Chapter 396

Chapter 396: Arrival

This situation was not only happening to these few people; many other cultivators working together in different mines also noticed the unusual conditions.

Most cultivators quickly seized the opportunity to mine.

However, some cultivators, with glimmers in their eyes, set down their iron picks and began to wander around the mine, exploring the reason for the retreat of the Red Fire Ants.

Rather than seeking the cause, they were more interested in finding potential profit.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard they searched, they couldn’t find a trace of the previously ubiquitous Red Fire Ants.

The Red Fire Ants could retreat through the tunnels they had dug, but the cultivators could not.

Some cultivators tried to take advantage by using puppets or spiritual beasts to dive into the tunnels, but the complexities of the tunnels dug by the Red Fire Ants made it difficult for them to proceed, forcing them to give up in the end.

Deep inside the mine, Ji Yang listened to the shrieks around him, his expression tightening slightly.

At the same time, the sounds coming from the surrounding tunnels made Ji Yang realize that the queen ant was truly agitated and had begun to gather her main forces to come towards him.

At this moment, it was not just ahead; there were sounds of Red Fire Ants coming from all around, as if the entire swarm was rushing towards him.

Before Ji Yang could listen closely to how many there were, a large number of Red Fire Ants surged out of the tunnel in front of him, continuously emerging as if they were endless.

Seeing this, Ji Yang slowly put away his iron pick. With so many Red Fire Ants, even if he used sword energy for defense, his mining speed would not improve much.

Rather than wasting his mana like this, he preferred to break through the mine sooner. After all, he had already gained quite a few cultivation points in the past few days, and obtaining the mine spirit was the priority. As for the other secret silver mines, he would have plenty of time to mine them after securing the spirit.

With this thought, Ji Yang no longer hesitated.

In the next moment, his aura surged, and as his mana flowed, a massive wave of Thousands of Sword Energies appeared in his hands.

To enhance their power, Ji Yang infused the sword intent from his Sword Cultivation technique into it.

Although the time since he last used the sword energy of the cultivation technique was short, one day of nourishing this technique could equate to a month’s worth of effort.

Now, even though he had little time left, its power was still formidable.

With a wave of his hands, the condensed sword energy surged toward the hard mineral layer ahead.

Along the way, the Red Fire Ants had not yet approached when they were already shredded by the dispersing sword energy, with even their corpses turning to dust.

When the sword energy reached the mineral layer, whether it was the secret silver ore or other mixed ores, they were all easily crushed like tofu.

Wherever the sword energy passed, a brand-new mine tunnel emerged.

Ji Yang had intentionally controlled the range of the sword energy’s attack; otherwise, the mountain might quake and bury him alive.

However, looking at the mine tunnel opened up by the Thousands of Sword Energies before him, Ji Yang couldn’t help but marvel.

This was much faster than his digging speed, but unfortunately, his purpose for mining was to acquire the ore, not just to pursue speed.

Moreover, the recent strike had caused him to lose a significant amount of mana.

With the sword energy clearing the way, Ji Yang felt no worries; despite the many Red Fire Ants emerging around him, they could not get close at that moment.

Ji Yang followed behind, quickly swallowing Yun Ling Dan to replenish his mana, as he needed to handle the queen ant to take the mine spirit.

After the sword energy cleared several meters ahead, its power gradually diminished.

While it was initially powerful enough, it couldn’t hold against the relentless tide of Red Fire Ants.

Seeing the sword energy in front of him shrinking and about to dissipate, and with only a wall separating him from the Red Fire Ant nest, Ji Yang made his move again.

As Ji Yang swung his iron pick towards the mineral layer ahead, a giant shadow of the pick danced along with him.

"Boom!"

With a loud crash, a bright blue light appeared in Ji Yang’s eyes, emanating from the exposed secret silver ore.

Looking at the empty area behind the wall, Ji Yang’s expression brightened; he had finally arrived at the lair of the Red Fire Ants.

Although the mine spirit and queen ant were not present, the queen ant was only a few meters away, and the tunnel leading to her was much larger than the others, allowing even him to pass easily.

However, when Ji Yang looked down at the empty space, he was stunned by the scene before him.

What was once a relatively spacious area was now completely covered by Red Fire Ants.

These Red Fire Ants were so dense that they turned the ground into a sea of red.

Not only the ground, but even the surrounding walls were filled with them; there was no place left to stand in the entire Red Fire Ant nest.

At the tunnel entrance leading to the queen ant, several gigantic soldier ants blocked the way, clearly a key defense point for them.

Faced with Ji Yang’s sudden appearance, the Red Fire Ants immediately went into a frenzy, surging towards him like a swarm.

If it were an ordinary cultivator, they would have already fled in panic.

Cultivators could run out of mana, but these Red Fire Ants seemed endless, and there were even more swarming out from other tunnel entrances.

Ji Yang only frowned slightly, then sped toward the location of the queen ant.

Along the way, Ji Yang unleashed several waves of sword energy.

Each strike of his sword energy resulted in dozens of Red Fire Ants falling lifeless.

Ji Yang didn’t even need to aim; he just swung his arms, showing how abundant the Red Fire Ants were in this area.

Though many Red Fire Ants attacked Ji Yang, their quality was too poor; they couldn’t even get close to him.

As Ji Yang neared the queen ant, a shriek echoed from the other end of the tunnel.

This shriek caused the several giant soldier ants guarding the tunnel to finally lose their composure, and they rushed toward Ji Yang with fierce attacks.

Compared to other Red Fire Ants, these soldiers were faster and more robust; each one could look down on a Spirit Transformation Stage cultivator!

But Ji Yang did not take them seriously.

He casually sent out several waves of sword energy, easily knocking the attacking soldier ants away.

These soldier ants had considerable defense, and Ji Yang didn’t intend to waste too much mana on them; his priority was to deal with the queen ant, and the other Red Fire Ants would crumble without further effort.

It seemed that the soldier ants realized their attacks couldn’t harm Ji Yang; they stopped and waved their antennae up and down, as if conveying some message.

The other Red Fire Ants also ceased their attacks, leaving Ji Yang puzzled, unsure of their intentions.