"They say killing and robbing is the fastest way to make money. Just look at this wealth—after taking down three cultivators at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm, I've already gained nearly ten thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
"And that's not even counting their spiritual weapons, elixirs, and other treasures. If you include everything, the profit far surpasses anything the Clone could dig up!"
Meanwhile
From within his clone space, Su Zhan took out a thick stack of low-grade spirit stone notes, a satisfied smile flickering at his lips.
"On average, a cultivator at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm yields around three thousand low-grade spirit stones… and there are plenty of them in this mine. If I kill enough, they'll practically fund my breakthrough to the Tenth Layer of the Black Mark!"
The tenth stage required nearly sixty thousand low-grade spirit stones.
By his calculation, twenty cultivators at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm would be enough to reach it.
Although the Clone had recently advanced to the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm, doubling his mining efficiency—each one now producing nearly three hundred low-grade spirit stones per day—the yield from his forty-six Clones was still only around fourteen thousand per day.
If he set the Clones to killing and plundering instead, twenty cultivators at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm could be taken down in less than a single day.
"Keep working, everyone! Our target is cultivators at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm. If you run into a Fifth-Level Mortal Realm, don't fight—retreat immediately. If you encounter a Sixth-Level Mortal Realm, don't hesitate to contact me so I can recall you. Understood?"
"Yes, Master!" the Clones responded in unison.
Through countless battles, Su Zhan had fully grasped how to use every function at his grasp, developing his own perfected form of shadow tactics.
The principle was simple—if the goal was to kill and loot, then maximize the gains without unnecessary risk.
• Against a Fourth-Level Mortal Realm: overwhelm them instantly with numbers—no wasted effort.
• Against a Fifth-Level Mortal Realm: though possible to overwhelm with numbers, the cost in manpower, strength, and resources would be far higher, with real risk of losing a Clone. And given a Clone's current daily value, a single day's loss could outweigh the profit from killing a Fifth-Level. Best to retreat.
• Against a Sixth-Level Mortal Realm: absolutely avoid direct combat. Recall them instantly, then redeploy using the hidden dispatch function to merge with other Clones for a renewed offensive, creating a perfect closed loop of endless Clones.
⸻
Punishment Hall, Mine
"Lord Lu, three Fourth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers were killed in Area 24! First judgment—Su Zhan and his allies are responsible!"
The Fifth-Level Mortal Realm squad leader spoke urgently.
"Not Fifth-Level? And you're certain it was allies? That's more convincing… But they're still in the mine?"
Lu Yunhai raised a brow.
Even he had assumed Su Zhan would have fled after killing Zhou Yueshan, yet it seemed the man had chosen to hide right under their noses.
The most dangerous place truly was the safest.
"Yes, Lord Lu. According to eyewitness miners, they were all dressed in pure black from head to toe—the description is very specific," the squad leader confirmed.
"Pass my order: recall all team members and seal the mine completely!"
"Yes, Lord Lu… but according to witnesses, their appearance was strange."
"Strange?"
"When they surrounded and killed the three Fourth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers, the black-robed figures seemed to appear out of thin air—over ten of them at once!"
Appear out of thin air?
Lu Yunhai's eyes lit up, a burning curiosity sparking in his chest. He didn't know exactly what was going on, but he was certain Su Zhan must be in possession of some extraordinary treasure.
At that moment, another Fifth-Level Mortal Realm leader rushed in.
"Lord Lu! Two more Fourth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers just died in Area 14! Su Zhan is still in the mine!"
Two more gone?
Before Lu Yunhai could respond, a Sixth-Level Mortal Realm captain strode in, his gaze cold.
"Lord Lu, two Fourth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers under my command have been killed as well. I've already ordered my men to pursue the culprits—Su Zhan's team."
"Why so many team? And all Fourth-Level?" Lu Yunhai frowned. In mere moments, seven Fourth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers had been cut down.
The deaths themselves didn't matter to him—but the sheer efficiency of the killings was alarming. Could there be traitors within the Punishment Team?
"No matter how many team he has—capture them if possible, kill them if not! And hear this—killing one of his team will earn the same reward as killing Su Zhan himself. Don't let a single one escape!"
"Yes, Lord Lu!"
When they were gone, Lu Yunhai's gaze sharpened.
"It seems I can't remain idle any longer… If there's betrayal within the Punishment Team, I'll clean it out myself. I've been here for a year without making my move—time to remind them who they're dealing with. Fourth-Level Mortal Realm small fry… and they dare to play games with me in the dark?"
⸻
Wind Stone Town
"They've all withdrawn… looks like the chaos is working."
Through the Clone's perspective, Su Zhan saw the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm and Fifth-Level Mortal Realm enforcers who had been searching Wind Stone Town suddenly turn back toward the mine. Clearly, word had reached them—ten thousand low-grade spirit stones for killing their own allies was too tempting to ignore.
"That makes thirty-nine thousand low-grade spirit stones so far."
From start to finish, in just half an hour, he had killed twelve cultivators at the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm—an efficiency unmatched by anyone.
"If I can take down eight more within the next thirty minutes, I'll hit the sixty-thousand target."
Loot poured into his clone space—low-grade spiritual weapons, common elixirs, scattered low-grade spirit stone notes—every few minutes.
As expected, by the twenty-seventh minute, the Clone had slain the nineteenth Fourth-Level Mortal Realm, pushing the total past sixty thousand low-grade spirit stones.
"Clone, exchange it."
Too many to carry low-grade spirit stone, the pawnshop converted them into six high-grade spirit stones—each worth one hundred mid-grade spirit stones, or ten thousand low-grade.
Six crystal-clear stones, each the size of half a human head, shone in his clone space.
"Perfect. Begin absorption!"