Chapter 386 - 384: Geng Metal Ore Vein

Chapter 386: Chapter 384: Geng Metal Ore Vein

The whereabouts of Tier Three Demon Kings were much clearer, and another important point was that the number of Foundation Establishment Cultivators in the Qingfeng Sect had been growing rapidly for years.

The Spirit Beast Hall’s Wind Chasing Secret Agents were originally Late-Stage Qi Refining disciples, coveting Sect Contribution Points and wanting to gamble on their futures.

In recent years, as competition among Sect Disciples grew ever more intense, a large number of Foundation Establishment Cultivators had begun taking on these secret agent missions.

The reward for this mission depended entirely on the value of the information brought back. A single, brand-new clue about the whereabouts of a Tier Three Demon King could be worth over a thousand Sect Contribution Points.

If one could capture an image and confirm its lair, the Sect Contribution Points earned would be even higher.

Tempted by such Sect Contribution Points, many Foundation Establishment Cultivators chose this job, even though it required facing Tier Three Demon Beasts directly.

At first, they certainly met with setbacks and made all sorts of embarrassing mistakes.

But their higher cultivation made a clear difference. It became much easier to obtain information, and soon, a great deal of intelligence on Tier Three Demon Beasts was being relayed back to the Sect.

To handle this, the Spirit Beast Hall had to coordinate with the Law Enforcement Hall to verify the intelligence.

Only after confirming the intelligence was accurate would it be added to the map and sealed into volumes.

’It’ll be you, then. You’re the closest one...’

Bai Zichen’s finger swept over the red dots one by one, browsing the information on each Tier Three Demon Beast.

He stopped when a ferocious-looking Demon Beast appeared. It had the antlers of a deer and a body covered in thick golden fur. Its front claws were like an eagle’s talons, its rear claws like a tiger’s, and its tail twitched powerfully like a steel whip.

A Tier Three Mid Grade Demon Beast, the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast. It had a savage temperament and was a solitary creature.

Any living creature that entered the vicinity of its lair would be ferociously attacked. It would even give chase for hundreds of miles, as it was extremely vindictive.

Several Wind Chasing Secret Agents had died gruesome deaths on Golden Light Mountain, disemboweled and torn apart.

Golden Light Mountain possessed a Tier Three Low-Grade Spiritual Vein. Year-round, a golden radiance shot straight into the sky from it.

Especially at night, it could be seen clearly from over a hundred miles away. It was suspected to be a rich ore vein, with large quantities of Five Metals Ore exposed on the surface, creating this phenomenon.

According to the Hall’s analysis, there is a fifty percent chance the ore vein on Golden Light Mountain is Gilded Red Copper, a thirty percent chance it is Purple Gold Primordial Copper, a ten percent chance it is Geng Metal, and a ten percent chance it is Red Palladium Gold Spirit...

’The Spirit Beast Hall is moonlighting in ore vein prospecting now? It seems there are too few Spirit Beasts in the Sect, so they’ve had to create new work for themselves.’

Within the red light was the Spirit Beast Hall’s complete description of the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast and its Spirit Vein.

Aside from the more specialized divisions like the Secret Hall and the Ancestor Hall, the Spirit Beast Hall was already considered a rather unpopular department.

Let alone comparing it to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, which managed all Sect missions and distributed cultivation resources, even the rising star, the Spirit Field Hall, was far more sought-after within the Sect than the Spirit Beast Hall.

The Miscellaneous Affairs Hall was burdened with work, responsible for all sorts of trivial matters. Its status was originally average, but it grew continuously under Gu Xisheng’s tenure. Now, the Elder in charge was even called the "Little Sect Leader" by the Sect Cultivators.

Though not one of the Five Halls, its importance ranked among their top tier.

It had even reached the point where multiple Hall Elders needed to be appointed to divide the authority of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall.

The Spirit Field Hall was initially seen as a gathering place for Spirit Farmers who just tilled the land. Only those disciples who couldn’t make it in the Spirit Plant Hall were transferred there.

Unexpectedly, as the Sect developed rapidly, the number of Spirit Fields multiplied.

The Spirit Rice they produced increased in both quantity and quality. The annual dividends were enviable, and before anyone knew it, it had become a popular division that Sect Disciples scrambled to join.

The Spirit Beast Hall had always been on the fringes because it didn’t have a large-scale population of specially raised Spirit Beasts for people to choose from.

When Sect Disciples needed a Spirit Beast, their first reaction was still to ask someone to bring one back from the Ten Thousand Beasts Pavilion.

In all the Beast Cages of the Spirit Beast Hall, there were only twenty or thirty Spirit Beasts, and none of them were of particularly outstanding quality.

If it weren’t for the large annual appropriation from the Sect, the Wind Chasing Secret Agent program wouldn’t even be able to continue operating.

’Judging from the Demon Beast distribution map, the Spirit Beast Hall is at least meticulous and serious about its work. When I have the chance, I should find a couple of suitable nests of Demon Beasts in Black Mountain and hand them over to the Spirit Beast Hall to raise.’

’Their Tiers don’t need to be too high. Something like the Swan Geese from the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect, which can serve as Flying Spirit Beasts, would be perfect.’

Having chosen his target, Bai Zichen slapped his Moon Xuan Sword, and his body transformed into a streak of moonlight as he shot away.

He arrived at Golden Light Mountain and circled it once but found no trace of the Demon Beast. He found a random mountain stream, concealed his breath, and hid.

About half an hour later, a sound that was part lion’s roar and part bull’s bellow echoed out, causing the loose pebbles in the stream bed to jump.

’Damn, it’s that big!’

The Golden-Haired Celestial Beast had just returned from hunting, and half the body of a Wolf Demon was still clenched in its jaws, blood dripping down in a crimson line.

Just standing there, it was as imposing as a tower, tall and ferocious.

With its savage temperament, the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast dropped the food from its mouth and began to pace in a circle, letting out a series of low growls, warning the biped before it not to come any closer.

If it hadn’t sensed that the newcomer was not to be trifled with, it would have already lunged forward and torn the creature to shreds.

Bai Zichen chuckled, put away his Moon Xuan Sword, and took out a Sound Bamboo Sword he hadn’t used in a long time.

’I’ll use you to practice my Swordsmanship. You can be my sparring partner. It wouldn’t do to disturb Brother Ge while he’s in the middle of his Refining Realm, after all...’

A milky-white Sword Light unfurled, encircling the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast. Its power and presence were worlds apart from a Tier Four Flying Sword—a difference like that between the clouds and the mud.

If he were to use the Moon Xuan Sword, he could end the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast’s life in two strokes at most. What kind of Swordsmanship practice would that be?

The Tier Two Sound Bamboo Sword’s body was fragile. While wielding it, he had to divert some of his focus to protect the Flying Sword, lest it be shattered by a single swipe from the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast. This raised the demands on his Swordsmanship to another level.

For a time, Sword Light flashed across Golden Light Mountain, accompanied by the continuous roars of the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast. The battle raged for several days.

They fought from day to night. As expected, a golden light shone from the mountain, providing illumination for the dueling man and beast.

Under normal circumstances, the Sound Bamboo Sword couldn’t even pierce the skin of a Tier Three Demon King. The beast wouldn’t even need to protect itself with Demon Power; its formidable Demon Body alone would be enough to block the attack.

But in Bai Zichen’s hands, the Sound Bamboo Sword moved with endless variations. The Sword Light danced up and down, and strands of Sword Silk were as fine as hair.

A dignified Tier Three Mid Grade Demon King was actually trapped within a circle a few dozen yards in diameter, unable to take a single step out despite charging left and right.

Its once-majestic golden fur was becoming disheveled and matted with patches of blood.

When the Sound Bamboo Sword transformed into Sword Silk, its killing power was enough to break through the beast’s defenses, inflicting several non-lethal but excruciatingly painful wounds on the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast.

"ROAR!"

The Golden-Haired Celestial Beast suddenly reared up, every strand of its golden fur standing on end. It spat out its Demon Pill, which unleashed hundreds, even thousands, of golden rays.

’This trick again!’

Bai Zichen scoffed. He flicked the Sound Bamboo Sword in his hand, and the Sword Light fanned out like a peacock’s tail, lightly tapping each and every golden ray as a dragonfly skims the water.

He didn’t meet them head-on, instead using the minimal amount of force to deflect the golden rays, sending them shooting off in random directions. In the end, not a single one hit him.

This was the third time in the past few days that the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast had used this move.

The very first time had sent him into a brief flurry; the Sound Bamboo Sword had been struck by several golden rays and snapped in two, forcing him to switch to a spare Flying Sword. After that, however, he was able to handle the attack with ease.

The Sound Bamboo Sword was a Bamboo Flying Sword, and among Flying Swords of the same tier, its Sword Body was considered particularly fragile and easily damaged.

Trying to use it to block one of the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast’s explosive attacks head-on was definitely impossible.

He could only use finesse, employing variations in his Swordsmanship to achieve the desired effect.

In the past, he really couldn’t have done it so effortlessly and gracefully. He truly had the recent ceremony at the Sword Temple to thank for this, as well as the progress he made during nine months of quiet cultivation upon his return.

Another half-day passed. The Golden-Haired Celestial Beast was utterly exhausted, finding it difficult to even activate its Demon Pill.

Bai Zichen put more force into his attack. After the milky-white Sword Light parried the beast’s two front paws, a strand of Sword Silk suddenly stabbed out from an impossible angle, traceless and unpredictable.

It instantly sank into the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast’s head. A few breaths later, the Tier Three Mid Grade Demon King’s body swayed and then collapsed, kicking up a cloud of dust.

That final, killing blow had pushed the Tier Two Flying Sword to its absolute limit. If even a sliver of power had been wasted, it would not have been enough to kill the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast.

The timing was also perfect. If he had been a fraction faster or slower, the Sword Light would have been swatted away by the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast’s claw.

The Sound Bamboo Sword was now covered in claw marks. Had the fight lasted even a moment longer, the sword might have been completely ruined.

Bai Zichen stood rooted to the spot, savoring the memory of his final, perfect strike.

To have accomplished this with a Tier Two Flying Sword proved that he was truly not far from the state of ’One Sword Breaks Ten Thousand Laws’.

He took out a Top-Grade Storage Bag specifically for Demon Beast Materials. First, he removed the Demon Pill, affixed two Talismans to it, and placed it in a Jade Box.

’My Sect Contribution is running low, which is perfect timing. I’ll hand this over to the Pill Hall later. These materials should fetch a nice amount...’

In recent years, Bai Zichen hadn’t continued to place the Magical Treasures he refined into the Secret Hall. Instead, his expenditures had been extravagant, often tens of thousands at a time.

His Sect Contribution Points, something a Core Formation True Man should never lack, had plummeted to rock bottom.

However, a single Tier Three Demon Pill, plus the other usable materials from the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast’s body, would make his contribution points soar again.

What’s more, there was still the ore vein on Golden Light Mountain. If he wasn’t mistaken, it could yield a handsome amount of Spirit Stones, far exceeding his expectations.

’It really is a Geng Metal Ore Vein. The Spirit Beast Hall isn’t specialized in prospecting, after all. The least likely possibility came true.’

After dealing with the Golden-Haired Celestial Beast, Bai Zichen walked to the mountaintop, squatted down, and broke off a piece of dark gold ore from an exposed deposit.

He squeezed it in his hand, leaving five fingerprints on the ore. A sharp pain, like being scraped by a knife and pierced by needles, shot through his palm, turning it bright red.

The ore deforming didn’t mean it was soft. The fact that it only indented under his full-force squeeze, rather than shattering, proved that the ore’s hardness and toughness were both excellent.

That unique, sharp, stinging sensation was the distinct characteristic of Geng Metal.

Ordinary Geng Metal could be used for refining Gold Attribute Top-Grade Spiritual Artifacts and Low-Grade Magical Treasures. Just by seeing the amount exposed on the surface, he knew the scale of this ore vein was not small.

Most importantly, a Geng Metal Ore Vein of this scale was bound to produce a Geng Metal Spirit at its core.

This Tier Three Top-Grade Spiritual Material was suitable for any Flying Sword, whether it was a flying sword refined from the Five Metals Spirit or one made of wood and bamboo.

By smelting a piece of Geng Metal Spirit into them, the sharpness and killing power of the Flying Sword could be enhanced.

Of course, this effect was limited to Tier Three Flying Swords at most.

No matter how much Geng Metal Spirit you refined into the Moon Xuan Sword, it would have no effect; the Tier Four Flying Sword would simply digest it like a snack.