533: Continue south

Having dealt with the two Three-step Dao Ancestors, Xu Qing turned to look at the eight Black Crystal Blood Flame Clan Dao Ancestors not far away.

These Dao Ancestors were already scared Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering; seeing Xu Qing look their way, they turned to flee, some wanting to escape into the Xu River, others wanting to tear through space and escape.

Xu Qing raised his hand and gently clenched it in the Void Realm.

“Buzz!”

The surrounding space instantly solidified, and the fleeing Dao Ancestors were immediately sealed by space, unable to move.

Then, the space began to violently contract and crush them; the eight Dao Ancestors were pulverized into a mist of blood before they could even scream, their black and red blood splattering on the Xu River, staining a large area of the water.

Only the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse reacted the fastest.

Seeing the unfavorable situation, his eight pairs of crystal wings behind him instantly flapped, and faint spatial ripples emanated from his body.

He cultivated the Great Dao of Space, and his control over space far surpassed that of other Dao Ancestors.

Therefore, the moment Xu Qing solidified space, he used his own Great Dao to tear open a crack and slipped inside, fleeing downstream, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Xu Qing did not immediately give chase; instead, he turned to look at the adult Ancient Ruin Beast, weighing whether to make a move.

The Ancient Ruin Beast quickly shielded its cub, its silver-gray short fur still bristling, but the mist on its golden horn trembled slightly.

It could feel Xu Qing's terror, which was even more formidable than the thirteen alien Dao Ancestors combined earlier; seeing Xu Qing look its way, its body trembled, and it subconsciously hid its cub behind it, its eyes filled with vigilance and despair.

Xu Qing watched it for a few seconds, then looked at the small Ancient Ruin Beast curled up behind it, and finally withdrew his gaze.

He wasn't soft-hearted; it was just that this Ancient Ruin Beast, in order to protect its cub, was willing to endure the siege of thirteen Dao Ancestors. This maternal obsession made him unwilling to act.

Subsequently, he turned and pursued in the direction the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse had fled.

The opponent's Great Dao of Space was indeed formidable; the spatial fluctuations left behind when he fled were very faint, so much so that even a Dao Ancestor of the same realm cultivating the Great Dao of Space might not have noticed them.

But he encountered Xu Qing; he tapped his foot, and his figure merged into the Void Realm, chasing along the faint fluctuations left by the opponent.

In less than half an incense stick of time, Xu Qing saw the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse ahead.

The Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse was desperately flapping his crystal wings, trying to accelerate.

He thought he had escaped far, but when he detected the spatial fluctuations behind him, he looked back and met Xu Qing's eyes, scaring him Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering.

“Fellow Daoist, spare my life!” He quickly stopped, cupped his hands to Xu Qing, and begged for mercy, “I am willing to submit to the Human Race and offer my clan's spatial secret techniques, only asking Dao Friend to spare my life!”

Xu Qing said nothing, merely narrowed his eyes slightly, activating his Chaos Dao Eye again, and the golden beam from his left eye shot towards the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse's glabella.

Seeing this, the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse's face turned pale; he quickly unleashed all his power, his eight pairs of crystal wings instantly blocking in front of him, the red patterns on the crystal wings flickering wildly, attempting to condense a spatial barrier.

But the golden beam instantly penetrated the crystal wings and struck his glabella.

“No! I am not reconciled! My Sacred Crystal Wing Clan will not let you go!”

The Sacred Crystal Wing Clan powerhouse let out a mournful curse, his body slowly began to turn transparent, eventually transforming into wisps of spatial power, which Xu Qing raised his hand to absorb.

All of his cultivation and his insights into the Great Dao of Space were completely devoured by Xu Qing. These powers merged into Xu Qing's Chaos Great Dao, deepening his control over spatial power even further.

As for the threat from the Sacred Crystal Wing Clan, he didn't care at all.

Xu Qing stood in the Xu River Void Realm, his gaze sweeping around; the traces of the fierce battle had been gradually smoothed over by the Chaos Qi flow.

He frowned slightly, feeling no joy in his heart.

“Ultimately, still too weak.”

Xu Qing murmured softly. These people didn't even have the qualification to make him use thirty percent of his power. Such combat strength, let alone tempering himself, couldn't even give him a basic sense of urgency.

He looked towards the south of the Xu River; following the Xu River downstream, the creatures in the river became stronger and stronger, and by heading south, he would eventually encounter the main force of the Tianyang aliens.

An expectant look appeared in Xu Qing's eyes. As long as no existence above a Four-step Dao Ancestor made a move, even if he was surrounded and killed, a single thought would allow him to teleport his true body back to where his Clone was.

Furthermore, the System could also detect danger in real-time and give early warnings. With such trump cards, Xu Qing had nothing to worry about.

With his decision made, he no longer lingered; he tapped his foot in the Void Realm, and his figure sped downstream along the Xu River.

At the same time, Black Crystal Fortress was plunged into panic.

In the secret chamber deep within the fortress, eleven hovering, faint black light figures suddenly flickered violently. The next second, these light figures simultaneously shattered, turning into specks of black light that dissipated into the air.

When their true bodies were killed, the Clones left in the fortress were also annihilated by Xu Qing from a distance.

Over at the Human Race mining cave!

“What's going on? Why did eleven Qi auras suddenly disappear from Black Crystal Fortress?”

“Could it be some unexpected change that made them leave? Or is there a trick involved?”

The four individuals on duty immediately noticed this situation.

Xu Qing's Sword Dao Clone then spoke: “Continuous disappearances must have a reason! We should report this! The four of us cannot make a decision on this matter!”

“Dao Friend Xu is right!” The elderly white-bearded Dao Ancestor immediately echoed, “This old man will send a message now and truthfully report the situation here!”

He condensed a communication light rune on his fingertip and injected it into the mining cave's dedicated communication Formation Plate.

In less than half an incense stick of time, the anomalies detected by the mining cave were transmitted to the Five Elders, Gu Mang, and others.

Inside the council hall, light flickered, and a memory crystal floated in the center, clearly displaying the scene of the disappearing light points on the monitoring Formation Plate.

The Five Elders sat on both sides, and Gu Mang and the other Dao Ancestors stood below, their expressions varied.

Gu Mang was the first to ask: “Elder Jin, do you think this could be a trap by the aliens? Deliberately making us think Black Crystal Fortress is empty to lure us into sending troops, and then ambushing and encircling us?”

Elder Jin stared at the memory crystal for a long time, then slowly shook his head: “It doesn't look like a trap. Look at the speed at which these light points disappear. If it were a deliberate disguise, the Qi aura would dissipate slowly.”

“But the light points on the Formation Plate extinguished instantly, which is more like the true body encountering an accident, causing the Clone to dissipate simultaneously. They must have encountered an unexpected change, not a planned withdrawal.”

Upon hearing this, Gu Mang took a step forward and made a downward chopping motion with his right hand, “Elder Jin, since Black Crystal Fortress only has two Dao Ancestors left, why don't we seize the opportunity to send troops and directly take down the fortress?”

“This way, not only can we remove this thorn, but we can also mine the ruin river sand with more peace of mind!”

As soon as these words came out, some Dao Ancestors showed signs of being swayed, clearly feeling that this was a rare opportunity.

But Elder Jin shook his head again, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, and slowly asked: “Think carefully, would you rather deal with the current Black Crystal Fortress, or deal with unknown powerhouses sent by the Tianyang aliens?”

One sentence made the hall instantly quiet.

Now that Black Crystal Fortress had lost eleven Dao Ancestors, the remaining two Dao Ancestors would undoubtedly be terrified and uneasy, only hunkering down in the fortress to strengthen their defenses, never daring to provoke the Human Race proactively.

And they could Just right use this time to mine the ruin river sand with peace of mind; otherwise, if the aliens sent people again, it might trigger another war.

“This Junior did not consider it thoroughly.” Gu Mang showed a look of shame on his face, cupped his hands and said, “Elder Jin's foresight is indeed superior.”

The Five Elders gave a few instructions and then left, and Gu Mang and the others also departed one after another.

Xu Qing and the other three also received the message, remained inactive, and continued their watch.