406: Chapter 406 The Mystery of the Blazing Fire

"How exactly should we do it?" Dongfang Xinghe asked.

Ye Tian lowered his voice and detailed his plan: "First we do this... then that... finally... remember, strike once and hit, then flee far away once you succeed. You must not get caught up in the fight!

The primary target is Nangong Zhaotian. If that's not possible, focus on depleting their active forces and creating Chaos. Then, we will immediately retreat via that small path and head straight for the Five Elements Unification Hall.

Once their Formation is in disarray, they won't be able to pursue us effectively for a short while."

Listening to Ye Tian's well-organized plan, the eyes of Dongfang Xinghe and the other two lit up.

"This plan is brilliant!"

Dongfang Xinghe clapped his hands, then frowned slightly. "However, that black-robed old man has a profound cultivation. Junior Brother Ye, is it too risky for you to deal with Nangong Zhaotian alone while also having to watch out for him?

How about Junior Brother Pei and I support you and pin down that black-robed old man?"

"No need." Ye Tian shook his head, a glimmer of confidence flashing in his eyes. "Leave that black-robed old man to me.

I have a way to briefly restrain him, and maybe even... give him a surprise. Senior Brother, you just need to act according to the plan.

Remember, our advantage lies in the element of surprise. Once exposed, immediately switch to the second plan; retreat is the priority."

Seeing Ye Tian so certain, the three said no more. After all, having come this far, they were quite convinced of Ye Tian's strength.

With the plan settled, the four immediately split up to prepare.

Dongfang Xinghe quietly took out several Formation Flags and some specially-made Talismans. Using the rock crevices and the heat as cover, he began to set them up.

His techniques were exquisite, as he tried his best to blend the Spiritual Qi fluctuations caused by the Formation into the violent fire Spiritual Qi of the environment.

Pei Tieshan began to silently gather his strength, adjusting his breathing as his True Essence slowly circulated.

Shui Qingdie closed her eyes and focused. A faint water-blue radiance flowed at her fingertips; though it flickered under the suppression of the surrounding fire Spiritual Qi, it appeared even more subtle.

Ye Tian lay prone on the edge of the rock ledge, his spiritual sense locked onto the movements of every target below, calculating the optimal moment to strike.

His gaze mainly fell on Nangong Zhaotian and the black-robed old man, especially the latter.

This person's aura was cold and gloomy, completely out of place in the scorching environment. The Cultivation Technique he practiced was clearly not fire-attributed, yet he could move freely here, and his spiritual sense perception was so keen; he was definitely not simple.

"Fourth Stage Peak of the Sea Transformation Realm... stronger than that red-robed old man. Moreover, this aura carries a hint of corrosion; it doesn't seem like a Righteous Path Cultivation Technique."

Ye Tian secretly felt wary, condensing a trace of Chaos True Essence at his fingertips, ready to launch a lightning-fast strike at any moment.

Time passed bit by bit, and the people from the Nangong Family below seemed to grow a bit lax.

Aside from a few guards still vigilantly watching the direction of the stone bridge, most were either meditating to regulate their breathing or talking in low voices.

"Young Master Nangong, will that brat Ye Tian really come here? We've been waiting here for nearly two days."

A Sea Transformation Third Stage guard standing next to Nangong Zhaotian couldn't help but ask, his tone a bit irritable.

This ghostly place was really not a place for humans to stay.

Nangong Zhaotian slowly opened his eyes, a red light flashing within them as he said coldly, "What's the rush? Once they collect the two tokens, they will definitely head to the Five Elements Unification Hall.

The Flame Cave is the shortest path, unless they want to take a detour, but that would only be slower and more dangerous. Given Ye Tian's character, he will surely choose the shortest path and pursue the fastest speed.

We only need to wait here at our leisure for him to walk right into our trap."

"Young Master's wisdom is profound," another guard flattered. "It's just that Ye Tian's strength is not weak; back at the Chixiao Thunder Hall..."

"Hmph!" Nangong Zhaotian snorted coldly, interrupting him, his eyes overflowing with killing intent. "At the Chixiao Thunder Hall, he just had dumb luck, obtained an Opportunity, and took advantage of the Thunder Pool's terrain!

Now in this Flame Cave, the fire spirit energy is flourishing; this is the home field of my Nangong Family. For someone like him with a non-fire-attributed Cultivation Technique, it's a suppression!

Moreover, with Elder Yin here, even if he had three heads and six arms, he would surely die today!"

As he spoke, he looked at the silent, black-robed old man beside him and said respectfully, "Elder Yin, I'll need you to oversee the situation later. We must ensure that kid has no chance to escape again!"

The black-robed old man's eyelids lifted slightly, revealing a pair of emotionless, grayish-white eyes. His voice was hoarse as he said, "Rest assured, Young Master. Since I have accepted the payment, I will naturally take his life.

There seems to be something strange about this boy; I would also like to see it for myself."

As he spoke, his grayish-white eyes swept intentionally or unintentionally toward the rock ledge where Ye Tian and the other three were hiding, but he didn't linger, seemingly having found nothing unusual.

On the rock ledge, Ye Tian's heart chilled slightly.

This old man's spiritual sense was indeed sharp; that sweep just now actually gave him a feeling of being watched.

Fortunately, the chaos bead moved slightly, and a layer of Chaos Qi enveloped the four, isolating them from the probe.

"That's it!"

A sharp light burst from Ye Tian's eyes as he shouted via sound transmission, "Action!"

"Boom!"

The first to respond was Pei Tieshan!

He had already been gathering power for a long time. With a roar, his entire body's True Essence surged, his muscles knotted, his right fist clenched tight, and the veins on his arm bulged.

Although he practiced an earth-attribute Cultivation Technique and was suppressed here, that brute force of his was unaffected by the environment!

"Open up for me!"

Pei Tieshan's eyes widened. He concentrated his entire body's strength into his right fist and slammed it fiercely into the rock wall node Ye Tian had designated!

"Crack!!"

A muffled bang rang out along with the sound of cracking rock.

That part of the rock wall suddenly caved inward, and cracks instantly spread for several zhang! Immediately after, massive amounts of debris collapsed!

More lethally, the interior of the rock wall was connected to an unstable Earth Fire Vein, which was triggered by this violent strike.

A surge of scorching earth fire erupted from the collapse, shooting straight up to the rock ceiling before crashing down toward the area near the lava lake below—specifically targeting that narrow path and its guards—in an overwhelming deluge!

"What's happening?!"

"The earth fire is rioting?!"

"Watch out for falling rocks!"

The Nangong Family guards below were stunned by this sudden upheaval, and shouts of alarm rose everywhere.

The two Sea Transformation Second Layer Martial Artists guarding the small path bore the brunt of it, looking up in horror.

They saw a sky full of burning boulders and scorching lava streams crashing down. Terrified out of their wits, they couldn't care less about guarding and hurriedly dodged to the sides in a Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering state.

"Enemy attack! Be careful!" On the main platform, Nangong Zhaotian stood up abruptly, instantly locking onto the direction of the rock wall collapse.

But he was also startled; this attack came from behind, not from the direction of the stone bridge they were primarily defending!

"Not a frontal assault? A feint?" Thoughts raced through Nangong Zhaotian's mind as he shouted sternly, "Don't panic! Hold your positions! This might be a lure!"

However, just as his command left his mouth, another change occurred!

"Formation, rise! Wandering Flowing Fire, Earth Fire Explosive Flame, activate!"

Almost at the same time Pei Tieshan struck the rock wall, Dongfang Xinghe, who had already quietly set up a Talisman Formation using the environment, formed hand seals and shouted softly, injecting several streaks of True Essence into the inconspicuous Formation Flags in his hand.

"Buzz!"

Centering on several nodes at the edge of the lava lake where fire Spiritual Qi was exceptionally active, streaks of pale red spiritual light suddenly lit up, quickly weaving into a simple Formation network covering dozens of zhang.

In an instant, within the area covered by the Formation, the fire Spiritual Qi suddenly became chaotic and violent. Countless sparks splashed everywhere, forming a "Mist of Wandering Fire."

At the same time, the ground vibrated slightly, and several preset nodes suddenly erupted with scorching columns of earth fire gas. Although not enough to seriously injure Sea Transformation Realm Martial Artists, they could create Chaos, block vision, and interfere with spiritual sense detection!

"Ah! My eyes!"

"My spiritual sense is being interfered with!"

"Watch out for the earth fire!"

"It's a Formation! There's a Formation Master!"