After a brief surprise, Qing Muling quickly calmed down.
It seems that his initial speculation was correct. The space within the blue lotus leaf phantom can continue to expand. He thought he would have to wait until his cultivation breakthrough to the next realm, but now with a massive supply of spiritual energy, the growth of this space has been advanced.
Qing Muling’s gaze turned to the distant blue spiritual stone mountain range. If he could absorb all the spiritual energy in the entire mountain range, he wondered how much the space inside his body could grow?
Having an independent law and a self-contained higher realm? It is not impossible.
Qing Muling put aside his thoughts and began to concentrate on absorbing the spiritual energy from the spiritual stone peak beneath him. If it were in the Great Void Starry Sky, where else could he find such convenient conditions? How long would it take for the Harmony Spirit Seed to grow quickly?
With Qing Muling, an unpredictable bug, the spiritual stone peak beneath the six people began to undergo visible changes at a rapid speed. A dense gray-white death aura spread rapidly in all directions from them, reaching the edge of the mountain peak and spreading downward.
This was a normal phenomenon after the essence of spiritual energy in the spiritual stone was completely extracted. In fact, the five senior sisters only took a small portion, while Qing Muling swallowed the majority.
After more than two hours, Xuebing Xuan, Cheng Yulan, Luo Huan, and Luo Wanqing had to stop extracting spiritual energy. Even though they were all in the late stage of the Feather Transformation Realm and had the bodies of immortals, the amount of spiritual energy they could accommodate at once was still limited.
Next, they would have to spend some time refining and absorbing it. Qi Yalan, who had the highest cultivation, continued.
When Yu Lingzhou arrived with more than three thousand large-capacity spatial artifacts, Qing Muling temporarily stopped and made a round trip to the Great Void Starry Sky. After all, that was the main task.
Qi Yalan could only persist for two more hours before having to stop. Only Qing Muling remained motionless in place. At this time, the spiritual stone peak beneath them, which was over a thousand miles high, had already turned half gray-white.
The five senior sisters did not ask further questions and quietly guarded Qing Muling. After all, the shock brought by Junior Brother was already enough, and they didn’t need any more.
In the blink of an eye, more than three hours passed. The speed at which the Harmony Spirit Seed extracted the essence of spiritual energy was clearly accelerating. The entire spiritual stone peak had turned gray-white and spread further into the depths of the earth.
In Qing Muling’s perception, the space within the blue lotus leaf phantom was getting larger and larger, from ten zhang in diameter to twenty zhang, then thirty zhang, fifty zhang…
By the time Yu Lingzhou arrived with more than three thousand fully loaded large-capacity spatial artifacts, Qing Muling’s internal space had grown to nearly a hundred zhang in diameter.
As a result, several nearby spiritual stone peaks had all turned into gray-white stone mountains.
“We’ve reached the limit.”
Qing Muling said somewhat regretfully. The feedback from the Harmony Spirit Seed made him understand that unless his cultivation breakthrough reached the Divine Spirit Realm, it was impossible for the space inside his body to continue growing at this stage.
Of course, this was already an unexpected joy. Unfortunately, the sect couldn’t temporarily produce more large-capacity spatial artifacts, and manpower was limited. Even if hundreds of elders worked tirelessly, it would be difficult to significantly increase the efficiency of resource collection in a short period of time.
“Junior Brother, do you have a better solution?”
Xuebing Xuan asked. With the current speed of transportation, it would probably take a month to completely excavate this giant mountain range that stretched for millions of miles.
But there were still many similar super spiritual stone veins, and perhaps only less than one-thousandth of them could be transported away until the Misty Illusion Secret Realm closed.
Qing Muling pondered and said, “Since we can’t increase the quantity, we can only find a solution from the quality. Instead of digging these spiritual stones, let’s see if there are any spiritual crystal veins.”
Xuebing Xuan’s eyes lit up. “Good idea, let’s do that.”
Spiritual crystal veins were even rarer and more precious. The exchange ratio between top-grade spiritual stones and low-grade spiritual crystals was one hundred to one, with a value difference of hundreds of times. If they could find medium-grade or high-grade spiritual crystal veins, it would be even better.
The six of them returned to the Heavenly Boat, and Qing Muling took a moment to adjust his qi and blood and refine his spiritual power before starting to calculate with great effort.
“I have the result. It’s thirty-seven thousand miles in the southeast direction. There should be a large-scale spiritual crystal vein there.”
After a while, Qing Muling opened his eyes and said. With the help of his unparalleled luck, the distance was not particularly far, and there were no other powerful beings interfering or shielding, so the calculation was not as difficult as imagined.
Xuebing Xuan immediately informed Yu Lingzhou and Yueyi Heavenly Lord. After a quick discussion, all the elders stopped working and returned to the Heavenly Boat, speeding towards the new target area.
…
In the depths of the Great Void Starry Sky, at the Main Altar of the Calamity Fate Palace.
In the deep and ancient hall, with mist rising and brilliant treasures shining, dozens of figures sat quietly, and a majestic pressure enveloped the space.
On the ancient and mysterious bronze lotus throne, the Sect Master of the Calamity Fate Palace spoke in a calm and unhurried voice:
“…The Sect Master of the Armillary Sphere Star Palace, Yan Qinyang, has agreed to the conditions we proposed last time, so we can consider helping him solve the problem of his precious son’s loss of fortune.”
The elders remained silent for a while, and then one voice spoke up, “Since they are willing to offer enough compensation, there is no harm in agreeing to this matter. However, one thing remains unchanged: we must continue to suppress and balance the Armillary Sphere Star Palace.”Another elder echoed: “That’s right. According to our intelligence network feedback, the current influence range controlled by the armillary sphere Star Palace is approaching the territories of the three Supreme Dao Lineages. In terms of important resource reserves, annual total income, the scale of the Supreme Elder Council, and the number of core disciples, it has clearly exceeded the cautionary standard by a large margin. Therefore, we can no longer sit idly by and allow them to continue growing.”
“My suggestion is to prioritize the young masters of the Bright Moon Sword Sect and several other Supreme Dao Lineages, and let them recover first. As for the two from the armillary sphere Star Palace, let’s wait for another year or so. The reason is already there. It’s not easy to prepare suitable ‘materials’, and it requires enough time to find them. I believe they will understand.”
Cooperation and precautionary measures are the normal relationship between the Supreme Dao Lineages, and all considerations are based on interests.
The palace master said, “Regarding this matter, the views of this palace and the elders are unanimous. So, let’s continue with the plans that have been agreed upon. Hmm, have we found out about the incident Mei Qingfeng encountered recently?”
“Not yet, palace master.”
Elder Luo Yujue said, “The only thing that can be certain is that an unidentified cultivator took away the Heavenly Medicine opportunity inside before her. However, it seems that the other party has some special means or a treasure that obscures the heavenly secrets, making it impossible for us to deduce any valuable information. Therefore, the investigation of this matter has made no substantial progress.”
Heavenly Medicine is not an ordinary resource. Even a force as ancient and powerful as the Calamity Fate Palace cannot overlook such an opportunity.
Mei Qingfeng, as the only direct descendant of the palace master, naturally has unquestionable abilities and talents. It is not something an ordinary person can achieve to suffer such a big loss unintentionally and almost be surrounded by people from other Dao Lineages.
After pondering for a moment, the palace master said, “Forget it, this matter can be investigated slowly. Is there any other important matter to report?”
Elder Luo Yujue immediately presented a jade slip and explained, “Since the opening of the Misty Illusion Secret Realm, more than four months have passed. The top hundred Supreme-level forces, their gains and losses, as well as some important events that have occurred during this period, have been analyzed and summarized by the elders. Please have a look, palace master.”
The palace master took the jade slip and quickly skimmed through it. She already had a general idea in her mind. Although the contents on it were not completely accurate, about sixty to seventy percent of their authenticity could be guaranteed.
Thanks to the massive intelligence system that the Calamity Fate Palace has secretly operated for millions of years, as well as their many unique heavenly divination techniques, many things in the Great Void Starry Sky, including the secrets of the Supreme Dao Lineages, cannot escape their ears and eyes.
After a moment of contemplation, the palace master said, “Forget about the rest, there is only one thing that puzzles me. It is a message from the high-level members of the Heavenly Human Clan, who have come through a special channel. They say that this round of ‘harvesting’ operation has not been going smoothly. So far, the aura fortune harvested in the secret realm is far from expected. What do you think we should do?”
Elder Yuan Xuan Kong sneered, “What does this have to do with us? The harvesting of aura fortune from cultivators in the Great Void Starry Sky is governed by the laws of the secret realm. How much they can ultimately harvest is their own business. Why should we be concerned?”
Elder Meng Huo pondered and said, “Based on the numbers we have collected, there have been quite a few casualties among the cultivators in the Great Void Starry Sky this time, higher than in previous years. But they say the harvest is not as expected, and the reasons seem somewhat unusual. I wonder what their plan is?”
The palace master said, “What they mean is that they hope we can find a way to make more cultivators from the Great Void Starry Sky enter the secret realm and die. After all, their plan has reached a critical stage, and the demand for aura fortune is particularly exaggerated. They need more sacrifices from cultivators to meet their requirements.”
“Then, what is the price?”
“They promise to give us five hundred new spots, plus one hundred high-grade artifacts that can be taken out of the secret realm, as well as a batch of divine medicine resources. They also guarantee that if any important figures from the Calamity Fate Palace unfortunately fall in the secret realm, they can have one chance to return without any harm. Of course, this special opportunity is limited to thirty spots.”
Unlike other Supreme Dao Lineages, the relationship between the high-level members of the Heavenly Human Clan and the Calamity Fate Palace is not as simple as the outside world thinks.
It is unknown what means the Calamity Fate Palace has used, but they have actually persuaded the high-level members of the Heavenly Human Clan. For more than a hundred thousand years, they have had some shady dealings with the Calamity Fate Palace.
It can be imagined that once this matter is exposed, the Calamity Fate Palace will undoubtedly become the target of public criticism in the Great Void Starry Sky. Sacrificing cultivators from other Dao Lineages to fulfill their own needs, or trading with other races, is no different from the actions of a traitor.
The palace master said, “This price is a bit low. We need one thousand new spots, plus at least three hundred high-grade artifacts that can be taken out of the secret realm. The agreed amount of divine medicine resources should be doubled, and the number of special spots should be increased to one hundred.”
“As long as they agree to these conditions, we can mobilize the connections of our sect and entice at least two hundred thousand independent cultivators to enter the secret realm and die. As long as they are prepared with the spots, we will sell the spots to those independent cultivators through various secret channels at a favorable price.”
The elders looked at each other and nodded one after another. They were quite satisfied with these conditions. Now that the high-level members of the Heavenly Human Clan are seeking help from the Calamity Fate Palace, the price naturally needs to be higher.”We need to be more careful this time. The number of ferocious beasts proliferating in these mountains is quite high. If we want to mine and transport resources peacefully, I’m afraid it won’t be as smooth as before,” Qing Muling said. Near any high-quality spirit crystal vein, due to the overly rich and abundant spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the beasts and spirit birds here have benefited a lot. They are powerful, cunning, and brutal, defending their territories and even banding together to eliminate intruders.
“Don’t worry, with our combat power, these beasts are nothing,” Yu Lingzhou said dismissively.
When the Heavenly Boat Building Ship was suspended hundreds of feet above the ground, hundreds of elders simultaneously deployed their magical treasures, left the ship in formation, and cautiously explored the surroundings.
A moment later, the feedback was all clear. Within a radius of thousands of miles, there were very few beasts that could trouble the elders, which slightly relieved Qing Muling.
Based on the general area he provided, Yu Lingzhou and several elders began to dig again. As the thick layers of rock and soil were peeled away, a pleasant discovery was made before long.
A pale blue vein, tens of thousands of miles long and nearly a hundred miles wide, appeared before their eyes. Although its scale was smaller than the previous spirit stone veins, the lustrous glow on the surface of the vein and the powerful spiritual pressure emanating from it confirmed that it was genuine spirit crystal. Even if its quality was only considered inferior, its value was still a hundred times that of the same volume of top-grade spirit stones.
What followed was a bustling excavation. Even Qing Muling and his five senior sisters joined in. After filling all the spatial artifacts, they returned to the Great Void.
Time quietly passed, and three days quickly went by. Several giant spirit crystal veins had been mined out. All the warehouses and secret realms of the Main Altar of the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace were already filled. As a result, Mu Yinghua had to urgently mobilize the supreme elders to work overtime and set up formations to create several new secret realms.
The Heavenly Boat Building Ship moved southward, and the scale of the spirit crystal veins detected became larger and larger. In the depths of the veins, many other rare minerals and divine medicine resources were discovered, all of which were taken away by the elders without leaving a single bit.
One day, just as Qing Muling was guiding Yu Lingzhou to discover a new vein, trouble finally arrived.
Clouds of unknown origin obscured the sky and the earth shook continuously. A creature as tall as a mountain peak, resembling a giant ape, came from a far distance. Its body was covered with thick scales, its eyes were like lightning, and its vitality was as vast as the sea. Wherever it passed, hurricanes raged and the earth shattered.