After flying seven or eight hundred thousand kilometers, Luo Zhiyuan arrived in an area where, supposedly, twelve Radiance Stones had already been found. It was the richest mining area closest to Radiance City.
In the Suonsai Secret Realm, if more than ten Radiance Stones had been found within a radius of fifty thousand kilometers, adventurers who came here would call it a "rich mining area."
Although Radiance Stones were basically formed at random, adventurers had still worked out a few patterns.
For example, Radiance Stones generally formed inside floating mountains or rocky mountains. The combined chance of finding one on or beneath the surface of the land was no more than seven percent.
For another, if three or more Radiance Stones had been found in an area over time, there was a good chance that new ones would form there again.
And one more thing: not a single Radiance Stone had ever been found in the areas richest in cosmic energy!
That last point puzzled Luo Zhiyuan most. Wasn't it because the cosmic energy in secret realms was denser than outside that they gave birth to all kinds of special treasures? So why were Radiance Stones so weird? Why did they stop forming in places rich with energy?
Still, these were only rumors passed around among adventurers. The Xuanyi Universe Kingdom had never acknowledged them.
"Kid Luo, there are thirteen adventurers within a radius of five thousand kilometers. They're all little fellows at Star Level 8 or 9. There's an energy fluctuation in one area; it should be two little fellows fighting. No idea what started it. Want to go take a look? Maybe they're fighting over a Radiance Stone."
"Of course. Tell me which way." Luo Zhiyuan didn't want to miss any clue that might lead to a Radiance Stone, so he flew straight toward the direction Bulieni had indicated.
When he got within ten kilometers, the scanner still hadn't detected a Radiance Stone. It seemed the two weren't fighting over one. Luo Zhiyuan felt a little disappointed.
He slowed down and approached the two adventurers who were fighting. Not far behind them, he spotted a vivid red herb, its color bright and dewy. It was another specialty of the Suonsai Secret Realm, called Fire Pattern Grass.
The two combatants stopped at the same time and watched Luo Zhiyuan warily, seeming to join forces against him.
The most valuable and famous specialty of the Suonsai Secret Realm was, of course, the Radiance Stone. But this was a Universe Secret Realm, and it produced more valuable specialties than just that one. There were over three hundred kinds found nowhere else.
These specialties from the Suonsai Secret Realm varied in value. Radiance Stones were the most valuable, worth one hundred thousand Universe Coins each, but other specialties could fetch several thousand or even tens of thousands of Universe Coins.
Adventurers who came here hoping to get rich didn't just search for Radiance Stones. If they came across other valuable specialties, they would fight to claim those too.
Take the Fire Pattern Grass, for instance. Sold directly to the official purchasing organization in the Suonsai Secret Realm, it was worth ten thousand Universe Coins. Sold to another commercial organization, it might fetch another thousand. That was a tenth of their net worth, so of course they would fight over it.
But Luo Zhiyuan wasn't interested in any specialty other than Radiance Stones. His goal was to find ten of them, not to make a million Universe Coins.
Since this area had nothing he was looking for, Luo Zhiyuan changed direction. After flying five thousand kilometers, he asked Bulieni again if he'd detected anything suspicious.
He searched the entire fifty-thousand-kilometer-wide "rich mining area" bit by bit. Apart from seeing plenty of adventurers, he found no hint of a Radiance Stone.
If there was nothing here, he'd move on to the next area.
Luo Zhiyuan had learned the coordinates of more than a hundred "rich mining areas." He planned to search them all. Maybe he'd run into someone lucky enough to find a Radiance Stone, and he could share in some of that good fortune.
Along the way, Luo Zhiyuan came across a team of around thirty or forty people. They seemed to have formed an alliance and operated as a group, with clearly defined roles. Some kept watch around the perimeter, some used specialized tools to excavate rocky mountains or floating stones, and others operated machines that looked like detectors to pinpoint digging sites.
A Star Level 9 Martial Artist keeping watch around the perimeter spotted Luo Zhiyuan and flew over. He stopped five kilometers away and said, "Hey, brother, exploring alone? It's hard to get anywhere in the Suonsai Secret Realm without teammates and a team backing you up."
"My name is Nizade. I organize this team. Interested in making some money with us?"
"Sure, we haven't found a Radiance Stone yet, but there are plenty of us, so we're bound to find other things. After a few years, our haul won't be much less than what you'd get from finding one Radiance Stone. And you don't have to worry about some unscrupulous people robbing you, so you can feel a lot safer."
Luo Zhiyuan saw that the man didn't seem hostile, so he stopped to chat for a bit. He might even pick up some useful information.
"I really am out here training alone. Hey, since you have so many people, why not spread out and search for Radiance Stones? With a team your size, you could cover a huge area all at once."
Nizade shook his head. "Brother, you just got to Suonsai, didn't you? I can tell you're still dreaming of striking it rich by finding a Radiance Stone. But take my advice: stop dreaming about those elusive Radiance Stones."
"Oh? Why's that?"
"You've probably heard that the Suonsai Secret Realm produces twenty or thirty Radiance Stones every month. Sounds like a lot, right?"
Luo Zhiyuan nodded. That was exactly why he'd dared to agree to a two-month deadline with Bulieni.
"But that's the total output for the entire secret realm. Do you know how many people train in the Suonsai Secret Realm? At least three million, brother!"
"Do the math yourself. What are the odds of the average person finding a Radiance Stone?"
"When we first came here, we really did hope we'd get lucky and find a Radiance Stone, then make a fortune. But after years of searching without finding one, all that ambition wears away."
At this, Nizade laughed and continued, "Do you know how long the longest-serving member among these dozens of brothers has been here?"
He turned and called out to the people behind him, "Buxinmu! How long have you been here?"
A burly man in the back, busy excavating a rocky mountain, laughed and shouted back, "Hell if I remember. Must've been over eight hundred years, I guess? Haven't even seen the damn shadow of a Radiance Stone."
Nizade spread his hands and tilted his head toward Luo Zhiyuan. "See? That unlucky fellow hasn't found one in over eight hundred years, and he's not an exception. Even the shortest-serving among us has been here for thirty years, and none of us has ever found one."
"So, brother, are you still going to waste your time clinging to that dream, or will you join us and make a little money?"
Luo Zhiyuan had a good impression of Nizade. He couldn't agree to stay, but he smiled and said, "Thanks for the kind offer, Nizade! But I can't stay. My teacher's training assignment is to obtain a Radiance Stone, so I have to keep looking."
Nizade said regretfully, "So you're here for training. In that case, there's nothing I can do. But if you really find a Radiance Stone, could you bring it over and let us see it? It'd help make up for all these years of not seeing one."
That wouldn't inconvenience Luo Zhiyuan, and he wasn't worried they'd get greedy when the time came, so he agreed.
Luo Zhiyuan was wearing a suit of dark blue armor, transformed by Xingxing. It was as powerful as a Tier 3 Force Battle Suit. If those guys really had bad intentions, Xingxing could handle them all by herself.
After exchanging communication numbers, Luo Zhiyuan left and flew toward the second "rich mining area."
He kept flying and scanning, but the Radiance Stone scanner never detected anything. Luo Zhiyuan figured he had almost no chance of finding one through sheer luck.
On the way to the second "rich mining area," Bulieni detected two more energy fluctuations. When Luo Zhiyuan hurried over, he found neither was a fight caused by a Radiance Stone, so he passed them by and continued on his way.
Three days later, on the outskirts of the third "rich mining area," Luo Zhiyuan was traveling when he suddenly stopped. A one-meter-long purple feather, drifting from who knew where, landed in front of him. He picked it up.
"Well, well, Kid Luo, you're in luck. This is a Thunder Star Feather, worth twenty thousand Universe Coins. You've struck it rich! Haha!"
Luo Zhiyuan shook his head. This really was like a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse. Could his luck finally be turning?
Sure enough, Bulieni immediately told him that an energy fluctuation had suddenly erupted twelve hundred kilometers away. It was the energy fluctuation of a Universe Level 1.
Without hesitation, Luo Zhiyuan clutched the Thunder Star Feather and headed toward the source of the energy fluctuation.
Beside a large floating stone, a lone adventurer was surrounded by the intense energy fluctuations of a life-level breakthrough. He had his eyes closed, sensing the state of his body.
Then, before the energy fluctuations had even subsided, he threw back his head and let out a booming laugh. "Hahahaha! I, Shi Yunmu, have lived for 3,342 years, and at last my luck has turned!"
Shi Yunmu looked down at the soccer-ball-sized, milky-white, egg-shaped crystal in his right hand. It was the most valuable specialty in the Suonsai Secret Realm: a Radiance Stone.
"Heh heh heh, what a joyous occasion! I can't believe it took me thirteen years, but I finally found a Radiance Stone—and it even let me advance straight to Universe Level! Haha, today really is my lucky day!"
"Who's there?" Shi Yunmu turned to look to the side. A man in dark blue armor was racing toward him, holding a one-meter-long purple feather in his hand.
Shi Yunmu's eyes narrowed with greed. "It's a Thunder Star Feather. Haha, today really is my lucky day. I'm destined to get rich!"
"Hey, you there! Get over here! Hand over that Thunder Star Feather. Since I'm in a good mood today, I'll let you live. Haha!"
Luo Zhiyuan had just arrived. His eyes widened in surprise as he asked, "Is that a Radiance Stone in your hand? Did you just find it?"
"Haha, that's right! You're lucky to get a firsthand look at a Radiance Stone. There, consider your horizons broadened. Now hand over that Thunder Star Feather and get lost!"
Hearing Shi Yunmu, Luo Zhiyuan chuckled. "Heh heh, my lord, you really do have an uncanny sense of foresight! You knew I was lucky. Haha! In that case, I won't hold back!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Luo Zhiyuan used a skill he hadn't used in a long time: the Soul Fusion Technique. A surge of Spiritual Force pulled Shi Yunmu's soul straight into Luo Zhiyuan's soul space.
After the Divine Illusion Bead doubled Luo Zhiyuan's Universe Level 8 consciousness, its strength rose to Universe Level 9. It immediately began dissolving Shi Yunmu's soul consciousness.
Outside, Shi Yunmu's body went limp and collapsed to the ground. The Radiance Stone in his hand flew over, drawn by Luo Zhiyuan's Spiritual Force.
As he picked through Shi Yunmu's memories, Luo Zhiyuan examined the milky-white, egg-shaped crystal ball. It wasn't very heavy, but the more he looked at the Radiance Stone, the more pleasant it seemed. Even the many short, blunt spikes on its surface didn't feel prickly to the touch. Instead, they felt like a massage. Haha~
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