Chapter 357 – Hunting Legends!

Under the golden-red sky, the boiling volcano shook violently. Magma and flames erupted, and terrifying heat waves seemed like invisible giant hands slapping wildly in the air, scorching the atmosphere into distorted blurs.

Oresa from the Distant Star Federation and the brown-haired youth Javier had just competed to reach the summit when they were greeted by this hellish inferno.

Even with the top-tier Protective armor, they could still feel the searing heat waves radiating through the air, with even the hairs on their bodies seemingly singed to a crisp.

But they had no time to be shocked as their attention was entirely captured by the scene over the crater.

Hovering above the boiling crater was a magnificent great bird, orange-red in color, soaring and circling while letting out clear cries.

At the center of the great bird’s circle was a colossal egg, about half the size of a person, gleaming snow-white.

An intense legendary aura emanated from the egg, spreading in waves in all directions.

As this aura spread, ancient and mysterious energies seeped from the ground below, rising up…

It seemed as if the entire Embers Mountain secret realm was slowly awakening…

“Phoenix… Phoenix Egg!”

Oresa and Javier stared blankly at the wondrous scene in the sky. After a brief moment of shock and awe, their hearts were immediately filled with burning desire.

Almost without hesitation, they both soared into the sky, leaving behind long, brilliant trails of flames as they rushed toward the egg.

Seeing this, the orange-red great bird immediately let out a long cry and spread its wings.

It then unleashed a surge of sweeping flames, wrapping violently toward the two men.

Their figures paused for a moment before they both erupted with full strength simultaneously.

Rays of knife light and fist energy, laden with immense power, shot out with a roar, pushing aside vast waves of flame and creating almost a vacuum in the air.

However, when their attacks collided with the flames, the anticipated loud explosion did not occur.

Instead, the commotion was surprisingly small.

The fierce flames, upon touching the knife light and fist energy, exploded with a “boom,” scattering fire sparks everywhere in the sky.

When the flames dissipated.

The crater above, where the orange-red great bird and the colossal egg once were, was now empty.

Far in the distant skyline, a faint silhouette of the orange-red bird could barely be seen.

“Uh…”

Oresa and Javier stared in astonishment.

They never expected that the seemingly mystical and extraordinary Phoenix would simply take the egg and flee!

And it did so with incredible speed, vanishing in the blink of an eye into the horizon.

“Damn it!”

Realizing the vast distance and the speed at which the bird had fled, both Oresa and Javier quickly abandoned any thought of giving chase.

However, giving up the chase did not mean giving up on the Phoenix Egg. With a flicker in their eyes, the news of the Phoenix and the Phoenix Egg’s appearance was quickly relayed.

Faced with such an unprecedented “legendary item,” no one would give up easily. The real competition was just beginning.

“How do we divide the other wondrous items here?”

Javier’s brown-haired youth looked down, scanning the ground where some precious wondrous items were faintly visible, and spoke to Oresa.

“First-come, first-served…”

Oresa surveyed the surroundings, his expression serious. “We can’t stay here long; this volcano is about to erupt…”

The brown-haired youth nodded. Without further words, they swiftly moved around the crater, quickly picking the nearby wondrous items.

During this process, the volcano beneath them continued to tremble, increasingly violent, with terrifying magma and flames constantly spouting from the crevices.

Eventually, even with their equipment and strength, they could no longer approach the ground.

The intense heat waves made their sky level armament searingly hot, as if they might ignite at any moment.

“Let’s go, any longer and we might not make it out.”

The brown-haired youth called for Oresa to leave, looking regretfully at the wondrous items they couldn’t collect.

He glanced back at the crater, his tone even more wistful. “The wondrous items accompanying the Phoenix Egg were probably of higher value. Unfortunately, we got none of them… We were a bit late…”

“Thankfully, we were late. If we had arrived earlier, our fate might have been the same as his…”

“What do you mean?”

“You didn’t notice? Someone who arrived before us still hasn’t shown up.”

Oresa glanced at the brown-haired youth and said calmly.

The brown-haired youth paused, quickly realizing whom Oresa was referring to.

“You mean…”

The brown-haired youth abruptly looked down. By now, the crater was completely filled with overflowing magma, emanating unbearable heat and devoid of any other presence.

“I saw that Hidden Star from Xia State enter the crater earlier, but I never saw him come out…

I assume he’s most likely dead. Even a seventh stage individual can’t survive in such magma. Unless his mastery over the power of the evil deity can resist temperatures of hundreds of thousands of degrees, which is highly unlikely…”

Oresa analyzed coldly.

“The Hidden Stars’ powers come too easily; that’s their fatal flaw… This seventh stage Hidden Star falling here is surely a significant loss for Xia State.”

The brown-haired youth remarked, then fell silent. The increasingly agitated and perilous heat around them urged them to leave.

The two quickly departed from the volcano’s summit.

Just as they moved several kilometers away, a thunderous explosion echoed behind them.

The massive volcano erupted entirely.

Terrifying magma and flames spewed from the crater, staining the sky a brilliant scarlet red.

The eruption’s impact spread rapidly, causing the entire desolate forbidden land to tremble. Countless streams of magma surged from the ground, devouring and covering the sparse landscape.

A true inferno was forming, expanding continuously in all directions…

…

A Phoenix Egg Appears at the Center of the Secret Realm!

This news spread like wildfire throughout the Embers Mountain secret realm.

There was no way to keep it hidden; the commotion from the Deep Mist Zone was simply too immense.

Terrifying magma overflowed from the forbidden land, consuming vast swathes of the ancient forest. It even triggered underground magma rivers beneath the forest, transforming more than half of the Deep Mist Zone into a molten inferno within just a few hours.

Adding to the frenzy, numerous people witnessed what appeared to be a Phoenix carrying the Phoenix Egg flying across the secret realm sky.

The overwhelming aura and peculiar energy waves of the legendary creature could be sensed clearly even from dozens of kilometers away.

Everyone involved in this joint operation was thrilled. Forces inside and outside the secret realm plunged into a frenzy, sparing no expense in escalating their exploration efforts.

This expedition to Embers Mountain by countries around the world was destined to be etched into history.

Because… they might very well be hunting a true legend!

…

“Whoosh-whoosh-“

Intense winds swept past his body. Lan Chen was fully encased in his blue exoskeleton armor, with his energy shield fully activated, speeding through the air.

Ahead of him were five or six figures, all with strength above the second stage.

Leading them was a fourth-stage powerhouse of the modification system, clad in earth level armament. His expression was solemn and he remained silent.

“So, what exactly is our mission this time?”

After flying for half an hour, nearly entering the Deep Mist Zone, someone in the group finally couldn’t hold back and spoke up.

The question was naturally directed at the fourth-stage leader. Along with Lan Chen, the rest of the team turned their curious gazes toward him.

The team leader said nothing but replied plainly, “The Distant Star Federation has granted shared access to ‘Pursuit of Deity.’ You should be able to find relevant information now, check it yourselves.”

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then looked down.

Lan Chen attempted a search and discovered that a broad new information network indeed existed within the secret realm.

A temporary interactive platform had been set up on this network, already brimming with various pieces of information.

“A Phoenix?! A Phoenix Egg?!”

At first glance, those frequently appearing words left Lan Chen utterly stunned.

He had anticipated the mission would be significant, but he hadn’t expected it to be of such magnitude.

The legendary Phoenix and the Phoenix Egg had both manifested. No wonder they had been urgently mobilized. No wonder he saw so many personnel gathering at the various bases of different forces at the headquarters, with all kinds of manpower being dispatched into the secret realm as if there was no end.

Lan Chen, both shocked and shaken, quickly skimmed through the information, forming a rough understanding of the situation in his mind.

The authenticity of the Phoenix was still in question, but the veracity of the Phoenix Egg was over ninety percent.

The suspected Phoenix creature was flying around the secret realm with the Phoenix Egg, causing more than half of the Deep Mist Zone to turn into a sea of magma. The environment had become ten times more dangerous and hostile than before.

Ancient evil deity creatures in the Deep Mist Zone had rioted, but under the combined slaughter of various forces, they couldn’t pose a significant threat.

There were many wondrous items, leading to continuous conflicts among the forces…

The suspected Phoenix creature and the Phoenix Egg were constantly being tracked. The united forces had already organized two sieges, but unfortunately, both had failed.

They were now preparing to participate in the third organized hunting operation.

It was said that the Distant Star Federation was even prepared to deploy the Ice God, a divine level mecha stationed outside the secret realm at any moment!

Their determination to obtain the legendary Phoenix Egg was unquestionable…

Lan Chen finished reading all the messages in one go, lifting his head in shock.

He noticed that his companions had almost identical expressions on their faces.

Everyone was incredibly surprised and found it hard to believe that this exploration of the legendary-level secret realm had uncovered such an immense “Treasure.”

“By the way, where’s Lu Yuan? Where is he now?”

A figure suddenly appeared in Lan Chen’s mind. He instinctively wanted to contact him.

But after several attempts with no response, he had to give up.

…

“Dead?!”

Yin Muqing stood in mid-air, her face full of astonishment and disbelief as she listened to the news from Ling Yu in front of her, seemingly unable to grasp the reality of it.

Ling Yu nodded, his expression complex as he spoke, “Lord Yang Nan himself confirmed it.

They saw with their own eyes that he charged up the forbidden volcano where the Phoenix Egg was being incubated.

But until the Phoenix Egg escaped, the volcano erupted, and the magma and flames consumed everything… they never saw him come out again.”