Chapter 304

Chapter 303

The four sat on the bones outside the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, waiting for Su Xing to come out.

During the wait, Wen Qiao couldn't stay idle and took the two demon beasts into the outer area of the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land to look for Flame Bones.

They didn't venture deep into the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land; the sight of Wen Qiao's hair curling from the ground fire earlier had deeply moved the two demon beasts, who firmly refused to let their sister Wen take any more risks.

Wen Qiao was easy to persuade, so they decided not to go.

"Miss Wen, why are you looking for Flame Bones?" Su Molan asked curiously.

"For travel expenses," Wen Qiao answered matter-of-factly. "As you've seen, bones are the common currency in the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones. If we come back here again, we won't have to search for bones everywhere. I'm sure the skeletons will love the quality of Flame Bones."

That made sense, but...

"You plan to come back here?" Su Molan looked at her in surprise.

"Why not? This place is so interesting."

Su Molan: "..."

Su Molan really couldn't see what was interesting about the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones. The place was full of skeletons, with an incomprehensible language, and one wrong move could lead to being chased by skeletons. Moreover, the gateway to the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones was Bone Town, which was eerie enough to make anyone want to leave quickly.

If it weren't for Su Xing, Su Molan wouldn't have come to such a place at all.

This trip might seem easy, but that was because the four were together, each relying on their strengths. If it were someone else, they wouldn't be so lucky.

However, thinking of the fallen immortal's bones in Corpse Lake, they would definitely come back again.

So, Su Molan joined them in searching for Flame Bones.

The two humans and two beasts searched for Flame Bones in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, while Ning Yuzhou and Pei Qiyu stayed at the edge, standing on giant bones and looking around.

At this moment, another group of skeletons arrived at the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

The commotion caused by these skeletons was significant, and Pei Qiyu noticed them early on but ignored them.

Unexpectedly, ignoring them only made the skeletons walk straight toward them, followed by a series of clattering sounds.

Both cultivators fell silent, as they couldn't understand the language.

Since they couldn't understand, they chose to ignore it.

Perhaps this ignorance angered the skeletons, as several of them began to climb up the giant bones like crawling ants, their long hand bones reaching out toward them.

Pei Qiyu couldn't help but laugh. What do you bone racks want?

Before those skeletons could touch their sleeves, they fell off the giant bones and attacked their companions. Another group of skeletons came over, while the rest entered the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

Pei Qiyu casually used an illusion to deal with these skeletons, observing the movements of the others and soon understood the intentions of this group of skeletons.

They were here to rob Flame Bones.

Once inside the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, the skeletons headed toward the other skeletons searching for Flame Bones in the bone forest. Relying on their numbers, they directly stole the Flame Bones that the others had found with great effort. Any resistance was met with a beating until the bones shattered, leaving only the skull.

While the skeletons wouldn't die as long as the red light in their eye sockets didn't extinguish, having their bodies shattered required a long time to reassemble, and the quality of the reassembled bones wasn't as good, making them more fragile and less effective in combat.

At this moment, the skeletons also noticed Wen Qiao and Su Molan.

Several skeletons ran toward them.

The skeletons moved with remarkable agility, running through the bone forest with speed that resembled white shadows. Without the constraints of flesh and organs, their flexibility greatly increased, though they couldn't fly like cultivators, their speed and jumping ability were impressive, and they wouldn't necessarily lose in a fight.

But the skeletons encountered two women who were violent on the inside and out.

With the release of the Spirit Sword, a burst of spiritual light shattered the bones.

Wen Qiao didn't use her fists, feeling that using fists against mere skeletons would be too much of a bully. Instead, she used a long whip to gather the bones together, then Wen Guangun summoned a wall of earth to crush them.

If that didn't work, there was always Wen Qiuqiu, whose spiky fur could easily withstand the skeletons' attacks.

In no time, the skeletons were dealt with by the two humans and two beasts.

"So, you were trying to rob us."

Seeing the skeletons that had been robbed nearby, Wen Qiao finally understood the intentions of the skeletons that had rushed toward them.

Only after the fight did they realize the skeletons' intentions, showing how language barriers truly harmed the skeletons.

Su Molan was also speechless, watching Wen Qiao sweep the skeletons away with a single whip without any mercy, regardless of their intentions.

Although the number of skeletons that came to rob them was large, they were not very resilient. After dealing with them, Wen Qiao and the others continued to wait for Su Xing in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

It wasn't until three days later that Su Xing showed any signs of movement.

Deep within the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, a terrifying aura flashed.

Despite its brief appearance, it still startled many living beings. The skeletons searching for Flame Bones in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land were thrown to the ground by the sudden aura, and Wen Qiao and the others leaped onto the giant bones, gazing into the depths of the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

At that moment, a figure emerged from the sea of flames deep within the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, crossing the flames and swiftly heading outward.

Wen Qiao, Ning Yuzhou, Pei Qiyu, and Su Molan stood outside the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, watching the child flying toward them from the depths of the flames. Compared to its once translucent body, it now appeared much more solid, almost indistinguishable from a normal child if not examined closely.

"Wen Sister, Big Brother Ning, Lanlan, I'm back~"

The grinning child lunged at Wen Qiao, its light and airy form clearly not that of a normal child.

Wen Qiao reached out to touch it, surprised to find that she could actually feel it this time. Although the sensation was strange, not like touching a normal person, but rather a soft and bouncy object, lacking a normal body temperature.

But at least it had a tangible form now.

"Good, you actually have a physical form. It seems this immortal artifact has restored you quite a bit," Wen Qiao said with satisfaction.

Su Molan immediately exclaimed in surprise, "Really? Let me touch too."

Suxing generously jumped onto her and let her hold him.

Her hand caressed Suxing's body, and a joyful smile appeared on her face, as if she was even happier than Suxing that he could repair himself.

She was indeed happy; the better Suxing repaired himself, the less likely the Pleiades Continent would be destroyed.

Just as the spirit and the guardian were both delighted, a hand reached out and picked up Suxing.

Suxing turned his head to look at the person who had picked him up, instantly becoming somewhat unhappy, and said with a frown, "Demon Seed, what are you doing?"

Pei Qiyu gave him a dark smile and praised, "It seems the immortal artifact in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land is quite powerful, able to restore you to this extent. I won't have to worry about not being able to catch you when I want to drive you away in the future."

So, the spirit of the Star Map finally managed to repair itself halfway just so he could be used like this?

Suxing felt deeply hurt and couldn't help but start cursing, naturally accusing Demon Seed of having ill intentions and always trying to cause trouble...

Just as they were getting lively, Ning Yuzhou's expression changed slightly, and he said to them, "Stop fooling around, let's leave here first."

Pei Qiyu's expression turned serious, thinking of something, and quickly said, "Right! The commotion earlier wasn't small. Powerful skeletons will likely come to investigate soon. We should leave quickly."

Hearing this, Su Molan and Wen Qiao also recalled the commotion Suxing caused when he emerged from the sea of fire. Their expressions turned solemn, and without a word, they chose a direction and ran.

They had just left when a group of skeletons arrived at the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

These skeletons were different from others; the blood-red light in their eye sockets was brighter, and some even had a faint golden-red glow, indicating they were at the Emperor Yuan level.

When the skeletons arrived at the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, they first looked around, then gathered together and began to chatter in a series of clicks.

After discussing for a while, the skeletons they had sent to investigate returned, some carrying several skull heads, others escorting intact skeletons.

These skulls were the ones who had tried to rob Wen Qiao and his companions but failed, only to have their bodies shattered and left with just their heads. The escorted skeletons were those who had been searching for Flame Bones in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land.

Under the pressure of these high-level skeletons, the group of skeletons chattered incessantly.

Finally, an intact skeleton pointed in the direction Wen Qiao and his companions had left.

The group of skeletons listened, left some behind in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land, and sent a part of them to pursue in that direction.

The skeletons marched on in a grand procession.

This was a desolate wilderness, with occasional small hills visible. Looking around, there was no place to hide. The skeletons did not hesitate, leaping over the small hills and rushing toward the distance.

After the skeletons disappeared, a hill moved slightly, revealing a tiny hole the size of a fingernail.

Only after confirming that the skeletons had not returned did the hill open up, revealing the four people and two beasts hiding inside the earthen shell.

Pei Qiyu spat and said unhappily, "These skeletons are such a nuisance. If time weren't so pressing, we should have killed them all to save ourselves the trouble."

When they left, they knew the skeletons and skull heads left behind in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land would report their movements to the skeletons seeking treasures, so they didn't rush to escape but instead found a place nearby to hide.

With Wen Guangun's Five Rock Earth as cover, Ning Yuzhou's array, and Pei Qiyu's illusions, deceiving a group of skeletons was not a problem.

"What do we do next?" Su Molan asked, somewhat worried.

She felt that the current situation was like a rare treasure appearing, and a group of people would never let go of anyone who might possess it. Though these "people" were skeletons, any creature with thoughts would act similarly.

Wen Qiao thought of a possibility, "The Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones shouldn't be issuing warrants for us, right?"

Su Molan and Pei Qiyu were momentarily speechless.

This person's thinking was too straightforward. Could it be that the actions of the Xiao and Shen families on the Pleiades Continent had left such a deep psychological shadow on her?

Ning Yuzhou affirmed, "No, we are different from skeletons. However, if there are cultivators, it would be another matter."

Upon hearing this, Pei Qiyu subconsciously frowned, "You mean the Inferno Heaven Prefecture?"

Ning Yuzhou nodded, "Exactly. According to Master Baili, we are not far from the Inferno Heaven Prefecture."

In the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones, they had only visited Dugu Mansion and passed through the border between Dugu Mansion and Longya Mansion, covering very little ground. Most of what they knew about the Inferno Heaven Prefecture came from Baili Chi.

After discussing for a while, they decided to visit the Inferno Heaven Prefecture first.

This was Ning Yuzhou's suggestion: "According to Master Baili, since the Inferno Heaven Prefecture captures human cultivators, it must have cultivators. Perhaps there is a way back to Bone Town there."

Unlike Baili Chi and his companions, who entered using the Bone Return Token, they could easily leave with the token when exiting.

They had entered through the main gate of the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones, crossing the Small Nether River. Would they have to retrace their steps to leave? That would be too troublesome.

"It seems the Bone Return Token is useful after all," Pei Qiyu said, looking at Ning Yuzhou, "Young Master Ning, have you discovered anything about that immortal bone?"

Wen Qiuqiu had brought back an immortal bone from Corpse Lake for Wen Qiao, who then passed it to Ning Yuzhou.

Ning Yuzhou replied, "I'm still researching it, but I have some leads. However, if we want to use the Bone Return Token to leave the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones, we only have one token, which isn't enough for all of us."

This was a problem.

Pei Qiyu's gaze fell on Wen Qiuqiu, and he asked, "Wen Qiuqiu, can you find more immortal bones?"

Since the Bone Return Token is made from the immortal bones of the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones, it stands to reason that there should be more immortal bones here, though it's unclear where.

Pei Qiyu was meticulous and observant. He knew that there was something unusual about the demon beast Wen Qiuqiu, who likely had the ability to sense the location of immortal bones. Otherwise, Ning Yuzhou and Wen Qiao wouldn't have let Wen Qiuqiu lead the way in Dugu Mansion.

Some things don't bear much scrutiny. Pei Qiyu, with his keen insight, and given that Ning Yuzhou and Wen Qiao didn't conceal much from him, could deduce most of the truth.

Yet even if he knew, there was nothing he could do about it.

In the Blackwind Desert, when he chose to stay and leave the Pleiades Continent with them, Ning Yuzhou had already firmly grasped his weakness. However, Pei Qiyu didn’t really want to do anything either. When they left the Pleiades Continent, only he and Su Molan were from the same continent, and such a rare opportunity would naturally be tightly seized by a smart person.

Wen Qiuqiu chirped at him.

Neither Pei Qiyu nor Su Molan understood, so they looked at Wen Qiao.

Wen Qiao said, "Wen Qiuqiu says it can find it, but the distance can't be too far." If the distance is too far, Wen Qiuqiu wouldn’t be able to sense the aura of the immortal bone.

"That works," Pei Qiyu suggested to Ning Yuzhou, "Why don’t we go to the Inferno Heavenly Prefecture first, find a cultivator to ask about the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones, and search for the immortal bone at the same time?"

Ning Yuzhou glanced at him and nodded, "That’s fine."

Wen Qiao and Su Molan naturally had no objections.

The four of them left this desolate wilderness and headed toward the Inferno Heavenly Prefecture.

To avoid any more trouble, they deliberately chose paths without skeletal grounds.

Suxing was also very happy, no longer having to hide and sneak around. Since there wasn’t much to do while traveling, he told them about absorbing the immortal artifact.

"That immortal artifact was a Flame-Gathering Mace of fire attribute. I don’t know how it ended up there, but the reason the ground fire was so powerful was because of the immortal artifact..."

The ground fire in the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land was originally just ordinary ground fire. Although its quality was good, it was far from reaching such terrifying power.

However, due to the enhancement of the Flame-Gathering Mace, the ground fire was continuously drawn up from underground, gradually transforming into a sea of flames that burned through the bone forest.

If not for the might of the flames in that sea of fire, the immortal artifact would have been discovered long ago.

Fortunately, this allowed Suxing to benefit.

Actually, the Flame-Gathering Mace wasn’t particularly powerful. As long as one could ignore the might of the flames, it could be taken. On that day, Wen Qiao used the absolute domain of the divine tablet to send Suxing over, and it immediately devoured the Flame-Gathering Mace.

After it refined the immortal artifact, not only did its body repair itself somewhat, but the body of the spirit within the artifact also became somewhat solidified, though still not completely solid. It was better than the previously translucent, untouchable ghostly state.

The power that erupted from the depths of the Ten Thousand Bone Flame Land was generated when Suxing’s body fully absorbed the immortal artifact and began to repair itself.

"After I swallowed the Flame-Gathering Mace, my body carried its aura, so I no longer feared the ground fire," Suxing said proudly.

Pei Qiyu snorted and retorted, "The ground fire has been with the Flame-Gathering Mace for many years; the ground fire has grown accustomed to the mace, and their auras have merged. Naturally, it won’t do anything to you. But what about the ground fire in other places? Can you resist it?"

"Of course I can, I’m a divine artifact!" Suxing puffed out its chest, unwilling to let this demon seed underestimate it.

Pei Qiyu snorted again, careful not to let boasting lead to embarrassment.