From Swamp Dog to Crocodile Ancestor

It seems the internal strife within the Flamebreath Fox Clan is truly immense, as even the edges of their territory have been severely impacted.

Some of the remaining soldiers with cultivation levels fled the turbulent region and came here to avoid trouble.

That's fine, at least it poses no threat to me.

Li Yi thought to himself, and then silently headed toward the citrine vein.

The citrine vein was not far from the fir tree. Li Yi quickly arrived there and found the area deserted, with no trace of red foxes or other creatures.

A hazy yellow light shone from the mine entrance, not particularly noticeable under the sun. Li Yi twisted his massive body and headed towards the mine.

Suddenly, it stopped in place and carefully sniffed the surrounding scents.

A sense of familiarity, like that of someone from the same kind, arises in my mind.

His senses extended into the deep mine, and Li Yi stared indifferently at the dark mine for a long time without any response.

It seems that some crocodiles have passed through here, which is not surprising.

As Li Yi's enormous tail gently slapped the edge of the mine and then retracted into it, somewhere around the citrine vein, in the pitch-black silt, a white shadow briefly appeared and then disappeared.

Li Yi was digging along the vein, the immense force of which easily crushed the not-so-hard citrine, extracting the brown quartz within.

In addition, it has another purpose: to see what might be at the bottom of this roughly cone-shaped vein.

During its previous explorations, it had already learned that the bottom of this vein was connected by a thick chain, with the other end leading to a deeper, unknown place that Li Yi could not infiltrate.

In Li Yi's conjecture, the chain must have been a creation of the human race, originating from that vanished human sect.

The other end of the chain is very likely connected to some relics, or something else, which may be very important to you.

After digging for a while, Li Yi returned to the surface of the mine with a large pile of brown crystals and a large piece of yellow crystal. He glanced around but did not leave immediately.

It piled the crystals around the mine and then suddenly plunged into the mud.

The last time it came here, it was only at the seventh level of Qi Refining, having completed its cultivation of the Earth element.

This time, it has reached the eighth level of the Qi Refining stage and has mastered the swamp water phase, so the maximum diving distance it can reach has increased significantly compared to before.

It's time to go and find out what's on the other end of that chain.

As Li Yi descended along the thick stone shell of the vein, wisps of black liquid oozed from the gaps in the scales covering his body, quickly exceeding his previous limit, and he continued to dive.

This chain, which leads to some deep part of the swamp, is my best guide, preventing me from getting lost in the depths of the swamp.

As the pressure from the surrounding silt increased, the black scales all over Li Yi's body began to creak and groan.

After a long time, Li Yi felt that he had reached his limit and could no longer descend. After his senses extended a distance into the depths along the straight chain, he had no choice but to turn back.

It is still not strong enough, whether in terms of physical body or magical power. Perhaps it will be possible to discover what is on the other end of the chain when it reaches the ninth level of Qi Refining or the Foundation Establishment stage.

As the pressure of the silt on the scales lessened, Li Yi silently emerged from the silt, his brownish-yellow eyes scanning his surroundings.

It was quiet here.

After slowly approaching the perimeter of the mine, Li Yi carefully examined the crystals he had piled up there and found that their arrangement had not changed.

But the aura of the crocodile species was still faintly visible all around.

With a hint of doubt in his heart, Li Yi still turned around and left with the crystal ore.

It was under too much pressure right now, and there were thorny problems in its territory. As long as there was nothing harmful to it, it really couldn't be bothered with any trace of its kind.

Long after Li Yi left, that white figure slowly emerged from the mud...

The return to the big willow tree went very smoothly. After the devil tree nearby died, there was no longer any threat in the vicinity.

As the phantom of the large willow tree gradually appeared before him, Li Yi felt a sense of relaxation.

They finally returned to their lair.

It was already past midnight, and the dim dawn slowly illuminated the surroundings. The white python had already emerged, waiting for the daily sunrise.

Li Yi brought yellow crystal and brown crystal, and the white python quickly came over to gently soothe the injury on Li Yi's back.

A drop of willow sap, carrying immense life force, rushed into Li Yi's body, causing his muscles and bones to tremble and his body to become visibly stronger.

As dawn approached, Li Yi slipped into the hollow of the large willow tree.

After a long time, the life force gradually subsided within his body. Li Yi sensed a slight difference and looked into the hollow of the big willow tree.

An unusual vitality was nourishing the big willow tree. This time, when Li Yi looked at the big willow tree from afar, the cold feeling it emitted had dissipated slightly.

The mother crocodile built its foundation on pure swamp wood, and the vitality it brought brought many benefits to the large willow tree.

This benefit continued, and Li Yi didn't know how long it would take the mother crocodile to complete the Foundation Establishment stage.

It's time to train the Swamp Wood element.

Li Yi thought to himself, then put a large piece of brown crystal in his mouth, pressed his body against the swamp, and gradually calmed down.

A faint green whirlwind blew around, amplified by the power emanating from the mother crocodile beside her.

This place is a natural and suitable place for cultivating the Wood element in the swamp. The Foundation Establishment stage is mysterious and unpredictable. During this process, the mother crocodile itself is like a rare and precious treasure, bringing endless benefits.

After the group of green-scaled crocodiles were moved away, the area around the big willow tree became much quieter, with only the white python remaining coiled under the tree.

Li Yi cultivated inside the tree hollow, while it waited outside.

Time flies, and before Li Yi knew it, seven days had passed since he went into seclusion to cultivate.

Feeling the vitality emanating from the large willow tree and the tender new branches, the white python comfortably coiled under the tree, waiting for noon to arrive.

But before long, an undisguised aura approached.

The white python trembled, flicked its tongue, and looked in that direction, immediately becoming focused.

Beneath its tongue, the small yellow crystal sword was already poised to strike.

"Croak!"

Five blue-eyed toads appeared here, vaguely surrounding the white python, with all ten large eyes focused on the python's body.

These five blue-eyed golden toads, two at the ninth level of Qi Refining and three at the seventh level of Qi Refining, exuded a combined pressure that pressed down on the white python.

The white python, however, remained unperturbed, and a melodious voice rang out, "What brings you gentlemen here?"