Chapter 270

Chapter 270: Pack It All Up and Take It!

Two pieces of Spirit Jade Marrow spun faster and faster around the cluster of Divine Soul Power, turning into twin streaks of light.

The Formation formed by the four pillars began to loosen, and after a few breaths the four pillars exploded outright. Shen Sang Ruo lifted her hand and shaped a shield before herself and Little Shi, blocking the flying shards.

When the Formation finally broke, she dissolved the shield and walked toward the lively glow.

It was really a meeting from both sides, because the energy flew to her as well. It circled around her again and again until it almost twisted into a braid. Little Shi could not help a sharp comment: “Is this Divine Soul Power a snake?”

It even wriggled better than she did.

At last, Shen Sang Ruo reached out her hand, and the bright cluster obediently rested on her fingertip. [Good, another +1.]

She put the Divine Soul Power and the Spirit Jade Marrow into her Cosmos Pouch for now, planning to teleport them out together with those Spirit Vein ores after they left the treasure ground.

After she confirmed there were no other treasures, she and Little Shi walked out of the cave.

They began gathering the spiritual plants on the ground.

Shen Sang Ruo scooped the drifting Dodder Flower Sprite out of the Spirit Spring and said, “Time to work.”

She tapped her chin, thinking through the next steps: “These spiritual plants can go to the Spirit Plant Branch.” The Spiritual Qi from cultivating the plants would support the Cultivators of the Spirit Plant Branch in their training, and once the plants matured, they would be sent to Alchemy and the Pharmacy Division.

It sounded perfect.

But if they did it that way, they would need to dig up each plant with its whole body, without harming the roots.

That would be a big project.

[Hmm.] An idea flashed in Shen Sang Ruo’s mind as she asked, “Can I just take this whole stretch of land with me?”

She had Giant Beetles that could Miniaturize almost anything.

Little Shi picked up the thought, her small face serious as she said, “You can. This soil has been nourished by the Spirit Vein and Spirit Spring Water. It now carries its own Spiritual Qi and is extra rich.”

She nodded and added, “Growing spiritual plants in this soil will work better than planting them anywhere else.”

“Then that’s the plan,” Shen Sang Ruo said with a happy snap of her fingers, “we’re even covering all the dirt for the Spirit Plant Branch.”

She also marked the Spirit Spring and the Living Spirit Tea Tree.

She decided to Miniaturize those separately from the Spirit Soil so that, once back at Ninghua Sect, she could place them apart more easily.

After she communicated with the Giant Beetles, they shrank the towering Living Spirit Tea Tree first, then the Spirit Spring.

When the Dodder Flower Sprite had been playing in the spring earlier, it found where the springhead was. The springhead was amazing: a palm sized blue pearl that produced Spirit Spring Water without stop. After Miniaturization, the increase in water wasn’t too much, so they packed it and took it along.

Only then did they move on to the whole stretch of land.

Shen Sang Ruo and Little Shi stepped back to the edge of the area. One step farther would take them out of the treasure ground.

After that, the sight before them would be the same flat land as before.

Working together, the Giant Beetles Miniaturized all the land except the piece under their feet, exactly the portion that lay above the Spirit Vein and those ores.

With one glance, the place had become a huge pit.

Shen Sang Ruo raised her hand and caught the last item to be Miniaturized, which was still the largest even after shrinking, and she said, “We’ve taken everything we can. Let’s go.” Then she looked at the tired beetles resting on her palm and added, “Good work. Go rest for a while.”

She put the little ones into a cloth pouch. Inside, she had placed spiritual plants that restored a Giant Beetle’s Spiritual Power, found earlier among these plants.

Giant Beetles could shrink almost anything, but the “almost anything” part depended on their strength.

Making the whole Cultivation World small was, of course, impossible.

After Miniaturizing so many huge things in a row, they had reached their limit and were exhausted.

Once they left the space that held the treasure, the scene shifted at once. The giant pit vanished and the calm, quiet flatland returned. Everything looked normal.

It was as if what they had just seen was only a mirage.

Shen Sang Ruo did not teleport her haul out of Starfield Plain yet. Instead, she crouched down.

She had reached Nascent Soul Early Stage, and her senses had grown much sharper.

Staring at a faint trace of Devil Qi on the ground, she grew solemn.

She was sure this Devil Qi hadn’t been here before they entered the treasure ground.

It seemed Little Shi had been right: Devil Qi had filled Starfield Plain and was surrounding this treasure ground.

If Devil Qi had already leaked onto the surface, then there must be even more of it gathering below.

Even Little Shi let out a surprised, “Ya.”

Clearly, the Devil Qi was spreading faster than she had expected.

In another month or so, the Devil Qi would probably overrun this treasure ground.

Little Shi guessed aloud: “Is there something inside this treasure that the Devil Qi Master wants? Or is it just trying to infect and break this source of Spiritual Power?”

She sighed and shook her head, but her tone carried a little pride as she added, “Too bad for it though. No matter the goal, Elder Sister already took everything inside.”

“Once I’m out, I’ll tell the others,” Shen Sang Ruo said as she stood up. “We’ll find a way to break the Barrier Ward and come in to deal with this.”

It was a big matter. She wasn’t sure she could handle it alone, and since members of the major sects were outside, telling them would be safer and faster than acting by herself.

Little Shi rose as well and asked, “Are you leaving now, Elder Sister?”

Shen Sang Ruo nodded. She had already found more than enough treasures to meet the needs of Ninghua Sect and Linglong Pavilion. Handling the Devil Qi mattered more.

“I’m setting out for the edge of the Barrier Ward right away,” she told the Swift Snails at her feet, “I’ll be counting on you soon. With your speed, the trip will be quicker.”

The Swift Snails lifted their heads high and bobbed their stalk eyes hard. At last, they had a chance to shine.

“What about Little Shi?” Little Shi looked up at her with pleading eyes and said, “We haven’t formed a Bonding Contract yet. If Elder Sister leaves Starfield Plain, you won’t forget Little Shi and never come back, right?”

During her time training with Yuan Jin, Shen Sang Ruo had learned how to form Bonding Contracts with Spirit Beasts and Demonic Beasts.

If she wanted, she could form one with Little Shi right now.

“The Devil Qi problem isn’t solved yet, so I will return,” she said, then her tone turned serious: “But when we discuss the Bonding Contract, I think we should do it properly.”

She meant that Little Shi should show her true form.

[Otherwise, she kept feeling Little Shi was using her little girl look to play coy.]

Little Shi smiled and said, “Okay, then I’ll go into Seclusion Breakthrough first. Later, Elder Sister can come find me here, or I’ll go find Elder Sister. Either way works.”

“When the time comes, I’ll talk with Elder Sister in my real body.”