74: Chapter 74 Pongkor Gold Mine

On the road back to Bandung from Trowulan, Li Xin couldn't stop smiling.

It wasn't the kind of loud, boisterous laughter, but rather a smile he simply couldn't suppress.

His fingers tapped a rhythm on the steering wheel, old songs played on the car stereo, and the rice paddies outside the window receded one after another.

120 billion.

Adding the money he had cashed out earlier in Europe, his total assets were around 270 billion RMB.

Was it enough?

No.

With the System upgraded to level 12, the detection range was nearly nineteen kilometers. What could nineteen kilometers do? It could cover half a city at once, Scan an entire mountain range, and let him know if there was treasure at the summit while standing at the foot of the mountain.

With such a good tool, it would be a disservice to the System not to use it to find more gold mines.

When he returned to the youth hostel in Bandung, it was already evening.

The girl at the front desk saw him and smiled, "Handsome, did you have a good time?"

"I did." Li Xin shook his camera, "I took quite a few good photos."

"That's good. Have you eaten yet?"

"Not yet."

"Turn right when you go out; that grilled fish place is good."

"Thank you."

Li Xin went upstairs, took a shower, and changed into clean clothes. Lying on the bed, he took out his phone to look up information on the Pongkor Gold Mine.

The Pongkor Gold Mine was located within the Halimun Salak National Park. This national park was the largest tropical rainforest reserve in West Java, known for its biodiversity.

The mining area itself was inside the park, but there were many hiking trails, campsites, and bird-watching spots open to tourists on the edge of the park.

Li Xin's eyes lit up.

Wasn't this an opportunity delivered right to his doorstep?

He checked again and found that the Cisolok hot spring area was on the outer southern edge of the Pongkor Gold Mine, completely legal and open to tourists. There was a high viewing platform there that offered a panoramic view of the entire mining area's mountains and forests.

There were also the outer trails of Halimun Salak National Park, which were part of the park's open area, not the mining zone. It was full of regular tourists and hiking enthusiasts, with gentle mountain paths and beautiful scenery. Standing at the high point, one could overlook the entire mountain profile of the Pongkor mining area.

Li Xin put down his phone, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

No need to sneak in, no need to organize an inspection team, and no need to grease anyone's palms.

He just needed to act like an ordinary tourist.

Early the next morning, Li Xin rented an off-road vehicle and drove toward Cisolok.

The car left Bandung, got on the highway, and then turned onto a mountain road. The road became narrower and narrower, and the trees on both sides grew denser. The air became humid, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees.

After driving for about two hours, a parking lot appeared ahead. A few tourist buses and over a dozen private cars were parked there; tourists were taking photos, and vendors were selling snacks.

Li Xin parked the car, put on his backpack, took his camera, and walked into the scenic area.

There was a ticket booth at the entrance, and an Indonesian man in uniform was sitting inside.

"How much is the ticket?" Li Xin asked in Indonesian.

"Fifty thousand Indonesian Rupiah."

Li Xin paid the money, took the ticket, and walked into the scenic area.

The path was paved with stone slabs and was very smooth. On both sides were dense woods, with sunlight leaking through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadows on the ground. There was a scent of sulfur in the air, which grew stronger the further he went.

After walking for about ten minutes, he arrived at the Cisolok hot spring area.

Several hot spring pools were scattered on the hillside; the water was milky white and steaming. Bamboo fences surrounded the pools, and a few tourists were soaking their feet, chatting and laughing.

Li Xin didn't stop at the hot spring area and continued walking upward.

His goal was the viewing platform on the mountain.

The road began to steepen, and the stone path turned into a gravel road. The trees on both sides grew taller, and the forest grew denser. After walking for about twenty minutes, he arrived at a fork in the road. To the left was the path to the hot spring waterfall, and to the right was the path to the viewing platform.

Li Xin turned right.

The path was even narrower, only wide enough for one person to pass through. On both sides were dense bushes, and branches stretched onto the path, scraping against his clothes with a rustling sound.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, a platform appeared ahead.

The platform was not large, built of wood, with several prayer flags tied to the railing, flapping loudly in the wind.

Li Xin walked up, stood by the railing, and looked into the distance.

The mountain profile of the entire Pongkor mining area was in full view.

The distant mountains were layered, and the deepest part was the mining area. The naked eye couldn't see the mine pits, only a vast expanse of dark green forest, like a huge emerald embedded in the earth.

But the System could see it.

Li Xin squatted down and pressed his hand against the wooden board. Beneath the board was soil, beneath the soil was rock, and beneath the rock was the gold mine.

"System, Scan."

[Scanning... Please wait.]

[Scan range: 18.99 km.]

A few seconds later—

[Scan complete.]

[=== Scan Results ===]

[ Pongkor Gold Mine ]

[Type: Shallow low-temperature hydrothermal rock gold deposit]

[Distribution: 50-300 meters underground]

[Three main lodes, four blind lodes, total reserves: approximately 72 tons of gold.]

[Note: This gold mine has an owner; host can extract 60%, i.e., 43.2 tons of gold.]

Li Xin tapped his fingers lightly on the wooden board twice.

"72 tons."

"The official report says there are only a few tons left."

"As expected, it's a smokescreen. Since you all say there are only a few tons left, I'll help you out this time. I'll make it so there really are only a few tons." Thinking about how he had done another good deed, Li Xin couldn't help but let the corners of his mouth curl upward.

He glanced around. There was no one else on the platform, and tourists occasionally passed by on the trail in the distance; no one noticed him.

He lowered his head and pressed his hand lightly on the ground.

"System, Extraction."

[Extracting...]

Less than a second.

[Extraction complete. Obtained gold: 43.2 tons.]

[Accumulated gold refined: 96.2057 tons.]

He stood up and brushed the dust off his hands.

43 tons of gold.

It was gone, just like that, without a sound.

Li Xin took out his camera and, looking the part, snapped away at the distant mountains, leaving with a few photos he thought were quite good. The shutter clicked, no different from an ordinary tourist.

After taking the photos, he turned to walk back down.

After walking a few steps, he scanned again casually and suddenly stopped.

The System chimed; there was another discovery.

[Ding... Discovered gold inside a naturally formed cave that had been artificially excavated about 200 meters below.]

Li Xin's expression froze, seemingly feeling a bit ashamed,

"Gold in an underground cave? It seems I really ignored it just now. It looks like Brother Li has gotten a bit carried away. I didn't even search properly when it was this close, almost missed it."

He shook his head and then squatted down, pressing his hand on the ground.

"System, Precise Scan."

[Scanning... Please wait.]

[Scan complete. Discovered a naturally formed cave that had been artificially excavated, with an area of about 50 square meters. There are a small amount of gold artifacts and bronze ware inside the cave.]

[Reserves: approximately 0.5 tons of gold, 12 pieces of bronze ware.]

[Note: This cave has not been excavated and is ownerless treasure; it can be 100% collected.]

0.5 tons. Not much, but he wouldn't turn his nose up at it.

Li Xin pressed his hand on the ground.

"System, Collect."

[Extracting... Collection complete. Obtained 0.5 tons of gold, 12 pieces of bronze ware.]

[Accumulated gold refined: 96.7057 tons.]

He stood up, brushed the dust off his hands, and continued walking down.

When he reached the hot spring area, a few tourists soaking their feet saw him coming down, and one old white man asked in English, "Handsome, how was the scenery up there?"

"It's very beautiful, definitely worth going up," Li Xin smiled, "You can see the whole mountain."

The old man nodded with a smile and continued soaking his feet.

Li Xin walked out of the scenic area, got into his car, and started the engine.

His phone vibrated.

Chen Hu sent a message: "Boss, I've found information on Sumatra. The Martabe Gold Mine is deep in the rainforest, but there are hiking trails on the outskirts, so you can go in as a backpacker."

Li Xin replied "Good" and tossed his phone onto the passenger seat.

He stepped on the gas, the car drove out of the parking lot, and merged onto the road back to Bandung.

The scenery outside the window changed from mountain forests to farmland, and from farmland to the city.

He leaned back in his seat and opened the system panel.

[Accumulated gold refined: 96.7057 tons.]

[Gold required for next upgrade: 200 tons.]

He still needed 103.3 tons.

He closed the panel, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

Next stop, Sumatra.