Chapter 657: The Material to Extend Resources: Void Condensation Sand

"Brother Ye." Su Ming took a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the excitement in his heart, speaking with a sincere tone, "Although this Void Condensation Sand is violent, within the human race's formation system, as long as appropriate formation lines are used for neutralization, it may possibly become an extraordinarily effective material for reinforcing those few nodes. I wonder if Brother Ye could do me a favor and help me apply to the elder council for a small portion of Void Condensation Sand as a sample, so I can give it a try?"

Ye Qing heartily patted his chest: "What's so difficult about that! Since it's waste material, the warehouse probably still has some old odds and ends collected from before. As a guest official, calling in a bit of waste material is just a matter of a single word. Go back and wait, I'll have someone deliver it to you later!"

"Many thanks, Brother Ye!"

He returned to Qingyou Residence.

Over the next ten days, apart from unfailingly going to the outskirts to guide those spirit-race formation masters in patching breaches and consolidating his "irreplaceable" status as a guest official, Su Ming locked himself inside the tree hollow for all his remaining time.

The Void Condensation Sand sample arrived the very next day. After Lin Yu's appraisal, although this thing contained an extreme amount of impurities, under the repeated purification of Su Ming's Ruo Shui spiritual energy, it could completely replace Soul Stabilizing Sand, and could even greatly reduce the consumption of Void Stones.

The dark cloud of the spiritual energy crisis had finally dispersed, at least for now.

With ample logistical support, Su Ming began pouring all his energy into the jade slip of the spirit realm map he was preparing for the Tianji Pavilion.

During these ten days, he used his position to access a large amount of documentation on the outskirts terrain from the archive tree hollows. Combined with his tireless underground surveys each night using the mid-stage Golden Core "Observation of the Minute," a three-dimensional puzzle detailed to the extreme gradually took shape within the jade slip.

The detailed earth vein routes of Greenwood Court and the surrounding three hundred li were as clearly visible as the blood vessels of a human body.

The twenty-three new strongholds that the Dark Current Sect had secretly re-established beyond the seventeen baleful formations that had been uprooted were marked one by one with glaring red dots.

Even the locations, population numbers, and defensive strength of the several small spirit-race settlements surrounding Greenwood Court that depended on it were all faithfully recorded.

"Phew..."

Su Ming set down the azure jade slip that emanated a warm luster and let out a long breath.

"If this thing falls into the hands of the Tianji Pavilion Master, it might make even that eternally unchanging old face of his bloom with joy." Lin Yu leaned over for a look and clicked his tongue in admiration. "An earth vein map accurate to fifty zhang underground, this isn't a map anymore, this is clearly an anatomical chart of Greenwood Court."

"This is still far from enough." Su Ming's eyes, however, were exceptionally clear-headed. "These three hundred li, for the entire spirit realm, are nothing but a drop in the ocean. To find the law convergence point that can activate the Qiming jade token, I need more time to explore farther regions. This map is merely one of my bargaining chips for future dealings with the Tianji Pavilion."

Having said that, Su Ming carefully sealed this specially made map jade slip with a layer of Ruo Shui spiritual energy and placed it into an isolated corner at the very depths of his storage pouch.

On the other side of this corner, the "Qiming jade token," which concerned whether they could leave this realm, lay quietly.

"Cheep?"

Ying, who had been napping at the corner of the desk all along, suddenly poked out its head. It seemed to have sensed something from the jade slip that had just been inscribed with vast amounts of information. Its beak shot out like lightning and gently pecked the jade slip.

With a crisp "ding," a faint ripple of spiritual energy spread across the surface of the jade slip.

"Smack!"

Su Ming unceremoniously flicked a finger against its furry head.

"Stop messing around." Su Ming's tone was calm, but his eyes held a trace of sternness.

Ying shook its wings in defiance, the few feathers bearing dark purple-gold patterns tracing a faint glimmer through the dim tree hollow, then it sulkily shrank back to the corner of the desk.

......

The next morning, the vital mist of Greenwood Court had not yet fully dispersed.

Su Ming, in a blue-grey long robe, arrived as usual at the wide tree platform where Elder Genxu was located. Yesterday he had just repaired several defensive nodes on the outskirts, and today he had come to report.

On the tree platform, Elder Genxu was leaning on his staff, staring blankly at a roll of yellowed ancient vine-bark scroll. Hearing footsteps, he raised his head. His deeply wrinkled face showed no relief from the nodes having been reinforced; instead, it carried a deep exhaustion.

"Guest Official Su, the three anomalous nodes you pointed out yesterday, this old one has personally inspected them. Your Ruo Shui spiritual energy patching technique is truly exquisite, the Dark Current Sect's baleful aura has been blocked completely tight." Elder Genxu's voice was hoarse, carrying a trace of weakness.

Su Ming cupped his hands slightly: "Elder flatters me. Taking a man's pay, being loyal to his affairs, that is all."

Elder Genxu let out a long sigh, then suddenly stepped closer on his staff, lowering his voice: "Last night, the elder council held an emergency closed-door meeting regarding the underground fungal filaments you discovered."

Su Ming's expression did not change as he listened quietly.

"Elder Panshi argued forcefully at the meeting, proposing to add an inner-layer defensive formation line between the root vein core region and the outskirts. Even at the cost of expending our reserves, we must guard against possible internal infiltration." Elder Genxu smiled bitterly, that smile full of acridity. "But this proposal was vetoed."

Su Ming's eyebrows moved imperceptibly as he asked softly: "Since the infiltration of the life-devouring fungal filaments has already been discovered, why was it still vetoed?"

"Elder Qingluo believes that if we ostentatiously add inner-layer defenses, it would be equivalent to admitting to the entire court that we have a traitor from within. This would cause extreme panic and shake morale." Elder Genxu's withered fingers gripped his staff tightly. "She advocates simply doubling the outer patrol personnel and keeping those malignant growths blocked outside. And Elder Woodheart... did not express an opinion."

Su Ming pondered secretly.

His calculations complete, Su Ming merely lowered his eyelids slightly and spoke in an even tone: "Elder Qingluo coordinates the overall situation; she surely has her own deep considerations. With outer patrols strengthened, the burden on Su will also be lighter."

Seeing Su Ming take such an attitude, Elder Genxu could only sigh once more and said nothing further.

After taking his leave, Su Ming followed his routine inspection route toward the spiritual plant cultivation area in the southwest direction of Greenwood Court.

The defenses here were noticeably stricter than in previous days, with several teams of spirit-race guards cross-patrolling. Su Ming, relying on the guest official jade leaf at his waist, passed through unimpeded to the edge of the cultivation area.

Towering spiritual wood saplings were arranged neatly in this place, and the air was filled with a rich medicinal fragrance.

Su Ming stood before a massive spiritual herb that radiated a faint blue halo, seemingly examining the herb's quality. In reality, Observation of the Minute had already quietly activated within his Consciousness Sea, faint blue light flickering deep within his eyes.

His line of sight penetrated the surface soil, penetrated the tangled interwoven roots, all the way down.

Ten zhang.

Twenty zhang.

Thirty zhang.

Until forty zhang deep underground, Su Ming's pupils abruptly contracted.

At that depth, where even the divine sense of high-tier spirit races would find it difficult to probe, a dark purple fungal filament network far more intricate and vast than the outer network of life-devouring fungal filaments had already quietly taken shape.

This network, like an enormous spiderweb, firmly wrapped around the earth vein core of the spiritual plant cultivation area.

"Master, look." Su Ming transmitted through his Consciousness Sea, his voice cold as ice.

Lin Yu's Soul Body emerged within the Xuantian ring, following Su Ming's line of sight. Half a breath later, Lin Yu let out a cold laugh: "These tree spirits, on the verge of death and still worrying about face. This network isn't extracting vitality."

"Correct, it's not extraction, it's injection." Su Ming's brows locked tightly.

In his microscopic vision, within those dark purple fungal filaments, law power carrying a corrupt, deathly aura was being reverse-injected into the earth veins like a trickling stream.

The Dark Current Sect's law erosion, through this network, was slowly but firmly altering the attributes of the earth veins in the spiritual plant cultivation area.

"They're tampering with the law foundation of the earth veins." Lin Yu's voice turned heavy. "The spiritual plant cultivation area is one of the important vitality sources for Greenwood Court's Root Vein Defense Formation. Once this earth vein is thoroughly contaminated, the vitality that Elder Woodheart relies upon to maintain the defense formation will be severed. By then, the Dark Current Sect wouldn't even need to attack from outside; this great tree of Greenwood Court would wither from within on its own. This method is vicious to the extreme."

"At most one month." Su Ming silently calculated the injection rate. "If not stopped, the vitality here will be thoroughly contaminated."