Without the slightest hesitation or attempt to conceal it from Wang Cheng, Li Hu directly opened the seal on the wooden box in Wang Cheng's presence.
The wooden box slowly opened, and a faint, sinister aura instantly permeated the air.
Inside the box lay a dark red jade pendant, its surface engraved with complex and eerie patterns, faintly shimmering with a dark red glow.
The jade pendant possessed a warm, smooth texture, yet exuded a chilling aura that sent shivers down one's spine. Even from a distance, one could sense the eerie power it contained.
Far away in the courtyard of the Heavenly Sword Sect, Qin Changsheng recognized the jade pendant the instant he saw it.
This jade pendant was an extremely rare and insidious treasure used for possession in the cultivation world—a possession jade!
This kind of body-snatching jade contains powerful, sinister energy, capable of helping cultivators forcibly seize another's body. Even if the other's cultivation level is slightly higher, there's a certain success rate. However, using it damages one's own essence and is extremely prone to backlash; it's a forbidden evil object in the cultivation world.
Qin Changsheng slowly frowned, his eyes filled with doubt. Li Hu was the young master of the Blood Demon Sect.
His cultivation, talent, and aptitude were all extremely high.
Why would he need such a sinister treasure?
Could he be planning to seize someone else's body?
Qin Changsheng's divine sense swept across the table not far away again. He noticed the words "Hu Nan" written on Li Hu's desk.
"Hu Nan?"
The instant he saw these two words, Qin Changsheng guessed that Li Hu seemed to be preparing to seize Hu Nan's body.
With this guess, a strange expression appeared on Qin Changsheng's face.
Qin Changsheng was also very clear about why Li Hu wanted to seize Hu Nan's body.
In Li Hu's eyes, Hu Nan's talent, cultivation, and comprehension were all quite impressive.
Furthermore, Hu Nan had obtained ancient divine abilities, as well as the secret treasure and the Spirit-Suppressing Pearl from Qingyun Lake.
If he could possess Hu Nan, he would not only have one less powerful opponent,
but he would also gain ancient divine abilities and the secret treasure for free.
However, Li Hu's possession plan was destined to fail.
Because Hu Nan was an avatar of Qin Changsheng.
This avatar was only controlled by Qin Changsheng.
Even if Li Hu's possession technique was powerful, it couldn't possibly overcome the Heavenly Dao's power.
The numerous possession treasures that Li Hu had painstakingly collected would vanish.
"Alright, go inspect the mine first!" Li Hu waved to Wang Cheng.
"Farewell, subordinate!" Wang Cheng cupped his hands and withdrew.
...
Over the next few days, Wang Cheng followed Qin Changsheng's instructions, acting as a supervisor to inspect the mine daily, urging the miners to dig for spirit stones and tally the ore. Simultaneously, he secretly investigated the mine's secrets, searching for a suitable hidden location for Qin Changsheng to mine covertly.
Three days passed quickly. Following the faint fluctuations of spiritual energy in the mine, Wang Cheng searched his way through and finally found an abandoned, hidden mine shaft deep within the mine.
The entrance to this mine shaft was narrow, concealed by rubble and weeds, making it difficult to spot without careful investigation. The spiritual energy around the entrance was purer than in other areas, yet few miners frequented it.
The mine shaft wasn't spacious, but it was very dry. The inner walls were covered with faint spiritual energy crystals, and the air was filled with the rich scent of spirit stones.
Wang Cheng proceeded slowly, carefully examining every corner of the mine. He confirmed that there were no other miners or guards patrolling inside, and that the spiritual energy was increasingly dense deeper within the mine, clearly indicating the presence of many spirit stones.
After confirming safety, Wang Cheng immediately used his divine sense to quickly relay this news to Qin Changsheng, who was far away in a courtyard within the Heavenly Sword Sect.
In the secluded courtyard of the Heavenly Sword Sect, upon hearing the news that Wang Cheng had found a hidden mine, Qin Changsheng abruptly opened his eyes, a hint of joy flashing in them, and his spiritual energy fluctuated slightly.
After so many days of planning, he could finally put his plan into action.
Qin Changsheng's gaze also fell upon the golden inscription exchange.
With this golden inscription, he could easily exchange locations with his avatar.
In the next instant, Qin Changsheng's figure vanished from the courtyard, and his figure reappeared inside the mine.
Qin Changsheng raised his eyes and scanned the surroundings of the mine, sensing the rich aura of spirit stones in the air, his eyes filled with satisfaction.
Without hesitation, Qin Changsheng retrieved two low-grade spirit stones from his storage space. With a thought, he began chanting an incantation.
The two spirit stones transformed into two streams of pure spiritual energy, rapidly converging within the mine and emitting a faint golden light.
In the next instant, two figures slowly solidified within the golden light; one was Hu Nan, and the other was Wang Cheng.
"Wang Cheng, you're in charge of patrolling and monitoring Li Hu's movements!"
"Hu Nan, you'll mine with me!" Qin Changsheng issued the orders.
After making the arrangements, Qin Changsheng retrieved three specially crafted pickaxes from his storage space. These pickaxes were made of refined iron, their surfaces engraved with spirit-gathering runes to aid in mining spirit stones and increase efficiency.
Qin Changsheng gripped the pickaxe tightly, his gaze falling on the area on the mine wall where the spiritual energy was most concentrated. He slowly raised the pickaxe and forcefully smashed it against the rock wall.
A dull thud echoed as the pickaxe struck the rock wall, sending shards of rock flying.
Qin Changsheng, arm in hand, continued digging, stroke after stroke, his movements fluid and powerful.
Hu Nan joined Qin Changsheng in the mining.
Inside the mine, only the crisp, rhythmic sound of the pickaxe striking the rock wall filled the air.
A short while later, Qin Changsheng's pickaxe suddenly stopped, producing a clear, ringing sound.
A surge of joy filled him. He quickly slowed his movements, carefully parting the rubble. A pure white, low-grade spirit stone, radiating a faint spiritual energy, appeared in a crevice in the rock wall.
The instant Qin Changsheng removed the spirit stone, a faint golden light quietly emerged from his body. The power of the Heavenly Dao attribute [Cultivation] was subtly activated, enveloping the nearby stone wall.
In the next instant, ten pure white, low-grade spirit stones appeared out of thin air not far from Qin Changsheng, neatly arranged on the ground, radiating a rich spiritual energy identical to the spirit stone he had just dug up.
Qin Changsheng looked down at the ten spirit stones on the ground, his eyes instantly filled with undisguised joy.
He understood immediately; this must be the effect of the Heavenly Dao attribute [Cultivation].
Qin Changsheng reached out and collected the ten spirit stones one by one.
At the same time, Hu Nan also dug up ten spirit stones from the side.
A day passed quietly. From dawn till dusk, Qin Changsheng, along with his avatars Hu Nan and Wang Cheng, worked tirelessly in the mine, without a moment's rest.
At this moment, Qin Changsheng sat cross-legged on the dry ground in the center of the mine. A clean brocade cloth lay before him, upon which countless pure white, low-grade spirit stones were neatly piled, radiating a pure and gentle spiritual energy that subtly illuminated the entire mine.
Hu Nan and Zhang Cheng stood silently guarding him.
"Eighteen hundred!"
Qin Changsheng's eyes were filled with undisguised shock and elation.
He never imagined that in just one day, he would have harvested a full eighteen hundred low-grade spirit stones!
However, Qin Changsheng was also very clear that this was the result of the Heavenly Dao's cultivation.
He, along with his avatars Hu Nan and Wang Cheng, had only mined one hundred and eighty spirit stones.
He and his avatar Hu Nan dug up 140 spirit stones.
His avatar Wang Cheng, however, only dug up 40 because he needed to patrol.
Meanwhile, Qin Changsheng silently calculated in his mind: 1,800 spirit stones a day.
Then he could obtain 54,000 spirit stones a month.
In a year, he could obtain 657,000 spirit stones.
He only needed a year and a half to collect the spirit stones needed to repair the Spirit-Suppressing Pearl.
"I'll dig for a few years first!" Qin Changsheng silently made his decision.