--------
The spirit stone mine on Biling Island had been completely excavated after hundreds of humanoid puppets worked tirelessly for more than half a year.
The total amount of spirit stones reached nearly two million, with thirty or forty high-level spirit stones and two top-grade wood spirit stones. If such wealth were made public, Qi Yuan would become the target of the entire human world.
Absorbing the pure spiritual energy from top-grade spirit stones could greatly enhance one's cultivation and significantly reduce training time. Moreover, once the energy in these stones was absorbed, they had the ability to self-repair and replenish spiritual energy, making them nearly inexhaustible.
Now, Qi Yuan was using magic techniques to store the humanoid puppets back into the puppet bag. The dull, cold, and emotionless puppets withdrew in an orderly fashion. The more worn-out ones would be sent to the Chaos Cauldron for repairs upon returning to Tianxing City. After all, with Qi Yuan's current strength, foundation-building stage puppets were no longer of much use to him.
It was time to return to the Inner Star Sea and check on Xin Ruyin and the others. He also wondered about the progress of the Dan refinement.
Suddenly, a loud noise like a landslide erupted, shaking the protective formation outside the island. The barrier's glow flickered violently. Someone was trying to break in.
Qi Yuan quickly extended his spiritual sense and detected six Jindan cultivators outside Biling Island. Among them, one was at the late Jindan stage. Such a formidable group would normally warrant careful negotiation.
Outside Biling Island, Ye Mo and his companions had followed Qi Yuan's trail and finally located the island. The presence of a formation confirmed their target's presence, so Ye Mo ordered his Green Goblin to use magic weapons to attack it directly.
As long as the island wasn't the hidden domain of a Yuanying-stage monster, their group could handle almost anything. There was no need for caution.
"Brother Ye, this defensive formation is at the early Jindan stage, but it's linked with a killing formation and an illusion formation. Breaking through might be tricky," the Green Goblin reported after testing the barrier with his magic weapon, the Wind and Thunder Stick.
The red-nosed demon cultivator sneered. "If it's only an early Jindan-level formation, then the people inside are most likely the ones Senior Brother Ye has been searching for."
The hooked-mouthed Night Devil smirked, his eyes narrowing as he monitored the island to prevent any escape. "Break the formation together. Whether the person inside is the one I seek or not, leave no survivors."
Since they had already provoked conflict by attacking the formation, they might as well eliminate any threats to prevent future retaliation.
At his words, the five demon cultivators exchanged cold glances, their eyes filled with murderous intent. Their magic weapons gleamed as they prepared to strike.
"Wait a moment!"
A stream of colorful light flashed, revealing Qi Yuan. He spoke calmly, "Fellow cultivators, you may have mistaken me for someone else."
Ye Mo's expression darkened. He had interrogated numerous cultivators involved in Master Mu Long's secret meeting and even forced one to sketch Qi Yuan's appearance. He recognized him instantly.
After searching for so long, he had finally found his target. He would capture Qi Yuan, torment him slowly, and seek out his female companions as well.
Qi Yuan remained calm, but he caught the flicker of killing intent in Night Devil's eyes. Without hesitation, he acted first. His sleeve trembled, and a sharp yellow light shot toward the Green Goblin with incredible speed.
Although Qi Yuan did not know these cultivators, their murderous intent was unmistakable. Instead of waiting for them to strike, it was better to seize the initiative.
"Green Goblin, watch out!" the red-nosed demon cultivator shouted.
The Green Goblin was no stranger to ambushes and assassinations. He had been wary ever since Qi Yuan appeared. Smirking, he spat out a piece of irregular blue fish scales, which expanded into a towering shield before him. This defensive treasure had saved him many times before.
Qi Yuan's ancient flying knife clashed against the fish scales, creating a burst of brilliant sparks before being repelled. The shield remained intact, and the Green Goblin sneered.
Then, without warning, four more ancient flying knives pierced through his back, instantly destroying his soul. His lifeless body fell into the sea, his smug expression still frozen on his face.
A level-six sea monster surfaced, swallowed the corpse in one gulp, and vanished beneath the waves.
What a pity—one less storage bag to loot.
The sudden death of the Green Goblin shocked the others. Even Night Devil was stunned. He had recognized the yellow flying knife as the Night Crow's ancient treasure, but he had never seen multiple copies before. Something was off.
"Attack now!" Night Devil ordered.
The remaining four demon cultivators roared in fury, their magic weapons flashing as they charged at Qi Yuan for revenge.
Qi Yuan's five ancient flying knives hovered around him. Since the fight had begun, he intended to end it swiftly and decisively.
A sword infused with demonic energy slashed across the sky, stirring waves a thousand meters high.
Qi Yuan made no attempt to dodge. Instead, his fair palm extended from his sleeve and caught the blade with his bare hand.
A short-haired demon cultivator was momentarily elated. Though his Demon Dragon Sword wasn't extraordinary, it was still powerful with demonic energy. If he could injure Qi Yuan, he would gain significant merit.
But then—
With a sharp snap, Qi Yuan bent his hand and broke the sword in half, tossing the pieces into the sea like scrap metal.
In Qi Yuan's eyes, ordinary magic weapons were indeed worthless.
Blood trickled from the short-haired cultivator's mouth. Though the Demon Dragon Sword wasn't his life-bound weapon, it was still intimately connected to him through years of refining. Its destruction caused immediate backlash.
The other demon cultivators quickly recalled their weapons, realizing the danger too late.
Qi Yuan's figure flickered as thunder rumbled. Lightning crackled around him as he unleashed his thunder escape technique, shattering three more magic weapons with his bare hands in an instant.
The red-nosed demon cultivator and his allies paled, coughing blood as they stared at Qi Yuan in terror.
Who was this man?
He wielded an incredibly powerful lightning escape technique, possessed multiple identical ancient treasures, and his physical strength was enough to crush magic weapons effortlessly.
Fear gripped their hearts.
(End Of Chapter)