Chapter 213

This treasure mountain contained far more ore and crystal stones than imagined; for two straight days, they had not broken through the barrier at the summit, and as they delved deeper into the mountain, high-grade monstrous beasts became increasingly common.

Not long ago, a fourth-rank monstrous beast even appeared.

The barbarians had suffered heavy losses because of this.

When they arrived, there were over a hundred barbarians; now only seventy-some remained, a loss of nearly forty.

This was only half the ore and crystal stones excavated.

“Looks like we need two more days to dispel the barrier,” Song Ce smiled, pleased with the large amount of ore and crystal stones he had acquired.

Lü Fang was about to speak when he suddenly frowned, pulling a message talisman from the storage pouch of the Bai Yuying demon and, after scanning its contents, his expression darkened.

It turned out the Bai Yuying demon had led only a vanguard force—the more elite demons were nearly upon them.

Song Ce had received the same message talisman and muttered under his breath: “Why so late? If you’d come any later, I’d have already found the entrance to the Lesser Upper Realm.”

Half a day later.

A fourth-rank hawk demon with white wings, accompanied by over a hundred demons, arrived densely before Lü Fang.

“Jia, what’s the situation here?”

The hawk demon, larger than the Bai Yuying demon, asked.

Lü Fang did not know the demon’s name, but judging by its appearance, it was likely related to the Bai Yuying demon; he organized his words and recounted the entire situation of the treasure mountain.

“I see.”

The fourth-rank hawk demon waved his hand and said: “You all go into the treasure mountain, examine the barrier at the summit and carefully observe the locations of the ore and crystal stones.”

“Yes, Commander Pan,” a fourth-rank wild boar demon replied, leading the hundred-plus demons toward the treasure mountain.

Lü Fang noticed that among these hundred-plus demons, most were fifth-rank, with only a few fourth-rank—roughly a three-to-seven ratio—this was already a formidable force.

Clearly, the demons placed great importance on this Lesser Upper Realm.

“Why is there a human here?”

Pan, as if noticing Song Ce for the first time, glared at him with ill intent.

Lü Fang, expressionless, said: “The barbarians’ commander is a very cunning human…” Before he finished speaking,

Pan lunged at Song Ce and punched him flying.

That wasn’t enough—Pan’s body turned into a streak of white light, trapping Song Ce midair and relentlessly attacking him.

So strong!

Lü Fang watched, his eyelids twitching violently; though Song Ce was fifth-rank first stage, his mysterious nature should have allowed him to resist, yet Pan crushed him without mercy—this truly surprised him.

As he thought this, Pan suddenly appeared before Lü Fang and sneered: “Not much to him. I thought the barbarians putting a fifth-rank first-stage human in command meant he was something extraordinary.”

As he spoke, Song Ce crashed heavily to the ground.

“I’ve learned my lesson.”

Song Ce wiped blood from his lip, his eyes cold as he stared at the arrogant Pan.

Lü Fang chuckled, glancing at Song Ce and deliberately stoking the fire: “You seem resentful toward Pan—thinking of revenge later?”

“Worthless trash,” Pan snorted, not even looking at Song Ce.

From then on, Pan took command; whether demon or barbarian, all ore and crystal stones extracted from the treasure mountain were seized by him.

With the addition of so many strong fighters, excavation progressed much faster.

After half a day, Lü Fang clearly sensed a sudden shift in the atmosphere—the toxic air had intensified a tier, no longer harmless as before.

What’s happening?

Why has it changed like this?

Before Lü Fang could ponder further, several demons hurriedly emerged from the tunnels dug in the treasure mountain, followed by a fourth-rank Pangolin Ant-Eater King; with one swipe, it killed a fourth-rank demon.

But the Pangolin Ant-Eater was immediately cut down by the combined assault of multiple fourth-rank demons and barbarians.

A strange thing occurred: both the fourth-rank demon and the fourth-rank Pangolin Ant-Eater’s corpses released disembodied fate, each the size of a human head.

“How can there be disembodied fate?”

Song Ce exclaimed in surprise.

Pan frowned deeply and turned to Lü Fang: “Has this happened before? This isn’t the Lesser Upper Realm—why is disembodied fate appearing?”

Lü Fang was stunned; he had witnessed many demon and barbarian deaths, including the Bai Yuying demon he himself had slain, yet never once had disembodied fate appeared.

Recalling this, he recounted everything truthfully, concluding: “Perhaps it’s because the atmosphere here has changed?”

Pan fell silent for a moment, then said uncertainly: “So… for some unknown reason, this place has become the Lesser Upper Realm?”

Lü Fang’s heart tightened; he blurted out his suspicion: “Could it be related to our excavation of the mountain’s ore and crystal stones? That’s why the atmosphere changed.”

“You mean this place was originally the Lesser Upper Realm, and the treasure mountain’s ore and crystal stones sealed its original aura? We broke that seal—and now the true Lesser Upper Realm has emerged.”

Pan immediately understood.

Lü Fang was startled; he instinctively glanced at Song Ce, whose lips had curled into a faint smile—and in that instant, he understood everything.

Whether Song Ce or Mo Xin, they must have anticipated this scenario long ago.

Thinking of this, Lü Fang asked Mo Xin internally: “You knew this would happen? Don’t lie to me—I don’t trust those who deceive me.”

After a long pause, Mo Xin explained: “I did suspect this possibility, but wasn’t certain, so I didn’t mention it—I didn’t want you to think me unreliable.”

“Actually, this works out well. Didn’t you want to find the Lesser Upper Realm’s entrance? Now you have.”

“Relax. With your unique transcendent power, you can perfectly disguise yourself as a demon, and your rank isn’t low—you needn’t worry about safety.”

“You and I both know this is an opportunity.”

“The demons and barbarians value this Lesser Upper Realm immensely—there must be something hidden. At the critical moment, with my help, you can seize this prize for yourself.”

Lü Fang said nothing. Previously, he had only suspected; now he understood—Mo Xin had deliberately placed him in unpredictable situations.

The goal was to make him continuously use Mo Xin’s power.

This confirmed his suspicion: using Mo Xin’s power carried some hidden danger.

BOOM!

The earth shook violently; the treasure mountain before them collapsed in a thunderous roar, countless rocks exploding outward, trapping demons and barbarians who had not escaped in time beneath the rubble.