When Bu Xu entered the Xutian Hall and saw so many Yuan-Stage elders arriving in succession, he felt a sudden shock. Yuan-Stage cultivators came here primarily to seek the treasures in the inner hall—the Xutian Cauldron, naturally, being the most prized. In the past, although the Xutian Hall had occasionally hosted a few Yuan-Stage cultivators, usually only three or four at a time. But this time, eight Yuan-Stage cultivators had gathered all at once—an event that left him feeling his hopes increasingly dim. Nevertheless, since he had already arrived, he was unwilling to return empty-handed. With a lingering hope, he successfully passed through the ghost mist and entered the molten rock path. To be honest, while he did feel some apprehension about the ghost mist and the subsequent "Ji Miao Illusory Realm," he had no doubts whatsoever about passing the Ice-Fire Path. After all, the cultivation technique he had been practicing—the Taiyang Ju—was a well-known, top-tier method among the Luoxing Sea's fire-based techniques, consistently ranked among the top ten. With the True Yang Fire from this technique, he had不知 transformed countless enemies into ashes, sending them into the endless depths. Thus, regarding the art of withstanding fire, he was confident—considering it a mere breeze. Of course, over the course of many years of cultivation, he hadn't expected to face this molten path without any preparation, so he had brought along two fire-resistant artifacts. It wasn't that he didn't wish to carry more; rather, the cost of purchasing the fire dragon insect had nearly depleted his entire household wealth. As a practitioner of the "Taiyang Decision," he believed that with these two artifacts, traversing this molten path should be entirely manageable. Yet now, Bu Xu found himself deeply regretful, to the point of nearly breaking his resolve. For shortly after entering this realm, he realized that while the Taiyang Decision indeed proved remarkably effective in withstanding fire, he could not remain unscorched by the surrounding intense heat without constantly maintaining it in full operation. It was very different from his initial expectation—that a mere slight expenditure of spiritual energy would allow him to ignore adverse environmental conditions. Outside, merely activating one-tenth of the Taiyang Decision Technique enabled him to completely avoid ordinary flames. Clearly, the intense heat radiating from the lava path was quite distinct from that of ordinary fires encountered outside. There must be some restriction within the incantation itself, particularly affecting techniques based on fire energy. His two fire-deflecting spiritual artifacts, however, proved to be of limited effectiveness in this unusual setting. As a result, Bu Xu grew increasingly anxious and restless after walking for several hours. Based on the rate of spiritual energy consumption, although he constantly held onto blocks of spiritual stones to replenish his energy, he could only maintain this pace for about a day and a half before his energy would deplete completely, leaving him reduced to ashes. Naturally, Bu Xu did not wish to perish in this manner. He hurried forward with growing agitation, constantly glancing around. Yet the surroundings remained utterly still—no figure in sight. This made him abandon his intention to defeat other cultivators and seize the Fire-Opening treasures. The more he pressed forward, the stronger his sense of despair grew. After galloping continuously for a full hour, Bu Xu finally came to a stop, his eyes filled with anxiety. Though supported by light and agile spells, his pace was simply too slow to reach the far end of the gully. Moreover, if he continued running, his inner energy would soon become critically depleted. Should he encounter other cultivators, he would not only be unable to fight them off, but they might even choose to attack him out of concern for his weakened state. Bu Xu paced back and forth like an ant on a hot plate, his mind racing with various thoughts and attempts to find a way out. Suddenly, he raised his head and gazed at the deep crimson sky, his expression shifting between gloom and uncertainty. A determined expression flashed across his face, then a yellow glow surged from his body, and his form slowly floated upward. Throughout this process, his eyes remained fixed, showing constant caution. When he reached a height of several feet above the ground, nothing untoward occurred, which filled him with exhilaration. At this height, he could fully cast his spell to fly—merely by employing the Flying Technique, he could reach the end of the valley in mere moments. Suppressing the overwhelming joy of being saved from imminent peril, Bu Xu pressed his palm to his chest, recited a series of gestures, and then vanished into a swirling yellow light, as if dissolving from his original spot. A tremendous roar echoed. Just a dozen paces beyond the ground, Bu Xu was suddenly struck directly by a silver lightning bolt descending from the deep crimson sky, crying out in pain as his body instantly turned to ash and disappeared completely. Two objects fell from the sky, landing silently among the grass beside him. ...At some point along the lava stream, a young woman in her thirties, draped in a luminous blue sheer gown, stood hesitating before the river of molten rock. Stretching nearly forty paces wide, a broad crimson channel of lava blocked her path, save for a single square stone pillar several feet wide. Gazing into the searing, boiling flow of lava within the channel, the woman furrowed her brows. After a moment of hesitation, she carefully stepped onto the warm stone pillar. As her delicate feet touched the pillar, her face immediately clouded with discomfort—clearly, the pillar was unusually hot, and even with the protective gown, the heat took its toll. Yet, the woman clearly possessed firm resolve. Clenching her teeth, she advanced slowly and steadily along the pillar, maintaining a cautious demeanor. The journey began smoothly, and she moved without incident through the first half of the span. But as she approached the center of the pillar, a deep, resonant rumbling sound suddenly rose from the distance. The beautiful woman stared, lifting her head toward the upper reaches of the river. Her face turned pale as a sheet, and she suddenly grew alarmed! A powerful gale surged down the river, transforming into a massive, gray-draped dragon, its jaws agape and limbs outstretched, and in a moment's time reached the stone pillar, engulfing the female cultivator who had just taken flight. A piercing cry of despair echoed—then the figure vanished entirely. A moment later, on the molten rock beneath the pillar, something flashed with a blue light before sinking to the bottom. His body shimmered with black light, radiating no chill at all. Occasionally, translucent creatures emerged from beneath the ice, attempting to ambush Jiyin. Each time, he effortlessly sent a flash of black light that sliced them cleanly in two. Then, he continued on his way as if nothing had happened. Had it not been for that, he would have cast the icy spheres from the bearded man earlier. As soon as he plunged into the pit, he immediately used the spheres to shield his entire body, ensuring he remained unharmed. Otherwise, even if he survived, he would have surely been scorched to the point of skin splitting and flesh tearing. When later, while passing through a strange grove of trees, he was spotted by two or three fiery spirit beasts, he too had to expend considerable effort to safely navigate through. Yet none of these scenes compared to what now confronted him—what left Han Li utterly stunned. Before him stretched an endless expanse of black desert. Indeed, the sand grains were black, and the dunes too were black. This strange sight naturally caused Han Li some unease, making him hesitant to venture forward. He could not simply detour either. The black desert was simply too vast; detouring would inevitably add at least two more days to their journey. According to the experience of previous cultivators who had passed through this stage, they had to complete the journey within five days. Otherwise, the teleportation array would completely shut down, leaving those trapped inside with no chance of survival. And Han Li estimated that he had only reached the midsection of the gully. If the journey were to be delayed by another two days, the timeline might truly become insufficient—something he didn’t wish to risk. After all, who knew what kind of mysterious forces might await beyond the Black Desert, potentially prolonging their delay even further? Han Li frowned, gazing at the scene before him, pondering what hidden, strange dangers might be concealed here. Yet at that very moment, Han Li’s expression shifted, and with a subtle movement, he vanished from his spot without turning around. Then, faint sounds began to emerge from behind.