This is a world of orange and red.
The air temperature was very high; even standing still without moving, one would naturally break out in sweat.
Ning Zhuo tidied up his bed.
He glanced around and arranged some talismans in the room before pushing the door open and stepping out of his temporary residence.
He and the members of the three renovation teams had all entered the Magma Fairy Palace, bringing ample supplies. They were prepared for a long-term stay.
Ning Zhuo walked out of the house that had been allocated to him.
In the small courtyard, several cultivators from the Ning Family were cleaning the yard.
Seeing Ning Zhuo appear, they all bowed with expressions of respect and admiration.
After months of hard work and various actions, Ning Zhuo's prestige within the Ning's Renovation Team had reached its peak.
Ning Zhuo smiled at them, nodded, and then, with steps that seemed slow but were actually fast, left the campsite.
According to the command he had received recently, he needed to head immediately to a side hall to meet Zhu Xuanji.
As he walked, he slightly raised his head and looked up at the sky.
The sky was covered by a massive spherical light shield, which had a faint golden hue.
From Ning Zhuo's perspective, he could vaguely see: outside the shield, a dense horde of demon beasts attacking in waves.
Various types and sizes of demon beasts were fiercely attacking the formation shield of the Magma Fairy Palace.
The shield was not absolutely secure. In some places where the attacks had reached their limit, cracks appeared, and from these noticeable cracks, a plume of flame seeped through.
Soon, the flame in mid-air reformed into a runaway fire snake at the Foundation Establishment level.
The runaway fire snake hissed as it fell, but before it could hit the ground, a large group of mechanical puppets intercepted it, engaging in a fierce battle mid-air.
By the time the snake hit the ground, it had suffered severe damage and was barely alive. Then, more mechanical puppets on the ground swarmed it, completely overwhelming it.
Such a situation did not make Ning Zhuo feel at ease.
On the contrary, he had already detected a trend where the defensive power of the Magma Fairy Palace was continually decreasing.
The barrage he had led had provoked an extraordinarily large tide of demon beasts!
The Magma Fairy Palace was at a disadvantage, and the situation was worsening over time.
"It's very risky for Elder Sun to enter the Immortal Palace, and I don't know how he managed to get in."
"Did he rely on Yang Chanyu, the Golden Core True Disciple of the Bukong Sect, again this time?"
Thinking of Yang Chanyu, a sense of concern arose in Ning Zhuo's heart.
Previously, when Sun Lingtong went to steal Cloud Merchant's goods, he had again teamed up with Yang Chanyu during the actual operation.
Yang Chanyu's repeated assistance was a troubling matter in Ning Zhuo's eyes.
Ning Zhuo once again raised his estimate of the price Sun Lingtong had to pay.
"Next, I need to find an opportunity to meet Elder Sun and hand over The Highest Good is Like Water in secret!"
"Then, I'll see if I can get any information from Yang Chanyu about the exact price Elder Sun has to pay for this cooperation."
"That Seven-Colored Auspicious Cloud, Elder Sun was unwilling to give it to Yang Chanyu. I'll use it as a greeting gift, see if I can get some information out of her, and secretly help Elder Sun bear some pressure."
Walking through the streets of the Magma Fairy Palace, Ning Zhuo was gradually captivated by the sights along the way and couldn't help but set aside his thoughts.
It was his first time truly walking inside the Magma Fairy Palace.
Countless times he had imagined this scene in his plans... Today, it was finally realized!
In the Magma Fairy Palace, one's gaze would encounter nothing but golden pillars and red bricks. Under the light reflected by the surrounding lava, the golden pillars and red bricks shimmered with a faintly dazzling light, like a burning, immortal glow.
There were towering pagodas, majestic halls, and exquisite side halls; all kinds of buildings were clearly and reasonably laid out. The solid architectural structure made the Magma Fairy Palace imposing and austere. The statues of fire dragons and fire phoenixes were intricately carved and lifelike, adding a sense of grandeur.
Though two architectural styles seemed abrupt, here they merged harmoniously, an exquisite blend.
Ahead of Ning Zhuo, a wall gradually came into view.
The wall was quite thick, and at intervals on the wall, a giant talisman was depicted, like drawn windows.
"This is the Cang Ling Wall," Ning Zhuo thought to himself.
He reached out, walking and stroking the uneven wall.
The tactile sensation transmitted through his fingertips was so distinct.
This profound feeling was not something he had experienced when his soul entered the Immortal Palace!
His eyes gradually reddened as he thought of his deceased mother.
"Mother, at this moment, I have finally arrived at the Magma Fairy Palace."
Ning Zhuo had longed for this moment for over ten years; he had also schemed for over ten years.
Once he decided to blow up the Immortal Palace and put his plan into action, there was no turning back.
Getting to this point had not been easy for him.
Throughout his journey, he had exerted all his efforts, stumbling along, facing life-and-death crises, finally reaching here, walking this path.
Despite only having the cultivation level equivalent to the Qi Cultivation Stage, he had to navigate through the various forces of Fire Persimmon Immortal City, bearing the immense pressure brought by Zhu Xuanji.
During this period, he used all kinds of means to get through each crisis with difficulty.
Sometimes relying on over ten years of preparation, other times depending on some luck.
During this process, one misstep could mean death without a burial place!
Many who explored the Immortal Palace began risking their lives only when battling the Red Flame Demon Beasts now.
However, Ning Zhuo had already put his life at stake from the very beginning.
"If possible, I wouldn't want to do this."
Ning Zhuo once again looked at the faint golden spherical shield in the sky.
He gazed at the dense tide of demon beasts outside the shield, thinking, "I had no choice, with the pressure from the situation, I had to overturn the table a bit."
Of course, he controlled his force; the table hadn't been completely flipped.
This time he used the demon beasts to create a situation where everyone had to go all out.
In this way, he could alleviate much of the pressure on him.
Once Ning Zhuo achieved this step, the entire situation became irreversible.
For the Magma Fairy Palace and for him, it was the same!
He was like a fledgling in a nest on a cliff, taking his first flight, bound either to soar to great heights or to fall to his death.
Following the spacious street, Ning Zhuo finally arrived at a side hall.
"There you are." Hearing a knock, the people inside the hall turned to look at the door.
Zhu Xuanji spoke, "Come in."
In the next moment, Ning Zhuo opened the door and stepped inside.
Several people were already present in the side hall; Ning Zhuo was the last to arrive.
Besides Zhu Xuanji, Zheng Jian, Zhou Zeshen, and Zhou Zhu were also present.
"Divine Hunter," the young man in white, Ning Zhuo, greeted Zhu Xuanji first and then apologized to the others, "Sorry, I'm late."
The three genius cultivators from the Zhou and Zheng families greeted him with smiles.
"We haven't been here long either."
"You're not late; it's just in time."
By now, Ning Zhuo had gained not only enormous prestige within the Ning Family but also admiration from the young geniuses of the other two families.
Even the Golden Core level Zhu Xuanji regarded Ning Zhuo with newfound respect.
Ning Zhuo unobtrusively glanced at the top of the heads of the three geniuses.
He found that, over this period, the Life Hanging Thread above their heads had become thicker and more solid than before.
"It seems their acknowledgment of me is growing deeper."
Ning Zhuo glanced at Zhu Xuanji, sighing inwardly: "If only I could plant the Life Hanging Thread above his head, my advantage would be enormous."
Unfortunately, with his current cultivation, even possessing the complete Divine Power Life Thread, he couldn't achieve that.
"Perhaps, after advancing to the Foundation Establishment Stage, I might be able to plant the Life Hanging Thread on a Golden Core cultivator's head," Ning Zhuo secretly speculated.
Zhu Xuanji was straightforward, "Since everyone is here, let's start by signing the contract."
He briefly explained the content of the contract.
Zheng Jian and Zhou Zhu had no feelings about it, but Zhou Zeshen and Ning Zhuo both frowned slightly.
Zhou Zeshen had doubts but dared not voice them, so he looked towards Ning Zhuo.
Ning Zhuo cupped his fists, "Divine Hunter, please wait a moment; I have some concerns."
"If it's just about restraining our renovation teams and the City Lord's team, this indeed ensures fairness and allows us to focus all our energy and time on competing for various positions in the Magma Fairy Palace in a short period."
"But beyond our four teams, many others are also exploring the Magma Fairy Palace, competing for its treasures of inheritance."
"What about these people?"
"If an unnoticed genius emerges and quickly rises by gaining this inheritance, surpassing our achievements, what then?"
"If our four teams can't soul-enter the Immortal Palace, aren't we giving such people the opportunity?"
"So I believe we should leave some people to monitor the trials in the Magma Fairy Palace, preventing such dark horses from appearing."
Zhu Xuanji nodded slightly, "We have already considered the situations you mentioned."
As he spoke, he took out a scroll.
Obviously, it was an imperial decree scroll.
Zhu Xuanji handed it to Ning Zhuo first.
Ning Zhuo opened it and found the scroll contained extensive content.
The text described detailed terms of the four-party contract, addressing Ning Zhuo's concerns perfectly.
The four powers would each dispatch a renovation team member to oversee and record the citizens' explorations in the Magma Fairy Palace.
If a dark horse appeared, the four powers would respond promptly.
The scroll also specified the contract's duration and how to handle various contingencies that might arise midway.