104: Chapter 104 Looting Corpses Until Hands Are Sore and Hiding One's Merits

After the great battle, the entrance to the Qingteng Mountain Spirit Stone mine was a mess, with the faint scent of blood and the fishy stench of residual Devilish Qi lingering in the air.

The Foundation Establishment Stage inner Sect Steward Liu from the Sector B7 Stronghold, after confirming the safety of the mineral vein and leaving behind a large amount of Formation Materials for rebuilding defenses, hurriedly left with the reinforcement team. As he said, the front lines were strained; as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, he had more important tasks, and being able to arrive in time this time was already a stroke of luck.

Having seen off the big shot, what remained was cleaning up the battlefield and... the joyful harvest time!

For Lin Cangchen, this was undoubtedly the most "fruitful" harvest since his Transmigration. The ground was covered with the corpses of devil cultivators; although the quality varied, the sheer number was overwhelming!

He endured the odor in the air, appearing to help clean the battlefield while his gaze was like lightning, like the most discerning customer inspecting shelves. As long as a devil cultivator's corpse that had fallen for no more than three breaths was within his line of sight, he would silently mutter: "Extract!"

For a moment, System notifications (which only he could perceive) came one after another:

【faint spiritual energy card】+1

【low-grade spirit stone card】+1

【demonic cultivator memory fragment (disordered)】+1

【faint spiritual energy card】+1

【spiritual root aptitude fragment card】+1!

【First-Rank Medium-Grade Devil Tool · Soul-Losing Nail】+1

【faint spiritual energy card】+1

...

Harvests poured into the System space like flowing water. Although most were basic items like the 【faint spiritual energy card】 and 【low-grade spirit stone card】, and he had collected a few more 【Devil Cultivator Memory Fragment】s, the occasional 【spiritual root aptitude fragment card】 made him secretly delighted.

'As expected, quantity brings miracles!' Lin Cangchen thought happily. 'Even without top-tier cards, these spirit energy cards and Spiritual Root fragment cards are a real improvement for me!'

While "looting bodies," he secretly circulated the Five Elements Spirit Nurturing Art, feeling the changes in the Spiritual Qi within his body. After a long time of persistent use of the 【spiritual root aptitude fragment card】, combined with the continuous nourishment of the Five Elements Spirit Nurturing Art—a Cultivation Technique particularly suited for Five Spirit Roots that could slightly improve cultivation efficiency—he clearly felt that his efficiency in absorbing and refining Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi had undergone a qualitative leap.

If the original Five Spirit Roots were like five leaky buckets, those five buckets had now been repaired and reinforced, and even their capacity had faintly expanded a bit. He estimated that his current actual cultivation speed and efficiency in utilizing Spiritual Qi had probably steadily surpassed the average level of a Four-Element Spiritual Root, and perhaps... even touched the threshold of a Three Spirit Roots!

'Hehe, if this trend continues, won't my Five Spirit Roots counterattack and become a "Pseudo-Heavenly Spiritual Root"?' Lin Cangchen was overjoyed, feeling that the future was bright. Of course, he didn't dare say this out loud; making a fortune in silence was the way to go.

Soon, the battlefield was cleaned. Valuable items such as storage pouches and devil tools on the devil cultivators were gathered and, as per custom, distributed between the two defending parties according to their contributions. The Lin family contributed greatly this time, especially in "repairing and strengthening the Formation" and "holding the pressure at the critical moment," so they received the lion's share. The Azure Cloud Sect Disciple who died in battle also received a generous pension.

Steward Liu looked at the mountain of Formation Materials (mostly left by that Foundation Establishment Senior Brother), then at the damaged mine entrance and the group of wounded soldiers (including Lin Lingshi with an injured arm and Uncle Lingtu with internal organ tremors), and finally, his gaze fell on Lin Cangchen, who was pretending to study a damaged Formation base.

"Little Friend Lin," Steward Liu's tone was incredibly kind, even with a hint of ingratiation, "About the matter of repairing the Formation... Here is the warehouse key, and these new Materials are at your disposal. Could you trouble yourself once more?"

He was now completely convinced and admiring of the Lin family's Formation capabilities. If the Lin family hadn't strengthened the defenses in advance, they wouldn't have lasted until the reinforcements arrived and would have been wiped out long ago.

Lin Cangchen's heart stirred, but he showed a bit of hesitation on his face, looking at Uncle Lingtu: "This... Uncle Lingtu is seriously injured, I'm afraid I can't manage alone, and some Materials may need specific processing..."

"No matter, no matter!" Steward Liu immediately said. "Just do your best, little friend! Whatever assistance you need, just ask! As for the remaining Materials, if there are any left over, you can handle them as you see fit—consider it a small token of my appreciation!" His words were almost explicit: you, Lin Cangchen, can take the Materials left over after repairing the Formation!

Clan Leader nodded slightly from the side, not stopping him. This was what the Lin family deserved, and it was also Steward Liu's cleverness—trading some Materials for the goodwill of a potential Formation master and possible future help was a guaranteed profit.

"Since that's the case, this Junior will do his best!" Lin Cangchen accepted the task "reluctantly."

So, in the following time, Lin Cangchen once again transformed into a "mining area renovator." He first used the warehouse stock and some new Materials to re-deploy the core "Wutu Bedrock Array" (this time with more exquisite techniques and a firmer foundation). Then, he began "repairing" those damaged small Formations.

Of course, during the "repair" process, he "unavoidably" consumed some Materials, and "coincidentally," some scraps and "unnecessary" specific auxiliary Materials were "properly kept" by him, under the pretext of "avoiding waste and keeping them for future maintenance or emergencies." Steward Liu saw this but pretended not to, even feeling that Little Friend Lin was thorough and knew how to be thrifty.

Lin Cangchen's Storage Pouch quietly became a bit fuller during these repairs.

During the remaining few days of the defense period, no more devil cultivators came to harass them. Perhaps they were scared by the heavy losses last time, or perhaps they were brewing a larger plot, but in any case, the Qingteng Mountain Spirit Stone mine obtained a rare peace.

Once the task deadline arrived, the Lin family members bid farewell to Steward Liu. Steward Liu was extremely grateful, personally seeing them off for a long distance and repeatedly expressing his desire to stay in touch.

On the way back to the Sector B7 Stronghold on the spirit boat, the three Elders, Great Elder, Second Elder Lin Yaohai, and Third Elder Lin Yaoqing, couldn't help but discuss in low voices as they watched the mountain forests flash by below.

"Big Brother, why did the devil cultivators deploy such force, even using Array-Breaking Talismans, just for a first-rank Spirit Stone mine with a production that isn't even top-tier?" Third Elder Lin Yaoqing frowned; he was straightforward and said what was on his mind. "I always feel like there might be something in that mineral vein we don't know about?"

Second Elder Lin Yaohai also stroked his beard and pondered: "Third Brother's words are not without reason. When things are abnormal, there must be something fishy."

Great Elder looked at the consistently silent Clan Leader: "Clan Leader, what do you think..."

Clan Leader looked ahead calmly and said slowly: "Regardless of what is in that mineral vein, whether it is an Opportunity or a trap, it has nothing to do with our Lin family now."

His tone was steady, with an indisputable decisiveness: "The Azure Cloud Sect is already aware of this matter, and the Sect will handle the follow-up. For a small family like ours, the foundation of survival lies in assessing the situation and protecting ourselves. In this mission, we have fulfilled our duty, obtained the merits and resources we deserve, and even forged a good relationship with Steward Liu. It is already a Perfection. We must not, out of temporary curiosity, get involved in unnecessary whirlpools and bring trouble upon ourselves."

The three Elders were jolted by his words and nodded in agreement one after another. The Clan Leader's considerations were thorough; it was indeed so. Curiosity killed the cat; in the crisis-ridden world of cultivation, caution is the only way to live long.

Lin Cangchen listened from the side and deeply agreed. Although he was also somewhat interested in the secrets that might exist in that mineral vein, he understood better the logic that a small arm cannot twist a big leg. With that free time, he might as well study Formations more and "loot" a few more devil cultivators to collect cards.

Returning to the Sector B7 Stronghold to hand over the mission. Since the attacking force of the devil cultivators far exceeded expectations, the mission difficulty was re-evaluated, and ultimately the Lin family received 350 merit points, which was 150 points higher than the base reward—a decent income.

Clan Leader recorded the merits on the family jade plaque. Looking at everyone, who showed signs of fatigue—especially Uncle Lingtu and Lin Lingshi, who still needed to recover—he ordered: "Everyone worked hard on this mission, especially Ling Tu and Lingshi, who need to rest well. For the next few days, everyone will rest at the stronghold, recover spiritual energy, and treat their injuries. We will not take on any new missions for the time being."

Everyone responded in unison and dispersed. Lin Cangchen touched his once-again-full Storage Pouch and the pile of cards in the System space, walking toward his temporary residence with satisfaction.

'Hmm, I'll use the 【spirit energy card】s and 【Spiritual Root fragment card】s on hand as soon as I get back to consolidate my cultivation. As for the secret of that mineral vein... let the big shots of the Azure Cloud Sect worry about it!'

He hummed a tuneless little ditty, his steps light. This mission, although there were scares, brought even more joy and was full of harvests!