“I will go up the mountain with my junior brothers and sisters, so you all head back to Yanhuo Town first. ” Yan Zihui said. They would revisit the core today, but without the presence of the Tianyan Sect disciples.
“The actual level of danger in the core remains unknown, and while we have some means to ensure our safety, I’m afraid we can’t guarantee yours,” Yan Zihui tactfully explained his refusal, having both emotional and logical reasons for not bringing them along. To put it bluntly, none of the Tianyan disciples had high cultivation, so they wouldn’t be of much help. Should danger come, his focus would be protecting his junior brothers and sisters, leaving little room to care for anyone else.
Moreover, being a small sect, the Tianyan Sect likely didn’t have enough life-saving items for their disciples. As Bu Yang and his junior brothers were its elite disciples, losing them would be devastating to the Tianyan Sect, and Yan Zihui couldn’t just watch it happen.
Even though Bu Yang understood that they would be nothing but a burden if they insisted on coming along, this wasn’t a situation that disciples of their level of cultivation could handle. In his opinion, they should first report to Master and elders back in the sect, and he also hoped that Senior Brother Yan would seek additional help from the Guiyuan Sect.
However, neither Yan Zihui nor his juniors were willing to easily seek help from the sect just like that. Their cultivation would never improve if they sought help whenever they encountered danger or difficulty, nor would they gain any meaningful experience. Cultivators continuously battled against heaven, earth, and themselves. As such, it was impossible for their path to be smooth with no crises or dangers; only through repeated trials, tempering both their body and mind, could they continue to progress.
Bu Yang tried to persuade, but seeing their resolve, he finally gave up, “If that’s the case, I hope you all will be cautious and put safety first.”
While Bu Yang had no choice but to relent, he made up his mind to promptly inform the Master and elders of the situation and request them to wait at the mountain base. Should Senior Brother Yan and the others encounter danger, they could be rescued in time.
“Don’t worry, we know what we’re doing,” Yan Zihui assured the Tianyan Sect disciples. After reaching a consensus, he bid them farewell and led his junior brothers and sisters toward Flame Mountain.
Bu Yang and his fellow disciples watched Yan Zihui’s group leave. Once they were just a small dot in the distance, Lin Zao asked, “Eldest Senior brother, are we really not going?”
“We would only hold them back if we went,” Bu Yang’s tone was heavy. He was highly regarded in the Tianyan Sect and was the most talented disciple of his generation. And yet, his talent and cultivation were nothing in front of the elite disciples of the Guiyuan Sect. No one wants to be a burden, and Bu Yang secretly decided that he must train even harder.
“I’ll head down the mountain now. Junior Brother Lin, you and the others stay here to continue monitoring. If anything unusual happens, provide support immediately.”
“Yes, Eldest Senior Brother,” Lin Zao and Ye Ming replied in unison.
…
Lu Yaoyao and her group navigated the mountains nimbly, their movement precise since they had memorized the shortcut from their previous climb. An hour later, they returned to the entrance of the core and stepped into the cave, guided by their memory. Wen Zixing, positioned in the middle, took a deep breath. He still felt lingering fear from yesterday’s incident but believed that his friends would protect him, so he entered the cave without hesitation.
Their goal this time was to determine whether the core had the ability to bewitch minds, making Wen Zixing, the only one who had been under the trance during their previous visit, a crucial figure. Of course, they had considered another possibility: in the case the confusing effect was random, everyone present could be at risk, so they remained watchful of each other.
They reached the crater in no time. Stopping at the place they had stood yesterday, Lu Yaoyao and Chao Muxue flanked Wen Zixing, ready to restrain him if he was bewitched again. Each one of them was highly vigilant, their eyes fixed on the bubbling magma.
Wen Zixing prepared himself, holding his breath as he stared unblinkingly at the magma pool.
The cave was very quiet, so quiet they could only hear the magma surging and lapping against the rock walls. They watched intently for a long time until a stone fell from the cave ceiling, hit a protruding rock on the wall, and bounced into the magma.
Wen Zixing shivered and came back to his senses. He blinked his eyes, which were sore from staring for too long, and asked curiously, “Why am I still alright?” He was bewitched very quickly yesterday.
Lu Yaoyao also blinked her sore eyes and pondered, “Could it be that the necessary conditions weren’t triggered?”
Chao Muxue added her conjecture, “Maybe it’s because Xingxing isn’t afraid anymore, so whatever it was failed to confuse him?”
Four pairs of eyes turned to Wen Zixing.
For a moment, Wen Zixing stared intently at the magma, “I really don’t seem to be afraid anymore,” he said as he withdrew his gaze. Unlike yesterday, he felt very calm now and even found the surging magma to have a certain beauty. “Why am I not afraid?” He wondered aloud.
“…” You’re asking us, who do we ask?
“Why aren’t you afraid?” Lu Yaoyao countered.
“I don’t know either,” Wen Zixing pondered. “Maybe it’s because you’re all here with me, so I don’t feel scared.” He looked at his left and right hands, where Lu Yaoyao and Chao Muxue were tightly holding onto him, afraid he might suddenly run into the magma again.
The group exchanged glances—should they hide and leave Xingxing here alone? However, they were reluctant to try this method. Better safe than sorry; what if Wen Zixing suddenly became bewitched again and threw himself into the magma?
Yan Zihui and Du Qianshan thoroughly searched the vicinity of the crater but found no clues. They regrouped and sat together in a circle. “Are we going to return empty-handed?” Chao Muxue said gravely.
Lu Yaoyao was unwilling to give up. This was their first real mission, since the previous ones were mere warm-ups. If they returned in defeat, it could have a negative effect on their future missions. “We must face difficulties head-on!” Lu Yaoyao encouraged, “If we give up at the first sign of trouble, how far can we go in the future?”
“Yaoyao is right.” They weren’t the type to give up halfway, and none of them wanted to leave just yet.
“It seems the only option is to go down the crater and see for ourselves.”
“We all know that, but how do we get down?” The answer to the mystery clearly lay beneath the magma, but jumping into it was an impossible feat. Even though they were cultivators, strictly speaking, they were still mortal, and the magma’s temperature was far beyond what their bodies could handle.
In addition, they lacked the necessary equipment to explore the magma, or they would have tried this method from the start.
“There must be a way.” Chao Muxue consoled.
Lu Yaoyao raised her hand, “I can do it.”
“???” The rest of the group looked at her in unison. “Didn’t Junior Brother Bu say that only the Ruyi Brocade can keep someone safe in the magma?” Lu Yaoyao tilted her head.
Yan Zihui asked tentatively, “So?”
“This is the Ruyi Brocade I’m wearing!” Lu Yaoyao proudly puffed out her chest. She had worn the Ruyi Brocade since birth, a gift from her Father!
“!!!”
Wen Zixing and Chao Muxue hurriedly took turns feeling Lu Yaoyao’s clothes. At first, the garment on Lu Yaoyao’s body appeared no different from their uniforms, and only after a lot of touching and comparison did they feel the difference in texture.
“This is the Ruyi Brocade?!” It looks so normal!
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