CHAPTER 508: CHAPTER 508. TRUDGING THROUGH ASH AND BRIMSTONE

Amon and the others came out into a world of fiery wasteland. The landscape was riddled with rivers of lava. The charred soil had cracks all over. Fumes were released from these cracks. On intervals, these fumes combusted into fierce jets of flame.

One of these jets spewed close to where Wu Di stood. The heat caused him to jerk away.

"Fuck! That was close!" He exclaimed. He turned to Huang San and asked, "Your Highness, what if we are wounded inside this place?"

It was Amon who answered, "Then you suck it up. That’s why we bring plenty of pills and salve, just in case."

"We did?" Wu Di asked.

Everyone looked at him with weird faces.

"You didn’t hear brother mentioning it when he told us to gather at the palace?" Xin Wuming asked.

"Uh... I didn’t pay attention because I always have a stock inside my space ring," Wu Di replied. "I forgot they were still inside my space ring when it was confiscated earlier. Can I go back out a bit to take them?"

He turned back and looked for the portal he came in from. There was none.

"I brought extra. Here. Store them properly," Yang Li handed him some pills and a bottle of recovery salve.

"You are the best, sister Li!" Wu Di said with a wide smile. "How about I treat you to a meal once this is over?"

"Stay away from me," Yang Li said curtly.

"Tch! And now you are back to your asocial self?" Wu Di complained.

"Will we encounter spirit beasts or traps inside this place?" An Guan asked.

"No spirit beasts," Huang San answered. "There used to be spirit beasts accompanying the challenge in this pocket world. They were kept in a stasis inside a special dimension and were released when someone entered this place. My ancestors had wiped out all those spirit beasts. There are none left. As for traps or similar mechanisms, there have been records of past participants encountering them. However, I think it is more likely to occur later after we complete several trial stages. Some records said that the challenges become more difficult the more stages are completed."

Wu Di asked Huang San, "What if we die here?"

"Then you die," Amon was again the one who answered Wu Di. "Stop wasting time. We are not here for sightseeing. Everyone spread out. Remember what I explained yesterday. Look for something with water and wood elements. Report to me once you find them."

"How do we report?" Xin Wuming asked.

"As a party, we are linked inside this place," Huang San explained. "If you focus your intention on someone in the party, you can send a message telepathically."

"Really? Let me give it a try," Wu Di said. He pressed the side of his head using his finger and concentrated.

Yang Li’s expression suddenly changed. She turned to Wu Di and extended her hand. "Give me back my pills!"

"I didn’t mean it. I have trouble controlling my thoughts," Wu Di said while laughing awkwardly. "We are supposed to look for water and wood, right? I’m off now!"

Wu Di scurried away. An Guan looked at him while shaking his head.

"Spread out," Amon repeated. He walked in the opposite direction from Wu Di. The others looked at each other before heading in different directions.

*

"Damn it! It’s so smelly," Wu Di cursed. He was pinching his nose as he trekked past the field of ash and smoke. Everything smelled like sulphur. Occasional flame bursts occurred nearby. He paid attention to places where the fumes were the thickest and avoided them. The flame bursts were more likely to happen at those places.

When his path was blocked by a long river of lava, he flew to cross the river. As he flew, he learned he couldn’t fly too high. Something was pushing him down once he reached a certain height.

After arriving at the other side of the lava river, he viewed the distance. The horizon seemed endless.

’This is a sub-space of a pocket world? How big is this place?’ He wondered. With such a big place, wouldn’t it be easy for them to get lost?

He looked back. He couldn’t see the spot where he came from even when it was open field all around. He was too far away already. He couldn’t spot Amon or the others. He was worried for a moment when he realized he was alone, but then he remembered he could contact the others using his mind. Plus, if someone solved the challenge, they would all be teleported to the next trial stage. He wouldn’t get left behind.

So, he resumed his journey. He continued flying instead of walking on the ground. The heat was more severe on the ground.

"Water and wood... Water and wood...," Wu Di muttered as he pressed on. There was nothing that looked like water or wood. It was just charred land filled with fiery fumes and lava.

After hours of walking, he finally noticed something unusual.

"Huh?" He uttered as he squinted his eyes. After ensuring it was not a mirage, he flew over.

The place he was approaching had huge fire bursts every few seconds. What attracted his attention was not the fire burst. It was something on the ground where the jets of fire kept shooting up. After getting near, he identified the thing he saw was a small wooden statue of a dog.

A flame burst occurred again. The fire engulfed the whole statue. The flame only lasted a while. The statue was visible again, and Wu Di was amazed to see no sign of burning on the wooden statue.

’This must be it!" Wu Di exclaimed. He closed his eyes and thought about Amon. He called in his mind, "Hello? Testing, testing. Anyone listening?"

"Do you find something?" Amon’s voice was heard in his mind.

"I’m fine. Thank you for asking," Wu Di replied. "Yes, I do find something. A wooden dog statue. That means anything to you?"

"Wooden? Yang Li and An Guan similarly found dog statues, but theirs were made of metal. Good, that means you have found the correct exit point. The other with the metal statues were regular exit points. Hold on, let me check your position."

"You can do that?" Wu Di asked.

"Yes," Amon replied without going into details. After a while, his voice was heard again, "You are not that far. We only need to find the water element and bring it there."

Hearing that, Wu Di closed his eyes and tried to think of the others. Instead of sending a message, he tried sensing the others’ position the way he sensed using his Mystic Sense. A sensation came to him. Slowly, the sensation expanded, and he received a rough indication of the others and how far they were.

"Cool," he uttered.

He stood there waiting for the others to find the water element and bring it to his location. While waiting, he studied the wooden dog statue. After an observation, he understood the flame that burst out and engulfed the statue did so every twenty-six seconds. During the reprieve, he approached the statue and took a closer look.

It looked like a normal statue, but it was very detailed. The material was unmistakenly wood, but its craftmanship was too smooth. The dog in the statue was in a crouching pose, with its legs spread out as if ready for hostility. Its expression was also very detailed. Its eyes were fixed on an unseen menace before it, and its mouth was bearing its fang. Wu Di even imagined hearing its growl as he viewed the dog’s head.

After observing several cycles of the fire burst, he thought of something. This statue looked so small and light. He was bored just standing here guarding this statue. He wanted to go and search again. Why not just bring this statue with him?

He waited for another fire burst before making his move. While waiting, he sent a telepathic message to Amon, "I will bring the wooden statue with me to find the water element."

By the time he finished sending the message, the fire burst had ended. So, he went to pick up the statue. As his hands touched the statue, he received an urgent reply from Amon, "Do not move the statue!"

By the time the message registered in his mind, he had already moved the statue a little. His first thought was this statue was too heavy for its size. His next thought was comprehending Amon’s message. He didn’t have the time for a third thought because his instinct took over, stimulated by something detected by his Mystic Sense.

He jumped away just as a powerful flame burst out of the ground. He rolled on the ground several times before standing back up. The fire burst this time didn’t die down like before. The flame kept raging where the statue was. A strange voice was heard from inside the flame. It sounded like a growl.

While Wu Di was trying to make sense of what he heard, the flame started to take shape. The flame condensed and became a giant hound of fire.

"Shit...," Wu Di uttered.