Translator: AnubisTL
Clang!
The crisp sound of metal striking metal echoed through the courtyard as Li Qing slowly rotated a complex mechanism in his hand, resembling a black iron lotus.
Forging this intricate device had consumed five grueling days of Li Qing's time.
For five days straight, he had toiled relentlessly, sacrificing sleep and expending vast mental and physical energy, practically glued to the forge.
Now, Li Qing stood disheveled and grimy, dark circles framing his bloodshot eyes. Fortunately, his Grandmaster-level physique was remarkably robust, his Vital Energy surging like a tidal wave. Otherwise, even after becoming a cultivator, his hair would likely have been falling out in clumps.
"Finally finished!"
Li Qing gazed at the Storm Pear Blossom Nail launcher in his palm, inhaling deeply before exhaling slowly.
A wave of overwhelming fatigue washed over him, threatening to overwhelm him. Counting the time spent crafting the twenty-two Bone Nails, he had been awake for nearly ten days straight.
With another mining expedition looming in just a few days, Li Qing reluctantly abandoned his plans for further refinement.
He desperately needed rest. Otherwise, he might become the first cultivator in history to die from overexertion—and that cultivator would be none other than a Peerless Grandmaster, a martial arts legend who had reigned supreme in the mortal Jianghu, unmatched by any mortal foe!
Determined to avoid becoming the subject of idle gossip, Li Qing hastily packed all his belongings into his storage pouch. Without even bothering to wash up, he stumbled back to his room and collapsed into a deep sleep.
He slept soundly for three days and three nights straight. Fan Tong, the courtyard guardian, would have suspected his master had died in his sleep if not for the mental link maintained through the Blood Pact Seal.
Finally, Li Qing stirred from his profound slumber.
The first thing he did upon opening his eyes wasn't to wash or eat, but to retrieve the Black Furnace.
Clang!
Li Qing stared intently at the pitch-black forge standing before him, then solemnly circled it several times.
"Damn it, this is truly bizarre! Why have I been dreaming about this cursed furnace every night?"
"Could it be from spending too long hammering iron these past few days?"
Li Qing rubbed his chin, recalling the peculiar dreams he'd had.
They weren't nightmares, exactly, just... unsettling. The dreamscapes were utterly empty, save for the Black Furnace drifting endlessly in a chaotic void.
After thoroughly inspecting the furnace and finding nothing amiss, Li Qing returned it to his storage pouch.
"I've probably been overusing the Black Furnace lately," Li Qing muttered, "between forging the Bone Nails and crafting the mechanisms for the Storm Pear Blossom Nails."
After washing up, he fed Fan Tong a Beast Nurturing Pill and casually cooked himself a large pot of spiritual rice.
Instead of immediately returning to the Storm Pear Blossom Nails, Li Qing took out a Qi Transformation Pill, swallowed it, and began cultivating.
Thanks to the constant consumption of pills, his cultivation had progressed remarkably quickly, nearly reaching the fifth layer of the Qi Refining Realm.
Without the aid of these pills, reaching this level through sheer hard work alone would likely have taken three to four years, even with his aptitude.
Once he had circulated his cultivation manual and fully refined the medicinal power, his cultivation base grew even more solid.
Next, Li Qing continued to use his abundant Vital Energy—as vigorous as a surging river—to scour the trace amounts of pill toxins lingering in his internal organs. He wanted to prevent excessive accumulation, wary of future complications. Fortunately, he still had a substantial supply of Qi Transformation Pills on hand.
Just as he finished, the signal for the spirit miners' team to assemble echoed through the area.
Life flowed smoothly, yet beneath the surface of this tranquility, Li Qing felt a persistent, faint sense of unease.
Since Liu Hanyue's return to the Liu Clan, she had vanished without a trace, as if she had secluded herself on Lake Heart Island, leaving outsiders to speculate about her true purpose. The Flying Eagle Bandits had also disappeared completely, as if these bandit cultivators had never existed.
This peaceful life and the tranquility of the cultivation world should have been a blessing for Li Qing. Yet, having clawed his way up from the mundane world and witnessed its harsh realities, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss, though he couldn't pinpoint its source.
Now deep within the dark mine tunnel, Li Qing couldn't help but sigh.
"Ah, if only Old Zhou were still around. With his vast knowledge and experience from the great cultivation war over a decade ago, he might have sensed something unusual."
With that, he lowered his head and swung his low-grade magic tool—the Night Star Pickaxe—with renewed vigor.
Crack!
Under the pickaxe's faint spiritual light, the hard rock crumbled like tofu, scattering into countless fragments. Occasionally, a few mid-grade spirit stones emitting a hazy glow would surface among the debris.
Li Qing mined with his right hand while tallying his spirit stone harvest with his left. After nearly two years working in the spirit stone mine, he had become incredibly proficient at this routine.
Both his hands were calloused from years of digging. Relying on his formidable physical stamina, Li Qing used to throw himself into his work, routinely mining for seven or eight days straight without rest.
However, since the incident with the Flying Eagle Bandits, he had grown more cautious. Now, he mined for four days before taking a full day to replenish his spiritual energy and physical strength. While this reduced his overall yield, Li Qing prioritized maintaining peak condition to ensure his safety on the return journey to the Liu Clan.
Ding!
A crisp, melodious chime echoed through the mine tunnel, followed by a brilliant light that swiftly illuminated the pitch-black interior. Li Qing's eyebrows shot up, then parted in a joyful smile.
A mid-grade spirit stone!
This was only the second mid-grade spirit stone he had ever unearthed. After over a year working in the Liu Clan's mine, this rare find underscored just how low the drop rate for such stones truly was.
Without a word, Li Qing pocketed the mid-grade spirit stone, its spiritual energy noticeably denser.
With this mid-grade spirit stone as his guarantee, his mining haul was already exceptionally bountiful. After deducting the portion due to the Heavenly River Sect, his net profit would be at least three hundred spirit stones!
Satisfied, Li Qing ceased his mining activities and leaned against the dark, frigid wall of the mine tunnel, settling into a meditative posture to replenish his spiritual energy and stamina.
Two days passed in a flash. Li Qing mingled with the other spirit stone miners, submitted his quota, collected his share of eleven spirit stones, and departed the mine.
Shortly after, the sound of hooves echoed from the other side of the mine.
"The Shi Clan's forces? They're arriving surprisingly early," Li Qing thought, glancing briefly before quickly averting his gaze.
Leading the group was Liu Haitian, whose long-standing feud with the Shi Clan of Medicine King Ridge was evident in his frosty expression.
Once the Liu Clan's mining team had assembled, Liu Haitian waved his hand decisively, leading Li Qing and the others back toward their clan's territory.
The Liu Clan members had barely been riding on their spirit steeds for fifteen minutes when...
Boom!
A violent aura erupted from the spirit stone mine, unleashing terrifying waves of energy that rippled outward, engulfing everything in their path.
Even the Liu Clan members, who had already put some distance between themselves and the mine, could clearly sense the overwhelming presence behind them.
At the forefront, Liu Haitian abruptly reined in his spirit steed, his pupils constricting as he whirled around to stare at the mine they had recently left.
"What in the world is happening?!"
Feeling the surge of chaotic energy behind him, even Liu Haitian, a late-stage Qi Refining Realm cultivator, felt a pang of dread.
Only a Foundation Establishment Realm expert could unleash such power!
But this was the Heavenly River Sect's mine—how could something like this happen? It defied belief.
Li Qing, however, felt his scalp crawl with fear. Under the weight of this terrifying aura, he experienced an unfamiliar sense of insignificance, feeling like nothing more than an ant.
What use are Grandmasters of the Martial Dao? What good is being at the mid-stage Qi Refining Realm? If he were still at the mine, even the residual shockwaves could have devoured his life!
"Something major has happened," a spirit stone miner muttered from the crowd, his gaze fixed on the distant mine.
Indeed, something major had happened.
An incident at a mine belonging to the Heavenly River Sect was guaranteed to trigger a thorough investigation. Whether it was an attack or some kind of accident, the sect would never let it rest.
Soon, a spiritual energy distress signal soared into the sky, only to be swiftly extinguished. Witnessing this, everyone realized: someone was attacking the Heavenly River Sect's spirit stone mine!
"Go! Return to the clan!" Liu Haitian shouted decisively, taking command.
The battle was beyond his capabilities. As a Late Qi Refining Realm cultivator, he stood no chance of intervening. Despite the large number of spirit stone miners under his charge, sending them into the fray would be tantamount to throwing them to their deaths.
Liu Haitian remained rational. He needed to inform the clan about everything that had just transpired as quickly as possible, ensuring the higher-ups were aware. No matter what the situation, the clan's interests came first. The sooner they knew, the better prepared they could be.
Boom!
The spirit steeds stampeded into motion, racing toward the Liu Clan at unprecedented speed. Life was precious, especially to the miners present. Faced with such danger, there was only one word on their minds: escape!
Curiosity might beckon, but no one wanted to become the cat killed by it.
(End of the Chapter)
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