Immortality: Raising an Ant Queen to Cultivate by increasing stat points

Demon Birds are highly intelligent, and a slight anomaly could easily alert them.

He had to get the details just right.

Once the hole was ready, he took out the Ice Lotus from his basket. Wisps of cold air emanated from the Ice Lotus, helping him counteract the intense heat inside the cave.

The Ice Lotus needed to grow in water, and now that he had removed it from its aquatic environment and brought it into a space filled with scorching lava, it was clearly suffering from the high temperatures.

Water and fire are naturally incompatible.

It was visible that the edges of the Ice Lotus petals were wilting at a rate noticeable to the naked eye.

Qin Niu had brought the Ice Lotus into the cave today to test whether he could use it to enter the lava.

Now, just being in the scorching environment, it had already begun to wilt; directly exposed to the boiling lava, it would likely turn to ash in a very short time.

His original thought was to use the Ice Lotus like an amulet, binding it to his body before entering the lava.

Qin Niu tried placing the Ice Lotus at the edge of the lava.

As soon as it touched the lava, it immediately made a sizzling sound and emitted bursts of white smoke.

Though it looked frightening, its petals were not instantly burnt, they simply wilted at a slightly faster rate.

Seeing how resilient it was, Qin Niu felt a surge of excitement, glimpsing a sliver of hope.

He tried to touch the lava near the Ice Lotus with his hand.

Extremely hot.

A brief touch was manageable, but long exposure would char his hand to a crisp.

The most fearsome thing in the world is flame, burning all things to ash.

“It seems impossible to use the Ice Lotus to enter the pool of lava and retrieve the Fire Lotus,” he said to himself.

Qin Niu drew back his hand and picked up the Ice Lotus to check its condition.

The petals were severely wilted, but it was still continuously emitting cold air. This indicated that its internal structure wasn’t much affected.

“The Everlasting Spring Technique can help plants grow quickly and regain vitality. Could infusing it with the power of the Everlasting Spring Technique help it recover?” he wondered.

Qin Niu tried channeling a trace of the Everlasting Spring Technique into the Ice Lotus.

The once severely wilted outer petals quickly rejuvenated, becoming vivid and lively once more.

This proved that the strength of the Everlasting Spring Technique really could help the Ice Lotus resist the heat from the scorching lava.

Even in the absence of water, it still had a significant effect.

He continued the experiment, infusing the Ice Lotus with the Everlasting Spring Technique’s power while keeping it in contact with the lava.

Supported by his Everlasting Spring Technique, the Ice Lotus was bolstered with an external force, allowing it to persist in its battle against the lava.

Even so, Qin Niu still couldn’t, enter the lava.

…

Another five days passed.

Recently, while cultivating in the mountains or controlling insects, he had felt minor tremors in the ground. This worried him that the volcano housing the cave might erupt soon.

According to his plan, it would have been best to wait until his cultivation of the Everlasting Spring Technique reached the Spirit Qi Realm before attempting to enter the cave and retrieve the Fire Lotus.

Now, it seemed he would have to act sooner.

If he didn’t manage to extract the Fire Lotus before the volcano erupted, it would be shattered by the explosion and destroyed.

Such a rare flower was an extremely precious treasure; he might only encounter such a thing once in a lifetime.

Qin Niu concluded his practice early that day, sent his wives and Xiao Qing home, and then hurried toward the volcanic cave with the Ice Lotus and an array of pets.

He had to hide in the already-excavated cavity before the Demon Birds went in to cultivate.

This wasn’t his first trip to the cave; he seemed to know the way well and arrived at the entrance to the cave quickly.

“Lazy Ox, there’s no place in there for you to hide. If that firebird discovers you, you will be in great danger. You stay outside, and if I’m in any danger, you’ll be able to support me in time.”

Qin Niu had Green Ox hide in a concealed spot outside.

He believed that as long as its head wasn’t broken, it would stay put right there.

Because once discovered by the firebird, given Green Ox’s current strength, it was no match for the firebird. It would probably instantaneously turn into a roasted ox.

Qin Niu looked up at the sky, which had darkened, and didn’t hesitate to enter the cave.

Magma could be seen spilling out toward the cave entrance.

The first time he came, he had to go dozens of meters into the cave before he could see a little bit of magma, like in a marshland.

Now, less than ten meters into the cave, some rocks on the ground could be seen melting from the high temperature, glowing with a dark red color.

Stepping on them, if one didn’t move quickly, one’s soles would feel scorching hot.

He arrived at the deepest part of the cave, went straight into the dug-out hole, hid his figure, then held his breath and quieted his spirit, waiting for the firebird to come in for cultivation.

Time was slipping away fast.

It should be dark outside by now.

“Screech!”

The loud call of the firebird reverberated outside the cave, and soon, merely around ten breaths later, a fiery red afterimage streaked by at high speed.

Such fast speed.

Even inside the cave, it could still fly.

Perhaps, this wasn’t flying but might be some kind of demon magic.

Powerful demon birds or beasts all have their ways of fleeing.

In nature, all wild animals must learn methods to save their own lives. Even the mightiest tigers, Black Bears in the jungle, or the smallest ants and caterpillars have to develop skills to protect themselves.

Otherwise, they won’t live long before being eliminated by nature, becoming food for other animals.

Qin Niu hid in the cave, well placed to see most of the magma pool.

Fearing to attract the demon bird’s notice, he dared not stare at it.

He could only observe the activities in the magma pool with the corner of his eye.

The firebird seemed to have some fear of the magma too, as it didn’t dare to dive directly into it for cultivation.

Instead, it flapped its wings and flew above the magma pool, right above the Fire Lotus, occasionally swooping toward the surface to splash magma onto its body.

That was its way of cultivating.

The bird’s wings splashed the scalding magma onto its back, eliciting pained cries.

Its feathers were quickly ignited, with flames burning fiercely.

While it clearly was in great pain bathing in the magma, the firebird kept repeatedly splashing magma onto itself.

Rumor had it that for a Phoenix to undergo rebirth, it must first endure the agony of flames consuming its body.

Could this firebird truly be a Phoenix?

At first, Qin Niu didn’t dare stare at it.

He even avoided looking directly at its location.

After half an hour or more, the firebird’s feathers were in disarray like a hen’s nest, and its cries had become hoarse, clearly diminishing in strength.

This indicated that cultivating with the help of magma caused certain damage to its body.

Or perhaps, during cultivation, its demon power was being rapidly depleted.

Seizing the moment of its weakness, Qin Niu boldly looked at the magma pool below it. The center of the Fire Lotus was actually displaying a pale golden color.

This meant that the flame temperature was even higher than in other places.

The firebird flapped its wings, flying above the Fire Lotus, again and again swooping down toward the magma, using it as a bath.