Rest and Recuperation

Spirit Stone Mine, Inside the Secret Chamber.

At this moment, Cheng Buzheng returned to the secret chamber in a disheveled state. His expression was somewhat grim, with a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, and his robes were dotted with bloodstains.

This time, he almost... Even recalling it now, he felt a sense of dread!

Fortunately, the tempering of his state of mind over the past year prevented him from panicking in the face of danger, allowing him to respond calmly.

Otherwise.

His ashes would have been scattered by now, which showed that tempering his state of mind was indeed necessary.

"I was careless this time. Emotion got the better of reason, and greed took hold, nearly trapping me...

Fortunately, they didn't know my trump cards. But next time, if I fall into their trap, I probably won't be able to escape."

Cheng Buzheng reflected inwardly, knowing that he had become accustomed to smooth sailing over the past year and was no longer as cautious as before.

This time, if he had carefully scanned the stone cave with his Divine Sense, he would definitely have found something unusual. But he only did a cursory scan and stopped there.

At the same time, it also showed that his spells were not comprehensive enough, lacking exploration-type spells.

This led to his current passive situation, where he was almost wiped out.

He clearly knew that there might be great danger there, but he was still reluctant to give up that piece of fat meat and went to take the risk. If it were something indispensable for his Dao path, taking the risk would be understandable.

For Spirit Stone Raw Ore, as long as he followed his subsequent plan, he would not lack Spirit Stones at all. Why would he take unnecessary risks now to reap benefits?

Also, he was now too reliant on the Earth Escape Technique, always thinking that he could retreat safely under any circumstances. However, the cultivation world had many Treasures, and there were always ways to counter him.

It was just that this time he was lucky; they were all at the Qi Refining Mid-stage and couldn't get their hands on Treasures that could counter him. But they still bought Earth Escape Talismans, which showed that the Earth Escape Technique was not as invincible as he thought.

He was too self-righteous now, and his mindset had to change.

Otherwise.

Sooner or later, he would die from his own self-righteousness.

This encounter made him realize profoundly.

"In the dangerous cultivation world, only by being 'steady,' constantly pushing oneself, and constantly knowing oneself, can one avoid being eliminated by this dangerous cultivation and have hope of achieving the Great Cause of Longevity!"

Otherwise, his ashes would be scattered sooner or later.

Cheng Buzheng sat cross-legged in the secret chamber, examining his injuries while reflecting.

The impact on his internal organs caused minor ruptures, which were not serious and only required a few days of recuperation.

However, the damage to his Meridians was a significant problem. It would take at least a month to recuperate. In an environment with such abundant cultivation resources, having to pause for a month to heal was a huge loss.

He pondered in his heart.

"I must change my secret chamber. They know I know the Earth Escape Technique and will surely think of my Cave Mansion, located underground.

My current secret chamber is too close to the surface. It needs to be below thirty zhang underground, where the Divine Sense of a Qi Refining Mid-stage cultivator will be greatly restricted and unable to search freely.

Although buying an Earth Escape Talisman costs two Spirit Stones and has a time limit, they definitely won't waste time with me.

But it's better to be cautious. In all things, I must prepare for the worst. Changing the secret chamber is essential.

First, I need to restore my Magic Power to its Peak State. My Magic Power is almost depleted; the consumption today has been too great!"

With this thought.

Cheng Buzheng closed his eyes slightly and began to circulate the Starry Sky Technique, following the Small Circulation path through his Meridians.

Instantly.

Visible wisps of spirit energy rapidly gathered around him, forming a thin Spirit Energy Layer. With each Small Circulation, a large amount of spirit energy was absorbed into his body.

As the Small Circulation cycled repeatedly, Cheng Buzheng's Magic Power rapidly recovered.

Half an hour later.

Cheng Buzheng opened his eyes, scanned the secret chamber, then stood up. With a slight tremor of his Magic Power, the bloodstains on his robes instantly vanished.

Then, with a wave of his sleeve, he sent the remaining Spirit Stone Raw Ore into his Back Basket. He shouldered the basket, holding the Mining Pick in his hand.

With a thought.

A yellow spirit light flashed, and in the blink of an eye, he disappeared from his original spot.

Within the rock layer of the Spirit Stone Mine, a yellow spirit light rapidly burrowed underground. The deeper he went, the greater the pressure from the earth, and the Magic Power Consumption increased sharply.

Not long after.

A yellow spirit light appeared forty zhang underground.

At this point, Cheng Buzheng felt the Magic Power Consumption was a bit high, so he stopped and pondered.

"A depth of forty zhang should be safe enough!"

Then, he flipped his right hand, and the Purple Crystal Bracelet spun above his right hand. He raised his right hand.

The Purple Crystal Bracelet instantly grew to one zhang in size.

Then, the Purple Crystal Bracelet squeezed back and forth.

A moment later.

A secret chamber about one zhang in size was formed.

For the next month.

Cheng Buzheng stayed peacefully inside the secret chamber, recovering from his injuries. He didn't go out causing trouble again, acting like a quiet, handsome man, refined and easygoing.

He was afraid of being beaten to death if he went out while injured.

After all, "stability" had always been the guiding principle of his cultivation.

During this period, the spirit stone mine cave was exceptionally lively.

The miners, usually quiet and diligently working, weren't digging as hard as before. After all, such a huge scandal was a rare sight.

"Do you know about the bounty offered by the eight mine overlords? ...A bounty for a cultivator with a small disc-like magic tool?"

"Don't know! Who cares! As long as it's valuable!"

"Exactly. Then we'll have enough time to cultivate. The share for the White Cloud Sect will also be provided by them, and each month we'll have plenty of spirit stone raw ore for cultivation."

In the eight branch mine tunnels, miners who were familiar with each other chatted in small groups, each wishing they had discovered the cultivator being sought.

In a branching tunnel.

"Brother Zhang, do you have any thoughts on this bounty?"

A burly man, exuding the spirit pressure of the third level of Qi Refining, turned to the black-clothed youth beside him and said.

"No... According to the information I've gathered, even the eight mid-stage Qi Refining mine overseers couldn't capture that person when they ambushed him together.

This shows that the person is not simple.

Although the mine overseers didn't see the cultivator's appearance, the magic tool was revealed.

That magic tool is clearly not ordinary at first glance. Although I am also at the third level of Qi Refining, I am not being self-deprecating, but I am definitely not that person's opponent.

I don't have the ability to be ambushed by eight mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators and still retreat safely!

I'd rather honestly remain a small mine overseer!"

"What... Tieniu, you still have ideas?"

The black-clothed youth turned to the burly middle-aged man and said teasingly.

The burly youth was taken aback. He hadn't expected the other party to be so direct.

"I don't have any ideas. Those who do... are likely to get the reward but lose their lives!

The small disc-like magic tool drawn in the bounty is clearly a weapon for killing enemies. I don't want to go looking for death!"

The burly man then shook his head, uninterested, and stopped speaking.

The black-clothed youth glanced at the burly man and also stopped talking. As if by mutual understanding, they no longer discussed the matter.

PS: Placing my bowl, politely asking for three (requesting collection, recommendations, and votes)