In this situation, even using the void might be difficult for Richard, since some people could practically monitor vast areas.

If he ran out of Aether while inside the void and reappeared, those people could immediately chase him.

Grace was clearly aware that Richard wouldn't be able to rely on his Void power.

He needed another strategy to escape.

But aside from strategy, she had a trump card. After all, there were two items in her pocket that stored the power of a Grand Sovereign.

"You can relax," Richard answered.

If there was no other choice, he would use one of those items.

Of course, he still hoped there would be another way.

As time passed, he gathered even more Nature Spirits.

Perhaps when it reached more than 80%, he decided to summon back all the Shadow Monsters he had sent out.

Grace also recalled all her shadows.

Apparently, she did not hesitate at all to hand over every ring belonging to her shadows to Richard.

Maybe she was leaving it to him to decide how to divide them—something Richard still hadn't decided.

But what he concluded was that there were at least more than 1.3 billion Nature Spirits.

Rumble!

Suddenly, there was a tremor above.

Richard narrowed his eyes slightly, observing with his waves only to discover that several people had begun digging downward.

If they dug too deep, they wouldn't dare, since it could collapse and bury the hole they made.

But as long as it wasn't too deep, it would be fine.

"Grace, get inside!" Richard said.

Grace nodded. But she summoned her Red Knight Tree first before entering the Dragon Hall.

At this moment, Richard realized that several Sixth Senses from powerful figures capable of reaching his location had already begun locking onto him.

Because of that, he decided to move deeper into the lower area of the mine while collecting the remaining scattered Nature Spirits.

Gathering a hundred million was still doable because there were still plenty.

Even after he gathered up to 100 million, he felt there were still around 400 million left. It was still an extremely high number.

Crack!

The ground above finally split open by a massive hand tearing it apart.

Richard saw that it was done by a member of the Dark Abyss Clan, Ronan Darkabyss.

Beside him stood the old man who had spoken to him earlier.

And Richard saw many people—truly many. He even saw Gray along with the old man possessing earth power, who now only had one leg left and was glaring at Richard full of hatred.

But compared to him, Richard was even more surprised when he saw a handsome blond youth.

He stood out far more than the others.

Who else if not Charles Holylight.

Richard had not expected him to come as well. He was now together with Luke and the others. Even though Luke was the youngest grandson of a Great Ancestor of the Order of the Crimson Veil, he still couldn't surpass Charles's status.

Others observed the mine first, but Charles directly stared at Richard.

"This mine has only a little left," someone said.

"Yes, based on the phenomenon, it should be five times larger than this."

"Did Richard take that much in such a short time?"

"Boy, turns out you have quite the guts," Roland shouted with greedy eyes as he looked at Richard.

In fact, the people seemed far more greedy when looking at him. Because they knew he carried far more Nature Spirits than the mine itself.

Richard acted as if he didn't hear Roland's words.

He smiled at the people staring at him.

"Gentlemen, nothing good will come if you choose to fight me. What I obtained is the result of my own effort. I won't blame you if you wish to rob me, but I don't think any of you are willing to bear the risk." He said.

"Hmph, hmph, boy, you kidnapped our young master and clan members, even my younger brother. Do you think you can just walk away?" the old man from the Dark Abyss Clan said.

"Boy, our business isn't finished," added the elder from the Order of the Peak World.

Gray, being a member of the same Order, looked as if he wanted to say something to him, but hesitated because the other party was an elder.

"So you're Richard?" Another voice spoke.

He was a thin yet tall old man. A unique feature was the pair of lightning wings on his back.

And he suddenly appeared behind the members of the Thundervale Clan.

His appearance worried even the Dark Abyss members because his aura was so oppressive despite his thin frame.

'A Ruler,' Richard thought.

The old man's aura was no weaker than Master Alex from the Holy Star Kingdom. How could he still be a Lord?

"Boy, hand over all the Nature Spirits you've gathered, and I will guarantee your safety. I'll even escort you home," he continued.

Someone like Ronan was forced into silence the moment he spoke.

"Ehm. Old man, I don't know who you are, but this is my clan's territory. Isn't it too much to take everything for yourself?" Suddenly another voice responded.

This time, it was a man who didn't even look like he had reached middle age.

He had black hair and a handsome face.

His aura was calm yet somehow even more threatening.

The Dark Abyss Clan members looked pleased when they saw him.

"Clan Head!" several of them greeted.

On the other side, Richard rolled his eyes, shaking his head slightly.

So many had come. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Normally, Rulers shouldn't get involved, because their battles could destroy the mine—unless they were alone.

But perhaps since most of the Nature Spirits were already in Richard's hands, they felt it was safe to fight over them.

After all, as long as they captured him, they would obtain everything.

The old man from the Thundervale Clan stared at the Dark Abyss Clan's Clan Head, knitting his brows.

In terms of strength, he seemed to realize that he was inferior.

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