Secret Deliberations

Ling Pengyun gathered his focus, formed hand seals with both hands, summoned the Cloud Rain Technique seal, and sent it into the air. It transformed into a spotless white cloud that released Spirit Rain, first watering the two mu of Yellow Jade Spirit Rice.

As he watered them, Ling Pengyun kept firmly in mind the teaching recorded in the Lingxiao Spirit Plant Scripture: spirit plants that had long lacked water must not be given too much moisture all at once.

Thus, he only let the Spirit Rain fall upon the two mu of Yellow Jade Spirit Rice for half an incense stick's time before stopping.

Ordinarily, he would let the rain fall for one incense stick's time to water the water-loving Yellow Jade Spirit Rice.

As for the Qi Training Grass and Sword Star Grass, which normally needed half an incense stick's worth of Spirit Rain, he watered them for only the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

Once he finished watering with Spirit Rain, Ling Pengyun cast the Lingxiao Ripening Technique on each of the spirit plants across the six mu of fields, as it needed to be cast once every three days.

Using the secret art, he condensed pure Wood Spiritual Energy to hasten their growth.

The Ripening Technique consumed a great deal of energy. By the time Ling Pengyun had cast it once on all the spirit plants in the six mu of spirit fields, barely any spiritual energy remained in his Dantian.

After greeting the Yellow-Feathered Sparrow that dutifully guarded the spirit fields, he pulled out the dozen or so weeds that had grown during his three-day absence and burned them clean. Only then did Ling Pengyun descend the mountain and return to the cave halfway up the slope.

The Azure Scale Water Python corpse, one zhang long and as thick as a millstone, had not spoiled thanks to the ice preserving it. Even now, quite a bit of ice still clung to its body.

After melting away the ice, Ling Pengyun summoned his Mystic Iron Sword and carefully began dissecting the Azure Scale Water Python corpse, whose rank had reached the Qi Training Middle Stage.

The Azure Scale Water Python excelled in its physique, and the several hundred jin of flesh on its body contained considerable spiritual energy, far surpassing the Ink Cloud Poisonous Snake he had obtained earlier, which had likewise been at the Qi Training Middle Stage.

Even so, the venom of that Qi Training Middle Stage Ink Cloud Poisonous Snake had been exceedingly valuable. In terms of overall worth, the two were actually not far apart.

For Ling Pengyun, who was in the same realm, the several hundred jin of Azure Scale Water Python meat could also serve as an excellent cultivation resource. By his estimation, the spiritual energy gained from eating all that snake meat could likely match the effects of one or two Yellow Sprout Pills.

Apart from its flesh, this demon serpent was treasure from head to tail.

Although most of its blood had been washed away after it died in the water, nearly a dozen jin of snake blood remained within its body.

This snake blood contains pure Water Spiritual Energy. If refined into Talisman Ink and used to draw water-element spirit talismans, it would certainly increase their power. If sold, it could probably fetch about one Spirit Stone for every five jin of snake blood.

Though ninety-nine percent of the snake skin and scales had been destroyed, Ling Pengyun still managed to piece together four palm-sized pieces of snake skin from the demon serpent's corpse.

These four pieces of snake skin should be enough to make a pair of magic-tool boots!

Boots refined by a Weapon Refiner from these four pieces of water-element demon serpent hide might not increase my speed, but there is an eighty to ninety percent chance they could enhance the speed at which I gather Water Spiritual Energy in battle and reduce some of the spiritual energy I consume when casting spells. Ling Pengyun said with a smile as he looked at the four pieces of python skin spread across the ground.

Ling Pengyun also removed the demon serpent's bones.

Its bones and fangs were both exceptionally tough, hard enough to rival spirit iron of the same rank.

Though they were not sufficient to serve as the primary materials for First Grade Middle Rank Magic Tools, they would make fine supplementary materials and were worth several Spirit Stones.

There was no need to mention the demon serpent's gallbladder. It was an excellent material for refining Antidote Pills and Foundation Strengthening Pills.

As for the demon serpent's other internal organs, they had little use. Ling Pengyun could not be bothered to eat them, so he gave them all to the Yellow-Feathered Sparrow, which had tirelessly guarded the spirit plants in the six mu of spirit fields atop the mountain from spirit insects.

Though those organs were little more than rubbish in Ling Pengyun's eyes, to the Innate Fourth Layer Yellow-Feathered Sparrow, they were treasures, things filled with spiritual energy.

This made the Yellow-Feathered Sparrow firmly believe that following this immortal would surely lead to a bright future. It kept landing by Ling Pengyun's feet and rubbing its head against him, displaying its obedience.

This pleased Ling Pengyun immensely!

Over this recent period, the Yellow-Feathered Sparrow had used those demon serpent organs to break through two levels in succession, rising directly to the Innate Sixth Layer.

Meanwhile, Ling Pengyun heartily devoured stir-fried demon serpent meat and Azure Jade Spirit Rice, thoroughly satisfied.

After eating his fill, he circulated his cultivation technique and refined the spiritual energy contained within the snake meat and spirit rice.

Once he finished refining it, he woke and continued cooking demon serpent meat to eat, then circulated his cultivation technique again to refine it.

Ling Pengyun had squeezed every last drop of use from the demon serpent's flesh.

Lingxiao Mountain.

After Ling Yunhong returned to the clan mountain from Azure Stone Mountain, having confirmed the scale of the Mystic Water Iron Mine, he immediately summoned Grand Elder Ling Ruda, Second Elder Ling Ruxian, and Fifth Elder Ling Yunxi, all of whom were in the clan, to the Council Hall atop the mountain.

Once everyone had arrived, Ling Yunhong informed the three elders that Ling Pengyun of the Peng Generation had discovered a Mystic Water Iron Mine within Azure Stone Lake beside Azure Stone Mountain. It stretched for more than four hundred and eighty zhang, already reaching the scale of a small mineral vein.

"It actually extends for more than four hundred and eighty zhang!" Grand Elder Ling Ruda, who had already known about the mineral vein, could not help crying out upon hearing its scale. His face beamed with joy, and his smile could not be contained.

"What? A small-scale Mystic Water Iron Mine?" Fifth Elder Ling Yunxi was stunned. The surprise was too great; for a moment, she could scarcely accept that the Ling Clan had encountered such an opportunity.

Second Elder Ling Ruxian, who had trained outside for many years and understood well the cruelty of the Cultivation World, was also shocked. Yet the first words out of his mouth were not ones of surprise, but concern for the mine's safety. "Yun Hong, quickly dispatch people to guard it, lest news of the mine leak and draw other lineages here to fight over it!"

Ling Yunhong said with a smile, "All right, quiet down first. Ever since returning to the clan mountain from the Profound Water Mineral Vein at Azure Stone Lake, I have thought countless times about how we should make use of this mineral vein!"

"For a lineage like ours, which possesses only First Grade Lower and Middle Rank weapon-refining inheritances and lacks methods to use Mystic Water Iron as the main material to refine magic tools such as Mystic Water Swords and Mystic Water Shields, even if our clan were to mine this small Mystic Water Iron Mine ourselves, we could only refine the raw ore into Mystic Water Iron and sell it. It would be difficult to develop the mine's value to the fullest, and while mining it, we would also have to risk other major lineages seizing it from us."

"Rather than that, we might as well yield a portion of the mine's profits to the Hundred Spirits Sect, which needs ore. With part of the mine's benefits, we can exchange for a complete First Grade weapon-refining inheritance that is difficult to buy with Spirit Stones outside, or even the Second Grade alchemy inheritance we have long coveted. We may even trade the Hundred Spirits Sect for a Foundation Establishment cultivation technique, strengthening our clan's foundations!"

"As for the remaining ore in the Mystic Water Iron Mine, our Ling Clan can use the complete First Grade weapon-refining inheritance we obtain to refine it into magic tools one by one and maximize our profits. Who is to say the earnings will be any less than directly selling the ore from the entire mine?"

Ling Yunhong's words struck directly at the hearts of Ling Ruda, Ling Ruxian, and Ling Yunxi. In their hearts, they deeply agreed with him.