He Luo shot him a glare, letting out a cold snort, his face etched with displeasure.

Little Fatty He Lai flinched, glancing furtively at Mo Duanhun and Shi Yan. The fat on his face bunched up, forcing out an awkward, strained smile. "I have the Emptying Vase, but it's only half-finished. I gathered all the materials and refined it in the lava of a small volcano for seven days, but I only managed to pull out the embryonic form. The density of the smelting isn't right, and the fire temperature wasn't enough; the lava's heat couldn't quite refine out the impurities in the materials." The little fatty wailed, pulling out a hideous, mottled, dark-brown bottle from his robes. He Luo frowned.

"Is there a way to refine this half-finished product into a finished one?"

"If I can just find a higher-temperature lava source, I can finish it in half a day," He Lai’s eyes lit up. "It's just that the lava temperature is too high, and I can't withstand it, so I never acted. Besides, I figured I probably wouldn't get the chance to acquire Earth Fire, so I stopped putting effort into it."

"You useless brat, you can't do anything right!" He Luo roared, shaking his head and sighing. "If you could focus your mind on one thing, you wouldn't end up accomplishing nothing." He Lai was also a martial artist, though only at the Triple Heaven of the Innate Realm. He Luo had certainly invested considerable effort into him. Every time He Qingman returned from the Tianxie Grotto-Heaven, she would hide some spiritual herbs to use on this naughty younger brother, but the boy was truly disappointing, remaining stuck at the Triple Heaven of the Innate Realm, causing He Luo and He Qingman endless headaches. Although He Qingman and He Lai were half-siblings, He Lai’s mother had been a maid to He Qingman’s mother, following her since childhood and sharing an extremely close bond with her mistress. Coupled with He Lai's affectionate devotion to his elder sister despite his mischievous nature, He Qingman was extremely fond of him and always took good care of her brother.

Despite not sharing the same mother, the brother and sister shared a deep bond. Seeing He Lai so listless, He Qingman was secretly annoyed and shot him a fierce glare.

He Lai felt immensely wronged, drooping his head and muttering quietly, "You all never help me. If you had helped me, I would have refined this Emptying Vase long ago. I even begged you before to accompany me to a volcano to refine it..."

"Shut up!" He Luo snapped.

Previously, when He Luo learned he wanted to refine the Emptying Vase, he just assumed the boy was indulging in useless nonsense. Refining the Emptying Vase required some rather rare materials, and if one couldn't collect Earth Core Fire, it was useless scrap anyway, which is why He Luo hadn't paid much attention. When He Lai begged him, he had even severely scolded him.

He hadn't anticipated that Mo Duanhun would need this item. Now, hearing He Lai murmur like this, it sounded almost like it was his fault. This truly infuriated He Luo to the point he almost wanted to land a punch.

"No matter," Shi Yan smiled. "Just find a volcano and re-smelt it. We’ll all go together."

"The temperature of the volcanoes is too high; I can't endure it," He Lai shook his head repeatedly, his face full of fear. "I've tried it; I was nearly cooked alive. I won't dare do it without someone guarding me."

"Here, take this." Shi Yan found the boy rather interesting and casually took out a piece of Azure Moon Stone, tossing it to He Lai. He chuckled, "Hold onto this stone. From now on, if you need to refine anything, you can go to some higher-temperature volcanoes without worrying about being cooked." This piece of Azure Moon Stone contained the frigid power of the Profound Ice Cold Flame. Touching it would make one feel intensely cold, and with the cold energy protecting his body, he could indeed enter high-temperature areas without fear.

"Whoa! So cold!" He Lai snatched the Azure Moon Stone and cried out in surprise. He quickly wrapped it in a thick sheet of oilcloth, exclaiming with delight, "Good, good! There's very strong cold energy inside. With this treasure, I can definitely refine the Emptying Vase without any issues." Shi Yan smiled again. "Handle it carefully. If that thing collides violently, it will explode, and all the contained cold energy will burst out, capable of directly freezing a martial artist at the Hundred Calamities Realm to death!" He Lai jumped, his entire body of fat wobbling, and he immediately gripped the Azure Moon Stone tightly.

"Who refined this thing?" The little fatty looked at the Azure Moon Stone, examining it for a while, then suddenly began shaking his head and pontificating, "The refinement is terrible. There are still so many impurities on the surface, and even more inside! The heat was insufficient, and the technique is too poor. What a waste of the cold energy contained within! If I had materials this good, the item I refined would be several times better than this! Truly a desecration of nature; the person who refined this thing is just too weak. What a waste, what a waste!" The little fatty shook his head in exasperation, not noticing the slight change in Shi Yan’s expression.

"Enough nonsense!" He Luo noticed something from Shi Yan's face. Annoyed, he tapped He Lai on the head and roared, "Someone gives you this thing, and you don't even say thank you, yet you dare to be picky? Are you tired of living?" He Lai, having been hit by He Luo, snapped back to reality. He squeezed out a fawning smile and bowed deeply to Shi Yan, "Big Brother, thank you. Although this thing is poorly refined, it’s very useful to me. Thank you, thank you." Shi Yan looked at He Lai with a mixture of amusement and helplessness, shaking his head. "No need for thanks. Just make sure the Emptying Vase is done well. If the vase isn't finished, I'll take this back."

"Don't worry, don't worry, I'll definitely satisfy Big Brother," He Lai chuckled slyly. "Finishing the Emptying Vase is easy; if it weren't for me not finding a suitable place, it would have been refined long ago."

"If there's nothing else, we can set off," Shi Yan nodded.

"En." He Luo looked towards Mo Duanhun. "Lord Mo, may we accompany you?"

"We can," Mo Duanhun replied indifferently, nodding. "We'll go out together against the Azure Blood Demon Bats. He Lai, you lead the way. First, find a volcano suitable for refining the Emptying Vase, and then we'll head to the largest ten-thousand-year volcano on Fire Cloud Island." Shi Yan and Mo Duanhun sat astride one Level Six Azure Blood Demon Bat, while the He Luo family sat on another. They flew out from the He residence together, heading towards the nearest volcano. Soon, the Azure Blood Demon Bats landed at the crater of the volcano.

He Lai, gripping the Azure Moon Stone with a thin silver glove, dismounted the Demon Bat. He peered down into the crater, his chubby body moving around. After a moment, he called out loudly, "I need to go down a bit." The crater was enveloped in rolling heatwaves, scorching hot. At one gap, there were stone steps leading down, clearly man-made excavations. It wasn't clear who had put them there. He Lai seemed familiar with the place and skillfully headed toward the stone steps, his bulky form slowly descending into the volcano.

He Luo, worried, excused himself from Mo Duanhun and followed after him, calling out loudly, "Brat, slow down! If you fall, all that fat on you will quickly turn into oil!"

"Dad, please don't scare me!" He Lai cried out from inside. "I’ve been here before, but last time I didn't dare go too deep. But now with this stone, and with you here, Dad, it's definitely foolproof!"

"Be careful with me," He Luo grunted. Despite his verbal reprimand, he followed He Lai deeper into the volcano, slowly moving downward.

He Luo actually cared deeply for this son. Although He Qingman possessed extraordinary talent, bringing immense glory to the He family, she was ultimately a woman who would eventually marry out. Furthermore, she was a master painstakingly cultivated by the Tianxie Grotto-Heaven. For He Luo, He Qingman might become the He family's greatest future support. However, the duty of continuing the family line could not fall to He Qingman; rather, it was He Lai who would bear this heavy responsibility and become the future steward of the He family. Despite the beatings and scolding He Luo usually gave He Lai, he knew in his heart that He Qingman wouldn't remain in the He family forever, while He Lai would stay devotedly. Thus, he was extremely concerned about He Lai's safety. Soon, the father and son vanished into the volcano's maw. Occasionally, He Luo's sharp scolding and He Lai's aggrieved complaints could still be heard.

Shi Yan, Mo Duanhun, and He Qingman stood on a protruding Flame Rock stone not far from the crater, watching the volcano opening.

Hot winds rolled by. He Qingman's hair billowed, her graceful figure radiantly alluring, her peach-blossom eyes sparkling with seductive charm. Shi Yan occasionally looked at the crater, then at He Qingman, his mind involuntarily drifting to visions of how stunning she would look with her clothes shed and her jade body revealed. His gaze toward He Qingman gradually became less innocent, burning intently, as if he had already stripped her bare.

He Qingman turned inadvertently and glanced at Shi Yan, immediately noticing the unusual nature of his gaze. "You brat, what are you looking at!" He Qingman was furious. She instantly recalled their wager, and looking at Shi Yan's expression, she realized what he was thinking. She was so angry she nearly lunged forward to strike him.

Shi Yan smiled slightly, calmly saying, "Nothing much, just thinking about our wager." The less he said, the better, but bringing it up made He Qingman's face flush crimson. She snapped fiercely, "Don't you dare think about it!" Shi Yan shook his head and ignored her.

He Qingman glared at him, her delicate chest trembling, biting her lip in secret. She hissed coldly, "I forbid you from mentioning our wager to anyone! If you dare gossip, I certainly won't let you off!"

"I usually keep any advantage I gain to myself; I'm not that bored," Shi Yan chuckled, not knowing why, but the thought that this beautiful, seductive woman would soon willingly strip before him made his mood pleasant, lessening his aversion to He Qingman’s hostility.

He Qingman glared at him. "Do you think you can win?"

"Who knows," Shi Yan smiled indifferently. "Nothing is certain. Thinking you will win doesn't guarantee victory. While I don't have absolute certainty, I'm not guaranteed to lose either. The ways of the world are unpredictable. Until the final moment, no one knows the outcome. However, I truly look forward to it, hehe." Hearing him say this, He Qingman felt an inexplicable sense of unease in her heart. Her absolute confidence seemed to wane by a fraction due to Shi Yan's composed demeanor. He is destined to lose! He will never win! What am I thinking? I must have confidence in myself! He Qingman shook her head, calming herself again, looking at Shi Yan with disdain, raising her chin in a cold snort, regaining her full confidence. ...