New "Miner"
In the Eternal Night City of Yao Zhou, which is separated from Spirit Prefecture by a vast ocean, Jimo Hong slowly swallowed a sip of spirit wine.
His eyelids twitched suddenly, and a sense of panic arose in his heart.
The person opposite him immediately noticed his odd behavior and asked with a smile, "Second Master, why are you acting like this? Is the spirit wine here not good?"
Jimo Hong quickly replied, "You flatter me. Everyone in the entire Immortal Spirit Realm knows that your spirit wine is the best. Even the Jimo Household's All Under Heaven Pavilion can't find wine that tastes better than yours."
Jimo Hong's attitude of belittling his own family while flattering others pleased the man opposite him greatly.
"Second Master, you flatter me too much. Everyone knows that your Jimo Household is like local tyrants in the Immortal Spirit Realm! I suppose that once you become the head of the family, these spirit wines will no longer be fit for your purse."
Although the other party addressed him as "Second Master" repeatedly, there was not a trace of respect for Jimo Hong in his expression; he looked at him more like he was looking at a dog.
Upon hearing this, Jimo Hong immediately bowed his head tremblingly. "Even if I were to become the head of the family, it would all be thanks to your help. If I truly become the head of the family in the future, I assure you that all of the Jimo Household's businesses will only sell your spirit wine!"
Although this promise may not sound like much, a careful calculation of the various industries owned by the Jimo Household in the three states will reveal just how much benefit it will bring them.
As expected, upon hearing Jimo Hong's promise, the man's expression instantly brightened even more. "Then I'll thank you in advance, Second Master. Your Jimo Household is truly a treasure; they've helped me earn quite a few Spirit Stone these past few years!"
Hearing the man's pointed words, Jimo Hong lowered his head again, so respectful and submissive, as if he were born inferior.
The group had basically finalized the matter of the Spirit Stone mine, and seeing this, Sang Ying took the opportunity to bring up Jimo Hong.
Upon hearing Sang Ying's suspicions, Jimo Qing's face darkened, and he coldly snorted, "I knew he wasn't exactly well-behaved, yet Grandfather insisted on keeping him in the Jimo Household to help my parents."
Jimo Qing had long since learned the other party's honeyed words and two-faced nature. But his grandfather and several elders in the family were fooled by that man's honest face.
"Sigh, we can't entirely blame them; after all, Uncle Jiu is indeed a good person," the head of the Jimo Household sighed helplessly.
The "Ninth Uncle" he mentioned was Jimo Hong's father, who died early in order to save the former head of the family.
Unable to bear the somber atmosphere in the room, Sang Ying changed the subject, asking, "So what should we do now? The Tuyao Flower is one of their bargaining chips, and so many cultivators and mortals are in their hands. If we're not careful, the entire Rizhao City could be in danger."
This is not the situation Sang Ying wanted to see.
Upon hearing Sang Ying's words, the head of the Jimo Household immediately snapped out of his reverie. He took out a map of the entire Rizhao City and circled Myriad Phenomena Mountain.
"The formation of the Tuyao Flower was probably around the same time those people started mining the Spirit Stone mine. That was only two or three years ago. In such a short time, and given that they didn't dare send too many people into Rizhao City, it's estimated that the entire Spirit Stone mine hasn't been mined much at all."
Sang Ying nodded.
The head of the Jimo Household continued, "They started abducting cultivators and mortals, probably because the mining was too slow, so they had no choice but to target the people in the city. The fact that they're rushing to speed things up probably means they're preparing to make their move."
The other party could have quietly mined the entire spirit mine under Jimo Hong's cover. But now they have to take the risk of capturing people, the only possibility being that they can't wait any longer.
They are preparing to push Jimo Hong to the top!
"The most urgent task now is to find a way to deal with the Tuyao Flower, and then we must quietly search for the entrance to the Spirit Stone mine and rescue the people as soon as possible," said the head of the Jimo Household.
If they are not rescued soon, the cultivators will be alright, since they are cultivators and their bodies are stronger, but the mortals probably won't be able to hold on for long.
"Leave the matter of the Tuyao Flower to me!" Fu Yinqiu had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up. "Although I don't have any other skills, I happen to have many friends. I happen to know a few Gu cultivators, the kind who raise insects."
Sang Ying was stunned. She had completely forgotten that there were such things as Gu cultivators in this world! The other party was a worm breeder who fed his worms food infused with Spiritual Qi every day.
Even the most powerful Tuyao Flower is still afraid of insects.
If this patch of Tuyao Flower with pests, then their little scheme won't work!
Furthermore, a Gu cultivator who can be friends with Fu Yinqiu is probably not a simple character. It shouldn't be difficult for them to deal with that Tuyao Flower without alerting the enemy.
"That's good, then the first problem is solved." The head of the Jimo Household gently grasped his dao companion's hand, once again marveling at his good judgment in choosing such a wonderful wife.
In front of Jimo Qing and Sang Ying, Fu Yinqiu couldn't be too intimate with her husband, and even gave him a reproachful look.
"About the spirit mine..." Jimo Qing frowned; this matter was still somewhat troublesome.
Sang Ying suddenly spoke up, "Why don't I pretend to be Rogue Cultivator and see if I can sneak in?"
The people inside the room were taken aback, and all three pairs of eyes turned to Sang Ying.
Jimo Qing had already begun to consider the feasibility of this matter, but the head of the family and his wife were full of disapproval.
"How can this be?!" The patriarch shook his head.
"Such a dangerous task should be left to A-Qing!" the lady said bluntly.
Fu Yinqiu's words were immediately agreed upon by the family head. The two pulled Sang Ying to their side and tried to persuade her to put herself in danger.
Jimo Qing sat silently to the side, already contemplating the date for his next runaway.
"I know you're concerned about me and worried I might be in danger. But I've already thought this through. I'm a new face, and I'm not from the Immortal Spirit Realm, so my background perfectly fits their criteria for kidnapping me."
"Secondly, I possess a magical Law Treasure that can conceal my cultivation level, so they certainly won't discover it. Am I, a sword cultivator in the Golden Core Late Stage, really incapable of even protecting myself?"
Putting everything else aside, Sang Ying was confident that she could protect herself without any problems, after all, she had two dragons coiled around her!
Although the head of the family and his wife did not want to involve Sang Ying, they knew that Sang Ying was indeed a suitable candidate, and they would probably be even more uneasy about replacing her with someone else.
As for Jimo Qing, just by looking at his fussy nature, you can tell he's not suited for this mission.
So, after Sang Ying's repeated persuasion, the head of the household and his wife finally agreed to let her give it a try.
"If this plan fails, then you are not allowed to interfere anymore!" Fu Yinqiu said seriously.
This was originally a matter for the Jimo Household, and they already felt bad for dragging Sang Ying into it. Now, they were even putting her in danger. The thought made them feel terrible.
Three days later, a timid-looking, barely handsome Foundation Establishment Rogue Cultivator quietly entered the city.
Before this young female cultivator named Sang Ye could even find a job in the city, someone had already taken notice of her.
Deep within the Spirit Stone mine of Myriad Phenomena Mountain, a guard's communication talisman slowly lit up, displaying only one sentence. "Found a new 'miner,' take action tomorrow!"