With Yu Lingzhou’s discerning eye, she instantly recognized beneath the mountain lay a vein of top-grade spirit crystals, genuine and unsurpassed in quality. The surface glistened, moist as water, free from the slightest impurity. The dense spiritual energy was so rich that it had condensed into a tangible form, manifesting as magnificent, multicolored clouds of mist that lingered above.
This invaluable spirit crystal vein stretched over thirty thousand miles wide and its length was immeasurable. Even with Qing Muling’s current level of cultivation, he could not see its end.
“…It’s magnificent, but it’s a pity that the Great Void Starry Sky can no longer have such an astonishingly large vein of top-grade spirit crystals. Even finding ordinary spirit stone veins of this scale has become difficult.”
The Dragon Ritual Princess sighed softly as she hovered in midair, clad in a body-hugging suit of purple-gold armor, her black hair cascading over her shoulders. Her voluptuous curves were accentuated, and the lower half of her body was covered by an elegant deep purple skirt, concealing her shapely, long legs. Her ice-clear skin and flawless beauty were accompanied by a cold yet enchanting and mysterious smile. Her presence was no less imposing than that of the Yueyi Heavenly Lord or Yu Lingzhou, among the other Supreme Elders.
Su Yuanzhen stood by her side, dressed in a magnificent palace gown with a white base and red patterns, embroidered with a hundred birds paying homage to the phoenix. Her hair was piled high, and her presence was like a blooming peony, stunning and regal.
Cheng Yulan, standing beside her, glanced over and asked, “Is it true that even within the territories of the Dao Court, such veins are no longer seen?”
“Indeed, they are no more,”
The Dragon Ritual Princess replied, “I have perused the secret archives within the Dao Court. Over tens of millions of years ago, when cultivators still had the chance of ascension, the largest vein of top-grade spirit crystals within the Dao Court’s territory had already been exhausted. Since then, although many new spirit crystal veins have been discovered, the best among them are less than a tenth of the size of the one before us.”
The surrounding women all sighed in unison. Even the Dao Court’s territory, known for its dense spiritual energy and abundant resources, was in such a state, let alone the other Dao Lineage powers. It was evident how much the Great Void Starry Sky had declined after successive catastrophic calamities.
Legends say that in the ancient times when the heavens and earth first opened, the Great Void Starry Sky was a paradise for immortals, abundant with treasures and brimming with spiritual energy, rivaling the Misty Illusion Secret Realm of the Heavenly Human Clan.
Now, although the entire Great Void Starry Sky was slowly recovering, it had encountered the calamity of the Magic Clan progeny. It was uncertain when peace would fully return, and the prospect of reviving the prosperous era of the ancients was unknown.
Little Fengxia, the phoenix, chirped, “Deep within this vein, there seem to be many accompanying top-grade crystal essences of various attributes. They could even be used to refine Postnatal Spirit Treasures!”
“Don’t worry, it’s all ours.”
Yu Lingzhou smiled. Any treasure that was discovered was never missed; they would be transported back without fail.
In the distance, twenty thousand female cultivators had already organized themselves into teams and divided the area, then began their work. Giant hands, each spanning over a hundred miles, continuously descended, tossing large swaths of rock and soil far away, revealing the true form of the colossal spirit crystal vein hidden within the mountain.
In an instant, millions of sharp sword energies whistled down like a dazzling meteor shower, dissecting and segmenting the dragon-like vein. Blocks of top-grade spirit crystals, each about a zhang square, were lifted and packed into various large-capacity spatial artifacts.
“Alright, Your Highness, let’s take this opportunity to gather some spirit crystals to take back with us!”
Su Yuanzhen said with a smile. With such a quantity of top-grade spirit crystals, even the Qinghuan Emperor with her terrifying wealth couldn’t ignore it, let alone them.
The Dragon Ritual Princess nodded slightly, and with a gentle wave of her hand, a spirit crystal mountain peak with a diameter of nearly a hundred miles broke apart and floated towards her, to be collected into a seal-shaped spatial artifact.
It was a Postnatal Spirit Treasure-level spatial artifact, with an internal space spanning over a hundred thousand miles. If used entirely for storing top-grade spirit crystals, it could suffice for tens of thousands of years.
Su Yuanzhen also began to act, and in no time, all the spatial artifacts on both women were nearly filled. The surrounding sisters were not idle either. Cultivation was a bottomless pit, and no amount of resources was ever enough. They had come prepared, each carrying at least dozens of large-capacity spatial artifacts. Luo Wanqing’s fingers were adorned with rings, her wrists with layers of bracelets, her neck with several necklaces, and her waist, ears, hairpins, and armlets were all spatial artifacts. The same was true for the other women; the resources they collected were their own private stash and did not need to be handed over.
Finally, Qi Yalan suggested, “There are no dangerous creatures around, why don’t we just cultivate here for a while? Just like last time!”
The women readily agreed. Such a luxurious act of directly absorbing the essence of top-grade spirit crystals for cultivation was extremely rare in the Great Void Starry Sky, only affordable to the heads of Supreme Dao Lineages.
Moments later, Qing Muling, who had recovered, also appeared from the heavenly boats and joined the cultivation ranks.
With his current cultivation at the Feather Transformation Realm, he could barely absorb the essence of spiritual energy from the top-grade spirit crystals. Moreover, with the Harmony Spirit Seed sharing the burden, cultivators below this rank would likely be unable to withstand the overwhelming spiritual energy and often end in explosive death.
Qing Muling sat cross-legged atop a spirit crystal mountain peak towering over ten thousand miles high, silently reciting his cultivation mantra. The vast spiritual energy surged into his body like rivers flowing into the sea.
Inside his sea of consciousness, the Harmony Spirit Seed trembled slightly, and a lustrous, watery light of chaos emerged lightly, filling his organs and effortlessly absorbing the boundless spiritual energy. With a vast amount of spiritual essence replenishing it, the space within the phantom of the Blue Lotus leaf began to slowly expand.
At the same time, large patches of discoloration appeared on the spirit crystal mountain peak beneath him, rapidly expanding—a sign that the essence of spiritual energy within was being drained.
After stepping into the Feather Transformation Realm, Qing Muling’s Harmony Spirit Seed had undergone a metamorphosis, with an almost infinite demand for spiritual energy. Even such a majestic spirit crystal mountain peak seemed insufficient to satisfy its extraction.
Hours passed quickly, and when the Dragon Ritual Princess, having finished her cultivation, cautiously approached, she and her sisters silently guarded him.
Whenever the twenty thousand female cultivators filled all their spatial artifacts and sent team leaders to deliver the goods, Qing Muling would temporarily cease his cultivation and make a trip to the Great Void Starry Sky, bringing back the emptied spatial artifacts.
After seven days and nights, the space within the phantom of the Blue Lotus leaf had expanded more than fourfold. The Harmony Spirit Seed itself had also reaped tremendous benefits, with nine Blue Lotus leaves fully formed and solidified, their surfaces covered with countless intricate and profound Dao patterns, filled with the rich Dao Rhyme in the sea of consciousness.
Thanks to this, Qing Muling’s physical strength had doubled, surpassing even those monstrous genius seeds who specialized in physical cultivation, and his vitality and recovery abilities from injuries were notably superior. Among all the elite talents of the new era, he was truly the foremost.
As for the cost, it was the complete absorption of the spiritual essence from the vast spirit crystal mountain peak beneath Qing Muling—mainly the work of the Harmony Spirit Seed, with only a small portion assimilated by himself.
“I plan to discuss with the Master and arrange for more people to come over to improve the efficiency of resource transportation. What do you think?” Qing Muling asked.
The twenty thousand female cultivators had been busy day and night, and so far, they had only emptied tens of millions of miles of the spirit crystal vein, not even one percent of the entire mountain range.
“That might be a bit troublesome…”
Xuebing Xuan frowned. The current twenty thousand female cultivators had all taken great Dao oaths, and their divine souls were bound by restrictions placed by the Xinyu Emperor to ensure the secret would never be leaked.
If more people were to be added halfway, they would have to undergo the same process, and not a single one could be missed, or else there would be unpredictable risks.
“No matter, let the Emperor worry about that. I just need to deliver the message!”
Qing Muling said, vanishing from the spot.
In a blink, the familiar interior of the cave dwelling appeared before him. Mu Yinghua and the two Emperors were conversing, and upon seeing Qing Muling’s arrival, numerous waiting elders immediately gathered around.
“Teacher, I was thinking…”
Qing Muling recounted the situation in the secret realm. Given the current circumstances, without additional manpower, it would probably take another year to excavate the vast spirit crystal mountain range.
“Emperor, what do you think would be the best course of action?” Mu Yinghua pondered.
Xinyu Emperor laughed, “I don’t mind. Let’s just do that! Arrange for tens of thousands more disciples to go in. We’re not short on spatial artifacts anyway.”
“But if we continue like this, the good things we bring back will be too much, and the Hidden Cave Mystical Realm used by the sect to store resources will also be insufficient!”
Mu Yinghua looked troubled. If things continued, the entire territory of the Main Altar of the Sect might be filled with various rare resources, making it difficult to keep the secret.
“No worries, they can be stored in my personal Hidden Cave Mystical Realm for now. There’s plenty of space there,” the Xinyu Emperor said.
“Very well, let’s arrange it that way!” Mu Yinghua agreed, satisfied.
From beginning to end, no one mentioned the option of giving up. No one would think their resources were too abundant.
“Actually, I think…”
The Qinghuan Emperor spoke, “You could also spend a part of it, right? Exchange it for high-level finished pills, artifacts, talismans, puppets, and other resources. Wouldn’t that further enhance the sect’s strength?”
“Yes, the Dao Court just happens to need a batch of top-grade spirit crystals to replenish its stores. How about an internal price? I’ll arrange for a batch of genuine and heavenly-grade spirit pills for you. List the types you need.”
“That works, let’s do that!”
Mu Yinghua immediately agreed. With enough top-grade spirit crystals to splurge, many high-end resources in the Great Void Starry Sky could be openly purchased. Even if they couldn’t be used immediately, it was good to have reserves.