A burst of red light flooded the scene, causing everyone to see a red haze and instinctively close their eyes. Suddenly, the tunnel went silent; not a sound of buzzing insects or crackling fire was heard, and even human breathing ceased — everyone subconsciously held their breath.
Once the long tail of the Fire Phoenix had swept past and the fiery figure vanished at the end of the tunnel, everyone finally came back to their senses.
The passage before them was utterly empty, leaving nothing behind, even cleaner than if it had been meticulously cleaned, save for the bright blue flames still roaring. These flames were quite formidable, able to use Black Stone as fuel and continue burning. If there's any difference from before, it's probably the stone walls, now reddened by the high temperature, looking like they just came out of a steel furnace, the smooth stone surface molten and dripping down the walls.
