Blue Phoenix

"If An He truly found it here, what makes you think it will still be here?" Cai Jie asked curiously with a frown on his face, but Hui Yue just laughed in response.

"If you have to travel past countless dangers, arrays, and traps to obtain the formation, why move it from such a safe place? I believe that every time one wishes to visit the array, they have to go through certain dangers. Instead of wasting time securing the barrier, why not just use the one already created by the divine beasts. We need to keep in mind that these divine beasts, although no longer around, were stronger than An He by leaps and bounds when he found this formation array. At that time, he was not capable of creating a better hiding place than where it was already at. Also, if I am not mistaken, then he has only used the Formation of Life to help himself and his four generals reach the God rank. As such, moving it would be troublesome."

Everything Hui Yue said made perfect sense, and the ones who had at first been very nervous about whether or not they had entered a death trap without any benefits slowly felt more at ease.

"I don't know what we will encounter on this trip." Hui Yue warned them as he took a sword in each hand. Holding his Icy Tempest in his right hand and a blood-drinking sword in his left hand, he felt ready to take on any challenge.

"We need to be on high alert, and no matter what we encounter, we need to look after one another. Do not do anything dangerous and do not hesitate to retreat if needed. We will get through this together!"

Hui Yue's words were reassuring, and everyone felt much better hearing what he said. "Don't forget that An He most likely made it through this array when just an Emperor. We have far more people than he did so we should be able to succeed even faster than him!" Cai Jie said. His voice brought, even more, determination and excitement to the many people standing in front of a very simple-looking door.

This door was the one that Lan Feng had told Hui Yue about, but if anyone looked at it, they wouldn’t see anything special about it. It was made from a black type of wood, and it had a few iron bolts running through it. The handle was also made from plain iron, and not even the slightest inscription was engraved on it. Looking at this seemingly simple door, everyone held their breath.

"Well, we won't gain anything from waiting outside!" Hui Yue finally said. With a beating heart, he opened the door only to find a wall of energy right behind it.

This wall of energy was completely black with swirls of silver running through it. It was clearly very thick and blocked their way. The energy surprised them when they saw it.

Reaching out his arm, Hui Yue pressed it through the energy curtain, and his face changed to surprise when his arm was not stopped but continued onward through to the other side. Going all the way through, it felt as though he had entered a stove.

"There is something on the other side, and it is really hot so be prepared." Hui Yue warned, and with determined steps, he moved through the doorway, completely swallowed by the black curtain of energy.

The wall of energy was incredibly thin, and as soon as he had walked through he entered another place. His face turned amazed as he looked around. In front of him was a world of fire. Everything was filled with a red hue. Even the sky above was red, yet while looking up, Hui Yue found that there were no stars in the dim sky. The only thing he could see was two not very bright suns.

The ground in front of him was desolate, cracked, and full of craters, and he could see lava flowing in many places nearby. On the right, he saw a forest and on the left was a wasteland filled with geysers, craters, and lava. Boiling water and exploding lava was everywhere.

Looking at this wasteland, Hui Yue could not help but shiver, and looking at the forest, he did not feel any better. The forest was so dense that he could only see a few meters inside; however, as he looked inside he found that every single tree was dark red. The trunks were dark red while the leaves varied in shade from orange to a darker wine-red. All of the trees were different, but each emitted a menacing air. This hot world left Hui Yue feeling that this place was more profound than it seemed.

While Hui Yue was looking at the surroundings, his friends had appeared behind him one after another. Now all of them were here, and they looked around at the two different areas trying to decide where they should go.

Suddenly, before Hui Yue had the time to decide, a creature appeared from within the forest. It looked like a bull but was walking on its hind legs. This bull-like creature had six eyes, two large swirled horns, and a set of wings on its back. Instead of hoofed front legs, the bull had arms and hands, and in its right hand was a large spear.

The bull was white while its wings were golden. The spear in its hand was also golden along with its eyes. This creature calmly looked at Hui Yue and the group of people behind him. It was clearly moving towards them, and they could clearly tell that the bull was overwhelmingly strong. Although he did not have any aura, the lack of aura made them even more fearful. Though despite this it was also clear that this creature had no enmity towards them.

"Welcome to the Trial of Fire." The bull said in the human language., Although it was easily understandable, there was a weird accent when it spoke, as though it were singing every word.

"I am the guardian of this world. I was placed here by the four masters, and I am the overseer for those who attempt the Trial of Fire."

"I have been here since the creation of this realm. Until someone successfully takes away the Formation of Life, I will stay here to challenge all who feel that they are strong enough for my masters’ treasured array."

"Although, I have never before had a whole group enter this realm, fortunately the divine masters foresaw that such a day would come to pass."

The bull kept speaking and no one in Hui Yue's group interrupted, all of them listened intently. Swallowing every single word that was being said, they listened intently so that they could learn more about this separate realm they had arrived within.

"In this Trial of Fire, there are five levels each harder than the last. If you challenge the trails, it is possible to withdraw from the challenges and let your conditions improve before attempting one more time. If you happen to die in this Trial of Fire, then you will really die. If you give up, just call out and I will instantly teleport you out of the world. Should you return, then you have to redo any trials you have already cleared."

"The rules are simple. As you are a full group, it is not possible for you to go through the forest. The forest is for single people; it is not possible for a group to advance together, therefore, your only option is to move through the wasteland of death. You will encounter five challenges, and these challenges will test your strength, perception, teamwork, dedication, and talent."

"There is no time limit to this these trails, but if another group enters this world and finishes it before you do, then you will be unable to obtain the Formation of Life."

"I will follow your group. Only if another group appears within in this realm, will I leave your side." The bull continued to explain, and Hui Yue nodded his head. Although it was clear that these trials would be incredibly hard, it was also obvious that they were not made to outright kill the people who took them. If it that were the case, then they would not be allowed to retreat or give up at any time.

"Senior, thank you for your explanation." Hui Yue said as he cupped his fists and bowed to the bull. His reaction caused the bull to be slightly startled. "My name is Mu Haolong." The bull said with a nod to Hui Yue who he replied with a smile and a nod of his own.

"This junior is Hui Yue." He introduced himself, and afterward everyone behind him stepped forward, cupping their hands and bowing deeply mentioning their own names. The sheer amount of respect they showed clearly swayed the bull to think better of them.

"Although I like your personality, I am not capable of helping you when it comes to the Trial of Fire, but I will do what I can to explain what will happen." The bull said with a smile on its face.

"We thank Senior." Hui Yue said once more. It was clear that the strength of this bull was anything simple, much like Huli, he had no aura.

"I will leave you to experience the first trial on your own. Your goal is to reach the end of this wasteland. After getting there, you will see what’s next. If you manage to get through this trial of strength, then everyone will get a reward. Then you may choose to try the second trial or give up. Okay, I’ve told you far too much already, get ready to start the trial! Remember if you feel that you cannot cope then tell me, and I will save you. If you just forcefully push forward all the time, you are likely to end your little lives here."

Nodding his head, Hui Yue gestured for his friends to follow him and together all of them tentatively moved towards the wasteland filled with geysers and lava filled craters leading to rivers of lava running through the ground.

As soon as they took their first step into the wasteland, they were assaulted by an intense heat wave making it almost impossible to breathe. Assaulting their nostrils and throat, it felt as though their bodies were on fire. Despite this, every single one of them had determination unlike any other, and without even having to say anything the whole group decisively took another step forward.

At the start, their speed was incredibly slow. Their bodies felt as though they were on fire, but ever r so slowly their speed start to increase. No one in the group was silly and started moved faster than the others. Together they all managed to slowly increase their speed, but even so moving through this unending wasteland made them feel like they were making no progress at all.

Watching from the side, the bull was surprised. Although he had never before seen a group enter the wasteland, he knew that the heat here was not something that they should be able to deal with easily, yet this group, which contained mainly Emperors, had managed to adjust to this terrible heat rather quickly.

Saying nothing but having a smile on his lips, this bull could not help but look at them astonished. Back in the days when the divine beasts still controlled this realm, they would sometimes allow for those with outstanding merits to challenge this Trial of Fire and try to reach the Formation of Life, and for the first time he had the feeling that he might actually be able to leave this realm. Perhaps it was time for the Formation of Life to find another guardian.