102: Chapter 102 The Bandit Cultivator's Lair, Black Wind Valley

Hearing the sound, Chen Qingyuan immediately rushed to Xie Dezhao's location.

He saw Xie Dezhao leading three Xie Family Cultivators, guarding five Cultivators who looked panicked.

Two of them were dressed in the mismatched clothes of Bandit Cultivators, while the other three were dressed as the resident Cultivators of the original Ore vein; they should all be survivors of the bloody battle just now.

Of course, what truly shocked Xie Dezhao was the mountain of supplies piled in the corner of the cave!

The most eye-catching was the small mountain of fire copper ore!

fire copper ore is ranked as a first-tier High Grade spiritual material, and its value is already significant; it is a common primary ingredient for refining many fire-attribute Magical Artifacts.

And these before them were clearly raw Ores that had undergone preliminary screening, and their quality was superior!

There were likely four or five thousand catties in quantity, probably the portion recently mined that hadn't been transported away yet,

and perhaps it also included some "private goods" secretly embezzled and accumulated by the previous resident Cultivators!

Besides the Ore, there were many boxes and bundles messily stacked nearby, containing supplies scavenged from the Bandit Cultivators and the deceased resident Cultivators.

At a rough glance, there were several thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, along with some common low-tier Spiritual Plants, a small amount of finished Medicinal Pills and Talismans, and dozens of Magical Artifacts of varying grades.

"Qingyuan, look!"

Xie Dezhao pointed at the pile of Ore, his face beaming with joy.

"Just these fire copper ores alone, once refined into Magical Artifacts, would likely be worth no less than four or five thousand Spirit Stones!"

Not to mention this was only a part of it; there was also Big Tooth Dong and Xie Jinshu's side, plus other gains!

Xie Dezhao couldn't close his mouth for a long time!

The Xie Family had been in dire straits for many years; not long ago, even a clansman at the Late Stage Qi Refining couldn't even produce a single high-grade magic tool.

Now, they first relied on the gray spotted thistle business to escape their predicament, and now they had obtained this windfall!

Even if it still needed to be distributed, the Family's future visibly had something to look forward to.

And all of this was brought by Chen Qingyuan!

He couldn't help but admire the old man's judgment of character.

However, Chen Qingyuan's gaze only lingered briefly on the pile of supplies before falling upon the faces of the three resident Cultivators.

His cold eyes made several of them feel a chill down their spines.

"You... what do you want to do? We are members of the Red Sand Gang!"

"Where is Steward Luo? We want to see Steward Luo!"

"Spare our lives! It has nothing to do with us!"

Unfortunately, neither pleas nor interrogations could move Chen Qingyuan in the slightest.

"Luo Wei conspired with Bandit Cultivators and has already been executed."

"You all died in a hard-fought battle; I will give you a dignified end."

As soon as these words were spoken, the three of them turned ashen. After a brief silence, there came a torrent of frantic cursing.

"You with the surname Chen! You will die a horrible death! The Red Sand Gang won't let you off—!"

"Even as a ghost, I won't let you off!!"

"Puff! Puff! Puff!"

Before Chen Qingyuan could give the order, a cold light flashed in the eyes of the Xie Family elites nearby, and their blades fell!

The cursing and roaring stopped abruptly, leaving only the dull thud of bodies hitting the ground.

The movements were clean and swift, without the slightest hesitation.

"As expected, they recognized me..."

He muttered to himself; these people could directly call out his name in their despair, and if he hadn't pulled them up by the roots, the consequences would be unimaginable.

With the death of the three!

The cave instantly fell into a dead silence, leaving only the chattering of the two Bandit Cultivators' teeth and a thick smell of blood.

Chen Qingyuan turned his gaze toward them.

"Now, it's your turn."

"Spare me! Senior, spare me! I'm still useful! Don't kill me!"

The slightly younger Bandit Cultivator among them immediately broke down, pleading for mercy repeatedly.

"Fine,"

"then I'll give you a chance to live. Tell me, where exactly is your lair? How many people are guarding it? What are the defensive arrangements?"

To save his life, the young Bandit Cultivator didn't dare hide anything and poured out everything he knew:

"It's... about three hundred miles west of here, there's a hidden valley we call Black Wind Valley. Inside the valley, there's a first-tier High Grade Spiritual Vein!"

"The entrance is covered by a layer of illusion Formation... inside... there shouldn't be many people left now!"

"Boss Lone Wolf brought out everyone who could fight; those left behind are probably only three to five old or weak ones at the Late Stage or Middle Stage Qi Refining..."

"The defense relies entirely on the natural terrain and a layer of illusion Formation; there aren't any powerful Formations..."

After hearing the confession, Chen Qingyuan was noncommittal; it would be strange if a ragtag bunch of Bandit Cultivators could truly run things like an iron fortress.

"Father-in-law,"

He then turned to Xie Dezhao, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

"Father-in-law, this is a rare opportunity! The bandits' lair is empty; it is the perfect time to uproot them completely!"

"Please lead the men to speed up the cleaning of the battlefield and take everything away. We will set off immediately!"

Hearing this, Xie Dezhao's face immediately showed excitement!

"Good! Good! There's no time to lose; I'll go urge them now!"

With that, he immediately turned around to arrange for people to continue clearing the Ore vein battlefield and collecting the spoils of war.

Meanwhile, Chen Qingyuan took Xie Jinshu back to where Chen Qingshan was recovering.

As soon as the two arrived, Xie Xinxuan, who was acting as a Protector for Chen Qingshan, slowly opened his eyes.

"Has everything outside been handled properly?"

"It's basically been cleared out." Chen Qingyuan nodded, then changed the subject, "However, there is one more matter that I'm afraid will require you, Old Master, to personally set out once more."

Saying this, he briefly explained the location and defensive situation of the Bandit Cultivators' lair, "Black Wind Valley."

After all, it was a bandit lair; for safety's sake, having a Foundation Establishment Cultivator to oversee things would naturally be much safer.

Xie Xinxuan also nodded without hesitation, "Uprooting them completely is only right. I shall stretch my old bones once more."

However, Chen Qingshan, leaning against the rock wall, spoke weakly,

"Qingyuan, you all go; I'll stay behind."

Chen Qingyuan frowned slightly: "Big Brother, your injuries..."

Chen Qingshan raised a hand to interrupt him, his voice weak but exceptionally clear and calm,

"With these injuries of mine, I need quiet rest to heal. Going along would not only be unhelpful but also a burden. Moreover..."

"If everyone at the Ore vein 'died in battle' and I alone returned to Shazhou Workshop unscathed, what would the Red Sand Gang think? How could they not become suspicious!"

"I must stay behind; I also need to find the whereabouts of Li Zheng and Old Ma. I need to see them alive, or if they are dead... I must find their bodies.

"With them, we can work together to fabricate a reasonable 'survival' experience, clearing me and the entire Chen Family from this muddy water!

"Otherwise, the consequences will be endless."

After listening, Chen Qingyuan fell silent for a moment, having to admit that his brother's considerations were more thorough.

He sighed and turned to look at Xie Jinshu beside him,

"Wife, then I'll have to trouble you to stay behind and look after Big Brother for a bit. We'll go and return quickly."

Xie Jinshu nodded solemnly, "Don't worry, Husband, I will protect Big Brother well."

Everything being arranged, Xie Xinxuan delayed no longer. With a flick of his sleeve, he summoned the flying boat.

Chen Qingyuan, Xie Dezhao, Big Tooth Dong, and several Xie Family elites quickly boarded the boat.

The flying boat cut through the sky, speeding toward Black Wind Valley, three hundred miles to the west.

Meanwhile, Chen Qingshan was not idle either; as soon as he could move slightly, he endured the pain and backlash, following the direction in which Li Zheng and Old Ma had departed.