About half an hour later, a patch of light finally appeared ahead.

Fang Hong was the first to rush out of the sea of fire, the black Qi around him slowly dissipating.

Not long after, Yuan Qing and the other two followed in a state of distress, staggering out of the Fire Path. All three were pale-faced, clearly having expended a great deal of energy in the Fire Path.

Just then, a golden light suddenly flashed across Fang Hong’s body. The golden light circulated through his limbs and bones once before finally disappearing.

After the dual trials of the Ice Cave’s Yin Wind and the Fire Path’s fierce flames, the strength of his physical body finally achieved another breakthrough, reaching the Immortal Emperor Peak level in one fell swoop!

In contrast, Yuan Qing and the other two had already depleted more than half of the Immortal Power within their bodies.

The three dared not delay and quickly took out several dao pills each, stuffing them into their mouths to quickly recover the depleted Immortal Power.

At the end of the Fire Path was an extremely spacious Stone Cave.

On the rocks of the Stone Cave’s four walls, scorched black marks from the flames still remained.

Embedded prominently in the rock wall in the center of the Stone Cave was a heavy iron door.

However, this iron door was not unguarded.

In the open space in front of the iron door stood ten strange-looking puppets, arranged neatly!

These puppets were about nine feet tall, entirely jet black, radiating a cold metallic sheen.

Furthermore, they all had the appearance of wolf heads on human bodies, with thick limbs, guarding the iron door motionlessly like a group of loyal protectors. The atmosphere instantly became solemn.

"Can these puppets... still move?" Yu Cai was the first to break the silence.

He focused his mind and sensed for a moment, but detected no vital signs from the puppets, so he asked doubtfully.

"I hope they are completely deactivated. The appearance of puppets in a place like an Immortal Emperor Ancient Tomb is not a good sign."

Fairy Shi Lan stared warily at the ten wolf-headed puppets.

However, the moment her voice fell silent, an unexpected change occurred!

The ten previously motionless puppets suddenly had their wolf heads’ eyes simultaneously light up with a scarlet glow.

Following this, their bodies emitted a series of stiff kaka ka sounds. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Awooo. Awooo."

The ten wolf-headed puppets simultaneously raised their heads and let out a low, hoarse roar, the sound echoing throughout the empty Stone Cave.

The next instant, they took heavy steps, wrapped in fierce Aura, and lunged toward the four people, including Fang Hong.

The Aura of these ten wolf-headed puppets was not weak; every single one possessed the Immortal Emperor Peak standard.

Their strength was considerably greater than the giant spirit puppet Fang Hong had previously obtained!

Seeing this, Yu Cai and Fairy Shi Lan immediately prepared to activate their Dao Artifacts and strike, planning to join forces to take care of a few puppets first.

But just then, Yuan Qing suddenly spoke up to stop them: "Wait! This old man has researched the Dao of puppets for thousands of years and has gained considerable insight."

"Leave these ten puppets to this old man. You all just watch the battle from the side for now."

Before he finished speaking, Yuan Qing quickly summoned an ancient Bronze Mirror.

Immortal Power surged from his fingertips, continuously injecting into the Bronze Mirror.

In an instant, the Bronze Mirror shot out a dazzling burst of golden light, shining precisely onto the ten wolf-headed puppets.

The previously aggressive wolf-headed puppets, the moment they were enveloped by the golden light, seemed to have been hit by a Immobilization Spell, freezing uniformly in place.

Their limbs remained in their lunging posture, unable to move again.

"Good heavens! Fellow Daoist Yuan Qing, this Dao Artifact of yours is too powerful! It can immobilize ten Immortal Emperor Peak puppets simultaneously."

Yu Cai watched dumbfounded, unable to stop himself from praising loudly.

Fang Hong, however, saw through Yuan Qing’s intentions immediately. This old man clearly wanted to subdue these ten powerful puppets for his own use.

That was why he specifically stopped them, preventing them from accidentally damaging the puppets if they didn’t control their strength when attacking... "This old man has only temporarily trapped them; the immobilization power of this Bronze Mirror cannot last too long."

"Let’s open that iron door first and see what treasures are hidden inside. We can deal with these puppets later; it won’t be too late."

Yuan Qing retrieved the Bronze Mirror, a smug smile appearing on his face, and then made his suggestion.

"There are no powerful restrictions placed on this iron door; it shouldn’t be difficult to open."

Following this, the four people, including Fang Hong, exchanged glances and simultaneously activated the Immortal Power within their bodies.

Four streams of majestic Immortal Power converged, transforming into a brilliant pillar of light that struck the center of the iron door precisely.

A loud rumble was heard as the heavy iron door slowly began to lift upwards.

As the iron door opened, a soft white Light Screen appeared right in the middle of the doorway.

The Light Screen rippled slightly, looking like a portal leading to an unknown place.

The four people, including Fang Hong, looked at each other again, their eyes holding both curiosity and vigilance.

After each reinforced their protective layer, they stepped together into the white Light Screen.

The moment they passed through the Light Screen, a refreshing blast of Immortal Qi rushed toward them. The four only felt the light and shadows shift before they were situated in an immensely bright space.

To be precise, this was actually an independent Small World.

As soon as he stepped into this place, Fang Hong keenly noticed that the restrictions previously suppressing flight and Divine Sense in the Ice and Fire Paths had completely vanished.

Yuan Qing and the other two also noticed this and immediately spread out their Divine Sense without hesitation, enveloping the entire Small World to carefully investigate the situation here.

The area of this Small World was not large; a rough estimate put its circumference at only about seven or eight li.

Although the space was small, it contained everything it should.

For instance, dense Immortal Qi, blue skies, earth, mountains, ancient trees, and so on—it was almost identical to the normal world outside.

Fang Hong’s heart stirred. He suddenly felt that this independent space was somewhat similar to his Years Pearl Space.

If that was the case, the iron door they just passed through was likely also a spatial type Dao Artifact.

"Behind that small mountain, there is the Aura of treasure!" Yu Cai’s voice rang out first, his tone carrying a hint of excitement.

"Mhm, I sensed it too. It feels like the Aura of some kind of peak immortal herb." Fairy Shi Lan nodded along.

Before her words finished, the four people, including Fang Hong, were already impatient. Their figures flashed simultaneously, instantly crossing the small mountain ahead and arriving at its reverse side.

On the back of the mountain, a dilapidated palace stood quietly.

Looking from afar, one could tell it had suffered a devastating blow.

The flying eaves of the palace had long since broken off, and many columns were snapped halfway, leaning precariously amidst the broken walls and ruins.

The entire structure was utterly ruined, emanating an atmosphere that was both desolate and eerie.

Large patches of scorched black marks remained on the ground in front of the palace.

The edges of the marks still carried a slight burnt odor, clearly the imprint left behind after being struck by the infinitely powerful Heavenly Tribulation.

Right in the center of the scorched ground lay a pale white human skull, its empty eye sockets staring straight up at the sky... However, what truly made the eyes of the four people, including Fang Hong, light up was not this ruined palace, but the acre of fertile land right next to it.