You're Not Thinking of Taking a Dao Companion, Are You?

The next morning, with dark circles under his eyes but full of energy, Mu Ye walked out of the stone house.

As he exited, a man as thin as a bamboo pole with white hair walked out of the stone house opposite. The two looked at each other. The skinny old man chuckled, "Mu Ye, did you sneak off to Tianxiang Pavilion last night?"

"Which room did you go to? Why didn't I run into you?"

"Get lost." Mu Ye waved his hand, picked up his mining pick, and walked along the stone path towards the mine. "Bamboo Pole, you're so weak, and you still dare to go to Tianxiang Pavilion? Aren't you afraid those Fox Spirits will drain your cultivation dry?"

This man was Zhu Fengliu, an old steward of the Jinshi Sect.

Looking at his weathered face and white hair, anyone would think he was in his seventies or eighties.

In reality, this guy was only in his early thirties.

He had come to Qinghe Mine a few years ago, and the Spirit Stones he earned were basically spent at Tianxiang Pavilion in Qinghe Market.

He was the type of cultivator who had completely given up, focused on indulging in pleasure and living one day at a time.

"Hahaha, don't walk so fast, let's go together!" The Bamboo Pole carried his mining pick and followed Mu Ye with a hunched back. "I say, you kid, you're such a stubborn mule. Stop dreaming about immortal paths and eternal life. What are you saving Spirit Stones for?"

"You're not thinking of getting a Dao Companion, are you?"

Zhu Fengliu walked up to Mu Ye and patted his shoulder. "In this world, you can't afford one. You know Chen the Lame next door?"

"I know, what's up?" Mu Ye flinched, shaking off the man's hand.

"What's up?" Zhu Fengliu sneered. "Didn't that idiot spend a fortune half a month ago to find an introduction to a Qi Refining First Layer female cultivator? Then he left the mine and moved to the market to get married."

"And guess what happened?"

"What happened?" Mu Ye asked.

"In just half a month, the female cultivator demanded a divorce. Chen the Lame refused, and she broke his other leg. I heard he crawled out of the market, and his body is now lost in the wilderness." Zhu Fengliu sighed, "So, like I said, if we have Spirit Stones, we should enjoy ourselves more."

"You say with our aptitude, we can't cultivate anything significant. Even if we went to the mortal world, we'd be controlled by those immortal cultivation families."

Mu Ye was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected Chen the Lame to have such a tragic end.

Well, it was quite common in the Cultivation World.

The territory of the Jinshi Sect only protected them from beast attacks.

After sighing a few times, Mu Ye didn't dwell on the matter. Steward Xu from the mine entrance was already waiting.

Unlike usual, Steward Xu was accompanied by a handsome young man today. Steward Xu was muttering something in a low voice with great deference. Clearly, this young man's status was higher than Steward Xu's.

After a while, the young man flicked his sleeve and slapped Steward Xu.

Steward Xu's face turned red, but he couldn't speak.

Mu Ye looked and thought, "Good heavens, to be able to beat Steward Xu, who is at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, into speechlessness, he must be a Formal Disciple of the Jinshi Sect."

He quickly lowered his head, deciding not to meddle.

As the many Stewards slowly walked towards the mine entrance.

Steward Xu shouted, "There's a reward for mining today. If anyone finds a Red Flame Crystal, they'll be rewarded with ten Spirit Stones."

Hearing this, the Stewards became restless.

Mu Ye's heart also skipped a beat. Ten Spirit Stones?

The original owner had dug for several years and only saved a meager twenty Spirit Stones.

Mu Ye remembered that in the few months since he had transmigrated, he had dug every day, and his monthly income hadn't even reached one Spirit Stone.

Qinghe Mine operated on a fifty-fifty split. Half of the Spirit Ore dug by the Stewards had to be handed over to the Jinshi Sect, and the remaining half was used to exchange for Spirit Stones or Spirit Crystals.

It often took several, or even more than ten, Red Flame Stones to exchange for one Spirit Stone.

"Red Flame Crystal, who can find that?" Zhu Fengliu, standing beside him, muttered. "I've been in Qinghe Mine for years, and I've only heard of it appearing twice. This thing is the Companion Spirit Crystal of the Red Flame Insect. It seems this important figure wants to use Red Flame Crystals to refine Flying Sword Magic Tools."

Red Flame Crystal is a solid Tier 1 Spirit Ore, a Main Material capable of refining Tier 1 Flying Sword Magic Tools.

Ordinary Red Flame Stones are just common Spirit Ore, only usable as Secondary Material for refining ordinary magic tools.

It is well-known in the Cultivation World that among the same tier, the materials for Flying Sword Magic Tools are often the most expensive.

Weapons like Blades Spears Axes Halberds, Ribbons, Bell Cauldrons, Seal Banners, and other magic tools are a tier below Flying Swords.

It's not that swords are that powerful, but rather the people who use them...

The Jinshi Sect has many ore veins. Qinghe Mine has been dug for many years, and all the high-quality materials were long ago depleted.

In the deep mine, simple lamps made of Red Flame Stones lined the sides, making the front relatively bright.

Further in, visibility decreased, and the aura emitted by the Spirit Ore became chaotic.

The Flame Energy was extremely strong, requiring one to circulate Spiritual Power to resist, otherwise, the body couldn't endure it.

"Mining really isn't a good job..."

"It's not as good as those Farming cultivators. Constantly enduring this Flame Energy, how many can live well?" Mu Ye couldn't help but complain.

However, Farming also required capital.

Renting even the least fertile Spirit Field required at least thirty to forty Spirit Stones as a deposit, followed by several Spirit Stones in rent annually. If a locust plague occurred, it could easily lead to disaster.

The only benefit was that it was more leisurely, without having to work every day.

Mu Ye planned to save some Spirit Stones and then rent a Spirit Field. In the future, he would have more time to play games if he was farming.

However, currently, he lacked funds, so it was just a thought.

Mu Ye shook his head, circulated the Peiyuan Manual, and a cool Spiritual Power slowly flowed through his body, preparing to start working.

"Reward of ten Spirit Stones for finding Red Flame Crystal... that's a lot... if I earn it... I won't be far from renting a Spirit Field."

Holding his pickaxe, Mu Ye was about to use the Golden Blade Art to start mining when he suddenly stopped, "Wait..."

Mu Ye looked around. There were no other Stewards nearby. The mine was extremely large and complex, with not many Stewards, and they were basically digging their own sections.

Mu Ye closed his eyes, and the next moment, a wondrous power slowly emerged from him.

Centered on Mu Ye, the surrounding space in his perception seemed to turn black and white.

Only a faint red aura flowed nearby like a thread.

Mu Ye felt a strange sensation.

[Mind Eye Lv1: Can detect the disguises of demons and monsters, and can also sense special auras in the surroundings.]

This was an ability obtained from opening a treasure chest when he fell asleep last night.

Mu Ye hadn't felt anything at the time and hadn't used it.

He mainly felt that this ability was similar to a Cultivator's Divine Sense, but the difference was that those in the Qi Refining Realm did not have Divine Sense.

Moreover, demons and wild beasts rarely appeared in the Jinshi Sect's territory, so it was useless to use it.

"So this is the world perceived by a Demon Sealer... It's truly wondrous. I wonder how this perception compares to Divine Sense? I heard that Divine Sense can only be condensed and born in the Foundation Establishment Realm, and those in the Qi Refining Realm do not have such perception."

Mu Ye looked around.

A black and white world, with only a red aura flowing.

"Could this aura be?"

Mu Ye's heart stirred, and he followed the red aura.

The deeper he went, the heavier the Flame Energy became. He occasionally encountered other Stewards who were also rushing around, likely searching for the Red Flame Crystal. Therefore, they paid no attention to Mu Ye wandering off.

Under the coverage of his Mind Eye, Mu Ye quickly reached the depths.

"The aura is getting stronger..."

Mu Ye's heart pounded until it settled on a fixed point.

In his Mind Eye's perception, the red light cluster was buried deep beneath an extremely thick layer of rock. Mu Ye didn't hesitate and immediately took out his pickaxe to dig shallowly.

He stopped only when a corner of brilliant red radiance was revealed.

"It really is Red Flame Crystal."

"I can't dig anymore. There should be Red Flame Insects below this. I can't deal with Lesser Demonic Beasts like these inside a mine..."

Mu Ye was a little excited. This Mind Eye ability was quite interesting.

He hadn't expected that his in-game character abilities could actually be brought out, and they were... quite practical?