After saying these words, Li Zhuohua’s eyes rolled back, and she fainted with satisfaction.
Wen Shuangbai hurriedly caught her.
The group found a clean spot and settled their senior sister on a golden silk carpet.
Xie Ziyin stepped forward to tend to Li Zhuohua’s injuries.
Wen Shuangbai and the others squatted in a row nearby, watching intently without blinking.
Lu Jiayao fretted, "Will Senior Sister Zhuohua be alright?"
Shen Hefeng, on the other hand, had an epiphany: "So this is why Senior Sister Zhuohua always takes first place in the annual sect competitions—why no one in Qingzhou can match her! Now I get it! This is the secret to winning!"
Wen Shuangbai also began reflecting: "I guess I’m still not ruthless enough."
[No!! You guys are already going way too hard!]
[Are you seriously competing internally now? If this keeps up, how will the other sects survive?!]
[This is terrifying. As a sword cultivator who spends all day lazing around with the Mystic Heaven Mirror, I don’t know how to face myself anymore!]
Yin Xuan opened his mouth but said nothing.
He, also a sword cultivator—what could he even say?
Well, he was past the age of pushing himself like this.
With that thought, Yin Xuan smiled peacefully, shifting from squatting to sitting, then leaning back against the massive stone statue’s head.
[Now I feel better! Senior Brother Yin is a sword cultivator too, and he can still nap without a care—why can’t I?]
[Wake up, Senior Brother Yin might sleep all day, but his sword talent is top-tier.]
[...Fine, I’ll go practice.]
Xie Ziyin withdrew his spiritual energy, fed Li Zhuohua a medicinal pill, and glanced at the group of wide-eyed onlookers. After a pause, he said, "She’s fine. She’ll wake up soon."
Only then did everyone relax, turning their attention to the stone statue nearby, their gazes burning as if they wanted to devour it.
Wen Shuangbai, ever the compassionate soul, remarked, "I think the stone statue could use some healing too."
Shen Hefeng chuckled darkly, "Indeed. Let this old man take its pulse."
The two eagerly surrounded the statue, poking, prodding, kicking, and even borrowing Yin Xuan’s narrow sword.
But the statue was rock-solid, impervious to blades. After much effort, all they managed was to scrape off a bit of dirt.
Wiping sweat from her brow, Wen Shuangbai sighed, "Senior Sister Zhuohua is truly one of a kind."
Shen Hefeng, panting from exhaustion, sat on the ground and gazed regretfully at the Rainbow Radiance Sword still clutched tightly in Li Zhuohua’s hand. "Yeah."
Wen Shuangbai returned the sword to Yin Xuan, then suddenly remembered her senior brother was also a sword cultivator. "Senior Brother, want to give it a try?"
Yin Xuan took the sword and smiled. "Ah, no, I can’t."
Wen Shuangbai: "..."
Shen Hefeng: "Senior Brother Yin, how do you know if you don’t try?"
Yin Xuan drawled, "My sword only cost three hundred spirit stones."
He probably could try—but maybe not. Instead, he decided to redirect the trouble to the younger generation: "I think Junior Brother Xie would definitely manage."
Nearby, Xie Ziyin borrowed Lu Jiayao’s alchemy cauldron and fished out a dagger from the chicken-and-pig nest inside.
This was the same dagger he had "found" while wandering the village earlier—the one he traded for pigskin at four hundred coins.
After meticulously cleaning the blade and his hands with a purification spell, he walked over and nudged Yin Xuan. "Move."
Yin Xuan: "..."
He patted the stone statue’s head affectionately and swiftly retreated.
[Aw, such a gentle senior brother! He must feel bad for the statue.]
[Gentle? Did you see how fast he left?]
[Pretty sure he was just mourning the loss of his pillow...]
—
Xie Ziyin crouched before the stone statue.
He closed his eyes, channeling energy.
When he opened them again, his peach-blossom eyes were veiled in a faint gray mist—so faint that Wen Shuangbai, standing closest, barely noticed.
The "Nine Infants Ghost Eyes" from the Nine Infants Ghost Art.
Wen Shuangbai gave him a meaningful look.
Her fellow transmigrator really had nerves of steel.
The Nine Infants Ghost Eyes could perceive the "qi" of specific objects.
Xie Ziyin had used it before in the medical hall. Though unorthodox, it allowed healers to pinpoint ailments effortlessly—far more effective than X-rays or MRIs.
But limited by his current cultivation, the technique only worked on stationary objects.
Movement would disrupt the qi flow, making accurate judgment impossible.
Through Xie Ziyin’s ghost eyes, the stone statue transformed. Its rocky surface vanished, replaced by swirling currents of qi—luminous white, pulsing through the statue like blood through veins.
The qi cycled endlessly, with no clear beginning or end, but one spot glowed brightest.
In one fluid motion, Xie Ziyin drove the dagger into the statue’s left ribcage.
The impenetrable stone yielded like tofu in that single spot.
He carved a small hole, fingers deftly probing inside before extracting a radiant white pebble.
The moment the pebble left the statue, the massive structure crumbled into rubble.
The pebble, no larger than a hummingbird’s egg, gleamed snow-white in Xie Ziyin’s palm, exuding an almost sacred beauty.
No one recognized it.
Lu Jiayao frowned. "What is this?"
Shen Hefeng declared, "My instincts say it’s something incredible!"
Xie Ziyin glanced at Wen Shuangbai, who had suddenly pressed close, eyes locked onto the pebble.
He could even feel her lashes brushing his fingers as she blinked.
Her reaction told him everything: this was valuable.
Holy—!
Wen Shuangbai held her breath, afraid to scare the pebble away. "Am I dreaming?"
Xie Ziyin raised his free hand, aiming to pinch her cheek. "Want me to check?"
She swatted him away, snatching the pebble for closer inspection. "If I’m not mistaken... this is a primordial spirit stone!"
[No way! A primordial spirit stone?!]
[Is it real?!]
[No clue—I’ve never seen one! But if it is, Qingling Mountain just hit the jackpot!]
[It is one... I’ve seen one in my sect...]
Wen Shuangbai could proudly say she knew her way around the Xuantian Continent’s treasures.
Cultivation was grueling and monotonous.
On exhausting days, she indulged in miscellaneous books—specifically, those detailing the continent’s most valuable items.
Not that she had any ulterior motives.
If she didn’t recognize these valuable things, wouldn’t she miss out on a fortune if she passed by without picking them up?
Primeval Spirit Stones were one such treasure.
Wen Shuangbai had studied the monetary system of the Xuantian Continent.
Currently, the most commonly circulated currency was ordinary spirit stones.
Ordinary spirit stones were abundant, but each contained only a small amount of spiritual energy and was riddled with impurities, making absorption difficult for cultivators.
Thus, most people used these ordinary spirit stones as currency to purchase items like Spirit Recovery Pills, which were far more efficient for replenishing energy.
Eventually, these ordinary spirit stones would end up in the hands of wealthy families. The Xuantian Continent was home to countless cultivation clans, who would set up arrays in their homes using these stones as a source, ensuring a steady flow of spiritual energy for their disciples to cultivate.
Some even opened their arrays to rogue cultivators, either in exchange for services or as lodging fees.
The key difference between the seven great sects and these cultivation clans was that the sects used Primeval Spirit Stones to power their cultivation arrays.
Each Primeval Spirit Stone contained spiritual energy a thousand times purer and more potent than ordinary ones.
This was why every cultivator on the Xuantian Continent dreamed of joining one of the seven great sects.
And why the status of these sets remained unshakable, their authority unchallenged.
Primeval Spirit Stones were strictly circulated among the seven sects—never traded publicly, never allowed into the secular world.
This rule had been established five hundred years ago by the Seven Saints.
Yet, occasionally, Primeval Spirit Stones still surfaced in the black market, fetching around ten thousand ordinary spirit stones apiece.
The moment Wen Shuangbai uttered the words "Primeval Spirit Stones," Li Zhuohua jolted awake.
What? Primeval Spirit Stones?!
Even Yin Xuan, who had been feigning sleep, opened his eyes.
The six of them exchanged glances, then turned their burning gazes toward the dark mist below.
Wen Shuangbai quickly estimated—there had to be at least a thousand of those massive stone statues down there. That meant a thousand Primeval Spirit Stones!
At ten thousand per stone, that was a fortune of ten million!!!
Without hesitation, all six of them leaped into the dark mist, hearts brimming with excitement.
[Ten thousand per head—I’d do it too!]
[Regrets, so many regrets! I should’ve trained harder and qualified for the Xuantian Grand Competition. There’s real money to be picked up in the Holy Tower!]
[Oh please, did you see the disciples from Purple Flame Realm and Ten Thousand Saints Palace picking any up? Without strength, you’d be the one getting killed by the money, got it?]
[Forget Purple Flame Realm—their disciples aren’t short on money. What they lack are Sacred Stones.]
[So naive. Only items obtained inside the Holy Tower can be carried into the next round. Do you realize what this means? It means Qingling Mountain could have a thousand Primeval Spirit Stones, each far more effective than Spirit Recovery Pills—this is a massive advantage in the competition!]
In the projection of the Mystic Heaven Mirror, Wen Shuangbai faced a stone golem charging at her with a punch. Tears welled in her eyes as she lashed her Firefeather Whip toward the left side of its ribcage.
But the golem remained unfazed, its fist still hurtling toward her.
Startled, she barely dodged in time.
The stone golems were terrifyingly strong, impervious to damage, and could regenerate wounds. After exchanging a dozen blows, Wen Shuangbai was completely overwhelmed and had no choice but to retreat back into the tunnel, battered and exhausted.
The others soon followed.
Lu Jiayao, nursing a swollen face, slurred at Xie Ziyin, "Wh-why didn’t it work?"
Xie Ziyin stared into the dark mist. "Let’s drag another one up and see."
And so, Li Zhuohua selflessly volunteered again.
This time, however, she managed to stay conscious.
While Xie Ziyin dissected the golem, Li Zhuohua leaned against Wen Shuangbai, grinning. "My mother made me train in the Sword Bone Physique since I was little. I reached the sixth layer fifteen years ago but hit a wall after that. Never thought the Holy Tower would help me glimpse the seventh layer!"
Wen Shuangbai was utterly impressed. "Senior Sister Zhuohua, you’re amazing!"
Li Zhuohua, clearly delighted, returned the praise. "Junior Sister Wen, you’re amazing too!"
The two showered each other with compliments.
Meanwhile, Xie Ziyin extracted another Primeval Spirit Stone—this time from the golem’s skull.
"The location varies with each one," he said.
Lu Jiayao gaped. "Then what do we do?"
Wen Shuangbai thought for a moment. "We’ll have to work together as a team."
Dragging them up one by one was too slow, and it was taking a toll on Li Zhuohua.
It was better to deal with them down in the mist.
"Right," Xie Ziyin agreed. "The five of you focus on restraining the golem—keep it from moving. I’ll locate and extract the stone."
After a hushed discussion, the six of them jumped back into the mist.
Lu Jiayao played his flute, using the sound to slow the golem’s movements.
Li Zhuohua pierced the golem’s head with her Flowing Rainbow Sword, pinning it against the rocky wall to immobilize it.
Wen Shuangbai wrapped her Firefeather Whip around the struggling golem’s torso and clung to one of its legs.
Shen Hefeng seized the other leg.
Yin Xuan guarded the group, fending off other approaching golems.
Xie Ziyin activated his Nine Infants’ Ghost Eye to locate the Primeval Spirit Stone and swiftly extracted it.
Then, they retreated to the tunnel to rest before repeating the process.
One, two, three… ten… fifty.
After the safe room was destroyed, the Mystic Heaven Mirror remained active, no longer shutting off.
Some cultivators switched between different sect’s projections.
The disciples of Jade Rhinoceros Valley slept and played card games in their turtle-shell space.
The monks of Divine Evolution Temple chanted sutras and slept—until they were dragged into the card games by Jade Rhinoceros Valley, where they proceeded to dominate.
[Those monks are devious! They keep guessing exactly what cards the little fairies are holding!]
[The little fairies are too naive. They don’t understand the cunning of human hearts—let alone the even greater cunning of those old bald monks!]
Meanwhile, Purple Flame Realm and Heavenly Net Witch Sect each had their own spatial artifacts, hiding inside to evade the ghostly village chief’s pursuit.
Yu Xiaoxiao and Lu Ying sought refuge with Purple Flame Realm, sharing their spatial artifact.
Of the seven great sects, only Qian Yuan Sect had been eliminated early. The other five were all lying low.
Only Qingling Mountain was diligently collecting Primeval Spirit Stones.
[Notice how they’re all improving?]
[Yeah, Li Zhuohua and Yin Xuan’s swords are faster and sharper. Wen Shuangbai’s whip control has become more precise. Xie Ziyin’s extraction speed keeps increasing.]
[And Wen Shuangbai and Shen Hefeng are getting more resilient to beatings.]
Indeed, the two "leg-grabbers" were repeatedly kicked in the chest by the golems.
By now, they were numb to the pain, their bodies tempered into sturdier forms.
But after seven days, when they had collected the 140th stone, Lu Jiayao reached his limit.
He set down his flute, his voice hoarse. "I need a break."
The group exchanged glances before withdrawing their hands and nodding in unison. "Alright."
The five of them subtly positioned themselves protectively around Lu Jiayao as the six made their way back into the passage.
Lu Jiayao sat on the stone steps, hugging his knees, staring blankly at the dark mist below. His expression was lost.
He was no genius, nor a relentless overachiever. Before joining Qingling Mountain’s sect competition, he had just been an ordinary cultivator who enjoyed gossip and made a little money on the side.
Yet somehow, he’d ended up in this team—and had been carried along effortlessly ever since.
These past days had exhausted him. Truly exhausted. But he’d kept it to himself, telling himself to hold on just a little longer, to push through one more stone statue.
But now, faced with the endless sea of stone figures lurking in the mist, even the promise of valuable spirit stones couldn’t lift his spirits. His resolve had crumbled.
Lu Jiayao muttered gloomily, "There are so many stone figures… How long will this take? Can we even finish? What if they’re infinite? What if we dig until we die and still never reach the end?"
Wen Shuangbai stood nearby, trying to soften her tone. "I’d estimate around a thousand, maybe no more than fifteen hundred. But I can’t say for sure."
Honestly, his concerns made sense to her. She hummed thoughtfully. "The infinite part… that’s possible too. Let’s aim for fifteen hundred first. If we don’t finish by then, we’ll reassess?"
Lu Jiayao: "…………"
He slumped even further.
Wen Shuangbai: "……"
Well. Comforting people wasn’t her forte.
She turned to Xie Ziyin, raising her brows meaningfully—urging him to step in.
As a healer, shouldn’t he also tend to a cultivator’s mental well-being?
Xie Ziyin: "?"
His usual approach was reducing students and juniors to tears. Comfort? What even was that?
Xie Ziyin: "Not my area."
Wen Shuangbai’s gaze shifted to Li Zhuohua.
Li Zhuohua immediately shook his head like a rattle drum.
Shen Hefeng followed suit, self-aware. "My mouth’s too foul. I’m good at insults, though."
That left only one candidate.
The ever-gentle, unflappable senior disciple who never raised his voice—the eldest brother.
And so, four pairs of eyes turned in unison toward Yin Xuan, who had been standing aside, lost in thought.
Yin Xuan: "……Huh?"
……
Tasked with this unexpected responsibility, Yin Xuan drifted over and sat beside Lu Jiayao, propping his chin on his hand. He gazed ahead silently, offering nothing but quiet companionship.
Just as drowsiness began to overtake him, Lu Jiayao spoke. "Eldest Brother… aren’t you tired?"
Yin Xuan exhaled weakly. "Exhausted. I want to sleep every second of the day."
He tilted his head, yawning. "And, Junior Brother Xiao Tu… haven’t you noticed? I’ve been slacking off this whole time."
Lu Jiayao was stunned. "What?!"
"Mm." Yin Xuan smiled mysteriously. "Every time I see they’re almost done, I sheathe my sword and stop blocking."
Lu Jiayao thought back.
It was true! Whenever Yin Xuan withdrew, the stone figures surged toward Wen Shuangbai and the others. Panicked, he’d redoubled his efforts, playing his flute to slow them down.
So…
Lu Jiayao turned to Yin Xuan, dumbfounded.
Yin Xuan patted his shoulder gently. "They’ve got it handled. No harm in cutting corners now and then. Next time you see me sheathe my sword, just stop playing."
His voice remained soft, reassuring. "Junior Brother Xiao Tu, take things one step at a time. No need to fear the road a thousand steps ahead. If you’re tired, rest. Sleep a little. Alright?"
For a moment, Lu Jiayao was too moved to speak. His optimism flickered back to life. "Alright!"
Wen Shuangbai, Li Zhuohua, and Shen Hefeng crouched in a row by the wall, watching as Yin Xuan returned. In unison, they gave him a thumbs-up.
The group decided to rest.
When they awoke, Lu Jiayao was fully revitalized. The six of them resumed their task.
The 141st… the 270th… the 520th—
Seven days… twelve days… sixteen days…
Their teamwork grew seamless. Finally, on the twenty-first day since entering the mist, after extracting the 1,111th spirit stone, the darkness dissipated.
The path ahead lay clear before them.
A grand hall stood in the distance, towering and majestic, its ancient aura washing over them.
Step by step, the six walked forward with unwavering resolve. Together, they pushed open the great doors.
