Before he came, he had already learned the specifics of the Spirit Stone Mine.
More than twenty Qi Refining Cultivators were stationed at the Spirit Stone Mine, and two Martial Uncles in the Foundation Establishment Realm were there to oversee it.
Under normal circumstances,
one of the two Martial Uncles would bring the mined Spirit Stones back to the sect every half month. They couldn't make the trip every two or three days; after all, the Martial Uncles had to cultivate too.
But they couldn't wait too long, either. Otherwise, the massive quantity of Spirit Stones might attract the interest of high-ranking cultivators.
Resource sites such as Spirit Medicine fields, Spirit Mines, and Spirit Stone deposits were usually areas the sect protected closely.
The Spirit Stone Mine was neither too far from nor too close to the White Cloud Sect. As long as a distress message was sent, a large group of cultivators could arrive quickly under the leadership of the sect's high-ranking cultivators.
As a result, not a single evil cultivator had dared attack this place so far.
Of course, that was also because the Spirit Stone Mine was so heavily guarded.
The Guard Senior Brothers at the Spirit Stone Mine were mainly responsible for fending off evil cultivators, as well as dealing with the Demonic Beasts that occasionally emerged from the Mine Caves.
Otherwise... if one or two Demonic Beasts appeared every so often, forget the casualties among the miners—even the bravest miners probably wouldn't be able to mine in peace.
That would greatly affect the efficiency of Spirit Stone mining.
Cheng Buzheng didn't waste any more time and walked up to the Formation Light Screen.
Suddenly,
a young cultivator in the White Cloud Sect's gray robes emerged from within the formation. Powerful Spirit Pressure radiated from him as he stepped out through the defensive barrier, a Flying Sword Magic Tool gripped in his hand.
He was poised to attack at any moment,
as if the slightest unsatisfactory answer from Cheng Buzheng would earn him an immediate attack.
Feeling that powerful Spirit Pressure, Cheng Buzheng secretly guessed that the man was at least in the Late Qi Refining Stage. He also marveled at how tightly guarded this place was.
They were on such high alert even when facing a minor cultivator like him, who was only at the Second Level of Qi Refining. That alone showed just how stringent the security was.
Although the Guard Senior Brother saw that Cheng Buzheng was also wearing the sect's robes, not a trace of wariness left his face.
After all, sect robes were easy enough to obtain by killing a sect disciple. They weren't enough to earn his trust.
"Who are you?" the Guard Senior Brother asked in a low voice, watching Cheng Buzheng warily.
Cheng Buzheng hurriedly replied. He didn't want to cause even the slightest misunderstanding. If they mistook him for an evil cultivator and killed him, he'd have no one to appeal to.
"I'm Cheng Buzheng, an Outer Sect Disciple of the White Cloud Sect. I accepted a mission at the Command Token Pavilion and came here!
"These are my Mission Token and Identity Token!" As he spoke, he brushed his hand over the Storage Bag at his waist and held out the tokens in his hands.
Seeing that Cheng Buzheng made no unnecessary movements, the Guard Senior Brother relaxed slightly. After all, cases of people hiding their strength and catching others off guard were common in the cultivation world.
He beckoned, and the tokens in Cheng Buzheng's hands slowly flew into his own. Throughout the process, he kept his eyes fixed on Cheng Buzheng, in case he launched a sudden attack.
The Guard Senior Brother carefully verified the tokens' authenticity, keeping Cheng Buzheng in the corner of his eye the whole time. He didn't let his guard down completely.
Before long, the verification was complete.
The Guard Senior Brother finally lowered his guard and said calmly, "I hope you won't take offense, Junior Brother. These are the rules at the mine. Even the Martial Uncles in the Foundation Establishment Realm have to go through the same checks when coming and going."
As he spoke, the Guard Senior Brother tossed the tokens back to him.
Cheng Buzheng caught them, his face showing not the slightest trace of resentment. Instead, he smiled and said,
"Senior Brother, you needn't worry! It's your duty. Your thoroughness is admirable. How could I possibly take offense?"
Hearing this,
the Guard Senior Brother's expression softened somewhat. He said coolly,
"You're here for the Mining Mission. From now on, if you want to leave the valley, you must inform me first.
"I'll give you a copy of the rules for the Spirit Stone Mine shortly. You must obey everything written in it. If you break the rules, you'll be punished according to the sect rules.
"Junior Brother, I know I may sound harsh, but that's simply how it is. Not one cultivator who broke the rules met a good end."
After speaking, he turned and headed for the formation's entrance.
A layer of formation light covered the valley entrance. The Guard Senior Brother took out an Identity Token and infused it with a wisp of Spirit Power. A streak of white light shot out from the token and wound around the layer of formation light.
The white light scrawled across the formation light like a child's scribbles.
Before long,
a complex pattern appeared on the formation light, and in the blink of an eye, an opening large enough for a person to pass through appeared.
The Guard Senior Brother entered first, and Cheng Buzheng followed close behind, stepping into the Canyon in his footsteps.
Once inside the Canyon, the first thing Cheng Buzheng saw was an Octagonal Pavilion built into each of the two mountainsides, one on either side. A cultivator sat cross-legged inside each pavilion.
Cheng Buzheng thought to himself:
These must be the Senior Brothers on watch...
The Spirit Pressure they radiated was about the same as the Guard Senior Brother's. They were probably all in the Late Qi Refining Stage.
Then he swept his gaze around. On the distant mountainsides, he saw two more Octagonal Pavilions and, faintly, the figures of people sitting cross-legged inside.
Just as I thought. Senior Brothers are keeping watch in all four directions—east, south, west, and north!
The Canyon was roughly a thousand zhang across. Wooden houses of uniform size stood in orderly rows throughout the valley, with only a few scattered pavilions. Those were probably important places within the Canyon.
The Canyon was quite quiet at the moment. He occasionally spotted two or three cultivators. It seemed most of his fellow disciples had gone down into the mines to dig for Spirit Stones.
Cheng Buzheng looked around as he followed the Guard Senior Brother.
Before long,
the Guard Senior Brother led him to a wooden house unlike the others.
There were only pavilions and wooden houses throughout the Canyon, and every wooden house was identical in shape and size.
The Guard Senior Brother turned to Cheng Buzheng, his expression calm, and said,
"You can use this wooden house. You'll usually be mining in the Mine Caves, so you won't need it. But you get two days off every month when you don't have to go down into the mines, and you can stay here then.
"You can also forgo your monthly breaks for a whole year in exchange for twelve consecutive days off.
"You can leave the valley during your break, but wherever you go, you must return by the designated time.
"Also, you're not allowed to bring your Storage Bag into the Mine Caves. Leave it at the Storage Pavilion. Fellow disciples are stationed there, and no one will steal your belongings. If anything goes missing, you can ask a Martial Uncle to handle it.
"I'll give you the equipment for mining and a copy of the Spirit Stone Mine rules shortly."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Guard Senior Brother turned and walked toward a pavilion in the center of the Canyon.
After hearing all this, Cheng Buzheng made no comment. Even if he had an objection, he'd keep it to himself. Besides, there was nothing valuable in his Storage Bag anyway. The most valuable things in it were three bottles of Bigu Pills.
In less than a quarter of an hour, the Guard Senior Brother returned.
He brushed a hand over the Storage Bag at his waist. A Mining Pick, a basket, and a Jade Slip floated through the air toward Cheng Buzheng.
Cheng Buzheng quickly took the items, then cupped his fists and said,
"Thank you, Senior Brother!"
"All right... there's no need for that. It's just my duty!
"You have your equipment now. You can decide for yourself when you want to go to the Mine Caves.
"The mission period starts counting from the moment you enter the Mine Caves.
"Don't try to be clever. I still have things to do, so I'll be off."
After speaking, the Guard Senior Brother drifted away.
He quietly watched the Guard Senior Brother's retreating figure.
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