Chapter 50: The Myriad Fire Zone’s Welcome

“It’s so hot!”

The moment Wang Yu stepped into the Myriad Fire Zone, a scorching wave of heat assaulted them. It felt akin to standing on an exposed sports field on the hottest day of summer.

This was even with the protection of the jade token’s barrier; otherwise, the sheer temperature alone would be enough to scald a person to death.

Even with internal energy released to protect oneself, it wouldn’t last long. Relying solely on physical endurance was futile; even a body tempered like refined steel at the Innate Realm would be melted away.

“My bear fur is practically catching fire! I need ice cubes,” A-Bao wailed, full of complaints.

Yue Feng and Situ Yan exchanged a knowing smile, observing the dispirited duo of person and bear. They had mentally prepared themselves for this environment and quickly adapted.

“Let’s go,” Situ Yan declared. “I’ve already had people scout this path. I’ll lead the way.”

With that, Situ Yan began to move forward, guided by his memory.

The Myriad Fire Zone was a desolate expanse of volcanic rock and molten magma, saturated with endless, searing heat. Yet, even in such an extreme environment, creatures thrived. Born from the very lava, these beings possessed formidable offensive power from birth.

Some were exceptionally skilled in solo combat, while others excelled in group warfare.

Take the Volcano Crabs now before Yue Feng, for instance.

They lay densely packed, a sight that would drive anyone with trypophobia mad. Crucially, each one possessed the strength of the Cloud Soaring Realm, and their attacks could stack, turning even a master of that realm into ash almost instantly.

An expert of the Sky Soaring Realm might endure a few hits before meeting the same fate. Even a Royal Extreme Realm practitioner, if they managed to deal with them, would be left half-dead with exhaustion.

Thus, despite the pure fire crystals contained within the Volcano Crabs, no one dared to hunt them. Offending one was tantamount to offending an entire legion.

“Uh, Brother Situ, aren’t you going to explain?” Yue Feng asked, his eyelids twitching as he gazed at the swarming Volcano Crabs blocking their path. “Why are there so many Volcano Crabs on our mandatory route?”

Situ Yan gave an awkward laugh. “Brother Yue, haven’t you noticed? Our journey thus far has been unusually peaceful, which is impossible in this perilous Myriad Fire Zone. Unless…”

“Unless this is a Volcano Crab colony, and no other short-sighted volcanic creature dares to trespass, because any that did were blasted to smithereens, right?” Yue Feng finished, his expression blank.

“Exactly,” Situ Yan replied readily. “Otherwise, there’s no way we could have reached this point safely.”

Wang Yu swallowed hard, looking at the countless glowing red eyes before them. “So, how do we deal with them? They don’t seem very friendly.”

Situ Yan brandished the map in his hand, a triumphant smirk on his face. “With this.”

Yue Feng mused, “The Yama Demon’s map?”

“Precisely. The Yama Demon is the king here, and his map carries his aura. The Volcano Crabs will yield to it to a certain extent. As long as we don’t provoke them, they will not attack us.”

Wang Yu asked curiously, “If he’s the king here, why don’t we just use the map to enter from another direction? Wouldn’t other volcanic creatures also obey?”

Situ Yan sighed helplessly.

“If it were the Yama Demon himself, there would be no problem. But we are only holding a map imbued with his aura. Some volcanic creatures have low intelligence and no sense of hierarchy. For them, it’s basically a fight to the death if they don’t submit.”

‘???’ Wang Yu’s eyes widened. ‘A Honey Badger from another world!’

“Volcano Crabs are different. As communal animals, their sense of hierarchy is strong,” Situ Yan explained.

“Moreover, other volcanic creatures are not permitted to enter a Volcano Crab colony. Everyone, follow closely behind me. Be careful not to step on them, or they will directly attack the nearest creature.”

Yue Feng and Wang Yu nodded vigorously. No one wanted to become roasted suckling pig.

“A-Bao,” Wang Yu turned to the bear. “You heard everything, right? If you mess up this time, you’ll become barbecue.”

A-Bao nodded frantically, his four bear paws trembling. “I know, I know. Don’t worry, don’t worry.”

To be honest, Situ Yan had long wondered about this bear — black and white, yet capable of understanding human speech. However, this was not the time for such questions.

The group followed Situ Yan closely. Wang Yu felt as if they were playing a game of ‘eagle catches chicken,’ only the eagle was a swarm of crabs.

A-Bao even tiptoed. Don’t ask how a bear could tiptoe; A-Bao simply managed it.

The Volcano Crabs were awed by the Yama Demon’s aura emanating from them. Though they warily opened their eyes as the group approached, they did not attack.

Once the group passed, they closed their glowing red eyes, reverting to what appeared to be ordinary volcanic rocks. This was their camouflage, protecting them while lulling prey into a false sense of security.

Without careful perception of their aura, or the judgment of an expert, one could easily be mistaken.

They had anticipated a safe and smooth passage, yet there was always someone foolish enough to cause trouble.

“We found them!” A voice rang out. Yue Feng and the others looked to see a group of people rapidly approaching from the distance.

“Stop!” Wang Yu pulled off their black hood, revealing a face of unearthly beauty, and waved frantically at them. “Don’t come any closer.”

The group was indeed captivated by Wang Yu’s charming appearance. For a moment, they actually obeyed, halting less than ten paces from the Volcano Crabs.

“Oh,” one of the men exclaimed. Seeing such a beautiful woman, albeit a seemingly young one, their lust flared, and they forgot their original purpose, beginning to tease.

“Little sister, come over here. We’ll play a fun game with you, guaranteed to make you ecstatic. We’ll give you delicious milk every day, hahaha.”

Wang Yu’s face turned an ugly shade of green and purple. Yue Feng’s eyes, too, glinted with cold light.

“Enough. Your target is me, isn’t it?” Situ Yan interjected. “Who sent you?!”

The group finally snapped back to attention. One man, clearly the leader, stepped forward. “Hmph, dead men don’t need to know so much. Heh heh, if you hand over that little girl beside you to let our brothers have some fun, we might let you live a little longer.”

Yue Feng’s tone grew even colder. “That depends on whether you have the ability.”

“Heh heh,” the leader sneered.

“Anyone can boast. Lad, you haven’t even looked at our cultivation levels. We already know your backgrounds; none of you are in the Cloud Soaring Realm.

Our brothers, at least four or five of us, are in the Cloud Soaring Realm, and none of the others are below the Transcendent Realm. Submit obediently and perhaps lessen your suffering.”

“Fools,” Wang Yu said contemptuously.

“High cultivation doesn’t necessarily mean high intelligence. Some people, even at the Cloud Soaring Realm, have an intelligence level that, when combined with their cloud beasts, might not even reach that of the Transcendent Realm.”

The group glared coldly at Wang Yu. “Little girl, who are you talking about?”

Wang Yu declared with extreme arrogance, “I’m not targeting anyone specific. I’m saying everyone here before me is trash!”

To be insulted by a girl so much younger than them, especially when their perceived victory had already made them arrogant and disdainful, caused the group to erupt. “Good! Once we catch you, we’ll thoroughly clean that little mouth of yours.”

The group charged forward directly. With such a vast disparity in strength, they simply went all-out.

Wang Yu helplessly patted their head. “You know, it’s you extras who drag down the intelligence of all villains.”

Wang Yu snatched Xiaoke into their hand.

“Hm?” Xiaoke, groggy and just waking up, was still completely bewildered.

“Three, two, one.” Wang Yu forcefully threw Xiaoke forward. “Little thieves, taste my Xiaoke Grenade!”

The group had just entered the Volcano Crabs’ attack range. Seeing the unidentified object flying towards them, one man grabbed Xiaoke. “What is this?”

Xiaoke and the man stared at each other. Suddenly, Xiaoke’s body began to glow.

“Boom!” Xiaoke exploded directly in the man’s hand. Of course, Wang Yu hadn’t injected too much spiritual energy, and the man was also in the Cloud Soaring Realm, so he was merely disheveled.

The man casually tossed Xiaoke to the ground and sneered at Yue Feng and the others, “Is that all you’ve got?”

But then he noticed that Yue Feng and the others were all prostrate on the ground. Wang Yu mischievously called out, “Hey, brother, do you like eating crabs? Here’s enough to feast on.”

‘What the hell?’ The man was somewhat confused, but he quickly realized something was wrong. The people around him were constantly swallowing.

He, too, trembled as he looked down. Countless crimson eyes stared fixedly at them, exceptionally conspicuous even in the brightly lit Myriad Fire Zone.

The man’s pupils constricted violently. He shrieked, “Volcano Crabs!”

And such a massive group! The rest of his sentence remained unspoken.

From the eyes of the Volcano Crabs, countless scorching rays erupted, engulfing them in a sea of light.

Not a single scream was heard. Their location had been transformed into molten magma, and they had been utterly vaporized.

Wang Yu watched as the Volcano Crabs calmed down and reverted to volcanic rocks, then clapped their hands and stood up. “Ah, truly magnificent.”

Yue Feng and Situ Yan wiped sweat from their brows, stiffly echoing, “Yes, yes, quite magnificent.”

They hadn’t even fully reacted when they saw Xiaoke thrown, then A-Bao pressed them both to the ground with a paw. After that, countless fiery lights swept overhead. The feeling? Moved? No, not moved.

Situ Yan looked at the excited Wang Yu and asked, “Miss Yu knows the Volcano Crabs’ attack methods?”

“Mm, I asked Xiaoke earlier,” Wang Yu said, quite pleased with themselves.

“Xiaoke?”

Wang Yu said nonchalantly, “Yes, that’s who I just threw.”

‘Just threw?’ Then, Situ Yan looked at the expanse of magma and fell silent. ‘Brother, rest in peace.’

But soon, Situ Yan’s mouth formed an ‘O’ shape. He watched as the creature Wang Yu had thrown earlier swam up from the magma, shouting, “So hot, so hot! I’m cooked, I’m almost cooked!”

“????” Situ Yan looked utterly incredulous. ‘He was hit head-on by the Volcano Crabs, right?’

He turned to look at Yue Feng and Wang Yu, who both wore expressions of complete normalcy. He felt utterly out of sorts. ‘Never mind, never mind. Everyone has their secrets, right? Let’s just keep going, hahaha.’

However, during the rest of the journey, Situ Yan noticeably quickened his pace, as if a plague god was chasing him.