Kinsmen Arrive

His mother had lived frugally and saved up Spirit Stones, spending most of them on Cultivation Resources for him. His father had given him the Spirit Tool he had used for many years for protection, while his clan uncles had gifted him Medicinal Pills and Talismans.

Now that he had discovered a Metal Ore Vein, he had actually considered keeping it all for himself. He was far too thoughtless.

Reporting it to the Wang Family was certain, but before doing so, he wanted to mine out a piece of Mystic Gold Ore and sell it for Spirit Stones to exchange for Cultivation Resources.

Wang Changsheng controlled the Coin Sword and forcibly cleaved off a piece of Mystic Gold Ore as large as a millstone. If he was lucky, this piece should yield more than a pound of Profound Gold, worth over thirty Spirit Stones.

To conceal the fact that the Mystic Gold Ore had been mined, Wang Changsheng found some dry firewood, lit it, and placed it near the Stone Wall he had cut.

Under the smoke, the previously fresh Stone Wall turned pitch-black, identical to the surrounding walls.

Only after confirming that nothing looked amiss did Wang Changsheng relax and put the Mystic Gold Ore into his Storage Pouch.

Just then, a streak of azure spiritual light appeared in the distant sky. It drew near from afar, appeared above Wang Changsheng's head, and slowly descended.

The azure spiritual light was astonishingly an Azure Flying Boat over twenty feet long. Its hull was inscribed with numerous azure Spirit Patterns and emitted faint spiritual energy fluctuations.

Two Men and One Woman stood atop the Azure Flying Boat. At its prow stood an elderly man with gaunt cheeks and a long goat beard. He wore an azure robe that billowed in the wind, giving him the air of an immortal sage.

The other man was tall and honest-looking. The woman was around twenty years old, with delicate features and a water-blue outfit. Her beautiful eyes were clear and flawless.

"Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, Fourth Brother, Seventh Sister, why did you only get here now?" Wang Changsheng asked delightedly upon seeing the three of them.

The Wang Family's members were divided by seniority into the Yao, Ming, Chang, Qing, Qiu, Tian, and You Generations. At present, the lowest-generation Cultivators belonged to the Qing Generation, while the highest belonged to the Yao Generation. Most of the Yao Generation had grown old, and only Wang Yaozong had reached the Foundation Establishment Realm.

The Two Men and One Woman were, in order of seniority, Wang Yaojing, Wang Changge, and Wang Changyu.

Wang Changge was the son of Second Uncle Wang Mingcai. He possessed a Triple Spirit Root, was at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, and was twenty-two years old this year. Wang Changyu was the granddaughter of Ninth Uncle-Grandfather Wang Yaoliang. Her father, Wang Mingxiao, had encountered a Heretical Cultivator while escorting goods and died in battle protecting the property. Wang Changyu was Twenty Years Old This Year, possessed a Triple Spirit Root, and was at the Fifth Level of Qi Refining.

"Wasn't it Seventeenth Brother neglecting his duties? He was assigned to send and receive letters and contact the Celestial Masters of the three counties. Since there had been little correspondence, he actually shut himself in for Secluded Cultivation. If Fourth Aunt hadn't gone to check on him, we might never have learned that Jiangshi had appeared in Peaceful County. Once Third Uncle saw the letter's contents, he immediately sent Fifth Uncle-Grandfather to bring Seventh Sister and me here," Wang Changge explained with a bitter smile.

Wang Changsheng suddenly understood, but he asked in confusion, "So that's how it was. I was wondering why you only arrived a day later. But then again, wasn't Third Granduncle the one in charge of the carrier pigeons?"

Wang Changsheng's Third Granduncle possessed Five Spiritual Roots and was over eighty years old. He had been responsible for sending and receiving letters.

Wang Yaojing Sighed, his expression dim. "Third Brother passed away half a month ago. Little Seventeen reached sixteen and should have been sent out to work, but no suitable task could be found for him at the time. Your Fourth Uncle Mingliang recommended that Little Seventeen handle the correspondence, and your father thought it suitable and agreed. Who would have thought that Little Seventeen would shut himself in for Secluded Cultivation and nearly cause a great disaster? Mingliang has already given him a severe reprimand and punished him with a month of facing the wall in the ancestral hall to reflect on his mistakes. By the way, Changsheng, we learned that the Jiangshi had already been eliminated, but we heard that another clan member was killed at the Quarry. Could there still be Jiangshi?"

"It's hard to say. A clan member named Wang Youen has gone missing and may have turned into a Jiangshi. We don't know whether Wang Youliang was killed by Wang Qingyan or Wang Youen, and we can't rule out the existence of other Jiangshi. None of that is the main point, though. Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, there is actually Mystic Gold Ore here. We just don't know how large the reserves are."

"Mystic Gold Ore!"

A glint flashed through Wang Yaojing's clouded eyes. Following the direction Wang Changsheng pointed, he saw faint specks of light shining from the dark Stone Wall.

With a flick of his sleeve, a Giant Fireball over ten feet in diameter shot out and smashed into the black Stone Wall.

Boom!

With a deafening blast, surging flames engulfed the Stone Wall.

After a while, the flames dispersed. The area struck by the Giant Fireball had not changed much.

"Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, let me try," Wang Changyu volunteered.

She raised both hands, and several transparent water arrows about three feet long flew from her sleeves, striking the spot hit by the Giant Fireball in a flash.

Two dull thuds rang out. The transparent water arrows shattered without penetrating the Stone Wall, and a cloud of green smoke rose from it.

The Wang Family had been spending more than it earned these past years, and its days had been extremely difficult. For the young clan members who could cultivate, having even one Spirit Tool was already quite good. As for one-use items such as offensive Talismans, very few clan members possessed them. Even if they did, they would not have more than five, and most were First Grade Lower Rank Talismans.

Because they were so poor, the Wang Family's Cultivators could only devote more effort and time to cultivating spells to strengthen themselves.

Wang Changge brought out a Yellow Short Sword about three feet long and slashed it against the black Stone Wall. The sharp blade sank in barely an inch before being stopped.

He controlled the Yellow Short Sword and chopped a fist-sized piece of stone from the black Stone Wall. Specks of Golden Light reflected from its surface.

"Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, you are experienced and knowledgeable. Take a look and see whether this is Profound Gold," Wang Changge said as he picked up the ore and handed it to Wang Yaojing.

There were as many artifact-refining materials in the Cultivation World as the hairs on an ox. Wang Changge had better aptitude than Wang Changsheng and usually stayed within the clan to cultivate, so he did not know much about Refining Materials. Liu Qing'er, however, was an Artifact Refining Apprentice and had consciously introduced Refining Materials to Wang Changsheng since he was young. That was why Wang Changsheng had recognized the ore as Profound Gold.

But when it came to experience, Wang Yaojing was naturally far more experienced.

Wang Yaojing took the ore and examined it carefully.

Whoosh!

A huge Crimson Fireball suddenly appeared in his palm, and roaring flames immediately enveloped the ore.

Ten breaths passed, yet the ore showed no sign of melting.

Wang Yaojing was instantly ecstatic, almost mad with joy. "That's right! This is absolutely Profound Gold, a commonly used First Grade Lower Rank artifact-refining material in the Cultivation World. Profound Gold is exceptionally hard and has a high melting point. Sword- and saber-type Spirit Tools are often refined from it. Changsheng, you have rendered great service this time."

"It was all our ancestors' blessing. This grandson would not dare claim the credit. By the way, Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, quite a few clan members working at the Quarry know about the Mystic Gold Mine. I have already ordered them to keep their mouths shut and gathered them together, forbidding them from contacting the outside world so the news will not leak."

Green Stone Town bordered Guanglin County of Pingyang Prefecture. If cultivation families in Pingyang Prefecture learned that Green Stone Town had a Mystic Gold Mine, who knew what Trouble they might stir up? Even if they merely sent people to secretly mine Mystic Gold Ore, it would still cause the Wang Family considerable losses.

"Well done, Changsheng. Return to town immediately and keep a close watch on the clan members who mine. Tell them the Jiangshi have not yet been eliminated, and forbid any clan member from setting foot in the deep mountains. Those who disobey will be severely punished without mercy. Changge, Changyu, return to the family immediately and tell Mingyuan this news. Have him send more people to mine the Mystic Gold Ore here. This matter is of great importance. Remember, apart from Mingyuan, you must not reveal a single word to anyone else. Do you understand?"

By the end, Wang Yaojing's expression had turned exceptionally solemn.

Wang Changge and Wang Changyu understood the importance of the matter and agreed repeatedly.

"Fifth Uncle-Grandfather, we do not have flying Spirit Tools. The Azure Cloud Boat is your flying Spirit Tool, and traveling back and forth to the family on foot would take far too long. How about you return to the family on the Azure Wind Boat while Seventh Sister and I remain here to stand guard?" Wang Changge suggested after hesitating slightly.

Wang Yaojing shook his head. "No. You are too young. This place is only a little over three hundred miles from Green Bamboo Market in Pingyang Prefecture. If Cultivators from Pingyang Prefecture happen to pass through and see the two of you guarding this place, how could they not become suspicious? You cannot keep using the Invisibility Technique to hide forever, can you? I have not even used a Tier 2 Hundred-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman because I feared that the Sound Transmission Talisman might be intercepted, exposing the secret of the Mystic Gold Mine and attracting thieves' covetous eyes. Ten years ago, a small Mystic Iron Mine was discovered in Jade Field County controlled by the Huang Family. Because the news leaked, it drew many cultivators to secretly mine it, and some even openly robbed them. The Huang Family lost several Qi Refining Cultivators before driving the thieves back. In the end, the Huang Family invited a Second Grade Formation Master to set up the Tier 2 Low Grade Yellow Sky Thick Earth Formation and stationed two Ninth Level of Qi Refining cultivators and over a dozen Qi Refining Cultivators to guard it. Though there were no more incidents of secret mining afterward, a great deal of Mystic Iron Ore had already been stolen, and their losses were devastating. The cart before the horse is a warning for the cart behind! Taking longer does not matter. Secrecy is what matters. The fewer people who know, the better."

"Yes, Fifth Uncle-Grandfather."

After hearing this, Wang Changge no longer insisted and put away the piece of Mystic Gold Ore he had chopped off.

Wang Changyu's jade lips moved a few times. A White Cloud materialized beneath her feet, carrying her and Wang Changge slowly into the air and toward the sky.

"Changsheng, hurry back to town and seal off the news. Under no circumstances can you let it leak," Wang Yaojing solemnly instructed.

Wang Changsheng agreed and immediately used the Cloud Soaring Technique to depart.