I am in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have a demonic beast clone!

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Zhou Xue's Demise! Duobao Nu!

……

The next day, in the eastern part of the Crimson Forbidden Land, deep within the Giant Stone Valley.

Zhou Ding has just finished a battle.

The opponent was a high-level "Ironback Wolf" of the first rank, with fur as hard as iron, sharp claws and teeth, and extremely fast speed.

However, under the sudden attack of the underground Golden Crow's claws and the direct restraint of its main body's golden blade, this ferocious beast ultimately met its end and fell to the ground.

He skillfully handled the spoils: the complete wolf pelts were excellent materials for crafting defensive magical artifacts, the sharp claws and teeth could be used to craft offensive magical artifacts, and the warm demon blood was a superior resource for the "Hundred Beasts Body Forging Technique"—not a single drop was wasted.

After dealing with the monster, Zhou Ding walked to a seemingly ordinary gray-black boulder.

Instead of digging into the ground, he manipulated the golden blade, condensed its light, and carefully cut into an inconspicuous natural crevice on the surface of the boulder.

With a soft "clang," the boulder was split in two, revealing a strange luster hidden within.

It was a piece of ore about the size of a fist, with a silvery-white metallic luster throughout, but with wisps of fiery red veins inside. It was heavy in the hand and faintly emitted spiritual power and sharp metal energy.

"Red silver ore! And it's a high-purity concentrate!" Zhou Ding's eyes lit up with joy.

Crimson silver is a top-grade auxiliary material for refining metallic magical artifacts such as flying swords and knives. It can greatly enhance the sharpness and spiritual energy conductivity of magical artifacts, making it extremely valuable. Even with spirit stones, it would be difficult to buy such a large piece of refined ore in the outside world.

Zhou Ding carefully put away the red silver ore, feeling pleased.

In this Giant Stone Valley, relying on Xiao Jin's Earth Hearing Technique to perceive the complex terrain, he avoided several obvious monster lairs and dangerous places where cultivators might be lying in ambush, and instead explored "blind spots" and hidden places, reaping considerable rewards.

Several more rare medicinal herbs, some of considerable age, growing in the crevices of rocks, were added to the storage bag.

After leaving Giant Rock Valley, Zhou Ding took out the map again to study it.

His next target was the area marked "Blood Maple Forest".

The area is rich in a spiritual herb called "Blood Spirit Grass," which is an important auxiliary material for refining several Foundation Establishment stage pills to enhance cultivation or heal injuries, and is quite valuable.

The old strategy remains the same: Little Gold scouts ahead underground while the main body follows at a distance on the ground.

The Earth Listening Technique is like a radar, capable of long-range, blurry perception, and can capture the earth's movements and huge spiritual energy fluctuations within a radius of several miles.

When encountering large groups of powerful cultivators, Zhou Ding would detour to avoid them.

If he finds a lone cultivator whose cultivation level isn't too outrageous, he will often choose to take the initiative after assessing the risks.

With Little Gold's elusive ability to ambush from underground and its powerful frontal combat ability, along the way, three or four more cultivators from different sects silently became the victims of his sword.

Zhou Ding felt little burdened by the idea of ​​killing to steal treasure.

This is the law of survival in the Bloodstained Forbidden Land: the strong prey on the weak, cruel and direct.

If you don't kill, you might be killed.

Instead of passively waiting for danger to strike, it's better to proactively eliminate potential threats and enrich yourself.

……

As Zhou Ding was walking forward, he suddenly stopped.

In his mind, Xiao Jin gave a vague response through the Earth Listening Technique.

About two miles ahead, in a relatively flat clearing in the forest, came several intense and intertwined spiritual energy fluctuations!

Moreover, the fluctuations were so intense that it was clearly not an ordinary fight.

"Cultivators fighting?..." Zhou Ding raised an eyebrow slightly.

Conflicts in such places are mostly over the struggle for some kind of treasure.

He hesitated for a moment, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.

With the "God's-eye view" of listening to the earth, how could one miss the opportunity to fish in troubled waters and reap the benefits?

He immediately concealed his aura and stealthily moved towards the direction from which the fluctuations came, like a ghost. Meanwhile, Xiao Jin moved underground in sync, continuously providing more accurate battlefield information.

When they got within a mile, the Earth Hearing Technique's perception was already clear enough.

The spiritual energy fluctuations of four cultivators were fiercely clashing in the arena. Two of these fluctuations, one strong and one weak, felt somewhat familiar to Zhou Ding.

"This is... Zhou Xue? Zhou Long?" Zhou Ding's heart skipped a beat.

The strong fluctuations, carrying the coolness and vitality of the water and wood elements, were Zhou Xue's aura, only now they appeared somewhat chaotic and rapid.

The other, slightly weaker earth-attribute fluctuation, filled with panic and instability, was none other than Zhou Long!

The brother and sister were actually fighting with someone here, and judging from the fluctuations of their spiritual energy, they were clearly at a disadvantage!

Zhou Ding did not appear immediately.

He maneuvered Xiao Jin underground, closer to the center of the battlefield, while he himself found a high vantage point with good visibility and bushes for cover. He held his breath and looked down.

……

In the clearing in the dense forest, the scene is clearly visible.

Zhou Xue and Zhou Long, brother and sister, stood back to back, their auras weak, their robes torn in several places and stained with blood. Zhou Long's Earth Shield floated dimly in front of him, with several cracks appearing on its surface.

Zhou Xue held the Frost Spike, its blade shimmering with an icy blue light, but her face was pale and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, clearly indicating that she had suffered a serious injury.

Their opponent was only one person.

She was a pretty girl dressed in a white dress, who looked no more than eighteen or nineteen years old.

Her skin was as white as snow, and her eyebrows and eyes were like a painting, but at this moment her face carried a cruel and mocking smile, like a cat playing with a mouse.

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She did not rush to kill, but calmly manipulated the two magical artifacts that shone with spiritual light, constantly eroding Zhou Xue and her brother's defenses and fighting spirit.

One of them was an ancient mirror, about the size of a palm, with a hazy blue surface and a smooth, water-like surface. It was suspended in mid-air, and a soft yet incredibly strong blue light shone from the mirror, firmly covering the icy spikes that Zhou Xue was activating with all her might.

No matter how the icy spikes struggled and thrust, the icy blue aura on the sword was suppressed and melted away by the cyan light, unable to break free.

The other item was a fist-sized, crystal-clear ball with blood-red mist slowly flowing inside.

The crystal ball hovered above Zhou Long's head, continuously releasing large plumes of thick, sweet-smelling, blood-red mist that enveloped both the Earth Shield and Zhou Long.

The blood cloud continued to erode the earthy yellow spiritual light of the Earth Shield, emitting a "sizzling" sound, and the cracks on the surface of the shield were slowly widening.

Zhou Long was covered in cold sweat as he desperately poured his magic power into the shield, but he could only barely maintain it, and his face grew increasingly pale.

"Azure Condensation Mirror... Soul Devouring Orb... Could this woman be the 'Treasure Girl' from the original story, who was wealthy and possessed numerous magical artifacts?" Zhou Ding's eyes narrowed from the shadows.

This woman's cultivation level was astounding, reaching the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, and her two magical artifacts were top-tier, exquisite pieces.

No wonder even Zhou Xue and her brother working together couldn't defeat them.

Zhou Ding did not immediately offer assistance.

Aside from having little familial bond with Zhou Xue and Zhou Long, more importantly, Xiao Jin's Earth Listening Technique clearly sensed that in the shadows of the dense forest on the other side of the battlefield, there was an extremely concealed spiritual energy fluctuation that was almost integrated with the surrounding environment!

This person's cultivation level had also reached the thirteenth level of Qi Refining perfection. His aura was gloomy and sharp, carrying a heavy bloody and murderous aura, clearly indicating that he was no benevolent person.

The mantis catches the cicada, and the oriole is behind.

Zhou Ding didn't want to be the reckless praying mantis, or the cicada targeted by the oriole.

In the arena, the girl in white seemed to have grown tired of playing.

Her smile vanished, replaced by a flash of impatience and murderous intent in her eyes: "The game is over. Hand over your elixirs and storage bags, and I might consider giving you a quick death."

Zhou Xue gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with resentment and despair, and said sharply, "Don't even think about it! My brother and I would rather die than..."

Before she could finish speaking, the girl in white snorted coldly, her mind stirring slightly.

The Azure Mirror shone brightly, and a condensed, almost tangible, azure beam of light shot out from its surface, slamming hard into the Ice Spike!

With a crisp "crack!", the spiritual light on the Frost Dagger completely dissipated, and it was violently knocked away by the blue light, embedding itself diagonally in the ground some distance away.

Zhou Xue felt as if she had been struck by a heavy blow. She let out a muffled groan, staggered backward, and her aura instantly weakened to the extreme.

"Sister!" Zhou Long's eyes were bloodshot, and in his agitated state, his control over the Earth Shield loosened slightly.

The blood cloud of the Soul Devouring Orb above his head suddenly swelled up, completely engulfing the dim Earth Shield. Then, the blood cloud transformed into several tentacle-like blood whips, which lashed fiercely at Zhou Long!

"puff!"

Zhou Long's protective aura shattered, and several deep, bone-revealing bloodstains appeared on his body. He screamed and flew backward, crashing heavily to the ground.

"Xiao Long!" Zhou Xue let out a mournful cry, her eyes filled with deep hatred as she looked at the girl in white, struggling to get up.

The girl in white revealed a smug and cruel smile. With a flick of her wrist, a silver flying sword shimmering with spiritual light appeared in her palm, its blade shooting out and piercing Zhou Xue directly.

"Little Dragon..." A hint of resentment flashed in Zhou Xue's eyes.