"As expected, this thing seems quite beneficial for those who cultivate fire-attributed spiritual energy."
Standing amidst the seething magma, Xiao Yan could feel the surge of spiritual energy within his body. With a casual flick of his fingers, he instantly killed another magma serpent from a distance, absorbing the crimson glow that emerged from its remains. He carefully observed the changes in his body and discovered that not only did his spiritual energy grow slightly, but his meridians had also become more resilient.
"These magma serpents seem to be a product of molten lava fused with pure spiritual energy. The glow inside them is likely akin to a demon crystal or something similar." Xiao Yan murmured. This situation reminded him of the fire pearls he had once obtained after slaying lava lizardmen in the magma realm beneath the Heaven Burning Qi Tower.
"Even for a Sovereign-level expert, this thing should be fairly useful. Unfortunately..." Xiao Yan sighed softly. Now that he had stepped into the Earth Sovereign level, this crimson energy was no longer of much help to him. Even if he absorbed all the energy from the serpents here, the benefits would be negligible. Otherwise, he might've truly considered staying here to cultivate for a while.
"Oh well, meat from a mosquito is still meat. Once I uncover whatever's hidden below, I'll return to harvest more of this energy." Xiao Yan shook his head, casting one last glance at the lava before diving straight into it. While this energy might not be greatly beneficial, he had always been someone who didn't let any opportunity slip away.
He had barely entered the magma when another batch of magma serpents surged toward him. However, they posed no threat at all. This may have been their territory, but Xiao Yan was a fire control master, and his strength far exceeded theirs. These were nothing more than Sovereign-level fire beasts—hardly worthy of his attention.
As Xiao Yan descended deeper, the temperature of the magma soared, and the strength of the beasts increased accordingly. Eventually, even magma dragons began to appear, mighty beasts whose bodies radiated faint traces of draconic blood. Sure enough, when Xiao Yan shattered them, he discovered a drop of unique blood within their corpses.
"This is ancient Flame Dragon essence blood. No wonder the magma dragons were so powerful—it's because of this." The spirit of the Ancestral Stone spoke with a trace of astonishment. The Flame Dragon ranked highly on the Divine Beast List, on par with the Nine Nether Sparrow, and a single drop of its blood was considered immensely valuable.
While a drop of Flame Dragon blood was no longer a rare treasure in Xiao Yan's eyes, it wouldn't appear here without reason. Thus, he concluded that something closely related to the Flame Dragon had to be buried beneath the lava. Most likely—a corpse.
With this thought in mind, Xiao Yan continued his descent, finally stopping when he had reached nearly ten thousand zhang below the surface. This was the deepest part of the volcano. The heat here was so intense that even a peak Ninth Grade Sovereign would be unable to endure for long, but Xiao Yan remained unaffected. With the Emperor Flame protecting him, the environment actually felt comforting.
Xiao Yan strolled along the magma bed, cautiously sensing the energies around him. Eventually, he halted before a large translucent layer of rock. Deep within it, he could vaguely see threads of pale golden filaments. Though he wasn't sure what they were, he could sense a mysterious aura emanating from them.
"Could this... be a spiritual vein?" The Ancestral Stone Spirit exclaimed in surprise.
"A spiritual vein?" Xiao Yan raised his eyebrows. Spiritual veins were said to be a rare physique in the Great Thousand World that could increase cultivation speed and bolster strength during training. But after a certain level, they were said to vanish. Xiao Yan had never seen one himself. And now there was one embedded in rock?
"Flame Emperor, that's not ordinary rock. If I'm not mistaken, what you're standing on is the corpse of the ancient Flame Dragon! Judging from its size, it must've reached the Heavenly Sovereign level, and those veins you see have likely evolved into divine veins." The Ancestral Stone Spirit spoke excitedly.
Xiao Yan looked down. The colossal size did indeed match that of a Heavenly Sovereign-tier divine beast's body. He didn't doubt the spirit's claim. If this was truly the Flame Dragon's corpse, then it surely still held vast amounts of essence blood, and likely of extremely high quality. If he could refine it all, his power would certainly benefit.
"Can I store this thing in the Heavenly Tomb?" Xiao Yan frowned. The Flame Dragon's size was simply immense—so large that even with his eyesight, he couldn't see its full form through the magma. It would take far too long to extract all the essence blood here. Better to store it in the Heavenly Tomb and refine it slowly at his leisure.
Moreover, Xiao Yan vaguely remembered that divine veins could be refined into one's own body. Once he reached the Heavenly Sovereign realm, strong divine veins could evolve into powerful divine vein techniques. If this Flame Dragon really possessed such a vein, its grade would definitely be impressive. He made a mental note to consider refining it in the future.
Just as Xiao Yan prepared to store the Flame Dragon's corpse into the Heavenly Tomb, he sensed a strange energy fluctuation from a distant direction. His expression changed slightly as he flew toward the source. Soon, he saw a peculiar stone platform built upon a rocky ledge. Atop it, a young girl was quietly lying down.
She looked to be around eleven or twelve years old, with long, jet-black hair and snow-white skin. Her petite body was so exquisitely formed that from afar, she resembled a living porcelain doll. However, oddly enough, she wasn't wearing a single piece of clothing. Combined with her almost otherworldly cuteness, this sight could easily overwhelm those with certain unsavory tendencies.
And it was precisely for this reason that, the moment Xiao Yan laid eyes on her, the voices of Little Yao, the Will of the Plane, and countless divine artifact spirits in his mind began to chant in unison phrases like "Lust is a blade above your head" and "Impulsiveness is a demon." The chorus of warnings left Xiao Yan utterly speechless.
He had initially wanted to retort, to claim he wasn't someone with such deviant interests. But then he thought of his many female companions and immediately lost the confidence to argue. Still, he truly didn't have any improper thoughts—he simply felt that the appearance of a young girl in this place was far too suspicious.
Just then, as if sensing his presence, the little girl slowly opened her eyes.
(End of Chapter)
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