Chapter 870, Volcanic Crater

Translator: Jon

Translation Checker: Silavin

 

With the city as the centre, a radius of 1,000 kilometres around it could be considered the territory of Blue Flame Mountain Pass.

 

According to the ten-point map, White Jade City Pass was on the left and Clear Moon Cave Pass was on the right. Although there was some distance between the three Passes, they could help each other out at any moment and form a defence line.

 

The defence line of Bing Zhou Watch was formed with all these Passes.

 

Just like Blue Flame Mountain Pass, White Jade City Pass belonged to Great Moon Canyon while Clear Moon Cave Pass belonged to Small Moon Canyon.

 

Taking that into consideration, Blue Flame Mountain Pass was the rightmost defence node of Great Moon Canyon.

 

Under normal circumstances, the defence line that spanned 2,000 kilometres required a lot of cultivators to patrol to prevent enemies from Thousand Demon Ridge from sneaking in.

 

However, only Nian Yuexian and Lu Ye were in Blue Flame Mountain Pass, so they could only rely on themselves.

 

Now that Lu Ye was responsible for patrolling the Pass, he had to ensure that the area around the Pass was safe.

 

After a night’s rest, he set off with Yi Yi and Amber at the break of dawn.

 

He and Amber were clearly visible while Yi Yi stayed hidden. Although there were only three of them, he had a powerful perception while Yi Yi could remain invisible. If some enemies from Thousand Demon Ridge were hiding somewhere, they would be exposed.

 

While patrolling the area, a rhythm Lu Ye had almost forgotten about suddenly sprang back into his mind.

 

‘The King has asked me to patrol the mountain. I enjoy life to the fullest…’

 

He quickly shook his head to cast away the untimely thought.

 

The defence line on both sides of Blue Flame Mountain Pass spanned 2,000 kilometres, and he hadn’t included the depth of the terrain yet. He certainly couldn’t patrol the entire area in one day.

 

His initial plan was to inspect a radius of 100 kilometres around the area. Despite that, it still took him half a day to do so.

 

The biggest problem with the Pass was the lack of manpower. Lu Ye could only ensure no enemies were hiding within a radius of 100 kilometres around the area.

 

Moreover, before his arrival, Nian Yuexian had been guarding the place on her own. She didn’t seem like she would patrol the area, but the defence line had remained intact over the years.

 

Therefore, even though Lu Ye was responsible for patrolling the area, he didn’t have to be overly meticulous.

 

Nevertheless, as he inspected more places, he soon found something interesting.

 

The further he went into the defence line, the hotter the air felt.

 

In fact, he had already realised it the moment he arrived at this Pass previously. The environment here seemed to be more humid than in other places.

 

He was busy carrying out trivial tasks given to him by Nian Yuexian in the past, so he didn’t think too deeply about it. Now, he discovered something different.

 

Then, he thought about the location of this Pass. The word ‘Flame’ in Blue Flame Mountain seemed to indicate something.

 

Initially, he intended to send Nian Yuexian a message through the military token to ask about this matter. He wanted to find out if his speculation was right.

 

After giving it some thought, he decided against the idea.

 

Although Shui Yuan had assured him that Nian Yuexian didn’t have any malicious intentions, Lu Ye was fed up with the woman for abusing him as of late. As such, he didn’t want to come into contact with her for the time being.

 

He identified the direction and went deeper into the defence line.

 

He didn’t come across any obstacles or enemies from Thousand Demon Ridge. Perhaps they were hiding somewhere or none of them dared cause trouble here.

 

Lu Ye felt it was the former.

 

Although it sounded majestic that Nian Yuexian was able to protect an entire Pass on her own, there were inevitably many weak points in the defence line.

 

Despite the fact that Nian Yuexian was a Divine Ocean Realm Master, she couldn’t possibly scan the surroundings with her Divine Ego all the time. Lu Ye reckoned that many cultivators from Thousand Demon Ridge would sneak into the Grand Sky Coalition’s territory through this Pass.

 

Certainly, it was risky to do such a thing. Once they were discovered by Nian Yuexian, they would be doomed.

 

Anyway, risks were inevitable if they wanted to sneak into the other party’s territory, regardless of how they wanted to do it. There was never a lack of bold and powerful people who were willing to take on such a risk.

 

Lu Ye felt increasingly hotter, and even the air was filled with a pungent smell. Knowing that his speculation was right, he was excited.

 

There must be a volcanic crater somewhere in front of him.

 

He had a Glyph on the Tree of Glyphs that was half-activated because he didn’t have sufficient Mystic Flames and Core Flames. It had been stuck that way for quite a while.

 

As of late, he had been trying to look for suitable Mystic Flames and Core Flames in the Vault of Providence, but his attempt was in vain.

 

Much to his surprise, he discovered something in this Pass. He had been struggling to find the things he wanted, but now, they were somewhere in front of him.

 

However, this area was pretty close to the territory of Thousand Demon Ridge. According to his calculation, even if there was indeed a volcanic crater in front of him, it would be located in the enemy’s territory.

 

As such, he had to be careful with his actions. If his whereabouts were exposed in the other party’s territory, he would be doomed.

 

He went on to move forward for 200 kilometres. There was no longer any greenery around him, and the pungent smell in the air was even more intense. He lifted his gaze and saw a barren mountain in the distance.

 

Hot air billowed from the crater. It was so scorching that even the Void around it looked contorted.

 

Lu Ye didn’t immediately move forward. Instead, he fished out the ten-point map to identify his location. A moment later, he furrowed his brows.

 

It was a pretty awkward location because it was within Thousand Demon Ridge’s territory. The enemies might be patrolling nearby places. If he went over there, he could hardly conceal his whereabouts.

 

After some deliberation, he still decided to go there and have a look.

 

He was a Real Lake Realm Master now. Although he was only a First-Order Master who had recently achieved an ascension, he was significantly more powerful than in the past.

 

As long as his enemies weren’t too powerful, he wouldn’t fall into danger.

 

Also, he didn’t have to worry about coming across Divine Ocean Realm Masters, for such people usually wouldn’t leave their Passes to avoid giving the other party a chance to invade their territories.

 

Divine Ocean Realm Masters were like the pillars of strength for the Passes.

 

Even when the two sides clashed at the frontlines, rarely any Divine Ocean Realm Masters would be seen fighting each other. That was because, in their Realm, they could see things that the weaker cultivators couldn’t. Unless there was a blood feud between them, they usually wouldn’t contend with each other.

 

It was indeed a rare chance. The Fire-Attribute power within the crater must be immense. If Lu Ye could get some benefits out of it, he wouldn’t only open up a new Glyph on the Tree of Glyphs. More Glyphs might be even activated.

 

After making up his mind, he stepped forward. But before that, he had summoned Yi Yi and kept Amber inside the Spirit Beast Bag.

 

It was a hostile environment. Although Yi Yi and Amber could resist it, they would need to consume a lot of energy.

 

Moreover, Amber was a conspicuous target. If anyone familiar with Lu Ye saw the tiger, they would immediately realise Lu Ye was there.

 

With Amber inside the bag, even if Lu Ye came across cultivators from Thousand Demon Ridge, there was still room for manoeuvre.

 

He then leapt into the air and arrived at the crater. He looked down and saw hot air billowing from it. The lava inside was boiling, and bubbles burst loudly.

 

In this place, even Lu Ye had to activate his Spiritual Power to resist the scorching heat.

 

He couldn’t help but recall the time when he arrived at Burning Lands on the Spirit Creek Battlefield. He was still weak at that time, and the environment was similar to the one he was in now.

 

In comparison, even though Burning Lands was located on the Spirit Creek Battlefield, the quality of True Phoenix Flame there was much better than the one here.

 

Having seen a lot of Mystic Flames and Core Flames, Lu Ye could evaluate their quality with only one glance.

 

Although the quality of Fire-Attribute power here wasn’t considered good, it was massive. If he could stay here for a long time, the Tree of Glyphs would be well-fed. A lot of leaves would be ignited, and many new Glyphs would be unlocked.

 

Naturally, such a precious place was attractive to Lu Ye. Without hesitation, he leapt into the crater.

 

Dozens of metres away, a figure hiding in the Void had been observing him. Lu Ye had never detected her presence.

 

The only person who could conceal her presence and follow Lu Ye without him realising it was Nian Yuexian.

 

When she saw the man leaping into the crater, she was surprised, wondering what he was trying to do.

 

After giving it some thought, she recalled that Lu Ye cultivated a Fire-Attribute cultivation technique, so he might want to cultivate his power in this environment.

 

“He’s pretty bold.” Nian Yuexian snorted, but she didn’t jump into the crater.

 

The reason she had been following Lu Ye was that it was his first time patrolling the area. She only had one subordinate, and he was a disciple of the Crimson Blood Sect. Naturally, she had to pay more attention to him.

 

Much to her surprise, Lu Ye suddenly went to the Thousand Demon Ridge’s territory and even leapt into the crater.

 

Nian Yuexian had no intention of following him any further. Although the environment was hostile, Lu Ye must have the confidence to stay safe by making such a decision. He was a Real Lake Realm Master, so he didn’t need anyone to be worried about him all the time.

 

She could pay more attention to Lu Ye, but she wouldn’t take care of him like a Mother. Otherwise, he wouldn’t go far on his cultivation journey.

 

She looked in the Lone Cloud City’s direction and muttered, “Since I’m already here, let’s go there and have a look.”

 

It had been a long time since she last saw Wan Zhanggang, so she wondered if the old fart was still alive.

 

When the two sides clashed at the frontlines, Divine Ocean Realm Masters normally wouldn’t show up.

 

The only exception was Nian Yuexian of Blue Flame Mountain Pass.

 

The other Divine Ocean Realm Masters would always stay in their respective Passes. They had a duty to guard their Passes and scan their surroundings to ensure everyone’s safety.

 

On the other hand, Nian Yuexian would leave Blue Flame Mountain Pass from time to time. Whenever she felt like it, she would visit Lone Cloud City and cause the cultivators of Thousand Demon Ridge there to suffer miserably. Wan Zhanggang was resentful of her, but there was nothing much he could do about it.

 

It was hard to stop a Ghost Cultivator in the Divine Ocean Realm who was well-versed in the Way of Wards and concealment from sneaking into any place.

 

Even if her whereabouts were exposed, she was capable of fighting her way out of danger.

 

If any other Divine Ocean Realm Master from another Pass had the audacity to do such a thing, those from Thousand Demon Ridge would definitely retaliate against them. However, the uniqueness of Blue Flame Mountain Pass ensured that those from Thousand Demon Ridge were unable to counterattack.

 

Nian Yuexian was on her own in Blue Flame Mountain Pass. It wouldn’t matter even if the Pass was occupied. The Grand Sky Coalition wouldn’t lose any soldiers. Without any restraints, Nian Yuexian would become even more dangerous.