Chapter 2201 — Chapter 2201 Inferno Alchemists

Three days had passed since they entered the Land of Inferno. Yuan suddenly noticed the cultivator's pace quickening, as though impatience—or something else—was driving him forward.

"Is there something wrong?" Yuan asked him.

"W-What?" The cultivator muttered as he turned to face Yuan, looking startled by the question.

"You're speeding up, almost like you cannot wait to arrive at our destination."

"Isn't that obvious? The faster we reach our destination, the faster I get to go home," he said.

Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly and spoke, "What are you hiding? It'd be in your best interest to tell me the truth before you do something stupid."

"I'm not hiding anything!" the cultivator snapped, his tone firm—but the flicker of nervousness in his eyes betrayed him.

Yuan fell silent for a moment before speaking again, "Let's see… What are the chances that instead of taking me to the Burning Tree like I told you, you're actually bringing me to another location?"

The cultivator's body twitched at his words.

Seeing his reaction, Yuan continued with a cold smile, "What if you're actually taking me to the Chaotic Sect instead?"

"That's nonsense! You're just making shit up!" The cultivator came to a halt and shouted with a flushed face. "If you want to kill me, just do it! There's no need for you to make excuses!"

Yuan then said, "You know what? I don't trust you, but I'll still give you the benefit of the doubt. However, I must warn you. If you're actually taking me to the Chaotic Sect, things won't play out like you're hoping, and you'll be the reason for their destruction."

"..."

The cultivator didn't immediately respond, and after a moment of silence, he continued flying without a word.

Yuan also didn't say anything and continued to follow him.

Several days later, Yuan remarked, "According to you, we should've arrived at the Burning Tree by now."

"I… I accidentally took the wrong turn. We should arrive at our destination in five days. I apologize for the inconvenience," he said.

"Is that so? Be more careful this time." Yuan didn't pursue the matter and patiently waited.

After another two days, they came to a halt when an individual wearing red and gold robes blocked their path.

"You're not allowed to go any further unless you want to offend the Asura Clan. Turn around and leave," said the man who was clearly from the Inferno Alchemists.

"Unfortunately, I cannot do that, as I have some business with the Asura Clan," said Yuan.

The Alchemist immediately frowned at his words and replied, "The Asura Clan? Who are you? And what is your relationship with them?"

"We're something like friends, I guess." "..."

The Alchemist stared at Yuan with wide eyes filled with disbelief before he suddenly burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! Friends?! Surely, you must have a better lie than that! The Asura Clan has no friends!"

"Who are you to claim they have no friends? Are you that close with the Asura Clan?" Yuan questioned, which instantly halted the Alchemist's laughter.

"If you claim to be his friend, what is your name? We'll ask the Asura Clan about you, and if you turn out to be lying…"

"Tell them Tian Xian is here to see them. If I am lying, you can turn me into dog food or whatever you want," Yuan responded with a confident smile.

"Don't worry, I'll do just that. Until we can confirm your identity, you will have to stay with us at the Inferno Alchemist's headquarters. After all, we don't want you to run away after making such a bold claim."

"How long will this take?" Yuan asked.

"I don't know since it's not like we can contact the Asura Clan as we please."

"..."

After a moment of silence, Yuan nodded, "Alright."

Although he didn't say it out loud, he decided to give them a month at most. If they couldn't contact the Asura Clan by then, he would head to the Burning Tree by force.

"Umm… what about me? I have brought you to your destination, so…" The cultivator from the Chaotic Sect said.

Yuan silently glared at him for a moment before responding, "Yes, as promised, you're free to go."

"T-Thank you!"

Without hesitation, the cultivator immediately turned around and began fleeing like his life depended on it.

Even as he put distance between them, Yuan's voice trailed after him. "When you return, try to convince the Chaotic Sect not to seek revenge. You wouldn't want to squander the second life I gave you, do you?"

"What was that about?" asked the Alchemist.

"Oh, don't worry about him. He was just a guide."

"...Whatever. Follow me."

Yuan nodded, and he and Mu Xuelian followed the Alchemist back to the Inferno Alchemist's headquarters.

A day later, they arrived at the Inferno Alchemist's headquarters, a place built like a sect but on a much smaller scale.

When they arrived, the Alchemist brought Yuan to a guest house before leaving to report the situation to his superiors. Of course, he didn't leave Yuan and Mu Xuelian unsupervised and had several people guard their place.

"What? A friend of the Asura Clan? What nonsense is that?"

The elders almost couldn't believe their ears and were very dismissive about the situation.

"They're definitely just some troublemaker trying to reach the Spirit Tree. Fools like them occasionally show up."

"Right? Just kill them and save the trouble. We cannot bother the Asura Clan over such insignificant issues."

However, the Alchemist who brought Yuan to their headquarters said, "That's what I thought at first, too. But he's unlike the others. There's something different about him, and he's strangely confident. Otherwise, he wouldn't have followed me back here. What if he's telling the truth? If we act too prematurely without even investigating a little and accidentally kill someone close to the Asura Clan… wouldn't that spell the end of our faction?"

"..."

The elders found logic behind the Alchemist's words, and the room quickly fell silent as they pondered their situation more seriously.