25: Chapter 25 Spirit Vein Miners, the Effects of Nationwide Cultivation

"Junior Brother, continue your Cultivate. We are going to find Senior Brother Qingcang." Although Second Senior Brother Qingyun was unhappy in his words, he still decided to go over.

"Three Senior Brothers, do not tell Master about our conversation regarding the National Destiny Space today for now."

"Although I do not know why it has to be this way, I agree with your words, Junior Brother."

"Fourth Brother and I also agree." Qingling directly made the decision for Qingmo. Qingmo looked at Qingling's dangerous gaze, his eyes twitching as he nodded in agreement.

"In that case, many thanks to the three Senior Brothers." Ye Qingxuan cupped his hands in a salute.

"Let's go! Let's go find that fellow Senior Brother Qingcang and ask if his skin is itching and if he wants a beating!"

After Second Senior Brother abruptly turned his head and shouted this sentence loudly behind him, he strode forward without looking back.

Seeing Second Senior Brother's bustling and hurried manner, Ye Qingxuan could not help but find it somewhat funny: "Second Senior Brother, you must not be too impulsive,

In case you really injure Senior Brother Qingcang, I'm afraid all the large and small affairs in our Shangqing Sect will have to be handled by you by then. I must state in advance that I will not help!"

Hearing these words from Ye Qingxuan, Qingling could not help laughing softly. She first carefully placed Xiao Jiu, whom she was holding in her arms, on the ground, rubbed its cat head, and then turned to wave at Ye Qingxuan as a sign of farewell, likewise stepping away into the distance.

Just at this moment, Ye Qingxuan suddenly seemed to remember something, and hurriedly called out: "Third Senior Brother, wait a moment!"

Hearing this, Qingling stopped in her tracks and turned back with a puzzled look, asking: "What is it, Junior Brother? Is there anything else?"

Seeing Ye Qingxuan walking hurriedly toward Qingling, he quickly squatted down beside her after arriving, reached out to gently stroke Xiao Jiu's furry little head, and whispered softly: "Let Xiao Jiu go with you. After all, it is a refined gold spirit, and mining is its specialty!"

Hearing this, Xiao Jiu, which had been obediently squatting to the side, suddenly stood up and waved its hands repeatedly at Ye Qingxuan.

"Meow meow" 'This meow does not want to go'

However, Ye Qingxuan did not care and continued to tempt it: "One barbecue feast, one bottle of Biling Pill!"

Hearing these words, Xiao Jiu's eyes immediately lit up. It only heard "barbecue feast", but still relentlessly uttered a single word with its mouth

"Meow" Immediately afterwards, it raised its two front paws with a very serious and firm expression, 'Add two more meals'

Ye Qingxuan replied: "Deal"

"Meowwoo" After getting a satisfactory reply, Xiao Jiu immediately became excited. Qingling, standing to the side, finally snapped back to her senses as if waking from a dream, and murmured in astonishment: "Xiao Jiu has this ability too? Usually, it only knows how to act spoiled, throw tantrums, or bury its head in eating a lot. I almost forgot it is a refined gold spirit..."

Before her voice trailed off, a sound of "siha" was heard. It turned out that Xiao Jiu had transformed into the 'Ridgeback Dragon' form in the blink of an eye.

Looking at the angry Xiao Jiu before her, Qingling could not help beaming with joy, and hurriedly shouted to it in a tone similar to coaxing a child: "Xiao Jiu is truly amazing! Come and help Sister~"

"Meowwoo" 'Humph, stupid bipedal beast, of course this meow is amazing'

Under Qingling's gentle tone, the Ridgeback Dragon turned into an obedient kitten, squatting on the ground with its two front paws crossed in front of its chest, wearing a proud and aloof expression.

Listening to Xiao Jiu's words, Ye Qingxuan twitched the corners of his mouth and did not dare to translate, otherwise neither the person nor the cat would survive today.

"Alright, Junior Brother, let us go." With a movement of his mind, his flying sword grew in the wind, and then he picked up Xiao Jiu and soared away on the sword.

...

In the Shangqing Sect main hall, a middle-aged man around forty years old was pacing back and forth. This person was none other than Senior Brother Qingcang, the eldest Disciple of the current 'beast of burden' Senior Martial Uncle Yuanhui of the Shangqing Sect. He was over eighty years old, and taking advantage of the rewards from the National Destiny Game, its cultivation had broken through to the Foundation Establishment Perfection Stage. The next time Ye Qingxuan obtained a National Destiny reward, it would be able to break through to the Golden Core Stage.

The Spiritual Veins and Ore veins rewards obtained by Ye Qingxuan from the first National Destiny Game included 12 Medium Grade Spiritual Veins, 3 High Grade ones, as well as various spiritual material Ore veins. Ye Qingxuan and several Elders like Master Yuanxin discussed it, and the Shangqing Sect took 1 High Grade Spiritual Vein and 5 Medium Grade ones, leaving the rest for the country and the cultivation world to divide among themselves.

Because they randomly appeared within China's borders, coupled with the expansion of the national territory, in order to find the Ore veins, Elder Yuanxing transformed into a geological expert and spent a tremendous amount of effort before finally finding them.

Subsequently, the mining of the Spiritual Veins became a problem. The Medium Grade Spiritual Veins were a bit better; current technology was sufficient, so they directly asked the country to help. As for compensation? There was nothing at all. Relying on the Face of the Shangqing Sect today, the country would be more than happy to do it.

However, High Grade Spiritual Veins could only be mined by those at the Foundation Establishment Stage. But with nationwide Cultivate having started, almost everyone with Foundation Establishment strength had been sent down the mountain to impart experience. They surely couldn't let it, Immortal Master Yuanxing, a dignified Golden Core expert, dig it by itself.

Immortal Master Yuanxing directly threw the problem to 'beast of burden' Senior Brother Qingcang.

Just as Senior Brother Qingcang had a headache over this matter, little Disciple Xiyue casually remarked that weren't there a few idle people in the back mountain.

Senior Brother Qingcang's eyes lit up. Just as it was about to set off, it suddenly thought of something, slapped its thigh, and handed this arduous task over to its little Disciple.

"Let that reckless fellow Qingyun and that fiend Qingling go mine? This is simply a Genius and wonderful idea! Little Disciple, you must not blame Master for being cruel. After all, 'Fellow Daoist, die, but do not let this poor Daoist die'! Who told you to have such a hard life and insist on becoming this poor Daoist's Disciple... I only hope that poor little Xiyue will not be tortured too miserably by those two fellows."

Just as Senior Brother Qingcang was muttering to itself and comforting itself, suddenly, a burst of shouts resounded through the clouds and reached its ears from far to near.

This shouting was so loud and unique that Senior Brother Qingcang could not help feeling doubtful: "Eh? Why does this sound somewhat familiar? Could it be..."

Before Senior Brother Qingcang had time to think carefully, it abruptly raised its head, only to see an unidentified object falling from the sky like a meteor, speeding straight toward it! In the blink of an eye, that mysterious object was already close at hand, and its astonishing speed was breathtaking!

"Mas—ter—catch—me—"

Accompanied by a crisp shout, Senior Brother Qingcang finally saw clearly who this "object from beyond the heavens" before him was—turns out it was precisely his cute and playful little Disciple Xiyue!

However, at this moment, Senior Brother Qingcang had long been dumbfounded with shock, completely too late to make any reaction.

No sooner said than done, Disciple Xiyue slammed fiercely into Senior Brother Qingcang's body like a cannonball, followed by a muffled thud.

However, an unexpected thing happened—Disciple Xiyue was actually unscathed, without even frowning! While rubbing its little bottom, it muttered to itself with a Face full of curiosity: "Strange... falling from such a high place doesn't hurt at all! Could it be that I have already mastered a peerless Divine Ability? Hehehe..."

"Rebellious Disciple, get up quickly, I have something to do!" A familiar voice suddenly came from underneath, but with a bit of muffled tone.

Hearing this, Disciple Xiyue was startled, its body bouncing up like an electric shock, and it looked down in utter astonishment. A figure was slowly standing up, rubbing its waist while glaring fiercely at it.

"Oh my goodness, Master!! You... why are you here?!?" Disciple Xiyue cried out involuntarily, its eyes filled with disbelief.

It really couldn't figure out how Master, with its profound Cultivate of the Foundation Establishment Stage, could be so easily knocked to the ground by itself.

Senior Brother Qingcang endured the pain on its body, rubbed its waist, and secretly wailed in its heart.

It naturally understood that if someone hadn't been playing tricks behind the scenes, with its strength it would be absolutely impossible not to dodge it. And the mastermind behind this was undoubtedly that hateful Ye Qingxuan nine times out of ten.

Thinking of this, Senior Brother Qingcang's Face turned dark, as if covered by a thick layer of dark clouds.

It cursed through gritted teeth: "Good for you, Ye Qingxuan! I just had your Senior Brother come over to help mine some Ore, did you have to use such tricks to deal with me? You actually dared to use my Disciple as a hidden weapon, this is simply going too far!!"

"Well, Master, you cannot beat Uncle-Master Qingxuan." The little Disciple's heart-piercing words stabbed right at the old Master's lungs.

"Shut up, can't Master scold him a couple of times? You Rebellious Disciple, your elbows are turning outward, aren't they?" Senior Brother Qingcang was so angry that its Face turned red, then white, then black, and finally green.

'Forget it, forget it, this poor Daoist cannot beat Ye Qingxuan, and I can't bear to beat my Disciple. Alas, my life is hard! Master, Sect Head Uncle, when are you all coming back?' Senior Brother Qingcang felt bitter inside, but didn't say it out loud.

"Did you bring the words I asked you to bring?" Senior Brother Qingcang tried hard to restore the majesty of a Master, but the pain in its waist still made its Face twitch. That strand of magical power from Ye Qingxuan used a hidden force that wouldn't cause injury, but it really hurt.

"Master, Disciple has already told the several Junior Martial Uncles and Junior Martial Aunts, they should be arriving soon." Disciple Xiyue grumbled in a low voice.

As soon as her voice fell, three streaks of light flashed, and the figures of Qingyun, Qingling, and Qingmo appeared in the main hall. Seeing Senior Brother Qingcang rubbing its waist, the three of them immediately understood in their hearts that this must be the Junior Brother's doing.

"Senior Brother Qingcang, what? Is your waist injured?" Qingling knew how to add insult to injury.

"Meow" Xiao Jiu now stood on Qingling's shoulder and meowed at Senior Brother Qingcang. It knew Senior Brother Qingcang, after all, it had stolen Senior Brother Qingcang's medicinal materials quite a few times before.

"Is Senior Brother Qingcang getting old and strained its waist?" Qingyun continued to add insult to injury.

Qingmo didn't speak, and tossed over a bottle of blood qi pill. That's right, it was refined by Ye Qingxuan using Flood Dragon Snake blood. Since he couldn't use it anymore, he distributed it to several Senior Brothers.

Senior Brother Qingcang took the Medicinal Pill, and the action of reaching out affected its waist, making its Face twitch with pain. 'Hit with a stick and then give a sweet date, truly worthy of being the Sect Head Uncle's Disciple'

"Alright, don't blame this poor Daoist for bossing you around. The Spiritual Veins obtained by Junior Brother Qingxuan have already been located. There are too many for our Shangqing Sect to swallow alone. After discussions between Uncle-Master Sect Head and various Schools, one High Grade and five Medium Grade Spiritual Veins will completely belong to our Shangqing, and they can negotiate and divide the rest amongst themselves."

"The Medium Grade Spiritual Veins will be mined with the help of the country, but the High Grade ones can only be dug by Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Right now, only the few of you have free time on Maoshan."

Senior Brother Qingcang said, observing the expressions of several people, yet he found nothing.

"Junior Brother Qingxuan needs to prepare for the National Destiny Game, so we can only ask you to go to the High Grade Spiritual Veins to mine Spirit Stones. Once the rest of the Disciples return to the School, someone will naturally go to hand over with you."

"Before coming, Qingxuan already told us about it. Spirit Stones are of great importance, and Qingxuan might also need them in the National Destiny Space. Even if you didn't say anything, we would still go. Don't think of us so complicatedly."

Qingling's words caused Senior Brother Qingcang's hand massaging his waist to pause. What does 'even if you don't say anything we would still go' mean? Then what was that beating I took for?

Looking at the blood qi pill in his hand, which could just be given to his Disciple, it wasn't a complete loss. Senior Brother Qingcang could only comfort himself in his heart.

"The address is here. Junior Martial Uncle Yuanxing is waiting for you. Just head right over."

Senior Brother Qingcang flicked his hand and threw over a Jade Slip, then turned and left. He was afraid that if he kept chatting, he wouldn't be able to help himself from fighting the three of them—though the result would definitely be getting beaten up. Muttering the Mantra of Heart Purification silently in his heart, he went off to handle official business.

"Hehehehe, this Senior Brother Qingcang really can't take a joke at all." Qingling only found it uninteresting.

"Alright, stop wasting time and go rendezvous with Junior Martial Uncle Yuanxing. High Grade Spiritual Veins have a chance to produce Top-Grade Spirit Stones. Hopefully, we can dig them out before Junior Brother enters the National Destiny Space." Second Senior Brother interrupted Qingling's banter, glanced at the address, and turned to leave.

Qingling and Qingmo also set off. Regarding Junior Brother's safety in the National Destiny Space, they could not afford to be careless.

...

Time slowly passed amidst Ye Qingxuan's seclusion. A month passed, but the National Destiny Game still hadn't begun, and people couldn't rush it.

Countries all over the world were also silently digesting the benefits brought by the rise in national destiny. Because China did not keep it secret when promoting the Basic Qi Refining Method, people from all over the world practically had a copy in their hands. Unfortunately, a month had passed, and those who successfully entered the threshold were few and far between.

At this moment, Chinese netizens were sharing their cultivation experiences on the internet.

"Hahaha, I succeeded! I succeeded! From today onwards, I am an Immortal Cultivator! Hhahahaha!"

"Why does this give a strong sense of Fan Jin passing the imperial examinations? Has the person upstairs gone crazy?"

"If it were you, you'd go crazy too. Breaking through to the first layer of Qi Refining within a month—this Aptitude isn't bad at all. Placed in the cultivation world, he's also a medium-sized Genius. With the increase in national destiny and the strengthening of the body, as long as he doesn't court death, achieving Immortal Ascension is basically not a problem."

"It's almost been a month. Seniors in the cultivation world have said that, according to the current Spiritual Qi concentration, failure to enter the threshold within a month means a lack of Aptitude. This brother completely caught the last train of cultivation Aptitude."

"I broke through in twenty days, and I didn't go crazy."

"I broke through in ten days and didn't go crazy either."

"What does someone who broke through in three days count as?"

"To the person above, you count as being able to brag."

"I wonder how many people have Aptitude."

"Based on our country's population base, there should be quite a few, right?"

"The Cultivation Technique is written simply and straightforwardly, just like teaching you to Cultivate hand-in-hand. If you still can't practice it successfully, it means you simply lack Aptitude."

"The Seniors have all said that it doesn't matter if you can't enter the threshold; China doesn't just have the path of immortal cultivation."

"Baka! The Chinese people are greatly cunning, using fake Cultivation Techniques to deceive people!"

"I knew someone would steal our Cultivation Technique. Did the little Japanese pass their Chinese exam before you started practicing? Didn't you see that cultivation requires Spiritual Qi? Without Spiritual Qi, what are you even cultivating?"

"Haha, do you know why we didn't keep the Cultivation Technique confidential? Only China has Spiritual Qi in the entire Blue Star, so it's useless even if you steal it."

"Aishibal, the Chinese stole our Taoism, and now they've stolen the Spiritual Qi as well. We strongly demand that Taoism and Spiritual Qi be returned to us!"

"To the Korean stick above, I return to you a ##*✘&you a ◎*#"

"The brother above scolds well. Simple foul mouth, ultimate enjoyment."

...

Zijin Mountain Office

"It's been almost a month. How many people in total have entered the threshold?" The Grand Elder asked his secretary.

"Chief, according to our investigation, there might still be some hidden individuals who don't want to deal with the country. Those who have successfully entered the threshold nationwide number less than... less than 300,000 people. Among them, nearly 30,000 people in the military have successfully entered. Calculated this way, it's still..."

The secretary said stammeringly.

"Sigh, out of 1.4 billion people, a probability close to five thousand to one. Aptitude, huh," the Grand Elder sighed.

"How many entered the threshold within half a month?" The old man asked another question.

"There are a total of 17 people who entered the threshold within ten days, 3 in the military, 4 remaining joined the country, and the rest all joined major Schools. There are 149 people nationwide who entered in half a month, 1,106 people who entered in twenty days, and the rest all successfully entered the threshold at the one-month limit." The secretary answered.

"Consider it good news. Next, we will just wait for the martial arts mentioned by the Heavenly Master." The old man's calm words carried endless anticipation.

——

"Baka Yaro, a month has passed, and not a single person has managed to practice it successfully?" A furious roar came from the Japanese Prime Minister's residence.

"Hai, Your Excellency Prime Minister, we do not have the Spiritual Qi required for cultivation, so..." A Japanese knelt on the ground and answered.

"Spiritual Qi, how can we obtain Spiritual Qi?" An old Japanese asked his staff.

"Currently only China has it, or based on the current national destiny, letting Mekawa Naiku complete 15 more missions might make Spiritual Qi appear." A young Japanese answered, covered in cold sweat.

"Baka!" Hearing this, the old Japanese just wanted to hack him to death. Fifteen times? With this situation, being able to complete five times would be a blessing from Amaterasu. Moreover, the Japanese aren't all fools; they know there are team battles in the National Destiny Space. Once grouped with China, given the hatred between China and them, wouldn't China chase them down and slash them?

——

United States Black House

"Gentlemen, according to the news we received, not a single one of the Cultivation Techniques we obtained can be successfully practiced. Immortal cultivation requires Spiritual Qi, and currently only China has such a thing." Strategy Advisor Number One said to the council members.

"If cultivation doesn't work, what other methods do we have to catch up with China and enhance Colonel Rodell's strength? Otherwise, once the team battle begins, I'm afraid China will dominate alone." Strategy Advisor Number Two said.

"A month has already passed, and the National Destiny Space should be opening soon. Currently, we can only hope the missions won't be too difficult. Tell Colonel Rodell not to run around randomly when the mission starts, and to observe carefully. I don't want to spend national destiny to resurrect him again."

Donald Trump spoke bluntly. Regarding the resurrection of Colonel Rodell last time, he was actually unwilling, but he couldn't go against the wishes of the public and could only do as told.

"Also, cultivation is China's ancient Legacy. Does our United States not have its own extraordinary power Legacy? Go look, dig underground! We must have our own extraordinary Legacy." Donald Trump issued the command.

"I'm just afraid what gets dug up is the extraordinary of the Indians." Someone muttered quietly.

Donald Trump glared at him. "Sir, you don't need to come to work tomorrow. Congratulations, you can take a vacation."

——

British Castle

"Congratulations, Alice. From now on, you are a Blood Clan Count." Charlie looked at the blonde girl in front of him with a smile.

"Uncle Charlie, it's still not enough. I've watched the live broadcast replays. Right now, facing that Ye, I have zero hope. Right now, I'm even inferior to that mouse that Ye slapped to death casually in the National Destiny Game."

Alice looked at her hands, felt the increase in her power, and recalled the Vicious Beast that Ye Qingxuan slapped to death casually in the National Destiny Game, shaking her head and sighing.

Once the team battle started, she could only hide far away; if she couldn't hide, she could only pray that the other party would show mercy.

Regarding this, Charlie also let out a sigh. The gap was too large; facing an Eastern Cultivator, he couldn't muster any courage at all. He also recalled some past events, a look of fear flashing in his eyes.

...

As China sparked a nationwide cultivation craze, countries around the globe also successively took action, trying their utmost to search for potential supernatural ability users or sources of mysterious power within their own borders. Unfortunately, the vast majority of attempts ultimately ended in failure.

——Maoshan Shangqing Sect

"Boom boom"

On the peak where Ye Qingxuan was in seclusion, a cyan sword light soared into the sky, tearing apart the clouds of the firmament with a cyan pillar of light.

That pillar of light was like a giant dragon connecting to the heavens, with Sword Intent soaring to the skies. At the center of the phenomenon, Ye Qingxuan sat cross-legged inside the cave, while a hundred-zhang-tall avatar condensed above Maoshan. It bore Ye Qingxuan's appearance, but the avatar had white hair and golden pupils. Wherever the golden pupils swept, the sea of clouds boiled, resembling a fairyland.

"What is this? A Nascent Soul avatar? That's not right, there's no Nascent Soul formation phenomenon... Little Qingxuan, is he practicing some kind of Divine Ability?"

The three Old Ancestors in seclusion within the back mountain Forbidden Ground were awakened by this phenomenon. However, no matter how hard they racked their brains, they couldn't figure out what was going on.

Meanwhile, Master Yuanxin and the others who had just returned to the School not long ago were also startled by this sudden phenomenon.

"This... what is Qingxuan practicing again?" Master Yuanxin felt somewhat strange, but not particularly surprised. After all, Ye Qingxuan had never stopped giving him surprises since childhood, and he was basically already immune to it.

"Master, is Senior Brother Qingxuan making a Breakthrough?" A short-haired youth asked Yuanhui.

The youth was named Disciple Suyue, one of the seventeen geniuses who entered the threshold within ten days after the nationwide cultivation. In terms of Aptitude, he was about the same as Senior Brother Qingming, and he was the newly accepted Disciple of Senior Martial Uncle Yuanhui.

After all, Master Yuanxin had already accepted a closed-window Disciple, and it wouldn't be good to snatch a Disciple from his Senior Brother. Mainly, his appetite had been spoiled by Ye Qingxuan, so such a Genius in his view was just so-so, completely mediocre.

"It's not a Breakthrough; he should be practicing some kind of Divine Ability." Master Yuanxin said with a calm Face, making Yuanhui and the others itch with hatred. Who are you putting on airs for? It's not like you are the one making a Breakthrough.