Old Third Zhang's screams had long ceased.

Yu Xian panted heavily, only stopping when he had exhausted the Spiritual Qi from his seven-foot Qi Sea.

With a flip of his hand, he grasped two Spirit Stones and quickly absorbed them.

In the deep pit ahead, only some remnants and fragments were left.

Old Third Zhang's entire body had been completely blasted to pieces!

The second steward had been killed by him...

Yu Xian took a few steps forward, gathered the remains, and picked up Old Third Zhang's storage pouch and the charred Floating Light Mirror.

This Floating Light Mirror was also a second-tier Magical Treasure, primarily focused on defense.

When you're just trying to make great content at pawread.com .

It could easily withstand ordinary spell attacks.

However, Yu Xian's spell techniques were too numerous, and after a series of bombardments, he forcefully broke through its protective light shield and ultimately killed Old Third Zhang.

Poor Old Third Zhang, at the mid-Qi Condensation stage with a five-foot Qi Sea, didn't even have a chance to fight back, taking hits until he was beaten to death.

"Go!"

After putting away the storage pouch and the slightly damaged but repairable Floating Light Mirror, Yu Xian looked at the gathered remains in the pit, let out a low shout, and waved his hand to cast two Fire Serpent Techniques.

Sizzling sounds filled the air.

The flesh and blood charred as the two fire serpents continuously writhed, quickly reducing the remains to a pile of ashes.

Yu Xian had become increasingly adept at destroying evidence.

This time, since the remains were thoroughly burned, he let the mountain wind scatter the ashes, returning to his dwelling as if nothing had happened.

Upon inspecting Old Third Zhang's storage pouch, he found it nearly empty; all his possessions had been bribed to Huang Hanxiao.

Only a bottle of elixirs, about ten Spirit Stones, three Scorching Sun Essence Stones, and some spell scrolls remained, not even a single Talismanic Treasure.

However, the bottle of elixirs contained Sea-Expanding Pills, the same ones Yu Xian had just consumed.

It was clear that Old Third Zhang also intended to expand his Qi Sea to increase his Spiritual Qi capacity.

But now, those Sea-Expanding Pills belonged to Yu Xian.

Another steward had disappeared from the Scorching Sun Mining Area, and this time, the higher-ups would surely investigate, given that two stewards had vanished in just over half a month.

So Yu Xian carefully hid the two storage pouches and waited for the situation to unfold.

He had killed, but without evidence, who would know?

Who could do anything to him?

Calming his mind, Yu Xian took out the Earth Spirit Pill again.

Tonight, he would break through!

In the world of cultivation, only one's realm was the true path to survival and protection.

Clearing his mind of distractions, he focused and closed his eyes.

Moments later, Yu Xian raised his hand, not even looking, and directly placed the Earth Spirit Pill into his mouth.

Boom!

The sound of boiling water exploding echoed in Yu Xian's ears, and his entire body's Spiritual Qi boiled at that moment!

The Wood Spiritual Root emitted a faint glow, connecting from the Dantian to the Heavenly Spirit, continuously absorbing the sudden surge of powerful medicinal energy.

Simultaneously, the Dantian twisted, the fiery heat of the medicinal energy pulling it once more.

The Qi Sea expanded to eight feet!

Eight feet five inches, nine feet!

The Dantian twisted, no longer expanding.

Nine feet...

Yu Xian didn't know why, but nine feet felt unsatisfying. Gritting his teeth, he took out the Sea-Expanding Pill he had obtained from Old Third Zhang and, without hesitation, placed it in his mouth!

The medicinal power of the Sea-Expanding Pill and the Earth Spirit Pill erupted simultaneously, twisting the Dantian once more.

This forceful, brutal, and violent twisting of the Dantian, tearing and expanding it, was indescribably painful.

Yu Xian let out a muffled groan, sweat pouring from his body, enduring with gritted teeth.

Nine feet one inch, nine feet two inches... one zhang!

The Qi Sea finally expanded to one zhang and stopped.

The Dantian had reached its limit!

Further expansion would likely tear and shatter the Dantian, and at that point, there would be nothing to cry about.

Yu Xian instead began to suppress the effects of the Sea-Expanding Pill with all his might, desperately controlling the Dantian to prevent further expansion.

At the same time, the effects of the Earth Spirit Pill began to take effect within the Qi Sea.

The mass of Qi Condensation, like clouds and rain, quickly liquefied, transforming into a deep green pool within the one-zhang Qi Sea.

This pool of green water was entirely composed of highly concentrated liquefied Spiritual Qi.

A one-zhang Qi Sea!

Mid-Qi Condensation stage!

Yu Xian absorbed fifteen Spirit Stones in succession, filling the Qi Sea, and continued to suppress the effects of the Sea-Expanding Pill until the medicinal power subsided. Only then did he exhale slowly and open his eyes, a gleam flashing within them.

After two months of cultivation, struggle, and even killing for treasures and consuming elixirs, he had finally stepped into the mid-Qi Condensation stage!

And with his realm reaching the mid-Qi Condensation stage.

He could finally learn and cultivate some of the more powerful spell techniques he had obtained from Zhao Mulin.

It was known that powerful spell techniques naturally consumed a lot of energy.

If Yu Xian had attempted to learn those spells during his early Qi Condensation stage, just forming the hand seals would have drained his Qi Sea instantly, let alone casting the spells.

But now, he had enough Spiritual Qi.

The liquefied Spiritual Qi in a one-zhang Qi Sea contained more than fifty times the Spiritual Qi of his early Qi Condensation stage.

With the current amount of Spiritual Qi, if he cast the Minor Fireball Technique, Yu Xian could even cast it continuously, as the rate of absorbing Spiritual Qi matched the rate of consumption!

After a brief rest, Yu Xian took out a scroll.

The Fire Flood Dragon Grand Technique.

This was far stronger than the Minor Fireball Technique or even the Fire Serpent Technique!

Yu Xian raised his hand, formed the hand seals, and began cultivating.

The night quickly passed.

Yu Xian had gained some initial insights into the Fire Flood Dragon Grand Technique, but to fully master it would take another five to seven days.

The next day, Yu Xian went about his routine, picking up his Mining Blade and heading to the abandoned mine cave to search for ores.

He didn't have many Spirit Stones, so he still needed to work to ensure a steady supply.

Moreover, now that he had a storage pouch and his cultivation had reached the mid-Qi Condensation stage, he could mine without any concerns.

With the guidance of the Jade Pendant, Yu Xian believed he could soon gather dozens of Scorching Sun Essence Stones to exchange for Spirit Stones.

Steward Old Third Zhang had disappeared...

It was Liu Xue who discovered this and quickly reported it to Huang Hanxiao.

In just over half a month, two stewards had disappeared from the Scorching Sun Mining Area!

Huang Hanxiao had no choice but to take it seriously!

But like Zhao Mulin, Old Third Zhang had vanished without a trace, leaving no information behind, as if he had disappeared into thin air, making it impossible to investigate.

However, Old Third Zhang had no reason to flee with the ores.

Moreover, he had just become a steward and didn't even have a few Scorching Sun Essence Ores in hand.

Something was amiss; Old Third Zhang was likely dead.

The prime suspects were Sun Bingcheng and Liu Xue.

These two had spent a lot but didn't become managers. If they harbored resentment and teamed up to kill Old Third Zhang and destroy the evidence, it wasn't impossible!

Standing in the room, Huang Hanxiao's expression was indifferent as he pondered.

Sun Bingcheng and Liu Xue stood behind Huang Hanxiao, completely unaware that he was already suspicious of them.

"What do you think happened to Old Third Zhang?"

Huang Hanxiao turned his head, looking at the two with a half-smile.

"Well, Senior Brother Huang, we don't know either."

The two were at a loss.

If we knew where Old Third Zhang was, why would we come to you?

"Oh! Right!"

Liu Xue suddenly slapped his forehead and quickly said, "Senior Brother Huang, do you remember that Yu Xian?"

"Hmm? That kid hasn't left yet?"

Huang Hanxiao's eyes immediately filled with anger as he said, "What's going on with you two? Do you want to leave too!?"

For those who didn't listen to him, he naturally had ways to deal with them!

"Well, Senior Brother Huang, that kid has been rather lucky. Last month, he handed in another Scorching Sun Essence Stone, so Old Third Zhang really had no excuse to drive him away."

Liu Xue quickly waved his hand, explaining swiftly.

At the same time, he added meaningfully, "And because of this, Old Third Zhang mentioned a few days ago that he would personally deal with that kid. So, is it possible that Old Third Zhang's disappearance is that kid's doing?"