The previous encounter had left the Flame Demon Wolves feeling humiliated. Though they dared not provoke Ye Yunfei, they vented their fury on the students still before them.
With vicious roars…
The furious wolves pounced upon the dozens of students in a frenzied assault.
"Ah…! Help!"
Immediately, one student was swarmed by the wolves, his body being ripped apart as he let out a wretched cry for help just before his death.
Ah, ah…!
In quick succession, several more students were slaughtered by the wolves.
The remaining students faced hundreds of enraged Flame Demon Wolves, their faces pale and utterly terrified.
"Ye Yunfei! Someone hurry and call Ye Yunfei back! Only he can save us now!"
"Yes! Make him come back!"
...
Suddenly, all these students remembered Ye Yunfei.
By this time, Ye Yunfei and Wen Zi were already far in the distance, their backs just barely visible to the naked eye.
"Ye Yunfei, come back and save us!"
"Senior Brother Ye! We can't handle these wolves! Please save us!"
"Brother Ye Yunfei! Turn back quickly and help us deal with these wolves!"
...
The dozens of students, as if clutching at straws, desperately shouted towards Ye Yunfei's retreating figure while trying to fend off the wolves' onslaught.
"Weren't you all delighting in my misfortune when I was surrounded by these wolves earlier? Why should I save you now?"
Suddenly, Ye Yunfei's calm voice traveled back, sounding clearly in every student's ear.
The students were stunned and had no retort. It was true; when Ye Yunfei was surrounded by the wolves earlier, they hadn't just refused to help but had indeed mocked and jeered at him.
"Ye Yunfei, I order you to return immediately and help us fight these wolves! Otherwise, I will definitely report this to Senior Brother Pang Yuyang and have him punish you!"
The captain roared in anger.
"You've repeatedly provoked me. Do you truly have a death wish?"
Ye Yunfei's indifferent voice drifted back.
The next moment.
*Shii!*
A small sword suddenly materialized within the captain's Soul Sea and shot towards his Soul Body.
Ah!
The captain cried out as if struck by lightning. He vomited blood and was sent flying backward, crashing into the midst of the Flame Demon Wolves.
Immediately, over a dozen wolves swarmed upon him.
"Ah! Someone save me!"
His face instantly turned deathly pale as he screamed.
That small sword was the Sky Soul Sword Ye Yunfei had successfully cultivated not long ago. This was the first time he had used it, and the results were indeed impressive.
"Let's go."
Ye Yunfei and Wen Zi proceeded directly into the distance.
"Big pervert, where are we going now?" Wen Zi, walking beside Ye Yunfei, asked.
"Naturally, to find ore veins. That's the mission the academy gave us," Ye Yunfei replied.
"Fine," Wen Zi pouted.
As they moved forward, Ye Yunfei released his Soul Power, extending his perception far ahead to search for ore veins. His current range of Soul Power perception was roughly two hundred thousand meters — a level at least equivalent to that of a mid-stage Profound Fluid Realm expert!
Meanwhile, elsewhere within the Crystal Mine Minor World.
At a certain location, a small team gathered. There were ten of them, all possessing cultivation at the late-stage Yuan Foundation Realm!
"Remember everyone, we must operate discreetly, avoiding public attention. Wait until Ye Yunfei is alone before making our move against him. Elder Wei's orders are to capture Ye Yunfei alive first, force him to surrender his cultivation technique, and then kill him!"
One person who seemed to be the leader spoke.
"Understood," the others nodded.
At the same time, in another part of the Crystal Mine Minor World.
"Remember, the main task for us fifteen is not to excavate ore veins, but to deal with Ye Yunfei! We must seize that high-level cultivation technique from him!"
A burly youth looked at the fourteen men before him, speaking solemnly.
"We understand, Senior Brother Fengyun Changfeng!" the fourteen men answered in unison.
"Move out! Let's find Ye Yunfei!" The youth named Fengyun Changfeng waved his hand, leading the way forward.
At almost the same moment, on a patch of grassland somewhere in this Small World.
"Elder Xiao Qianfeng has ordered that we must find a way to extract that cultivation technique from Ye Yunfei's mouth. If we can bring the technique back, our clan will richly reward us."
A tall, slender youth addressed a group of over a dozen youths, all possessing late-stage Yuan Foundation Realm strength.
Hearing the words of the tall youth, the others nodded in agreement.
Back with Ye Yunfei and Wen Zi, they were flying slowly, searching for ore veins.
Half an hour later.
"There seems to be a small crystal ore vein over there. Let's check it out."
Suddenly, Ye Yunfei's gaze shifted in a specific direction. He accelerated, striding rapidly toward it. With his movement technique, he moved with extreme speed, leaving afterimages behind, crossing thousands of meters in an instant.
"Hey, wait for me!"
Wen Zi activated her own movement technique to its limit, barely managing to keep up with Ye Yunfei.
After a short while, they arrived before a low hill about a hundred and fifty thousand meters away.
Spiritual Qi was exceptionally dense around this hill, coalescing into multicolored mist that drifted in the air. This phenomenon strongly indicated the presence of an ore vein beneath the earth.
"You can detect it from this far away? You really are a pervert!" Wen Zi exclaimed.
Ye Yunfei raised his fist and struck the hill.
*Boom! Boom! ...*
With just a few casual punches, over half the hill collapsed. Mud and stone flew in all directions like a storm of dirt and rocks, revealing, from within the broken mountain, glittering pieces of spirit crystal stones.
"Medium-grade Spirit Crystal Stones!"
Both Ye Yunfei and Wen Zi's eyes lit up simultaneously.
Although this was only a small ore vein, the deposits it contained were Medium-grade Spirit Crystal Stones!
On the Tianxuan Continent, the vast majority of Spirit Crystals used by martial artists were Low-grade. Medium-grade ones were exceedingly rare and highly valuable. A single Medium-grade Spirit Crystal Stone was worth five thousand Low-grade ones!
"We're rich!" Wen Zi's eyes sparkled as she immediately rushed toward the Medium-grade Spirit Crystals.
"Careful!"
Ye Yunfei, however, narrowed his eyes.
*ROAR!*
An angry roar erupted from deep within the earth.
*BOOM!*
An enormous green python burst forth from the depths of the ore vein.
"It's a Three-Headed Devil Python!"
Wen Zi was startled and quickly halted her steps.
"Often, such heaven-born treasures will have demonic beasts or monsters guarding them. So you must be cautious," Ye Yunfei said to Wen Zi.
"I know," Wen Zi replied, sticking out her delicate tongue at him.
The green python had three snake heads arranged side by side, each with a bloody maw wide open, revealing ferocious fangs and forked tongues.
This was a Three-Headed Devil Python with strength comparable to an eighth-rank Beast Emperor! An eighth-rank Beast Emperor was equivalent to a mid-stage Yuan Foundation Realm human martial artist.