After hiding the Golems beneath the lava, Li Xiuman flew over to the mineral deposit in the center of the lava lake without any lingering worries.
The scorching air and splashing lava in his surroundings had absolutely no effect on him.
Having mastered the [Flame Devouring] skill, this extremely high-temperature environment actually provided him with a tiny amount of mana.
He pried up an exposed chunk of ore from beneath his feet and examined it closely.
Although it was just a piece of raw molten iron ore, its quality was quite high.
It seemed this might actually be a high-quality molten fine iron ore vein.
As he ventured deeper, more and more exposed ore came into view.
At the center of the deposit, a natural mine cave sloped downward, leading deep into the bottom of the vein.
Although this area had previously been submerged in lava, the magma inside this cave had been drained completely.
Did this mean the end of the cave connected to an outlet, which was how the lava had drained?
Li Xiuman pondered for a moment, picked up several pieces of raw molten iron ore, and cast Create Golem.
A lifelike iron cat materialized, sprawling in his arms.
“Go on ahead.”
Li Xiuman tossed the little cat forward and pointed toward the cave.
Receiving the command, the iron cat did not hesitate. It walked ahead of Li Xiuman, stepping into the cave.
Li Xiuman gripped his wand and followed the iron cat, keeping his guard up as he scanned his surroundings.
He examined their environment.
Iron ore of various sizes protruded from the rocky walls of the natural cave.
As they went deeper, fine iron ore began to appear sporadically among the iron ore.
In other words, molten fine iron.
The appeal of this ore to Li Xiuman increased significantly.
He drew his skeleton sword, attempting to mine the larger, higher-quality pieces.
“Meow~”
A sharp cat meow echoed.
The iron cat walking ahead seemed to have spotted something, crying out not far in front of him.
Installing a voice function on this cat had actually cost Li Xiuman a massive amount of effort.
Even if it was just a simple meow.
But one had to realize that even Zero had not been equipped with this cutting-edge voice technology.
No, no, no, this was not the time to be distracted by such trivial matters.
Rather, it was about what the iron cat had discovered.
Li Xiuman casually swept the tip of his wand across his left arm, and a Stone Shield instantly formed upon it.
Then, with his sword in one hand and his wand in the other, he cautiously approached the iron cat's position.
Just as he drew near, the iron cat seemed to get startled by something and suddenly charged forward.
But a split second later, a claw pinned it to the ground like a helpless toy, leaving it unable to move.
Li Xiuman's expression turned serious.
Although the iron cat looked like it was only good for acting cute, it still possessed [Great Strength Lv.2] and [Swiftness Lv.2].
Yet it had been subdued in a single instant.
The owner of the claw gradually emerged from the concealment of the darkness.
Its body was composed of black iron, with a row of protruding ores running along its spine.
[Race] Ore Wolf
[Level] Lv.27
[Class] Monster Golem
[Status] Autonomous
[Description] A Golem naturally formed from wild ores. Typically found in high-grade mineral deposits, it possesses extremely high elemental and physical resistance, and is immune to mental damage. Highly dangerous.
“A wild Ore Golem!”
“Isn't this just a molten fine iron ore vein? Why would something like this be here?”
Li Xiuman was inwardly shocked.
Ore Beasts only appeared in high-grade mineral deposits.
But a molten fine iron ore vein was only a low-grade deposit; it shouldn't have the energy required to generate an Ore Beast.
Could it be that the depths of this cave didn't contain a molten fine iron ore vein, but some even rarer mineral instead?
And the molten fine iron ore was merely an associated mineral of that rarer ore.
If that was the case, judging by this Ore Beast's level, that rare mineral deposit might have only generated an Ore Beast recently.
Perhaps he had a chance to claim it for himself.
High-tier, precious minerals always commanded astronomical prices on the market.
As essential materials for crafting high-level magic items, no amount was ever enough.
Furthermore, even setting the minerals aside.
The Ore Beast in front of him was a treasure in its own right.
Its body was composed of perfectly refined fine iron, and studying it could yield a vast amount of Golem knowledge.
After all, every Ore Beast was naturally formed, each operating on different theoretical principles.
Every single one contained entirely new insights into Golem construction.
For a Golem crafter, its body was a priceless, walking textbook.
Moreover, the Golem Core that maintained their prolonged existence could greatly extend the duration and boost the power of any created Golems.
If this were a fully matured Ore Beast, a skeleton of Li Xiuman's current level wouldn't dare harbor any designs on it.
But the Ore Beast before him had only recently been born.
He was deeply tempted.
“Roar, roar, roar...”
The Ore Wolf lowered its body, baring its mouth of steel teeth as it let out a low, threatening growl.
Beneath its claw, the iron cat began to splinter apart bit by bit with a sharp crack, unable to withstand the overwhelming pressure.
Li Xiuman tightened his grip, crossing his wand and skeleton sword together as his eyes locked onto the Ore Wolf's movements.
The air fell dead silent.
“Crack.”
With that sharp sound, the iron cat shattered completely into pieces.
Simultaneously, the Ore Wolf bounded forward, charging straight at Li Xiuman.
“Fireball!”
Instantly casting Tier 1 Magic, a magic circle snapped open, and a massive fireball shot toward the Ore Wolf.
The Ore Wolf leaped into the air, opening its iron jaws to bite down on the fireball.
The fireball was instantly crushed in its bite, splattering like a squished orange.
Completely unaffected, the Ore Wolf's iron body burst through the flames, lunging to bite Li Xiuman.
Li Xiuman retreated hastily, putting distance between them.
But immediately after, chunks of iron ore on the ground transformed into spikes, thrusting toward his retreating body.
“It can manipulate the ores in this cave?”
He thought to himself while gathering mana.
“Earth Pillar!”
A yellow magic circle expanded, and a stone pillar shot upward, thrusting directly at the belly of the airborne Ore Wolf.
With just a few swipes of its claws, cold light flashed through the air, and the stone pillar was sliced into clean pieces.
Seizing this brief distraction, Li Xiuman flicked his wand to shatter the ore spikes behind him and dashed toward the exit of the mine shaft.
“Fireball!”
To lure the Ore Wolf into pursuing him, Li Xiuman occasionally waved his wand, tossing fireballs behind him.
The Ore Wolf's intelligence wasn't particularly high to begin with, and it had only been born recently.
It was quickly provoked by Li Xiuman's teasing and relentlessly gave chase.
The two figures ran one after the other, hurtling through the rather narrow mine tunnel.
As they fled, the surrounding ore on all sides would occasionally thrust out under the Ore Wolf's control, attempting to slow Li Xiuman down.
Inside this tunnel, the Ore Beast held an absolute home-ground advantage. Soon, the constant obstructions brought the wolf dangerously close to catching up to him.
“Dragonization!”
Li Xiuman swiftly activated Dragonization. With a massive surge to his Strength and Constitution, he completely ignored the surrounding ores and began to rampagingly crash through the mine tunnel.
“Create Golem!”
A massive yellow magic circle expanded from his wand.
Instantly, ores of various sizes detached from the stone walls, escaping the Ore Wolf's control to form Golems of all shapes and sizes.
These Golems were created rapidly in mass numbers, making them extremely weak.
However, as they swarmed the Ore Wolf—grabbing, hugging, gnawing, and biting—they successfully slowed the beast's relentless pursuit for a moment.
Rate on N.U.
