48: Chapter 48: Fierce Battle at the Mineral Vein

Just at the moment the dagger was about to pierce through——

A palm reached out from the side and steadily grabbed the dagger's blade.

Then, it gently squeezed.

Crack!

The Low Grade Spiritual Artifact dagger forged from refined iron shattered into several pieces like a biscuit.

The skinny monkey Cultivator: "???"

Everyone was stunned and turned their heads to look.

Xiao Yuan appeared behind Su Li at some unknown time, crushing the dagger with one hand while wrapping his other arm around Su Li's waist, gently pulling her into his embrace.

"Are you alright?" he asked, lowering his head.

Su Li leaned against his arms, shook her head while panting, but her tense body visibly relaxed. A wave of joy surged in her heart, along with a trace of reliance, but there was even more worry.

"Be careful, they are... strong!" she hurriedly reminded.

Hearing this, Xiao Yuan looked mockingly at the ten people opposite them and said indifferently: "No matter... in front of me, they are nothing more than worthless rabble!"

At this moment, the opposite One-Eyed Dragon stared at Xiao Yuan with a deep frown: "Who are you?"

He had never seen Xiao Yuan before.

Even though they had hunted down Xiao Yuan more than two years ago, back then, they hadn't even seen Xiao Yuan's face.

The Centipede-Scarred Man looked at Xiao Yuan's Qi Condensation 4th Layer cultivation, his pupils constricting: "It's you! That kid at the Qi Condensation 4th Layer we hunted down!"

The formidable strength displayed by Xiao Yuan reminded him of that kid they had once hunted down.

As soon as he shouted this, everyone else remembered.

The matter of that Qi Condensation 4th Layer trash counter-killing two Qi Condensation 9th Layer individuals two years ago was still fresh in their memories.

Only, that person disappeared later. Could it be the person right in front of them?

But how could someone at the Qi Condensation 4th Layer be so strong?

"You concealed your cultivation?" One-Eyed Dragon's expression turned ugly. He instantly made a guess.

Xiao Yuan ignored him, helped Su Li stand properly, raised his hand to feed her a healing Medicinal Pill, and only then turned around to look at the eleven people opposite them.

"Just now," he spoke, his voice calm, "who hurt her?"

One-Eyed Dragon sneered: "Kid, do you think you can act arrogant just because you concealed your cultivation? On our side, we have two Half-step Foundation Establishment and eight Qi Condensation 9th Layer! If you know what's good for you, commit suicide, and we can still leave your corpse intact——"

Although Xiao Yuan's concealed cultivation gave them a strong feeling, no matter how strong he was, just how strong could he be? At this moment, these few people simply did not put Xiao Yuan in their eyes.

However, before they finished speaking—

Xiao Yuan moved. He didn't have time to waste words with these people, nor did he want to speak nonsense!

He was as fast as lightning!

One-Eyed Dragon didn't even see his movements clearly, only feeling a blur before his eyes and a cold sensation on his neck.

He lowered his head——

A cyan longsword had brushed past his throat at some unknown time. Clutching his neck, he felt terrified as breathing became difficult, and his consciousness grew increasingly blurred.

His body subsequently collapsed heavily.

He... was killed in one strike by a single sword slash!

Seeing this scene, the remaining nine people couldn't believe it was true. One-Eyed Dragon, who was at Half-step Foundation Establishment, was actually killed in a single move. How could this be possible!

The Centipede-Scarred Man reacted the fastest, roaring: "Charge together! Kill him!"

Xiao Yuan's might frightened him, and he worried that if he and the others didn't make a move now, they would all die.

As soon as his voice fell, the remaining nine people attacked simultaneously!

Lights of blades and shadows of swords, along with the roaring of Spells, completely submerged Xiao Yuan.

Su Li's expression changed, and she was about to rush up to help——

But before she could act, she saw Xiao Yuan merely raise his left hand, spreading his five fingers and pressing them forward into empty space.

"Five Elements Rotation——Suppress."

Hum!

A terrifying five-colored might erupted with a boom!

The movements of the nine people who pounced forward instantly froze! As if pinned down by an invisible giant mountain, they couldn't even move their fingers!

"Th-This... What is this?!" someone screamed in terror.

Xiao Yuan did not reply.

He gently waved the longsword in his right hand.

Chi! Chi! Chi!

The five-colored sword radiances bloomed like fireworks.

Each sword radiance accurately pierced through the center of someone's brows.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Corpses fell to the ground one after another.

In the blink of an eye, out of nine people, six were dead!

Including that skinny monkey Cultivator, and including the two people who ambushed Su Li just moments ago.

Before their deaths, those people widened their eyes, filled with utter disbelief. They had run amok in the ore veins for many years, killing countless experts, yet now they couldn't even block a single move from Xiao Yuan?

The remaining three people were scared out of their wits.

The Centipede-Scarred Man's legs trembled, and he turned around wanting to run.

"Did I tell you to leave?" Xiao Yuan's voice sounded from behind them.

The three froze and slowly turned their heads. Knowing they couldn't escape, given Xiao Yuan's strength, he could annihilate them with a wave of his hand. The three only hoped Xiao Yuan would show mercy and let them off this once!

Xiao Yuan carried his sword, the tip dripping with blood. There was little expression on his face, but the chill in those eyes made the three feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave.

"Senior... Senior, spare our lives!" a Qi Condensation 9th Layer man thumped down onto his knees, "We won't dare do it again! We don't want the ore vein anymore! We beg Senior to spare our lives!"

The other two also hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed.

Xiao Yuan didn't speak, only looking toward the other end of the tunnel——more than a dozen auras were rapidly approaching.

Clearly, the Spiritual Qi fluctuations of the Mid-Grade Spirit Stone ore vein had attracted all the desperate outlaws in the entire ore vein.

The Centipede-Scarred Man also sensed it, hope flashing in his eyes as he shouted: "Senior! There are more people behind! We can help you—"

Before he finished speaking.

Xiao Yuan waved his longsword.

Three heads flew up into the air.

"Unnecessary." He indifferently withdrew his sword.

Almost simultaneously, the newly arrived dozen-plus people rushed into the tunnel.

The one leading them was a red-haired muscular man with a cultivation of Peak Foundation Establishment! He looked somewhat stronger than the previous two Half-step Foundation Establishment individuals.

Behind him followed twelve Qi Condensation 9th Layer and three Half-step Foundation Establishment Cultivators. They were clearly the faction with the greatest influence in this ore vein.

Seeing corpses all over the ground, the red-haired muscular man was stunned at first, and then his gaze fell on the mine cave behind Xiao Yuan—there, five-colored Spiritual Qi was misty and dense, and the brilliance of the Mid-Grade Spirit Stones was faintly visible.

"A Mid-Grade Spirit Stone ore vein!" His eyes instantly turned red, "Kid, step aside! Otherwise—"

"Otherwise what?" Xiao Yuan interrupted him and smiled, "Do you also want to become a corpse?"

The red-haired muscular man flew into a rage: "Courting death! Brothers, charge! Slaughter this kid, and we'll split the ore vein evenly!"

Although there were many corpses here, and even Half-step Foundation Establishment experts among them, how could the strength of their side be something this kid in front of them could contend with?

More than a dozen people hollered as they rushed forward.

Su Li gritted her teeth and stepped to Xiao Yuan's side: "I'll help you."

"Alright." Xiao Yuan nodded, "The five on the left are yours, and the ones on the right are mine."

"Mhm."

Both of them attacked simultaneously!

Su Li's sword momentum was like a rainbow, and black radiance surged wildly.

In the past year or so, not only had her cultivation undergone a Breakthrough, but her swordsmanship had also advanced by leaps and bounds under Xiao Yuan's guidance. Attacking now with suppressed anger, every move was fatal, and five Qi Condensation 9th Layer individuals were actually suppressed by her alone!

Xiao Yuan's side was even more exaggerated.

He didn't use any exquisite sword techniques at all; it was just the simplest hacking, piercing, and slashing.

But every sword carried the power of the Five Elements Rotation—the sharpness of Metal, the resilience of Wood, the gentleness of Water, the explosiveness of Fire, and the heaviness of Earth. The five attributes were perfectly fused.

The red-haired muscular man at Peak Foundation Establishment took three sword strikes, the skin between his thumb and index finger split open, and his Magical Artifact long saber was slashed into two pieces!