Break It for Me

Swish!

The long sword sliced through the air with a sharp whistle.

The crescent-moon-like blade swept horizontally—

A giant serpent let out a shrill hiss before collapsing! Blood splattered everywhere!

An Yi sheathed his sword, walked over, and used a combat dagger to carve out a demon core. After a brief hesitation, he then put on gloves and carefully extracted the serpent’s gallbladder.

This was a treasure!

It had the same effect as the Celestial Star Grass, but even more potent!

Now, he was no longer content with being called "An Sixteen."

It was Scarlet Grass!

Using Flame Step, An Yi carefully plucked the fiery-red medicinal herb the serpent had been guarding.

The quality was impressive—a fourth-grade herb, no less.

A faint smile crossed An Yi’s face as he stored the Scarlet Grass in his spatial pouch.

However, these herbs were still too weak to suppress Shen Muxuan’s chilling energy.

By his estimate, at least a fifth-grade herb was needed.

He had scoured every fire-element-rich area in the Skyrend Forest, except for its deepest reaches.

Now, every creature in the forest—whether winged or four-legged—fled at the sight of him.

Along the way, An Yi hadn’t found much else, but he had accumulated quite a stash of third and fourth-grade spirit cores. Selling them would make him rich again.

An Yi unfolded a map.

Several locations marked by Mu Qingyi were now covered in X’s—he had visited them all, with little success.

Only one place remained.

This spot was marked with a triangle by Mu Qingyi, indicating high danger and advising avoidance.

Hidden Dragon Valley!

An Yi pondered for a moment before murmuring, "Then that’s the place."

When he first arrived at Skyrend Forest, he had heard rumors—Hidden Dragon Valley was scorching year-round, barren of vegetation, with hundreds of miles of crimson wasteland and occasional magma eruptions.

But in terms of fire-attribute spiritual energy, no place could rival its intensity.

"This is it."

An Yi put away the map, then tossed a fourth-grade spirit core into his spatial pouch. "Hey, Dragon Girl!"

The slumbering silver dragon opened its jaws and caught the core.

Emerging from An Yi’s spatial pouch, the dragon transformed—

Silver hair, delicate features, striking violet eyes, and an alluring, curvaceous figure with porcelain skin.

An Yi’s nose heated up.

No matter how many times he saw this, his youthful blood still boiled with excitement.

"I thought we agreed you’d wear clothes!" An Yi protested.

Before he could finish, Long Aoxue shifted back into a silver dragon.

An Yi’s eyes flickered with disappointment before he coughed lightly. "Well… this works too. One fourth-grade core to take me to Hidden Dragon Valley. I’ll guide the way."

"Two!" Long Aoxue countered.

"Fine, two it is," An Yi replied, feigning reluctance.

(Secretly, he had been prepared to offer five.)

The silver dragon surged through the clouds, twisting across the sky.

In an instant, the entire immortal realm trembled in awe.

"A dragon! It’s a dragon!"

"Heavens, a true dragon has descended!"

Countless immortals knelt in worship, gazing reverently at the celestial beast—their sacred totem.

"Hei Geng, do you see that?!" Bi Jia stared intently at the silver figure weaving through the clouds, his expression grave. "A dragon!"

Hei Geng’s pupils constricted. "Impossible…"

In the Ancient Continent, dragons were revered as deities of the Ten Thousand Demons Kingdom.

But they had gone extinct—why would one appear in this world?

"We must report this to the boss," Bi Jia said darkly.

The reappearance of dragons was no trivial matter.

"That dragon seems to be heading toward Hidden Dragon Valley. Could it be…?" Hei Geng’s tone grew uneasy.

Bi Jia scoffed. "Enough speculation. Our priority is capturing that girl with the Heavenly Yin Spirit Vein. Once we use her as a sacrifice to break the seal and release the Fire Python, even the top sects won’t be able to stop us. The Hundred Ghosts Sect will rule the immortal realm—it’s only a matter of time."

Hei Geng’s eyes burned with ambition.

True—with the Fire Python’s aid, dominion over the immortal realm would be effortless. They could finally leave this place after a century of confinement.

"Sometimes I miss the Ancient Continent. Wonder how those two are doing. Back then, Chi Bing pursued Zi Gui relentlessly, but she always refused. Now that they’re both in the mortal world, they’ve probably even had kids by now," Bi Jia mused with a chuckle.

Hei Geng shook his head. "Zi Gui was always… unrestrained. Even if there’s a child, it might not be Chi Bing’s. Oh, right—they go by different names now: Chi Xiao and Zi Xin."

"Once we free the Fire Python and conquer the immortal realm, we’ll regroup with them. How are the preparations?" Bi Jia asked.

Hei Geng smirked. "Where there’s reward, there’s no shortage of willing hands. The sects are already stirring. Capturing a mere girl from the Azure Luan Pavilion will be child’s play."

"By the way, the Demon Sect’s leader has been replaced—his son took over."

"That wolf cub? I’m not surprised he killed his own father to seize power."

Bi Jia chuckled coldly. "Human nature can be far more vicious than demonic instincts."

Heat.

An unbearable wave of scorching air rolled over them.

The closer they got to Hidden Dragon Valley, the more intense the burning sensation became.

An Yi stripped off his upper garment, revealing a lean, muscular physique.

Still suffocating, he removed his pants, leaving only shorts, but sweat poured down his body regardless.

"Temperatures here must be over 50°C (122°F)…"

The silver dragon’s breathing grew labored, its flight slowing noticeably.

"I demand three fourth-grade cores!" Long Aoxue’s strained voice rang out.

An Yi wiped his brow and nodded. "Deal. Keep going!"

As they approached the chasm ahead,

a blistering updraft seared the air, wisps of steam rising from the cracked earth.

The ground temperature had reached terrifying levels.

"I can’t go on," Long Aoxue gasped.

In a flash of light, she retreated into An Yi’s body.

"Hey! Hey!"

An Yi plummeted mid-air before activating Flame Step to stabilize himself, scowling. "We’re not there yet! I’m deducting one core!"

"Fine, deduct it. I’m not going any farther," she retorted stubbornly.

Pushing deeper would scorch her scales.

An Yi landed, his limited-edition sneakers (worth 1,288 yuan) beginning to melt at the soles, sizzling with smoke.

"Damn…"

But the fire-attribute spiritual energy here was unparalleled.

Places like this often birthed heaven-defying treasures.

Deep in the magma,

a colossal Fire Python stirred.

It cracked open an eye, then lazily shut it again.

After a millennium of imprisonment, it had grown indifferent to intruders.

An Yi took two steps forward, eyeing the vast chasm with a frown.

A sealing barrier blocked his path.

But with maxed-out Lockpicking skills, this was no obstacle.

An Yi pressed his palm against the barrier and grinned fiercely. "Break for me!"

Crack!

The ancient seal shrouding the valley shattered instantly.