Chapter 119 - 115: Spirit Stone Crystal Core
Inside the mine, Jiang Kui was poring over a thick ledger, while Fang Qingyuan stood to the side with a serene look on his face.
But the faint smile playing on his lips betrayed his true feelings.
For the past six months, when Fang Qingyuan wasn’t meditating to recover from the drain on his spirit, he was down in the mines digging. Eventually, he even passed the chore of cooking for the Spirit Dogs and Shrimp Turtle Beasts to Jinbao.
As a result, his cultivation speed had slowed considerably over the past six months.
It would normally take five years to perfect his cultivation at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, but that was a speed achievable only on a Second-rank Middle-grade Spiritual Land. Down in the mine, he couldn’t match that pace.
Fang Qingyuan had calculated that, cultivating in this mine, he would need at least eight years to perfect his cultivation at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer.
Once a Cultivator entered the Late-stage Qi Refining, their progress slowed drastically. Advancing a single layer in five years was considered a good pace.
For someone with a Lower-grade Spirit Root, it would take at least fifteen years of arduous cultivation at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer just to have a glimmer of hope of reaching the Eighth-Layer Qi Cultivation.
Currently, the Wood Spirit Root he primarily focused on was no longer his highest-aptitude element. This had Fang Qingyuan constantly agonizing over whether he should switch to a different Cultivation Technique.
But switching Cultivation Techniques was not something to be done lightly; it came with many complications. Fang Qingyuan felt it was a matter that required careful, long-term consideration.
After a long moment, Jiang Kui set down the ledger, looked at Fang Qingyuan, and said with a smile,
"I never would have guessed you were so capable. You’re worth a thousand Shrimp Turtle Beasts! But what’s this about you having nearly dug the Spirit Ore mine dry?"
Fang Qingyuan smiled at Jiang Kui’s praise and began to explain.
"It’s exactly what it sounds like. This Spirit Stone mine is depleted. Didn’t you ask me to come investigate in the first place because its production was declining?"
"At a rate of fifty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones a year, this total of one hundred and fifty thousand would only last for three years of mining. Even when we took over four years ago, production wasn’t all that high."
Hearing Fang Qingyuan’s analysis, Jiang Kui’s smile vanished. She murmured,
"If it’s all dug out... how are we going to get by?"
Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan really wanted to shout, ’So hopeless.’
But the words that came out of his mouth were:
"Don’t panic, Senior Sister. One hundred fifty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones are enough for us to live comfortably for many years. By then, we’ll surely have found another way to earn Spirit Stones."
Fang Qingyuan’s words soothed her, and the sting of losing the Spirit Stone Ore lessened, but she still couldn’t quite let it go.
’Mining is so simple,’ she thought. ’As long as you’re willing to dig, you get results. Other ways of earning Spirit Stones are fiercely competitive.’ Jiang Kui worried that they wouldn’t be able to out-compete the other sects.
With this in mind, Jiang Kui asked timidly,
"How about we find another Spirit Stone mine? You dig so fast, I don’t think we’d even need those Shrimp Turtle Beasts."
Fang Qingyuan flared up at her words. ’So she’s treating me like a workhorse, huh? I’ve played the part for six months, and that’s enough. I don’t have the time to keep this up.’
Most importantly, the Immortal Mansion was no longer benefiting much from absorbing this Spirit Vein Ore Soil.
Over the last six months, he’d moved tens of thousands of cubic units of Spirit Vein Ore Soil into the Immortal Mansion. His Earth Spirit Root aptitude had reached twenty-nine, and to raise it any further, this Spirit Vein Ore Soil was nowhere near enough. He needed to use some high-grade Spiritual Materials.
At a minimum, he needed Tier Two Spiritual Materials to see any effect, while Tier Three Spiritual Materials were required for normal progress.
And while there was a lot of Spirit Vein Ore Soil, it wasn’t a true Spiritual Material. Continuing to haul it into the Immortal Mansion was a waste of his precious cultivation time; the returns simply weren’t worth the effort.
Right now, his Wood affinity was still at twenty-nine, his Earth affinity was also twenty-nine, Water was at eighteen, and Fire at fifteen. Only his Metal affinity, being a Top-grade Spirit Root, was at thirty-one.
This was because he hadn’t been able to find any high-grade Wood-elemental Spiritual Materials for his Wood Spirit Root over the years, leaving it stuck at a plateau of twenty-nine.
If he could get his hands on some Tier Three, or even Tier Four Spiritual Materials, he was confident he could break through the bottleneck between twenty-nine and thirty and achieve a Top-grade Spirit Root.
His Metal Spirit Root, on the other hand, was constantly nourished by the Golden Spirit Power Origin from a Tier Four Nascent Soul Giant Beast, so its growth had been smooth sailing. Eight years ago, his Metal Spirit Root wasn’t even Lower-grade, but now it had leaped to become a Top-grade Spirit Root, the highest of his five elements, and its growth rate showed no signs of slowing.
At this thought, Fang Qingyuan made a decision. If he still couldn’t buy high-grade Wood-elemental Spiritual Materials, he would have to try using wood-elemental Spirit Stones instead. ’If I bury five thousand wood-elemental Spirit Stones in the Immortal Mansion, there’s no way it won’t break through!’
But for now, he had to nip Jiang Kui’s little fantasy in the bud. So, Fang Qingyuan said,
"Don’t even think about it, Senior Sister. I’ve barely been able to cultivate for the last six months, and I’m exhausted. Please don’t ask me to keep doing a job meant for Shrimp Turtle Beasts."
Hearing Fang Qingyuan’s complaint, Jiang Kui blushed faintly and said,
"It was just a thought. Spirit Stone mines aren’t that easy to come by anyway. It’s just... now that this mine is depleted, I’m worried about how we’re going to explain it to the sect."
Fang Qingyuan scoffed.
"What’s so hard to explain to the sect? They know the reserves here better than we do. If someone like Lechuan came over and did a sweep with his Divine Sense, there’d be no hiding the state of this little vein. Now that it’s tapped out, we’re saved the trouble of sending them their cut every year."
After saying this, Fang Qingyuan closed his eyes in thought for a moment, then continued,
"No, wait. We still have to send the same share to the sect as before. Twenty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones for the sect, and five thousand for Zhao Liangde. We can’t short them."
"Maintaining the status quo is our best bet. If things change and they decide to ask for more, we won’t be able to cope. As long as they don’t ask any questions, we’ll just keep paying this amount."
Jiang Kui looked at the pile of Spirit Stones behind her, her heart aching as she said,
"When we paid our dues in previous years, it didn’t hurt this much. I always felt we could just dig up more. But now... being asked to hand them over feels like you’re carving a piece of my own flesh away."
Fang Qingyuan sighed.
"It can’t be helped. We’re only on an external assignment; we haven’t left the sect. If we ever need the sect’s help in the future, we can’t afford to be stingy with these Spirit Stones."
A moment of silence passed between them before Fang Qingyuan spoke up.
"Here, Senior Sister, let me show you something."
Her attention was successfully diverted. She looked at Fang Qingyuan with curiosity, only to see him pull a Spirit Stone the size of a human head from his storage bag. The moment it appeared, it flooded the area with dense Spiritual Qi, instantly transforming the mine—which, having been depleted of its Spirit Stones, wasn’t even a Tier One Spirit Land anymore—into a place comparable to a top-grade, second-rank Spiritual Land.
"A Spirit Stone Crystal Core!"
Jiang Kui cried out in astonishment. Qi Cultivation Cultivators rarely had any use for a Spirit Stone Crystal Core. Even Foundation Establishment Cultivators typically used Middle-grade Spirit Stones. Only Golden Core and Nascent Soul Cultivators were the primary users of Spirit Stone Crystal Cores.
Fang Qingyuan chuckled and tossed the Spirit Stone Crystal Core to Jiang Kui. Only after she had caught it did he speak.
"I got lucky and dug this Spirit Stone Crystal Core up from the depths of the Spirit Ore. I had to use the Vertical Earth Technique quite a few times to get to it. It really wasn’t easy."
Jiang Kui held the Spirit Stone Crystal Core, staring at it in a daze for a moment before she hurriedly took out a large jade box and sealed the core inside. Then, she chided him gently,
"Junior Brother, why didn’t you seal this properly? If the Spiritual Power keeps leaking out like this... it’s not infinite, you know! If its quality degrades, we won’t be able to sell it for a good price."
Depending on its size, a Spirit Stone Crystal Core could be exchanged for anywhere from ten thousand to one hundred thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones. Regular Spirit Stones were easy enough to come by, but Crystal Cores were rare. In terms of utility, some powerful Arrays could only reach their full potential when powered by a Spirit Stone Crystal Core.
At that level, a Spirit Stone Crystal Core was more than just currency; it was a strategic resource.
But in the hands of Fang Qingyuan and Jiang Kui, the Spirit Stone Crystal Core didn’t have much practical use. Rather than holding onto it for the future, it would be better to exchange it for Spirit Stones now and use them as capital.
After her gentle complaint, Jiang Kui’s happy expression returned. She walked over to the Spirit Stone Mountain behind them and began to transfer the stones into her storage bag.
One hundred and fifty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones was a considerable volume, but the pile contained more than just low-grade ones. There was also a portion of Middle-grade Spirit Stones and a few Top-grade Spirit Stones.
Fang Qingyuan had separated the three grades of Spirit Stones into three piles. The Top-grade Spirit Stones were the rarest, with only three in total.
There were three to four hundred Middle-grade Spirit Stones, and seventy to eighty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones.
It took Jiang Kui a good while to pack away all the Spirit Stones. Afterward, she tucked the storage bag securely inside her robes, looking extremely cautious.
After stowing the Spirit Stones, Jiang Kui said to Fang Qingyuan,
"Junior Brother, you’re coming back to Yuanling Mountain with me. We’ll let Junior Brother Zhang Yuan stay here and tie up the loose ends. With such a massive pile of Spirit Stones, we need to think long and hard about how to spend it."
Fang Qingyuan nodded. He called over Yinbao, who had grown much thinner, and then spoke to Zhang Yuan, who was outside cooking for the Shrimp Turtle Beasts.
"Junior Brother, Senior Sister and I are heading back first. Was there anything you needed to tell me?"
When Zhang Yuan first returned, he’d been completely captivated by the mountain of Spirit Stones in the storeroom. By the time Jiang Kui rushed over after hearing the news, he’d lost his chance to speak with Fang Qingyuan alone. Now that Fang Qingyuan was about to leave, it was the perfect opportunity.
Zhang Yuan put down what he was doing and pulled Fang Qingyuan aside, away from Jiang Kui. Seeing this, Jiang Kui’s expression soured, and she secretly extended her Divine Sense.
With the power of her Foundation Establishment Stage Divine Sense, Zhang Yuan wouldn’t be able to detect her eavesdropping. However, Fang Qingyuan had cultivated a Soul Dao Technique. While his spiritual strength was no match for Jiang Kui’s, it was far beyond anything Zhang Yuan could hope to possess.
So, when Fang Qingyuan sensed the faint probe of Jiang Kui’s Divine Sense, he shot her a grin before raising a Spiritual Power Shield to cover both himself and Zhang Yuan.
Seeing this, Jiang Kui hmphed and turned her head away.
Zhang Yuan shot Fang Qingyuan a surprised glance but didn’t dwell on it. He said,
"I have to tell you something... You might be about to become a grandfather."
The moment he said it, Fang Qingyuan rolled his eyes. ’Good thing I blocked Jiang Kui’s prying. If she’d heard that, I’d never be able to explain myself.’
Recalling Zhang Yuan’s warped sense of humor, Fang Qingyuan’s expression hardened.
"Zhang Yuan, are you itching for a beating? Stop speaking in riddles. What do you mean, I’m about to become a grandfather?"
Zhang Yuan chuckled playfully and quickly explained,
"I was just joking, Senior Brother! Yinbao is like your son, right? Well, he finally got his wish and got... *cozy*... with some female Camel-Rays. If one of them gets pregnant and has little ones, Yinbao will be a father. Doesn’t that move you up a generation?"
Hearing Zhang Yuan’s explanation, Fang Qingyuan said,
"Then you’ve moved up a generation too. Enough nonsense. Just hand over Yinbao’s hard-earned money."
Zhang Yuan chuckled and pulled a storage bag from his robes, handing it to Fang Qingyuan.
"There are five hundred Spirit Stones in here. Take them, Senior Brother."
Fang Qingyuan took the bag and asked instinctively,
"Why so little this year?"
Zhang Yuan gave an embarrassed smile and explained,
"Well, there were originally two thousand Spirit Stones, but I spent three hundred on wine... and the rest I had to pay out in compensation. Turns out Yinbao was a bit... forceful... in his advances. It’s my fault for not keeping a closer eye on him, so I’m not taking a share this time."
After listening, Fang Qingyuan shot a fierce glare at the smug-looking Yinbao. ’I’ll deal with you when we get back,’ he thought. Then, he asked in confusion,
"Even so, you didn’t need to pay that much in compensation, did you?"
Zhang Yuan hemmed and hawed.
"Yinbao also beat up a few male Camel-Rays that came to the female’s defense. They looked pretty badly hurt, so most of the compensation went to their owners."
Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan slapped his forehead. He tossed the storage bag back to Zhang Yuan and, without another word, grabbed Jiang Kui and headed for Yuanling Mountain.