Mine.

Even though the Qingfeng Sect hurried as fast as they could, they were ultimately a step too late.

By the time Shangguan Hong and the group of Golden Core elders arrived, the mine was nearly deserted.

The five Golden Core elders hovered above the mine, their divine senses quickly spreading out to scan the area.

It turned out that Li Xingtian's warning about the instability of the teleportation array was indeed true. As the Golden Core elders scanned the area, they detected several miners still within their range of divine sense.

One of the elders quickly spoke up:

"There are still miners around who haven't escaped."

"You go after them, I'll search here myself," Shangguan Hong said, his eyes downcast, his voice calm.

"Alright..."

The other elders understood that for Shangguan Hong, this was his only chance to break through to the Nascent Soul stage. Although he appeared calm on the surface, his heart was likely raging with fury.

He was the one who least wanted anything to go wrong here. Leaving this place to Shangguan Hong might be the best choice.

Shangguan Hong descended, and the first thing he saw upon stepping onto the mine's land was Elder Mo Chen, who had been drained into a husk.

He slowly reached out, carefully examining Elder Mo Chen's condition.

Quickly, Shangguan Hong concluded that Elder Mo Chen had been drained dry.

Moreover, it happened while he was alive, his blood qi completely sucked out, leaving him utterly defenseless.

It would take an evil cultivator at least at the late Core Formation stage to achieve this.

"Useless!"

Shangguan Hong suppressed his anger, refraining from blasting the corpse into ashes.

After all, he relied on the sect and couldn't make things too ugly.

Taking a deep breath, Shangguan Hong could only proceed into the mine with a glimmer of hope.

He could only hope that everything inside was still intact, that the formations painstakingly built over the years remained stable, and that the blood qi in the blood pool was still present.

Those were his greatest assets for breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.

He didn't have much time left. Shangguan Hong wasn't particularly gifted, and reaching the position of elder in the Qingfeng Sect had cost him countless efforts.

He had endured many scornful looks and suffered numerous humiliations.

Now... to be stopped here, how could Shangguan Hong accept it?

In truth, he didn't even need to enter the mine. As Shangguan Hong swept his divine sense over it, he realized everything was gone.

But he still stubbornly walked inside.

The once full blood pool was already dry, and even the carefully crafted formation had a corner blasted apart.

Shangguan Hong looked at the scene before him with downcast eyes, as if he had stepped into a dreamlike illusion.

Just a little more... just a little more...

Even if it was the lowest-grade Nascent Soul, he would have accepted it.

Shangguan Hong didn't know how long he stood there.

It wasn't until the other four elders returned with six captured miners that the sound of their entrance brought Shangguan Hong back to reality.

One of the elders glanced at the ritual platform in front of them, sighed inwardly, and then threw the six captured miners forward:

"This is all we could catch for now."

Shangguan Hong's blood-red eyes suddenly looked up, like a soul-devouring beast.

The miners couldn't withstand the pressure of the Golden Core cultivator, nor could they bear the terrifying, captivating gaze:

"I'll talk... I'll talk..."

Shangguan Hong ignored them completely, grabbing one miner and immediately beginning the soul searching method.

One of the elders was about to speak, but another elder shook his head to stop him.

The soul capturing technique inflicted significant damage not only on the victim's soul but also placed a heavy burden on the caster.

Shangguan Hong disregarded his own condition and searched the souls of all six miners.

After completing the soul search on the last miner, Shangguan Hong suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"...Evil cultivator... a top-tier evil cultivator capable of controlling the blood pool."

Shangguan Hong gently wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth: "There was also a masked man and woman, the man's cultivation was at least at the late Core Formation stage, and he had a divine ability."

"The technique of that man didn't seem like that of an evil cultivator... but it could be a deception."

Shangguan Hong took out a brush and quickly sketched the face of the man from the miner's memory.

In the drawing, a middle-aged man with a beard and a dull expression appeared.

Li Xingtian had already prepared a human face skin to conceal his identity when he infiltrated the mine.

"They acted swiftly and with clear purpose," Shangguan Hong added, "This face may not be their true appearance."

"Late Core Formation stage? And with a divine ability?" One of the elders frowned slightly, "Our Nascent Soul Ancestor is currently in seclusion, and the Qingfeng Sect doesn't possess divine abilities. Even if we find them, we may not be able to deal with them."

"Moreover, there are three of them. If the other two are also at the Core Formation stage and possess divine abilities, even if we encounter them, we might not be their match."

"According to your soul search, they might just be evil cultivators looking to take advantage, not necessarily seeking a life-and-death struggle with us."

"Making a big fuss might not be worth it, especially since we can't afford to be exposed."

Shangguan Hong's blood-red eyes suddenly turned to the elder who spoke.

But after a long pause.

Shangguan Hong slowly spoke: "You're right, but what we must do cannot stop here! The damage to the formation core isn't severe, and repairing it isn't difficult. As for the blood offerings... capture more! Capture them relentlessly!"

"From now on, all five of us elders will guard this place. Summon the sect disciples to set up a grand formation. Even if they possess divine abilities, they must not return!"

Faced with Shangguan Hong's proposal, the other four elders fell silent.

In the past, they had to be cautious about their actions, but hadn't they been caught by other evil cultivators, losing the opportunity?

Now, making a big move to capture people might lead to exposure.

A quick look at "pawread.com" will leave you more fulfilled.

They only wanted to use Shangguan Hong's plan to aid their own cultivation, hoping to reach the Nascent Soul stage.

But they didn't want to risk their lives and reputations here.

Unlike the aging Shangguan Hong, they could at least live longer.

But faced with the clearly enraged Shangguan Hong, their silence was the greatest silent protest.

"Brother Pei... have you forgotten that I saved your life?"

"Brother Zhao, your spiritual root talent isn't as good as mine. Is being a Golden Core elder your ultimate goal? On the path of cultivation, don't you want to go further?"

"Brother Li... my daughter..."

"Brother Wang..."

Shangguan Hong's gaze swept over the four elders, his expression a mix of a smile and a sneer:

"Do you really think that stopping now will ensure safety?"

"Don't you know that the path of cultivation is a battle of life and death?"

"Only by advancing further can you sleep peacefully at night!"

Elder Li finally couldn't hold back and spoke first:

"From now on, everything must be carefully planned and considered!"