Chapter 226 - 218: Mine Demon Beast
「Three days later.」
Chen Yi found the Ghost Mist Forest.
Li Yuan was cultivating cross-legged in a clearing. His Divine Sense caught a familiar aura approaching from the direction of the wall of mist.
Chen Yi emerged from the dense fog, followed by two disciples of the Primordial Yang Sect.
"We’re ready. We set out tomorrow."
Chen Yi glanced at the fog around Li Yuan, which was particularly thick due to the gathering effect of the Evil Qi. A flicker of understanding crossed his eyes.
"The excavation team is in place—fourteen people in total. Four are disciples from the Primordial Yang Sect, and ten are Loose Cultivators. All are Late-stage Qi Refining and have experience with mining."
"And my duties?"
"Clearing the Evil Qi," Chen Yi said bluntly. "The concentration of Evil Qi in the deeper levels is too high. Ordinary Cultivators can’t last an hour before they have to retreat. You’ll be responsible for absorbing and suppressing the Evil Qi to a level they can withstand, ensuring the excavation proceeds smoothly."
He paused for a moment.
"You’ll also handle any Demon Beasts we encounter. There have been signs of Tier Two Demon Beasts in the deep sections, which Qi Refining Stage Cultivators can’t deal with."
Li Yuan nodded.
The next morning, Li Yuan met up with the excavation team at the mine entrance.
The fourteen Cultivators were divided into three groups, each equipped with basic illumination Spirit Stones, mining tools, and protective Talismans. The four Primordial Yang Sect disciples were in charge of organization and coordination, while the ten Loose Cultivators handled the actual digging.
Li Yuan walked at the very front, leading the team deeper into the mine.
After passing through the shallow Spirit Iron mining area, the concentration of Evil Qi began to rise sharply.
The Cultivators behind him clearly felt the pressure. Their breathing grew heavy, and some started applying Detoxification Talismans and Vajra Talismans to themselves.
Li Yuan activated his Evil Essence Unification technique, expanding its passive gathering range to the maximum.
The Evil Qi within a radius of over a hundred feet was continuously drawn toward him, and the concentration in the surrounding area suddenly dropped by a large margin.
The Cultivators behind him breathed a sigh of relief, their breathing returning to normal.
A Primordial Yang Sect disciple whispered something to the Loose Cultivator next to him, and both of them looked on with a hint of surprise.
The team continued to advance deeper.
When they reached the area where they had previously mined Evil Stones, Li Yuan had the team halt.
"Start digging forward from here."
The mining Cultivators spread out, each finding a spot to begin chiseling at the walls. The sound of pickaxes striking rock echoed through the mine as rubble and slag fell away.
Li Yuan didn’t participate in the digging. He sat cross-legged in the middle of the tunnel, absorbing Evil Qi to maintain the low-Evil Qi environment while using his Divine Sense to probe the depths of the ore vein.
His Divine Sense extended forward along the tunnel.
About a thousand feet ahead, the main tunnel split into three branches. The left one sloped downward and had the highest concentration of Evil Qi. The middle one was mostly level and about the same width as the main tunnel. The right one angled slightly upward, and some veins of Spirit Iron were visible on its walls.
All three branch tunnels had high concentrations of Evil Qi, but it was unevenly distributed.
Li Yuan’s attention settled on the middle branch.
The Evil Qi concentration in the other areas was within a normal range—dense, heavy, and evenly spread. But deep within the middle branch, there was a section where the Evil Qi was unusually sparse.
Abnormally so.
Despite the high concentration of Evil Qi all around, this particular section felt as if it had been sucked dry by something. The presence of Evil Qi was almost imperceptible.
Li Yuan opened his eyes and beckoned to a nearby Primordial Yang Sect disciple.
The disciple hurried over.
"Senior."
"There are three branches ahead. Have you explored the middle one before?"
The disciple thought for a moment, then nodded.
"We have. Someone went in to check the middle branch before, about four to five hundred feet deep. They didn’t find any valuable veins, so they came back out."
"Has anyone been deep into that branch recently?"
The disciple shook his head.
"No. We haven’t even finished mining the Spirit Iron in the shallower section. No one would venture that deep."
’No one had gone in, yet the Evil Qi in that section was gone.’
Li Yuan closed his eyes again, extending his Divine Sense back into the middle branch.
This time, he focused his perception on the area where the Evil Qi was thin, trying to discern the details.
’The Evil Qi hadn’t dissipated naturally. If it had, there would be remnants, with the concentration tapering off gradually. But in this area, the Evil Qi dropped off a cliff, as if it had been actively absorbed by something.’
’Moreover, the boundary of the low-Evil Qi area was slowly moving.’
’It was expanding outward.’
’Something was in there, continuously absorbing Evil Qi.’
Li Yuan opened his eyes and stood up.
Just as he was about to head toward the middle branch, his Divine Sense suddenly caught a heavy fluctuation of aura.
It was coming from the depths of the middle branch and approaching rapidly.
’A Tier Two Demon Beast.’
’And its aura is even stronger than the Jiao Linxi’s.’
’Tier Two Middle Grade.’
Li Yuan paused in his tracks.
A dull thudding sound echoed from the depths of the tunnel, like something enormous was moving inside, its body constantly scraping against the walls.
Rubble trickled down from the ceiling.
The mining Cultivators behind him stopped their work, all turning to look toward the depths of the tunnel.
"Everyone, fall back," Li Yuan’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried clearly through the mine.
Without hesitation, the mining Cultivators dropped their tools and retreated quickly. The Primordial Yang Sect disciples organized the Loose Cultivators into an orderly withdrawal, their hurried footsteps echoing in the tunnel.
Li Yuan didn’t retreat. Instead, he took a few steps forward.
An enormous figure appeared at the mouth of the middle branch tunnel.
It was a size larger than the Jiao Linxi, with short, thick, but extremely powerful limbs. The ground trembled slightly with each step it took. Its entire body was covered in a dark gray carapace riddled with a dense network of cracks, from which a faint crimson light pulsed.
Its head was broad and flat, with no eyes. In their place were two constantly twitching antennae. Its mouthparts were composed of four overlapping chitinous plates that opened and closed slowly, revealing countless tiny fangs within each time they parted.
’A Demon Armor Giant Beetle.’
’A Tier Two Middle Grade Demon Beast. It feeds on Evil Qi, and its carapace, steeped in Evil Qi for years, is incredibly hard. Ordinary Magic is like tickling it.’
So that was why the Evil Qi in that area had been drained.
The Demon Armor Giant Beetle slowly crawled out of the branch tunnel, its antennae twitching ceaselessly as if sensing its surroundings.
Then, its antennae pointed in Li Yuan’s direction.
The concentration of Evil Qi gathered around Li Yuan was extremely high. To a Demon Beast that fed on Evil Qi, he was like a walking piece of meat.
The Demon Armor Giant Beetle’s mouthparts opened and closed faster, making a grating KRA-KRA sound as its enormous body began to accelerate.
’A mine is no place for a fight.’
’The walls, ceiling, support structures—all fragile rock. If a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and a Tier Two Middle Grade Demon Beast fought in here, a few blasts of Magic would bring the whole tunnel down.’
Li Yuan turned and walked briskly toward the mine entrance.
At the same time, he actively released the Evil Qi stored in his body.
A large amount of Evil Qi surged from his body, spreading back down the tunnel. The dense aura of Evil Qi acted like an invisible rope, firmly tethering the Demon Armor Giant Beetle’s attention.
The Demon Armor Giant Beetle’s antennae twitched wildly. It dug its limbs into the ground and gave chase.
It wasn’t particularly fast. The tunnel’s width restricted its massive frame, and its carapace constantly scraped against the walls, dislodging large chunks of rock. But its pursuit was relentless, completely captivated by the Evil Qi.
Li Yuan quickened his pace, heading out along the tunnel.
When he passed the spot where the excavation team had been, the Cultivators had all retreated to the shallower area. A Primordial Yang Sect disciple saw Li Yuan striding out from the depths, and his expression changed as he heard the heavy footfalls and the harsh scraping of a carapace against rock from the tunnel behind him.
"Senior, do you need help—"
"No need. Everyone get out of the mine."
Li Yuan walked past them, continuing toward the entrance.
The Demon Armor Giant Beetle followed in hot pursuit, the distance between them slowly closing.
The light of the mine entrance appeared ahead.
Li Yuan sped up, bursting out of the entrance in a few strides.
Sunlight and dense fog washed over him simultaneously.
Outside the mine was a clearing in the Ghost Mist Forest, surrounded by tall, dead trees and grayish-white fog. There was plenty of room to maneuver.
Li Yuan turned to face the mine entrance.
The silhouette of the Demon Armor Giant Beetle appeared in the opening.
Its body was too large. The entrance was barely wide enough for it to pass through. Its carapace scraped against the rock on both sides as it squeezed out, sending rubble tumbling down.
Once out of the mine, its speed increased significantly. Freed from the confines of the tunnel, it fully extended its limbs and charged toward Li Yuan with surprising speed.
The ground trembled beneath its steps.
Li Yuan raised his right hand.
’Fire Python Skill.’
Crimson Spiritual Power condensed in his palm, elongating and taking shape. A Fire Serpent shot forth, thicker and longer than when he practiced, leaving a searing heatwave in its wake as it flew straight at the Demon Armor Giant Beetle’s head.
The Fire Serpent slammed into the carapace and exploded.
Searing flames burned on the surface of the carapace for a moment before extinguishing.
It left behind a scorched black mark, but the carapace didn’t crack.
’Its defense is incredibly strong.’
The Demon Armor Giant Beetle didn’t slow down. It continued its charge.