257: Chapter 257 Sudden Disaster

At this moment, Ye Tianhui, who was cultivating in the inner room, listened to a servant's report regarding Su Wan.

He thought to himself that since his grandfather was currently recruiting many Cultivator Retainers for the Family, he would first take Su Wan in as well; besides, the shop's business had been booming lately.

Ye Tianhui wanted to expand the shop, but except for their Ye Family's shops, the surrounding ones already belonged to the Li Family. Currently, the entire Tiangong Market was in a state of confrontation between the Ye and Li families.

The Qingyun Sect's influence was weak, while the Li Family was backed by the Lingxiao Sect; yet, no matter how they were compared, the Ye Family seemed to hold the upper hand over the Li Family.

Thinking of this, Ye Tianhui felt quite troubled, but he still needed to wait and see. Now that the Ye Family was somewhat in the spotlight, rashly escalating the conflict would do more harm than good.

Ye Residence.

While Ye Jing was cross-legged and cultivating, a Retainer suddenly rushed in to report.

"This is bad! Family Head! Young Lord Ye Xuan is in danger!"

Ye Jing's heart tightened, and the faint Spiritual Qi swirling around him suddenly stalled. He abruptly opened his eyes, a flicker of alarm crossing them, and asked in a deep voice, "What happened? Speak slowly, do not panic!"

That Retainer's clothes were tattered, stained with mottled blood, and he was already pale with fright. He scrambled and knelt in the hall, his voice trembling uncontrollably: "Family Head, it's the red copper spirit mine mission at Red Copper Mountain to the west!

Several of us brothers were ordered to investigate. As soon as we approached the mine cave, we ran into a pack of Yao Beasts. The brothers fought desperately to break through, and in the end, I was the only one who escaped back..."

He panted heavily, his teeth chattering, as he explained intermittently: "There are two Demon Kings hidden in that mountain. One is a Blazing Flame Wild Lion covered in Burning Heaven Black Fire, its mane like a raging prairie fire, and its roar can shatter mountain rocks.

The other is a Black Water Giant Python entrenched in a Mountain Stream Cave. Its scales are indestructible, and the cold mist it spits can freeze and crack spirit iron. Its strength is formidable to the extreme!"

"When the Young Lord learned we were trapped, he rushed to the rescue with several guards without a word.

But... but when those two Demon Kings saw the Young Lord, they seemed to go mad. Their eyes turned blood-red, and they completely ignored any tactics, willing to risk their own essence just to put the Young Lord to death!"

At this point, the Retainer kowtowed violently, blood seeping from his forehead instantly, and he roared through tears: "To cover our retreat, the Young Lord lured the two Demon Kings toward the Deep Mountain Dead End, staying behind alone to hold them off.

We... we didn't dare look back. Now the Young Lord... his life or death is unknown! Family Head, please go save the Young Lord! If you're a step too late, it will truly be too late!"

As his voice fell, the aura around Ye Jing suddenly turned cold and solemn. The scene from his hundredth birthday instantly flashed through his mind.

Ye Xuan had held the red copper spirit mine with a face full of smiles, saying he had snatched this birthday gift from a Yao Beast. At that time, he had even warned his son that it was too lucky and not to underestimate the enemy.

It was them; it must be those two Second-Order Demonic Beasts guarding the red copper spirit mine!

Ye Jing understood instantly. Ye Xuan had taken their spirit mine, and these two Demon Kings likely held a grudge until now. Seeing Ye Xuan appear this time, it was naturally a death trap.

Although he was anxious, he did not completely lose his composure. His brow twitched slightly as he sensed the Immortal Willow Spiritual Root rooted within him. That warm wisp of Immortal Willow aura was as steady as ever, with no warning of a life-or-death crisis.

This meant that although Ye Xuan was currently in a perilous situation, he had still managed to keep his life for now, though his circumstances were bound to be extremely dangerous.

Ye Jing had no time for second thoughts and summoned Hei Feng to gallop there at maximum speed. He used the Immortal Willow to calculate the direction, chanting silently in his heart.

"Brat, hold on! Your father is coming!"

The Black Dog tore through the air and arrived at Red Copper Mountain in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. This mountain was extremely treacherous; from afar, flames and cold mist intertwined, turning the entire forest upside down.

Ye Jing activated his Divine Sense to investigate the situation inside, but thick mist permeated the area, and there was a layer of extremely dangerous spiritual power acting as a barrier, leaving him unable to probe.

He patted Hei Feng to continue deeper. No matter how strong the Second-Order Demonic Beasts were, even if he couldn't detect Ye Xuan's direction, Hei Feng could. It had an extremely powerful sense of smell and could sense aura fluctuations from thousands of miles away.

Black clouds surged beneath Hei Feng's feet as its four claws crushed the astral winds in the forest, its nose twitching constantly.

Its crimson beast pupils locked onto the direction of the Deep Mountain Dead End, and a low growl escaped its throat, clearly sensing those two world-destroying Yao Beast auras as well.

Ye Jing charged inside in one go, not forgetting to conceal his figure so the Yao Beasts wouldn't sense their presence.

However, just as Ye Jing went deeper, Hei Feng beneath him began to tilt its head and roar, and Ye Jing immediately understood.

Someone was tracking them, and their concealment methods were even more sophisticated than Ye Jing's. If Ye Jing had Hei Feng use a Divine Ability, they could hide.

But Ye Jing didn't know the purpose of those people tracking him. However, he could use these people if they encountered those two Spirit Beasts head-on.

He would use the people tracking him to shake off those two Spirit Beasts first.

Ye Jing's eyes darkened as he quietly gathered a wisp of Spiritual Qi. He appeared to be gently stroking Hei Feng's neck, but he was actually communicating via Secret Voice Transmission.

Suppressing a cold, murderous intent, he ordered: "Restrain your aura, slow down, and act as if you haven't noticed the tracking. Head toward the depths of the dead end."

Hei Feng was sentient and immediately suppressed the roar in its throat. The surging black clouds around it faded slightly, and its four hooves landed as light as a feather, even its breathing becoming long and subtle.

It completely hid its Yao Beast pressure, instead looking like an ordinary Mountain Spirit Dog, quickly approaching the core area where flames and cold mist intersected.

Ye Jing lowered his eyelids, appearing calm, but his Divine Sense spread out quietly like a spiderweb, cautiously investigating the trackers behind him.

The other party's concealment methods were top-notch; their Spiritual Qi fluctuations were nearly non-existent. If Hei Feng hadn't been naturally sensitive to unfamiliar auras, he might not have noticed this Cultivator following him like a shadow at all.

"Is it a Loose Cultivator still after the red copper spirit mine?"

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, but Ye Jing remained unfazed.

Saving Ye Xuan was the top priority right now. Although the tail behind him was troublesome, if he could use these two forces to fight each other, it would instead win him a chance at survival or even allow him to reap the benefits.

He clenched his palms as Spiritual Qi slowly circulated through his limbs and bones, ready to explode with Peak combat power at any moment, while keeping an eye on the movement behind him and staring at the increasingly terrifying Yao Beast aura ahead.

The closer they got to the Deep Mountain Dead End, the more oppressive the air became.

In the forest to the left, a raging fire burned. The Burning Heaven Black Fire scorched the air until it distorted, and even the rocks on the ground were melted into lava. The Blazing Flame Wild Lion's roar was deafening, each roar carrying the power to burn mountains and boil seas.

In the mountain stream to the right, cold mist permeated. The bone-chilling cold froze the branches and leaves, and the Black Water Giant Python's hiss was cold to the bone. From the depths of the cave, the crisp sound of cracking ice shards could be heard from time to time.

The auras of the two Second-Order Demon Kings were tightly entangled, seemingly pitted against each other.

Ye Jing arrived in the mountains and only heard the roars of the clash inside, but he had yet to see the Demon Kings.

He suddenly felt uneasy. All of a sudden, the ground beneath him shook, as if something was rapidly approaching him.

Hei Feng immediately leaped up, carrying Ye Jing as it swiftly jumped toward the cliff, escaping several dozen feet away from where they had been.

"Boom!"

The mountain where Ye Jing had been standing instantly erupted with a deafening noise, and the entire rock face collapsed.

But Ye Jing couldn't see even a hint of the attacking Yao Beast's shadow; he could only feel gusts of foul, powerful wind rushing toward his face.

The speed was so fast that he almost had no way to defend himself. Ye Jing was suddenly shocked.

The thing attacking him could turn invisible? It could even hide its aura!