1: Chapter 1: General Use in Minerals

Xuan Kingdom, The Mine of the Tianhua Sect.

The scorching sun baked the earth. The sky for ten thousand miles was clear and pristine.

"Child, don't lose heart."

The village chief, over fifty years old, looked at the dejected youth with eyes full of pity.

He raised his calloused palm and gently patted the youth's shoulder.

"There are plenty of people without a Spiritual Root; it's not a big deal."

"You grew up in the mountain ravines, risking your life against wolves to hunt, and relying on the heavens for a harvest."

"What isn't hard?"

"But mining at the Tianhua Sect is different."

"As long as you work diligently, in a few years you'll save enough silver to last a lifetime."

Yun Song raised his tear-stained face, droplets of moisture still hanging from his eyelashes.

The village chief patted his back again, his tone full of comfort.

"Stop crying, everyone is watching. As a man, you shouldn't shed tears so easily."

Yun Song forced back the sobs in his throat.

He wiped his tears away messily with his rough sleeve, his nose rubbed red.

His expression was both aggrieved and ashamed, and he lowered his head even further.

The village chief sighed softly and softened his voice: "The Miner's tasks aren't too difficult."

"Mining one Spirit Stone can be exchanged for one contribution point, and one contribution point can be exchanged for one tael of silver."

"Solid, tangible benefits."

"The Tianhua Sect treats us Mortals well."

"Just focus on working hard, and life will surely get better."

"This old man can only take you this far."

"You must walk the road ahead yourself. Work hard, go on now."

Yun Song wiped his face vigorously, clearing away the last of his tears, then turned and followed the crowd ahead, walking into the gates of The Mine.

The village chief watched the youth's thin yet stubborn back.

He couldn't help but shake his head and sigh in a low voice: "Poor child..."

On the plaza of The Mine, many youths had already gathered.

They were similar in age to Yun Song and had also been judged as having a Mortal body.

Each one was either dejected or bewildered, lacking any spirit.

Just then, an ethereal voice suddenly resonated over the plaza.

The voice seemed near and far, with no discernible direction, and carried an indescribable eeriness: "All new Miners, form a line quickly and prepare to receive supplies."

The previously noisy crowd instantly quieted down, forming a crooked line.

An hour later, it was finally Yun Song's turn.

The person responsible for distributing supplies was an elderly man with eyes as sharp as a hawk. He looked Yun Song up and down twice and spoke in a cold, hard tone: "State your name!"

"This one is Yun Song, greetings to the Immortal Master." Yun Song hurriedly cupped his hands in salute.

The elder nodded slightly upon hearing this, then asked in a deep voice: "Which village are you from?"

"This one is from Anlan Village."

Hearing the three words "Anlan Village," the elder suddenly looked up, his gaze locking tightly onto Yun Song again, his expression carrying a hint of surprise: "Yun Hai, what is he to you?"

"He is my father," Yun Song replied in a low voice.

The elder's brows furrowed, his tone carrying a hint of confusion: "He asked for leave from me back then and promised to return after the new year. Where has he been all these years?"

"On the way back to his hometown, my father unfortunately encountered mountain bandits and perished."

As the words fell, the elder's face was filled with shock, his eyes full of disbelief.

He said no more, patted his waist with his left hand, and a black token appeared in his palm.

His right index finger suddenly lit up with three-colored spiritual light, brilliance flowing from his fingertips as he quickly traced the air over the surface of the token.

As the spiritual light moved, lines of text gradually appeared on the token: Yun Song, Servant, Miner.

Then, items fell one after another at Yun Song's feet. A night-luminescent pearl emitting a soft white light, a yellowed diagram.

A palm-sized white porcelain bottle, two sets of coarse cloth clothes, and a heavy iron mining hoe.

"From now on, you are a servant Miner of the Tianhua Sect."

The elder's voice was without a ripple: "You must turn in two hundred Spirit Stones every month."

"Not one less, otherwise you will be expelled from The Mine immediately."

He pointed to the items on the ground and added quickly: "The diagram contains an illustrated guide to Spirit Stones; identify them clearly before digging."

"The black token is for registering contribution points; if you lose it, you are responsible for it."

"The night-luminescent pearl is for lighting in the Mine Cave."

"The porcelain bottle contains ten bigu pills; take one every three days, use them sparingly."

Finally, the elder pointed to a cluster of low buildings in the distance: "Pick any Grass Hut over there, and the Mine Cave is at your disposal."

Yun Song nodded silently, crouched down, packed everything up one by one, and carrying his bundle, walked toward the Miner residential area.

It was a cluster of simple Grass Huts, arranged in neat rows. The thatched roofs swayed slightly in the wind, and straw debris was blown off from time to time.

He chose a relatively quiet room in a corner. He gently pushed open the creaking wooden door, and a stale, musty scent mixed with dust rushed toward him.

Inside the room, there was only a wooden bed covered in dust and a similarly dilapidated wooden table. Aside from that, there was nothing else.

He put down his bundle, found an old broom outside the door, and began to clean the room.

The dust made him cough incessantly, and sweat soon soaked his clothes. After a full hour, the room was finally cleaned.

He let out a long sigh of relief, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep without realizing it.

His father had also been a servant Miner of the Tianhua Sect.

Every Spring Festival, his father would bring home silver exchanged for contribution points.

But when he was eight, his father encountered bandits on the way home; not only was the silver stolen, but he also unfortunately perished.

Upon hearing the news, his mother fell ill from excessive grief and, not lasting long, also passed away.

At only eleven years old, after his parents passed, he became a helpless orphan.

The village chief in the village could not bear it and adopted him into his home.

Over the past three years, the village chief not only provided him with food and drink but also taught him to read.

Yun Song only knew that the village chief lived alone.

The two lived in the same place, yet the other had never mentioned his family.

Today, it was the village chief who had specifically brought him to the Tianhua Sect to participate in the once-every-ten-years Disciple Recruitment Ceremony.

But the results on the Spirit Testing Platform ultimately disappointed him.

Without a Spiritual Root, he had no destiny for immortality, and in the end, he remained at The Mine to work as a Miner.

Hello everyone, I would like to state in advance that the setting of this book is slightly different from common cultivation novels: the Five-Element Spiritual Root is not a trash Spiritual Root, but the most top-tier Spiritual Root in the world, compatible with the Five Elements and possessing unparalleled potential.

Spirit Talismans have also been given a brand-new setting: Mortals can also use them; the principle is simply that spiritual power is stored in the talisman paper in advance and Sealed with talisman patterns; touching the talisman pattern activates the Spirit Talisman.

However, Talisman Treasures require a Cultivator to be used, and the more spiritual power input, the greater the power.