Gao Wu: I became the minor villain that the protagonist was about to destroy.

As the two approached, they saw that the 30-meter-tall tree demon had transformed into an ice tree made entirely of ice, standing in the center, with a huge crater at its core.

Standing below, Leng Ruoxue looked up at the crater above and was shocked. Demons were generally stronger than humans at the same level, and some were even ranked higher. It was not uncommon for them to defeat humans across realms.

This is why people enter the secret realm in groups, in order to increase their survival rate within the realm.

Leng Ruoxue asked疑惑地问道, "Was that a secret technique just now? I noticed your arm seems to have turned black?"

Baki said calmly, "Once you become a core member, you'll understand that this is something that can only be accessed at this level."

"Let's not talk about that. Where is the Ice Spirit Crystal you wanted? Is it the core I just destroyed?"

Leng Ruoxue shook her head: "No, you only destroyed its heartwood. The real source of the Ice Spirit Crystal is in its root system."

"As long as this body is destroyed, the Ice Spirit Crystal Source will appear."

Red Leaf activated its eerie power, its eyes constantly scanning the tree demon's body, and then a scalpel appeared in its hand, stabbing at a single point.

"bite--!"

In an instant, the entire tree demon's body shook violently, and its enormous form gradually disintegrated.

"Boom..." Layers of white snow splashed up.

With a sudden swing of his hand, Baki created a strong gust of wind that blew away the scattered snowflakes.

The three then saw the tree demon's body emit a faint white light, which quickly condensed into an ice-blue crystal at its center.

Baki and Momiji looked at the ice crystal with some curiosity.

"This is the Ice Spirit Crystal Source, it's really refreshing."

Hongye nodded: "Indeed, I can feel an extremely cold energy inside. Even a demon that hasn't fully absorbed it can possess such power."

"It's just like those rare and precious natural treasures I've seen before."

Leng Ruoxue stretched out her hand, and the crystal seemed to fly into her hand as if it had a mind of its own. Leng Ruoxue took out a specially made box and put the ice crystal inside.

"Alright, let's move on to the next place."

another place

Lie drove his minivan with Ye Ming, and they had already arrived in Baiquan City, the capital city of the neighboring province.

Ye Ming got out of the car and adjusted his sunglasses.

"This is Hakusen City. It really does look more prosperous than Sunset City."

Lie asked, "President, are we going to the address Miss Leng Ruoxue mentioned now?"

"No rush. At this time, that young man should be in the secret realm. It won't be easy for us to find him."

"Let's go find some thugs around his house and try to get some information from them."

Lie couldn't help but recall that when they first arrived here, Ye Ming had also led them to cause trouble for some thugs.

At this moment, they are in a secret realm in Baiquan City.

A handsome man dressed in tattered black clothes was standing on a large tree.

Its sharp eyes were fixed on its prey below. In a flash, a beam of light pierced through the head of the wandering ogre.

After waiting in the tree for a few minutes and seeing no one or beast appear, the man moved and instantly appeared in front of the ogre, took the spirit crystal from its body, and quickly disappeared.

"Great, another one."

"At this rate, it won't be long before I can leave that place."

Thinking back to himself, living every day in a place that resembled a dark sewer, he couldn't help but frown.

When Ye Ming and Lie arrived near his home, they found it to be like a slum. Compared to the prosperity of the main city, it was worse than a doghouse.

However, according to Ye Ming's perception, hundreds of families still live here.

"Indeed, there are always dark places behind the glamorous facade."

Lie wasn't particularly moved after seeing it, because the slums of Luoxia City used to be not much worse than this place, but now they were completely different.

Following his senses, Ye Ming spotted dozens of people in tattered clothes, but with fierce expressions on their faces, squatting on the ground smoking and chatting in a corner.

Upon seeing Ye Ming and the others, the dozen or so people were also taken aback.

Because people dressed like Ye Ming and Lie would never come here; this is a place even the sun doesn't want to touch.

More than a dozen people picked up their weapons and glared at Ye Ming and Lie with hostile expressions.

One of the gang leaders sneered, "That's quite a sight, isn't it? A big shot from the city coming to a place like ours. What, are you here to try out our girls?"

&: "Hahahaha..."

His boss's teasing immediately drew a burst of laughter from everyone.

Lie's figure vanished from his spot in an instant, reappearing in front of the thug. The thug leader, who was still laughing, suddenly felt as if he had been targeted by a ferocious beast and hurriedly retreated.

Ye Ming was somewhat surprised to see this; this gang leader was quite different from the ones he had ever seen.

At this moment, the gang leader's heart was pounding violently; clearly, he had just sensed a life-threatening danger.

"You think you can make me afraid of you just because you think your bodyguards are so powerful? You're only relying on them!"

Upon hearing this, Lie's eyes darkened further. He wouldn't allow his own guild leader to be insulted like this by outsiders, and he prepared to teach them a lesson.

At this moment, Ye Ming shouted, "Stop!"

Immediately, Lie flashed back to Ye Ming's side.

Ye Ming looked at the gang leader and asked directly, "Do you guys know Ji Wubai?"

The gang leader's eyes narrowed: "I don't know him."

"Oh? Really?"

The scene changes.

At this moment, dozens of thugs were lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Ye Ming hadn't used much force; he had only used a little strength.

Ye Ming slowly squatted down: "Do you understand now?"

The gang leader endured the pain, but cold sweat kept pouring down his forehead.

"I...I don't know..."

This surprised Ye Ming as well. He then slowly stood up, and an aura of malice emanated from him. The thugs lying on the ground instantly fell silent, because they felt that if they made another sound, they would die on the spot.

So he could only desperately cover his mouth to keep himself from making a sound.

The gang leader who was closest to the scene was trembling all over; it was the first time he had ever felt so close to death.

"Do you know Ji Wubai?"

Ye Ming's voice echoed in the gang leader's mind, like the whisper of a demon.