Chapter 421: Constant Clashes, Encounter with Gu Qingyang

Chapter 421: Constant Clashes, Encounter with Gu Qingyang

Entering the core area, it became evident that the Rock Demons here were not only stronger but also more numerous. The pollution of the land was significantly worse.

Boom—

Medusa's sword aura slashed diagonally, cutting a Rock Demon in half along with the mountain behind it. Xiao Ze's eyes focused on the center of the mountain, and he noticed that even the inner section of the mountain was completely blackened, indicating severe contamination by the Rock Demons.

Since entering the core area, battles had become more frequent. The number of Rock Demons was overwhelming. The Rock Demons' natural advantages, aside from their limited intelligence, were vast. They had formidable combat abilities, terrifying linkage abilities, and an overwhelming capacity to pollute their surroundings.

The Rock Demons could transform their environment into a habitat solely suitable for their species, making it impossible for other creatures to survive long-term—an extremely domineering ability.

"No wonder the core area has so many Rock Demons with such high quality. It seems to be related to the extent of the pollution here," Xiao Ze said thoughtfully.

From the outer region to the core area, Xiao Ze had noticed that the division of the Rock Demon realm seemed to reflect the degree of land pollution. The more thoroughly polluted the land was, the more Rock Demons there were, and the higher their quality.

However, Xiao Ze was unsure whether the pollution caused the Rock Demons to thrive or if it was the other way around, or perhaps both. Polluted land might attract more Rock Demons, speeding up their growth, while stronger Rock Demons would further pollute the land.

As these thoughts crossed Xiao Ze's mind, he shrugged them off. They didn't pose a significant threat to him. He would stay in the Rock Demon realm for no more than six months, the period after which the space stones would lose their effectiveness.

The duration one could stay in the Rock Demon realm varied. Some people faced severe crises and had to crush their space stones early to leave. Others stayed until the limit, which was determined by the space stones' unique compatibility with the ring-shaped mountain's sealing array, limiting their effect to six months. If someone didn't use the space stone within six months, the Stone Clan would assume they died in the Rock Demon realm and wouldn't open it to search for them.

This tight timeline meant that as soon as the trainees entered the Rock Demon realm, they rushed towards the core area. Currently, constant battles raged in the core area. Though other trainees weren't as strong as Xiao Ze's group, they banded together to take on mid-sized Rock Demon clusters.

However, the Stone Clan's Dou Saint powerhouses couldn't enter the Rock Demon realm, so they couldn't fully explore the core area's situation. The exact number of large Rock Demon clusters in the core area was unknown. Based on past explorations, there were at least five known large clusters, each requiring a nine-star Dou Zun or higher Rock Demon to form. This meant there were at least five nine-star Dou Zun level Rock Demons in the core area.

Thus, while battles erupted everywhere, trainees were cautious, avoiding the core area's depths where they might encounter large Rock Demon clusters. Even the teams from the ancient clans couldn't guarantee victory against such clusters without significant losses and the risk of others taking advantage.

Golden flames incinerated a nearly hundred-meter-tall Rock Demon. Xun'er sighed in relief and retrieved the eight-star Rock Demon core floating in the flames.

"Xiao Ze, we hunted another mid-sized Rock Demon cluster. The harvest is quite good," Xun'er said, tossing the core to Xiao Ze.

"We've hunted four mid-sized clusters since entering the core area. We're fortunate. Now we can evenly distribute the Rock Demon cores. Start refining them here," Xiao Ze said, feeling the immense energy in the core. He summoned the others and divided the accumulated cores into four portions.

Xun'er, Xiao Yi Xian, Medusa, and Qing Lin didn't hesitate to take their portions and find spots to refine the cores. They trusted Xiao Ze's fairness. Since Xun'er's return, Xiao Ze had been scrupulously fair in distributing resources. Even if only one eight-star core was obtained, Xiao Ze would provide rare pills to those who didn't get the core.

While they wouldn't have minded some favoritism towards Xun'er, Xiao Ze's insistence on fairness warmed their hearts, making them feel valued. Initially, they worried Xiao Ze would neglect them after Xun'er's return, but their fears proved unfounded.

Xiao Ze didn't consciously realize their feelings. He had always acted this way, providing valuable pills to Xun'er and necessary poisons to Xiao Yi Xian in the past. Although giving all the Rock Demon cores to Xun'er would benefit him the most due to the tenfold feedback, he still chose to distribute them fairly when possible. He believed that unfair distribution could lead to resentment, even among the closest of people.

Seeing the four women sitting cross-legged, refining the cores, Xiao Ze gazed into the distance. He then waved his hand, summoning four lightning constructs with golden roots to guard them. His spiritual power had reached the late Heavenly level, making his senses far superior. He sensed a battle in a certain direction, involving familiar faces—Gu Qingyang's group. They seemed to be in trouble.

"What did they do to anger the Rock Demons so much that three peak Dou Zun Rock Demons are chasing them?" Xiao Ze wondered, curious. Different Rock Demon clusters rarely united like this to pursue a single group. Perhaps they had something highly attractive to the Rock Demons.

"Let's go check it out," he decided.

(End of the chapter)