"This should be the place." Hua Litong said as she looked at the Blazing Sun Monarch's statue at the center of the hallway.
"The trace ended here? Where did that person go?" Yang Mengli looked at the ground and didn't find any trace.
Earlier, they arrived at the intersection area and found a trace of a fireplace. They had followed the trace of the footprints and arrived here afterward.
"There should be some clues around here. Let's search for it." Hua Litong suggested and walked to the statue, carefully examining it.
Meanwhile, Yang Mengli looked around the wall and occasionally poked it, trying to find a hidden mechanism.
"Isn't that Young Miss Hua Litong? Hm? Young Miss Yang Mengli is also here as well?" All of a sudden, a male voice sounded from the entrance of the hallway, causing Hua Litong and Yang Mengli to turn around quickly.
"So it's Young Master Ji." Hua Litong calmed herself down after recognizing the newcomer's identity. He was no other than the Young Master of the Sword Profound Sect, Ji Cheng.
On Ji Cheng's side, Qi Tian'er stood gracefully, appearing unconcerned when she saw Hua Litong and Yang Mengli.
Ji Cheng replied with an elegant smile, "Did you two just arrive here?"
Hua Litong and Yang Mengli replied with a slight nod. Yang Mengli turned to Qi Tian'er, "Greetings, Second Princess."
Qi Tian'er only gave a light hum in reply with little interest. Her eyes glued on the statue at the center of the hallway.
Just as Ji Cheng was about to say something. He frowned slightly as he looked back and saw a female figure slowly appeared in his sight. He greeted, "I didn't expect to meet Young Miss Hua Litong and Young Miss Hua Wanru at the same time. It seems my luck is quite good."
The female figure was Hua Wanru, who had wandered around this maze for several days before she found a way to this place. When she saw Ji Cheng, her countenance changed slightly. "It's Young Master Ji… What did you just say? Did you meet my sister?"
"Wanru?" Hua Litong was surprised when she heard her younger sister's voice and hurriedly ran out of the hallway.
"Big Sister!" Hua Wanru became excited as she speedily came to Hua Litong and grabbed her hands with a sweet smile.
"It's good that you are fine." A heavy stone in Hua Litong's heart had been lifted upon seeing her younger sister was safe and sound.
"Did you encounter our sisters?" Hua Litong asked.
Hua Wanru shook her head. "I never met anyone since I came to this place."
Hua Litong thought for a moment and was about to tell Hua Wanru something, but got interrupted by Ji Cheng first. "Two Misses, why don't we go in and talk there. I have a set of tables here."
Hua Litong glanced at Ji Cheng and nodded her head.
"Please." Ji Cheng made an invitation gesture, leading the two of them to the hallway before he taking a table and chairs out of his interspatial ring. As a Young Master of the Sword Profound Sect, he naturally had an interspatial ring.
Everyone sat around the table and Ji Cheng showed his gentleman side, pouring tea for them. However, Hua Litong, Hua Wanru, and Yang Mengli didn't touch it.
Ji Cheng's expression didn't change, he still wore a faint smile on his lips as he asked, "May I ask, how did everyone come to this place?"
Hua Litong thought there was nothing to hide this information. She answered, "I encountered the Golden Earthworm and was teleported here by the sand wave."
Ji Cheng nodded with a thoughtful expression. He then turned to Yang Mengli. "How about you, Young Miss Yang?"
"I fell into the quicksand and found myself here afterward." Replied Yang Mengli.
"It seems everyone has different experiences. I and Tian'er encountered nothing, but we appeared here directly after stepping into the desert plain." Ji Cheng said while pondering on this matter. He continued, "There must be something going on here. I never see any record related to this place before."
"Earlier, I've checked this statue, but I found nothing unusual." Qi Tian'er added.
Everyone turned to look at the statue and fell into their own thoughts.
***
At this moment in the consciousness world, Yun Lintian's body trembling nonstop as he gritted his teeth, fighting with the intense pain. His skins had become wholly red, and the new droplet of sweat instantly vaporized upon coming out of his pores.
His teeth were clenched on each other, producing cracking sounds from time to time. His forehead was full of blue veins and his eyes turned bloodshot, looking very scary. The pain had reminded him that he wasn't dead, and this burning heat might be related to The Sun as he perceived the change within his Profound Vein.
Originally, Yun Lintian's Profound Vein was a variant type, three elements — Wood, Fire, and Water. Wood and Water were compatible with each other, but the addition of the Fire element caused his Profound Vein to become chaotic and unbalanced. This was also the reason Yun Lintian's talent was so low. Furthermore, the Misty Cloud Sect didn't have any profound art that was suitable to him. Even if he tried to practice the Misty Cloud Profound Art, he would never reach a high level.
However, at present, Yun Lintian could feel his control over the Fire element had gone through an earth-shattering transformation. The chaos within his Profound Vein slowly disappeared bit by bit. He didn't feel any conflict between the Wood, Water, and Fire elements anymore.
I have to endure it! This is definitely my first plot-armor!… Thinking of this, Yun Lintian became ecstatic as he started to imagine a beautiful life after getting this cheat ability. This change had brought him hope and gave birth to determined ambition. With the ability to fully control the Fire element, becoming a Fire Emperor won't be a dream anymore.
Hour after hour, Yun Lintian had already lost track of time. The intense pain had gradually decreased as time went by, and his body could perfectly adapt to it by now. A moment later, the burning sensation within his body had completely dissipated. His eyes snapped open and found himself stood naked on the ground while Yan Qi and Little Flame looking at him with a strange look on their faces.
"Not bad. You've fully taken over The Sun." Yan Qi broke the silence and nodded his head approvingly. With this, his thousands of years' duty had finally come to an end.
"I jumped to the eighth level?" Yun Lintian clenched his fists, trying to measure his new strength. He discovered his profound strength had jumped from the fifth level to the eighth level of Essence Profound Realm. Moreover, his Profound Vein had turned into crimson-red color, it certainly had something to do with the ability to control the Fire element.
"I know you're exciting right now, but can you put the clothes on first?" Yan Qi was uncomfortable seeing a naked man.
Although he was old, it didn't mean he could ignore it. What more, this boy's certain part was abnormally big, unlike the size of a sixteen-year-old boy at all. This made him fluster when he thought of himself during his youth… If I had this size back then, I wouldn't have been scolded by that beautiful courtesan. Alas, what a shame. Yan Qi lamented in his heart.
Yun Lintian glanced down at his body and was taken aback for a second before he swiftly put the clothes on.
"How long have I been here?" Yun Lintian asked.
"Ten days." Yan Qi answered.
"Ten days?… Oh no, senior sisters." Yun Lintian suddenly thought of his senior sisters and became worried.
Yan Qi smiled. "Relax. Since you've already obtained The Sun, this mythical realm naturally belongs to you. However, it is restricted to the condition that you are here. After you leave, this mythical realm will cease to exist."
"Really? Quickly tell me, how to control it? I want to know my senior sisters' whereabouts." Yun Lintian completely ignored the latter part and asked Yan Qi directly.
Yan Qi was speechless. He said, "Where has your manner gone to? Don't call me Senior anymore? Did you hear that? This mythical realm will vanish forever if you leave here! No sentiment at all?"
Yun Lintian snorted, "Heh, I've already lost all the respect for you since the moment you threw me to The Sun already. Don't think that I don't know you are actually not confident whether I am the right person."
Yan Qi was shocked. "H… How did you know?"
Yun Lintian rolled his eyes. "Cut the crap! Don't pretend in front of me. Now, tell me, how can I locate my senior sisters' position?"
Yan Qi laughed slightly, with no shame. "Hehe, young man, clam down first. Have you ever heard this sentence, hastes make waste?" Seeing Yun Lintian was about to curse him, Yan Qi hurriedly said further, "You can go to my Blazing Sun Throne and injected a trace of fire element profound energy into it."
Yun Lintian ignored Yan Qi and went straight to the crimson throne. He did as Yan Qi said, and the throne suddenly lit up. A moment later, several translucent projections appeared out of thin air before the throne, projecting every single one who was currently resided within the mythical realm.
"CCTV?" Yun Lintian was surprised. This was the first time he encountered this kind of technology in the Azure World.
His eyes scanned through the projections one by one until he paused at a group of six women and one man. When he saw Yun Chan and Yun Ting's miserable appearances, his complexion turned cold instantly.
"Which bastard did it?" Yun Lintian spoke coldly in a low voice. A fierce killing intent exuded from his body, causing Yan Qi and Little Flame to look at each other in amazement. They never expected a sixteen-year-old boy could produce such a murderous aura, and it made them wonder how many people had died in his hands.
Yun Lintian continued to scan through the projections. On one projection, there was a fierce battle between Hua's sisters, Yang Mengli, three of his senior sisters, and several people from Sword Profound Sect as well as Scared Flame Sect. Hua Litong's group was currently overwhelmed by the opponents, and they probably could not hold for any longer.
"It's above this place?" Yun Lintian said to himself. He turned to Yan Qi and asked, "Is there any trap around here? I know you definitely have one, right?"
Yan Qi smiled mysteriously. "Of course, I have."