Magic Stone Minor Realm, Mountain Suppressing Sect.
Within a dim mine tunnel, Zhu Zi, a Qi Refining Level Seven cultivator, was hammering away at a Second-grade Purple Stone Ore the size of a human head.
He held a hammer in one hand and a chisel in the other. Streams of blood-colored spiritual power arose within his meridians as he chipped away pieces of grayish-white ore skin.
He did not know that with every strike of his stone-cutting artifact, a trace of his lifespan and vital blood imperceptibly flowed away and entered the Purple Stone Ore, completing a process akin to refinement and sacrifice, raising the essence of the ore as much as possible.
Zhu Zi kept chiseling for several hours.
Ding!
Accompanied by a crisp sound, a gemstone the size of a thumb emerged from within, faintly tinged with blood-red and glowing.
This was a finished Purple Jade Stone.
"It's out. Brother Zhu Zi finished half an hour early today."
Dozens of other human Qi Refining cultivators were busy nearby, and someone revealed an envious expression.
"Brother Zhu Zi has been doing this for fifteen years already, right?"
"Another five years, and he can go home, marry a wife, have children, and marry thirty-six wives in one go. He'll be happy beyond measure! From then on, Brother Zhu Zi will enjoy the good life..."
"You'll still have to work. You'll have to gather Talisman Grass. We were born to toil—unlike the Sect Master, who can rest only after closing his eyes in death..."
"Come on, gathering Talisman Grass is as easy as taking something out of a bag. You can do it casually. How can it compare to mining..."
Amid the clanging sounds of chiseling stone, the surrounding Qi Refining cultivators chatted and discussed things animatedly. Many of them seemed