"Rescue?" Dragon Jade sighed. "You might as well accept your fate."
"Fuck you!" Qin Yang erupted, utterly bewildered. Is this supposed to be a magical treasure that recognizes me as its master?
"There's a Gold Flame Explosion Dragon outside. Devour it and temper my body! If I can strengthen my physical foundation again, I'll be able to fully absorb the Demon Spirit Fruit's power!"
Qin Yang shouted desperately.
Dragon Jade's voice trembled. "In theory, that makes sense... but..."
From Dragon Jade's perspective, fire tempering was inherently dangerous. The ice tempering had been a fluke—could they rely on another such coincidence?
Eating the Demon Spirit Fruit meant certain death, and attempting fire tempering was equally suicidal. Combined, they would only lead to a more complete demise...
"At worst, we'll die. Why not take the chance?" Qin Yang pressed.
"Very well," Dragon Jade acquiesced.
If the Qin Family's bloodline ended here, Dragon Jade would sink into eternal slumber. This was Qin Yang's hope, and in truth, its own as well.
They trudged through the corridor, the journey taking many times longer than the initial approach.
The arena gate loomed ahead, but the Gold Flame Explosion Dragon's presence had vanished.
Qin Yang gasped for air, each labored step sending searing pain through his body.
Thud! Qin Yang burst through the cell door and collapsed onto the ground.
A deep roar echoed in his ears—the Gold Flame Explosion Dragon hadn't left. It stood guard at the entrance, its flames now subdued, resembling a living rock formation.
Noticing Qin Yang's condition, the dragon's tail tip flared with golden fire. The creature tilted its head in confusion—how had the boy's life force deteriorated so drastically in the blink of an eye?
The dragon's curious gaze met Qin Yang's, who turned his head with a faint smile. The beast's lack of aggression proved its assessment of him as non-threatening—a perfect opening!
"Dragon's Might!"
The Gold Flame Explosion Dragon crashed to the ground. Qin Yang's fingers shot forward like a sword, plunging into the dragon's unguarded eye before it could react.
He had no choice. With his current injuries, the eyes were the only vulnerable point left.
The Dragon Jade began devouring the energy, molten power surging into Qin Yang's body.
Ah!
Already wracked by internal tearing, Qin Yang's pain intensified to unbearable levels. The magma-like energy flooded his damaged meridians, threatening to cook him alive...
The Dragon Jade controlled the flow, guiding the power through Qin Yang's torn meridians along their original pathways.
The power of frost, the power of flame, and the medicinal strength of the Demon Spirit Fruit—these three forces waged war within Qin Yang's body, pulling and colliding against each other.
The frost power desperately sought to stabilize Qin Yang's physical form, while the Demon Spirit Fruit oscillated between frenzied destruction and miraculous healing.
The newly introduced flame power acted like a blacksmith's hammer, relentlessly pounding Qin Yang's body. This violent process seemed to catalyze a strange reaction, driving the Demon Spirit Fruit's medicinal properties deep into his flesh and bones.
Simultaneously, the frost power refined itself into a purer, more potent form.
Slowly but surely, positive changes began manifesting in Qin Yang's body, though progress remained painstakingly gradual.
"It seems I really won't die after all," Qin Yang mused, unable to fully articulate his emotions. At this rate, he'd be back to full vitality within two hours at most.
"You're one lucky bastard, boy," Dragon Jade marveled, shaking his head in bewilderment. "How the hell are you still alive...?"
"Heh heh, ever heard the saying 'two negatives make a positive'?" Qin Yang grinned widely, his mood lifting as he pulled out a handful of pills while spouting nonsense.
Gathering Qi Pill, Breath Recovery Pill, Mind Concentration Pill—he stuffed them all into his mouth at once.
Though merely second-tier, their supreme quality compensated for their lack of potency.
As the frost-infused true qi surged through him, Qin Yang's recovery accelerated several times over.
Qin Yang lay motionless before the Gold Flame Explosion Dragon, his figure appearing utterly insignificant beneath the massive creature's bulk.
Suddenly, a fist-sized spherical artifact materialized before Qin Yang's eyes. It hovered silently in the air, circling around his body before moving to encircle the dragon.
"What the hell is this?" Qin Yang's mind filled with question marks.
He felt as if he were being watched.
Giant screens suddenly appeared on the arena walls, their images revealing none other than Qin Yang himself!
"Live broadcast... here?"
Qin Yang's jaw dropped. Could that spherical artifact be some kind of camera?
"Could the arena still be operating under the array's maintenance?"
The thought had barely formed when a heavy sound reached his ears - like the bars of a cell door being released one by one.
"Could it be..." An ominous premonition gripped Qin Yang.
After what felt like an eternity, Qin Yang exhaled in relief. "Thankfully, it's empty. What if some beast had burst out from there..."
His words were cut short as a gale-force wind roared through the newly opened passageway.
In an instant, a powerful storm engulfed the entire arena, swirling violently. The massive whirlwind of dust reduced visibility to zero, making it impossible to see even a hand in front of one's face.
Crack! Qin Yang slapped himself across the face. "Damn black cat...!"
He edged closer to the corpse of the Gold Flame Explosion Dragon, his heart pounding with the hope that he wouldn't be discovered.
A wild beast's cry pierced the air, filled with restrained joy.
The Stormhawk spread its wings, flapping them repeatedly until the storm gradually subsided.
As the dust settled, Qin Yang could see through the arena's massive wall screen that the Stormhawk had soared straight into the heavens, disappearing into the sky.
The screen's image suddenly glitched, twisting and distorting before vanishing completely.
Qin Yang finally managed to calm down. As his body recovered, it felt as if he were being remolded - stronger than before.
If his physique had previously been as robust as a beast's, now he could truly be called a humanoid beast!
Nearly two hours had passed. Qin Yang exhaled deeply and rose to his feet.
He stretched, his body crackling like popping beans.
"Shocking Sword Finger!" Qin Yang thrust his fingers like a blade at the Gold Flame Explosion Dragon's teeth—the hardest part of a Zongshi-level demonic beast...
Well, it didn't budge an inch.
Yet Qin Yang's fingers felt no pain.
Circulating his true qi, he blended frosty cold and blazing heat within his body. Under the Yin-Yang All-Embracing Art's control, these opposing forces coexisted without conflict.
He slapped the wall, and with a thought, it alternated between scalding heat and freezing cold.
He could switch between these powers at will, even deploying both simultaneously.
"Your physical strength now surpasses your cultivation realm," Dragon Jade marveled. "You're practically a monster!"
Qin Yang rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, I haven't forgotten how you abandoned me to death—and even tried to harm your master!"
"..." The Dragon Jade remained silent.
"Now that you've recovered from your injuries, let's have some fun!" Qin Yang's eyes flashed with a cold light. "Nangong Ling, Wei Yu, let's play!"
His thoughts turned to the Treasure Rat, stirring both hatred and gratitude.
He hated that the Treasure Rat had sought the Demon Spirit Fruit, which only benefited demonic beasts. Yet he was grateful that without this perilous journey, he might never have seized such an extraordinary opportunity.
Returning to the passage, Qin Yang once again entered the first-level structure through the small door.
Unnoticed behind him, the spherical magical artifact followed. On the inner walls of the arena, a green light distorted momentarily before reforming into a new image.
Even the outer walls of the arena now displayed massive screens.
This phenomenon extended throughout the Demon Hunter's Field's first, second, and third-level structures, with screens appearing in numerous locations.
Among these locations was the Demon Hunter's Field's Kitchen 3!
All screens showed identical footage: Qin Yang's silhouette, carrying a magical lantern, quietly walking down a corridor.