Chapter 052
Chapter 52: spirit essence stone
After breakfast, Ye He Qi seemed to remember something and spoke gently, “It’s inconvenient without a steward or maid in the manor. Daoist Shi, you could pick some servants.”
“Perhaps later,” Shi Zi Chu replied.
She planned to set off for Evernight Forest tomorrow for training and wouldn’t return for a while, so there was no immediate need.
Ye He Qi said nothing more.
Shi Zi Chu used her spiritual power to neatly put the dishes back into the food box. Looking at the now clean tabletop, her brows relaxed slightly.
“Clan Chief Ye,” a gentle and soft voice rang out, “can the Ye Clan mine a spirit stone mine independently?”
Ye He Qi’s deep, unreadable gaze fell upon Jiang Wan Sheng.
Naturally, the Ye Clan could mine a spirit stone mine alone. But if Shi Zi Chu asked, it meant she had decided to let the Jiang Clan have a share.
Understanding Shi Zi Chu’s unspoken intention, Ye He Qi replied, “As long as the shares are reasonable, everything can be discussed.”
“I take eight shares, and the Ye Clan takes one,” Shi Zi Chu stated calmly.
That left one remaining share for the Jiang Clan, but if the Jiang Clan refused, then it would become a nine-one split.
Ye He Qi raised an eyebrow slightly, “Allow me to consider it.”
One share—this truly was a high-risk gamble.
Shi Zi Chu inclined her head.
Seeing Jiang Wan Sheng staring straight at her, she curled her finger and called him over, “Are you satisfied with this outcome?”
For every ten spirit stones mined, eight would belong to Qing Qing, and the Ye and Jiang Clans could only divide one stone each.
This split could easily lead to losses.
The single share included mining costs, and if it were a small spirit stone mine, losses were guaranteed. To achieve a profit with only one share, the mine would need to be at least medium-sized.
Yet, only the location of this mine was known, nothing more.
This was truly a gamble.
Jiang Wan Sheng stepped closer, his beautiful face appearing gentle, “Is there no possibility of negotiating?”
“Of course,” Shi Zi Chu answered with a bright smile.
She wasn’t running a charity; naturally, she would keep the greatest benefit for herself. Whether the others profited or lost depended on their luck.
Jiang Wan Sheng’s face became conflicted.
After a long pause, Ye He Qi and Jiang Wan Sheng answered almost simultaneously.
Opportunity always accompanied risk. Even if it turned out to be a small spirit stone mine, they could endure this minor loss.
But if it was a medium or even a large spirit stone mine, the profit would be enormous!
Once the contract was signed, Shi Zi Chu took them to survey the mine.
An untouched spirit stone mine only had a general location; there was no existing entrance.
Before Ye He Qi or Jiang Wan Sheng could say anything, Shi Zi Chu decisively blasted open a mine entrance.
Looking at the dark entrance spewing dust, Ye He Qi remained silent for a long moment before quietly remarking, “I hope we won’t be buried alive.”
Shi Zi Chu turned an unhappy gaze on Ye He Qi, “Clan Chief Ye, where’s the trust between people?”
After all, this was inspected by the almighty Xue Gu!
Ye He Qi smiled politely.
Had there ever been trust between him and Shi Zi Chu?
Jiang Wan Sheng silently took out a lantern for illumination.
Trusting in his own strength, Jiang Wan Sheng lifted the lantern and walked ahead. Shi Zi Chu followed in the middle, and Ye He Qi fell behind.
The naturally formed cave sloped downward. Initially, it was pitch-black, empty, but as they moved deeper, intense spiritual power surged forth.
The further they walked, the stronger the spiritual energy became.
Ye He Qi, previously worried about a cave-in, gradually relaxed.
With such dense spiritual energy, it had to be at least a medium-sized spirit stone mine!
With a medium-sized mine, he wouldn’t suffer any losses. If the spiritual power grew even denser, it might be a large mine—and the profits would skyrocket!
At this thought, Ye He Qi found he could accept the risk of a cave-in after all.
“Master, there’s something wonderful!” Xue Gu’s sweet, adorable voice echoed from the spatial storage ring.
Xue Gu had exceptionally high standards, and if it called something “wonderful,” it must be extraordinarily precious.
Returning later carried too much risk, and killing the others to monopolize it wasn’t realistic either.
Forget it; she would simply have to share a bit.
Having decided, Shi Zi Chu pulled Xue Gu from the spatial storage ring.
Xue Gu jumped gracefully and vanished into the darkness ahead.
Jiang Wan Sheng glanced back at Shi Zi Chu, seeing her calm expression, and continued forward with the lantern.
About the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the cave ceased to be dark. The brilliant glow of spirit stones dazzled the trio’s eyes, forcing them to pause and adjust.
Squinting slightly, Shi Zi Chu murmured, “So blinding.”
These stones were all future resources for her cultivation!
“This is a large spirit stone mine!” Jiang Wan Sheng stared brightly at Shi Zi Chu, joy evident in his voice, “If there are even some supreme-grade spirit stones…”
His joyful voice stopped abruptly, his gaze captured by a gleaming, luminous stone.
Xue Gu appeared suddenly, its fur dusty and gray, as if it had rolled in dirt. Its tail curled around a radiant stone about the size of a fist.
“Daoist Shi has good luck,” Ye He Qi’s gentle and refined voice sounded as he stepped forward, surprise coloring his eyes. “Spirit essence stone.”
Spirit essence stone—simply put, was the mother of all spirit stones.
A mine with spirit essence stone meant an endless supply.
Ye Clan had many spirit stone mines, but only one contained spirit essence stone, and it was guarded by two ancestors at the Great Ascension stage.
This alone showed its incredible rarity.
?Aaaahh!!! You vicious villainess!!!?
Perhaps because Xue Gu wasn’t inside the spatial storage ring, the female villain system began shrieking again.
Shi Zi Chu’s eyes flashed briefly.
The female villain system didn’t notice and kept yelling, ?You venomous woman! This is the female protagonist’s destiny! She will never forgive you!?
Chu Zhi Rou’s destiny?
Shi Zi Chu’s gaze settled thoughtfully on the spirit essence stone. “Xue Gu, lead me there.”
If it was the heroine’s destiny, then surely there was more spirit essence stone hidden. Xue Gu likely hadn’t found them all yet.
Thank you to the foolish female villain system for providing this information.
Xue Gu meowed twice and elegantly moved deeper into the cave.
Shi Zi Chu quickly followed, Jiang Wan Sheng and Ye He Qi trailing behind.
“Meow, meow!”
Xue Gu’s dirty little paw pointed to a small indentation, as if explaining it had found the stone there.
Shi Zi Chu raised her hand, preparing to use a spell.
Jiang Wan Sheng swiftly grabbed her arm, urgently saying, “Qing Qing! Let me dig! You don’t have to do it!”
A cave-in was something he genuinely wished to avoid experiencing!
Shi Zi Chu withdrew her hand regretfully.
Jiang Wan Sheng secretly sighed with relief, then stepped forward, took out a shovel, and started digging.
Ye He Qi came over, standing beside Shi Zi Chu, and said sincerely, “Congratulations.”
Shi Zi Chu tilted her head, observing his genuine congratulations without a trace of greed, and teased gently, “It’s spirit essence stone. Clan Chief Ye’s lack of desire makes it seem worthless.”
Honestly, this didn’t fit Ye He Qi’s nature. With his profit-driven temperament, was he truly not moved by the stone?
Or perhaps he was plotting something sinister?
Ye He Qi gazed at the stone and replied softly with a touch of regret, “When you know you cannot get something, why desire it?”
Shi Zi Chu was a bandit who only took but never gave. Getting something from her was impossible, both in dreams and reality.
For Ye He Qi, such treasures were merely bonuses. He didn’t need to trouble himself over them.
“What if?” Shi Zi Chu smiled mischievously at him. “Clan Chief Ye, won’t you at least try?”
Ye He Qi returned her smile gracefully. “Let’s first see if Young Master Jiang finds anything else.”
“I found something,” Jiang Wan Sheng’s stunned voice floated back toward them.