Chapter 43: Sunset Crystal Vein

Sunset Crystals!

The two hurried to the broken cliff face.

With a thought from Yan Li, her flying sword shot from her sleeve and flicked aside a loose rock. A fist-sized crimson crystal rolled out from the crack.

The crystal was red as jade all through, its surface clear and bright, with fiery patterns faintly flowing inside. It was far better than the low-grade crystal from before.

Xuan Shiyan had just bent down to pick it up when Yan Li’s flying sword flicked again. Two more Sunset Crystals rolled out from the shattered rock layer. Both of them froze.

Yan Li’s gaze sharpened. Her flying sword peeled down along the crack, and several more fell out in moments.

Xuan Shiyan studied the Sunset Crystals revealing themselves around them. “If the outer area has this many… there are probably even bigger ones deeper in.”

Yan Li was silent for a moment. “…Hard to say. Gather them first.”

The two immediately set to gathering.

The flying sword kept brushing aside broken rock. One Sunset Crystal after another appeared. The deeper they went, the better the quality.

Some were embedded in the cliff wall, some half-exposed among the rubble, and a few were even connected, rooted deep into the rock like tree roots.

Xuan Shiyan had just stored away a palm-sized crystal when his spiritual sense swept over a fissure ahead blocked by rubble. He stopped.

He walked over quickly. The fissure ran deep, and strands of dark red light leaked from the narrow gap.

He raised a hand. The black sword flashed past as a streak of light, and the few rocks blocking the fissure shattered.

When the dust cleared, both of them were stunned.

Clusters of Sunset Crystals were packed densely into the rock. The large ones were as big as a baby’s head, and even the small ones were fist-sized.

The ones deepest in were flawless and clear. Threads of flame curled and flowed inside the crystals. The fire qi was so thick that the whole cliff wall glowed red.

Xuan Shiyan couldn’t help drawing a sharp breath. “…It really is an entire ore vein.”

Yan Li was surprised too. She hadn’t expected that one strike to accidentally split open an ore vein.

After a brief silence, they exchanged a look. Neither said much. Their flying swords shot out together. As broken rock peeled away, Sunset Crystal after Sunset Crystal was extracted from the layer and stored into storage rings.

Inside the mountain, only the hum of flying swords and the clatter of falling rubble remained.

Several hundred zhang away, behind the shadow of a cliff wall, the four rogue cultivators from before watched from afar.

When they saw the high-quality Sunset Crystals, their breathing grew noticeably heavy.

“So many…” One of the female cultivators stared, eyes wide.

The Saber-Carrying Man watched the high-quality Sunset Crystals keep appearing and couldn’t help sucking in a quiet breath.

Who would have thought a casual strike from the other side would split open an entire ore vein?

He had roamed Sunset Valley for so long and had never once seen a crystal cluster this large.

As for the Thin Tall Cultivator, he watched Yan Li keep storing crystal after crystal into her storage ring. The jealousy in his eyes was almost impossible to hide.

‘Why her?’

They had searched this godforsaken place for seven or eight days and only found a few dozen high-grade crystals. These two had been here how long? One strike, and they split open an ore vein?

He gripped the crystal-detecting compass tightly. His gaze grew darker.

The Saber-Carrying Man said in a low voice, “Don’t act rashly.”

The Thin Tall Cultivator gritted his teeth and finally held back, but his eyes stayed fixed on Yan Li, cold and grim.

A moment later, he suddenly tugged at the corner of his mouth into a cold smile. “It’s fine. Let them gather first.”

He watched the two busy in the distance. Greed gradually overtook the hatred in his eyes.

‘An ore vein couldn’t grow legs and run off. There was no rush. They could move after the two dug out everything valuable.’

The Saber-Carrying Man understood his meaning and frowned. He wanted to advise him again.

But when he thought of how he had risked his life in the valley for so little crystal, and then looked at the endless high-quality Sunset Crystals being taken out, the words died in his throat.

The four hid silently behind the cliff wall. None of them spoke again.

Yan Li and Xuan Shiyan were focused entirely on gathering crystals and paid no attention to the watching eyes in the distance.

A short while later, they had gathered most of what was exposed on the outer layer.

Yan Li straightened and looked deeper along the ore vein.

The deeper it went, the richer the dark red light seeping from the rock. Even through the thick cliff wall, the astonishing fire qi inside could be felt.

What they had gathered was only the outer edge of the vein. The true core was still buried deeper.

They exchanged a glance and immediately continued deeper along the split vein.

Just as they paused, whistling sounds came one after another from beyond the fissure. Figures raced along the valley path.

Some leaped from cliff wall to cliff wall. Some used momentum to fly. Only a few Golden Core cultivators dared briefly ride their artifacts.

Clearly, the commotion from that one sword strike had been too great. Almost every treasure-hunting cultivator nearby had been drawn over.

“Treasure light over there!”

“Hurry! There must be high-grade crystals!”

“Don’t let anyone beat us to it!”

They were still dozens of zhang away, but their spiritual sense had already swept over impatiently.

The first few cultivators to arrive saw the rubble everywhere and the crystals embedded in the cracks. Their eyes went red.

Someone lunged straight at the nearest rock, pried open its shell, pulled out the crystal, and stuffed it into their robes.

Others, smarter, headed straight for the largest rock formation and brought out artifacts to chip at the cliff.

“Here! There’s an ore vein here!” someone shouted.

“Hurry!”

More and more cultivators rushed over from all directions. The once empty valley turned noisy.

But no one noticed that as the ore vein was mined, fire qi was steadily leaking outward.

To the fire-type beasts living in Sunset Valley, such thick fire qi was like a bright lamp in the dark night. It could be smelled from dozens of li away.

Before long, a low rumble came from deep in the valley.

At first no one paid it any mind, but as the rumble grew closer, the ground under their feet began to shake violently.

Yan Li, still peeling away rock, suddenly stopped. Her heart clenched.

‘It was a beast tide.’

Several hundred zhang away, the Thin Tall Cultivator watched the churning red dust rolling in from the distance. The corners of his mouth curled up. “Looks like… we won’t need to lift a finger.”

Rumble, rumble!

“Beasts!”

“The beast tide is here!”

No one knew who shouted first. Everyone’s expression changed. They hurriedly put away the Sunset Crystals they had just dug out.

Some brought out artifacts to face the enemy. Others immediately retreated. The cultivators who had been fighting over the ore vein fell into chaos.

Over a hundred Flame Wolves came charging from the end of the valley. The leading wolf king was already at mid Foundation Establishment. Its crimson fur rolled like flame, and its eyes were blood red. The ore vein’s aura had clearly driven it mad.

Behind the pack came several Flame-Horned Rhinos. Their heavy footsteps shook the surrounding cliff walls.

Yan Li’s expression darkened. “Retreat.”

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