Formidable Strength

There were still a great number of Gray Wolves and apes inside the cave, but with the strength of Mu Qing and Ling Fei at the seventh stage of Blood Qi, they could easily fight their way out.

Inside the cave, flashes of lightning and golden light intertwined. Mu Qing and Ling Fei had lost count of how many Gray Wolves and apes they had killed, until the beasts finally grew fearful.

These Gray Wolves and apes were thoroughly terrified; trembling, they let out low whimpers and retreated from the cave.

Mu Qing and Ling Fei were drenched in sweat and covered in beast blood, their Origin Force significantly depleted.

Mu Qing was slightly better off; he stored Origin Force in both his mind and his dantian. Although the Origin Force in his mind had been heavily consumed, the water-attribute Origin Force in his dantian remained plentiful.

"Let's go!" Mu Qing said. He and Ling Fei supported the heavily injured Jiang Yuanjie as they headed toward the cave entrance, with Yang Shanshan close behind, carrying Ji Jia on her back.

"Roar!"

As soon as Mu Qing and the others emerged from the cave, the Ape Leader and the Gray Wolf Leader in the valley let out massive roars.

They fixed their gazes on Mu Qing's group. The Ape Leader, in particular, turned hostile the moment it saw the plant with over a dozen Vermilion Fruit in Jiang Yuanjie's hand.

Its eyes shimmered with coldness, as if a thick murderous intent was brewing.

Mu Qing and Ling Fei stood in front of the group, showing no fear. Their current strength was fully capable of contending with these two beast leaders.

Ling Fei had broken through to the seventh stage of Blood Qi, his power soaring, while Mu Qing possessed the Dual Blood Spirit, making his strength terrifyingly formidable.

However, while Mu Qing and Ling Fei could hold their own, the three behind them could not. Ji Jia was still unconscious, making him unfit for battle.

"I'll hold them off, you guys get out of here!" Ling Fei suddenly said. Golden light flickered on his body as a golden lion, appearing very solid, manifested behind him and let out a deafening roar.

His expression was grave, and the Origin Force in his body surged.

"Although I am no match for these two beast leaders, I am confident I can stall them for a while. Once you have left, I will immediately break away and catch up," Ling Fei said.

He knew the situation was dire; even with his and Mu Qing's breakthroughs, they could not guarantee everyone's safe departure against such a massive horde of beasts.

At this moment, only by him stalling these two beast leaders could Mu Qing easily handle the remaining apes and Gray Wolves, allowing them to escape with ease.

"Besides, Liu Tianyu and his group might still be outside. I can sense that your strength is even greater than mine; your opponents should be them!" Ling Fei said to Mu Qing.

Mu Qing took a deep breath, then nodded heavily and said, "We will rendezvous at that hidden cave from before!"

Ling Fei nodded, then flashed forward, appearing directly before the Ape Leader and the Gray Wolf Leader.

He unleashed his aura, issuing a challenge; he intended to take on both of them alone.

"Let's go!" Mu Qing's expression darkened as he gave a sharp command.

Just as Ling Fei had said, his true opponents were likely Liu Tianyu and his group. Both of them had cultivated multiple high-level martial arts and were far more difficult to deal with than these two beast leaders.

"Roar!"

The Ape Leader and the Gray Wolf Leader roared, wanting to launch an offensive against Mu Qing and the others.

Most of their subordinates had been slaughtered by Mu Qing's group, filling them with deep hatred.

However, Ling Fei's tall figure blocked the path of the two leaders, his palms glowing with golden light as he intercepted them.

The two beast leaders went berserk, unleashing violent attacks, and Ling Fei's internal Origin Force erupted in response.

With a loud bang, Ling Fei coughed up blood, his arms shaking violently. He had taken the brunt of the two leaders' attacks head-on and was now at a disadvantage.

Mu Qing and the others were already heading out of the valley.

Jiang Yuanjie and Yang Shanshan were worried, but they understood that Ling Fei holding off the two beasts was the best possible choice.

"Awoo!"

The Gray Wolves and apes, which had previously been terrified, saw that only Mu Qing remained with the group and immediately let out howls, pouncing toward them.

Mu Qing's expression was icy. He let out a roar, lightning coiling around his arms, and with a single punch, he blasted three Gray Wolves into charred husks.

His movements were agile as he wove around Yang Shanshan and Jiang Yuanjie, ensuring they would not be attacked by the Gray Wolves and apes.

Corpse after corpse of Gray Wolves and apes fell at Mu Qing's feet.

His eyes were filled with thick baleful energy, and as white-hot lightning crackled from his arms, several more Gray Wolves were reduced to charred remains.

Not long after, the group finally charged out of the valley.

Although the experience had been incredibly perilous, the harvest was quite rich. The green plant in Jiang Yuanjie's hand alone held over a dozen Vermilion Fruit!

A single Vermilion Fruit had been enough for Mu Qing and Ling Fei to break through; one could only imagine the value of what they held!

"Is Ling Fei going to be alright?" Jiang Yuanjie asked, worried.

"He should be fine. I know his character; he wouldn't do something if he wasn't sure he could handle it," Mu Qing said, though in reality, he was just trying to comfort the others.

However, everything on Lake Heart Island was under the observation of the school teachers. Even if Ling Fei were truly in danger, the teachers would surely intervene.

Thinking of this, Mu Qing felt a weight lift from his heart.

"You lot, stop right there!"

Just as Mu Qing and the others were about to leave, a cold, chilling voice suddenly rang out.

In the nearby woods, several figures rushed out, the leaders among them wearing cold, mocking smiles.

Mu Qing's pupils constricted; the faces of these people were all too familiar—they were none other than Liu Tianyu, Wang Haixuan, and their group.

The injuries Liu Tianyu had previously sustained were already seven or eight parts healed, thanks to the presence of Song Yalan, which allowed them to recover rapidly after being wounded.

Liu Tianyu's eyes were immediately drawn to the emerald plant in Jiang Yuanjie's hand, which bore over a dozen Vermilion Fruit; even from a great distance, one could smell their fragrance.

"Mu Qing!"

Wang Haixuan's gaze remained fixed on Mu Qing, his eyes filled with killing intent.

"I didn't expect that after all our hard work, we'd end up picking up the scraps left by you," Liu Tianyu said with a sudden laugh, though the smile was chillingly cold.

Mu Qing let out a cold snort and said, "That's just because you're useless."

"That was supposed to be our prize; it's time for it to return to its rightful owners." Deep within Liu Tianyu's eyes lay greed as he stared at the Vermilion Fruit.

He had originally thought he wouldn't be able to obtain the fruit, and out of sheer unwillingness to give up, he had led his group to wait outside the valley for a while, never expecting that Mu Qing and the others would emerge with the harvest.

This result was undoubtedly a source of great joy for him.

Right now, as long as he seized the Vermilion Fruit from Mu Qing and his group, he could still break through to the eighth stage of Blood Qi while avoiding a direct confrontation with the two beast leaders—it was killing two birds with one stone.

Beside him, Wang Haixuan's eyes also began to burn with fervor.

He had learned about the Vermilion Fruit from Liu Tianyu and knew clearly that the energy within a single fruit was enough to allow someone at the sixth stage of Blood Qi to break through.

With over a dozen fruits in Jiang Yuanjie's hands, there was more than enough for both him and Liu Tianyu to reach the eighth stage of Blood Qi.

He felt secretly excited; this was a treasure that money couldn't buy, and within the entire Hangzhou City, perhaps only the Lake Heart Island at West Lake High School possessed such a rarity.

Special plants like the Vermilion Fruit that could enhance one's strength could only be found by venturing into the territories of fierce beasts.

If they ever appeared on the market, they would be snatched up the moment they went on sale.

With their eyes burning with greed, Liu Tianyu and Wang Haixuan led their dozen or so students to gradually surround them, clearly having no intention of letting them leave.

Mu Qing's expression turned slightly grim, and he whispered to Jiang Yuanjie and Yang Shanshan, "You two go; I'll hold them off."

These words were exactly the same as what Ling Fei had said earlier!

Although Ling Fei appeared rough on the outside, he was meticulous in his thinking; he had likely anticipated this situation and thus had Mu Qing take Yang Shanshan and Jiang Yuanjie instead of staying behind with him to deal with the two beast leaders.

"They have so many people, you..." Yang Shanshan grew anxious, her pretty face filled with worry.

At this moment, she had shed her usual habit of targeting Mu Qing and was genuinely concerned.

"Don't worry! I can hold them off by myself; I'll be fine!" Mu Qing smiled, though his expression appeared even colder than Liu Tianyu's had earlier.

"Alright! Let's go!"

Having spent this time with Mu Qing, Jiang Yuanjie understood his terrifying strength and inexplicably trusted that Mu Qing could handle the current predicament.

He nodded, then led Yang Shanshan toward the hidden cave where they had previously taken shelter.

"You think you're leaving?"

Seeing Jiang Yuanjie trying to get away with the Vermilion Fruit, one of Liu Tianyu's henchmen turned cold and lunged forward, attempting to intercept him.

This man was at the sixth stage of Blood Qi, making him quite powerful among the students.

However, before he could reach Jiang Yuanjie and the others, Mu Qing shifted his footing and appeared directly in front of him.

"Urgh."

The man was stunned, staring at Mu Qing before him, and before he could even react, streaks of searing white lightning exploded violently against his chest.

He spat out a mouthful of blood as if his life depended on it, his face filled with disbelief, while the clothes on his chest were completely shredded and charred black.

With a thud, he collapsed to the ground, his breathing shallow.

This was a full-force strike from an enraged Mu Qing; he hadn't held back in the slightest.

"What?"

Liu Tianyu and the others were shocked.

That was a top-tier student at the sixth stage of Blood Qi with formidable strength; even for the two of them, defeating him would require some time.

Yet, Mu Qing had taken him out in a single blow!

"Could this guy have already reached the eighth stage of Blood Qi?"

Some students from the North Campus speculated, horrified by what they had just witnessed.

Even the teachers watching from the shadows appeared, moving to take the man Mu Qing had struck away.

The teacher had already realized that the man had been beaten half to death by Mu Qing and might die if not treated immediately.

However, he did not interfere in the conflict between Mu Qing and Liu Tianyu's group, simply departing quickly with the half-dead student.

High above the crowd, another teacher remained to observe the situation.

As for Ji Xiangfeng, he was nowhere to be found.