Liu Wuxie's departure drew the attention of many people, who began to follow him. But they didn't dare to get too close and kept a safe distance to avoid provoking his wrath.
"Master, should we kill them?" Ruan Ying asked.
"No need. Don't cause any trouble," Liu Wuxie replied, waving his hand.
Hundreds of people followed behind him; he didn't need to resort to such extreme measures. Moreover, these people showed no hostility and were only curious about his actions.
The appearance of an ancient spiritual vein spread quickly, drawing countless cultivators. This was especially true now that they had little time left before the sacred ground closed. They knew this was their final chance to grab some supreme-grade spirit stones. Many cultivators hadn't found anything in the past six months, so they were determined to risk everything for some supreme-grade spirit stones.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
"There! Lu Liang is over there!" Gu Yu exclaimed.
He recognized Lu Liang from afar, spotting him and Jiang Nan, who stood guard on a hillside.
The ancient spiritual vein hid deep within an ancient mountain range. Most of the sacred ground was covered with burnt and withered trees, but sprouts occasionally pushed through the soil's surface. The ancient mountain ranges would soon recover as the laws in this world recovered.
Judging from the terrain, this mountain range likely spanned hundreds of thousands of miles in ancient times, almost reaching the level of an astral pulse.
In those days, powerful and dangerous profound beasts roamed freely, making it impossible for ordinary people to venture into the region. Even if ancient spiritual veins were discovered, they couldn't be mined.
It wasn't until the great blaze ravaged the land, scorching every lifeform in its path, that this ancient range was exposed. But even now, the spiritual vein lay buried deep underground, and extracting spirit stones from it would be no easy task.
Lu Liang and Jiang Nan walked over and bowed. "Master, you're finally here!"
The four assassins no longer hid the fact that they called Liu Wuxie "Master." Everyone present stood among the few closest to him, and none of them would ever betray that trust.
"Tell me about the situation here," Liu Wuxie said. He had already used Ghost Eye to scan the surroundings, searching for traces of the spiritual vein.
"About half a month ago, someone accidentally fell into a deep pit and discovered an underground world," Lu Liang recounted. "Hidden within it was a massive ancient spiritual vein. But no one's managed to mine it yet, it seems entry isn't easy. More cultivators have been arriving recently, trying to find a way to access the vein."
This confirmed that the cultivator had discovered the spiritual vein only after falling into the pit accidentally.
"How's the progress?" Liu Wuxie asked.
Seeing Lu Liang and Jiang Nan waiting outside, he guessed that He Hai'an was likely inside, keeping a close eye on the spiritual vein.
"After days of mining, they've dug a tunnel that now reaches close to the spiritual vein," Lu Liang reported.
Though the cultivator who first fell into the pit had discovered the vein, he hadn't been able to mine it. The spiritual vein stretched deep underground, and reaching it required massive manpower and resources.
This spot was about a thousand meters from the original pit, and Liu Wuxie could already sense the dense spiritual energy seeping up from below. That first cultivator had likely deduced the existence of the vein based solely on that overwhelming concentration of spiritual power.
"What are we waiting for, then? Let's go!" Han Feizi urged, anxiety creeping into his voice.
With the tunnel nearly complete, they had to act fast before someone else claimed the prize.
"But..." Lu Liang hesitated, his expression showing concern.
Liu Wuxie sensed that something was amiss.
He asked, "But what?"
Lu Liang exhaled. "They've taken over the entrance and barred anyone else from going in. They rounded up all the nearby low-level cultivators and forced them to dig."
A group of powerful cultivators had seized control of the entrance, guarding it tightly. The weaker ones had been captured and conscripted as miners.
After all, there wasn't much time left, and they had to seize the entire spiritual vein within a month.
"Outrageous! The spiritual vein has no owner. How dare they claim it?" Ruan Ying roared, fury flashing in her eyes at the injustice.
"Let's go take a look for ourselves," Liu Wuxie said. He wanted to see what was happening.
The group marched toward the deep pit. The cultivators trailing Liu Wuxie grew excited when they learned about the ancient spiritual vein.
Over the past five days, many had given up the pursuit. Only half still remained, clinging on through sheer will. They hadn't expected to stumble upon the spiritual vein.
Countless people had rushed toward the pit, eager to get ahead. No one knew how vast the vein was or how many supreme-grade spirit stones it contained. But there was no doubt that the first person to enter would gain enormous rewards.
Hundreds of cultivators stood guard at the entrance, weapons drawn, allowing no one to approach.
Occasionally, they hauled out dead bodies.
The powerful cultivators had enslaved weaker ones, killing any who resisted. Those who tried to sneak in met the same fate.
The bodies were left strewn across the ground, a stark warning to anyone who dared draw near.
He Hai'an spotted Liu Wuxie and walked over from the crowd. "Master!"
Liu Wuxie frowned as he scanned the area. "Who are they?"
He saw several cultivators at the Earth Profound Realm, including Liang Yi and Luan Tianzhi. But what were they doing here?
Cultivators at the Earth Profound Realm possessed formidable divine sense. They had restored the laws and Communication Talismans that worked over short distances, so it wasn't surprising that they had found this place.
"They're from the three major sects," He Hai'an said. The three sects were guarding the entrance.
"What audacity! Do they really think they can disregard the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy?" Liu Feng exclaimed, his voice sharp with fury.
If it had been the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy or the Dragon Emperor Academy claiming the site, no one would have been surprised. But no one had expected three lesser sects to try and monopolize it.
"Be more specific," Liu Wuxie demanded. He needed more information.
"The Scarlet Dragon Cult's Luan Tianzhi, the Blazing Sun Gate's Liang Yi, and the Profound Cloud Sect's Mi Ze have joined forces, mobilizing the three sects' disciples to excavate this spiritual vein together," He Hai'an shared.
Each person he named held prominence in this world.
Liu Wuxie frowned. "A few of them can't possibly guard such a large spiritual vein. There must be others involved."
With so few cultivators, they couldn't stop everyone, and he knew that more experts were hiding in the surroundings.
"Master is wise," He Hai'an praised. "That's just on the surface. In secret, the Yuan, the Liao, and the Wang Clans of the Four Great Clans also sent their experts. They're currently negotiating for a share of the spiritual vein."
With the laws stabilizing in this world, more experts at the Earth Profound Realm had emerged. If they failed to reach an agreement, chaos was bound to follow.
If that were to happen, no one would be able to claim the supreme-grade spirit stones. After all, the three sects couldn't possibly guard such a large spiritual vein by themselves, and the allied forces of the three clans were a force to be reckoned with.
If that were the case, the three sects would struggle to hold their ground. If a battle broke out, it would only benefit the ordinary cultivators. The disciples of the three sects weren't foolish, and they knew which choice would benefit them the most.
"Brother Liu, this is more troublesome than I thought," Han Feizi said with a grin.
With so many experts present, they knew it would be difficult for just the two to benefit from the situation.
Liu Wuxie rolled his eyes at Han Feizi and turned to the pit, scanning to see what was happening.
Experts from the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy and the Dragon Emperor Academy naturally had no interest in colluding with them. However, some disciples who hailed from various clans and sects had already joined forces.
Take Liang Yi, for example. He was both a disciple of the Dragon Emperor Academy and a prodigy of the Blazing Sun Gate. He had managed to persuade a portion of the Dragon Emperor Academy's disciples to support him, along with several experts from the Blazing Sun Gate.
Luan Tianzhi also had an extraordinary status. Though he wasn't a disciple of the two academies, he was a highly regarded prodigy from the Scarlet Dragon Cult, making him an influential figure in his own right.
Five to six thousand people had gathered around the pit, but no one dared to approach.
Some smaller factions were already discussing strategies and planning to form their own alliances. In just a few hours, hundreds of groups had formed among them.
Each faction was large, and some had experts at the Earth Profound Realm. Those factions naturally drew attention, and more cultivators eagerly joined them.
One group even swelled to over a thousand members in a snowball effect as they marched toward the pit, planning to negotiate.
While this group seemed large, it was just formed by random individuals banding together, and they would scatter the moment danger appeared.
Workers continued hauling corpses from the pit. The relentless digging had pushed those forced into labor to their limits.
The sects had worked their captives to the bone, forcing them to dig without rest. This naturally led to the death of many cultivators from exhaustion.
They tossed out gruesome bodies; some belonging to high-level Spirit Profound cultivators.
"You there, come here!" Luan Tianzhi called out.
He stepped forward and captured a dozen or so cultivators at the Spirit Profound Realm, dragging them into the pit as laborers.
"Brother Han, can you contact my three Senior Brothers?" Liu Wuxie asked, his concern for their safety growing.
Most cultivators who had entered this world had gathered here, but Liu Wuxie had yet to locate his three senior brothers.
"I kept trying to contact them along the way, but they never responded," Han Feizi replied with a grave expression. He knew when to joke and when to be serious.
He had used the Communication Talisman along the way, trying to contact the three, but none of them had responded.
"Could they have fallen?" Liu Feng wondered aloud.
He naturally knew Liu Wuxie's three senior brothers well. They had spent plenty of time together after the three battles.
Liu Wuxie shook his head. "That can't be. My three brothers are blessed. They won't die so easily."
After all, Elder Madman had personally chosen the three as his disciples. He practiced formidable divination skills and served as a guest elder at the Thousand Divination Court. So, how could his disciples fall so easily?
Liu Feng frowned. "That's strange. If everyone is heading here, where could those three have gone?"
No one wanted harm to strike their family or friends after entering this world.
Liu Xin'er suddenly pointed at the pit. "Wuxie, look! Doesn't that person look like Senior Brother Jiang Le?"