Chapter 4: The Polluted Earth Vein

"Follow me!" Tian Yuan did not look back, stepping forward as he walked.

The area near the foot of the mountain had already been cleared by the stone men manifested from the will of Mount Buzhou, so they needed to head further ahead.

He was not at all surprised by the respect shown by Blood Dragon; in the Primordial World, the strong are revered.

Moreover, with such vast spiritual energy before them, no one between heaven and earth could remain indifferent.

Blood Dragon was slightly stunned, and without a word, he respectfully followed, though he dared not recklessly absorb the spiritual energy anymore, merely observing his surroundings with curiosity.

It was as if he were placed within a flowing golden ocean; by opening his hands, he could clearly feel the movement of the spiritual energy.

It was warm, brushing against every inch of his skin, and even the fine hairs on his body were floating joyfully.

Walking slowly, he felt nothing unusual, only a sense of comfort throughout his entire being.

The two walked one after the other for a while, when chaotic clanging sounds suddenly came from ahead.

Blood Dragon was puzzled, raised his head slightly, and his eyes immediately constricted.

Within the flowing golden spiritual energy, many stone men had actually appeared. Some were in the air, some on the ground, scattered chaotically throughout the surrounding space.

Is this a nest of stone men? Is it because of this Earth Vein that these stone men have become so extraordinary?

Filled with doubts, Blood Dragon looked at what the stone men held in their hands; they were all wielding pickaxes, swinging them within the Earth Vein, emitting clanging sounds as if they were striking something.

Walking closer, he finally saw clearly that they were strange-looking stones?

How could there be foreign objects within an Earth Vein? Even if there were Spirit Stones, they would be settled at the bottom of the Earth Vein.

More importantly, those stones were of different colors—red, black, gray—clearly out of place with their surroundings.

However, when he looked at those red stones, the magic power within his body actually trembled slightly; perhaps this was the reason Tian Yuan had captured him.

He became even more curious about this place; it seemed it was not a simple Earth Vein.

"This is an Earth Vein of the Eastern Land."

Tian Yuan spoke, but the meaning of his words left him slightly astonished.

An Earth Vein? It was actually not a Spiritual Vein! The term "Earth Vein" seemed to have been mentioned in the ancient records of his clan, but he did not know the specifics.

Blood Dragon cupped his hands and said loudly, "If Senior has any orders, this little dragon will do his utmost!"

During the Dragon-Han Calamity, the Dragon Clan had slaughtered too much and was loathed by all clans, so most of the clansmen retreated to the seas, while those who remained in the Primordial World hid everywhere.

He had been hiding under Mount Buzhou to cultivate precisely because it was the territory of the Wu Clan, and he happened to be able to conceal his own blood and Qi, but it was certainly not a long-term solution.

Now that Tian Yuan had brought him to such a place rich in spiritual energy, it was truly a heaven-sent stroke of fortune.

Tian Yuan waved his hand, signaling for Blood Dragon to follow.

Bowing his body, Blood Dragon hurried forward, and the two walked toward a stone man swinging a pickaxe.

Getting closer, Blood Dragon also saw the appearance of that stone: it was the size of a fist, pitch-black as ink, with numerous bumps distributed on its surface. Two of them even had suction cups; one hung limply on the stone's surface, while the other was firmly attached to the air.

The pickaxe in the stone man's hand was striking that suction cup with great effort.

With every strike, the suction cup would tremble slightly, as if it had a life of its own.

And around that stone, many faint black dots were distributed in a spreading pattern, showing signs of spreading to the surroundings.

"Senior, this... what is this?" Blood Dragon looked at the scene before him and could not help but ask.

This somewhat ugly-looking stone always gave him a very bad feeling.

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly saw the stone man in front give a loud shout, and with a loud "Clang!", a squeaking sound came from the air.

That suction cup shattered, black smoke rose, a golden light flashed, and the rolling stone vanished without a trace. The many black dots scattered around also faded into the air.

And the stone man who had been swinging the pickaxe disappeared with a "whoosh" and appeared in another place.

"This is the purpose of bringing you here: to purify the Earth Vein!" Tian Yuan turned around, his gaze looking calmly at Blood Dragon.

Earlier, he had also tried to clear the impurities in the Earth Vein, but the effect was far inferior to these stone men. They were manifested from the will of Mount Buzhou, making it easier for them to shake those impurities, and they could move freely within the Earth Vein, ignoring spatial distances.

Otherwise, just the length of a single Earth Vein would take more than ten thousand years to walk from one end to the other.

Perhaps because three thousand is the number mandated by Heaven, otherwise he could have manifested more stone men to speed up the clearing of the Earth Vein.

Purify the Earth Vein??? Blood Dragon was stunned, and his eyes instantly lit up.

The resentment he felt from being brought here so roughly had long since vanished into thin air.

After the Dragon-Han Calamity, Zulong was suppressed in Longquan Cave, and many powerful members of the Dragon Clan were also permanently suppressed in the North, all to eliminate the Karma on the Dragon Clan.

And purifying the Earth Vein was undoubtedly a great deed that would benefit the Primordial World; for his clan and for himself, it was a tremendous stroke of good fortune.

Meeting the stone man shrouded in golden rays, Blood Dragon responded loudly, "This little dragon is willing! This little dragon is willing!"

If he had this opportunity, even without Tian Yuan's order, he would gladly go.

Moreover, this place was so extraordinary; it was definitely the greatest opportunity in his dragon life.

Tian Yuan nodded slightly, beckoned with his right hand, and a petite pickaxe appeared.

"There is no danger here; you may act freely, but do not step out of this Earth Vein!" As he spoke, Tian Yuan handed the pickaxe down.

Without a pickaxe manifested from the will, Blood Dragon would not be able to shake those impurities at all.

There were only three thousand stone men, but these tools were inexhaustible.

"Many thanks, Senior! This little dragon understands!" Blood Dragon received it respectfully with both hands, his eyes observing the object in his palm with wonder.

The pickaxe was half a zhang long, Chaos-colored, and felt cold to the touch; holding it in his hand, his Primordial Spirit felt a trace of coolness, as if it had the effect of purifying the Primordial Spirit.

Blood Dragon gasped inwardly, realizing that this was also no simple object.

Tian Yuan was also very satisfied with Blood Dragon being so sensible, as it saved him a lot of effort.

Seeing Tian Yuan slowly disappear, Blood Dragon hurriedly asked in a loud voice, "Senior's kindness, this little dragon will keep in his heart; may I ask how to address you, Senior?"

Along the way, he still did not know this Senior's name.

"Tian Yuan!"

Within the flowing golden spiritual energy, a faint sound of the Dao drifted over.

Blood Dragon cupped his hands, performed a deep bow, and then excitedly ran toward the distance.

He also saw that the further away the place, the more severely the Earth Vein was blocked, and there were many blood-colored auras there that induced resonance within his body.

Through the flowing golden spiritual Qi, one could vaguely see that the firmament was a gray expanse, dull and oppressive! Blood Dragon did not care what kind of place this was; he only thought about combing and purifying the Earth Vein now.

The stones were of all sorts of strange shapes, and the suction cups growing on them also varied in number, finally stopping in front of a red stone strip the length of an index finger.

It also had dense protrusions on it, but only one tiny suction cup was attached to the air.

Glancing at the pickaxe in his palm, Blood Dragon hesitated for a moment, then slammed his right fist onto it.

With a dull sound, the stone did not move at all, and surprise appeared in Blood Dragon's eyes. He then no longer hesitated, gripped the hoe with both hands, and swung it fiercely.

With a thudding vibration, it was clearly visible that the suction cup moved slightly.

Joy appeared on Blood Dragon's face, and he hurriedly increased his speed.

With the sounds of clang, clang, clang, he struck it over a hundred times in succession, and the suction cup finally shattered, disappearing while glowing with red light.

And in that thin red mist, a nearly non-existent air current swam toward him and drilled into his body.

It not only caused his magic power to have a weak increase, but his Primordial Spirit also had a slight realization, and the path ahead became clearer.

Blood Dragon's heart was wild with joy, and he ran quickly toward the nearest piece of miscellaneous stone.

(End of this chapter)