In the grass nearby, birds and beasts scurried away, and one even darted directly onto Jiang Lai’s face.
Seeing this, Er Shixiong reached out to help her catch it. Upon closer inspection, it was a multicolored long-tailed magical parrot. With some training, it could be a decent amusing companion. Just as Jiang Lai was about to speak, Er Shixiong tossed it away without hesitation.
"Why throw it away? Did you know it can be exchanged for Spirit Stones?"
"Just a few Spirit Stones, it’s cumbersome to carry."
It’s surprising that someone in the Tiangang Sect regards money as dirt. Jiang Lai looked at him again, growing more curious about what kind of person this guy really was.
But there wasn’t much time to think about it now; the ground beneath began to crack. The two had to run back several hundred meters just to barely avoid the danger. Looking back, they saw numerous bottomless holes arranged densely within the cracks, looking like a termite nest, making one’s scalp tingle.
The pudding in Jiang Lai’s arms was almost going mad, whining to be let out. Without much thought, Jiang Lai released it, and before she could see which hole it entered, the pudding had already disappeared.
Without waiting to think further, Jiang Lai was already at the mouth of one of the holes. She looked back and said, "I’ll go down to take a look," and then jumped down.
Standing on the ground above, Er Shixiong hesitated for a moment before deciding to follow her down.
The entrance was narrower than expected, and the clothes on their shoulders were soon frayed from the scraping. After counting a dozen seconds, they finally landed. Looking around, it was dark and empty, with only a faint glimpse of sunlight overhead.
A hand suddenly rested on his shoulder, and Wu Lie reached to counter-attack, but the next second, he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Er Shixiong."
He quickly retracted his hand, turning to see Jiang Lai before him. She was still smiling, entirely unaware of the danger that had nearly occurred.
"Next time, don’t stand behind me and touch me."
"Got it. Come over here, look at that."
Wu Lie lifted his gaze to see a dozen openings before him, sprawling and complex.
Jiang Lai pulled him toward the rightmost opening, reminding him as they walked.
"Stay close to me, don’t get lost."
Wu Lie lowered his gaze, looking at the sleeve Jiang Lai held, and then at her shoulder.
So slender, no wonder she had no damage when she jumped down. Looking at his own shoulder, a whole piece of fabric was torn.
The cave was just as winding and complicated as those seen above, but Jiang Lai pressed on without pause.
"Where are we heading?"
"To find something good for you."
"How do you know there’s something good here?"
Jiang Lai glanced back at him, her eyes full of confidence.
"Why else? The Eight Desolates Sect wouldn’t have blasted so many holes out of boredom, right?"
Er Shixiong pressed his lips, saying nothing.
The little master’s mind is indeed sharp; that was evident when they crossed the river earlier.
She had a valid point, the Eight Desolates Sect surely had a reason for such a grand setup.
So Wu Lie said nothing more, silently following behind. After walking tirelessly for nearly half an hour, only three caves remained, noticeably spacious, each emitting distinct glows.
A faint blue glow, a scorching red glow, and a chilling green glow.
Without hesitation, Jiang Lai entered the cave emanating red light.
A rush of scorching air greeted them, the sudden brightness making both squint their eyes. Flames blazed, and a pool of lava rested tens of meters below, illuminating the entire cave.
Looking up, there lay a sleeping giant dragon in the midst of the lava, its whiskers floating in the air, its ferocious and fierce head facing both, the glistening scales on its body distinctly visible at such a close range.
Jiang Lai nudged Wu Lie’s arm.
"Do you see what’s under that dragon’s belly?"
At the center of the dragon’s coils was a massive red Spirit Stone, even at this distance she could feel the powerful Spiritual Power emanating from it.
Such a large high-level Spirit Stone, much larger than the one Jiang Lai stealthily obtained from Spirit Testing Cliff that night.
No wonder the people from Eight Desolates Sect went through so much trouble.
With the treasure right before them, Jiang Lai glanced at Er Shixiong silently.
"That dragon, can you handle it?"
Er Shixiong pondered for a moment.
"Worth a try."
Jiang Lai nodded.
No wonder she chose this person to venture with; that remark, "Worth a try," was incredibly reassuring.
Pudding had been waiting in this spot for a long time. As soon as Jiang Lai approached, it eagerly jumped onto her shoulder.
Jiang Lai stroked its head.
"Good job; you’ll get jerky when we get back."
Pudding wagged its tail happily, burrowing into Jiang Lai’s sleeve.
At this moment, Er Shixiong glanced back at Jiang Lai, leaving behind a remark.
"Find a place to hide."
"Oh, and take this with you."
Er Shixiong lowered his head, looking at the red pearl Jiang Lai handed over.
"Fireproof Pearl."
"Yes, hold onto it."
No matter how skilled, he is still flesh and blood; touching lava would surely hurt.
Er Shixiong accepted the pearl, gripping it in his palm. Turning back to see Jiang Lai hidden, he stepped forward lightly and leapt upon the dragon’s head.
The sleeping dragon sensed an alien presence, slowly opening its eyes, yet Wu Lie afforded it no time to react. He clutched an empty hand, summoning a longsword, which he fiercely stabbed into the dragon’s inverse scale.
"Roar—!!"
The Golden Dragon roared, leaping up with all four claws, seeing the feeble human before it, becoming more enraged and furious.
With Jiang Lai’s current capability, she could only watch the battle from the side. This Golden Dragon was at least at the Seven Elements level, equivalent to a Tenth Rank human cultivation.
Across the Three Sects and Six Gates, apart from the protagonist Ye Yunzhou, there was no second Tenth Rank powerhouse under twenty.
But in front of her, Wu Lie, with just a single move, pierced through the Golden Dragon’s scales, indicating his cultivation level far exceeded Tenth Rank, already beyond.
The dragon was colossal; even the previously tall Er Shixiong appeared like an ant before it.
With the dragon’s fury, the entire lava churned, splattering everywhere with the dragon’s tail swing, melting all in its path, excessively terrifying in power.
Jiang Lai had changed her hiding spot twice; her previous shelter had melted from the lava, now the rock ahead was nearly half melted.
Observing the battle above, Jiang Lai decided to act now.
Otherwise, if the enraged dragon pushed the Spirit Stone into the lava, her trip here would be wasted.