Chapter 267

Chapter 267: Is There Devil Qi in Starfield Plain?

Snake Maiden giggled and swayed her sleeves: “I have lived in the Starfield Plain for hundreds of years and never saw a single person. I was about to give up.”

“But a few days ago, I suddenly sensed the presence of the Human Race. My hope came back, so I made this plan.”

“Thanks to you showing up right then.”

Shen Sang Ruo frowned in puzzlement and asked, “If you needed a Human Race person to open the Formation, with your power you could have just tied me up. Why go to all this trouble?”

On the surface, Shen Sang Ruo was only at Nascent Soul Early Stage. At that time, Snake Maiden could not have known about Zhu Miao or the Dodder Flower Sprite.

She added evenly, “You could also have turned into a human and told me straight. Say you found a treasure and wanted to go together. That would be simpler and easier.”

Snake Maiden laughed with bright eyes: “Because I like it. Just kidnapping someone or being blunt is too boring.”

“You don’t know how dull these hundreds of years were. Other than eating spicy sticks, I had nothing to do.”

Shen Sang Ruo said nothing.

[Spicy sticks, really.]

Snake Maiden’s pupils curved with amusement as she asked, “And don’t you think Little Shi is very cute?”

Shen Sang Ruo had thought Snake Maiden turned into Little Shi only to lower people’s guard with an innocent face. She did not expect Snake Maiden to truly like that form.

After working so hard to cultivate a second form, of course she wanted to show it off.

Snake Maiden looked pleased with her own performance. She had enjoyed every bit of the act.

She added with a shrug, “I didn’t lie either. This treasure ground did have a powerful serpent Guardian Beast, but it’s dead now.”

“I came here to find its Beast Core. With its Beast Core, I can break through to the next stage.”

“The next stage… that would be Divine Transformation?” Shen Sang Ruo’s voice held a hint of awe.

[My Nascent Soul Early Stage is still far from enough. When this Starfield Plain matter ends, I must train hard.]

Snake Maiden leaned close and breathed by her ear: “Also, thanks for the Beast Core, Elder Sister.”

“Even if I can’t find the Guardian Serpent’s Beast Core, I can still break through before long.”

Goosebumps rose on Shen Sang Ruo’s arms. She hurried a few steps ahead to put distance between them.

She looked back at Snake Maiden’s alluring eyes, wanting to speak, stopping, then wanting to speak again. Her expression was hard to describe. At last she said, “Be normal. Don’t call me Elder Sister. It isn’t proper.”

With that face, being called Elder Sister was not proper at all.

Her mind flashed to another who called her “sister,” Fang Yu. Even Fang Yu’s playful “zi ze” was not as shocking as Snake Maiden’s teasing.

Shen Sang Ruo thought Snake Maiden would rein it in. Instead, Snake Maiden changed shape in a blink and turned back into Little Shi.

Little Shi looked up at her with joy and said in a soft, sticky voice, “Is this better, Elder Sister? Elder Sister, Elder Sister, Elder Sister, Elder Sister…”

At the end she added, “Hee hee.”

The earlier “sad little bun” face had been an act. This was the real Little Shi.

Shen Sang Ruo fell silent again.

No wonder this was Snake Maiden’s carefully cultivated second form. Faced with Little Shi’s soft, cute face, she decided to endure it.

At least it was better than hearing it from Snake Maiden’s original face.

Chattering like this, they reached the end of the tunnel without noticing.

Something ahead was glowing.

The closer they drew, the thicker the Spiritual Qi became.

[Could it be… ?] She pressed down her excitement, forced herself to calm, and walked steadily toward the light.

Very soon, she and Little Shi reached the mouth of the tunnel.

They stepped out, and the view opened wide. This space looked like an underground palace.

Her eyes locked on a massive Spirit Vein shining with a faint spiritual light, and she felt a little dazed.

“It really is a Spirit Vein!”

A Spirit Vein is an underground Spirit Stones lode rich with Spiritual Qi. It can be mined for Spirit Stones, and Spirit Stones can be used for training and trade.

Simply put, it is a mine.

This Spirit Vein counted as a large one in the Cultivation World.

She had thought the Living Spirit Tea Tree was the best prize she would find in the Starfield Plain, but there was an even better surprise.

In her sea of consciousness, Little Koi blew happy bubbles.

Little Shi hopped down and started searching the cavern: “I told you the things up there weren’t the main point.”

Shen Sang Ruo nodded. “No wonder the Spiritual Qi in the Starfield Plain is so rich. Besides the Barrier Ward shutting things off, there is also this Spirit Vein.”

“This Spirit Vein must be the source of the Starfield Plain’s Spiritual Qi.”

She rubbed her hands, eyes bright: “If we mine a portion and bring it back to Ninghua Sect, our expenses will be covered for a long time.”

“And Spirit Stones can fuel our people’s training.”

Mining a portion would not harm the area’s Spiritual Qi, and a Spirit Vein can slowly recover on its own.

Little Shi called from the side as she lifted a huge, brick sized crystal: “I suggest Elder Sister take more. Leaving it here will only see it destroyed anyway.” She had already found the Beast Core she wanted. This was not the right place to break through, so she held it for now like a big chunk of stone.

Shen Sang Ruo looked over. “Why?”

Little Shi’s small face turned serious: “If Elder Sister leaves it here, it will be ruined. On the surface you can’t see it, but Devil Qi has been spreading through the Starfield Plain in secret.”

“It almost covers the whole Starfield Plain and settles underground.”

That Devil Qi spread very quietly. She had only found it after living here for hundreds of years.

“Devil Qi is spreading?” Shen Sang Ruo’s eyes sharpened.

In the Cultivation World, Devil Qi is mostly confined to its own region. For many years, the two sides agreed not to disturb each other.

But a large amount of Devil Qi inside the Starfield Plain was no small thing.

She started to speak, “Isn’t there a Barrier Ward sealing the Starfield Plain? How could Devil Qi get in…” She stopped mid sentence.

Her eyes narrowed as she said in a low voice, “The Devil Qi is spreading from inside the Starfield Plain, isn’t it?”

For it to cover the whole Starfield Plain, that much Devil Qi meant either there was a source inside the plain itself, or a Great Devil was present here.

“Yes,” Little Shi answered at once. “That Devil Qi seems to be searching for this treasure ground too. Its goal is clear.”

“It has already spread around the treasure and is still gathering.”

“At this rate, it may not be long before the Devil Qi breaks the protection around this place.”

Devil Qi and Spiritual Qi repel each other. If the Spirit Vein and the Spirit Spring above it were tainted, they would be ruined, just as Little Shi said.

Little Shi went on, “I think the one who set up this Formation knew that Devil Qi would one day fill the Starfield Plain, so they laid this Formation ahead of time to protect it.”

“The conditions to open the Formation are simple. Maybe they wanted people to find it and save this Spirit Vein.”

“You came to seek treasure, Elder Sister. If you take these things out, that’s better than letting Devil Qi corrupt them, and it may fulfill the wish of the one who set the Formation.”

Shen Sang Ruo looked at the long, glowing Spirit Vein. She thought for a long time before she finally moved. [I need to decide how much to take, and how fast.]