He Qianyao heard Ding Fan's words, and at first was thrilled and excited to know that there were still disciples of the Dayang Sect alive. But upon hearing that the disciples were currently being held by the Wild Wolf Gang and under extremely dangerous and dire circumstances, her heart twisted with pain. The disciples of the Dayang Sect are like her family, and knowing her family is suffering greatly, how could her heart not ache?

"Ding Fan, we must rescue them! Do you know where they are being held?"

He Qianyao asked Ding Fan urgently, her eyes somewhat misty.

"I've already found out everything. They are being held at The Great Wilderness Mountain, and there are quite a few disciples of the Wild Wolf Gang there. It's not going to be easy to rescue them," Ding Fan said with a heavy expression. Ding Fan knew he had to rescue the disciples of the Dayang Sect. After all, he is the sect leader now, and even if there were only one person left from the Dayang Sect, Ding Fan would still ensure their safety, let alone when so many disciples are being held together; he must rescue them.

Moreover, Ding Fan knew he had to act quickly to rescue them as soon as possible. If he were even one day late, within that day who knows how many disciples of the Dayang Sect would perish.

This was something Ding Fan absolutely did not want to see. In Ding Fan's mind, he also missed his good brother Wang Hu, uncertain if Wang Hu was still alive or if he was also being held there, as well as others like Lianzi. When Ding Fan was at the Dayang Sect, these people were his very good friends, so naturally, he couldn't ignore their safety.

However, Ding Fan also knew he couldn't recklessly head to The Great Wilderness Mountain. From a Wild Wolf Gang disciple he had slain previously, Ding Fan had learned there were roughly over a hundred disciples there. Even if their cultivation was below his, they weren't easy to deal with, especially since he was alone. As for He Qianyao, Ding Fan didn't intend for her to go. Her cultivation is at the Late Nascent Soul Stage, which is quite good in the Cultivation World. But facing nearly one hundred disciples of the Wild Wolf Gang, it is clearly not enough.

As for Zhou Ruoran, Ding Fan certainly wouldn't let her take this risk either. Although Zhou Ruoran's cultivation was slightly higher than He Qianyao's, at the Nascent Soul Early Stage, it's clear that in such an environment even Ding Fan himself couldn't guarantee a smooth escape, let alone Zhou Ruoran.

"Ding Fan, let's go now!" At this moment, He Qianyao heard Ding Fan's words and couldn't consider whether it was dangerous; she knew she had to rescue the disciples of the Dayang Sect, they are her family!

"I will go with you, after all, the more people, the more strength!"

Zhou Ruoran, seeing He Qianyao's anxious appearance, couldn't help but feel a sense of pity. Zhou Ruoran knew some details about He Qianyao's background; evidently, those imprisoned Dayang Sect cultivators were very important to her, and of course, they were also important to Ding Fan. Zhou Ruoran had heard Ding Fan talk about matters of the Dayang Sect and understood Ding Fan and He Qianyao's current emotions very well. She said immediately.

To Zhou Ruoran, Ding Fan's affairs were her own. If Ding Fan were going to such a dangerous place, Zhou Ruoran would be very worried about him, hence wanting to join both of them.

"I'm afraid not! Although your cultivation is decent, facing over a hundred disciples of the Wild Wolf Gang is very dangerous. We don't yet know how many Emergence Stage cultivators are among the Wild Wolf Gang's disciples, but even if there aren't many, I can't guarantee your safety. I've already thought this through; I can only go by myself. You both wait for my news here."

Ding Fan looked at He Qianyao and Zhou Ruoran with a solemn expression. He understood He Qianyao's feelings very well, and also Zhou Ruoran's, but Ding Fan had already formulated a plan that wouldn't accommodate having them go along. Firstly, their safety was difficult for him to guarantee, and secondly, his plan was clearly only suitable for him alone to carry out; having more people would be inconvenient.

After Ding Fan spoke, naturally He Qianyao and Zhou Ruoran didn't want to agree, particularly He Qianyao, who was extremely agitated. Knowing the whereabouts of the Dayang Sect disciples and knowing that they are suffering, yet doing nothing, was something she absolutely couldn't accept.

But after Ding Fan's earnest persuasion, He Qianyao finally agreed, on the condition that Ding Fan promises to pay attention to his own safety, and must not let anything happen to him. To He Qianyao, Ding Fan is an almost familial brother remaining, and if something were to happen to him, she could hardly accept it. This was something she feared most.

Upon hearing He Qianyao's demand, Ding Fan solemnly promised to comply. He Qianyao was persuaded by Ding Fan, and afterwards, Zhou Ruoran also agreed after Ding Fan's persuasion. Zhou Ruoran and He Qianyao's demands were similar: Ding Fan must prioritize his own safety before rescuing the Dayang Sect disciples. To Zhou Ruoran, Ding Fan was the most important.

Zhou Ruoran trusted Ding Fan; Ding Fan surely loved her and wouldn't let her live alone in the world. Ding Fan, of course, promised Zhou Ruoran without hesitation and assured her she had nothing to worry about; he certainly would be fine.

After persuading the two, Ding Fan couldn't stay for a moment longer and headed directly towards The Great Wilderness Mountain...

On the way to The Great Wilderness Mountain, Ding Fan took a Disguise Pill, and in no time, his appearance changed into that of Gao Feng, the middle-aged man Ding Fan had killed earlier. Ding Fan had learned from another cultivator of the Wild Wolf Gang that Gao Feng was the main steward of The Great Wilderness Mountain. Thus, Ding Fan devised a plan and pretended to be this Senior Steward. He knew he had just killed that Senior Steward, and it was clear the Wild Wolf Gang wouldn't know for a while.

After completing the disguise, Ding Fan took out a set of Wild Wolf Gang clothes and put them on. At this moment, Ding Fan looked completely like Gao Feng, without a single flaw.

Then Ding Fan checked his new appearance, a heavy killing intent flashed in his eyes, and the corners of his mouth curled up evilly. He then walked towards The Great Wilderness Mountain, riding on his flying sword with Sword Control. Ding Fan estimated that it would take less than a day for him to reach The Great Wilderness Mountain...

...

The Great Wilderness Mountain.

In a spirit stone ore vein, a group of men with hunched bodies and sweat-drenched skin wield axes, constantly chiseling and hammering, surrounded by rubble of varying sizes.

Beside a massive ore, several men wearing similar clothes to the rest, drenched with sweat, their clothes tattered, continued to extract spirit stones with axes, while warily observing the surroundings and whispering.

"My brothers have already observed the south; that place is indeed the weakest in defense; we can act from there!" This young man, with determined eyes, whispered to a middle-aged man beside him who appeared to be working earnestly, while cautiously scanning the surroundings, especially the few disciples of the Wild Wolf Gang standing high on a mound.

If Ding Fan were here, he would be delighted to recognize this young man as his good brother, Wang Hu, although Wang Hu had clearly lost a lot of weight and had visible scars through his tattered clothes.

The middle-aged man next to Wang Hu brightened upon hearing his words, feeling a rush of excitement, seemingly envisioning the free sky outside. Not only did this man feel thrilled, but the disciples of the Dayang Sect on both sides of Wang Hu also felt a surge of joy upon hearing his words. Their suffering here had been unbearable, knowing that escaping this nightmare would be a dream come true!

Apparently, Wang Hu was surrounded by disciples of the Dayang Sect. And not only the few surrounding him, there were about fifty disciples of the Dayang Sect currently scattered in this vast Spirit Stone Mountain Mine extracting spirit stones. Originally, there were three hundred Dayang Sect disciples here, who had been forcibly fed a Poison Pill and a Medicine Pill sealing the True Qi within their bodies.

Of course, the manual laborers here included not only Dayang Sect disciples but also disciples from other sects captured by the Wild Wolf Gang. These cultivators shared the same fate as the Dayang Sect disciples, having to receive antidote pills from Wild Wolf Gang cultivators every night just to survive until the next day, then work again before dawn to prevent their escape.

This meant if anyone managed to escape fortunately, without the antidote, they would still die in the wilderness. These cultivators had ingested True Qi sealing pills, rendering Nascent Soul Stage cultivators or Emergence Stage cultivators to mere ordinary people, relying only on their physical strength for labor, an indescribable hardship.

Each day, they could only sleep for three hours and have one meal, which consisted of cold water and moldy vegetables. Even animals ate better than this, with nearly four hundred prisoners like the Dayang Sect disciples here, although a month ago there were nearly eight hundred, now only over four hundred remained, with almost ten dying each day from starvation or overwork.

This place was more terrifying than hell itself, with dozens of cultivators dying monthly, replaced by over a hundred newly captured by the Wild Wolf Gang, many of whom were ordinary people without enmity towards the gang, yet several hundred bodies are taken out monthly, dying tragically in the wilderness!

To these Wild Wolf Gang prisoners, this was hell, even worse than hell itself.

Many captured cultivators gave up escaping days after arrival, knowing they couldn't neutralize the poison within them even if they managed to escape. Therefore, they could only hope to survive a few more days here...