novelraw Chapter 588: Burning Sand
Chapter 588: Burning Sand
The temperature rose so abruptly that even Chu Miao, who had just endured six days of bone-freezing cold, felt her skin prickle uncomfortably.
The contrast was too extreme.
Behind them was a lush forest filled with spiritual energy, and ahead of them stretched an endless sea of golden sand that shimmered under a blazing sky.
Chu Miao also felt the pressure.
She didn’t speak immediately.
She extended her divine sense, letting it sweep across the desert.
However...
Just like in the cold zone, her divine sense was suppressed.
It couldn’t extend too far and even what she sensed felt distorted.
"This place..." she muttered softly. "It suppresses perception and amplifies environmental effects."
Inside her dantian, the blue crystal spun rapidly.
But unlike in the cold zone, where it absorbed energy to replenish loss, now it was working to compress the energy.
The spiritual energy entering her body was immediately condensed, layer by layer.
She could feel it become denser and heavier.
She had never felt like this even in the Immortal Realm. She could tell that this time even though she had started cultivating a few years later, her foundation was stronger and more stable.
Moreover, she had the power of faith that could grow in the future and help her ascend to godhood.
"Hey! Look there!" Li Kian suddenly pointed ahead.
In the distance, a massive dune shifted.
At first, it seemed like an illusion caused by heat.
But then,
It moved again.
Something was underneath the sand.
"Be careful," Chu Miao warned immediately.
The group stopped moving and looked ahead.
The sand began to tremble.
Then,
Boom!
A gigantic creature burst out from beneath the desert.
Sand exploded into the air like a storm and the creature revealed itself.
It was a massive lizard-like beast, its body covered in dark red scales that glowed like molten rock.
Its eyes burned like embers.
And its breath...
Released waves of heat that distorted the space around it.
"Another guardian beast..." Gu Fan muttered.
"This one is stronger than the python," Ye Xuan added calmly.
They had managed to avoid fighting the python, but it didn’t seem like they could avoid this lizard.
The lizard let out a loud roar.
The sound itself carried heat, making the air tremble violently.
Fighting here would definitely drain their spiritual energy faster, but if they didn’t fight, they would be dead.
Chu Miao wondered again where her ancestors had gotten these creatures from.
"Are we still letting the contract beasts fight?" Li Pan asked while observing the lizard.
She wondered whether someone from their sect could contract it as their beast.
It seemed to be strong and could definitely fight.
"No. We will fight this ourselves. We have to get used to fighting under any circumstances.
We can’t rely on external factors too much." Chu Miao turned her down.
The lizard suddenly lunged forward just as Chu Miao finished speaking.
Its speed was shocking despite its massive size.
"Spread out!" Ye Xuan commanded instantly.
The group split in different directions.
The ground where they had stood melted into molten sand.
"Damn!" Pei Ming shouted. "That’s not heat, that’s lava!"
"Then use this battle to stabilize your foundation." Chu Miao urged everyone.
"Don’t hold back."
This was indeed a good place to temper themselves.
Not only will it give them battle experience, it would also stabilize their foundation.
Chu Miao realized at this moment that the Soul Ring was a real treasure.
After experiencing so many things, no one in the group dared to underestimate anything inside the Soul Ring anymore.
As the battle continued, they realized something else that shocked and terrified them.
"The spiritual energy here is violent," Ye Xuan concluded after realizing that his attacks took time to stabilize and launch.
Chu Miao nodded.
"Yes. It’s not just the heat. The spiritual energy in this area is aggressive and chaotic."
She paused before continuing.
"If we’re not careful, it could damage our meridians."
The group instantly became vigilant.
They had just stabilized their foundations after the cold zone.
If they were careless now, everything they gained could be destroyed.
"So what do we do?" Murong Yi asked.
Chu Miao didn’t answer immediately.
"Let’s finish the battle first." She finally said.
The group worked together for ten minutes and killed the lizard.
Without a word, Chu Hao dug out the demon core and put it away.
After the battle, Chu Miao stood in place with her eyes closed as if she was searching for something.
Then, her eyes shot open and lit up like a Christmas tree.
"I see..." She said excitedly.
"What made you so happy, darling?" Ye Xuan asked curiously.
"This place doesn’t consume spiritual energy blindly." Chu Miao said slowly. "It tempers the body."
"The body?" Li Kun asked in surprise.
"Yes."
Chu Miao clenched her fist slightly.
She looked around at the endless desert.
"The heat...focuses on the physical body."
Understanding dawned on everyone’s faces.
"In other words," Chu Hao said, "this place is for body tempering?"
"Exactly."
Little White, who had been lazily lying on Chu Miao’s shoulder, suddenly lifted its head.
"It’s not just body tempering," it added. "It also does body forging."
Everyone turned to look at it.
"The heat here carries a trace of fire law," Little White continued. "It burns away impurities in the flesh, blood, and even bones."
"But..." it showed its sharp teeth as if smirking, "it’s also extremely dangerous."
"If your body can’t handle it, you’ll be burned from the inside out."
Li Kian swallowed hard.
"...Why does every place in here sound like it’s trying to kill us?"
The cold zone was the same, and now there is a fire zone.
Chu Miao turned to face everyone.
"Listen carefully."
Her tone became serious.
"We will not use full protective barriers here."
"What?!" Pei Ming immediately protested. "Are you trying to roast us alive?"
"If you use full protection," Chu Miao said coldly, "then you will gain nothing."
"Instead," she continued, "reduce your barriers to the minimum and circulate your spiritual energy through your body."