Chapter 86

Luofeng then led the two of them deeper, into what felt like the core of the earth. Before them lay a scene reminiscent of a massive furnace; flames swept across the landscape, and the abyss was filled with flowing magma, as if a fire dragon lay dormant within, slumbering. In the center stood rows of black pillars, each nearly a hundred meters tall and a meter thick, driven deep into the endless magma. As far as the eye could see, flames soared toward the heavens, tongues of fire entwining and dancing violently as ashes drifted in the air. Lin Fan and Meng Wan stood on the periphery. The heat was rolling in waves, the thick smoke obscured the sun, and the sky was stained a fiery red, making it difficult to breathe. High above, one could faintly discern cultivators sitting in meditation; as the flames licked upward, sweat beaded on their skin, as if they were about to be roasted alive. This harsh and terrifying cultivation environment was an eye-opener, leaving both of them trembling in body and spirit. Looking down into the magma, they saw a hunchbacked, red-haired elder using the roiling heat to forge strange stones; he was evidently refining tools.