Chapter 225: Embarrassing Oneself

Jiang Tu also seemed odd, "Ice Phoenix Demon King, would you like to dig top‑quality spiritual stones with us?"

Jiang Yu's attempt to stop it was already too late.

"Top‑quality spiritual stones, of course we'll dig them," Ice Phoenix, just having broken its shell and possessing a purer spiritual power and a top‑quality spiritual stone, naturally would not refuse.

Although the Yao Race dislikes the Human Race's large‑scale mining, they also need to use a portion themselves.

Its original plan was only to ask Little Dragon Turtle whether there were any Human‑race pills; now anyone who doesn't want the spiritual stones is a fool.

The tip of its eye swept Jiang Yu's expression, "You disagree?"

Jiang Yu immediately replied, "No."

"Very well, may I borrow your shoulder?" Before Ice Phoenix finished speaking, it had already transformed into a fist‑sized form, perched on her shoulder and gnawing at an eggshell as a delicacy.

Jiang Yu: …

"Fellow Daoist, you're clever." Thus: Xuantang Xingjun chuckled, rolled a veil of light and escorted Jiang Yu to the lakeside.

At this moment, the demonic cultivators pursuing the two Core Formation souls, also wearing smiles, flew back and rejoined the Core Formation group behind them.

In the formation, a Core Formation cultivator of the Profound Heaven Sect transmitted, "Esteemed Daoist, Jiang Xiao‑friend has swiftly drawn in two high‑grade spirit‑gathering stones; perhaps we should ask everyone's opinion?"

"Whose spiritual ore is it?" The Venerable Daoist asked this single question, which stalled the other side.

Not long after, everyone returned to the lakeside and entered the water.

Thus: Xuantang Xingjun lived up to expectations, shattered the seal on the spiritual stone mine, and dense spiritual qi instantly poured out of the cavern, spreading across the entire great lake within moments.

Ice Phoenix was the first to fly deeper, and most others, unwilling to fall behind, channeled their own spiritual power and rushed into the mine.

However, the next moment, a series of wails came, and the cultivators at the rear immediately projected their divine sense to investigate.

Jiang Yu was no exception; she saw ahead, around a few bends, Ice Phoenix and a group of cultivators stained with blood, all having collapsed to the ground, wailing in pain.

In front of them lay a misty barrier, and the spiritual qi also emanated from the fog.

Thus: Xuantang Xingjun leisurely approached the wounded group: "Greedy money‑lovers, the spiritual stones in the mine, aside from those deliberately exposed at the entrance, are all encased within the stone layers; how could they possibly emit spiritual qi?"

"Are these top‑quality spiritual stones array eyes?" Jiang Yu asked as she followed the elders forward, while Jiang Tu pointed at the spiritual stones on the stone walls flanking the passage.

"Some are," Thus: Xuantang Xingjun said, pinching his fingers together; rhythmic spiritual light struck certain top‑quality spiritual stones on both sides.

Jiang Yu stared unblinkingly at his action, and saw each struck spiritual stone emit a beam of light, all of which fell onto the misty barrier.

Then the mist gradually thinned; after only ten breaths, sweat already dotted Thus: Xuantang Xingjun's forehead, clearly indicating a substantial expenditure of spiritual power.

He said to the crowd, "What are you standing around for? Follow the order I just gave, convert your own spiritual power into water spiritual power and strike the stones on both sides."

"Yes." About ten people of the Venerable Daoist, with sharp eyes, had already memorized Thus: Xuantang Xingjun's hand gesture and, in a few strikes, projected the same spiritual light toward both sides.

Jiang Yu also flipped her ten fingers similarly, but Thus: Xuantang Xingjun stopped her: "With that little magical power, don't embarrass yourself."

So she silently observed the increasingly thin mist barrier; after several breaths it became as thin as a cicada's wing, almost allowing a view of the exposed spiritual stones within, yet the barrier remained firmly intact.

Even with Ice Phoenix and the standing cultivators joining, it was still of no avail.

At this moment, Dragon Soul transmitted from within the Dragon Pearl, "How about Jiang Yu tries the Purple‑Gold Thunder Bamboo?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yu immediately transmitted a query asking Thus: Xuantang Xingjun whether she could use it.

The result: Thus: Xuantang Xingjun turned his head and glared at her, "Having such a treasure, why didn't you bring it out earlier?"

Jiang Yu was speechless; you've been breaking seals all along and never mentioned needing auxiliary spiritual material.

She swiftly drew out the Purple‑Gold Thunder Bamboo, causing many Core Formation cultivators' eyes to flash with golden light.

And there was also a question about its origin: "Jiang Xiao‑friend, does this item still have a source?"

"I don't know." Following Thus: Xuantang Xingjun's command, Jiang Yu hurled the long bamboo with full force; the sudden flash of lightning struck the barrier, and with a crack it shattered instantly.

The spiritual qi that had just been overflowing vanished without a trace in an instant.

Jiang Yu only felt a gust of wind push her back several meters, while the Core Formation cultivators were struck by a multitude of shattered stones, scattering onto both sides of the mine tunnel.

"Your reaction is really slow," Thus: Xuantang Xingjun said coolly standing beside Jiang Yu, and Ice Phoenix, at some point, had perched on Jiang Yu's shoulder, untouched by this attack.

"Old man Xuantang, you didn't even warn everyone of the danger," Jiang Tu teased him somewhat.

Thus: Xuantang Xingjun swished his large sleeve, crossed his arms and said, "Who are they to me? Do any of them pay a reward like Jiang Yu?"

"Fine, you're so magnanimous you're even out of breath." However, Jiang Tu thought it over and realized that the old Xuantang really didn't need to meddle with others; only a few high‑rank cultivators were truly compassionate.

Jiang Yu, transmitting, slid to sit on the ground beside Elder Lin, "Elder, are you alright?"

"My spiritual power is sealed; if you're unaffected, please guard the law for us." Elder Lin tried to circulate his spiritual power several times without success; only after ten breaths did the qi in his body finally flow.

Just thinking of it is terrifying; fortunately Thus: Xuantang Xingjun had no intention of killing people to hoard the spiritual stones, otherwise ten breaths would have killed everyone hundreds of times.

At that moment, Thus: Xuantang Xingjun strode into the vanished barrier and said, "You may enter now, Jiang Yu, follow me."

As Jiang Yu gestured to her own elders and followed inside to retrieve the Purple‑Gold Thunder Bamboo, all the cultivators in the camp had already formed a long line flying toward the great lake.

Even Little Snake Biluo, seated on Guo Jue's Cloud‑Piercing Boat, kept nagging, "The ancestors won't even send me; compared to that, Jiang Yu and Jiang Tu are more like its juniors."

"Jiang Yu is helping the Demon King eliminate hidden threats; you're just digging spiritual stones for yourself." After Guo Jue finished rebutting, a slightly familiar voice sounded beside him.

He stiffened slightly, his speed returned to the opponent, and his divine sense involuntarily scanned the boat's surroundings, but found nothing.

There was even a feeling that the other side had already left.

Little Snake Biluo, noticing his oddity, immediately warned, "Enemy attack?"

"No, it's that Nascent Soul Ghost Cultivator senior."

He asked me why Jiang Yu wasn't in the team; I said Jiang Yu was gathering spiritual stones at the great lake." Guo Jue didn't know that the Nascent Soul Ghost Cultivator, accompanied by a Roc‑bird demon soul, after learning the location, had already used the demon soul's space‑rending technique to reach the lake shore.

Ripping space once more, he arrived precisely inside the spiritual ore, even a step ahead of Thus: Xuantang Xingjun, entering the deeper seal within the ore.

And with a soul ring, he deployed several formation discs to reinforce this seal.

So when Jiang Yu's party reached the seal and again cooperated with Thus: Xuantang Xingjun to break it, the array's counter‑attack was even harsher.

Several cultivators, bloodied, exclaimed, "These layers upon layers of seals are too many!"

"Indeed, Senior Xuantang, do you know how many more layers lie behind?"

"I said ten layers; would you give up then?" Thus: Xuantang Xingjun gave them a disdainful glance.

Looking again at Jiang Yu: "What are you still dazed for? Take out the purple-gold thunder bamboo and break the seal."

In fact, Jiang Yu wasn't dazed; she had heard a voice transmission from the Nascent Soul ghost cultivator.