Chapter 233: The Crisis Emerges

"Come in, Storm Tooth Wolf."

After the Paper Puppet stopped cultivating, Ye Bai hurriedly retracted the Storm Tooth Wolf, which had nearly been roasted, into a Beast Card.

The Paper Puppet's paper could simulate a Beast Card, and its own strength was already very high; after being baptized by the Thunder Pool, all the weird yin energy on its body had been washed away by the Thunder Pool.

At this moment, it had a feeling like a god or a Buddha.

The Paper Puppet retracted both Dahui and the Storm Tooth Wolf into its own body.

Her eyes, which were like glazed glass, looked toward the Secret Realm that had already changed drastically.

"Ye Bai, I have a faint, bad premonition."

"If you don't leave after one day, something bad will happen."

The Paper Puppet bit her lip slightly and said to Ye Bai.

At this moment, she was becoming more and more like a human.

"I know, I am currently searching for the Lava Heart; once I find it, I will leave here immediately."

"Paper Puppet, you don't need to worry; I will put my own safety first."

Ye Bai knew what the Paper Puppet was worried about.

After the volcanic eruption, the entire Secret Realm had become unrecognizable.

Where there were once beautiful mountains and clear waters, now only scorched earth and ashes remained.

The sky was obscured by thick smoke, and the firelight illuminated half the horizon.

The Great Earthquake trembled, and amidst the roaring sound, lava snaked down like a giant serpent, devouring all greenery and life.

The ground of the Secret Realm was flowing with a large amount of magma, like a river.

Occasionally, a lonely bird would sweep across the gray sky, its cry desolate and distant.

Not long after, this bird was hit by countless fireballs the size of basketballs, and its body was blown to pieces, leaving nothing behind.

After the Lava Monsters devoured all the living Exotic Beasts.

They began to devour their own kind.

These Lava Monsters all received a message in their minds: as long as they devoured each other, the final victor would become a Lava Lord.

A Lava Lord was the top dog among sixth-rank Exotic Beasts, and when its power was fully unleashed, it could even go head-to-head with a seventh-rank Exotic Beast.

It could be said to be a bona fide behemoth.

Even the Paper Puppet admitted that even if she took action, she had no guarantee of victory.

Because the Lava Lord's flames countered the Paper Puppet's yin paper.

Once a Lava Lord appeared, the Paper Puppet would immediately activate the power of the Space Talisman to teleport Ye Bai out.

Fang Yu sat on the back of a Hell Devil Fish, patrolling everywhere, searching for Ye Bai's whereabouts.

The Hell Devil Fish was a Hell creature; its body was flat, it had two fins like bat wings, its tail was long and thin like a whip, and its gill slits were wide.

It was a Hell creature, and it usually improved itself by devouring magma.

"Strange, where exactly did Ye Bai hide? Why haven't I been able to find a trace of him until now?"

"This guy is really too good at hiding."

The Hell Devil Fish smashed its tail-whip onto a Lava Monster that was pouncing over.

The Lava Monster's body was snapped in half, and the Hell Devil Fish directly used its tail to scoop up a Fire Crystal the size of a pigeon egg and stuffed it into its mouth to chew vigorously.

"Phew, one more patrol, it's getting hotter and hotter here; I feel like the temperature is at least fifty degrees."

"If I keep staying here, I'll soon die of dehydration."

Although Fang Yu wanted to kill Ye Bai, there were many ways to kill Ye Bai, and he would not choose the method most disadvantageous to himself.

At this time, Ye Bai had already arrived at the place where the lake had originally been.

This was thanks to his talent; he had remembered the nearby terrain.

It was just that the volcanic eruption had caused devastating damage to the surroundings, so it had taken Ye Bai a lot of effort to find this place.

This place had already become a sea of magma.

Ye Bai summoned the Little Charcoal Dog.

The Little Charcoal Dog had already successfully refined the Purgatory Fire from the dark-colored skull stone and had obtained Hell Fire from the ring Zhang Jian had given Ye Bai.

Now, the Little Charcoal Dog only lacked the Lava Heart to evolve into a Nether Wolf.

Moreover, this place happened to be the most ideal place for the Little Charcoal Dog to evolve.

Therefore, unless it was the most critical moment, Ye Bai would absolutely not leave here.

He had to Guard the Little Charcoal Dog and let it evolve safely.

Ye Bai, who was already a Fifth-rank Pet Master, was no longer an obstacle to the Little Charcoal Dog's evolution.

"Little Charcoal Dog, I believe you can do it; I believe you can complete your final evolution here."

"Once you find the Lava Heart, don't hesitate, just swallow it."

"I will be heart-to-heart with you; if there is any danger, I will immediately retract you into the Pet Beast Space."

Ye Bai said solemnly to the Little Charcoal Dog.

The Little Charcoal Dog nodded heavily.

It had been abandoned by people the moment it was born.

The Little Charcoal Dog had been picked up by Dahui and had found a bit of peace in the Fangyuan Breeding House.

Even if its body were smashed to pieces, the Little Charcoal Dog would not be afraid.

It hated cowardice, it hated being timid; it hoped to obtain even more powerful strength to Guard Ye Bai.

At this moment, the magma was like a surging sea surface.

The Little Charcoal Dog gritted its teeth and plunged headfirst into the magma.

"Keep it up, Little Charcoal Dog, I believe you will definitely succeed."

The body of the Little Charcoal Dog was quickly swallowed by the magma.

It could feel the scorching fire-type energy pouring continuously into its body through its pores.

To be precise, it was pouring into the crystal core in its brain.

"Little Charcoal Dog, keep it up!"

Ye Bai clenched his fists and shouted loudly toward the place where the Little Charcoal Dog had left.

Just at this moment, the ground shook violently, and a huge black shadow was wobbling over from the distance.

A wave of heat struck, and Ye Bai was instantly drenched in sweat.

【Name: Lava Lord (Pseudo)】 【Gender: Agender】

【Personality: Stubborn】

【Attribute: Fire】

【Level: Peak of Tier 5】

【Skills: Flame Radiance (Proficient): Spew countless tongues of fire to attack enemies.

Black Mist (Proficient): Spew a large amount of black mist filled with the smell of sulfur from the mouth to confuse the enemy's vision; it can form an air explosion upon contact with an open flame, with astonishing power.

Lava Claw (Proficient): Use a Lijua formed of lava to attack enemies, triggering a burning state on the enemy.

Petrification (Mastered): Once the lava within the body is exhausted, the Lava Monster will petrify into Sturdy, shiny black volcanic rock.

Magma Ejection (Mastered): Spew a large amount of scorching magma from within the body to attack opponents.

Great Explosion (Proficient): Detonate the Fire Crystal within the body to form a great explosion.

Lava Control (Proficient): Able to summon a sea of lava to attack opponents.】

【Evolution Route 1: Unlocks after coming into contact with key materials.】

【Rating: Once the Lava Heart is found, it can change from pseudo to real.】

"This big guy is here!"

At this moment, Ye Bai's expression was quite ugly.

He looked at the tens-of-meters-tall Lava Lord, knowing this would be a fierce battle.

This was the final battle before he left the Secret Realm.

However, the only thing to be glad about was that it was only at the peak of Tier 5 and had not yet taken the final step to become a powerful Tier 6 Lava Lord.

"Paper Puppet, can you simulate the aura of the Lava Heart to trick the Lava Lord?"

Ye Bai asked the Paper Puppet.

The Paper Puppet nodded: "I can, but I can only hold it for a quarter of an hour."

Ye Bai let out a long breath: "A quarter of an hour is fine."

"Paper Puppet, do you have a way to mask the aura of the Lava Heart?"

The Paper Puppet frowned: "Ye Bai, I can mask it, but in the process, I need to spend a lot of energy on the masking."

"That way, it will be easy for me to lose track of you."

"Once the aura of the Lava Heart is lost, will the Lava Lord list you as a target for pursuit?"

"This Secret Realm has already turned into a lava zone; here, the Lava Lord holds a huge advantage. Aren't you being a bit too risky?"

The Paper Puppet did not agree with Ye Bai being too risky.

This concerned the inheritance.

"Don't worry, Paper Puppet, don't forget I have a Space Talisman on me."

"If I encounter danger, the Space Talisman on me can take me out."

"Don't worry."

"There won't be any problems."

"It's just that I might have to trouble you to help me bring the evolved Little Charcoal Dog out."

Seeing Ye Bai's determined look, the Paper Puppet ultimately had no choice.

It could only nod.

"Fine."

Suddenly, a beating heart appeared in the Paper Puppet's hand.

She placed it into Ye Bai's hand.

"This is a heart I simulated using the Paper Puppet Transformation Technique."

"The further you run, the better, so that the aura of the Lava Heart can be masked more thoroughly."

The Little Charcoal Dog was soaking in the magma; it was like a fish in water.

Soaking in the magma not only did not make the Little Charcoal Dog feel uncomfortable, but instead gave it a feeling of being like a fish in water.

It felt that the fire-type energy was its brother.

At the same time, there was a voice calling to it.

It was like a wanderer returning home to the embrace of their mother.

The closer the Little Charcoal Dog got to the Lava Heart, the more its cells cheered with joy.

It could feel that the Lava Heart was tailor-made for it.

An orange-red, diamond-shaped gemstone appeared, beating like a heart.

Without a second thought, the Little Charcoal Dog swallowed it in one gulp.

So hot.

This was the thought of the Little Charcoal Dog.

It felt as if it had swallowed a scorching sun into its belly.

The fire-type energy, which had been incomparably docile, lost control at this moment.

The massive energy nearly burst the little charcoal dog's body wide open.

The little charcoal dog felt every cell in its body swelling from the energy.

Its body was refined once more by the fire-type energy.

The little charcoal dog felt that it was currently in even more excruciating pain than when it tempered its body in the Thunder Pool.

However, at this moment, the little charcoal dog no longer had time to think.

All the little charcoal dog could think about now was holding on.

Otherwise, it would die from its body exploding.

It could not let down Ye Bai's expectations.

Holding onto the belief of becoming stronger, it persisted.

Its body's cells were all tearing; the little charcoal dog did not know how much time had passed, as it had been constantly adapting to the fire-type energy's transformation of its body.

At this time, Ye Bai had already grabbed the Lava Heart simulated by the paper puppet.

He sat on the back of the Thunder Light butterfly, which was in the Mimicry form of the Myriad-Changing Silkworm, and fled wildly toward the distance like a wild horse that had broken its tether.

(End of this chapter)