Chapter 29

Boom, boom, boom, boom...

Uninterrupted, heavy thunder rumbled deep within the cave, finally exploding four times in quick succession, and all movement ceased.

Jiang Feng plopped down beside the Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard, unable to move.

In recent days, this was not the first time he had been drained of all his Ming Force.

However, now he felt only relief.

If it weren't for testing the recovery time, he would have restored his Ming Force to full before coming here, and he would definitely not have been a match for this Level 6 Black Lizard!

If Level 5 was just the dividing line between high and low, then Level 6 was a genuine high-level Ming Beast.

Ming Beasts were more gifted than humans. Humans needed to reach the Dawn Realm to use martial techniques and Yuan Nuclei in conjunction to achieve various special skills with Ming Force.

The Ming Force reserves in a Level 6 Ming Beast's body were roughly equivalent to those of a human who had opened six acupoints. However, from this level onward, they could already use Ming Force skills.

The Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard's skill was Shadow Ambush.

Jiang Feng was already very alert, with a perception far surpassing that of ordinary people, but he still only had a vague feeling when he was just one step away from it.

The Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard suddenly rushed out, catching Jiang Feng off guard, and bit him on the shoulder.

Fortunately, his Ming Force was overflowing, and he had just mastered some methods of controlling it. In an instant, he struck four times, driving all his Ming Force into the lizard's head, causing it to explode completely!

He touched his shoulder, still a bit shaken.

The mole chest armor protected his front and back, hanging on his right shoulder.

The Shadow Lizard's bite hit his right shoulder, but its teeth were blocked by the chest armor, only sinking in a little, and failing to penetrate Jiang Feng's skin.

Jiang Feng had really hit a stroke of luck, killing a Level 6 Shadow Lizard in an instant, and he himself was completely unharmed!

However, his Ming Force was now completely drained, leaving no residual force to support normal combat. He was effectively without combat ability for the next half an hour.

He rested for a while, barely managing to prop himself up, and cut open the Shadow Lizard, immediately removing its heart.

Just as Jiang Feng had dug out the Yuan Nucleus from the heart, his ears suddenly twitched.

The cave was very quiet, with only the occasional drip of water and Jiang Feng's own breathing. But at this moment, he heard a stone being kicked from a distance, followed by some slight movements, as if someone was coming from far away!

The sound grew closer, and Jiang Feng, without hesitation, quickly dug out the Shadow Lizard's eyes, chopped off its four claws, and threw them into a leather bag, then quickly left, darting into a narrow crevice and holding his breath to hide.

From his vantage point, a stone crevice directly faced the Shadow Lizard, allowing him to see the movements on the other side.

A short while later, a team rushed to the side of the Shadow Lizard and stopped.

Jiang Feng could only see several pairs of feet, unable to see the faces of the people.

"Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard?" A mature male voice lightly exclaimed, naming the corpse in front of him. This voice was very unfamiliar, and Jiang Feng was certain he had never heard it before.

A person squatted down, rummaging through the Shadow Lizard's corpse, and muttered, "The Yuan Nucleus and eyes have been dug out, and the claws have been chopped off. This person has good eyes!"

He said without raising his head, "The most valuable parts of a Level 6 Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard, besides the Yuan Nucleus, are its eyes and claws. The eyes carry a powerful fire attribute, and when embedded in a weapon, they can imbue it with fire power when Ming Force is used. The Shadow Lizard is most skilled in ambush, and its special abilities mainly come from these four claws. Its claws can be made into boots to make your movements silent. However, this requires a Treasure Artisan; ordinary craftsmen cannot do it."

He spoke in great detail, as if teaching a student.

A young voice asked, "Teacher Li, what is a Treasure Artisan?"

Jiang Feng's heart trembled; he had a vague idea of who this team was!

On one hand, it was because of the title. Clearly, this team was a teacher leading students in a practical exercise.

On the other hand, it was because he recognized the voice—it was Jiang Huixiao!

Jiang Huixiao was a year older than him, and at the age of sixteen, he had fused with a Two-Ring Ming Heart Seed. The last time Jiang Feng dealt with him, he had just opened his first acupoint.

The Two-Ring Ming Heart Seed absorbed Ming Force very slowly, and it took three months to open the first acupoint. Opening the second acupoint varied depending on individual talent, usually taking between six months to a year.

After Jiang Feng fused with the Heavenly Heart Seed, he beat Jiang Huixiao into a pig's head that day and then surpassed him in level in less than two days.

Logically, he should not have opened his second acupoint yet, so how could he be in this cave—a habitat of Level 5 Ming Beasts?

Jiang Huixiao seemed to be a student of the martial artist surnamed Li. He asked, and the other person answered, "A Treasure is a special term for weapons and equipment that must be driven by Ming Force, meaning only martial cultivators can use Treasures. A Treasure Artisan is a craftsman who makes Treasures."

Jiang Huixiao's eyes lit up, "Teacher Li, you are so powerful, you must have Treasures, right? Give me a couple to try!"

Teacher Li was speechless for a moment, then said, "Out of ten thousand martial cultivators, only one might become a Treasure Artisan. Even below the Three-Line level, Treasure Artisans have a chance of failure when making Treasures. You can imagine how precious Treasures are..."

Jiang Huixiao said irritably, "So you don't have any either?"

Teacher Li was again speechless, "I do have one..."

Jiang Huixiao immediately became excited, "Only one... That's fine, let me try it!"

Teacher Li firmly rejected him, "No, only martial cultivators who have entered the realm can use Treasures. You have only opened four acupoints, and coming here is already a stretch. How could you possibly control a Treasure?"

Four acupoints? Jiang Huixiao?

The cave was very quiet, and Jiang Feng heard the other person's words clearly, his heart immediately filled with shock.

How could Jiang Huixiao, with a Two-Ring Ming Heart Seed, have opened four acupoints so quickly?

Rejected by Teacher Li, Jiang Huixiao was a bit unhappy, muttering a couple of times. A person beside him immediately smoothed things over, "Teacher Li, you said this lizard was killed by someone. Who did it? Was it a team like ours?"

This person's voice was also familiar, but he couldn't tell who it was. He clearly showed much more respect for the teacher.

In Lu Ming Town, Jiang Feng had heard Uncle Dong say that the Jiang family had hired a teacher to instruct the family's children to help them pass the big exam.

He had guessed that the person surnamed Li was that teacher when he heard Jiang Huixiao's title, but now he had some doubts.

Firstly, it was because of Jiang Huixiao's attitude. He was too disrespectful to the teacher.

Although Jiang Huixiao was a spoiled brat, he wasn't completely without a sense of propriety. To put it bluntly, he bullied the weak and feared the strong, and he was most afraid of his father.

The big exam was the family's top priority, and if he dared to treat the teacher like this, his father would have beaten him so badly he couldn't get out of bed.

Secondly, it was because of the person's level.

His level was certainly higher than Jiang Feng's, capable of using Treasures, at least at the Dawn Realm level.

However, from his posture and reaction to the surroundings, he seemed to be only at the initial stage of the Dawn Realm, and no higher.

Only those who had entered the Dawn Realm could participate in the big exam, and Jiang Tengqing would not entrust the family's revival to someone of this level.

Regardless of Teacher Li's strength, his observational skills were quite good. He observed the corpse again, lightly exclaimed, and said, "Interesting!"

The young man beside him immediately asked, "Why?"

Teacher Li pondered, "This Fire-Eyed Shadow Lizard was not killed by a team like ours, but by someone acting alone!"

The young men simultaneously drew a sharp breath, and one exclaimed, "Acting alone? Is that person also a high-level expert at the initial stage of the Dawn Realm like you, Teacher Li?"

Jiang Feng's heart stirred; indeed, it was the initial stage of the Dawn Realm!

Teacher Li shook his head, "No, this person's level is not very high, probably not even in the realm. He must have used some special means to kill this high-level Ming Beast. So, as soon as he heard us coming, he immediately fled."

His observations were very close to the actual situation.

However, Jiang Feng knew he had left many traces. It was easy to determine whether it was a single person or a team. With enough keen observation and familiarity with the Shadow Lizard, one would notice that the corpse was handled very hastily.

Combining this information, it was easy to draw a conclusion!

Then, Teacher Li examined the Shadow Lizard's wounds and concluded, "The battle happened not long ago, and this person should not have gone far!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Huixiao immediately called out, "This person is not very skilled? Let's quickly catch up and kill him, and maybe we can take back the Yuan Nucleus and eyes!"

In the world of martial cultivators, the strong prey on the weak, and forceful plundering is common. However, someone as weak and ruthless as Jiang Huixiao was not often seen.

Teacher Li frowned but did not speak, instead standing up and carefully observing the surroundings.

From Jiang Feng's vantage point, he could only see part of Teacher Li's body, not even his face.

Gradually, Teacher Li seemed to notice something and moved in Jiang Feng's direction. Jiang Feng felt a sense of foreboding. As the other person took two more steps, he did not hesitate to flip to the other side and start running!

His hiding place was very clever, right between two passages. Unless they forced their way through the narrow crevice, they would have to take a long detour.

This narrow crevice was genuine, and since Jiang Feng was not fully developed, his body was relatively small, allowing him to squeeze through. An adult would definitely not fit.

The people behind simultaneously exclaimed, "There really is someone!" "Hurry, catch up!"

Then, footsteps sounded, and five people, one large and four small, all chased after him. Two of them also squeezed through the narrow crevice, taking a shortcut and following him from a distance!

Jiang Feng clearly heard the footsteps behind him. He turned a corner and, surprisingly, stopped, pressing himself against the stone wall!

The one leading the chase was a young man around seventeen or eighteen, short and agile. Since he had come through the narrow crevice, he was even ahead of Teacher Li.

He closely pursued Jiang Feng, and as he turned a corner, his shoulder suddenly ached, and he was grabbed. Then, the world spun, and he was thrown to the ground!

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Always couldn't get it right, re-posting the second version!

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