Sorting Out the Earth Vein Situation

Jiang Yun had just returned to his Dao Field and hadn't even had time to settle onto his meditation cushion when the ground suddenly shook violently.

He hurried out of his bamboo hut, the Dao Derivation Disk appearing in his Sea of Consciousness. With a brief calculation, he understood the full sequence of events.

Five hundred li southwest of the Dao Field, due to fractures in the surrounding Spirit Veins, several Earth Vein Nodes had been damaged. The vast subterranean earth energy, unable to flow and transform smoothly through the veins as before, had begun to accumulate at blocked nodes. Unable to fully convert into spiritual energy that could dissipate into the world or compress into Spirit Veins, the pressure built relentlessly. As the surrounding soil bore increasing strain, the ground cracked open, and the earth energy followed these fissures, extending outward until it finally broke free and erupted.

The violent tremor he had just felt was the result of this Earth Vein earth energy eruption.

The shaking continued, but it had already subsided considerably from its initial intensity.

Based on his calculations, Jiang Yun used the Great Earth Evasion and arrived at the scene in moments. Before him stood three or four towering pillars of gray-black energy, carrying mud, soil, and even chunks of metal upward into the sky. At their peak, the debris scattered and rained down in all directions.

From the first tremor to now, less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea had passed. The land, once gently arched, had already formed a small hill over ten zhang high around the central pillars.

Jiang Yun sank into the ground using the Earth Evasion Technique, surveying the condition of the Earth Veins in the area. He gathered and recorded all the information he could.

The situation was grim. The Earth Veins within a hundred li had been shattered into seven or eight segments. Most were still loosely connected, allowing partial energy flow. But at the eruption site, the vein had completely misaligned with the preceding segment. Earth energy could only pile up here, swelling until it could no longer be contained and burst forth from the depths.

Using the Whip Mountain Move Stone divine ability, Jiang Yun painstakingly adjusted the misaligned Earth Veins, reconnecting them piece by piece. He first halted the eruption, then backfilled the crater left by the blast with the piled-up hill, leveling the ground completely.

With that done, the tremors caused by the Earth Vein eruption were fully resolved. However, the previously blocked earth energy had also expanded the vein spaces, creating fine cracks. Larger fissures still leaked wisps of earth energy, eroding the soil. Jiang Yun took out the Earth Spirit Pearl, channeled some Earth Element Spiritual Energy, and followed the underground Earth Veins to repair every crack. He mended the original fractures, reinforced them, and spent an entire month completing the work.

After returning to his Dao Field, Jiang Yun drew on his prior experience to survey, adjust, and repair the Earth Veins in the valley where his Dao Field was located. Then, without pause, he made the Dao Field his center and repeated the process—surveying, adjusting misalignments, and repairing damaged veins. It took him decades to initially sort out the Earth Veins within ten thousand li.

During this process, Jiang Yun made a significant discovery: intact Earth Veins contained an Earth Vein Fortune Spirit, which actively guided and transformed the earth energy flowing through them. The soil around such veins was rich in spiritual energy. In contrast, damaged veins varied in severity. Some with minor injuries had a damaged Qi Vein Spirit, greatly diminished in vitality. Others, broken into multiple segments, had their Qi Vein Spirit completely dissipated, leaving the vein to passively convert earth energy on its own, releasing only sparse spiritual energy into the soil.

After initially organizing the vein network within ten thousand li, he set up an Earth Vein Spirit Nurturing Formation at each node where veins intersected. This formation was a variant derived from the Spirit Plant Conversion Formation. The Spirit Plant Conversion Grand Array used spirit plants as nodes to absorb all kinds of earth energy, demonic energy, and even blood and filth, converting them into pure spiritual energy.

The Earth Vein Spirit Nurturing Formation, on the other hand, used spiritual treasures refined from materials he had casually collected while repairing veins over the years. These treasures absorbed the earth energy flowing through the veins, returning it to its origin as Earth Element Primordial Energy, which seeped into the veins and slowly nurtured them.

After prolonged nurturing, dissipated Qi Vein Spirits would gradually recondense, damaged ones would heal, and their vitality would steadily increase.

At the same time, these formations at each node formed an Earth Vein Network covering ten thousand li. Any vein within this network, when attacked from outside or above, would automatically draw on the vein's spiritual energy to activate the formation for defense. The attack would be distributed across all nodes, dispersing its force and enhancing overall protection.

At the surface above each Earth Vein Node, Jiang Yun planted Cloud Bamboo offshoots, arranging them into a Spirit Plant Conversion Grand Array. This purified all corrosive and polluting energies—demonic, earth, and earthly sha—that scattered across the land. The air became filled with pure spiritual energy. As the environment recovered, countless living beings gradually emerged. Without the tainted gases, even cultivation became much easier.

Over these decades, while sorting out the Earth Veins, Jiang Yun also accumulated some merit, and his own fortune rose significantly.

Once, on his way back to the Dao Field, passing by the Cloud Bamboo groves he had planted, he spotted two round pandas—a male and a female—with a young cub beside them. They were lounging among the bamboo, snapping off stalks to chew. As an Innate Spiritual Root, even the offshoots grown from its divided roots were top-grade Acquired Spiritual Roots, exuding pure energy far superior to ordinary bamboo—naturally more to the pandas' taste.

Seeing these three adorable creatures, so familiar from his past life, Jiang Yun paused and slowly approached. Hearing his footsteps, the two adult pandas stopped eating and sat up.

Their pitch-black eyes studied Jiang Yun for a moment. Finding him merely observing, with no other moves and no sense of danger, they grunted softly, dropped their guard, and resumed eating.

The familiar black-and-white coloring filled Jiang Yun with warmth. He flipped his hand and produced a branch from an offshoot, its fragrance spreading instantly.

The two pandas lifted their heads, sniffing the air, and spotted the Cloud Bamboo branch in Jiang Yun's hand. They waddled over eagerly, the cub trailing behind.

Stopping a few meters away, the adults raised their heads, noses twitching at the bamboo's scent, whimpering with pitiful eyes fixed on the branch. They seemed to sense the pressure Jiang Yun exuded and dared not act rashly.

Jiang Yun extended the branch. The two pandas reached out, took it in their mouths, and divided it into two large portions and one small. Leaving the small one for the cub, they sat down and began to savor their share. The cub mimicked its parents, nuzzling the bamboo before it, then sitting and grabbing a stalk to eat.

While the pandas ate, Jiang Yun moved closer, reaching out to stroke the heads of the two adults, enjoying the pleasure of petting them. The pandas showed no resistance; instead, they squinted contentedly and continued eating.

Noticing this, Jiang Yun boldly scooped up the cub, cradling it in his arms. He grabbed a few bamboo stalks, petting the cub while feeding it. Perhaps because Jiang Yun, born of spirit bamboo, exuded pure energy, the cub lay peacefully in his arms, enjoying his service.

After the feeding, Jiang Yun promptly lured the entire family back to his Dao Field.