The First Mission

Lu Lin quickly dug a pit and buried Qin Hu's corpse, then carefully cleaned up the bloodstains and traces of fighting at the scene. Only after ensuring everything had returned to normal did he slowly leave and continue his search for ore.

Over the next few days, the Blood Wolf Gang's investigation continued, but just as Lu Lin had expected, the focus never fell on him, a newcomer at "Body Tempering first layer."

In outsiders' eyes, a rookie who had only recently broken through could never have killed three veterans whose strength far surpassed his.

In the end, the Blood Wolf Gang directed more of its suspicion toward other gangs with which it had old grudges.

Gang struggles in the mining area were common to begin with. As long as the trouble did not grow too large, the stewards usually could not be bothered to interfere.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Deep in the mine tunnel, Lu Lin was drenched in sweat. His iron pick fell with precision, and after only a few swings, another gentle, milky-white luster was revealed from within the rock layer.

"The eighth piece!"

Lu Lin's breathing could not help growing somewhat rapid.

In just half an hour, he had actually dug out eight Inferior Spirit Stones in succession. This efficiency was simply appalling!

"The soil here is interlaced purple and white, the veins are clear, and the grains of sand are crystal-clear like jade... This is an undiscovered rich ore vein, a 'spirit-stone nest'!"

According to the knowledge from Mining Essentials at the great accomplishment level, Lu Lin quickly made his judgment, and his heart burned hot.

Since it was a "spirit-stone nest," there was absolutely no way it contained only eight pieces.

Without the slightest hesitation, he converted the spirit stones in his hand into one month of bitter cultivation time, then began digging even harder.

Sure enough, in less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the ninth Inferior Spirit Stone came out in response to his strikes.

From high noon until dusk descended, Lu Lin almost never stopped. When the final rock was pried open, he counted his gains: a full eighty-one Inferior Spirit Stones! And this ore nest still did not seem to be exhausted.

But at night, the yin energy in the mine tunnel was extremely heavy. He did not dare risk lingering. After carefully covering this area a little with miscellaneous stones and broken rocks, he swiftly left.

The next day, Lu Lin returned to this place at once. Fortunately, this rich ore deposit had not yet been discovered by anyone else. After more than half a day of continuous digging, he harvested another fifty-one Inferior Spirit Stones.

Over two days, the total was one hundred and thirty-two pieces. Adding what he had obtained over the previous few days, the total number of Inferior Spirit Stones he had dug up reached an astonishing one hundred and forty-four. If all of them were exchanged for cultivation time, that would be a full twelve years.

An unprecedented feeling of wealth surged into his heart. He carefully searched again, and only after confirming that this place had been dug clean did he finally stop.

"First, improve the Breath Concealment Art." With a thought, Lu Lin began pouring cultivation time into the Breath Concealment Art. After consuming a full two years, the Breath Concealment Art finally advanced from [minor accomplishment] to [great accomplishment].

A great-accomplishment concealment technique should be enough to deal with the current situation.

He paused, took out the three Blood Qi Pills he had obtained from Li Zitong, and swallowed them all in one breath. Vast medicinal power instantly dissolved within his body, and he immediately guided an enormous amount of cultivation time into the Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art.

[After one month of bitter cultivation, the medicinal power of the three Blood Qi Pills was fully refined. Your qi and blood surged, and your cultivation advanced rapidly. You have already touched the threshold of Body Tempering fourth layer.]

[In the second month, lacking the assistance of pills, you could only rely on food and the thin energy of heaven and earth to accumulate qi and blood. Your progress slowed greatly.]

[In the third month, progress remained slow...]

[After three consecutive years of bitter cultivation, the qi and blood within your body have accumulated to the limit of Body Tempering third layer, surging like a tide. However, due to the lack of the subsequent method in the Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art for tempering tendons and flesh, your cultivation has fallen into a bottleneck and can no longer advance even an inch.]

Lu Lin had no choice but to stop, his brows tightly furrowed.

The fourth to sixth layers of Body Tempering were the stage of "refining tendons and flesh." One needed to use abundant qi and blood as the foundation, paired with a specific method to temper the tendons and flesh throughout the body, making them tough and strong as steel.

But the Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art in his hands only had the first three layers' method of "nourishing qi and blood."

According to the Demonic Sect's rules, only after one's cultivation reached Body Tempering third layer could one be bestowed the subsequent cultivation method. But it had been less than a month since he had advanced to Body Tempering first layer. If he exposed his Body Tempering third-layer cultivation at this moment, that would not be genius—it would be monstrous talent. It would surely draw the prying eyes of the immortal masters, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

"The cultivation of the Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art can only be delayed for now, but my cultivation absolutely cannot stagnate. There are other martial arts for sale in Blood Baleful City. I wonder if I can cultivate multiple methods at the same time?" Lu Lin sank into deep thought.

The Ten Thousand Scroll Pavilion had complete Body Tempering Realm martial arts. Although they might not be as exquisite as the Demonic Ape Blood Qi Art, at least they could provide a path straight to the tenth layer of Body Tempering.

As long as his realm reached that point, his strength naturally would not be weak.

Fortunately, in a few days, it would be the monthly rest day.

Four days later.

Lu Lin found the Goatee Steward again and applied for rest leave.

"Approved, but wait a moment first. There's a task for you all." The Goatee Steward spoke unhurriedly.

"A task?" Lu Lin felt slightly surprised, but he did not ask further.

About the time it took an incense stick to burn later, including Lu Lin, a total of eleven people had been summoned over.

"The eleven of you are all going down the mountain to Blood Baleful City today, so you might as well handle an errand together," the Goatee Steward instructed. "Tonight at the hour of Hai, go to Lingyuan Pavilion in Blood Baleful City and pick up two packages. Inside are Blood Qi Pills and Tendon Refining Pills. After you get them, go together to our sect's stronghold in the west of the city to rest. There is a group of newly arrived menial workers there. Tomorrow, you will escort them to the Black Iron Ore mining area."

"Tomorrow, your mining tasks will be waived. Consider it an extra reward for this errand. Do you all understand?"

"Yes!" everyone answered in unison.

After receiving this month's reward, of which only sixty taels remained after deductions, plus the twenty-six taels left from last time, making a total of eighty-six taels, the eleven of them went down the mountain together.

Returning to Blood Baleful City, Lu Lin still did not have much silver on him.

As usual, he had handed in four Inferior Spirit Stones this month. This was a necessary disguise. If he found nothing for an entire month, it would instead arouse suspicion.

You could have bad luck and dig up little, but you could not have nothing.

Going an entire month without digging up a single Inferior Spirit Stone was clearly not normal.

Eighty-six taels of silver could not buy any decent martial arts at all.

But Lu Lin had long since made preparations.

The Inferior Spirit Stones he had dug up over the past few days had not been exchanged for cultivation time; instead, he had kept them in his inner space.

If Inferior Spirit Stones could be sold, the price would definitely not be low.

He first wandered around the city for a while, bought a wide-brimmed bamboo hat and cloak to cover his entire body and hide his appearance, then found a rather large storefront selling weapons and materials and walked in.

"Customer, what do you need?" A middle-aged shopkeeper came up to greet him, not at all surprised by Lu Lin's attire.

"Do you buy Inferior Spirit Stones?" Lu Lin asked, lowering his voice.

"Inferior Spirit Stones?" The shopkeeper's eyes lit up. "We do! Of course we do! We'll take as many as you have!"

"As far as I know, the energy in spirit stones is a great tonic to immortal masters, but to martial artists, it's like deadly poison. What do you need them for?" Lu Lin asked, feigning curiosity.

"There are Rogue Cultivators among immortal masters too, without sect or school, short on resources. These Inferior Spirit Stones are naturally supplied to them," the shopkeeper explained, then held up three fingers. "Market price is three hundred taels of fine silver per stone. Fair to children and old folk alike."

Three hundred taels!

The corner of Lu Lin's eye twitched.

The Blood Baleful Demon Sect only gave a ten-tael reward. Fucking bloodsuckers.

"I have ten here," Lu Lin said in a low voice.

"Deal!"

A moment later, carrying three thousand taels in silver notes along with some loose silver, Lu Lin stepped once more into the "Ten Thousand Scroll Pavilion."

Needing no guidance, he went straight to the second floor and, with a clear goal, picked up a martial arts manual... Iron Elephant Body!

This cultivation method was divided into ten levels in total, containing the complete cultivation method from the first to the tenth level of the Body Tempering Realm.

Price: one thousand six hundred taels of fine silver.

The price of a complete Body Tempering martial art was indeed high, far beyond the common goods like the Breath Concealment Art.

He did want to buy a top-tier martial art that could lead directly to the "Innate Blood Aura" realm, but the Ten Thousand Scroll Pavilion clearly did not have any.

Precious cultivation methods of that level were almost all firmly held in the hands of the major immortal cultivation sects.

After paying the silver, Lu Lin found a quiet corner, and with a thought, took Iron Elephant Body into his inner space.

Afterward, he took off the bamboo hat and once again walked toward that familiar market district, intending to try his luck.

Last time, two taels of silver had gotten him three years of bitter cultivation. The taste of picking up a bargain was truly unforgettable.

"Hey there! Little brother! It's you again! Come, come, we just got a fresh batch of goods this time. See if there's anything that catches your eye?"

The sharp-eyed stallholder Thin Monkey recognized Lu Lin at a glance and immediately greeted him with overflowing enthusiasm, as if he had seen an old acquaintance.

Lu Lin walked up to the stall without batting an eyelid, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping over those "ancient objects."

The next instant, his brows lifted slightly.

Deep within his sea of consciousness, the Martial Dao Melting Furnace once again sent out that familiar, faint tremor.

There was another gain!