The Scorching Sun Essence Stones were mostly handed in monthly by the disciples or exchanged for spirit stones.
Seeing such a "fortune" all of a sudden, Yu Xian couldn't help but feel excited for a moment, but he quickly calmed down.
Zhao Mulin's death wasn't a big deal within the sect, but in the Hundred Mines Workshop, it was no small matter. Especially since he lost his storage pouch, which contained over a month's worth of disciples' mined stones. With this layer of reason, the Hundred Mines Workshop would definitely investigate thoroughly.
To be cautious, these Scorching Sun Essence Stones shouldn't be revealed for the time being.
Inside the storage pouch, besides eighty-four Scorching Sun Essence Stones and three hundred seventy-one low-grade spirit stones, there were also many bottles and jars, booklets, alchemy formulas, and two talismanic treasures, along with a magical treasure.
In the cultivation world, magical treasures are divided into ten tiers. Above magical treasures are spiritual treasures, also divided into ten tiers. And above spiritual treasures are the extremely rare supreme treasures.
The defensive magical treasures Zhao Mulin used were the most basic first-tier magical treasures. As for the magical treasure inside this storage pouch, it was a second-tier magical treasure, a cold, gleaming sword, far superior to his own short knife.
The two talismanic treasures included one offensive Golden Light Slash, a spell technique of a late Foundation Establishment expert, and one defensive Demon-Warding Spirit Shield, also a spell technique of a late Foundation Establishment expert.
Seeing this, Yu Xian felt even more fortunate, thankful for his decisiveness. If he had given Zhao Mulin time to react, just the Demon-Warding Spirit Shield talismanic treasure would have made his Fire Dragon Technique a joke.
He took out the two talismanic treasures and kept them close, ensuring he could retrieve and activate them instantly. Only then did Yu Xian turn his attention to the other items.
Among the bottles and jars were several bottles of Fasting Pills and Spiritual Water Pills, as well as Essence-Nurturing Pills, Minor Spirit Pills, Blood-Bursting Pills, Spirit-Nourishing Pills, and so on. There was also a small pile of various spiritual herbs, no less than a dozen kinds.
The booklets included the Ten Thousand Elixirs Compendium, something all disciples of the Alchemy Workshop had, similar to the Hundred Mines Record, and some spell techniques like Spirit Training and the Method to Break Illusions, which could be learned.
Finally, there were two alchemy formulas: "Foundation Establishment Pill" and "Earth Spirit Pill."
"Foundation Establishment Pill formula?" Yu Xian looked at the Foundation Establishment Pill formula with a surprised expression. How did Zhao Mulin manage to get his hands on something like this?
The Foundation Establishment Pill is essential for cultivators to establish their foundation, increasing the success rate. The more, the better! But the price of a Foundation Establishment Pill is extremely high, selling for three thousand low-grade spirit stones each at the Alchemy Workshop!
An average outer disciple couldn't afford a single Foundation Establishment Pill in their lifetime. Zhao Mulin couldn't afford it either, so he could only find a way to acquire the Foundation Establishment Pill formula, intending to refine it himself.
No wonder there was such a pile of spiritual herbs; it seemed those were what Zhao Mulin had prepared for refining the Foundation Establishment Pill in the future. But now, both the raw materials and the formula had fallen into Yu Xian's hands.
Yu Xian was interested in the Foundation Establishment Pill, but now was not the time. He was only in the early Qi Condensation stage, far from perfected Qi Condensation.
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So Yu Xian shifted his gaze away. The magical treasures were not something Yu Xian could use now; if someone with intentions saw them, it would be troublesome, so he could only keep them in the storage pouch.
He left behind two bottles of Fasting Pills and Spiritual Water Pills, a dozen spirit stones, and two talismanic treasures, along with the cultivation methods of those spell techniques, then hid the storage pouch.
After doing all this, Yu Xian returned to normal, everything as usual.
The steward of the Scorching Sun Mining Area, Zhao Mulin, had disappeared. Initially, Old Third Zhang and a few other elders thought Zhao Mulin had some business and returned to the sect. But after three days without Zhao Mulin's return, they panicked and hurriedly sent Liu Xue back to the Hundred Mines Workshop in the sect to report the situation.
Subsequently, one of the stewards of the Hundred Mines Workshop, Huang Hanxiao, came to investigate. This Huang Hanxiao was the steward who had brought Yu Xian here.
Zhao Mulin's disappearance was too mysterious, without a trace, and no one knew anything. Huang Hanxiao searched Zhao Mulin's house, using several investigative methods, but still found no trace.
"Could this guy have run off with the mined stones?" Huang Hanxiao frowned and turned to ask, "Has Zhao Mulin shown any unusual behavior recently?"
The three frowned in thought for a moment, then Old Third Zhang slapped his forehead and said, "There was something unusual! Senior Brother Zhao recently... recently seemed to be collecting materials to refine Foundation Establishment Pills, spending a lot of spirit stones on it!"
"Refining Foundation Establishment Pills?" Huang Hanxiao said coldly, "No wonder! That scoundrel must have run off with the mined stones, planning to exchange them for spirit stones. But does he think refining Foundation Establishment Pills is so easy? Does he think he's an alchemy master? Ridiculous!"
The path of alchemy isn't just about preparing materials and tossing them into an alchemy furnace to produce a finished product. It involves the control of heat, technique, material compatibility, and even the quality of the alchemy furnace, all of which affect the success rate.
With a resentful wave of his hand, Huang Hanxiao said, "He won't get far. I'll report this to the Law Enforcement Workshop, and we'll catch him no matter where he runs!"
Old Third Zhang's eyes shifted, and he asked with a fawning smile, "With Zhao Mulin gone, who will manage this mining area, Senior Brother Huang?"
The other two perked up at this, looking at Huang Hanxiao with eager eyes.
Huang Hanxiao glanced at Old Third Zhang and the others, smiling, "I can't decide who will be the steward, but I can put in a good word with the chief steward. It depends on what you do..."
The three's eyes lit up, each calculating how many spirit stones they could offer to curry favor with Senior Brother Huang...
Huang Hanxiao's lips curled into a sly smile, "Alright, I need to report Zhao Mulin's escape with the mined stones to the sect. As for who will be the steward of the Scorching Sun Mining Area, I'll inquire with the chief steward tonight. You'll all have a chance."
With that, Huang Hanxiao turned and left the dwelling.
The three exchanged glances, seeing the competitive tension in each other's eyes, then quickly followed to escort Huang Hanxiao to the teleportation array.
But halfway there, Huang Hanxiao suddenly stopped, frowning as he looked into the distance.
Yu Xian was just coming out of his dwelling, heading towards the mine cave. To avoid suspicion, Yu Xian had been pretending to mine, but in reality, he was cultivating inside the mine.
He was being overly cautious. He couldn't have imagined that the matter would be so easily concluded by Huang Hanxiao as Zhao Mulin running off with the mined stones.
At this moment, his figure was seen by Huang Hanxiao.
Huang Hanxiao had a strong impression of Yu Xian because the chief steward had personally instructed him to "give special attention" to Yu Xian, preferably to drive him out of the White Cloud Sect, as it was an order from an inner sect elder!
Originally, he thought Zhao Mulin understood his meaning and would naturally find a legitimate reason to expel Yu Xian within a month. But unexpectedly, he saw this kid again today?
Anger flashed in Huang Hanxiao's eyes. Zhao Mulin, that scoundrel, dared to disregard his words!
If the chief steward or even the inner sect elder found out, it wouldn't end well for him!
Huang Hanxiao didn't bother with subtlety, directly pointing at Yu Xian's back and asking displeasedly, "Why is this kid still here? Didn't I tell you to handle him properly?"
"Uh, Senior Brother Huang, that kid's luck is quite good. We assigned him to Dingzi No. 18 Mine Cave, which is an abandoned mine, but he actually found a Scorching Sun Essence Stone there and paid a month's offering."
Old Third Zhang followed Huang Hanxiao's gaze to Yu Xian, showing a helpless expression, "So we had no other excuse, which is why he stayed. But he can't be that lucky again this month. If he can't pay the offering by the end of the month, I'll kick him out immediately."
"Finding a Scorching Sun Essence Stone in an abandoned mine?" Huang Hanxiao's brow twitched, and he sneered, "Lucky indeed. Keep an eye on this kid. If he can't pay, kick him out immediately. I don't want to see him next time, understand?"
"Understood, understood."
The three nodded repeatedly.
Only then did Huang Hanxiao take another look at Yu Xian before stepping into the teleportation array and disappearing.
"Looks like Senior Brother Huang has a grudge against that kid."
Standing in front of the teleportation array, Old Third Zhang rubbed his chin, looking towards Dingzi No. 18 Mine Cave with a cold glint in his eyes, "Should we find an opportunity to make him disappear?"
"Let's wait and see. Can an abandoned mine really keep producing stones? If he can't pay by the end of the month, we can kick him out openly."
"Right, if that kid's luck is really that good and he keeps finding stones, we can deal with him then."
Sun Bingcheng and Liu Xue weren't as malicious as Old Third Zhang, each saying a word before turning back.
It was time to bring out all their savings to bribe Huang Hanxiao. If they could become the steward of the mining area, the profit from exchanging mined stones alone would be dozens of low-grade spirit stones a month!
Watching the two leave, Old Third Zhang sneered, "They can't even figure out what Huang wants, and they want to compete with me for the management position? Two fools."
With that, he glanced again at Dingzi No. 18 Mine Cave, a sinister look in his eyes, "Better if you can't find any more stones and leave on your own. But if you do find another one, hmph, I'll make sure you leave!"
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