crackled and hissed, but inside, Evan Chu barely felt a thing. The heat was still intense, but it was bearable. Jade Chu and Tom Chu's defenses really were heaven-defying—and this was just their starting stage. If they ever fully matured, they'd be terrifying.
Evan Chu glanced at the flames around him, feeling a bit frustrated. Without being able to use spiritual sense, finding a Glassfire Crystal here was basically like looking for a needle in a haystack. And who knew if there were any Glassfire Crystals at all—he might be wasting his time.
Evan searched for ages, but all he found was more flame—nothing else. He couldn't move very fast, and anxiety gnawed at him. Jade Chu and Tom Chu could only hold out for an hour, so he had to find something before time ran out.
Just as Evan Chu was starting to feel discouraged, the flames ahead suddenly shook violently. He sensed something strange, and before he could react, the Sword Spirit's voice rang out: "Careful, Linfeng!"
The Sword Spirit's warning startled Evan Chu. Was there actually a monster lurking in the earth-fire? If so, it had to be ferocious—and absurdly strong.
Evan Chu tried to retreat, but he was too slow. Suddenly, a force with the weight of ten thousand tons slammed into his barriers, launching him straight back into the magma layer.
"Ouch!" Jade Chu and Tom Chu cried out in unison. The barriers around Evan Chu vanished instantly, and the burning heat flooded his body again.
Evan Chu was instantly alarmed and asked, "Jade, Tom, are you guys alright?"
"Big Brother, we're fine, don't worry. But this place is super dangerous. I think you should get out, because even with Tom Chu and me, we can't protect you here." Jade Chu said.
Evan Chu was left speechless. If even Jade Chu said she couldn't protect him, what kind of monster was this? It had to be at least Ninth-Layer Venerable Martial Realm, or maybe even stronger.
Just as Evan Chu was about to flee upward, a gigantic humanoid figure made entirely of flame suddenly appeared in the earth-fire. It was massive—its mouth alone was bigger than Evan Chu himself, and the flames crackled and roared, making it look absolutely terrifying.
For the first time, Evan Chu truly felt danger—real, bone-deep danger. The aura of this flame monster reminded him of a Saint Martial facing a Venerable: a deadly, insurmountable threat.
Evan Chu wasn't stupid. Seeing things go south, he tried to escape upward immediately—but a powerful suction locked onto him, dragging his body backward against his will.
Panic shot through Evan Chu. If he got pulled back into the earth-fire, he was doomed for sure. He really shouldn't have listened to the Sword Spirit about coming in here—now he was in way over his head, and his life was on the line.
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"Don't panic, Linfeng! That's an Earthfire Wraith—an ancient being, but it's not very smart. You can't fight it head-on; you have to outwit it. Calm it down, gain its trust, and then you might escape—or even get a Glassfire Crystal out of it.
Wherever you find an Earthfire Wraith, there are definitely Glassfire Crystals. I never expected to run into one here. Earthfire Wraiths actually feed on Glassfire Crystals." the Sword Spirit explained.
Evan Chu was so frustrated he could cough up blood. Of all times, the Sword Spirit just had to joke around—he was about to be dragged into the earth-fire, and this monster was so huge it could probably swallow him whole. Who had time to chat and build trust right now?
Evan Chu felt the heat on his body rising even higher—he knew it was because he was getting closer to the earth-fire. After the Earthfire Wraith appeared, all the surrounding flames turned pitch black, way more intense than before. It felt like his muscles were about to ignite.
Just when Evan Chu was feeling totally helpless, the Sword Spirit suddenly said, "Linfeng, I read in the Imperial Palace's ancient records that Heavenfire Wraiths are really into glowing objects. Maybe you can use that—try your Phantasite or Starstone, and if that doesn't work, use the Sunflare Stone. Just give it a shot."
"Big Sis, you're talking about Heavenfire Wraiths, but this is an Earthfire Wraith! That's not the same thing. Looks like we're doomed to die together—if there's a next life, I'll marry you for sure." Evan Chu joked.
"Don't jinx it! How do you know it won't work if you don't try? We're running out of time, you idiot!" the Sword Spirit snapped. If she weren't a soul body, she'd have come out and wiped the floor with him herself. This Earthfire Wraith was probably Ninth-Layer Venerable—about as strong as a regular immortal. Back in the day, she could've wiped it out in one move.
Evan Chu had no other choice. He instantly pulled out his biggest piece of Phantasite from his storage ring—smaller ones wouldn't do a thing now.
The Phantasite's yellow glow shone in the earth-fire layer. It wasn't super bright, but with all the flames turned black, it stood out. Right then, Evan Chu felt the suction gripping his body suddenly disappear. He was overjoyed at the discovery.
"It worked!" was all Evan Chu could think. So the Earthfire Wraith really was interested in glowing things. Evan glanced at the Earthfire Wraith in the earth-fire—its eyes were several times bigger than lanterns, staring straight at the Phantasite in his hand, clearly fascinated.
Evan Chu called out to the Earthfire Wraith, "Hey, don't be so fierce! I'm actually here to make friends. I heard you like radiant treasures, so I came to see you on purpose!"
Evan Chu thought the Earthfire Wraith would speak, but it didn't open its mouth for ages. He couldn't help feeling weird—was this thing mute? Born unable to talk?
"Why are you here? Leave the treasure and I'll spare your life. Otherwise, I'll swallow you whole." Suddenly, a middle-aged man's voice echoed in Evan Chu's mind.
Evan Chu was stunned—the Earthfire Wraith could communicate directly via spiritual sense! Not simple at all. He quickly replied, "Honestly, I just wanted to see you. Ages ago, I heard there was a super-strong Earthfire Wraith in these flames, and since I've always loved fire, I wanted to meet my idol in person.
Who knew you'd show up and nearly kill me right off the bat, and now you want to eat me too? That's just not cool. I know you like glowing things, so I went to a ton of trouble to get this as a meeting gift just for you."
"Kid, you think I'm that easy to fool? Want me to swallow you right now?" the Earthfire Wraith snapped angrily...