131: Chapter 131 Even the rocks couldn't be dug down

Standing on a white cloud, Bai Dashi prattled on about the rules of the Baiyu Mountain Spirit Stone mine.

They were nothing more than the standard customary rules.

A ten-ninety split.

The mining Cultivators would take ten percent, while the Immortal Dynasty took ninety percent.

Neither he nor Li Yingsi noticed that among these Cultivators, many were looking around with eyes full of curiosity, completely unlike the nearby Cultivators who were burning with desire for Spirit Stones and immortal fate.

“The auspicious hour has arrived. Begin mining!”

Watching the ant-like Cultivators rush into the Spirit Stone mine,

Bai Dashi said proudly to Li Yingsi, “Eight Lord, do you see now?”

“With so many Cultivators, could they possibly be inferior to a single Zhao Yi?”

“Inside the mine tunnels, in a Forbidden Magic Zone, no matter how high your cultivation is, it's useless; piling up numbers is the Righteous Path.”

“Mhm!”

“I trust your handling of things.”

In the Baiyu Mountain Spirit Stone mine, many Cultivators had been drawn in by the promise of immortal fate.

After entering the mine tunnels, they were dumbfounded; compared to other mines, this place was truly too crude.

Setting aside the Teleportation Array, there wasn't even a single heavenly light stone in the entire mine tunnel.

Fortunately, many of these Cultivators were veteran diggers with plenty of experience, and soon the mine tunnels were lit up with heavenly light stones.

There were also countless Cultivators helping to build the Teleportation Array, completely regardless of the cost.

In short, everything was developing in a positive direction.

With thirteen thousand Cultivators getting to work, the speed was truly no joke.

In just half a day, the entire mine tunnel had been completely transformed.

Teleportation Arrays of all sizes were spread throughout the mine, and heavenly light stones illuminated the tunnels as bright as day.

The mine was crowded with people, and the three hundred Nine Sect Cultivators mixed among them were suddenly inconspicuous.

Some impatient Cultivators had already taken out their hoes and begun striking the mine walls.

“Clang—”

A crisp sound rang out, and the impatient Cultivator was left dazed by the recoil.

“Yo, Hu Laojiu, did you crawl onto Xiao Cui again last night?”

“This won't do; could it be you've been drained dry?”

“You can't even dig out a single mountain rock?”

This mocking voice triggered a burst of ‘good-natured’ laughter.

Hu Laojiu's face turned red.

He spat into his palms, circulated the True Qi within his body, poured it all into his arms,

And swung his hoe, striking down at the mine wall.

“Clang!”

Sparks flew in all directions, and Hu Laojiu's hoe was sent bouncing back.

“This mountain rock...”

Looking at the mine wall before him, Hu Laojiu's expression was complex.

“So hard!”

With his cultivation at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer, he actually couldn't even dig down a single mountain rock.

Hu Laojiu's performance caught the attention of the mocking Cultivators; they could tell at a glance whether the rock was difficult to dig or if Hu Laojiu was being lazy.

“Could there really be something wrong with this mountain rock?”

Thinking of this, the Cultivators who had entered couldn't hold back, and one after another, they took out their hoes and began digging at the walls.

But whether it was a hoe or a shovel, when they struck the mine wall, sparks flew everywhere, as if they were digging into steel.

The clanging sounds echoed continuously throughout the mine tunnel,

Accompanied by the shocked exclamations of the various Cultivators.

“It's impossible to dig.”

Cultivators at the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment Stages struck the mine walls with their hoes and shovels, yet they couldn't even leave a single mark.

And all thirteen thousand of these Cultivators were low-level ones at the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment Stages.

The previously bustling mine tunnel had now fallen silent,

Especially the three hundred Nine Sect Cultivators—their shock was the greatest of all.

“Just what level of strength does Old Ancestor Zhao have?”

“Back then, when we saw him digging for Spirit Stones here, his hoe carved into the mountain rock as if it were tofu, and his speed was incredibly fast.”

“To the point where more than three hundred of us had to transport the rocks just to barely keep up with his rhythm. Yet now, with ten thousand Cultivators here, we can't even dig out a single rock?”

The Nine Sect Cultivators fell silent.

In the center of the three hundred Cultivators, Wu Chuan was being held down firmly by his limbs.

“Junior Brother Wu, you mustn't dig!”

“You are the only one of our Nine Sects to have restored your cultivation. Not long ago, you reached the heavens in a single bound, breaking through directly from the Early Stage Golden Core to the Late Golden Core stage, only a step away from the Nascent Soul. You absolutely cannot destroy your own Dao path now!”

Wu Chuan had a bitter expression. Those holding his limbs were the original Nine Sect Elders; it wasn't that he couldn't break free, but rather he was afraid of killing them with the recoil.

They had lost their cultivation and worked hard in the mine for three years; their Life Qi was already severely depleted, and now, being blocked from mining, they had suffered a great blow.

Their current appearance was that of a group of old men with white hair and beards.

“Elders, please let go of me. I won't go and try, that's all.”

Wu Chuan sighed in his heart. He had intended to follow Old Ancestor Zhao's example, to cultivate his heart through digging and become a Death Cultivator, allowing all sorts of tribulations to fall upon him and accepting the trials of heaven and earth.

If he succeeded, then like Zhao Yi, his cultivation would advance by leaps and bounds.

If he failed, his life and Dao would be extinguished, returning forever to the dust.

Unfortunately, he still had to protect the three hundred plus Nine Sect Cultivators and could not leave.

...

At the exit of the mine tunnel,

Bai Dashi stood behind Li Yingsi.

As the sun set in the west, some of the short-term miners should have been leaving the mine.

“I wonder how many Spirit Stones can be dug in a single day?”

“Our requirements aren't high; we'll be satisfied with twenty thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones a day.”

Bai Dashi's eyes were full of expectation.

Influenced by Bai Dashi, Li Yingsi actually felt a bit of expectation as well.

Soon, a dozen or so Cultivators walked out of the mine tunnel dejectedly.

The Formation Spirit at the exit showed no reaction at all, which meant these people hadn't dug up a single Spirit Stone.

“Eight Lord, there's no need to worry. These people are clearly just unlucky; coming up empty is quite normal.”

Following that, more Cultivators walked out of the mine one after another, but the Formation at the exit remained motionless.

“What's going on?”

“Hundreds of Cultivators, and not a single one dug up a Spirit Stone?”

“Or is the Formation not working?”

Bai Dashi hurriedly went down to inspect the Formation, while also calling out to those Cultivators.

The Formation was fine.

He then looked at those Cultivators.

“You didn't dig up a single Spirit Stone?”

“Sigh!”

“Elder Bai, you must be joking. Our cultivation is low; forget Spirit Stones, we can't even dig down a single mountain rock.”

Bai Dashi: “?”

He didn't quite understand. Digging for Spirit Stones was just digging for Spirit Stones; what did they mean by not being able to dig down a single mountain rock?

As more and more Cultivators whispered among themselves, Bai Dashi heard some unclear remarks,

Things like it being too hard, completely impossible to dig, and how a certain Foundation Establishment Cultivator had fainted from pure rage.

His heart skipped a beat, and he rushed into the mine like a madman.

Halfway in, he grabbed a Late Foundation Establishment Cultivator,

Pointed at the mine wall, and said, “Dig for me!”

The Foundation Establishment Cultivator had a crying face.

“This... this...”

“Elder Bai, I really can't dig it!”

“If you can't dig it, then you can go die.”

Bai Dashi slapped the Cultivator into a bloody mist with a single palm,

Then pointed at another Cultivator nearby,

“You dig~”

With the previous example right before him, how could the pointed-at Cultivator dare to refuse?

“Yes, yes~”

“I'll dig right now.”

That Cultivator was also ruthless, raising his hoe high and striking the mine wall with all his might.

Clang!

The immense force caused the hoe to bounce back immediately, sending the Cultivator flying.

“This~”

Looking at the faint white mark on the mine wall, Bai Dashi was dumbstruck.

He stared blankly at his surroundings, his mind a complete void.

It was over!

Having delayed the mining of the immortal fate, Li Yingsi might not necessarily be in trouble, but he was definitely dead meat.

What was he to do?