"Indeed, it's a high-grade spirit material."
Yuan Ming's eyes lit up with joy. He grew even fonder of the fiery red horn, carefully storing it away, planning to figure out its nature after returning to the Sect.
Such a horn contained within the magma of Tali Volcano truly speaks volumes. This volcano is far from ordinary.
However, he was not capable of exploring the mountain at this time, so he turned and called for the Fire Mink to continue on their way, swiftly leaving the area covered by volcanic magma.
Yuan Ming stood on a slope, gazing at the scarred earth.
Given such a massive volcanic eruption, the Fire Jades near the volcano had been completely submerged by the lava. Without a way to search for them in the magma, it seemed his task would have to end here.
As for what to do next, he was somewhat at a loss, unsure whether to search for the others or to head back to the Sect on his own.
After a moment of consideration, Yuan Ming decided to look for the others, taking the Fire Mink with him in a certain direction.
Leaving now by himself felt somewhat heartless, besides, he only had a rough idea of the location of the Biluo Cave Sect. Going back alone might be problematic.
Just then, a faint sound came from behind, like the noise of footsteps.
Yuan Ming quickly turned to look and saw a figure turning onto the mountain path not far away, it was Lei Gong.
"Junior Brother Yuan, you're still alive, and the Fire Mink is safe too, thank heavens!" Lei Gong, upon seeing Yuan Ming and the Fire Mink beside him, ran over excitedly.
Lei Gong looked very disheveled at the moment, with much of his clothing burned away and several patches of his skin scorched, thankfully none were at vital spots.
The Fire Mink glanced at Lei Gong and then looked away, ignoring him, seemingly not very fond of the man.
"Senior Brother Lei Gong, are you alright?" Yuan Ming's face also lit up with joy.
Encountering a familiar face at this time was always a happy occasion.
"I'm fine, just some minor skin injuries, nothing worth mentioning. By the way, Junior Brother Yuan, did you see Sister Lan Ke and the others? Of course, there's also Mu Li and the rest," Lei Gong asked, waving his hand dismissively.
"In the urgent situation just now, I was only focused on saving myself and didn't pay attention to the others," Yuan Ming shook his head.
"Ah, I wonder how she's getting on," Lei Gong scratched the back of his head with a worried expression upon hearing this.
Yuan Ming's eyes flickered, realizing that Lei Gong, Mu Li, Chi Shu, and Agula were only acquaintances, so naturally, he was worried about Lan Ke. The nature of their relationship remained unclear.
"Let's search around. With Sister Lan Ke's abilities, they should be fine," he didn't inquire further and suggested.
Lei Gong nodded, and the two of them went off to search in a certain direction.
The Fire Mink jumped onto Yuan Ming's shoulder and lay halfway down to rest, squinting its eyes.
"It seems the Fire Mink is quite fond of Junior Brother Yuan! After you return to the Sect, you might want to consider taking on this task," Lei Gong said, half envious, half impressed, as he suggested upon seeing the tame Fire Mink.
Yuan Ming indeed had this idea in mind and asked, "Senior Brother Lei Gong, could you tell me more about this task from the Three Cave Masters?"
"Are you really interested, Junior Brother Yuan? Actually, there's not much to the task itself; the Three Cave Masters' requirements are quite simple, just take good care of the Fire Mink, feed it a few pieces of Fire Flame Crystal each day, and ensure it doesn't get injured," Lei Gong said quickly.
"It doesn't seem too difficult," Yuan Ming remarked.
"It's easy to say, but not at all easy to do. Junior Brother Yuan, you haven't seen how mischievous this Fire Mink can be," Lei Gong sighed, holding his forehead.
Just then, the Fire Mink, which had been squinting its eyes, suddenly opened them and began to hum noisily.
Seeing this, Lei Gong quickly took out a fiery red crystal and held it to the Fire Mink's mouth—seemingly the same thing the Three Cave Masters used to feed it previously.
As soon as the Fire Mink saw the crystal, it immediately raised its head, took a bite of the item, and began to chew and swallow the pieces.
"What's the reward for this task?" Yuan Ming petted the Fire Mink's head and inquired about what concerned him most.
"The reward is naturally generous. As long as you can meet her requirements and take care of the Fire Mink well, you can earn thirty Contribution Values per month, and you can also learn a spell from her for free, provided it's within the scope of the Qi Refinement Realm," Lei Gong explained.
Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming became even more tempted.
Thirty Contribution Values certainly counted as a generous reward. Working at the Fire Workshop only earned ten Contribution Values per month, not to mention the opportunity to learn a spell for free.
He continued to play with the Fire Mink's head, silently making up his mind.
"Junior Brother Yuan is not a disciple of the Beast Taming Hall, so if you want to take on this task, you should start with the Execution Hall, where the deacon is also aware of this task from the Three Cave Masters," Lei Gong thought for a moment and added.
"Thank you for the advice," Yuan Ming thanked him.
The two continued on their search, but after a long while, they found not a single clue.
Yuan Ming was still okay, but Lei Gong was growing increasingly agitated.
"This blind search isn't the way to go. How about we try a different method?" Yuan Ming suggested.
"Oh, does Junior Brother Yuan have a plan?" Lei Gong's eyes brightened and he asked.
"Since we can't find Sister Lan Ke and the others, why not make it so they can find us?" Yuan Ming spoke.
Lei Gong was taken aback, not understanding the implication.
"Burn wood to create smoke," Yuan Ming pointed toward a nearby small patch of woods. This text was acquired from *.
"That's a good idea," Lei Gong rubbed his hands together, pleased with the suggestion.
The two of them worked together, cutting down all the trees in the forest and setting up a bonfire.
Thick black smoke soon billowed upwards, drifting high into the sky, forming a smoke column.
The volcanic lava had calmed down, not producing much smoke, so the black smoke column was quite conspicuous.
Moments later, a crisp crane's cry sounded, and two white cranes appeared in the distant sky, rapidly flying over.
The two figures seated on the white cranes were none other than Mu Li and Chi Shu.
"Both of you are safe and sound, that's great," Yuan Ming called out, waving his hands.
Lei Gong's heart sank with disappointment, but he managed to squeeze out a smile and asked the two about Lan Ke's whereabouts.
A piercing scream came from the other side, and a gray shadow quickly approached; it was the Golden-eyed Eagle, with Lan Ke and Agula on its back.
"Senior Sister Lan Ke, you're also unharmed; truly blessed by the ancestors," Lei Gong exclaimed joyously, waving his hand.
Yuan Ming also showed joy on his face, with an added touch of emotion.
Having encountered such a natural disaster, all six of them had miraculously survived; their luck was simply too good.
The Golden-eyed Eagle landed on the ground, and Lan Ke leapt down, but Agula did not move.
His right leg from the knee down was charred black, with much of the flesh burned away, clearly caused by the lava; other areas of his body also suffered multiple burns, appearing extremely miserable.
Mu Li and the others' expressions changed slightly at the sight, and Yuan Ming's brows furrowed as well.
"Junior Brother Agula, how did you get so injured?" Mu Li, who had carried out several missions with Agula and was relatively close to him, asked with concern.
Agula merely gave a bitter smile and did not speak.
With his right leg injured like that, the meridians in his leg were likely damaged too; it was uncertain if they could be restored.
Lan Ke sighed and recounted how Agula was injured.
When the magma surged towards them, he released a white crane in an attempt to escape into the sky, but the crane, intimidated by the volcanic disaster, abandoned Agula and fled alone.
In a mix of shock and anger, Agula had no choice but to run for his life, only to be attacked by a Fire Rock Snake along the way. After being bitten on the leg, he was caught up by the surging lava that burned his leg, and he was on the verge of perishing right there.
At the critical moment, Lan Ke, passing nearby, saved Agula's life.
"Anyway, we are all still alive, a fortunate misfortune. Junior Brother Agula's injuries are severe, but not beyond hope of recovery. We'll have to return to the Sect to deal with it," Lan Ke said.
Mu Li, a disciple of the Refining Furnace Hall and proficient in some medical techniques, immediately applied ointment to Agula's wounds and bandaged them.
"Thank you, Brother Mu Li," Agula expressed his gratitude.
Having fled in haste, everyone now felt quite exhausted, so they took a brief rest around the bonfire.
"It's really strange why such a large-scale volcanic eruption would occur so suddenly," Mu Li said, looking towards the giant peak of the volcano.
"Such natural disasters are beyond the predictions of mortals like us," Lan Ke said, shaking her head.
"It might be Tali, the Flame Demon beneath the mountain, turning over, haha…" With Lan Ke safe and sound, Lei Gong's liveliness returned, and he laughed heartily.
"Tali, the Flame Demon?" Yuan Ming looked over.
"That's a legend about Tali Volcano. Originally, this area was a lush green mountain range, and that giant peak was an ordinary mountain. Later, an Immortal suppressed a Flame Demon under the peak. The demon, wielding flames, melted the rocks, turning this place into a volcanic region," Lei Gong explained animatedly, glancing at Lan Ke from time to time.
Yuan Ming fell silent, remembering the Fiery Red Horn he had just obtained. Could it be the horn of that so-called Flame Demon?
He immediately shook his head and chuckled to himself, scolding his naivety. Such mythical legends, how could they be true?
"By the way, it is rumored that the Flame Demon turns over every five hundred years, causing a massive volcanic eruption. I've read records about Tali Volcano in the Sect; several hundred years ago, there was a large-scale eruption here. Maybe that legend is true," Lei Gong, seeing the other people looking over, became even more animated and talked at length.
"Enough of that. Those are just folklore tales. You're a cultivator and still believe in such absurd stories," Lan Ke said with a frown, rebuking him.
Lei Gong gave a silly chuckle and obediently shut his mouth.
However, Lei Gong's tall tales did manage to lighten the atmosphere significantly.
After resting for a while, everyone somewhat recovered.
"What do you all plan to do next?" Lan Ke asked.
"After such an event, continuing to search for the Fire Jade is no longer possible. Let's return to the Sect first; Junior Brother Agula's injuries need to be looked at as soon as possible," Mu Li suggested.
No one else objected, and the group promptly headed towards the Sect.
The others who had returned from the mission with Yuan Ming submitted their Fire Jades in exchange for rewards; Yuan Ming, however, had fed all of his Fire Jades to the Fire Mink and could not obtain any rewards.
Nevertheless, Yuan Ming didn't mind; he had already decided to take on the task of caring for Huo Chan'er and went straight to the deacon in charge.
Having registered for the task at the office, Yuan Ming was informed that as a non-Beast Taming Hall disciple taking on a spirit beast nurturing task, he needed to go to the Beast Taming Hall to learn the relevant knowledge and get approval first.
After all, it concerned the beloved pet of the Three Cave Masters; no one could afford the responsibility if anything were to happen.