Jiang Yuan followed Li Tiegen out of the mine. With the deaths of the two ninth-tier spirit beasts, the beast tide that came to the West Gate area to compete for the seventh-tier small mine had almost failed.

Even if it fails, the West Gate area will still be unable to return to its former peaceful state.

A safe zone is not just about being captured. Well-developed defense facilities, a mature management system, and comprehensive supply plans are all essential guarantees for the lives of ordinary people within a safe zone. If a zone is captured once, all of these will fall apart, making it impossible for ordinary people to live there again.

Of course, these Spirit Awakeners will not be affected. The West Gate area will eventually develop into a buffer zone between the beast tide and the forces of the South City.

They got away!

As soon as Li Tiegen left the mine, he noticed something was wrong. Most of the previous beast tide had disappeared, and the ninth-tier spirit beast covered in black fur had also fled, leaving only a mess not far away.

“Our bombing coverage wasn’t very large, but the fact that the fighting spread here must mean that the spirit beast attacked our troops!” Shangguan Ya guessed, her hands hanging limply.

Despite her calm demeanor, she has inwardly cursed the faceless masked man thousands of times.

She had previously tried to use "moral blackmail" to get him to part with one of his cores, but the pervert gave her a skill to suppress her injuries so she could fight him fairly. She wasn't stupid; she wouldn't agree to such a condition, so she refused outright. However, seeing that she wasn't fighting, the pervert withdrew the skill, and her injuries returned to their initial state, even becoming somewhat worse.

"It seems the enemy has already discovered the deaths of two ninth-tier spirit beasts, otherwise they wouldn't have fled so readily!" Li Tiegen looked into the distance and could vaguely see the West Gate area beginning to return to calm. However, he knew that this was just the calm before the storm. The deaths of the two ninth-tier spirit beasts would ignite an even more raging fury in the beast tide, making this place even more dangerous.

"So what do we do now?" Shangguan Ya tried her best not to think about the humiliation she had just suffered, otherwise she would be disgusted to death.

"Apostle, what are your plans?" Li Tiegen asked Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan didn't even look up, and said calmly, "Divide the mine, then everyone evacuate!"

"Why retreat? We finally captured Ximen, are we just going to hand it over again?" Shangguan Ya subconsciously didn't want to give up. Most of the people who came to support us had died, and she was unwilling to retreat like this.

"I have sworn to claim one-tenth of the mineral deposits here, and I will come to collect them in the future!"

Jiang Yuan gave a low laugh, finished speaking coldly, and left without turning his head.

"What do you mean? You actually came to their door to ask for it!"

Shangguan Ya pointed at Jiang Yuan's back and said unhappily, but Li Tiegen stopped her, saying, "Forget it, if it weren't for him today, we would have had a hard time getting away unscathed. He should be paid this reward."

"Moreover, even 10% of the ore vein's worth of Holy Spirit Stones is considered a small amount!"

Shangguan Ya's anger subsided considerably after hearing this, but then she frowned and said, "That's not right. What's going on with this mine? When we went in just now, we didn't see any other Holy Spirit Stones besides the hundreds or thousands of seventh-tier Holy Spirit Stones at the entrance of the mine?"

“I’m also puzzled. The mineral gas was so concentrated before, why did it all dissipate after just one night?” Li Tiegen’s wrinkles tightened, his expression filled with confusion.

"Could it be that someone else snatched it away?" Shangguan Ya asked suspiciously.

"Impossible! Even ninth-tier mineral veins can't withstand the erosion of the mineral gas in seventh-tier mines. Who could possibly get in!" Li Tiegen immediately denied such a guess.

Shangguan Ya suddenly remembered something and asked doubtfully, "Uncle Li, do you remember the beast tide riot that happened outside the South City a few days ago?"

"You mean the mysterious person stirred up the beast tide and then killed tens of thousands of rioters?" Li Tiegen asked after recalling the events. "But what does that have to do with the present?"

“How could it be unrelated? To lay such a large amount of explosives underground without anyone noticing, they must have had precise control over underground operations. Now, I have reason to suspect that this mysterious person sabotaged this mine!” Shangguan Ya analyzed logically and with evidence.

After listening to what he said, Li Tiegen fell into deep thought. Such a guess was not unreasonable. After all, the appearance of a seventh-order small mine was definitely not fake. It was also possible that someone had taken the lead and stolen it all.

"Moreover, I think that person is definitely in the South City. As long as we pay attention, we will surely be able to find out the identity of the mysterious person!" Shangguan Ya said with a confident smile.

"What do you mean?" Li Tiegen didn't understand.

"If it really was a mysterious person who stole a small seventh-tier mine, then he must have a large number of seventh-tier Holy Spirit Stones. If we just pay attention to where large quantities of seventh-tier Holy Spirit Stones are flowing out, we can find the source of the Holy Spirit Stones! Then, the mysterious person's identity will be exposed!"

...

"How relaxing! Do you need help applying sunscreen?"

When Jiang Yuan stepped into the courtyard, he saw two women lying on deck chairs sunbathing, so he couldn't help but make a teasing remark.

Upon hearing Jiang Yuan's voice, Ning Yanlan got up from the recliner. She had been monitoring the vicinity with the Stone Breath ever since Jiang Yuan left, so she had already sensed his arrival and didn't even wear a mask.

“Xiao Hong’s soul is damaged and she needs to rest. This sunlight carries a natural, gentle spiritual energy that greatly helps her soul recover, so I’m sunbathing with her!” Ning Yanlan explained after getting up.

"That's a good way to relax!" Jiang Yuan said casually, looking at the two women. Then he added, "But ladies, let's go back to the safe zone before sunbathing. It's not safe here anymore!"

"A great battle has broken out on your side, but I can't sense the specifics. What happened?" Ning Yanlan asked.

Jiang Yuan thought for a moment and then spoke candidly about how he killed two ninth-tier spirit beasts.

"You're now at the sixth rank, and you can kill a ninth-rank spirit beast?" Ning Yanlan found it unbelievable, thinking it was an almost impossible feat.

Jiang Yuan shook his head slightly and said, "A head-on confrontation is still very difficult. I relied on a lot of external help during the kill. Otherwise, if I encountered a ninth-level opponent, I would have prioritized escaping for my life!"

“Let’s go back to camp now. We’ve been out for a day and a half, and I’m a little worried about my sister-in-law and Xiao Xin’s safety!” Ning Yanlan nodded quickly.

"Hey beautiful, say something!" Jiang Yuan felt lonely when he didn't hear Leng Yue speak, so he made a point of greeting her.

As Leng Yue lay back on the recliner, she took off her sunglasses. Occasionally, a hint of emptiness would appear in her eyes, but it would only be fleeting.

"Sorry, I was a little distracted!" Leng Yue shook her head, trying to clear her mind.

"Why are you so distracted? Is it a lingering effect from before?" Jiang Yuan took two steps closer and asked in detail.

Soul Devouring is the final move of the Devouring Talent. It's a move that randomly kills the enemy and also randomly damages yourself, because you never know who will win when two souls fight for the same body, or whether both will die. These are all very possible outcomes.

“I might need some treasures to restore my soul!” Leng Yue raised her face and stared at Jiang Yuan.