Chapter 527: Spirit Mine

After giving instructions to Hua Tianxiong, Qin Ming returned to the spirit field.

Inside the alchemy chamber within the Small Spirit Realm.

The Soul-Devouring Poison Flame took the form of a fire phoenix, dancing as four flags of differing colors radiated brilliant light amid the roaring flames.

Qin Ming continuously cast the Spirit-Enchanting Spell; as the final steps were completed, the four flags emitted astonishing magical radiance, flying out of the flames and landing in his hands.

"Finally forged!"

Then.

He summoned back the Soul-Devouring Rat and handed it the Five Elements Flags.

The Soul-Devouring Rat seized the flags, overjoyed: "Thank you, Master! I've finally gathered all Five Elements Flags! Hehehe!"

"You little brat, cultivate hard—this complete set of top-tier magic treasures is a gift to you," Qin Ming said with a smile.

"Of course I will," the Soul-Devouring Rat said confidently, clutching the Five Elements Flags.

Its original strength had already matched a late-stage Golden Core cultivator; now, with this set of top-tier magic treasures, it was like a tiger gaining wings.

"Each of these Five Elements Flags can unleash a unique elemental spell when used alone, but when used as a set, they form an immensely powerful array—though the spiritual energy cost is enormous. Figure it out yourself."

"Yes, Master."

The Soul-Devouring Rat swallowed the five flags into its belly and happily began refining the magic treasures.

With this set in hand, even ordinary late-stage Third-Rank Beast Kings were no match for it.

After dismissing the Soul-Devouring Rat, Qin Ming had completed another task.

After another dozen days passed.

Hua Tianxiong sought out Qin Ming—the investigation into the recent caravan raids had finally yielded some leads.

No matter how tightly the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society concealed its secrets, it could not hide the news forever.

In recent days, rumors of incidents at subordinate shops had spread, stirring up a storm.

In the Spirit Ruins Bazaar and Five Elements Mountain Bazaar of the Southern Region, every shop was gripped by fear, refusing to dispatch caravans to transport goods.

As the managing body, the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society faced its first crisis of trust, its reputation directly damaged.

After meeting Hua Tianxiong, Qin Ming immediately pulled him into the Small Spirit Realm.

Hua Tianxiong, his belly bulging, glanced around—and his gaze instantly locked onto a silver-white, extraordinary spirit plant at the center of the field, unable to look away.

He studied the Heart-Earth Spirit Spring for a long time.

His expression turned utterly stunned: "This—this—"

"A Fourth-Rank spirit plant."

"And the legendary Heart-Earth Spirit Spring."

At this moment, what Qin Ming had revealed shattered Hua Tianxiong's worldview.

The Qian Elder of Li Huo Palace was nothing compared to him—Qin Ming then said to Hua Tianxiong: "Stop staring. Get to the point. If you serve me well, you might even get to taste this Fourth-Rank spirit fruit."

"Yes yes yes!" Hua Tianxiong exclaimed, his fat trembling with excitement.

"Report, Master—I've secretly uncovered that these caravan raids are tied to the Divine Path Sect."

Qin Ming's expression turned sharply surprised: "The Divine Path Sect? Are you certain?"

Hua Tianxiong nodded. "At first I didn't believe it either—but Jin Han, the Elder of the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society, also traced it to the Divine Path Sect, and he hasn't returned yet."

"Rumors say a major clash erupted between them."

"But why would the Divine Path Sect secretly send people to raid those caravans?" Qin Ming mused.

"Not only do they offend the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society, but they've also eliminated Golden Core cultivators—this is utterly unbelievable!"

Hua Tianxiong explained: "Master, you don't know—the raided caravans all shared one trait: they had all traded with the Divine Path Sect."

"These caravans had recently purchased Infernal Flame Essence Ore from the Divine Path Sect's Fourth-Rank spirit vein."

"But somehow, the Divine Path Sect later discovered that some scattered Infernal Core Ore had been mixed into the transported ore."

Qin Ming frowned: "Infernal Core Ore?"

"Correct. Infernal Flame Essence Ore alone would be nothing—but Infernal Core Ore is the companion mineral of the legendary 'Supreme Spirit Stone'!"

"To prevent word from leaking, the Divine Path Sect naturally spared no cost to eliminate all witnesses."

"They tried to make it look like bandit attacks."

"But the news still leaked."

"Sigh—I won't hide it, Master—recently I nearly sent people to mine at the Divine Path Mountain's vein myself."

"Luckily, the Qian Elder had urgent business, so I didn't go—and narrowly escaped disaster."

"Otherwise, I might never have met you."

As Hua Tianxiong spoke, he shuddered with relief.

These Nascent Soul sects would do anything when profit was involved.

Supreme Spirit Stones were top-tier resources nearly extinct in the cultivation world—Nascent Soul elders would fight to the death for them.

Such stones greatly aided breakthroughs in the Nascent Soul realm; their value was unimaginable.

Thus, their appearance was always accompanied by bloodshed. "Sigh—I never expected it was a Supreme Spirit Stone," Qin Ming sighed.

The Five Elements Mountain spirit field he currently occupied was a Fourth-Rank tributary vein controlled by the Divine Path Sect and Li Huo Palace.

It was not far from the Divine Path Sect's mine.

"If the Divine Path Sect truly unearthed Supreme Spirit Stones, how could Li Huo Palace sit idle?"

"Another war seems inevitable."

Hua Tianxiong, after a moment's thought, said: "Not necessarily. Though Infernal Core Ore is a companion mineral, it can also exist independently."

"Besides, in the Great Jin cultivation world, no one has heard of a Supreme Spirit Stone vein appearing in tens of thousands of years—it's likely not easily formed."

"Otherwise, the founding ancestor of Li Huo Palace wouldn't have had to leave to seek breakthrough opportunities elsewhere."

Qin Ming nodded faintly, finding his reasoning sound.

"Hua Tianxiong, keep close watch on this matter and report to me immediately."

"Yes!"

…

After seeing Hua Tianxiong off, Qin Ming looked up toward Five Elements Mountain, his gaze as deep and cold as a frozen pool.

He sensed that the cultivation world, having known only brief peace, was once again brewing a massive storm.

Several days later.

Qin Ming visited the Five Elements Mountain Bazaar again.

From Han Yuan and the other two, he learned that the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society's Elder Jin Han had returned with his team.

Yet even Jin Han, a Golden Core cultivator at the peak of his realm, had returned with minor injuries—something deeply unsettling.

Meanwhile, relations between the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society and the Divine Path Sect grew increasingly tense.

Li Huo Palace, however, adopted a watchful stance, taking no action despite the Divine Path Sect's discovery of Infernal Core Ore.

This eased the situation somewhat—but the Divine Path Sect and the Ten Thousand Paths Trading Society were now fully panicked.

After all, the Divine Path Sect's actions had crossed a line.

"Sigh—involved in caravan raids, eliminating witnesses, and the death of a Golden Core Elder—that's no small matter."

"I've probed the upper echelons of the Trading Society—they won't let this go easily."

"The Divine Path Sect must give an explanation, no matter what."

Han Yuan sighed; those beneath them had been on edge, patrolling the Five Elements Mountain Bazaar daily, fearing the Divine Path Sect might do something even more outrageous.

Upon hearing this, Qin Ming felt somewhat reassured—the conflict between the two factions had not yet escalated to open war. …

That afternoon.

Qin Ming was tending to his spirit field on Five Elements Mountain when his spiritual sense detected two rapid-moving aura trails hurtling toward him, arriving in an instant.

As the aura trails dispersed, two figures emerged.

A proud jade-robed young man, and a golden-robed elder.

Qin Ming's eyes narrowed as he recognized the jade-robed youth's cultivation level: Golden Core peak.

The golden-robed elder was at late-stage Golden Core.

The spiritual pressure radiating from these two cultivators sent ripples through the air nearby.

The spirit farmers laboring in the Mirror Snow Pavilion's field trembled in terror.

Yet despite their formidable arrival, the two were halted by the Third-Rank array surrounding the field.

Seeing this, Qin Ming immediately set down his tools and stepped forward, bowing to them: "Honored elders, you've traveled far—what brings you here?"

"You're the head of the Mirror Snow Pavilion?" the jade-robed youth asked, frowning with an air of superiority.

Qin Ming smiled and nodded: "Yes."

"You're Master Lu? I heard you're a Third-Rank Low-grade Spirit Plant Master?" the golden-robed elder behind him spoke more kindly.

"That's this humble disciple."

Qin Ming still didn't understand their purpose, and tightened his focus.

"I am Yun Yangzi of the Divine Path Sect; this is my younger brother, Wen Yuliang."

"Oh! So you're elders of the Divine Path Sect—please, come inside!" Qin Ming invited.

"No need."

"We've come for urgent business and cannot linger—let me be brief."

"We wish to purchase these two hundred mu of spirit field—and we'll pay double the spirit stones."

"Moreover, I admire your talent—if you wish, you may join the Divine Path Sect. I can arrange for you a fine position in our spirit plant garden."

Yun Yangzi finished speaking and silently gazed at Qin Ming.

Qin Ming paused briefly, then declined both of them: "Thank you both for your kindness, but I cannot accept—these two hundred mu of spirit fields are the foundation of our pavilion's survival."

"And we've already planted numerous spirit plants, awaiting harvest next year."

Upon hearing this, Yun Yangzi froze—he hadn't expected a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator to outright refuse them.

Before he could speak, Wen Yuliang's gaze sharpened, his tone icy as he threatened:

"Think carefully."

Immediately, a massive spiritual pressure surged toward him—clearly, the two from Shendao Mountain intended to overpower him with force and coerce the sale.

Qin Ming feigned sweat pouring down his back, mentally searching for a solution.

At that moment,

a golden aura streaked across the distant sky and arrived before them in an instant.

"Hmph! Are you two really so shameless? Coming here to bully a junior?"

With a booming voice, the figure of Jin Han, Elder of the Wanda Trading Society, materialized.

"So it's you, Old Ghost Jin? You're not resting your wounds—what are you doing here?" Wen Yuliang raised an eyebrow, sneering.

Jin Han's gaze burned like fire. "Are you challenging me, Brother Wen?"

"First, this spirit field was auctioned off by my Wufu Auction House. Second, your Shendao Mountain's attempt to seize it by force—Jingxue Pavilion is one of our Society's trading outposts. Are you saying you don't recognize the Wanda Trading Society?"

Even facing two Gao Jie cultivators from Shendao Mountain, his tone remained unyielding.

Instantly,

the atmosphere turned unbearably tense, as if a single wrong word would spark battle.

Qin Ming appeared visibly tense, but inwardly he was calm—he believed he could handle all three.

"Yun Yangzi has barely a hundred years left."

"Wen Yuliang has over three hundred."

"Jin Han has two hundred."

"Best not to fight here—don't force me to use the mirror on you."

…

Yun Yangzi's gaze turned cold as he stared at Jin Han for a long moment, then glanced at Qin Ming and sneered: "Heh! If that's how it is, we'll settle this another day."

"Brother Wen, let's go."

The two from Shendao Mountain transformed into golden auras and departed without looking back.

Qin Ming hadn't expected them to come and leave so abruptly.

He stepped forward and bowed to Jin Han. "Thank you, Elder Jin, for intervening."

"Hmm. No need for formalities," Jin Han replied coolly.

Qin Ming's eyes flickered as he voiced his doubt: "Elder Jin, why would Shendao Mountain want these mere two hundred mu of spirit fields?"

Logically, Shendao Mountain controls half of the fourth-rank spirit vein—this third-rank branch field is far less valuable than the main vein. Why send two Gao Jie Elders?

"Shendao Mountain harbors ill intent—they're secretly colluding with the Yin Demon Sect of the Great Li Dynasty."

"Don't concern yourself with further details. Just remember: if anyone from them comes again to buy your spirit fields, no matter the price, refuse them outright."

"Since Jingxue Pavilion has joined our Wanda Trading Society, I, as Elder, will protect you."

"Then thank you, Elder Jin," Qin Ming could only reply.

After giving his instructions, Jin Han did not linger—he vanished in a golden aura.

…

Thousands of miles away, in the sky,

the two from Shendao Mountain flew swiftly.

Wen Yuliang frowned. "Why did you rush to leave?"

"That Old Ghost Jin is all show—why are you afraid of him?"

Yun Yangzi shook his head. "Brother Wen, I know you're our sect's youngest Gao Jie, and your abilities are formidable."

"But you're still no match for Old Ghost Jin."

"Why provoke him over a momentary grudge?"

Wen Yuliang bristled. "He just cultivated his core treasure two centuries longer than mine!"

"Focus on the matter at hand, Brother Wen," Yun Yangzi urged earnestly. "Do you want to draw the Li Huo Palace into this?"

Wen Yuliang fell silent, but muttered: "Hmph! That brat—don't let me ever see him again!"

With that, the two golden auras vanished into the horizon.

…

Back in the spirit fields, Qin Ming's eyes flickered with thought.

He recalled how the two Shendao Mountain Gao Jie Elders had come all this way in such a hurry—surely it was tied to the spirit mine.

And Jin Han of the Wanda Trading Society hadn't told him the truth.

(End of Chapter)