Chapter 180: Collect Collect Collect

Amidst exclamations, Elder Qian's body rose off the ground, about to be pulled back together, as several Golden Core cultivators stepped forward and pulled the door open from within.

Then they heard the Golden Core cultivators behind them say: "Fellow Daoist Qian, whoever first breaks open the door traditionally gains ten breaths (half a minute) to take treasures ahead of everyone else, and your sect's disciples are already in position."

The speaker was stating the facts, but also carried a hint of provocation.

"Jiang Yu, do not retreat; you have twenty breaths to collect treasures." Elder Qian didn't mind at all, because it was Jiang Yu who had reminded him.

"Yes." Jiang Yu activated the Seven Stars Step again without the slightest hesitation; although the hall had no lamps, her divine sense was enough to see everything before her.

The hall was not large; from the entrance lay several futons, and against the rear wall stood a low couch accompanied by a table, tea set, brushes, ink, paper and inkstone—roughly the place for preaching.

Naturally, the lowest grade of these items is at least magic‑treasure level, especially the brush on the couch‑side table, which resembles a spirit‑treasure grade weasel‑hair brush.

Treasures superior to magic‑treasures drew the eyes of the cultivators outside, who stared covetously.

But there were eight doors on either side, unknown whether they held treasures, and for now no one knew where the stairs to the second floor were.

Thus Jiang Yu, relying on her feeling, lunged at the low couch, sweeping away the brushes, ink, paper and inkstone, then turned her body and flew to strike the first door on the right.

"Grab everything!" Under everyone's watchful eyes, Jiang Tu couldn't go open another door; as soon as his team entered this door, they split from her, seeing something and taking it, and at this point any hesitation would waste those ten breaths.

The room was not small; several wooden racks held sets of formation flags and plates, more than half of which were already drawn, likely assignments turned in by the disciples.

Jiang Yu and Jiang Tu wanted to take the racks as well, but the racks wouldn't budge, so they could only take the items on them; quick‑eyed and quick‑handed, they swept everything into their storage rings, gathering, gathering, gathering.

However, they had only cleared half a rack when the ten breaths elapsed; cultivators flew in one after another, each bursting through doors to start looting.

When someone burst into this room, Jiang Yu decisively flickered out.

A sweep of her divine sense revealed that every room was filled with people, and the contents appeared to be sorted by category—pills, artifacts, talismans, formations, woven clothing, puppets, spirit seeds, celestial food and spiritual brew.

The futons in the main hall were blown about everywhere by the gusts as cultivators rushed back and forth between rooms to seize treasures.

But the stairs to the second floor remained unknown, and Jiang Yu could not afford to waste time waiting; she squeezed into the puppet chamber and snatched a humanoid puppet.

Meanwhile, seeing many people elsewhere, Jiang Tu used an invisibility talisman to rush into the Spirit Seed Chamber with the fewest occupants, grabbed a packet of spirit seeds, and fled.

It tried to avoid touching anyone, yet a cultivator noticed and said, "Who's there? Hiding your head while exposing your tail."

Immediately a gust of spiritual wind struck; as Jiang Tu just flew out of the door, his invisibility talisman was knocked away, offering no protection at all.

Most people were busy looting and didn't even look up.

"A seventh‑level Black Tortoise?" the cultivator exclaimed, still trying to seize it, when Jiang Yu ran over to catch it, saying, "Senior, it's mine."

While speaking, she also turned Jiang Tu around so others could see the identity jade tablet hanging from him.

However, the cultivator who had made a move was already holding several bags of spirit seeds and empty spatial flowerpots, and turned to run toward another room.

"Let's go, we're leaving." Jiang Yu saw Elder Qian crowding into the wardrobe room to grab the last silk and cloth; elsewhere everything had already been looted clean.

She decided to go outside the hall to find a way up to the second floor, heading straight for the jade‑carved immortal crane.

Jiang Tu sent a mental message: "This building probably never appeared before—otherwise it couldn't be piled full of things."

"What are you feeling for? Do you want to move the immortal crane?"

"No." Jiang Yu couldn't find the mechanism, so she instead poured spiritual power into it.

Then a crane's cry rang out, and she quickly climbed onto its back as it spread its wings.

In the blink of an eye the immortal crane became real, rose against the wind and flew toward the second floor.

The commotion was not small; immediately cultivators came after them, doing the same.

By then Jiang Yu and Jiang Tu had reached the second floor, easily pulled open the rear door, and inside a flurry of dazzling light flashed.

Heaps of swords, spears, sabers, axes, staves and other magic treasures floated within.

"Thunder Mother Stone!" they exclaimed simultaneously upon seeing many crates of ore in the corner.

Without hesitation Jiang Yu rushed to seize that crate of Thunder Mother Stone, while Jiang Tu went to take the neighboring small crate of Geng Metal.

But a tremendous fist‑force struck them from behind, the two crates thudded to the ground, and trying to move them again was as immovable as a mountain.

Jiang Tu knew best what was crucial: "We need the Geng Metal."

Jiang Yu naturally understood the choice; she reached out and grabbed two pieces of Geng Metal, and Jiang Tu did the same.

But then an unnamed thunderbolt suddenly struck, hitting one piece of Geng Metal in their hands and unleashing a tremendous repelling force that flung them away.

Yet the two refused to give up, withstanding the repulsion they grabbed another stone; as they flew out the door, their bodily spiritual power and divine sense were suddenly sealed, and they nearly collided with the cultivator pulling the rear door.

Fortunately the immortal crane flew up and caught them, lowering them to the floor; otherwise they would have been injured.

Jiang Yu quickly stored the four ore stones into a storage ring that opens without needing spiritual power.

But on the small square of the first floor, some people couldn't wait and shoved them off the immortal crane, while others rushed to seize it and fly away.

Everyone rushed because they discovered they could not fly up to the second floor; whether using spiritual power or martial arts, they were struck down by an invisible force midway, stricter than climbing stairs.

"Oh no!" Jiang Yu realized her spiritual power and divine sense were still sealed, feeling a little panicked—what should she do?

"Jiang Yu, what's up there?" Xu Wu, who hadn't managed to grab the immortal crane, ran over to ask her.

The two companions exchanged a glance, then Elder Qian ran out from the main hall, concerned, and asked: "Jiang Yu, what's the situation?"

"No……cough cough…" she hadn't finished speaking when she spat out a mouthful of blood, and beside her Jiang Tu did the same.

Elder Qian's heart tightened, yet he saw the two break into smiles and asked, "You two?"

"Just now our spiritual power was sealed; coughing up blood restored it." Jiang Yu flicked a small fireball, burning away the blood on both of them.

She then explained the situation upstairs to everyone; as the second and third people came down, everyone finally understood.

Upstairs, each person and each spirit beast may take only one item; taking more causes severe injury.

Elder Qian sent healing pills, letting Jiang Yu and her companion rest properly; he himself, not very adept, also managed to seize the jade‑carved immortal crane and go upstairs.

"Someone is staring at us with ill intent." Jiang Tu was extremely sharp and instantly spotted it as Ding Jiu of the Five Poison Sect.

It immediately spoke: "Hey, Ding kid, are you going to use poison again?"

Swish—those cultivators who hadn't gotten a turn all looked at Ding Jiu, who in an instant became the most handsome lad in the small square.

Ding Jiu vehemently denied: "Slander—I haven't moved at all."

But in his heart he thought, "Good thing we discovered Jiang Yu has a seventh‑level spirit beast now; otherwise, in the next sneak attack, it's not certain who would be ambushing whom."

Be cautious, you must act cautiously.

Jiang Yu never would have thought that Jiang Tu still had such a use; his threat to Foundation Establishment cultivators is still quite great.

Jiang Tu didn't even want to; he was just deliberately squinting at people, making Ding Jiu feel creeped out.

If it weren't for their Eastern Elder, who grabbed him and leapt onto the immortal crane, he would still have suffered.

"He's afraid of you!" Jiang Yu stated, Jiang Tu smiled smugly, glanced around the main hall and saw there were still some mats, and he proposed: "Let's go pick them up to sell."

Some mats can help cultivators absorb spiritual power.

But just as Jiang Yu nodded, the hall doors slammed shut.