Chapter 23: Another Passage

At first, Mo Xuan did not understand the scene unfolding before him. It was only when Meng Yao extracted her inner core and infused it into his body that he began to comprehend the situation.

Though as a human he possessed no inner core, his background as a pharmacist made him acutely aware of its significance. He had intended to stop her, but a sudden jolt in his mind brought forth a familiar vision—a scene strikingly similar to the one occurring now.

In this moment, not only did Mo Xuan feel it, but Meng Yao also harbored a vague sense of familiarity toward him. Yet, both were devoid of memories from their past lives.

Although the Time Clock had not been fully repaired, what had been restored was sufficient. Mo Xuan slowly awakened. As he regained consciousness, Meng Yao, overwhelmed with emotion, threw her arms around him, forgetting her station and even her own composure.

"Ahem, this..." Mo Xuan’s cough brought Meng Yao back to her senses.

"Cough, cough."

Meng Yao quickly pushed him away, turning her head aside. A faint, unnatural blush crept across her cheeks as she whispered, "You're awake!"

Mo Xuan had not wanted to accept such a sacrifice, but it was too late; the essence had already fused with his flesh and blood. He could only say softly, "I will repay you for this."

"Who asked you to repay me? Honestly... you forget, I am a demon. I am the Young Spirit Master of the Fire-Heart Spirit Fox clan. My primordial spirit is powerful; it won't take long for me to condense another."

Meng Yao spoke nonchalantly, waving her hand repeatedly. She was unsure why she had blurted out her identity, but she seemed desperate to convey that the loss of her core was of no great consequence to her.

Mo Xuan, unaware of the truth, believed her, though he asked uncertainly, "Is that really true?"

"Of course!" Meng Yao replied with an air of haughty confidence.

The passage was somewhat narrow, so the two rested for a while before continuing along the tunnel, hoping to find a way out. Unlike other areas, this passage was not lined with fire crystal ore but was carved from solid rock, yet it remained dimly lit.

"I’ll go scout the path ahead!" After resting for a moment, Mo Xuan rose and headed deeper into the tunnel.

"Wait, I’m coming with you!" Meng Yao had intended to follow, but her exertion had been too great; her legs turned to jelly the moment she stood, and she collapsed back to the ground.

"You should stay here and rest," Mo Xuan said, not looking back as he walked away.

"Could you at least help me up? You’re so heartless."

Seeing Mo Xuan’s indifferent attitude, Meng Yao felt a flicker of annoyance, but he had already wandered far off. She had no choice but to slowly pull herself up, leaning against the wall for support.

The tunnel walls bore marks of excavation, but unlike those made by standard tools, these appeared to have been carved by the sheer force of a powerful blade wielded by a master.

"This must have been the work of a supreme sword master," Mo Xuan concluded after a brief inspection.

It was worth pondering which great expert had once visited this place. Having spent so much time in the Luochuan City region, he had never heard of any legendary figure wandering these parts.

Following the earlier disturbance caused by the magma beast, the passage was fractured in many places. The further he went, the more frequent the collapses, and the path grew increasingly narrow.

***

Mo Xuan walked for an hour, observing his surroundings as he went, until he reached a dead end. A few large rocks blocked the path ahead, and through the gaps, he could see light filtering in from the other side.

Pleased, Mo Xuan prepared to clear the obstruction, but the moment his blade struck, it was repelled by a surge of energy.

He inspected it closely and was startled to find a Level Six Spirit Array. Although it was in a state of decay, it was still beyond his ability to breach. With no other choice, he turned back to consult with Meng Yao.

He now realized that the secret of this mine was significant. If his guess was right, a master of at least the Heaven-Three Realm had spent time here. But knowing this was useless if he couldn't find a way out.

Mo Xuan shook his head. Though he possessed a strange space-time realm, it only served to protect him and could not generate the force needed to shatter such an array; his "Zero Domain" was merely an illusion and useless against such defenses.

Lost in thought as he walked, he returned to the starting point and, failing to pay attention, collided with the rock in front of him. "Oh, I'm back."

Meng Yao covered her mouth and giggled. "What are you thinking about? You can't even watch where you're going, haha."

Embarrassed, Mo Xuan hurried to find a spot to sit down.

"Hey, you were gone a long time—did you find anything?" Meng Yao had recovered enough that she no longer needed to maintain her half-demon state.

"If you follow the path, that’s the exit... but—"

Before Mo Xuan could finish, Meng Yao grew impatient. "Thank you for your hard work, let’s go! Why are you just sitting there? Let’s move."

"I haven't finished yet. The exit is sealed."

"You really are hopeless. It’s just a few rocks, why so serious? I’m going!"

"Wait..." Mo Xuan sighed. Was she really injured? She seemed as headstrong as ever. He regretted being so long-winded, wanting to explain everything in detail; before he could mention the Level Six Spirit Array, she had already vanished.

She was even more impatient than he was!

Mo Xuan was not in a hurry. He felt that with their current strength, breaking a Level Six Spirit Array was virtually impossible. It would be better to fully recover their strength and try to leave the way they came.

As expected, Meng Yao returned shortly after. She looked deeply dejected, but instead of blaming Mo Xuan, she sat down honestly. "Do you think I was too reckless? If I had waited a little longer at the start, maybe none of this would have happened."

To his surprise, the usually vibrant Meng Yao did not cast blame but sat quietly in reflection.

"You did nothing wrong. Even if I had been there, the outcome likely wouldn't have been much better. The Lava Turtle was simply too powerful; it was an unforeseen disaster."

Mo Xuan could tell that this was not really what Meng Yao was preoccupied with.

"But you saved me from it. You are a variable. I really want to—oh, never mind. It’s your business."

"Let's focus on recovering our strength and then think about how to leave. Overthinking won't help."

It was indeed useless; even if Meng Yao asked, Mo Xuan would not have told her.

"Fine, I’ll listen to you this time and stop running around." Meng Yao glanced at him briefly before quickly averting her gaze. At first, she had only thought his illusion technique was impressive, but she hadn't taken it to heart, as there were many treasures in the world that could negate illusions—she possessed some herself.

But this time, Mo Xuan had truly stunned her. Coming from a background with vast resources, she knew that she had access to the best training and artifacts. If not for her playful nature, her cultivation would be far higher than it was now.

But the fact that Mo Xuan had saved her from the Lava Turtle, which she could not handle, was enough to earn her respect. Her haughty heart was forced to acknowledge his strength. Furthermore, breaking through this passage might mean facing the Lava Turtle again, and the outcome of that would likely be a one-sided hunt where they would only be able to flee.

Meng Yao stopped hiding her purpose and told Mo Xuan what she was after: in the depths of the mine, where the Lava Turtle lived, there was a Fire Source Crystal. As a Fire-Heart Spirit Fox, she was perfectly suited for it, which was why she had entered the mine. She just hadn't expected the crystal to be inside the turtle itself.

"Why didn't you leave immediately? I thought you wouldn't do something so foolish!" Mo Xuan asked out of genuine curiosity.

"Who are you calling foolish? I’m not that stupid! But the beast’s back looked like a small mountain of fire crystals—who knew it was its shell?"

As she spoke, Meng Yao grew embarrassed, her voice trailing off, her tone becoming stuttering and delicate.

Mo Xuan now understood. Meng Yao had made such a mistake because she hadn't detected the turtle's presence. The gap in power was so vast that even if she had other methods, she couldn't use them, leading to her being captured and nearly devoured.

"My apologies," Mo Xuan said, his response slightly disconnected, though he didn't dwell on it.

"It’s fine, fine, shush!"

Afterward, Meng Yao muttered to herself, "You are so cold... a big block of ice. How utterly boring."

Mo Xuan did not hear this. When they were sufficiently recovered, he drew his two short blades and began to clear the blocked path. Seeing this, Meng Yao came over to help. Soon, the rubble was cleared. After the magma had sprayed out, the passage turned pitch black; the fire crystals that had lined the walls were mostly melted, leaving only faint red traces behind.

A strange phenomenon was that the tunnel had become much larger—large enough for the Lava Turtle to pass through.

"That thing didn't stay, did it?" Meng Yao felt a lingering sense of dread, sticking close to Mo Xuan’s back, clearly terrified.

"It is possible."

Mo Xuan’s words only made her more anxious. She kept whispering to herself, "Sister Xue, why haven't you arrived yet?"

The "Sister Xue" she referred to was the white-haired woman who accompanied her. As she spoke, her hand moved reflexively, gripping Mo Xuan’s clothing.

"Since when are you so timid?" Mo Xuan stopped abruptly, and Meng Yao, not paying attention, bumped into his back.

"Hey, why did you stop?" Meng Yao was already afraid, and the sudden stop made her heart race. The surroundings were dark, like a desolate mountain wilderness, and the sudden silence after sensing movement made her skin crawl. She had wanted to leave quickly, but now that they had stopped and she looked into the gloom, her fear became overwhelming.

Her jittery behavior made Mo Xuan wonder if this was really the same young lady he had met before. "There's movement!"

"Ah..." As soon as Mo Xuan spoke, Meng Yao let out a scream. Fortunately, Mo Xuan quickly covered her mouth and pulled her into a corner of a more spacious area ahead to hide.