51: Chapter 51 Resource Wars, Mining Area Contest

At the teleportation square of Lin Guan City, the white light dissipated, revealing the fifty-person team led by Lin Ye.

This border city was much smaller than the Capital City of Yan State. The city walls were mottled, and the streets were narrow, but there were many pedestrians. Most of them were players—carrying weapons, wearing various equipment, and moving in a hurry, all heading in the same direction: the east.

There, in the direction of the Fallen Phoenix Slope, even from hundreds of miles away, one could vaguely see a streak of five-colored light on the horizon.

"So many people..." Chen Hao looked around, roughly estimating that there were hundreds of players in the square, and the number was still increasing. "It seems the news about the Secret Realm has already spread."

"That's normal." Lin Ye was not surprised. "Such a large-scale celestial phenomenon cannot be hidden. We need to speed up and enter the core area of the Secret Realm before most other factions."

He looked at Su Qingyue: "Qingyue, use the Vermilion Bird Wings, we'll fly directly there."

Su Qingyue nodded and took out the Vermilion Bird Hall Master Token. The token flashed with red light, and she chanted in a low voice. A hot and light energy surged from the token, turning into a pair of huge phantom flame wings that covered the back of every member of the team.

[Vermilion Bird Wings (Hall Master Skill Activated)]

Effect: Flight speed +50%, duration 15 minutes

Range: Hall Master and members (up to 50 people)

Consumption: Hall Master Token charging (0/100), current charge: 100/100

The flame wings spread out, and the fifty people rose into the air simultaneously, turning into a streak of red light, speeding towards the east. This scene caused other players in the square to exclaim in surprise.

"A flight skill? And it's a group flight?"

"That's the Heavenly Court! Lin Ye is leading the team!"

"They're flying directly there? That's too arrogant!"

"Arrogance requires strength. If you have the ability, you fly too."

Amidst the discussion, Lin Ye's team had already disappeared at the end of the horizon.

The flight speed was indeed fast. The eight-hundred-mile distance would take two days on foot or one day on horseback, but with the acceleration of the Vermilion Bird Wings, they arrived at the outskirts of the Fallen Phoenix Slope in less than an hour.

Looking down from the sky, the Fallen Phoenix Slope was a huge basin with a diameter of over a hundred miles. In the center of the basin, five-colored light erupted from the ground like a fountain, shooting straight into the clouds. In the light, phantoms of palaces and towers appeared and disappeared, with constant celestial music and lingering exotic fragrances.

At the edge of the basin, a dense crowd had already gathered. Roughly estimated, there were at least three thousand people, divided into dozens of camps, each occupying an area. The three largest camps were particularly eye-catching—

On the east side, a group of players wearing golden battle armor, numbering over three hundred, stood in neat rows with strict discipline. A large flag stood in the center of the camp, embroidered with a pattern of thunder and a scepter: Olympus.

On the west side, it was an all-female group of players in green, numbering about two hundred, each with outstanding beauty, holding musical instrument-type weapons. In the camp, the sound of zithers and lutes harmonized, forming a sound barrier that kept outsiders at bay: Green Robe Tower.

On the north side, it was a dark mass, the largest in number, over four hundred, but the Formation was loose and the clothing was messy. The large flag was inscribed with the two characters "Zongheng": Zongheng Alliance.

In addition, there were more than a dozen small and medium-sized factions, each occupying a small piece of territory.

Lin Ye led the team to land on a deserted hillside. This location was slightly off-center, but the view was wide, allowing them to observe the situation of the entire basin.

"Olympus really came." Shi Potian's eyes were sharp. "Look at that Formation, there are no fewer than ten in the Dao Palace Realm. Where is Athena? I don't see her."

"She should be in the tent." Lin Ye pointed to a golden tent in the center of the Olympus camp. "A person of that level won't show up easily."

He looked at Su Qingyue: "Qingyue, release the Scout Spirit Birds to detect the distribution of Spiritual Qi and the strength of the Restrictions in the basin."

Su Qingyue nodded and took out ten jade talismans from her Storage Pouch. The jade talismans turned into ten palm-sized transparent spirit birds upon landing, flying silently to all parts of the basin. This was the scouting Spell [Spirit Bird Exploration] she learned in the Yaoguang Holy Land. The spirit birds could share their vision with the caster and were highly concealed, making them difficult to detect.

A moment later, Su Qingyue closed her eyes to sense, her brows slightly furrowed: "The concentration of Spiritual Qi in the basin is more than five times that of the outside world, and the closer to the central light, the higher the concentration. However, there are spatial cracks and Restriction fluctuations everywhere, so it is dangerous to force entry. Currently, there are three safest entrances—"

She marked the locations on the map: "East side, the one occupied by Olympus; west side, guarded by Green Robe Tower; south side, currently unoccupied, but a group of Yao Beasts are entrenched there, with levels between the Sea of Wheels Seventh Layer and the Dao Palace First Layer."

"Yao Beasts?" Lin Ye was thoughtful. "What kind?"

"Iron-Winged Eagles, gregarious, numbering over fifty. The leaders are two Iron-Winged Eagle Kings, at the Dao Palace First Layer."

Iron-Winged Eagles were wind and thunder dual-attribute Yao Beasts, fast, with attacks that carried a paralysis effect. Fifty Iron-Winged Eagles above the Sea of Wheels Seventh Layer, plus two Eagle Kings, was indeed a force not to be underestimated. No wonder other factions didn't touch them.

But for the Heavenly Court, this was an opportunity.

"We'll go through the south side." Lin Ye made the decision. "Although the Iron-Winged Eagles are troublesome, it's better than fighting hard against other factions. And—"

A glint flashed in his eyes: "In the nest of the Iron-Winged Eagles, there is likely 'Wind-Thunder Essence', which is a top-tier material for refining wind-thunder attribute Magic Treasures. It is beneficial for both Qingyue's Vast Cold Spirit Body and my thunder Spells."

"But how do we fight them?" Chen Hao frowned. "Fifty Iron-Winged Eagles, our numbers are comparable, but they are flying Yao Beasts and occupy the aerial advantage. Our long-range firepower is only the ten people from the Vermilion Bird Hall, which is not enough."

"I have a way." Lin Ye took out three Formation Flags from his storage ring. "These are the [Beast Trapping Formation Flags] (Blue) found in Xue Kuang's storage ring. They can set up a trapping Formation within a radius of a hundred feet to restrict the flight ability of targets within the range. As long as we can lure the Iron-Winged Eagles into the Formation, they will be sitting ducks."

"How do we lure them?"

"Use this." Lin Ye took out a fist-sized red crystal. "[Blood Crystal] (Fine), it contains rich blood energy and has a fatal attraction to Yao Beasts. Although Iron-Winged Eagles are herbivores, they are equally eager for treasures that can enhance their Bloodlines."

The plan was set: Lin Ye would use the Blood Crystal to lure the Iron-Winged Eagle flock into the Beast Trapping Formation, Chen Hao would lead the Azure Dragon Hall to encircle and kill them inside the Formation, Shi Potian's White Tiger Hall would be responsible for dealing with any fish that slipped through the net, and Su Qingyue's Vermilion Bird Hall would provide long-range support and guard against sneak attacks from other factions.

"Action!"

The team moved quietly to the south side.

The south entrance was a steep mountain wall, filled with caves of various sizes, which were the nests of the Iron-Winged Eagles. It was currently afternoon, and most of the Iron-Winged Eagles were resting in their nests, with only a few patrolling in the air.

Lin Ye inserted the three Formation Flags at the predetermined positions and injected Divine Power to activate them. The Formation Flags disappeared into the ground, and an invisible barrier rose, covering a radius of a hundred feet. From the outside, there was nothing unusual, but the internal space had been sealed, and flight ability was greatly restricted.

"It's ready." He looked at Su Qingyue.

Su Qingyue nodded and took out a [Silence Talisman] (Green), activating it to shield the surrounding sounds.

Only then did Lin Ye take out the Blood Crystal and squeezed it hard.

"Crack."

The crystal shattered, and rich blood energy permeated the air. To humans, this blood energy was just a bit fishy, but to Yao Beasts, it was like a beacon in the dark.

"Screech—!"

In the nest, the first Iron-Winged Eagle was alarmed and rushed out of the cave. Immediately after, the second, the third... In just ten breaths, more than fifty Iron-Winged Eagles flew out, circling in the air, their scarlet eyes fixed on the source of the blood energy below.

Leading them were two Eagle Kings with significantly larger bodies, with a wingspan of over three zhang, feathers in blue-purple color, and claws like iron hooks. They sniffed the blood energy, greed appearing in their eyes, but they did not dive down immediately, clearly having some intelligence and being wary of whether there was a trap.

"They're quite smart..." Seeing this, Lin Ye took out another Blood Crystal. This time, he didn't crush it but threw it directly into the center of the Beast Trapping Formation.

The Blood Crystal drew an arc and landed in the Formation.

This action became the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Screech—!"

The two Eagle Kings could finally no longer resist and took the lead to dive down! Seeing this, other Iron-Winged Eagles also rushed towards the Blood Crystal.

Just as the entire flock of eagles entered the range of the Beast Trapping Formation—

"Formation, rise!"

Lin Ye formed Seals with both hands, and the three Formation Flags broke out of the ground, shooting out three rays of gray light that intertwined in the air to form a net, covering the entire Formation area.

"Screech?!"

The Iron-Winged Eagle flock sensed something wrong and wanted to pull up, but their wings seemed to be stuck in a quagmire, and their flight height dropped sharply. The effect of the Beast Trapping Formation manifested: all flying units within the range had their maximum flight height reduced to three zhang, and their movement speed was reduced by 40%!

"Kill!"

Chen Hao roared, and the twenty people from the Azure Dragon Hall rushed out from their hiding place, raising their long spears and battle axes, forming a battle Formation. The Azure Dragon Hall Master Token was activated, [Azure Dragon Battle Formation] effect was added, and all attributes were increased by 15%!

"Azure Dragon Break Formation!"

Twenty spear lights converged, turning into a cyan dragon shadow, crashing into the densest part of the eagle flock.

"Boom!"

Seven or eight Iron-Winged Eagles were hit by the dragon shadow, their feathers flying and blood dripping. Two of them at the Sea of Wheels Seventh Layer died on the spot, and the rest fell, heavily injured.

"Screech!" The two Eagle Kings were furious and, ignoring the Restriction of the trapping Formation, forcibly rushed towards Chen Hao. Their sharp claws carried the power of wind and thunder, and the air exploded wherever they passed.

"Your opponent is me."

Lin Ye's figure flashed, Void Step activated, and he appeared in front of one of the Eagle Kings. Chaos Fire ignited on his right hand, turning into a flame longsword, and he slashed at the Eagle King's neck.

The Eagle King reacted extremely quickly, sweeping its iron wings like knives, colliding with the flame sword.

"Clang!"

Metal clashed, and sparks splashed. Lin Ye's arm felt slightly numb, and he was secretly shocked: The strength of this beast was much stronger than an ordinary Dao Palace First Layer!

But he was not afraid, and his left hand blasted out a Palm Thunder, hitting the Eagle King's chest squarely.

"Crackle!"

Purple thunder exploded, the Eagle King's body twitched, and the paralysis effect was triggered. Lin Ye seized the opportunity and stabbed repeatedly with the flame sword, leaving several charred blood holes on the Eagle King.

On the other side, Su Qingyue faced the second Eagle King.

She did not engage in close combat but used the innate ability of the Vast Cold Spirit Body. She formed Seals with both hands, the temperature around her plummeted, and the water vapor in the air condensed into countless ice crystals, turning into a blizzard that enveloped the Eagle King.

"Vast Cold Ice Seal!"

The Eagle King's wings quickly froze, and its movements became slower and slower. Su Qingyue seized the opportunity to release [Ice Spike Spell], and sharp ice spikes shot towards the Eagle King's vital points like raindrops.

Shi Potian's White Tiger Hall wandered on the periphery, specializing in killing those Iron-Winged Eagles that tried to escape the trapping Formation or sneak attack from the side. Their attacks were fast, accurate, and ruthless, with daggers stabbing into the vital points of the Yao Beasts and short crossbows shooting at weak points like eyes, with extremely high efficiency.

The battle lasted for about a quarter of an hour.

When the last Iron-Winged Eagle was pierced through the throat by Chen Hao's spear, the ground inside the Beast Trapping Formation was littered with corpses. More than fifty Iron-Winged Eagles were all wiped out. The two Eagle Kings also fell in a pool of blood, one had its heart burned through by Lin Ye's Chaos Fire, and the other was pierced into a sieve by Su Qingyue's ice spikes.

[System Notification: Your team killed the Iron-Winged Eagle flock (50+2)!]

[Total EXP gained: Iron-Winged Eagle x 50 (80,000 EXP each), Iron-Winged Eagle King x 2 (350,000 EXP each), Total: 4.7 million EXP!]

[Due to the team size distribution, you gained EXP: 470,000]

[Reputation +800]

[Materials obtained: Iron-Winged Eagle Feathers x 112, Iron-Winged Eagle Claws x 104, Iron-Winged Eagle Monster Core x 52, Wind-Thunder Essence x 2]

The rich EXP made many team members shine with upgrade light. Chen Hao and Shi Potian both reached the Sea of Wheels Ninth Layer, and Su Qingyue also reached the Peak of the Sea of Wheels Eighth Layer. Other team members upgraded at least one level.

"Clean up the battlefield and collect Materials." Lin Ye ordered, "Especially the Wind-Thunder Essence, that's the most important."

Beside the corpses of the two Eagle Kings, there were blue-purple light clusters, with wind and thunder power flowing inside. This was the Wind-Thunder Essence, an Earth Rank material, which could be directly absorbed to improve wind-thunder attribute affinity, or used to refine Magic Treasures or practice related Cultivation Techniques.

Lin Ye handed one of the clusters to Su Qingyue: "Although the Vast Cold Spirit Body focuses on ice, wind can help the growth of cold air, and thunder can break evil. This Wind-Thunder Essence should also be helpful to you."

Su Qingyue did not refuse and took the light cluster: "Thank you."

Lin Ye kept the other cluster for himself. His thunder Spell had just started, and he needed this high-quality thunder attribute material to improve.

Other Materials were also collected quickly. Iron-Winged Eagle feathers were good Materials for making arrows and flight talismans, claws could be used to refine dagger-type weapons, and Monster Cores could be used for Alchemy or feeding Spirit Pets.

"Now, enter the Secret Realm." Lin Ye looked ahead.

Behind the Iron-Winged Eagle's nest, there was a three-zhang high cave entrance on the mountain wall. There were faint spatial fluctuations at the edge of the entrance, which was clearly one of the entrances to the Secret Realm. Previously, because of the protection of the eagle flock, no one dared to enter, but now the obstacles were cleared, and the entrance was fully open.

As the team was about to enter, the sound of breaking through the air came from afar.

Three streaks of light rushed over and landed not far away. The newcomers were three players, dressed in uniform black tight-fitting clothes, with the two characters "Zongheng" embroidered on their chests.

The leader was a thin and tall young man with arrogant eyes, and his cultivation was at the Sea of Wheels Ninth Layer. He glanced at the eagle corpses all over the ground, then looked at Lin Ye and the others, and said: "Our Zongheng Alliance has taken a fancy to this area, you can leave now."

The tone was taken for granted, as if driving away flies.

Chen Hao was furious: "Bullshit! This eagle flock was killed by us, and the entrance was opened by us. Why should we give it to you?"

"What gives you the right?" the tall, thin youth sneered. "Just the fact that we are the Zongheng Alliance, the number one player faction in Zhao State. Just the fact that our Alliance Master, Zhao Zheng, is at the Dao Palace Second Layer, and he has four hundred brothers under him. Is that reason enough?"

The two people behind him also stepped forward, releasing their Auras; they were both at the Lunhai Eighth Layer.

Three against fifty? This was clearly bullying by relying on numbers, assuming that revealing their name would be enough to scare the other side away.

Lin Ye smiled. "Zongheng Alliance? Never heard of it."

"You!" The tall, thin youth's expression darkened. "Kid, don't refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Our Alliance Master is not far away. As long as I send a signal, he can be here within five minutes. By then, you won't be able to leave even if you want to."

"Then send it," Lin Ye said calmly. "I'll wait."

"..." The tall, thin youth was choked for words. He had assumed that bringing up the name of the Zongheng Alliance would make the other party retreat sensibly; he hadn't expected to run into such a tough nut to crack.

In reality, he was bluffing. The main force of the Zongheng Alliance was at the north entrance, preparing to enter the Secret Realm from there. He had snuck over with two subordinates, hoping to see if there was an opportunity to pick up scraps on the south side. If he really called for people, it would take at least twenty minutes for them to arrive.

"Fine, you've got guts," the tall, thin youth gritted his teeth. "State your name!"

"Heavenly Court, Lin Ye."

"Lin Ye?" The tall, thin youth was stunned, then immediately recalled the name. "The number two in the entire server? That Lin Ye from Yan State?"

His expression shifted; he had clearly heard of Lin Ye's exploits. Killing a Dao Palace Fourth Layer while at a lower level, wiping out the elites of the Blood Fiend Alliance—these achievements had already spread throughout the player circles.

"So it's Guild Master Lin," the tall, thin youth's tone softened. "That was just a misunderstanding. Since this entrance was taken by your guild, we naturally won't try to seize it. Farewell."

After saying this, he took his two subordinates and slunk away.

"Tsk, bullying the weak and fearing the strong," Chen Hao said with disdain.

"Normal," Lin Ye was not surprised. "Large guilds are all like this; they bully the weak and reason with the strong. Let's hurry. After they go back to report, the Zongheng Alliance might send people over."

The team quickly entered the cave entrance.

After passing through a hundred-zhang-long passage, the view before them suddenly opened up.

This was a massive underground space, so high that the ceiling was invisible. The surroundings were natural rock walls, embedded with glowing crystals that provided illumination. In the center of the space stood a dilapidated palace with its gates wide open, and a treasure light faintly flickered within.

But the most eye-catching thing was an area in front of the palace—it wasn't rock, but a mineral vein shimmering with silver-white light! The mineral vein stretched for dozens of zhang, with natural silver patterns on its surface, and a rich metallic Spiritual Qi rushed towards them.

"This is... a silver mineral vein?" Zhao Wuji's voice came through the communication Jade Slip—Lin Ye had activated real-time communication before entering to let the rear know the situation.

"And it's a rich vein!" Zhao Wuji said excitedly. "Look at the concentration of Spiritual Qi; it's at least a Medium Grade silver mineral vein, and there might even be High Grade Ore! Producing fifty units a day is no problem!"

Fifty units of silver Ore per day—what kind of concept was that?

One unit of silver Ore could refine ten jin of Secret Silver, and the market price for one jin of Secret Silver was five hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Fifty units meant five hundred jin of Secret Silver, worth two hundred and fifty thousand Spirit Stones! And this was a sustainable output; as long as the mineral vein wasn't exhausted, there would be more every day!

"No wonder the Iron-Winged Eagles would build their nests here." Lin Ye realized. "The metallic Spiritual Qi emitted by the silver mineral vein is beneficial to their growth. For the Heavenly Court, this is simply a windfall from heaven."

But the problem was, how to hold onto it.

There was more than one entrance to the Secret Realm, and other factions would discover this place sooner or later. By then, facing opponents of the caliber of Olympus or the Zongheng Alliance, the fifty people of the Heavenly Court would be unable to hold it.

"We must finish this quickly." Lin Ye made his decision. "Chen Hao, take the Azure Dragon Hall to mine the Ore; mine as much as you can. Shi Potian, the White Tiger Hall will keep guard. Su Qingyue, come with me into the palace to take a look."

"Yes!"

The Azure Dragon Hall began to mine. Although they didn't bring professional mining tools, the strength and weapons of Cultivators were sufficient to split the rock. One piece of silver Ore after another was dug out and loaded into the Storage Pouch.

Lin Ye and Su Qingyue walked toward the palace.

The palace gate was two zhang high, cast from some kind of black metal, with its surface covered in rust. There were two grooves on the gate, which seemed to have originally been embedded with something, but they were empty now.

"This palace... has a Restriction," Su Qingyue sensed. "But it's very old, and the Restriction is already incomplete; less than one-tenth of its power remains. If we are careful, we should be able to enter."

The two stepped through the gate.

The inside of the palace was larger than it looked from the outside, clearly utilizing space expansion technology. The main hall was empty, with only a stone platform in the center, and a jade box placed on the stone platform.

Besides that, there was a passage on each side of the main hall, leading to unknown places.

Lin Ye did not rashly go to take the jade box; instead, he first scanned the surroundings with his Divine Sense. Sure enough, there were hidden Formation patterns around the stone platform; although incomplete, they were still dangerous.

"It's a variant of the 'Five Elements Inversion Formation'," he identified. "If you step wrong, it will trigger a Five Elements attack. However, the Formation is too severely damaged, and there are many flaws."

Following the Formation knowledge recorded in the "Void Scripture," he calculated the safe path and led Su Qingyue step by step toward the stone platform.

Three steps, five steps, ten steps... safe.

Arriving before the stone platform, Lin Ye reached out to take the jade box. Just as his fingertips touched the jade box—

"Hum!"

The jade box opened automatically, and three beams of light shot out from inside! One flew toward Lin Ye, one flew toward Su Qingyue, and the third flew toward the top of the main hall and disappeared.

Lin Ye caught the light that flew toward him; it was a Jade Slip. What Su Qingyue caught was an ice-blue bead.

[Obtained: Secret Realm Map Jade Slip (Special)]

Effect: Records the complete map of this Secret Realm, the "Xuan Jin Secret Realm," including the locations and clearance methods for three main passages, twelve treasure rooms, and three dangerous areas.

Description: Guidance for the Legacy left by True Monarch Xuan Jin; collecting all three map Jade Slips can open the core Legacy.

[Obtained: Profound Ice Bead (Epic)]

Quality: Purple

Effect: ① Wearer's Ice-type Spell power +30%. ② Can release "Profound Ice Shield," absorbing 5000 points of damage (Cooldown: 1 hour). ③ Exclusive to Vast Cold Spirit Body: Can activate the "Profound Ice True Meaning" sealed within the bead, assisting the Spirit Body in Awakening.

Description: A treasure refined by the ancient Cultivator True Monarch Xuan Jin for his Dao Companion, Fairy Xuan Bing, containing pure Profound Ice power.

Both were good items!

The map Jade Slip gave Lin Ye complete knowledge of this Secret Realm; the Profound Ice Bead was an ultimate treasure suited for Su Qingyue, capable of significantly boosting her strength.

"It seems our luck is good," Lin Ye smiled. "This True Monarch Xuan Jin must have been a great power from the ancient era who specialized in the Metal attribute, but he also had a Dao Companion with the Ice attribute. That's why the Secret Realm contains both Metal-type resources like the silver mineral vein and Ice-type treasures like the Profound Ice Bead."

He checked the map in the Jade Slip. The Secret Realm was divided into three layers: they were currently on the first layer, which mainly had three passages leading to the "Spirit Medicine Garden," "Artifact Refining Room," and "Scripture Library" respectively. Each passage had trials, and after passing them, one could obtain corresponding rewards.

The second layer was the core area, which required collecting all three map Jade Slips to open. Inside was the place where True Monarch Xuan Jin passed away, containing the true Legacy.

The third layer... was not marked on the map, only bearing a warning: "Those without affinity, do not enter the Death Zone."

"Let's explore the first layer first." Lin Ye made a plan. "The Spirit Medicine Garden and the Scripture Library have the greatest value for us. Although the Artifact Refining Room has Magic Treasures, we don't have a professional Artifact Refiner, so even if we take them, we won't be able to use them well."

Just as the two were about to leave, fighting sounds and shouts suddenly came from outside.

"Someone has broken in!" Shi Potian's voice came through the communication Jade Slip. "It's people from the Zongheng Alliance, over twenty of them, and the leader is a Dao Palace First Layer! We are currently intercepting them!"

They really came!

Lin Ye and Su Qingyue quickly returned to the palace entrance.

Outside, the Azure Dragon Hall and the White Tiger Hall had already engaged with the people from the Zongheng Alliance. Twenty-three people from the Zongheng Alliance had arrived, one of whom was a burly man at the Dao Palace First Layer with the ID "Ba Dao," who was wielding a door-sized broadsword and fighting fiercely with Chen Hao.

Chen Hao was only at the Lunhai Ninth Layer; although he was barely holding on by relying on the Azure Dragon Battle Formation and equipment advantages, defeat was only a matter of time. Shi Potian wanted to help, but was entangled by three other Lunhai Ninth Layer players.

Other members of the Azure Dragon Hall and White Tiger Hall were in a chaotic battle with the rest of the Zongheng Alliance; the numbers were equal, but the Zongheng Alliance had a higher overall level (average Lunhai Seventh Layer against the Heavenly Court's average Lunhai Sixth Layer), and they were gradually gaining the upper hand.

"Stop!"

Lin Ye let out a cold shout, releasing the Aura of the Dao Palace Realm, enveloping the entire scene.

Both sides of the battle stopped simultaneously and looked at him.

"Dao Palace Realm?" Ba Dao narrowed his eyes. "You are Lin Ye?"

"It is I." Lin Ye walked to the front of the Formation. "This Secret Realm entrance was taken by us, and the mineral vein was also discovered by us. If the Zongheng Alliance wants to seize it, you'll have to ask if my sword agrees."

"Haha, what big talk!" Ba Dao laughed. "Just a Dao Palace First Layer; I am also a Dao Palace First Layer, who's afraid of whom? Besides, our main force from the Zongheng Alliance is right behind us. With the few of you, can you hold it?"

"Whether we can hold it or not, we'll know if we try." Lin Ye stopped talking nonsense and attacked directly.

Void Step activated, and he appeared instantly in front of Ba Dao, his right fist covered in Chaos Fire, and he threw a punch!

Ba Dao's reaction was not slow; he blocked horizontally with his broadsword.

"Clang—!"

Fist and blade collided, emitting a deafening roar. Ba Dao retreated three steps in a row, his arm numb, and shock flashed in his eyes: this power was far stronger than an ordinary Dao Palace First Layer!

He didn't know that Lin Ye's Chaos Heavenly Emperor Body had an extra bonus to strength, and with the heart palace focusing on offense, his actual strength attribute was comparable to a Dao Palace Third Layer.

"Come again!" Lin Ye pursued, his fists raining down.

Ba Dao barely blocked five punches, but finally couldn't block the sixth; he was struck in the chest, flew backward, and vomited a large mouthful of blood.

"Boss!" The people of the Zongheng Alliance were shocked.

"Retreat... retreat!" Ba Dao knew he had kicked an iron plate and decisively ordered a retreat.

The twenty-three members of the Zongheng Alliance fled in a sorry state.

"We won!" The people of the Heavenly Court cheered.

But Lin Ye's expression was not relaxed. He looked at Su Qingyue. "Qingyue, use the Spirit Bird to scout the situation outside the entrance."

Su Qingyue released the Spirit Bird. A moment later, her expression was grave: "The Zongheng Alliance's main force is moving in this direction, and the number... is over one hundred. The one leading the team is Zhao Zheng, a Dao Palace Second Layer."

Over one hundred people, led by a Dao Palace Second Layer.

They definitely couldn't hold it by force.

"How much Ore have you mined?" Lin Ye asked Chen Hao.

"About twenty units, the Storage Pouch is full."

Twenty units was worth one hundred thousand Spirit Stones. But giving up the mineral vein was truly a pity.

"Brother Ye, why don't we call for people too?" Shi Potian suggested. "Bring people over from Yan State and have a fight with the Zongheng Alliance!"

"It's too late." Lin Ye shook his head. "Teleportation takes time; by the time reinforcements arrive, this place will have long been occupied by the Zongheng Alliance."

He thought for a moment and suddenly had an idea.

"We won't hold the mineral vein," Lin Ye said. "We will... blow it up."

"Blow it up?" Everyone was stunned.

"Yes." Lin Ye took out a few [thunder blast talisman]s. "Blow up the entrance and destroy the core of the mineral vein. If we can't have it, the Zongheng Alliance shouldn't even think about getting it either. After the Secret Realm exploration ends, we can slowly dig it out again."

This move was ruthless. But it was indeed the most effective method—if I can't have it, you can't have it either.

"Let's do it!" Chen Hao gritted his teeth. "We can't let those grandsons from the Zongheng Alliance get it cheap!"

The group acted quickly. Lin Ye buried three thunder blast talismans at the core of the mineral vein, and Su Qingyue set up an [Ice Seal Formation] at the entrance, so that after the explosion, the rubble would be frozen, increasing the difficulty of excavation.

Everything was ready, and the team retreated through another passage—according to the map, this passage led to the Spirit Medicine Garden and could also exit the Secret Realm.

Less than five minutes after they left, the main force of the Zongheng Alliance arrived.

Zhao Zheng took the lead, his Dao Palace Second Layer Aura undisguised. Behind him were over one hundred elites of the Zongheng Alliance, aggressive and imposing.

"Ba Dao, where are the people you mentioned?" Zhao Zheng looked at the injured Ba Dao.

"I, I think they fled..." Ba Dao lowered his head.

"Trash!" Zhao Zheng snorted coldly and looked at the silver mineral vein ahead, greed appearing in his eyes. "But never mind, this mineral vein is worth it. Everyone, mine immediately! Mine as much as you can!"

The Zongheng Alliance members rushed toward the mineral vein.

But just as the first person stepped into the range of the mineral vein—

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Three explosions rang out almost simultaneously!

The thunder blast talismans detonated the unstable Metal-type energy deep within the mineral vein, triggering a chain explosion! The entire underground space shook violently, the rocks collapsed, and the entrance was completely sealed off!

What was worse, the explosion destroyed the structure of the mineral vein, and a large amount of silver Ore was buried deep; to re-mine it, it would take at least a month to clear the rubble.

"Lin Ye—!!!"

Zhao Zheng's roar was buried under the collapsed rocks.

And at this moment, Lin Ye led the team, having already passed through the passage, and arrived at another area of the Secret Realm: the Spirit Medicine Garden.

Here, there were new opportunities and challenges.