The night was deep.

The towering peaks stretched out in front of Qing Muling, and as he stood on the mountaintop and looked up, he saw the boundless starry sky hanging high in the sky, with colorful starlight shining on the mountains, rivers, and earth for billions of miles, exuding a sense of mystery and grandeur.

Ten zhang away, on a temporarily cleared flat ground, a set of thousand-year-old golden silk and black sandalwood tables had already been set up. Several senior sisters were busy working skillfully beside them.

Nine bronze cauldrons, each about ten zhang tall and with three legs and two ears, were lined up on the flat ground. The soup inside was boiling and bubbling, emitting a fragrant aroma and shimmering with spiritual light. The ingredients used were all exotic beasts and spirit birds hunted by the senior sisters, with most of them having cultivation levels above the Heavenly Fate Realm in their lifetime. They were also accompanied by many rare holy and divine medicines. The soup had been simmering for a long time.

In the distant mountains, a large group of high-level female cultivators were busy using their magical powers to lift and separate the mountains, excavating a kind of red and green ore hidden in the mountains. After a simple refining and purification, they were then placed into large-capacity space bracelets and rings.

This was a kind of spiritual ore called Tianyan Yunsha Copper, which was a relatively scarce resource in the Great Void Starry Sky. It was one of the main raw materials for refining high-quality and top-grade magic treasures, and it was also indispensable for setting up large-scale formations. Due to its excellent quality and high market demand, its price had been driven up to a very high level.

All the Supreme Dao Lineages and hidden aristocratic families treated Tianyan Yunsha Copper as a strategic resource reserve, doing their best to control it. Especially those sects and forces that focused on sword cultivation attached great importance to it, tirelessly searching for it. Only a small quantity appeared on the market every year.

Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace also had a sword cultivation lineage. Due to the significant reduction in its influence over the past ten thousand years, several locations where Tianyan Yunsha Copper was produced had been taken over by hostile forces. The limited stock had long been exhausted, and in recent years, they could only purchase it at a high price from major commercial firms. The quantity was small and the price was high, which was simply not enough for their needs.

However, in the Misty Illusion Secret Realm, it was a well-known fact that this kind of spiritual ore was abundant and of high quality. However, the cultivators in the Great Void Starry Sky could only envy it and couldn’t take any of it away.

There were many other types of spiritual ore similar to Tianyan Yunsha Copper, all of which were extremely scarce or in high demand in the Great Void Starry Sky. Many of these valuable mines could be found in the Misty Illusion Secret Realm, and they were of extremely high quality.

Due to the vast territory and abundant resources, the high-level members of the Heavenly Human Clan didn’t pay much attention to these mines. They would only allow cultivators to come and collect some when needed, and they usually ignored them. After all, no one could take them away.

The boundless wealth was right in front of them, within reach, but they could only watch with envy. This situation, which drove cultivators almost crazy, had persisted from the ancient times to the present.

However, today, everything would change.

After a while, a streak of light rose from a distance and flew towards Qing Muling at high speed, arriving in an instant.

It was Yu Lingzhou, with a radiant smile on her face. She carried thousands of large-capacity space bracelets and rings in the bright cloud light above her head, and they all piled up next to Qing Muling.

“Junior Brother, they’re all filled up.”

The pure and innocent-looking but extremely wicked Lolita elder said excitedly, “Hurry and take them back. We’ve discovered many veins in that mountain range, all of which are high-quality rich ores that are impossible to find in the Great Void Starry Sky. We have to dig them all out this time!”

Luo Wanqing, who was not far away, smiled and said, “Junior Brother, go and come back quickly. The Ice Sea Dragon Shark has been simmering for a while. We’ll have a feast when you come back!”

“Alright.”

Qing Muling waved his hand, and a soft and gentle light swept over, collecting all the space artifacts on the ground into the shadow of the Blue Lotus Leaf. Then his figure slowly faded and disappeared from the spot.

The space derived from the Blue Lotus Leaf was essentially the prototype of a new world, so it could accommodate space artifacts. Using this almost “nested doll” cheating method, a large amount of resources from the Misty Illusion Secret Realm could be transported back to the Great Void Starry Sky. However, it could only be nested once, and infinite nesting was impossible.

When his perception ability recovered and he opened his eyes again, Mu Yinghua and several trusted elders were waiting beside him.

Qing Muling stood up, and with a flash of light, he released all the filled space artifacts. Then he collected the neatly stacked space bracelets and rings on the other side into his body.

After a simple greeting with his master, Qing Muling reentered the Misty Illusion Secret Realm.

Yu Lingzhou was waiting nearby. When she saw Qing Muling’s figure reappear and release the empty space artifacts, she asked him to transport them to the busy mining site in the distance.

“Junior Brother, come over. Everything is ready.”

Luo Wanqing greeted Qing Muling with a smile. Qing Muling responded and walked back to the table. The spirit wine and various appetizers were already prepared, followed by the meat soup in the jade bowl, emitting a faint glow and a strong fragrance, making people’s mouths water.Qing Muling drained the bowl of soup handed to him by Xuebing Xuan in one gulp, satisfyingly said, “The taste is good. Everyone, sit down and eat. We still have a long time before we have to return.”

The senior sisters sat down as instructed, cheerfully toasting and feasting.

“How many years can the sect use all the spirit ores found in these mountains if they are all mined and transported back?”

After three rounds of drinks, Qing Muling casually asked.

Cheng Yulan, holding her wine jar, replied, “That depends on how they are used. If we calculate carefully, it should be enough to meet the needs within a hundred years.”

Qing Muling pondered, “It seems not long, far less than I estimated.”

Xuebing Xuan leisurely said, “Just looking at the total amount of resources, it is indeed a huge wealth for an individual. However, for a Supreme Dao Lineage, it is still too little.”

Even though the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace had already declined, there were still tens of millions of elders, deacons, and disciples in the sect, not to mention the vassal forces attached to the sect, the vast intelligence network dispatched outside, and numerous insiders and informants. The total number of people included in the budget and supported by the sect was a staggering figure.

As a superpower, the sect had a large family and business, and the expenses in all aspects were too much. The higher the cultivation and status, the higher the standard of resource allocation required, especially the high-ranking cultivators with long lifespans, their consumption of resources was particularly exaggerated.

Therefore, despite the large amount of things Qing Muling had transported back these days, there was still not much left when it was distributed to all the disciples.

In the end, Qing Muling could only shake his head and sigh, “I was wrong. It seems that being the Sect Master is really not easy, and it’s really hard for the Master.”

Qi Yalan smiled charmingly and said, “You don’t need to blame yourself, Junior Brother. You have done very well. Your contribution to the sect is unparalleled. Those Supreme Dao Lineages don’t have the convenient conditions we have, so we still have a great advantage.”

Xuebing Xuan nodded in agreement, “Yes, by the time the Misty Illusion Secret Realm closes, the amount of various resources you can bring back, Junior Brother, should be enough to ensure the successful revival of the sect. Besides, the development and growth of the sect rely on the joint efforts of all disciples, not just your responsibility.”