The Heavenly Furnace Mountains lived up to their name perfectly. It was a jagged, brutal range of active volcanoes situated in the deep south of the Central Continent, where the air was so thick with ash and fire-attribute Qi that ordinary mortals would spontaneously combust just by taking a breath.
For the ancient weapon refiners who called these peaks home, it was a paradise. For anyone else, it was a suffocating hellscape.
But as Yan Shuo casually strolled up the black obsidian path leading to the summit of the central volcano, he didn't feel a single drop of heat.
Walking exactly half a step behind him, Tantai Zhi held a delicate, translucent parasol over his head. It wasn't made of paper or silk. She had flawlessly condensed her absolute peak Yin Qi into a physical umbrella, casting a soothing, perfectly chilled shadow over her husband.
While the surrounding rocks glowed red-hot, Yan Shuo was enjoying a microclimate that felt like a crisp, refreshing spring morning.
