Escape from the Inferno?

After a lengthy deliberation, Xue Ji offered Du Chen only a bitter smile. "Mr. Alex," she began softly, "My master once imparted that the Labyrinth of Life is akin to a colossal tree. We are deep within its very trunk, and this tree frequently catches fire internally. To prevent the entire organism from being consumed, the tree compresses the flames into a single point, allowing them to burn out within a sealed space. This is the Fiery Core. Thus, until the energy of these flames is utterly spent, no exit will manifest nearby."

She cast a glance at the surrounding walls. "If we wish to leave, it would require the ability to shatter the inner walls of this great tree, otherwise…"

Du Chen's brow furrowed deeply. He had already tested them; the tenacity of these walls was far beyond anything he could breach in his current state.

Was he truly fated to perish here?

Du Chen refused to accept it. He hadn't died on the streets in his past life, so was he to be incinerated within this labyrinth in this one? Absolutely not!

Yet, what could he do besides await his doom?

The flames intensified relentlessly. The ice pillars Du Chen conjured were no longer sufficient to protect Xue Ji. Even Steve’s Flaying prowess struggled against the searing heat, and Du Chen’s own hair was beginning to catch fire!

Xue Ji sighed mournfully, her gaze fixed on Du Chen, who was frantically trying to shield her. With an apologetic tone, she murmured, "Mr. Alex, if not for this Xue Ji, you would not be in such a plight. I have burdened you…"

Du Chen forced a bitter smile. "This is my own doing; it has nothing to do with you!" He continued to scan the deadly confines, desperately seeking an escape route.

"My master had nine disciples under her tutelage," Xue Ji sighed again, "and now there is one less. Only Sixth Sister Sherine, who never saw eye-to-eye with her, remains. Alas, her ladyship has no close kin left by her side!"

Did that wretched hag, Margaret, truly need kin? Du Chen sneered inwardly, continuing his vigilant search.

"I wonder where Sister Sherine has gone," Xue Ji lamented a third time. "Truth be told, Master has missed her greatly over the years. Regrettably, Sixth Sister is now missing…"

*Little Hag, my dear aunt,* Du Chen seethed internally, *what time is this for such musings? Can’t you spare a thought for how we might escape with our lives? Do you truly intend to become desiccated corpses with me in this inferno?!*

Gradually, the heat became unbearable for Du Chen. His inner strength was rapidly approaching depletion…

Just then, a vibrant emerald light suddenly burst forth from the Precious Lotus Scripture!

Du Chen started, quickly turning his gaze. Most of the items on the Lotus Pedestal had already charred and caught fire, yet the tree seed, which should have been most vulnerable to flames, remained completely unharmed! This, however, was not entirely surprising. After the annihilation of a hundred thousand Merfolk, this tree seed had still transcended Dus's perceptual range; no one could fathom its true origins.

*Extremely dangerous, incredibly potent, verging on the monstrous*—this was Beibei’s assessment of the tree seed!

At this moment, the tree seed shone with immense brilliance. Ever since the great Detonation in the Durkus sea region, the tree seed had been suppressed by Dus, and the explosion had consumed the vast majority of its energy, leaving it in a semi-dormant state for a long time.

But just a moment ago, the intense heat had completely reawakened the tree seed…

*Damn it, what is this place? It’s scorching hot! Lord, this is the Fiery Core! How… how did I end up back in my mother's body?! Gods, I finally escaped, which cursed scoundrel brought me back?! Though I am a tree seed born from The Undead Life Tree, I never wanted to return to my mother's body in this lifetime!* The tree seed was racked with primal terror and confusion. Yet, having escaped from Mount Tianshan’s lifeline and fallen into Du Chen’s hands, it could be said that it was born in the Labyrinth of Life, grew up in the Labyrinth of Life, and thus understood this place intimately… This was its mother, its home!

*I don’t want to be burned to death here!* the tree seed screamed in its 'mind,' its body erupting with light. It mustered all its power, intending to escape to freedom.

Du Chen felt a surge of astonishment at the tree seed’s transformation, yet remained utterly bewildered. But in this moment of life and death, any anomaly could be a lifeline. He reached out and snatched the tree seed.

Just then, the tree seed began to flee! *Whoosh!* It shot forth like an emerald meteor, hurtling towards the Labyrinth of Life's wall! Carrying Du Chen and the Lotus Pedestal along with it, it rocketed towards the barrier!

*Could this tree seed know how to escape?*

Du Chen was ecstatic. He immediately shrank the Lotus Pedestal, transforming it into a tiny speck, clinging to the tree seed like a mere grain of sand.

*Boom!*

The tiny tree seed actually rammed a gaping hole into the Labyrinth of Life's wall! The violent impact left Du Chen, clinging to the Precious Lotus Scripture, dizzy and disoriented. Instinctively, he wrapped one arm around Xue Ji’s waist, pulling her close, while his other hand desperately clutched at Steve (Flaying) in the distance. Following that, his already dwindling inner strength utterly depleted, his head lolled, and he passed out.

The tree seed escaped the Fiery Core, but another aura of death pressed in upon it—it was being clung to by Du Chen, and Du Chen’s aura was its innate nemesis! The tree seed was horrified, flying frantically and erratically through the Labyrinth of Life. "Damn it, get off me!" It tried to shake off the small lotus clinging to it, but Du Chen, like an unyielding manacle, clamped onto it! And so, the tree seed carried Du Chen, flitting about aimlessly in the labyrinth like a disoriented moth… Heaven knew where it would take Du Chen!

***

Meanwhile, elsewhere, everyone else was preoccupied with their own affairs.

Tyr and Andy were traversing the labyrinth with several Bone Golems—Sean’s dying words about them splitting up were nothing but a lie! "Brockman is just thirty meters ahead," Tyr complained, "Find a path there at once!"

A Bone Golem turned, grinning toothily. "*Kaka*, it’s not that we don’t wish to guide you there, Sir, but in the Labyrinth of Life, a distance of thirty meters might require navigating seven or eight intersections. Sir Tyr, please come this way…"

Elsewhere, Deboning was flying swiftly, grasping two Bone Golems. As they rounded an intersection, a Bone Golem pointed, "To the left, Andy ran to the left; he’s too fast, we can’t catch him!"

And in another area, dozens of Bone Golems gathered in an open space, clutching their heads and wailing. "King Sean has led that demon into the Fiery Core and perished with him… *Wuwu*!"

An aura of sorrow permeated the clearing. *Drip, drop*, a few drops of emerald liquid dripped from the ceiling, as if even the walls were moved to tears by the Bone Golems' grief. *Drip, drop*… The liquid fell with increasing frequency, and within moments, it became a torrential green rain showering down upon the mourning Bone Golems!

"What’s happening? Is the ceiling about to collapse?"

The Bone Golems collectively raised their heads, staring curiously upwards.

As the heavy rain poured, a green light suddenly flashed. The ceiling above inexplicably opened, and three figures descended from the heavens, landing amidst the Bone Golems!

Clad in flat-top helms and crimson robes, these were precisely the three individuals who had come to pursue Du Chen and reclaim Constantine!

Upon landing, Thirteen cast a cold glance at the Bone Golems, then extended five fingers and lightly clenched. A Bone Golem was pulled towards him, its throat seized. "Have any of you seen someone dressed similarly to us?"

The Bone Golem was momentarily stunned, failing to respond immediately. *Snap!* Thirteen crushed its neck bone with a single grip, tossing it aside, and then seized another. "I dislike indecisive individuals!"

The second Bone Golem, terrified, quickly shrieked, "Seen him, seen him!"

Thirteen exchanged a look with the other two, nodding slightly. "Where is he?"

"He, he was placed by the demon into a strange sacred artifact, and taken, taken into the Fiery Core!"

Thirteen snorted. "Fiery Core? Is that demon trying to burn him to death?"

"No, no! This morning, our King Sean gathered us and said a demon had entered the Labyrinth of Life, instructing us to devise a plan to kill him…" He stammered out the story, weeping. "Now, now my King has perished with that demon… Please, please let me go!"

Thirteen’s brow knitted. "Fools! Lead us to the Fiery Core at once!" His hands flew, seizing several dozen Bone Golems, trapping them together with battle qi and dragging them forward. He threatened grimly, "Don’t even think about playing tricks! I will kill one of you every minute until you lead me to the Fiery Core!"

Upon hearing this, the Bone Golems trembled in fear. None dared to delay, scurrying ahead to lead the way.

As they walked, Thirteen inquired, "What is the name and appearance of this 'demon' you speak of!?"

"He calls himself Alex, but my King…" a quick-witted Bone Golem eagerly replied. He was about to say—*but my King said he was actually Francis! And there were also Brook, Andy, Tyr, and others.* But then he thought, *No, I can't say that! If I do, these fiends might force us to lead them to Brook and the others. And looking at their methods, killing one person every minute while searching, why would I open my mouth and ask for trouble? Was I tired of living?*

With that thought, the quick-witted Bone Golem changed his words: "But our King Sean didn’t explain it too clearly. We merely carried out our King’s orders; we know nothing else!"

Thirteen snorted again and asked a few more questions, but the Bone Golems adamantly insisted that their rank was low, and they were privy to few secrets. The higher-ranking Bone Golems who *did* know secrets had all perished with that demon, Alex, in the Fiery Core!

The Bone Golems’ petty cleverness saved them some trouble, and spared Deboning, Andy, and Tyr a disaster!

Shortly after, the flames subsided, and the fiery opening in the wall, now a gaping hole, appeared before Thirteen. "Damn it, Alex escaped with Constantine!" The temperature of the Fiery Core seemed to plummet to freezing point. Thirteen sneered, "Life Shortcut, did you not claim that no one could escape your grasp while within the Life Tree? How did Alex manage to escape the flames, and where did he go? Tell me!"

The green light that had led them there reappeared overhead, and a voice emerged. "My rebellious brother helped them escape. As for where they went…" The voice paused for a long time. "Judging by the direction, it’s the Violet-Bloods' Land of Exile—the City of Penance!"

Thirteen nodded, then suddenly his ten fingers flashed. *Boom, boom!* The Bone Golems fell dead on the spot! "Let’s go, we’re heading to the City of Penance!"