55: Chapter 55 Various Parties in Motion

"You, a Nascent Soul True Monarch, came to mine Spirit Stones?"

"No, no way."

Gao Ling sized Zhao Yi up carefully from head to toe.

"That's right, it's the scent of the pure Azure Spirit Scripture."

Watching Gao Ling sniffing around him, Zhao Yi felt uneasy. Was this girl part dog?

"Fellow Daoist, if you encounter any problems, you can tell me. If I can't solve it, there's the academy."

"A Nascent Soul True Monarch going to mine is unheard of throughout history. Fellow Daoist, do not ruin yourself."

Zhao Yi...

He originally thought mining Spirit Stones was a simple matter, but it seemed he had oversimplified things.

"No wonder there were no Nascent Soul True Monarchs mining in the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine; actually, even Golden Core Immortal Masters were rare."

Speaking of which, Zhao Yi really had to thank Ye Qingyang for being able to lie low in the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine for so long.

"What if I insist on going?"

Zhao Yi was already getting a bit impatient.

"You..."

Gao Ling had a look on her face as if he were being ungrateful.

Zhao Yi then took out the great sumeru treasure hoe.

Damn it, he was definitely going down into this mine today.

Seeing the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs becoming increasingly tense, looking like they might fight at any moment, Hui Peng almost fainted. If a fight really broke out, the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs might not necessarily die,

But he, a minor Golden Core Cultivator, would definitely not survive.

"True Monarchs, there's no need, no need at all."

"For such a small matter as mining, there's no need to resort to violence."

"Martial Aunt Gao, True Lord Zhao might just be curious to see the mine; he might not actually mine."

Hui Peng winked and sent a secret voice transmission,

"Martial Aunt, the mine is a place where magic is forbidden. He might just be curious..."

"Furthermore, mining is his right. The academy never said a Nascent Soul True Monarch couldn't mine. If you obstruct him forcefully, I'm afraid it won't end well and will only invite resentment."

Gao Ling...

She took a deep breath and finally calmed her emotions.

"True Lord Zhao, you are also a Cultivator of the academy. If you insist on mining Spirit Stones, then follow the normal rules: a ninety-ten split."

"The academy takes ninety percent, and you take ten."

"The entire Great White Spirit Stone Mine will have no limits for you."

"Fifty-fifty."

"What?"

"I said a fifty-fifty split."

"You should know that in other Spirit Stone mines, a Cultivator with my level of cultivation would only pay an entrance fee."

Hearing Zhao Yi say this, Gao Ling burst out laughing.

"Which Spirit Stone mine was that?"

"If I'm not mistaken, they didn't want you to mine Spirit Stones at all; they wanted your life."

"I..."

Zhao Yi wanted to argue, but remembering how the purple strange crystal stones and many Spirit Stones were taken, and his cultivation was completely lost, it seemed he really had been set up.

But now that Bai Yunping had fallen, the Bai family was destroyed, and Zhou Yan and Bai Miyao had vanished, Zhao Yi really didn't know for sure if he had been plotted against.

"I won't let those two wenches off."

Zhao Yi cursed inwardly.

"Let's do seventy-thirty then. The academy takes seventy percent, and you take thirty. This is already the best offer possible."

"If you agree, swear a Dao Oath directly. We'll settle the accounts once a year from now on."

Zhao Yi...

Looking at the full page of paper, he went numb.

"I have to swear an oath just to mine?"

Gao Ling smiled.

"If you aren't willing to swear, Fellow Daoist, you may leave."

"I'll swear!"

Zhao Yi said through gritted teeth.

He had just looked at the Dao Oath; it was simply swearing to the heavens not to hide Spirit Stones, not to break the contract, and so on. If violated, it would result in Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering.

"I, Zhao Yi, hereby swear..."

Zhao Yi spoke clearly and soon completed the Dao Oath.

"Fellow Daoist Gao, we who mine Spirit Stones are all Death Cultivators, Cultivators with no future. Is there any use in making us swear this Dao Oath?"

After speaking, Zhao Yi stepped into the Great White Spirit Stone Mine.

He left behind a stunned Gao Ling and an overjoyed Hui Peng.

Hui Peng was overjoyed because Zhao Yi had just sent him a voice transmission asking him to find two female Cultivators.

"Zhou Yan and Bai Miyao... which one is Zhou Yan? Which one is Bai Miyao?"

Looking at the recording stone in his hand, Hui Peng was a bit confused.

"Hmph!"

"I don't believe you're really here to mine!"

Gao Ling's face was full of defiance; she didn't believe Zhao Yi was truly there for the Spirit Stones.

So, she followed Zhao Yi down into the Spirit Stone mine.

The Great White Spirit Stone Mine was different from the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine; it had no layers, only a single main shaft sloping downwards.

The main shaft branched into countless side tunnels.

Thumping sounds echoed from within the side tunnels.

There were far more Cultivators mining here than in the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine.

Zhao Yi walked along the main shaft without stopping until he reached the very depths.

Sloping all the way down, to Zhao Yi's surprise, it was actually deeper than the third layer of the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine.

At the end of the main shaft, three Golden Core Immortal Masters were swinging their hoes.

As the rocks fell, the Cultivators behind them immediately picked out the Spirit Stones and hauled the rocks away; the entire process was incredibly smooth.

"Junior, leave. This is the end of the mine shaft; it's not a place for minor Cultivators like you."

At this sight, how could Zhao Yi hold back?

Since he had reached the Nascent Soul Stage, he hadn't mined any Spirit Stones, and his hands had been itching for a long time.

With a thought, the great sumeru treasure hoe appeared in his hand, and he struck the mine wall.

Hmm, the rock was a bit hard, at least harder than in the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine.

Dust filled the air and rocks fell; the familiar sensation left Zhao Yi intoxicated.

He loved mining!

Not far away, Gao Ling looked at Zhao Yi's entranced expression and couldn't help but be bewildered.

"He really is here to mine Spirit Stones."

"No, I have to go back to the academy and find out who on earth he is."

...

Anning Prefecture was neither large nor small. In just half a day, the news of a Nascent Soul Cultivator arriving at the Great White Spirit Stone Mine had spread.

Of course, this news only circulated among those at the Nascent Soul Stage and above.

Lingran Realm.

Bai Yucheng had just finished dealing with the matters of the Lesser Strange Spirit Stone Mine, and as soon as he returned, he heard about the Nascent Soul Cultivator appearing at the Great White Spirit Stone Mine.

"Mining Spirit Stones?"

"A Nascent Soul Cultivator?"

His heart stirred.

"Could this Nascent Soul Cultivator be Zhao Yi?"

Anning Prefecture First Cultivation Academy.

Wentian Pavilion, this was usually the place where the academy's upper management debated Zen and discussed the Dao.

Now, several Elders had looks of confusion on their faces.

"You're saying this Zhao Yi dropped out of the academy owing four thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and four years after leaving, he went to the Great White Spirit Stone Mine with a Nascent Soul Stage cultivation?"

"Absurd!"

"Gao Ling, do you even hear what you're saying?"

"Elder Bai, it's true. He's right there in the Great White Spirit Stone Mine."

"Do you want me to call him out?"

"No need."

"Since he could enter the academy, it shows he isn't an evil Cultivator. As for mining Spirit Stones, let him be."

"In the future, do not disturb our quiet cultivation for such matters."

Was a Nascent Soul Cultivator mining strange?

It was indeed strange, but for the Cultivation Academy and the Elders, it was a good thing.

How many Spirit Stones could a Nascent Soul Cultivator mine in a month?

No one knew before, but they would know in the future.

"Just do your own work and collect the Spirit Stones on time; don't make such a fuss."

The voice was still there, but the Elders had already vanished. Gao Ling felt a sense of loss, though she didn't know what she was disappointed about.

Somewhere in Anning Prefecture.

"A Nascent Soul True Monarch mining Spirit Stones?"

"Quite an interesting person. I'll remember him."

"As for now..."

That person shook his head.

"Serious business takes priority. Let's set off."

A white jade boat soared into the air and disappeared into the sky above Anning Prefecture.

Behind that person, a young female figure flickered in and out of sight. If Zhao Yi were here, he would have recognized her as Zhou Yan at a single glance.