Cursed Immortality

Today, Jacob finally spotted the silhouette of the faraway pyramid and instantly knew where to go. 

'First the ice mountain and now this pyramid. I wonder what other prominent structures are here. This trial is becoming more and more pronounced, and people might soon figure out that it is about hunting. 

'This is getting cumbersome, and I need to report my progress in a few days. Even after acquiring two unique rank magic cores, I still couldn't get rid of that slave rune. I wonder if it would be destroyed after the Hex Magic Core evolved into a top-tier unique magic core, which is not possible at this moment. 

'Still, even if it gets destroyed, I need to make sure not to let that cunning Free Sword find out. He still has his use…' Jacob mused as he decided to pick up his pace and used the flying disc. 

The temperature was no longer a problem for him, and he hadn't encountered any beasts yet. Furthermore, now that he has two unique magic cores worth of mana, he can afford to waste some. 

Furthermore, this way, he would be out of reach and could continue to work on his new fire magic and get more familiar with it. Before, he only focused on forming the Star Magic Formations because they were relatively easy, and he needed to enhance his magic combat ability. 

Now, he can learn the spells he had, and with both fire and water, his combat abilities would soar tremendously. As for sorcery, he only needs his hex magic core and long-range weapons. This was a path Jacob chose for himself, and it was the most optimal path for him. 

Right now, he needed to collect more hearts to increase his cursed blood and increase his mana capacity. Because his mana capacity is directly connected with his infinity pendant, evolving the core would only provide him with 99 more rectified stars, not that level's hex mana. 

So, learning the fire and water spells was more practical in the long run, while the cursed magic he picked from the Vile Witch Layer needed more research and time, not to mention rectified stars, which he doesn't have right now.

Before learning the truth from Immortika, he thought he could continue his research here while lying low after completing a condition. But now, he didn't have that luxury. 

Furthermore, fire and water together opened many possibilities for someone like Jacob, and with his new-found fire immunity, he can be more reckless with his atomic weaponry. 

As for the third meditation exercise of the Art of Nature, the environment required for it was extremely hard to find, even more than this burning desert, and Jacob also did not think he could handle the G-force with his current physique. So, he didn't even think about it. 

With his flying disc, Jacob got close to the pyramid within three days, and now he was close enough to see the five-hundred-meter-high, burning pyramid. But the surrounding flames were only three meters high. 

But the surrounding temperature was naturally higher than anywhere else in the entire desert. Still, Jacob only felt slightly hot and started to look for an entrance. The pyramid didn't have any entrance, and it seemed to be carved with gigantic stone. There were no traces of it being built by bricks or anything else. 

It was at this moment Jacob spotted an anomaly at the tip of the pyramid and directly headed there. But since he can endure that temperature, it doesn't mean his tools can. 

When he was close to the peak, the disc under his feet showed signs of melting, and it started to shake. 

'Well, what do I expect from a rare rank treasure…' Jacob frowned a little and decided to jump toward the pyramid before the disc entirely lost its ability to fly. 

'Boomm…' 

Jacob left a small shockwave as he jumped as high as he could, took out his blades, and tried stabbing them on the pyramid's smooth surface and succeeded!

He was now only a little bit over a hundred meters away from the pyramid tip and started to climb using his swords like an ice axe and slowly made his way towards the top. 

When he finally reached the pyramid's edge, he spotted the anomaly. He noticed the top was hollow; surprisingly, a stairway led downwards! 

Only someone from above could notice this passage, and even then, it would take someone with splendid sight since it was covered in flames. 

Looking at the dark passage within the flames, Jacob delayed for a moment before he walked in with his swords. He didn't sense any danger, and the passage had no flames. 

When Jacob entered the passage, he saw the stairs were spiral, and within the center was an image of a golden scorpion inscribed on the floor. Slowly heading down, Jacob was fully vigilant. 

But there was no movement as he got closer to the end of the spiral staircase, and when he was only a few steps away from the bottom, he found a massive golden door a few meters away from the stairs, and it was also carved with a scorpion symbol. 

'Could it be a trap?' Jacob mused while looking at the scorpion inscription on the floor. He avoided stepping on it and directly jumped towards the golden door. 

Now, whatever was behind, he had to open the door to see it, and he still avoided touching it and used his sword to try to push it. 

'Creak…' 

A creaking sound was heard in the silent passage, and the door slowly pushed in, which was somewhat strange, but Jacob didn't stop and continued to open it. 

When the door was fully opened, a spacious stone hall appeared in Jacob's view, and the walls were filled with murals. But what drew Jacob's attention was a white column with runes all over it, and on top of this column was a buoyant, thick golden book!

Jacob's eyes shimmered with surprise and uncertainty, and upon looking closely, the book was etched with black runes that read. 

'Noble Spirit Flames!'