“The disciples of the Beast Spirit Sect!” Ye Qin’s gaze turned sharp, and he halted, regarding the dozen-plus Beast Spirit Sect disciples ahead in the mine shaft with a slight headache. He glanced back at the woman in white who was rapidly closing in from behind.
Frustration mingled with a sense of helplessness. Trapped between the Yueque Sect disciples pursuing him from the rear and the Beast Spirit Sect disciples ahead, he was perfectly sandwiched.
He had only lost a day delaying them while controlling the Soul-Seizing Bell and the golden miniature sword, yet these various sect disciples had arrived so swiftly. This suggested that the second level of the cavern was likely already teeming with cultivators from different factions.
The young woman alighted with a graceful motion. Seeing the figures of the Beast Spirit Sect disciples appearing ahead in the mine shaft, she was instantly overjoyed that the detestable Qingdan Sect disciple was finally surrounded.
Her tension eased, and she idly toyed with her silver sickle, a hint of petulance in her voice as she sneered mockingly, “Hmph, you ran quite fast, didn’t you? Why stop now?
Ah, I see, you were intercepted by the Beast Spirit Sect. That complicates things.
The Yueque Sect has dozens of disciples here, and the Beast Spirit Sect has over a dozen. Which way will you try to break through?” A hidden killing intent flickered in her eyes, yet she made no move to attack.
If Ye Qin, desperate for survival, chose to fight the Beast Spirit Sect disciples, she would gladly remain an observer. Regardless of who won or lost, it would be a good outcome for the Yueque Sect—eliminating an enemy without lifting a finger.
Furthermore, she remained deeply wary of Ye Qin’s true strength. If provoked into a full-force counterattack, she wouldn't gain any advantage.
Her only goal was to stall this Qingdan Sect disciple until reinforcements from the Yueque Sect arrived to capture him. Alone, she was incapable of subduing Ye Qin.
Ye Qin placed a hand on his storage pouch, rapidly calculating his next move. Despite being pinned down by the Yueque Sect and the Beast Spirit Sect, he remained unruffled.
He still possessed several trump cards that he had yet to reveal; he was far from the desperate point where a final, life-or-death struggle was necessary. The dozen-odd disciples of the Beast Spirit Sect were momentarily stunned.
Then, they erupted into laughter. Only two people had arrived—one from the Qingdan Sect and one from the Yueque Sect.
They appeared to be pursuing each other. How could over ten Beast Spirit Sect disciples fail to handle merely two people?
Wielding their spirit blades and swords, and reinforcing themselves with protective barriers, they advanced to surround Ye Qin. The leader, a fierce-looking cultivator clad in green, sneered coldly.
From a beast-hide pouch hanging at his waist, he unleashed several dozen thumbnail-sized Golden-Spotted Poison Mosquitoes. A loud buzzing, “Weng, weng,” filled the air.
These mosquitoes were garishly colored, and their long, golden proboscises looked terrifyingly sharp. This fierce-looking cultivator felt a surge of pride.
These several dozen Golden-Spotted Poison Mosquitoes were mutated breeds he had painstakingly cultivated for over ten years. Their golden stingers could pierce protective barriers and drain an opponent’s blood dry.
Now was the perfect time to test their efficacy. The other Beast Spirit Sect cultivators held nothing back either, releasing various bizarre insects, ants, and small demonic beasts—lesser demons, snakes, spiders, and so forth.
In an instant, the entire tunnel was crawling with all manner of strange insects and small demonic beasts. Such a multitude of vermin and minor demonic beasts would be more than enough to handle not just two people, but a large contingent of cultivators.
The fierce green-clad cultivator grinned sinisterly, “Boy, end yourself quickly, so we don’t have to spoil your corpse when we move in.” “As for that junior sister,” he leered, “it’s been a long time since we brothers had some fun. We’ll keep her here to accompany us!” Ye Qin didn't spare them a second glance.
Unhurriedly, he reached into his storage pouch and withdrew a Winged Spirit Artifact. Whoosh!
A pair of snow-white Bat King Wings materialized on his back, gently stirring the air as they slowly flapped. Ye Qin lifted a foot off the ground, rising into the air.
The dozen-plus Beast Spirit Sect disciples were instantly dumbfounded. What was this kid doing using a Winged Spirit Artifact?
If they were in an open mountain range, using wings to flee would be perfectly logical. But this mine shaft was barely seven meters high, making flight impossible.
Employing a winged artifact in such a confined space seemed utterly pointless, even detrimental. Had this Qingdan Sect disciple panicked and forgotten where he was?
Yet, the boy appeared remarkably calm, hardly looking like someone who had lost their senses. It wasn't just the Beast Spirit Sect that was astonished.
The young woman in white was equally perplexed. This Qingdan Sect disciple possessed numerous spirit artifacts and magic tools, but there was no need to bring out a Winged Spirit Artifact; there was simply no room in this tunnel to deploy it effectively.
Gripping her silver sickle, she sneered. It seemed this Qingdan Sect disciple had decent artifacts but a dim mind.
She was curious to see what he intended to achieve by inexplicably displaying a Winged Spirit Artifact. After revealing the wings, Ye Qin tossed out the golden miniature sword.
A streak of golden, searing light shot straight toward the depths of the mine shaft with an overwhelming force. “A magic artifact!” The dozen-plus Beast Spirit Sect disciples panicked as if their hindquarters were on fire, scrambling to lie flat and evade the deadly golden flying sword.
The insects, ants, and Golden-Spotted Poison Mosquitoes hovering in the air couldn't be recalled in time. They struck the golden light, exploding with sharp crackling sounds, instantly turning into dust with not even half a particle remaining.
Ye Qin’s wings were fully charged with magic power. With a forceful clap, Whoosh!
He vanished from his original spot. When Ye Qin reappeared, he had traversed over a hundred meters down the tunnel, materializing directly behind the group of Beast Spirit Sect disciples.
Ye Qin caught the golden miniature sword, glanced back at them with an impassive expression, and continued his swift evasion without delay. Whoosh!
In a few blinks, he had flown several hundred meters away, vanishing into the winding passages of the mine. The green-clad cultivators were stunned in horror, then suddenly saw the space before them empty—Ye Qin was gone.
Their mouths gaped open as they peered toward the sides of the tunnel, only to find Ye Qin already dozens of meters behind them. “A Winged Spirit Artifact capable of casting the Void Flicker technique!” The Beast Spirit Sect disciples, still pressed to the ground, recognized the artifact's function and cried out in shock, nearly bulging their eyeballs out.
As cultivators who constantly dealt with strange insects, demonic beasts, and rare birds, they were naturally familiar with "flying-type demonic beasts." The wings of such beasts could be refined into winged spirit artifacts for flight. However, Beast Spirit Sect disciples never bothered refining the wings of flying beasts into artifacts.
They preferred to directly breed and ride flying demonic beasts. These beasts could not only fly but also assist in combat, serving as an extra ally—far superior to a mere Winged Spirit Artifact.
Precisely because they understood flying beasts so well, their current shock was even more profound. Among flying beasts, only extremely rare mutated species might naturally possess high-tier wind spells like the Void Flicker.
Even Foundation Establishment cultivators would go mad trying to acquire such a beast, let alone those in the Qi Refining stage. Possessing such a Winged Spirit Artifact was equivalent to holding a reusable escape talisman.
Who wouldn't covet it? But now, they couldn't even weep from regret.
The person had vanished—how could they chase? This mine network was incredibly complex; a few flaps and he disappeared, making pursuit impossible.
“Grab that Yueque Sect woman! Damn it, we’ve lost out badly!
We can’t let that little bitch escape too.” The leading Beast Spirit Sect cultivator angrily leaped up, filled with remorse. Catching sight of the beautiful face and figure of the young woman from the Yueque Sect, his mouth went dry and wicked thoughts took root.
Perhaps his rage had clouded his judgment; he failed to consider that a woman capable of tracking Ye Qin this far would not be easily subdued. “Courting death!” The white-robed woman snapped out of her daze with a cold laugh.
A streak of silver light shot from her sleeve. With a Puchi sound, the leading green-clad cultivator couldn't dodge in time, and his head flew into the air.
The dozen-plus Beast Spirit Sect disciples were instantly enraged and horrified, realizing that this woman and the Qingdan Sect disciple moments before were not to be trifled with. They descended into chaos, either casting spells or releasing their beast pouches.
“Kill—!” Ye Qin flapped his wings, hovering a foot above the ground, flying steadily. Behind him in the mine shaft, continuous sounds of magical explosions indicated the Beast Spirit Sect disciples had engaged the Yueque Sect female disciple.
He chuckled inwardly. The Yueque Sect woman intended to surround him, but it wouldn't be so easy.
This Winged Spirit Artifact was his ultimate secret weapon, one he preferred not to use. If he could avoid using it, he would.
Every deployment revealed a piece of his capabilities. Once others clearly understood his strength and methods, they could easily devise countermeasures for any future encounter.
The ‘Void Flicker’ spell did have a weakness: it required absolutely unobstructed space to flash through. If blocked by something net-like, he would slam into it and be unable to escape.
The reason he had launched the golden miniature sword first to clear the entire tunnel was precisely to prevent any interception while casting Void Flicker. He had finally shaken off the Yueque Sect disciple.
As for whether the Yueque Sect and Beast Spirit Sect would survive each other’s onslaught, it was none of his concern. Ye Qin flew straight toward the depths of the mine shaft.
Heading deeper into the cavern, he encountered no other cultivators along the way. It seemed the other sect members had not yet reached this area.
That group of Beast Spirit Sect disciples must have been the fastest contingent. A day later, following the markers on his map scroll, Ye Qin arrived at a rich ore collection point deep within the second level of the cavern.
It was a vast spirit stone cavern, large enough to accommodate dozens of people mining simultaneously. There were a few corpses of miners and pickaxes scattered on the ground.
On the cavern walls, the spirit stones were almost entirely embedded in massive blocks of rock, each block containing dozens of small spirit stones, emitting a faint glow. Ye Qin wasted no time.
He summoned his flying sword and began digging into the rock. Although the stone was incredibly hard, it couldn't withstand the excavation of a metal-element magic artifact.
The golden miniature sword plunged half a foot into the cavern wall, then cut in a circle. With a twist, a large block of rock detached and fell to the ground.
He then smashed these blocks to retrieve the small spirit stones nestled within. Ordinary low-level cultivators at the first or second layers of Qi Refining who used pickaxes to mine spirit stones would struggle immensely with these hard rocks, and their digging speed would be very slow.
A pickaxe was a low-grade mining spirit tool, and its use quickly drained spiritual energy, forcing frequent meditation to recover. After a full day, managing to excavate and break apart one large, hard rock to extract the dozens of spirit stones inside was considered good progress.
Ye Qin, luxuriously employing a metal-element artifact for mining, found the task much easier. In mere moments, he could extract all the low-grade spirit stones from a large rock face.
He had considered using the excavated rock to completely seal off this several-hundred-meter stretch of the mine shaft, camouflaging it as the original wall to mine alone at this rich deposit for maximum safety. However, the map scrolls held by others displayed his location, a frustrating reality.
He was unwilling to discard the eight map scrolls he possessed, as they were incredibly advantageous for navigating the cavern. Ye Qin shook his head.
He would mine here for now. If other cultivators tracked him down, he would immediately relocate and evade them.