Blue Silver Vein

After getting up from Huo Ying, Sect Leader Kang Da walked straight to a deserted cliff outside Double Brightness Trade Market. There, a gaunt old man in Daoist robes was perched, riding an Iron Feather Eagle with a wingspan of three zhang.

Kang Dabao had seen both the man and the bird. The old man was a well-known beast tamer in Pingrong County, and he remembered that the old man should have a few sworn brothers who were quite capable.

This group of people had a good reputation in the vicinity of Pingrong County. They mostly went to the Cold Crow Mountain Range together to hunt demons and earn supplies. They rarely harmed their fellow practitioners in the county and could be considered a rare kind family.

This Iron Feather Eagle is a spirit bird that has been passed down in the Luo family of Blackwood Castle for nearly a hundred years. Its rank is not high, only a mid-grade first rank.

It was only heard that the successive heads of the Luo Household had a great fondness for this giant eagle that could only display its power and prestige, but now it had fallen into the hands of an outsider, an old man in Daoist robes.

"It seems that our county magistrate's days are getting even more difficult." Kang Dabao shook his head. Of course, he only sighed and that was it; he couldn't possibly care about Luo Heng at all.

The old man in Daoist robes was waiting here so early, obviously sent by Tie Xishan to pick up Kang Dabao.

If you think about it, when they just left the Pingrong County, I should still be on the bed, happily whipping Deacon Huo. The night wind is blowing, it must be really tiring.

Having a spirit bird like the Iron Feather Eagle for transportation is much better than using an old donkey. Although it cannot compare to the Mystic Falcon used in the previous battle against the Five Aspects Sect, it is still quite fast.

The old man in Daoist robes struck up a conversation with Sect Leader Kang Da very attentively on the road, adopting a very humble posture, making it impossible to tell that he was the new registrar of Pingrong County who was about to take over the position of Tie Xishan.

The fact that the Pingrong Tie Household didn't put one of their own in power this time, but instead chose this Rogue Cultivator to succeed them and protect their interests, is probably quite significant.

However, this had little to do with Kang Dabao, and given his personality, he was too lazy to guess. The old man in Daoist robes had cultivated for decades and had been to many places, even outside the Daoist community. Such experiences were rare among his fellow practitioners, and he was quite knowledgeable. Sect Leader Kang Da chatted with him all the way, which broadened his understanding considerably.

The old man in Daoist robes was naturally happy to cultivate a good relationship with Sect Leader Kang Da.

According to Tie Xishan's previous instructions, after he takes office as the Tanggu County, the Pingrong Tie Household, should follow Commander Tie's instructions and devote a large part of their energy to the much wealthier Tanggu County.

He couldn't even take care of his impoverished hometown in Pingrong County, so he chose an old man in Daoist robes as a front.

Pingrong Tie Household also knew that with the old man in Daoist robes' limited skills and resources, he couldn't possibly compete with Sect Leader Kang Da. They only hoped that the old man could protect their family's assets as much as possible, and they didn't think about anything else.

The Iron Feather Eagle flew much faster than Sect Leader Kang Da's spirit boat, and the two quickly arrived at the Pingrong County.

When passing through the county town, Kang Dabao could clearly see that the two resident county Tang County still hadn't put much effort into improving people's livelihoods.

The ordinary people in the county were still disheveled and unkempt, their eyes lacking any sparkle. Tragic scenes of starving corpses and children being sold off were frequently witnessed on the roads.

It is evident that although Pingrong County was a proper city designated by the Feng Shui of the Immortal Dynasty, it was still far less vibrant than Chongming City, a wild city privately built by a sect.

That makes sense. After all, the main city recorded on the map of the Immortal Dynasty is theoretically the only place where the Immortal Dynasty can select its immortal talents. If other sects or Lineage try to get involved, they will be severely punished according to the laws of the early years of this dynasty.

Before the arrival of the Earl of Nan'an, the immortal seedlings within the main city of Cloud Horn Prefecture were tacitly divided equally among the various county powers. At that time, naturally some people would have some designs on them. But now that the prefectural court has arrived, they are quick to escalate the situation and impose harsh punishments.

People gradually stopped doing things like selecting the best seedlings in Zhengcheng, lest they give others a handle to use against them.

Over the years, many of the forces that were destroyed by the state court for being close to the Liangyi Two Instruments Sect were actually victims of these trivial matters, which gave the state court a pretext to wipe out their families.

In this way, naturally few people will care about public property; wouldn't it be better to focus on improving their own privately built towns and villages first?

Sect Leader Kang Da is currently enjoying great prestige. The guards at the gate, trained by Tie Xishan, are very observant. Upon seeing him arrive, they quickly bowed and came forward to lead the way.

The number of county officials in the hall is still incomplete. After Sun Bingdou's death, the candidate recommended by the Grass Witch Cult to take over was not approved by Huo Bing, and the matter is still on hold.

Kang Dabao guessed that Governor Huo was still trying to control the Grass Witch Cult in order to get more benefits, but the latter was probably not willing to make offerings to Huo Bing, this old Foundation Establishment cultivator.

His sect leader, Chen Ye, is so eager to reach the Foundation Establishment that he's practically driven mad. He can't even bear to part with a single Spirit Stone; he's probably waiting until Huo Bing dies of old age before even considering it.

Only Luo Heng was dressed in official robes in the hall, while Tie Xishan was dressed as a Daoist priest.

Looking at the triumphant Sect Leader Kang Da, Tie Xishan immediately recalled the appearance of Widow Ma and Lady Chong from yesterday, and a hint of envy appeared on his face.

He thought to himself, "To have two women on each side, what a blessing!"

Tanggu County's market never had the chance to be upgraded to a formal market. Tie Xishan benefited a lot, but it was far less glamorous than Kang Dabao's, at least no female cultivators of that caliber came to throw themselves at it.

"Brother, you've worked hard." Tie Xishan put aside his distracting thoughts and was the first to come over to exchange pleasantries, his smile carrying a hint of warmth.

"It's been a long time. Fellow Daoist, you've become even more impressive." Luo Heng forced a smile, which served as a greeting.

He has tried every means possible, but he still can't escape the control of Tie Xishan, whose backing is even stronger.

The Huo Household behind him has been slow to respond, which means they intend to discard him as a son-in-law. As a result, Luo Heng has recently lost heart and no longer harbors any thoughts of competing with Tie Xishan for power and profit.

Unexpectedly, this made his life much easier, and Tie Xishan stopped making things difficult for him, allowing him to indulge in prostitution and banquets as he pleased.

This meant that the servants in the county government office no longer had to worry about their backsides while on duty.

"My two virtuous brothers, listen up. Here is an imperial edict that just arrived this morning, sent from the governor's office. It says..." Just from this, it's clear that Luo Heng's status has indeed risen considerably, after all, even Tie Xishan has agreed to let him read the silk scroll.

"Where are we going to conquer this time?" Luo Heng was interrupted by Kang Dabao with a stern face halfway through his sentence.

When Tie Xishan came yesterday, he didn't mention this at all! Could it be that they're really going to send troops to Pu Prefecture to fight the Three Incense Cult?! Have they named the Daoist priest again? They've only been back for a few days; you can't treat a mule like this.

Tie Xishan had already read the silk scroll and smiled to reassure Sect Leader Kang Da: "Brother, don't worry, it's just about the reopening of the Spirit Stone mine in Tanggu County. Governor Huo just wants us to send some teachers again."

Sect Leader Kang Da, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Not long ago, he had heard that Huo Bing had gone to the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an to complain, and the latter, tired of hearing it, transferred the ownership of the Spirit Stone mine in Tanggu County from the state court to the governor's office.

The Huo Household has just reclaimed this source of wealth, and they're already in such a hurry to recruit teachers from various counties?

How many lives would it take to fill that tiny Spirit Stone mine?

What on earth happened to the Huo Household recently that they're so shameless as to be stealing Spirit Stone everywhere?

This puzzled Sect Leader Kang Da, but he had already led a team there once, so it shouldn't be his turn yet.

Although the Spirit Stone mine had been thoroughly True Cultivator by the three Foundation Establishment, Tie Liuyun, Gun Shide, and Buse, along with the state court's elite troops, eliminating Demon Beast from it.

The Sect Leader Kang Da felt nauseous just thinking about the dense swarms of rats. The Double Brightness Trade Market and the Chongming Sect were both dealing with a lot of things, so they certainly wouldn't take on such a heartless job.

You should know that Pingrong County alone has lost four thousand scholars because of the mining of Spirit Stone. The cave is truly littered with bones, and every Spirit Stone that has been chiseled out is imbued with blood.

The hard work that Sect Leader Kang Da didn't want to do, Chief Clerk Tie wouldn't be interested in either, so in the end, Magistrate Luo took over the job.

Huo Bing was a real miser; the jobs assigned by the governor's office were all these tiring and low-paying tasks, which were more suited to his son-in-law.

This minor matter was dropped. Tie Xishan exchanged a glance with Sect Leader Kang Da, and Luo Heng, the county magistrate, left the main hall that was rightfully his.

"I will soon be heading to Tanggu County to take up my post. There are still some matters at home that I need your help, brother!" Ignoring the group of minor officials around him, Tie Xishan took out a Talisman Artifact with a faint spiritual light and unfolded it to show Kang Dabao.

Kang Dabao looked closely and was slightly surprised. He wondered when the Tie Household had acquired so many businesses in Pingrong County.

The entire territory of the Green Bamboo Forest of the Green Bamboo Gang, 30% of the shares of the Fish Mountain Market of the Fellowship, and half of the ownership of the Insect Valley Yangshan of the Grass Witch Cult.

Apart from the fact that the Tie Household did not interfere with the forces of Hemu Dao and Chongming Sect, all the other prominent forces in Pingrong County were actually bitten hard by the Tie Household.

With only a few dozen Qi Refinement cultivators from the Pingrong Tie Household, they certainly didn't have such a large appetite. It seems that Tie Liuyun's appetite isn't much better than Huo Bing's.

That's true, there's nothing new under the sun, even a crow perched on a black pig.

Tie Xishan talked to Kang Dabao about this map for quite a while, going into great detail and explaining everything in detail.

In contrast, a stack of official documents accumulated in Pingrong County was casually handed over by Tie Xishan to Sect Leader Kang Da, who simply said, "Please take a look when you have time, my worthy brother."

That makes sense. As the saying goes, public affairs are never as important as personal affairs.

Having traveled for half a day to reach Pingrong County, Kang Dabao was not in a hurry to return to his clan. He politely declined Tie Xishan's invitation to a banquet, as he wanted to return to Double Brightness Trade Market as soon as possible, as he still had many official duties to attend to.

Unexpectedly, while passing by a brothel under the banner of the Mandarin Duck Hall, I heard a few lines of a tune that I quite liked, so I decided to discreetly go inside and cultivate my mind.

After a few songs, Sect Leader Kang Da smiled. Although the female musician on stage was not as beautiful as Huo Ying, she sang better than Huo Ying last night, with a unique charm.

"This little tune is really white."

"Who says otherwise?" Kang Dabao blurted out instinctively, then suddenly jumped in fright. He looked up from his thighs and saw a man sitting in front of him, with a bushy beard and black armor, who looked familiar.

"Greetings, Commander Tie." Kang Dabao was taken aback and quickly stood up to pay his respects.

"Xi Shan said that County Magistrate Kang had important business and could not attend the banquet at the mansion. So he came here to see these sluts." Tie Liuyun was not as cold as when he first met Kang Dabao and was carrying a severed head.

At this moment, not only was his tone humorous, but he also acted without restraint, picking up the fruit from Kang Dabao's table and chewing it heartily.

"Hehe, what are your orders Commander Tie?" Kang Dabao chuckled twice, cursing Tie Xishan in his heart, "You damned bastard, you should have told me earlier that this person was home. Only a fool would refuse to go and make excuses."

"Why don't you go to Tanggu County too?" Tie Liuyun was quite direct, wiping the juices from his bushy beard with a warm towel from the table.

"This official has only recently returned from that Spirit Stone mine, and his injuries haven't fully healed yet. He's almost bled dry for the Immortal Dynasty. Besides, this isn't the Demon Correction Office's business, Commander Tie..." Kang Dabao immediately looked troubled. This man was really treating him like a mule.

With ample resources and teachers to guide him, only a fool would want to risk his life in Sect Leader Kang Da Tanggu County.

"Don't worry, I'm not asking you to lead laborers to mine. I know you've already done it once and don't want to do that kind of hard work again." Tie Liuyun smiled, making his fierce face even uglier.

"Isn't the Tanggu Kuai Household related to your family by marriage? Didn't you give Dantong Cliff to their family?!" Tie Liuyun suddenly asked.

"My elders are indeed related to the Kuai Household." Why did the topic suddenly shift to the Kuai Household? Kang Dabao was puzzled, but this news couldn't be kept from those who were interested. In a few days, the Sect Leader Kang Da was planning to help Pei Yi propose marriage to the Kuai Household, so he answered truthfully.

"That's right!" Tie Liuyun slammed his hand on the table excitedly. "His family is very lucky. They recently found a blue silver vein in Tanggu County. It's only right that you in-laws should get rich along with them!"

Kang Dabao was also surprised after hearing this, and felt that the Kuai Household was very lucky.

Unlike extremely cheap spirit ores like black iron, blue silver is considered a medium-grade spirit ore among First Tier spirit ores.

If the deposit is large enough, it might even contain Second Tier blue silver crystals, which would be even more valuable. Those are top-quality spiritual materials that many False Core and Golden Core cultivators use when refining artifacts, and ordinary Foundation Establishment forces wouldn't even dare to dream of getting their hands on them.

But these kinds of mineral deposits are beyond the reach of even the current Chongming Sect, let alone the Kuai Household. How could they possibly make a fortune from them?

Furthermore, since the Kuai Household has discovered the blue silver vein, why hasn't Kuai En written to me?

Well, it turns out they're just all talk. When they need Sect Leader Kang Da, they call him "Uncle" nonstop, but when it's time to eat meat, they forget about our Kang Dabao.

Is his family going to switch allegiances again? Well, if that's the case, can I ask Junior Brother Pei to call off the engagement?

Upon seeing that Sect Leader Kang Da did not react, Tie Liuyun frowned, thinking to himself, "How can this guy be so out of touch?! Half a day has passed, and he still doesn't know the news?!"

After cursing inwardly, Tie Liuyun continued, "I heard that your Shi Household wants to seize this mine by force. It's outrageous! Aren't you going to help them?"

Kang Dabao's eyes darted around as he listened. Oh, so that's what he was planning.

Given their kinship by marriage and connection to Dantong Cliff, it was perfectly reasonable for them to help the Kuai Household seize the mine.

Tie Liuyun was the one who recommended them, so it was only natural that he was brought in as a backer. Then, the commander of the Demon Correction Office of White Sand County could legitimately compete with the Huo Household for spirit mines on Huo Household territory.

"Pah! Officials from Jingnan Prefecture, how dare they extend their reach so far into Cloud Horn Prefecture? Shameless!" Kang Dabao cursed inwardly.

The Huo Household is, after all, a powerful clan that Foundation Establishment, and Huo Bing is the local leader whom the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an relies on. Why would he bother provoking them?

"Commander Tie, now Governor Huo is a close confidant of the Earl."

"That old bastard Huo Bing won't live another ten years! A decrepit old fool, does he even deserve to be the governor's confidant?!" Tie Liuyun interrupted Kang Dabao, glancing at him before continuing, "Have you thought this through? I've only cultivated for a hundred years. But even among those in the entire Shannan Circuit Foundation Establishment, I might not be afraid of anyone!"

"Fei Nanying?"

"He's not from Shannan Circuit, so he doesn't count."

"Then what about my Uncle-Master in Black Shoes?"

"He's only at the Foundation Establishment Third Layer, so he's not really afraid."

Upon hearing this, Kang Dabao casually uttered an "Oh," and fell silent. Instead, he calmly sipped his tea, feeling quite pleased with himself. "So this is what it feels like to have powerful connections!"

"If we succeed, I'll give you ten percent." Tie Liuyun's expression shifted between anger and sarcasm as he offered his terms.

"Commander Tie, Kang Dabao is nothing but a lucky opportunist; he really doesn't have the guts to make things difficult for the Huo Household," Kang Dabao replied, half-jokingly.

"Thirty percent." Tie Liuyun said through gritted teeth after a long silence.

"The Chongming Sect is in a state of decline and truly lacks strength." Kang Dabao shook his head again.

"Fifty percent!" Tie Liuyun slammed his hand on the table, his eyes red, startling the idle people listening to the music around him.

"... I still need to ask my elders." Kang Dabao really didn't expect that even the smallest blue silver mine would yield three or four thousand Spirit Stone a year, right? It could really Chongming Sect's income significantly.

Tie Liuyun is really willing to part with it? It seems he's probably not after this blue silver mine, but rather he's here to humiliate Huo Bing.

"Go and ask. I'll wait for your reply in Pingrong County." Tie Liuyun glared at Kang Dabao impatiently and chased the latter out of the brothel.

After Sect Leader Kang Da flew back to the Chongming Sect in his spirit boat, he learned that he had wronged Kuai En. It turned out that Kuai En had sent a letter about the blue silver mine shortly after he left Double Brightness Trade Market.

However, unlike what Commander Tie said, Kuai En's letter did not mention anything about the Huo Household abusing their power; they only said that they wanted to buy the mine at a discounted price.

That's normal. After all, with the Kuai Household's limited strength, they really can't protect the good stuff on their own territory. If someone is willing to pay money and can exchange it for Spirit Stone peacefully, even if it's a small amount, it's still a good thing.

If you calculate the timeline, Commander Tie learned that the Huo Household wanted to buy the Kuai Household's blue silver mine at most half a day later than the parties involved in the two families.

So it's not that Kuai En's letter came too late, but rather that Commander Tie's information network was simply too efficient.

Kang Dabao never needed to announce his arrival to meet with the Daoist Black Shoes; it was his privilege. The latter had already emerged from seclusion and was instructing Jiang Qing on Swordsmanship.

"Just ask him for 60%, he'll give it to you." The Daoist Black Shoes said casually, as if he were talking about going to the market. "If he won't give it to you, then we'll just rob him ourselves."

Jiang Qing nodded in agreement. The way the Daoist Black Shoes acted was indeed very much in line with the style of the current number one sword immortal of the Chongming Sect.

"Uncle-Master, what about the Huo Household..." Kang Dabao cautiously reminded him, after all, Huo Bing was a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator; surely they wouldn't be so dismissive?

"Huo Bing is too old, he doesn't have many years left. None of the Huo Household family members are capable, so there's no need to fear him." The Daoist Black Shoes continued, "You are the Fei Household's son-in-law, just make a good impression, the Huo Household won't dare hold a grudge."

"Of the 60%, the Fei Household takes 10%, Chongming Sect takes 10%, and I take 40%. The Fei Household has married off several daughters from their minor clans recently, and their dowries have been quite substantial. It's rare to see some money coming in, and although it's not much, they'll be happy."

"Thank you, Uncle-Master."

The next day, Sect Leader Kang Da arrived in Pingrong County to report back. As Daoist Black Shoes had predicted, Tie Liuyun readily agreed to the 40/60 deal.

The next day, when Kang Dabao rushed to the Kuai Household with Jiang Qing, Pei Yi, and Yuan Jin, claiming he wanted to help Kuai Household, Kuai En, the head of the Kuai Household, was actually completely bewildered.

"Who sent you here?!" From the day the blue silver vein was discovered, Kuai En knew that the Kuai Household, with its small number of members, couldn't hold onto this wealth.

So they contacted the local powerful Huo Household early on, hoping to offer a good price to sell it to them.

Telling Kang Dabao about this was just a normal reporting process; it didn't mean that Chongming Sect needed to come and support them.

The Huo Household offered two thousand Spirit Stone, which might not even equal half a year's profit from the Blue Silver Mine, but for Kuai En, it was a huge sum of money.

Even if the three members of their family didn't eat or drink, it would take them at least ten or twenty years to save up this many Spirit Stones, so they were already quite satisfied.

However, Kuai En has no choice but to accept it now. If Commander Tie says that the Kuai Household has been bullied by the Huo Household, then they have been bullied.

The Huo Household had come excitedly to take over the mine, were sent back by Kang Dabao, and the leader was furious on the spot.

Good, a mere Kuai Household dares to go back on their word! So what if they went through all that trouble to get Tie Liuyun to back them up? My ancestor is a prefect! He can speak for himself even in front of the Earl.

The conflict between the two families escalated to a fever pitch starting the following day.

First, the shops run by the Kuai Household in Tanggu County were vandalized; then, nearly a hundred able-bodied members of the Kuai Household's direct line were killed by the Huo Household; and then, the Kuai Household, along with their forces, dug up the Huo Household's ancestral graves...

Unable to bear it any longer, Kuai En, his eyes red, stared at the Chongming Sect members seated in the hall. He barely managed to utter a curse, and continued to plead in a pitiful voice, "Uncle! Sect Leader Kang! County Magistrate Kang! Please come up with a plan!"

Hearing this, Kang Dabao blushed slightly. "Ahem, I'll talk to the head of the Huo Household again tomorrow."

The conversation between the two junior Qi Refinement was utterly insignificant.

The negotiations between Kang Dabao and the head of the Huo Household began the day after the Kuai Household's ancestral graves were dug up. After two days of discussions, apart from exchanging a few mild swear words, they had not achieved any real results.

In the end, they still had to ask Huo Bing and Tie Liuyun, two Foundation Establishment True Cultivator, to make a decision.

Sect Leader Kang Da, was unaware of what the two discussed. Tie Liuyun only sent a message through Tie Xishan: a three-match duel would be held in half a month, with the winner taking all the spoils!

Thanks to Brother Niu Tou Xiao De for the 500 coins, and thanks to Brother Yao Yuan De 1874 for the 100 coins.

Thank you to Brother Wuhuang Lei for the Extended Net Moon.

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