From Swamp Dog to Crocodile Ancestor

Li Yi was stunned for a moment, then carefully sensed it and found that there was a faint spiritual energy fluctuation on the surface of the invisible and imperceptible venomous snake, which seemed to be some kind of innate magic.

It was right in front of me, but I couldn't sense it at all. I could only vaguely see its outline through the venom before, but now it was gone.

Moonlight spilled beneath the cedar trees. Li Yi stared intently at the open space in front of him for a long while before turning and leaving.

Everything was as quiet as before.

This venomous snake cannot sense cultivation level, but it is also undetectable to me, so it may be a bit troublesome. It's best not to provoke it carelessly.

There's no need to provoke such a troublesome opponent. There's no enmity between them, and it doesn't like to eat small venomous snakes.

The other party made the same choice. Since it couldn't bite through Li Yi's scales, it simply stayed still in place and didn't run away. It's unclear whether this was due to its nature.

Whether the changes in the cedar trees are good or bad is unknown. After some of the red foxes, who were considered rivals, died, they probably migrated away immediately, leaving no trace.

After Li Yi left, the small open space remained unchanged and silent.

Li Yi slowly approached the citrine vein and saw that the area around the vein was very quiet, with some remaining citrine veins shimmering in the moonlight.

The mine shaft had visibly expanded considerably, and the surrounding area carried that familiar aura.

Li Yi slowly emerged from the mud and leisurely arrived not far from the mine. It had already sensed the presence of living beings inside, most likely its own kind.

But it did not rush in; it simply probed its senses into the interior.

A moment later, there was movement inside. A palm-sized piece of brown crystal was slowly pushed out and rolled down in front of Li Yi.

Li Yi stared into the dark mine, only vaguely seeing a white shadow that flashed by.

Then, pieces of brown crystal were brought out one after another until they were piled up in front of Li Yi before they stopped.

A gaze shot out from inside the mine, piercing through the darkness and landing on Li Yi, sweeping over him.

Li Yi didn't detect any obvious hostility from the other party, but he was very wary. So he suddenly shuddered and displayed his Qi Refining Level 9 cultivation, pressing down on them.

A moment later, a flash of light appeared, and a powerful aura of the eighth level of Qi Refining erupted from inside the mine. Although it was at a disadvantage in its confrontation with Li Yi, it was not weak.

After a standoff of about fifteen minutes, Li Yi turned and left with the brown crystal without launching an attack.

This place is already considered the territory of that clan, and it has demonstrated sufficient strength. All I need to do is acquire the ore; there's no need to cause any more trouble.

The more time I have to cultivate, the greater my chance of comprehending the path to Foundation Establishment. This is the most important thing right now.

Gazing at Li Yi's back shrouded in yellow mist, the gaze within the dark mine flickered for a moment before slowly closing its eyes.

Having safely returned to the big willow tree, Li Yi stayed inside the tree hollow, surrounded by brown crystals for cultivation, and soon his mind became calm.

The familiar scene reappeared before my eyes: a chaotic mass of swampy energy, vast and boundless, suspended in my consciousness.

With a thought from Li Yi, the chaotic and mixed swampy energy immediately began to separate, and its surface turned a dark yellow.

Its outermost layer is still a thick yellow fog, representing the soil of the swamp, tightly enveloping everything inside.

Inside, a green wind howls and flows, carrying a decaying vitality, along with the heaviest swampy water, which appears as a viscous, black, poisonous pool, like a silent, deep abyss.

His consciousness roamed freely within the swampy energy, which was divided into various phases. Li Yi kept searching for the essence of the swampy energy, but he never made any breakthrough.

Beyond the three phases of the swamp, there are impurities suspended all around, displaying various dark colors characteristic of the swamp, making it impossible to comprehend.

In Li Yi's view, these impurities were the spiritual energy generated by the interaction and fusion of the three elements in the swamp. They were so mixed that they had no value for understanding.

So... where should I go next?

Li Yi's consciousness hovered above the black water of the swamp, with a howling green wind overhead, and he fell into confusion once again.

After an unknown amount of time, Li Yi suddenly felt his consciousness become unreal, knowing that he was about to leave this place.

This period of enlightenment is about to end.

It yielded to the tearing force, and its consciousness instantly returned to the dimly lit hollow of the large willow tree, where a misty vitality and green light enveloped it.

However, Li Yi was still very confused at this moment.

Another three months have passed.

On this day, Li Yi looked at the nearly depleted brown crystals inside the tree hole and felt a sense of anxiety.

It meditates every day, but it just can't find a path to reach the Foundation Establishment stage.

In these three months, the total amount of lunar essence in its body increased again, the balance in its body was restored to some extent, and its combat power was stronger, but it did not gain any insights.

Some intense sunlight shone on Li Yi's body, which was covered in black scales. As Li Yi was thinking, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.

How come the temperature in the swamp, which has remained unchanged for thousands of years, has increased?

It couldn't help but look up at the sun overhead, feeling that it was no different from usual, and the light it emitted was still the same.

This change was enough to attract Li Yi's attention. After swimming around the big willow tree a few times, it sank into the mud and discovered some clues.

The oppressive heat came from the damp, cold swamp mud itself, which had even become somewhat dry and less fluid, giving it a baking sensation.

Why is this happening?

Li Yi, who was in the mud, closed his eyes and vaguely sensed a huge current of heat coming from a certain direction.

The current intense heat is merely its lingering warmth.

The heat was unimaginably vast, slowly moving along the eastern side of the swamp, like a giant beast gradually awakening.

The swampy silt is a world unto itself, and now this world is being dried out and gradually solidified, which is clearly not good news.

Just as Li Yi was about to explore, he discovered that the white python was rushing back towards the big willow tree, its head swaying in mid-air, searching for his tracks.

Sensing its anxiety, Li Yi slowly emerged from the mud and came to stand before it.

After a mental exchange, Li Yi finally understood the reason for the white python's agitation.

Although it managed to stop the strange tree's mutation little by little, it was still expanding. However, when it quietly went to suppress the black mist this time, it discovered a new situation.

The strange tree trunk has cracked open in many places, continuously releasing black mist at a speed a hundred times faster than before, and it is still attracting many swamp creatures to it.

The sudden change occurred abruptly. Li Yi looked grave, wondering what the connection was between this unexpected surge of heat and the transformation of the strange tree.

As it pondered, a growing sense of life arose within the hollow of the large willow tree.