The Mine Invitation

Night receded, and the sky slowly brightened.

Inside Alchemy Room C-7, Li Chengjie had just finished stabilizing his realm. His aura was perfectly rounded, and the sharp gleam in his eyes had yet to fully withdraw.

Soft footsteps sounded outside the tent, followed by an apprentice's respectful voice.

"Alchemist Li, a senior brother outside the camp claims to be Xiao Yan. He says he is an old acquaintance of yours and wishes to see you."

Li Chengjie raised a brow slightly. Xiao Yan?

On Blue Star in his previous life, that was the familiar Battle God. In this life, though, they were hardly acquainted.

After a brief pause, he withdrew the faint pressure belonging to Qi Refining Level 7 and said in a deep voice, "Let him in."

The tent flap was lifted, and a young man walked in. He wore the ordinary attire of a Flowing Cloud Sect Disciple. He stood tall and straight, and though his features could not be called handsome, he carried a uniquely resolute air.

His gaze was keen as a hawk's. Upon entering, he openly looked Li Chengjie up and down, a faint, inscrutable smile curling across his lips.

"Li Chengjie, Alchemist Li? I've heard much about you." Xiao Yan's voice was not loud, yet it carried an innate certainty.

Without revealing anything, Li Chengjie cupped his hands in return. "Senior Brother Xiao is too kind. May I ask what brings you to Li?"

Li Chengjie remained wary. This man's aura was tightly condensed—he was actually at Qi Refining Level 8—and he gave off a distinctly dangerous feeling. He was certainly no ordinary disciple.

Xiao Yan seemed not to notice Li Chengjie's guardedness, or perhaps simply did not care. He strolled over to the wooden rack piled with medicinal herbs, casually picked up a prepared stalk of Blood Condensing Grass, and rolled it between his fingers. "It seems Steward Zhou takes quite good care of you. The earthfire in Alchemy Room C-7 is three parts stronger than that of the other rooms. Alchemist Li must have reaped quite a harvest these past few days, no?"

There seemed to be something beneath Xiao Yan's words.

Li Chengjie's heart tightened, but his expression remained calm. "I am grateful for Steward Zhou's regard. Li has merely fulfilled the sect's duties. If Senior Brother Xiao has no further business, Li must prepare for today's alchemy."

Li Chengjie was issuing an eviction order. He had no desire to become further entangled with this dangerous man of unknown origins.

"Heh heh, Alchemist Li, why the rush to send me away?" Xiao Yan set down the Blood Condensing Grass, turned to face Li Chengjie, and looked straight into his eyes. "I came today because I have an enormous opportunity I wish to share with Alchemist Li."

"Oh? An enormous opportunity?" Li Chengjie's tone was flat, his suspicion plain. "What opportunity could possibly make Senior Brother Xiao take an interest in a mere alchemy apprentice like Li?"

"Before an honest man, there is no need for hidden words." Xiao Yan's smile faded somewhat as he lowered his voice. "Does Alchemist Li know why the Blood Fiend Cult refuses to let go of these ruins of Qingshi Market, even going so far as to pour in a great deal of manpower and engage our sect in a tug-of-war here?"

Li Chengjie's heart stirred, but his face betrayed nothing. "Naturally, because this place is our sect's forward stronghold and occupies an important strategic position."

"Yes, but not entirely." Xiao Yan shook his head. His voice dropped even lower, carrying a trace of temptation. "The more important reason is that a Miniature Spirit Stone Mine was discovered in a hidden valley a hundred li northeast of Qingshi Market, near a branch range of the Black Wind Mountain Range!"

A Spirit Stone Mine!

Those three words exploded in Li Chengjie's mind like thunder!

Li Chengjie's heart began to pound uncontrollably, and even the flow of his blood seemed to quicken.

Spirit stones! To any cultivator, they were the foundation of cultivation—the most important resource for increasing one's strength! They were even more important to him.

Li Chengjie forcefully suppressed the tremor in his heart and tried to keep his voice steady. "Is Senior Brother Xiao speaking the truth? If there truly is a spirit stone mine, how could the sect not know? And how could it permit the Blood Fiend Cult to occupy it?"

"The sect's higher-ups naturally know some rumors." Xiao Yan explained, "But that mine is very small, and it lies in a dangerous region where the territories of both sides overlap. The terrain is complicated—easy to defend, hard to attack. The previous great battle erupted too suddenly, and the sect was forced to retreat before it could begin mining. Now, a small Blood Fiend Cult patrol squad occupies the place. They apparently have yet to conduct large-scale mining and have only stationed some men there to guard it."

Xiao Yan paused, studying Li Chengjie's expression before continuing. "A few days ago, while carrying out a reconnaissance mission, I happened upon the mine entrance. I found a way to eliminate two outer sentries and learned the rough situation inside. There are not many guards. The strongest is only at Qi Refining Level 8, while the rest are at Qi Refining Levels 6 and 7. Moreover, they seem not to have reported the discovery of the mine. I imagine they intend to swallow this windfall in private."

Li Chengjie's gaze flickered as his mind rapidly weighed the matter.

Even a Miniature Spirit Stone Mine, no matter how small, was worth far more than what he could earn through years of painstaking pill refinement!

And the guards did not sound unbeatable. Yet he was not so dizzy with greed as to lose his head. He calmly asked, "Why does Senior Brother Xiao not report such vital information to the sect in exchange for contribution points? Why tell an unrelated person like me instead?

"Besides, with Senior Brother Xiao's Qi Refining Level 8 cultivation, along with intelligence this important, surely you could find more reliable partners. Why seek out an alchemist at Qi Refining Level 6... no, Level 7?"

At the proper moment, Li Chengjie revealed his newly achieved cultivation level. It was both a probe and a display.

A trace of surprise flashed through Xiao Yan's eyes. Clearly, he had not expected Li Chengjie to have already broken through to Qi Refining Level 7. But he quickly returned to normal and smiled. "Report it to the sect? Heh heh, by the time it passes through layer after layer of reports and they dispatch manpower, the daylilies will be cold! By then, the credit will belong to those above us. How many spirit stones will we get? As for why I chose you..."

Xiao Yan's gaze sharpened, carrying a candid calculation.

Xiao Yan deliberately paused, watching Li Chengjie's reaction before slowly saying, "Strictly speaking, Alchemist Li, you are not yet truly a Flowing Cloud Sect Disciple, are you? You are merely a Registered Apprentice of the Flowing Cloud Pill Pavilion in Falling Cloud City, with a status somewhere between a guest retainer and a menial. Am I right?"

Li Chengjie's eyes narrowed slightly. He neither admitted nor denied it, merely listened in silence.

Seeing that he did not speak, Xiao Yan continued, "It is precisely because you are not an official sect disciple, and have no deep ties to those tangled factions within the Flowing Cloud Sect, that I sought you out.

"Think about it. If I told this to any Flowing Cloud Sect Inner Disciple, even if he agreed nicely to my face, he might turn around and report it directly to the sect in order to claim all the credit for himself or curry favor with some Elder. What would be left for you and me then? We would not even get a mouthful of soup!"

Xiao Yan's tone carried a trace of disdain and wariness toward the sect's internal affairs. "To be honest, you are not the only person I invited for this operation.

"But I also avoided the Flowing Cloud Sect's Core Disciples when choosing the others.

"The people I found are all... well, they can be considered Rogue Cultivators or Family Disciples from other member sects of the Righteous Path Alliance, including one or two disciples from small families with no particularly close ties to the Flowing Cloud Sect. Everyone shares the same goal: spirit stones. There are not so many sect entanglements or thoughts of reporting the matter to claim merit."

Li Chengjie finally understood.

Xiao Yan feared that bringing in official Flowing Cloud Sect Disciples would leak the news, resulting in the sect's intervention and depriving the discoverers of the greatest benefits.

And as a Pill Pavilion apprentice with an ambiguous status and shallow roots, he indeed fit Xiao Yan's requirement of being "outside the Flowing Cloud Sect core."

"So Senior Brother Xiao chose Li because my background is clean... or rather, simple, and unlikely to draw attention from the sect?" Li Chengjie's tone held a trace of self-mockery.

"You could put it that way." Xiao Yan admitted frankly. "A simple background means fewer troubles. And as I said just now, I value your identity as an alchemist. You are meticulous and perceptive, which would help in exploring the mine tunnels and dealing with any formations or traps that may be inside. Among us, we lack a careful and trustworthy support like you. So? Is that reason sufficient?"

Li Chengjie fell silent for a moment, as though digesting the information and weighing the gains against the losses.

At last, Li Chengjie raised his head and fixed Xiao Yan with a sharp gaze. "It sounds as though Senior Brother Xiao has planned this very thoroughly. Then apart from me, who else have you invited? What are their cultivation levels? And how are we to ensure that, once we succeed... we will not turn on one another and rob the robbers?"

Xiao Yan was not surprised that Li Chengjie had gone straight to the heart of the matter. Instead, he nodded appreciatively. "Besides you and me, I've contacted two others. One is a Rogue Cultivator skilled in Evasion Techniques and scouting, with a cultivation level at Qi Refining Level 7;

the other is a disciple from a minor family, with a decent Object Control Technique and cultivation at the peak of Qi Refining Level 6.

With me at Qi Refining Level 8 and you, newly advanced to Qi Refining Level 7, the four of us should stand a strong chance against the five or six guards in the mine tunnel, provided the plan is thorough."

"As for the matter of trust..." Xiao Yan's expression turned solemn. "Before we set out, the four of us must jointly swear a Heart Demon Oath: until we leave the mine tunnel safely, return, and divide the spoils, none of us may attack, scheme against, or reveal the secret of this venture in any form.

Whoever violates it will suffer an Inner Demon Backlash, their Dao path severed! This is the most common form of restraint when cultivators explore ruins and share fortunate opportunities. What does Alchemist Li think?"

A Heart Demon Oath... Li Chengjie knew that it was indeed one of the most binding methods, especially at their stage.

Li Chengjie carefully considered Xiao Yan's entire plan. Its personnel avoided the core members of the Flowing Cloud Sect, its allocation of strength was reasonable, and there was the restraint of the Heart Demon Oath. There was certainly risk, but the temptation of a Spirit Stone Mine was simply too great.

"Fine!" Li Chengjie finally made up his mind, a flash of resolve crossing his eyes. "I'm in. When do we leave? What do I need to prepare?"

A satisfied smile appeared on Xiao Yan's face. "A wise choice! We'll meet at midnight tomorrow, in the Black Pine Forest three li east of the camp. Prepare enough Qi Replenishing Pills and healing medicine—Detoxification Pills would be even better if you have them. Also, stock up on attack and defense Talismans. Better to be prepared than caught wanting. As for Dharma Artifacts, that depends on what you have. Remember, this is top secret. Do not mention it to anyone, including Steward Zhou!"

"I understand." Li Chengjie nodded. "Midnight tomorrow, Black Pine Forest. I'll be there on time."

"Straightforward! Then I look forward to working well with Alchemist Li and claiming wealth and fortune together!" Xiao Yan cupped his hands. Saying no more, he turned and strode briskly out of the alchemy room.