On the head of the little dragon, there was also a sudden growth at this moment. Its faith was stretched out, sharp fangs emitting a cold light. A tremendous oppressive force spread in the surrounding air, causing the nearby demon beasts to instantly sense an invisible aura permeating the air and start to panic and scurry about.
The transformation of the little dragon's body was something Li Lin had seen for the second time now, but compared to last time, the little dragon's body had grown much larger.
"This is..." Staring at the little dragon's transformation, the second-in-command was extremely surprised. The aura on the little dragon's body evoked a sense of extreme danger from deep within his soul.
Li Lin wanted to go up and help, but the little dragon transmitted a consciousness, telling him not to intervene, wanting to deal with the second-in-command alone. Li Lin didn't know why the little dragon wanted to do this, but the little dragon had its reasons. He was not worried about the little dragon's safety. In the Li family, even strong warriors at the Martial Soul level couldn't hurt the little dragon, and this second-in-command, being just a Martial Master, naturally couldn't harm it.
"Hiss..." The little dragon's body expanded and then suddenly burst forth, turning into a yellow blur as it charged towards the axe-wielding second-in-command, its body whipping through the air with a whoosh.
While the second-in-command was greatly shocked, he was still a Martial Master. He swung his giant axe, creating a flurry of shadows to block in front of him, with violent true energy vibrating out.
"Crack."
The force dispersed, compressing the air in the space, and a dull explosion sounded out. The little dragon's body directly collided with the giant axe, and to the second-in-command's surprise, a dent appeared on the axe, causing him to stagger backward in shock.
The little dragon's body landed on the ground, unable to stay in mid-air for too long. As it landed, the second-in-command formed a hand seal, and then true energy surged out explosively, cracking the ground open with countless fissures, dust flying and rocks soaring. The nearby towering trees also started to shake and sway.
The ground's surface whipped up a huge sand and stone storm, sweeping towards the little dragon. The strong aura spread and enveloped the area, causing several towering trees to start collapsing.
"Little dragon, be careful." Li Lin watched all this and couldn't help but worry for the little dragon.
"Hiss hiss..."
The little dragon's glossy black eyes showed no change in expression. As the huge sand and stone storm swept towards it, its ten-meter-long body suddenly burst forth, drilling into the storm.
Surrounded by golden flames, the little dragon carved out another path through the terrifying sand and stone storm. The sand and stone magic was simply unable to get close to the little dragon's body.
"Sizzle sizzle..."
The speed was overwhelming. In the second-in-command's eyes, a yellow light pierced through his attack, and then heavily collided with his body, shredding the protective aura around him. He swung his axe in panic.
"Clang..."
The giant axe struck directly onto the back of the little dragon, leaving only a faint mark, while at this moment, the little dragon's mouth was directly clamped onto the neck of the second-in-command.
Instantly, the second-in-command's skin began to shrivel, his complexion turned pale, his pupils protruded from their sockets, and his body shrank a size in just a moment, turning into a dried corpse.
"The little dragon actually killed the second-in-command." Li Lin was also surprised at this moment. Although he knew the little dragon was not simple in strength, he did not know the extent of its full power. From what he had just seen, perhaps it was not the little dragon's full strength.
"Little dragon, are you alright?" Li Lin came to the little dragon's side, carefully examining its back, where the second-in-command had struck with his axe, which made Li Lin a bit worried. Fortunately, aside from some minor marks, there was no other damage.
"Sizzle sizzle..."
The little dragon looked up at Li Lin, with a trace of blood at the corner of its mouth, proudly shaking its head. Its body instantly transformed back to a size of fifteen centimeters, which was a hundred times smaller than just before.
"We should leave now." Li Lin collected a space bag from the body of the second-in-command and hurriedly left with the little dragon, as he had already sensed that many people were approaching nearby.
Shortly after Li Lin left, several figures appeared first, followed by others arriving in succession.
"This seems to be the second-in-command of the Violent Wolf Mercenary Group. How did he end up like this?"
"There's a wound on the neck, it's the work of a demon beast, definitely a third-tier demon beast."
"These people seem to have been killed by someone. There's a strong person with a demon beast, the method is similar to the previous killings of the Violent Wolf Mercenary Group."
"The Violent Wolf Mercenary Group has offended someone, now even their second-in-command is dead. He was a third-level Martial Master."
Several figures squeezed through the crowd to the body of the second-in-command, led by the giant leader and others. Looking at the several bodies on the ground, the giant leader's eyes became cold. He had rushed here as soon as he saw the signal, but it was still a step too late.
"Big leader, what do we do now?" One of the men panicked. With the death of their second leader, they knew they were no match.
"Search, we must find them." The giant leader started to roar, but many of the onlookers were just watching the excitement and then began to leave.
Two hours later, in a mountain forest, Li Lin finally stopped.
"Little dragon, what's wrong?" Li Lin asked. The little dragon was on his shoulder, surrounded by a faint light.
"Sizzle sizzle..." The little dragon was flicking its tongue, its small eyes seeming to say something to Li Lin.
"Are you saying you're about to break through?" Li Lin said to the little dragon in surprise.
The little dragon nodded slightly and then crawled into Li Lin's arms, falling asleep.
Li Lin thought that the little dragon wanted to face the second-in-command alone, probably because it felt the second-in-command would be greatly beneficial to it. After swallowing him, it could break through, so it chose to face him alone.
"You go ahead and break through." Li Lin whispered. He didn't know how long this breakthrough of the little dragon would take. Now alone in the Misty Mountain Range, he had to be even more careful.
"First, let's find a safe place." Li Lin thought to himself. It was better to hide for a while now. He was not yet a match for the big leader of the Violent Wolf Mercenary Group. He feared that even activating the Vermillion Bird Art would not be enough, and after activating it in the Misty Mountain Range, it would be dangerous.
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Glancing at the direction, Li Lin vanished from the spot. During this time, he could take the opportunity to refine the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid in the Qi Sea space within his mind.
As night fell, Li Lin finally found a hidden place, atop a canyon, where there were several natural caves. One of them was particularly suitable for him to reside in.
This canyon was also extremely concealed, and beneath it lay a clear pond, from which strands of steam rose, revealing it to be a rare hot spring.
Finding the hot spring, Li Lin didn’t hesitate to jump in for a comfortable bath. Afterwards, he went into the cave, first dripping blood on the space bag of the second boss to claim ownership. Upon opening the space bag, a slight smile appeared on his face. Inside, there were many treasures: three third-grade Dan medicines, about twenty second-grade Dan medicines, thirty thousand gold coins, and an assortment of medicinal herbs, demon beast furs, and other miscellaneous items—a considerable haul.
Storing the space bag away, he took out a Spirit Jade Bed and began to sit cross-legged, slowly refining the immense energy within the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid.
In the following time, Li Lin had no intention of leaving the cave. He estimated that once he fully refined the energy transformed from the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid, his strength as a Spirit Practitioner would at least reach above the sixth level of Spirit Warrior, undoubtedly enhancing his power and the might of his Sword Spirit Technique.
Moments later, Li Lin was surrounded by a transparent white halo, filled with spiritual power, as his aura slowly began to climb, entering a state of cultivation.
Time slowly passed, and Li Lin, immersed in cultivation, lost all concept of time, his spiritual power continuously strengthening in his mind.
In the Misty Mountain Range, where treasure had not been found for a long time, the gathered people began to gradually disperse. After all, those who came were seeking fortune; without finding treasure, they still needed to search for medicinal herbs and demon beasts.
"Miss, we've been here for quite a while now, shall we return?" On a hillside, two figures were slowly walking; the one in front was an extremely beautiful young girl, dressed in green, with a graceful figure, followed by a pretty maid.
"How can we leave without finding the treasure? If you're scared, you can go back first," said the stunningly beautiful girl.
"Miss, have you forgotten? The beast that ambushed us yesterday was a third-order demon beast. I nearly lost my life," protested the maid behind her.
"It was just an early-stage third-order demon beast, and I killed it. What are you afraid of?" the beautiful girl replied.
"Haha, so it's just two little girls who dare to come to the Misty Mountain Range," laughed five figures who appeared on the hillside, comprising five burly men, two with the aura of Martial Artists and three with the level of Martial Warriors.
"Miss," the pretty maid immediately moved closer to the beautiful girl, her expression turning somewhat panicked.
"Who are you?" the beautiful girl asked, fixing her gaze on the five men, her eyes narrowing with a chill spreading out.
"Haha, who we are..." The leader, a big man in a yellow robe, around forty years old, with short hair and small eyes, laughed and then squinted, saying, "Hand over everything you have, including your bodies, and we'll let you live."
"Boss, these two little girls are still virgins, maybe even untouched," leered another muscular man in a tight outfit, his lustful gaze sweeping over the beautiful girl's exquisite body.
"Haha, just right for us to deflower. Little girl, don’t be afraid, brother is very gentle," another big man laughed unrestrainedly.
"You shameless scoundrels, get lost now, or I won't be polite," the beautiful girl frowned, her expression turning cold, a compelling aura emanating from her eyes.
"The spicy girl, I like that," the leader leered, and then moved towards the beautiful girl, saying, "Let brother give you a hug
"Damn scoundrel," the stunningly beautiful girl snorted coldly. With an imperceptible move, a green afterimage, tinged with a faint blue light, instantaneously sliced through the void, whistling fiercely forward.
"A water-element Martial Artist..." The leading burly man was immediately shocked, not expecting this delicate girl to be a Martial Artist, her aura not inferior to his.
His body suddenly retreated. This man, possessing the strength of a fifth-level Martial Artist, was rarely matched in the outskirts of the Misty Mountain Range. He had always engaged in grand robberies and had never failed.
As he retreated, the man in the yellow robe slightly bent his body and then burst forth, dodging the green afterimage in a blink and smashed a punch wrapped in earthy yellow light towards the beautiful girl.
"Hmph..." The beautiful girl snorted coldly, as earthy yellow true qi burst out around her. Clenching her fist, she circulated the earthy yellow light just as rapidly and met his punch head-on.
"Bang!"
A dull sound echoed on the hillside. The collision of their fists caused true qi to scatter wildly, the ground's surface was stripped away by the massive force, sand and rocks flying everywhere.
"Ptui..." The man in yellow spat out a blood arrow, his body not just staggering back but being violently thrown, crashing hard onto the ground.
"A dual-element, ninth-level Martial Artist..." The man in yellow landed, spitting out another blood arrow, his expression turning to outright horror, realizing that his opponent was a dual-element, ninth-level Martial Artist.
"You're dead," the beautiful girl snorted coldly, as a green light burst forth from her hand, reaching the man in yellow in a blink. Struggling to rise, he was immediately swept up by the green light, tossed violently into the air and then crashing heavily to the ground, spewing blood and broken organs, his breath ceasing in moments.
"The boss is dead, run!" The remaining four men, faces filled with terror, didn't dare to stay and fled in panic.
"Hmph, overestimating yourselves, daring to provoke me," the beautiful girl snorted coldly, retrieving a green object into her hand, showing no intent to pursue the four.
"Miss, let's go back, it's too dangerous here," the pretty maid said, trembling slightly.
The beautiful girl smiled faintly and then said, "Afraid of what? There's nothing dangerous here. Let's go find the treasure, I'll share some with you."
"Miss, I fear I won't live to receive it," the pretty maid muttered, then took a storage bag from the yellow-clothed man, claimed it with her blood, and said, "Miss, this guy had quite a haul, three third-grade Dan medicines, and over ten thousand gold coins."
"Keep it, deal with it yourself," the beautiful girl smiled faintly. "Let's continue."
The pretty maid sighed softly, then murmured, "Elders, have you finally seen the trail markers I left? Please hurry and bring the miss back."
Time slowly passed, and ten days later, in the cave of the canyon, Li Lin was enveloped in a dazzling white, transparent light shield, his aura continuously rising.
Inside Li Lin's body, within the spiritual power Qi Sea space in his mind, spiritual qi filled the space, much like a sea of clouds covering the entire sky.
The spiritual power continued to increase. A pain flashed through his mind, followed by a muffled sound as the space of spiritual power in his mind seemed to explosively expand.
"Huff, huff..."
Inside the cave, Li Lin's aura suddenly soared to a new height. An invisible but palpable energy from the surroundings surged into his body through the pores and skin.
In his mind, Li Lin instantly felt the spiritual qi multiply several times over, an indescribable comfort flooding his body. Deep within his mind, his intangible soul was becoming more and more substantial. He could now clearly sense every rustle of the wind and sway of the grass around him.
"Breaking through the fifth layer of Spirit Warrior, finally reaching the sixth layer," Li Lin exhaled a breath of turbid air from his heart, feeling the abundant spiritual power within his mind, and couldn't help but reveal a slight smile. Just one-tenth of the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid had allowed him to break through from the second to the sixth layer of Spirit Warrior. He estimated that there was still about one-tenth of its energy left to be refined.
And this was only one-tenth of the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid. Thinking of the Divine Liquid, Li Lin smiled again, grateful that it hadn't been taken by Lan Ling. Otherwise, he would have suffered a great loss. Currently, he had no way to enhance his spiritual power quickly, and making Dan medicines for enhancing spiritual power was also somewhat troublesome. Now, with the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid on hand, he wouldn't have to worry about cultivation of spiritual power for a short period.
What surprised Li Lin the most was that under the influence of the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid and the Cold Jade Bed, the spiritual power in his mind was becoming more substantial. He clearly felt the benefits, with an increased area of perception around him. These changes might bring him many benefits in future cultivation.
"Still one-tenth of the energy left to refine, let's continue," Li Lin decided to carry on with the refining. In the Misty Mountain Range, he wasn’t short of time. At worst, he would return to the Yunyang Sect a bit later. Having survived a great disaster, the Yunyang Sect wouldn’t just cast him out.
Time passed again, and two days later, Li Lin stopped his cultivation, exhaling a breath of turbid air, his eyes deep and clear, like a tranquil pond.
"Alright, I'll fully integrate the energy before taking more Soul Spirit Divine Liquid," Li Lin spoke softly. He had completely refined the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid in his mind, stabilizing his cultivation at the middle-lower tier of the sixth layer of Spirit Warrior. His progress in spiritual power during this period was astonishing.
Although he had fully refined the energy of the Soul Spirit Divine Liquid, the process of integrating this refined spiritual power with his body's spiritual power still needed time. Li Lin didn't dare to refine further, fearing it might adversely affect his future cultivation.
"A seventh-level Martial Warrior, sixth-level Spirit Warrior, my strength must have increased quite a bit," Li Lin mused with a lazy smile on his lips. When he was at the fourth level of Martial Warrior, he could contend with a ninth-level Martial Warrior. Now, at the seventh level, his strength had increased significantly. However, to face the leader of the Rampant Wolf Mercenaries, it still seemed somewhat insufficient.