Even though she was mentally prepared, Emily still couldn't help but frown when she truly stepped into the geothermal core region of the Red Tide Territory.

The air seemed to be filled with a scorching fire fog, with waves of steam coming at them, heating the rocks to a scalding temperature, and even breathing felt like inhaling air from a furnace.

She instinctively tightened the light cloak over her shoulders, though it couldn't really block the heat, it was more of a psychological comfort.

"Are your feet still burning?" Louis ahead turned back, his gaze falling on her boots.

Emily nodded, then shook her head, the corners of her mouth carrying a gentle curve: "It's fine. Though it's a bit hot, as long as you're here, I'm not afraid."

Louis chuckled softly and walked back to her side.: "I originally planned to come alone, this place is really too hot."

"I know." Emily reached out to gently wipe the sweat off his forehead, "But I also want to know what you're doing."

From the first day she met Louis, Emily knew in her heart: this man's footsteps were destined not to stay between greenhouses and banquets.

Emily wanted to walk beside him, not stay in place and wait.

The ground was so hot it felt like an iron plate, each step was like dancing on flames.

Although she was an elite knight and could use fighting energy to resist most of the high temperature, sweat still continuously seeped out, flowing from her neck into her collar, soaking the fabric close to her skin.

"So," Emily turned her head to look at Louis walking in front, wiping sweat as she asked, "What exactly are we here to catch?"

Louis didn't turn back, yet his tone was as relaxed as if he were walking in the mountains: "Fire-Scaled Viper."

Hearing this, Emily responded with a light "Mm," and didn't ask more.

Of course she knew what that was.

She wasn't an apprentice knight new to military life, nor one of those ladies sitting in a courtyard reciting poetry.

She grew up in the Northern Territory and had some understanding of these dangerous magical beasts hiding in scalding rock crevices.

Fire-Scaled Vipers are reptilian magical beasts dwelling in extremely high-temperature environments, commonly found in regions with active volcanic activity, near geothermal faults, and in rock crevices around sulfur pits.

Their body length is about three meters, scales are as hard as iron, and they are deep red or orange-gold in color, capable of enduring continuous high temperatures above ninety degrees Celsius.

They have a gregarious nature, strong aggressiveness, their teeth contain high-temperature toxins that, once injected into a wound, can cause intense burning reactions or even loss of neural control.

Their scales, liver, and poison glands are all highly valuable alchemy materials.

Due to their stable thermal energy output characteristics, they are favored by various military alchemists.

However, because of the difficulty in capturing them and harsh environments, Fire-Scaled Vipers have long been on the high-priced resources list.

Therefore, Louis's purpose for this journey is not just to "catch a few snakes."

But to prepare for the subsequent military research of Red Tide Territory, Magic Explosion Technique, and even the training system for special forces.

"The surface temperature of this area has already exceeded ninety degrees." Louis spoke while observing the terrain, "Sulfur gas, cracked rock steam... precisely the favorite habitat of the Fire-Scaled Viper."

"Yeah, I smelled it." Emily nodded, a faint sulfur scent mixed with a slightly sweet and damp fragrance filled her nostrils.

The surrounding rocks were already turning red, as if repeatedly scorched.

White smoke occasionally rose from the cracks, swirling and tumbling with the air currents.

Faded snake molts occasionally appeared on the ground, with densely packed scales slightly glistening under the light.

"They usually move in groups and like to forage between dawn and dusk." Louis murmured, "We have to find their nest before they return."

"So how many do you plan to catch?" Emily asked.

"If we're lucky enough to find a nest, try to capture as many alive as possible." Louis spoke calmly, "Use a portion for experiments, and the rest for taming."

Tame Fire-Scaled Vipers?

Emily didn't voice her question but her eyes showed more interest.

The scorching ground was trembling slightly.

"Found it." Louis lightly touched an almost imperceptible winding trace with his fingertip, "A crawling track of the Fire-Scaled Viper, and it's a new trace."

Emily followed his gaze, behind a cracked rock not far away, a trace of crimson scales seemed to flicker and disappear, like some kind of lurking heated phantom.

"Their nest should be near the front melting trench." Louis stood up, dusted off his pants, and said calmly.

He waved his hand, and the knights who had been on standby quickly divided into three groups.

The lure group was responsible for drawing out the target, the observation group recorded behavior responses and released mist, and the protection group held shields on guard against sudden occurrences.

A knight standing beside Louis expertly took out a silver-white portable distillation device.

That device looked like a crystal jar protected by a metal frame.

Pale blue liquid was carefully poured in by another knight, falling into the core slot of the jar.

"Activate." The knight whispered, pressing a mechanism on the side of the device with his thumb.

Just a faint "hiss——" was heard.

The next second, wisps of pale blue cooling mist rose from the top of the device, the mist carried a fragrance of grass and mint, appearing particularly cool in the high-temperature scorching air.

An aura of silence reminiscent of the arrival of the first snow slowly enveloped the surrounding heat.

The other knights also successively activated their mist generators, and in an instant, the entire rocky terrain seemed to be subtly dragged from purgatory into a snowy land.

The Fire-Scaled Vipers squirming faintly between the cracks seemed to have sensed something, their movements became sluggish, no longer restless but cautiously lifting their heads, lightly twitching their noses, sniffing the peculiar scent spreading through the air.

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