It wasn't long before Qiu Yunru spotted a patch of those flowers.
Just as he remembered from that pre-DLC booklet he'd bought before transmigrating here, Blackened Yellow Flowers grew at the very edge of the rims of volcanoes. By "edge", it wasn't meant that they grew within ten or fifteen feet of of the volcano's maw; no. Those flowers, with their ten petals and withered stems, grew horizontally, leaning right over into the volcano's heat! When picking them, one could see a sea of lava in all its glory and feel the steam burning their eyebrows off.
Thankfully, Qiu Yunru had planned for this. He tied a rope to his waist and handed it to Liao Li, who frowned.
"Just hold it tight," Qiu Yunru assured him. "I'll have to lean over the edge a little."
"Over the edge?" Liao Li paled. "Qiu-wanbei, that's too dangerous. Why don't you hold--?"
But Qiu Yunru was already hurrying off towards the maw. He knew by now that Liao Li was like this. Whenever there was a task that involved any danger, he insisted on doing it himself, while Qiu Yunru stayed behind, whether it was stealing, going out at night, or going out alone. It was as if he saw Qiu Yunru as a princess who couldn't withstand the pain of injuring his pinkie toe. Thus, it was better to hurry off and do the thing than to wait for Liao Li to protest.
As he peered over the rim of the volcano, a wave of scorching, wet heat caused his eyes to dry up, stinging rawly. Sweat was already dripping down his forehead ceaselessly, and his hair quietly matted to his forehead and neck, slippery.
Down below, he could hear the ominous, steady bubbling of the Bloodred Maw's lava. Just as he'd heard, the volcano was so hot that the lava glowed bright blue in places, nearly blinding to look at. His dry eyes began to water painfully now.
Wiping his face, Qiu Yunru leaned down and carefully plucked a few flowers from the earth. After picking ten or so, he held his breath.
If the Bloodred Maw was awake at this moment, surely this would be when it would react: hadn't he just plucked valuable plants from its head without permission? If Qiu Yunru was an ancient being, this was where he'd speak up.
However, there was...nothing.
The lava continued to sizzle and bubble and flow.
A slight breeze whispered through the air, rustling the other Blackened Yellow Flowers. They danced, a few petals dropping off and down into the hell below.
Stomach tight with anxiety, Qiu Yunru quickly reached out to pluck off a few more. He wanted to grab as many as possible; if it turned out some noble demon in the city has syphilis, he could also use this to cure them and gain their favor. Favor = portal = escape!
"Qiu-wanbei! The rope!"
There was a slight tearing noise. Qiu Yunru's heart leapt up his throat. Fuck, fuck, fuck!
He'd specifically purchased an extremely well-woven, thick rope for this purpose. How had it already begun to tear? There was barely any tension on it at all! Was it the heat?
The acrid smell of smoke reached his nose. Looking back, he was horrified to see that the middle of the rope has caught on fire!
"What the hell?!"
"Come back!" Liao Li shouted, eyes wide with horror. "I don't know what happened--come back!"
Qiu Yunru's heart raced. Though the air here was hot, it shouldn't be hot enough to cause a spontaneous fire. None of their clothing had caught on fire, after all!
Could this be the Bloodred Maw's work?
Is it trying to burn us alive?!
Stumbling back towards, Liao Li, Qiu Yunryu fumbled with the rope on his waist. "Run!" He shouted.
"I won't!" Liao Li hollered in return. "Get over here and then we'll run!"
"I'm coming!" was was Qiu Yunru had meant to say as he ran over.
However, before the words could leave his mouth, a scorching wind swept through the air. It seemed to start right between Liao Li and Qiu Yunru; Liao Li's shining, black hair was left untousled.
Meanwhile, Qiu Yunru felt his feet leave the ground.
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
Hard Difficulty Quest: Face the Bloodred Maw! Good luck!
No, no, no, no!
Unceremoniously, Qiu Yunru tumbled through the air and tripped right over the earthen rim. Hot air blasted him as he plummeted right towards the lava stomach of the volcano!