Chapter 167: Mutated Mine Cave

The entrance of the mine cave was covered in a silver mist. Sunlight shone down, reflecting a dazzling rainbow of colors. It looked beautiful.

But the more beautiful it was, the more dangerous it seemed.

Xu Feng walked toward the mine cave. The closer he got, the more uneasy he felt. It did not look like an abandoned mine cave but like a giant beast crouching on the ground, its mouth wide open, waiting for Xu Feng to walk right into its trap.

Standing three meters away from the mine cave, Xu Feng suddenly stopped. He wiped his forehead and realized it was covered in sweat. He felt startled. The earlier palpitations had made him panic. This mine cave was too dangerous, and he had unknowingly gotten so close to it.

Thump, thump, thump—

Xu Feng quickly stepped back. When he looked at the mine cave again, his eyes were filled with fear.

His instincts had warned him, but he had still walked forward. It felt as though something had been pulling him along that path, making him lose all self-awareness. If he had not snapped out of it at the last moment, he would probably…

Insight Skill!

Item Name: Mutated Mine Cave, Four Stars. Attribute: A mine cave that has developed a slight instinctive consciousness. It possesses living characteristics and can devour any living being that enters.

Xu Feng was shocked. The mine cave before him was actually alive—it was terrifying.

In his past life, Xu Feng had seen intelligent plants and beasts, but he had never heard of stones or rivers gaining consciousness. Today, a mine cave with intelligence stood before him, shaking him to the core.

“If it’s alive, then I should treat it like a monster. No need to panic like this,” Xu Feng thought to himself, taking a deep breath.

“Flying Sword, come out!”

Xu Feng moved away from the mine cave and used the Flying Sword Technique to strike at the entrance.

The Flying Sword danced around the entrance but did not dare to fly inside. That was the entrance that could devour all living beings. Xu Feng was afraid that if the sword entered the mine cave, it would be like throwing meat to a dog—gone forever.

Xu Feng’s actions did not look like he was attacking the mine cave but more like he was cutting down a mountain. Rocks kept falling at the entrance, trees broke, and soon the entrance was buried.

Bang!

The Flying Sword seemed to hit something extremely hard. Sparks flew everywhere, and the sword was flung back.

Roar!

A deep roar came from inside the mine cave. The piled-up rocks and broken wood at the entrance were blown outward by a powerful burst of air, shooting in all directions like cannonballs.

Xu Feng raised his right hand, and the Flying Sword returned to him. He swung it left and right, blocking the incoming rocks and wood. Then he looked toward the mine cave.

A dark brown passage, over four meters wide, appeared before Xu Feng. Its surface was covered in wrinkles and trembled slightly, making a crunching, grinding sound. It looked like a giant insect made of dark brown rock, with the mine cave entrance as its mouth.

A white mark appeared on the dark brown rock—a wound about a foot long and half an inch deep. A sticky, transparent liquid slowly oozed out, covering the injury.

“This must be the true form of the Mutated Mine Cave!” Xu Feng thought, feeling a bit of lingering fear. Anger rose inside him. This Mutated Mine Cave had the ability to bewitch people. Earlier, Xu Feng had sensed the danger but still walked toward it involuntarily. If he had not snapped awake at the last moment, he would have become the mine cave’s food, swallowed whole.

Thinking of this, Xu Feng felt a surge of rage. He controlled the Flying Sword and slashed at the mine cave.

Bang, bang, bang!

A series of impact sounds rang out. Numbers floated above the giant dark brown insect’s head, showing damage.

Only then did Xu Feng see the Mutated Mine Cave’s Health Points. It actually had fifty thousand Health Points. Xu Feng was stunned. Fortunately, if he did not enter the mine cave, he was safe. As long as he attacked from a distance and did not let the sword fly inside, it was like hitting a stationary target. No matter how high its Health Points were, it did not matter.

The Mutated Mine Cave let out low, muffled roars, as if it were furious. Its dark brown body trembled slightly, like an earthquake. The mountain cracked open in huge fissures. Rocks, soil, and broken trees slid down, covering the Mutated Mine Cave’s body.

Xu Feng sneered inwardly. Did it really think such a method could stop his attacks? How ridiculous.

The Flying Sword Technique not only used less of Xu Feng’s energy but also greatly increased his attack range. Xu Feng kept slashing, breaking all the rocks and wood into small pieces. Soon, the Mutated Mine Cave’s body was exposed again.

A shrill cry came from inside the mine cave. To Xu Feng, it sounded like the mine cave had run out of tricks.

Plop!

A palm-sized piece of ore with a silvery glow flew out from the mine cave entrance and landed near Xu Feng’s feet.

Xu Feng looked down. It was raw ore, dotted with sparkling golden specks, but the main body was a dark silver stone.

He picked it up and saw it was a rare treasure.

“Item Attribute: Mutated Broken Gold Ore, Rare Treasure, Attribute: Can be used in Forging!”

It was a simple description, but it was very different from ordinary ores. Ordinary ores had attributes like “Quality: X,” but this ore was directly labeled as a rare treasure.

The Flying Sword that had been attacking the Mutated Mine Cave flew back with a whoosh. It hovered around the ore in Xu Feng’s hand. Xu Feng felt a happy emotion from it—the Flying Sword seemed to really like this ore.

Xu Feng smiled slightly and tossed the ore into the air. The Flying Sword tremb lightly, let out a soft hum, and pounced on the Broken Gold Ore.

Crunch, crunch—

The Mutated Broken Gold Ore quickly turned into fine powder and was absorbed by the Flying Sword. The originally silver long sword now had a faint golden pattern on its surface.

The Flying Sword danced around joyfully but also seemed a bit unsatisfied, wanting more.

“Haha, if you want more, then work harder!” Xu Feng laughed and pointed at the mine cave.

The Flying Sword let out a whoosh and turned into a sword shadow over three feet long. With a loud boom, it struck the top of the mine cave. The power seemed to have increased by thirty percent.

“Thinking one piece of ore is enough to send us away? It’s not that easy…” Xu Feng murmured to himself.

The Mutated Mine Cave seemed to grow even angrier. The entire small mountain began to shake slightly, as if the sky were falling.

But Xu Feng remained completely unfazed.

Swift Wind Thrust!

Boom, boom, boom!

A piece of the Mutated Mine Cave’s body was chopped off by the Flying Sword—a huge chunk of dark brown rock, about one meter square, rolled down.

Buzz—

The Flying Sword hovered in the air, its tip pointing toward the Mutated Mine Cave, trembling slightly.

Plop, plop, plop!

Three more pieces of Mutated Broken Gold Ore flew out. The Flying Sword let out a soft chime, leaving afterimages as it shattered all three ores into powder and absorbed them.

After absorbing them, the Flying Sword seemed full. It shook suddenly, as if letting out a burp, then whooshed back into Xu Feng’s body. It traveled to his Dantian, turned into a small sphere the size of a fingernail, and settled down, motionless.

For a moment, Xu Feng was dumbfounded.