“I’ve been observing it using Spiritual Detection ever since I started the campfire, and I realized that the miasma has no way of resisting fire, and clearly vanishes around this campfire. It’s apparent that flames are fatal to this miasma. I don’t have any fire-type abilities, but some of the soul tools that I carry around can create some fire, and are proving extremely effective. I’ve already attached these soul tools to the all-terrain self-propelling fort, and I’ve made the fort even more airtight than before, along with some other changes that will be imperative to keeping us alive.
“Also, my second martial soul possesses Ultimate Ice. Perhaps ice won’t have the same effect on the miasma as fire does, but the miasma carries miniscule toxins that will be greatly weakened under exceedingly cold temperatures. Furthermore, my Ultimate Ice can affect the water vapor that makes up the fog. The miasma will also be weakened without water vapor to help it permeate.
“I’ve combined all this with the prepared safeguards to keep us alive. Even if we can’t venture too deep inside, we will have no problem breaking out, since all we have to do is prevent the miasma from corroding our flying-type soul tools. That being the case, we will have no problem escaping from here.”
The incredulity in Wang Qiu’er’s eyes grew stronger and stronger as she listened to Huo Yuhao’s analysis. She was truly astonished… she had just been daydreaming beside him during this short period of time, but he had already come up with so many solutions to deal with the problem. Everything he said made perfect sense. Rational judgment told her that not everywhere within this miasma was dangerous, and they also had ice and fire to handle the problem. The danger from Wang Qiu’er’s point of view seemed to diminish.
Huo Yuhao chortled as he stared at the astonished look on her face. “Do you suddenly feel that I am smart and powerful?”
Wang Qiu’er snapped, “Enough nonsense. Hurry up and rest. We’ll get moving tomorrow.”
They began to meditate beside the campfire. The miasma was undeniably dangerous, but it also formed a protective dome around them. There were so few soul beasts in the area that they weren’t threatened at all.
The night passed without any other words.
------
Huo Yuhao activated his flying-type soul tool at first light and soared into the sky to monitor the surrounding miasma.
Wang Qiu’er’s words were accurate. The miasma in the morning was conspicuously denser, and he could see faint white fog around their location. However, the miasma around these parts was not that toxic, and dissipated or disintegrated when it came near the campfire.
Huo Yuhao adjusted his altitude from time to time so that he could better monitor the situation, and he recorded everything that he saw. He didn’t dare to be careless about anything that concerned his and Wang Qiu’er’s safety, especially anything that would have an impact on whether he could retrieve the Yearning Heartbroken Grass or not.
The sun rose fully as he continued to observe and calculate. Huo Yuhao continuously communicated his observations to Wang Qiu’er, and they patiently waited for midday to arrive.
Finally, it was almost time. Huo Yuhao and Wang Qiu’er ate some more, had their fill of water, and set off in their peak condition.
Huo Yuhao’s eyes were as cold as ice as he stared at the thinning miasma in the air.
The weather was good today; the sun was radiant as it loomed over the earth, and there wasn’t a single cloud to be seen. Truthfully, it wasn’t what Huo Yuhao had wanted most. What he wanted most was heavy rain and a thunderstorm!
The miasma would be weakened to a larger extent if a heavy downpour came down upon the Setting Sun Forest. Unfortunately, this was still the dry season, and storms were few and far between in the northern regions to begin with. The scorching sun completely dashed his hopes.
“We’ll be setting off soon, Qiu’er.” Huo Yuhao turned towards Wang Qiu’er.
“Let’s go.” Wang Qiu’er’s expression was equally cold and stoic, but there was a tinge of excitement beneath her eyes. This was the first time she had encountered a situation like this, where Huo Yuhao’s intricate and comprehensive plan resolved the various dangers and threats. She was filled with curiosity and excitement against a natural phenomenon such as this, and the mystery of the unknown and uncertain dangers was extremely stimulating to her.
Huo Yuhao extended the flying-type soul tool behind his back, and reached out for Wang Qiu’er with his left hand.
Their lives were at stake, and it was necessary to conserve as much soul power as they could with every step they took so that they could maintain themselves at their peak conditions. Their martial soul fusion would have a substantial part to play in this endeavor, and Huo Yuhao couldn’t be bothered with anything lesser at a time like this.
Wang Qiu’er glanced at him and hmphed, but eventually slipped her left hand into his palm.
Their hands clasped together, and their soul power naturally interacted, flourishing soul power undulations rippling out. Huo Yuhao looked up at the sky as he grabbed Wang Qiu’er’s hand, and channeled soul power into her before they both soared into the sky.
They surged out of the Setting Sun Forest and continued to climb higher and higher. Their Class 6 flying-type soul tools propelled them up, and they quickly reached several hundred meters in the sky. However, Huo Yuhao showed no signs of stopping as he continued flying upward with Wang Qiu’er.
The miasma beneath them covered a tremendous area, which Huo Yuhao had roughly gauged beforehand. The strongest part of the miasma permeated to about three hundred meters above-ground, and these were the parts that had hints of color. The miasma here looked exceptionally beautiful, but was also exceedingly dangerous.
They climbed to about seven hundred meters before Huo Yuhao stabilized his altitude. They were currently high enough to avoid the miasma’s toxicity, and he took another glance at it before he pulled Wang Qiu’er along and flew towards the place where the miasma was the thickest.
Never once did he consider using the all terrain self-propelling fort to move forward on the ground toward their destination. The miasma on the ground would become increasingly thick, which meant that it would also become more corrosive. This would take a continuous toll on the fort’s protective barrier and his soul power, whereas using their flying-type soul tools expended a lot less.
More importantly, his Spiritual Detection would be greatly impeded as they went deeper into the thick miasma. This meant that it would be impossible for him to determine direction and proceed toward his destination as fast as he could.
It was different in the sky. Discerning direction in the air was convenient, and he was almost sure that the place where the miasma was the densest was likely where he had to go. The place where exotic things existed were undoubtedly unique, and this toxic miasma could be considered one of this place’s unique features.
Even if using flying-type soul tools consumed more soul power than moving along the ground with his all-terrain self-propelling fort, Huo Yuhao would still choose the sky because it was a lot faster, and they could reach the skies above their destination in no time. Huo Yuhao’s subsequent plan could be executed as fast as possible, and this meant he would be conserving soul power.
The area they were coming from was in the toxic miasma’s outer regions. They were flying as fast as they could through the sky, and it took but a few minutes before they reached the sky above the area where the miasma was most dense.
Huo Yuhao held onto Wang Qiu’er with his right hand as he raised his left hand into the air. A beam of light sparkled from his ring, and a stationary soul cannon about one and a half meters long appeared in his hands. He held the cannon stably on his shoulder, and let go of Wang Qiu’er’s hand for a moment. He swung his wrist, and the storage ring on his left hand immediately produced two stationary soul cannon shells in his hands – these were the cannon shells with red markings that he had picked out the previous day.
Huo Yuhao placed one shell into the barrel and held onto the other one as he activated Spiritual Detection. He was looking down from the sky, and the area he could cover was naturally greater than usual, while there was nothing obstructing his vision.
Wang Qiu’er controlled her flying-type soul tool and flew behind him while she tilted herself backward, so that she wouldn’t affect his flying-type soul tool’s stability as she grabbed his shoulders with both hands at the same time. Their martial souls began to fuse, greatly boosting Huo Yuhao’s soul power.
Huo Yuhao didn’t pause at all, swinging his right hand and tossing the cannon shell in it down. It fell away rapidly, while he quickly supported the stationary soul cannon with his right hand and locked onto the shell with his Spiritual Detection. Just as te cannon shell was about to pierce through the thick miasma, Huo Yuhao fired his soul cannon.
Boom! The tremendous recoil pushed Huo Yuhao several meters through the air as a brilliant red beam erupted from his soul cannon. The cannon shell barreled forward at devastating speed, and went straight for the other cannon shell that Huo Yuhao had tossed out earlier.
The shell fired by the stationary soul cannon naturally flew a lot faster than the one that was in freefall through the air. Huo Yuhao had used Spiritual Detection to lock onto his target, and his accuracy was comparable to ruler measurements. A red streak of light unerringly struck the cannon shell that had just plunged into the thick miasma.
Boom, boom, boom! A series of explosions could be heard, and the thick miasma was immediately tainted fiery-red. The entire miasmic cloud began to tremble violently and tumultuously as sparks flew in all directions.
The stationary cannon shell that Huo Yuhao had used was a Class 5 explosive incendiary bomb. It wasn’t as powerful as the Giant Lightning Cannon that he had used before, but it had an extremely large area of effect. The explosion would also generate a terrifying amount of intense heat, whose waves would permeate in all directions. A single Class 5 explosive incendiary bomb could cover a radius of at least a hundred meters, and was exceptionally violent!
Huo Yuhao opted to use two shells, and made it so that these two shells would collide and detonate in the air for an even more explosive impact, which would cause even more damage to the miasmic cloud. On the other hand, detonating the cannon shell on the ground might damage the herb that he was supposed to retrieve. He wanted to obliterate the miasma, not this magical herb!
His calculations could be said to be impeccable and precise, and he executed his plan as perfectly as could be.