RPAGF Chapter 235 Dragon Spine Mine
Chapter 235 Dragon Spine Mine
Recently, accidents have been frequent in the demon realm, with demon cultivators from all directions going missing one after another. The Demon Emperor is extremely busy dealing with this matter.
"Are you sure it's another missing person?"
"Yes."
"Tiger demon, 233 years old, Golden Core Realm; Rabbit demon, 300 years old, Nascent Soul Realm; Snake demon, 178 years old, Golden Core Realm..."
"They are of different races, have no interaction with each other, and those who have gone missing are all demons with considerable cultivation. How are we supposed to investigate this?"
After all, living in a world like this, it's perfectly normal for people to go missing or die every few days. What's abnormal is that the recent disappearances have been happening far too frequently, and they're the kind where no one is ever seen, neither alive nor dead.
There were no signs of a struggle at the scene, and the missing person had not shown any unusual behavior beforehand, as if they had simply vanished into thin air.
Cultivators are mostly humans/demons who are indifferent to family ties. Moreover, the demon realm emphasizes bloodline and clan. Those who share the same bloodline but are not related by blood will be given priority in cultivation within the clan. As for others, they are basically left to their own devices.
In the end, only a few powerful bloodline groups exist in the demon realm. Most of them are demon cultivators without any clan, which is equivalent to human rogue cultivators. This situation accounts for eight or nine out of ten in the demon realm.
This matter began with the disappearance of demon cultivators without a clan, but in just half a month, even demon cultivators with clans began to disappear.
This incident forced those in power to take it seriously.
Everyone in the room was at their wits' end, not knowing how to resolve the matter, when just then, a figure carrying something unknown and exuding a chilling aura walked in from outside.
Upon closer inspection, everyone realized that it was none other than the long-absent Young Master Yan Qifeng, who seemed to be carrying a... corpse?
Yan Qifeng casually tossed aside what he was holding, his expression unchanged, and said coldly, "Father, we've found a lead."
The ministers in the hall only then belatedly rose and bowed to him, greeting him: "Is Your Highness well?"
"No need for that, let's talk about this first."
Yan Qifeng is no longer the willful, lazy, and unruly young man he once was. In just a hundred years since his dantian was repaired, his cultivation has been restored to almost its original peak. What terrifying talent!
No, it should be said that his talent now surpasses even his previous talent.
Everyone knows how his dantian was repaired, but no one knows how much kindness that person bestowed upon him, allowing this young man to grow so quickly and change so much in a mere hundred years.
The fox boy, who once loved cleanliness and tidiness, now unhesitatingly took a small knife and disemboweled the corpse, completely disregarding the demon blood splattered on his hands and clothes.
A cloud of black mist suddenly emanated from the wound on the corpse, and soon it dissipated completely. The corpse, having lost its breath, seemed to be rapidly decaying until it became a pile of dry, brownish rotten flesh.
Yan Chong approached with a frown: "Ghostly aura?"
"Yes, not all."
The others also approached and began to examine the remaining puddle on the ground.
“We have never encountered such methods before, and they don’t seem to be tricks from the Ghost Realm. But that black aura just now was undoubtedly ghostly energy. Young Master, how did you capture this person?”
Yan Qifeng took a cloth and slowly wiped the bloodstains off his hands.
"This person is one of the demons who went missing before."
"How did he die?"
"suicide."
There was a moment of silence.
Yan Zhong slapped Yan Qifeng on the back and asked anxiously, "Son, stop wiping now, tell me quickly!"
Yan Qifeng sighed helplessly.
“I’ve been investigating this matter for the past few days. I originally wanted to follow the clues to find the source, but that person always came out of nowhere. Moreover, according to the situation of the missing persons, he never arrests people above the Nascent Soul stage or below the Golden Core stage.”
"Either he can't beat those above the Nascent Soul stage or is afraid of exposing his identity, or those above the Nascent Soul stage but below the Golden Core stage are useless against him."
“Now that we have a goal, things will be much easier. But the demon realm is so vast that no one knows who his next target will be.”
"His goal seems purposeful, yet also somewhat arbitrary. Let's get back to this person."
Yan Qifeng pointed to the puddle on the ground: "He used to be a fish demon. I only found out by chance from the demons around him. He had disappeared, but after he returned a few days later, he was a completely different person."
"Amnesia, dementia, but his cultivation level remained unchanged. He returned to normal after only two days, but..."
“He committed suicide whenever the topic of his disappearance and the mastermind behind it was brought up. Before he died, he had a tendency to self-destruct, but I managed to stop him from committing suicide.”
After the explanation was finished, the group looked at each other for a while.
"Such ruthless methods?"
"But the clues end here. This person is so cautious that he would not leave any evidence. If all the missing people are like this, it would be useless even if they were rescued."
"The Five Kings of the Ghost Realm would never possess such abilities. Moreover, how could they not know if a minor ghost had entered my demon realm? Yet they still committed such acts!"
Yan Zhong stared blankly at the puddle without saying a word, as if he had overlooked something.
Before the old man went there, he seemed to have mentioned something to him: there was something in the Dragonspine Mine that was absolutely untouchable.
The Baoyan clan of the Dragon Spine Mine has been prosperous for a long time. Because a ten-tailed celestial fox god once appeared in the clan, and was one of the few immortals who ascended from the demon realm, they were able to dominate the demon realm for many years.
The disappearance case... could it be related to that "thing"?
"We'll discuss this matter again tomorrow. Qi'er, come with me."
Yan Zhong abruptly ended the discussion, grabbed Yan Qifeng, and walked out, leaving a group of people standing there looking at each other in confusion.
Yan Qifeng was also puzzled: "Father, what's the matter that's so urgent?"
Yan Zhong released him abruptly, but still kept a sullen face and his hands behind his back without stopping. He even gestured for him to follow, and then ran away faster and faster.
"Stop talking nonsense, just follow me."
Yan Qifeng was increasingly puzzled, but his feet did not stop for a moment.
Looking in this direction, it seems to be heading towards... the Dragon Spine Mine?
Weren't we discussing catching the mastermind behind this? Why are we suddenly going to the mine?
The mine is not far from Vandu, but to be precise, the entire Vandu is built on the mine!
Given its name "Dragon Spine" and the fact that it has protected the Yan Clan for so many years, it is naturally no ordinary small mine. The sheer size of this mine is enough to supply the entire demon realm for at least tens of thousands of years. It had already been excavated for over ten thousand years before this, so one can imagine its value and reserves.
The place they flew to was just the nearest entrance to this mine, and also the largest entrance and exit.
As soon as the two landed, the fox guards standing at the door immediately knelt down and shouted, "Greetings, Your Majesty the Demon Emperor! May the young lord be well!"
"No need for any of them."
Today is a day of rest and repair, which saves us from unnecessary trouble, as there are no workers coming or going to work.
Yan Chong beckoned a guard over and whispered something in his ear. After listening, the guard suddenly looked up at Yan Chong, but asked nothing. He simply led his men inside with a solemn expression.
Yan Qifeng followed behind with a blank expression the whole time.
He had been to the Dragon Spine Mine many times and had a certain understanding of its conditions, but it was clear that he had never walked this path before.
Only today did he realize that there was such a road here.
As they continued down the path, the light of day grew increasingly dim, replaced by ever-burning mermaid candles. Although there was only one path ahead, the guards continued to lead the way without stopping.
After walking for nearly fifteen minutes, the increasingly narrow path suddenly opened up, revealing giant crystals that had not been cut down to make demon coins.
This place resembles a huge, natural crystal chamber, where the reflections from the crystals are so bright that it's like daytime, even dazzling.
Looking at the largest crystal directly in front, there seemed to be something—no, it seemed to be a person—firmly bound by a long golden rope that appeared out of nowhere, rendering it unable to move.
The long golden rope was tied haphazardly without any pattern. Some of it bound its hands, feet, and body, while others passed right through its heart, as if growing out of its body, and then hung loosely down.
It seemed to be securely locked, but upon closer inspection, none of the ropes were tied very tightly. It was clear that it could be loosened with a pull, yet that thing, no, that person, "willingly" remained bound to it.