Shennong Dao Master
Chapter 393 - 30: Stop fighting, Mr. Zhao, we’re on the same side!_2

Chapter 393: Chapter 30: Stop fighting, Mr. Zhao, we’re on the same side!_2

"Okay." The others nodded their heads.

...

After waiting for nearly two hours, Zhao Xing and his three companions finally found their opportunity.

A plainly dressed member of the Fire Demon Clan passed by the ruined houses.

Suddenly, a dark shadow darted behind him, covered his mouth, and dragged him into the shadows.

"Mmm??"

This member of the Fire Demon Clan was eighth-grade, but he was quickly pulled into the darkness.

"Pfft~"

Before he could react, his throat was slit.

The last scene he saw was someone undressing him.

And beside him stood three familiar figures—his own brethren.

"Brother, why do you want to kill me?"

Confused, the Fire Demon’s consciousness faded away.

"Done, this one named Sang Ma is also a caretaker of the Earth Fire Lotus."

"He and Ji Sang, Sangmu, and Sang’er are siblings from the same mother."

Zhao Xing clapped his hands and captured the soul.

"The Fire Demon Clan sure can reproduce; one litter can have eight." Long Xiao curled his lips, "Barbarians are indeed barbarians."

"They resemble beasts more than humans; it’s not advisable at all to try to assimilate these barbarians," Yu Ziqi stated.

Zhao Xing did not express his opinion; each era has its own policies. During the Grand Ancestor’s era, people did not have a significant prejudice against these barbarians, and during Emperor Wen’s era, they were even somewhat close.

But by the Jing Emperor’s era, the narrative had shifted to them being a foreign race.

The path to naturalizing the barbarians was never smooth—brandishing a bull’s head or a horse’s body, yet expecting the citizens of Great Zhou to regard them as their own, was too much to ask.

"Change!"

Zhao Xing shook his head and in an instant, he took on the appearance of Sang Ma.

"When we go in, try not to talk; I’ll handle everything," Zhao Xing said.

"If we encounter acquaintances, act according to the situation and try not to start a fight."

"Understood."

...

Entering the magma tunnel was a very long corridor.

Even though the corridor was isolated with an array, it emitted a wave of heat.

Zhao Xing and his companions just entered and were already thirsty and tongue-tired.

"The Flame Mountain range truly is a natural barrier; it’s really unbearable," Long Xiao muttered breathlessly.

They all were of high rank, but now disguised as eighth-grade, they had to exhibit the power of that rank.

Great Zhou’s eighth-grade military officers couldn’t withstand going down into the tunnel.

It was only the Fire Demon Clan, who grew up in this environment, whose body structures and skin were resistant to heat.

"A seventh-grade without protection couldn’t get over Flame Mountain either," Chen Shijie observed the surroundings; he was also here to assess the environmental condition of the Flame Mountain range.

The conclusion was that without protective gear, one simply couldn’t cross Flame Mountain.

"What is that?" Yu Ziqi gestured towards the left front wall of the tunnel.

"Fire flame crystals inside the magma tunnel, not of low value, one pound is worth 10 points," Zhao Xing explained, "Fire Element Mages have a great demand for these. However, they are just fragmented here, not a real mining zone, and it’s difficult to mine."

Upon stepping into the magma tunnel.

The four felt the temperature around them gradually rise.

The further down, the more severe.

The cave was spacious, not dark at all, but rather somewhat bright.

On the rock walls, there were multicolored crystals embedded within, glittering brightly.

These were flame crystals of very low concentration.

They continued forward and about an hour had passed.

The ground became smoother, and ahead appeared a river of magma!

"We’ve arrived!" Long Xiao and Yu Ziqi were somewhat excited. Wasn’t this the magma river?

"It’s still too early," Zhao Xing shook his head, "This is just the low-temperature area."

"Look at that sign, it’s written right there."

"As a Fifth-tier Treasure, the Earth Fire Lotus is definitely located in the high-temperature area, we just need to follow the signs downward."

Zhao Xing and the others continued to descend.

"Gurgle~" "Gurgle~"

Bubbles occasionally surfaced in the magma river.

Along the way, there were also quite a few eighth-grade miners from the Fire Demon Clan.

They gathered the flame crystals and transported them somewhere.

"This is the mining area," Zhao Xing whispered, "Some are used to make weapons, while others are placed in the soil to allow fire-element plants to grow quickly."

Ding dong~ Ding dong~

The sounds of mining echoed back and forth.

Zhao Xing and his group hurried through the mining area.

Suddenly, a burst of brightness appeared before them.

Above their heads in the cave, a sky full of stars flickered and twinkled.

Those were high-concentration flame crystals embedded in the rock layer above.

"Earth Fire Cultivation Array."

"We’ve arrived!"

Zhao Xing was also somewhat excited.

It had been his previous life since his last visit, and now it was another kind of ’return to the old place.’

"Look, there’s the Earth Fire Lotus!"

Zhao Xing pointed towards the front of the magma river.

The river had a backflow ahead, where the normally fast-flowing section had accumulated into an underground magma lake.

And within the lake, blossomed several red lotus flowers.

"This is the artificially-changed Earth Fire Spirit Lake."

"But the Earth Fire Lotus here only nurtures third-tier seeds."

Yu Ziqi asked, "Are third-tier seeds sufficient?"

Chen Shijie looked toward Zhao Xing, as he was unable to break the growth limit of the plants.

"To be on the safe side, we should collect fourth-tier lotus seeds," Zhao Xing said, "and gather some third and fifth-tier ones too."

Earth Fire Lotus cultivation environment is harsh, and although ’Instant Primordial’ was already at High Order Sixth Transition, it was not foolproof.

Since they were here, they might as well scoop up a bit of everything.

"Old Chen and I will do the sneaking, you guys go handle the moving," Zhao Xing waved his hand.

The four of them dispersed, with Long Xiao and Yu Ziqi both going to move boxes.

They transported boxes filled with flame crystals, then through the rope bridges, poured them into a certain lotus area; that was their job.

"Huff ha~ Huff ha~"

Long Xiao and Yu Ziqi started to pant as they toiled.

Zhao Xing and Chen Shijie were also working, but they sneakily caused disturbances, picking seeds in the lotus area.