I was blinded by greed.

"Insect Taming? A remnant of Thousand Beasts Mountain?"

"How does this not match the information we received?!"

The Five Elements Sect Cultivators who arrived one after another were somewhat stupefied. They had clearly identified this person as a remnant of the Vajra Gate, so how had he suddenly become someone from Thousand Beasts Mountain?

"Kill!"

Whether it was a remnant of Thousand Beasts Mountain or the Vajra Gate, they were both targets the Five Elements Sect had to eradicate.

"Black Wind Mantis, get me out of here!"

Yuan Tianqing slapped his Spirit Beast Bag, and a mantis, about ten feet tall and entirely black, flew out. Its arms, like blades, slashed at the Five Elements Sect Cultivators.

A dozen or so sword lights and Spells rained down on the Black Wind Mantis. However, the mantis's body twisted into black smoke, allowing the attacks to pass harmlessly through, striking nothing.

The Black Wind Mantis appeared before the nearest Five Elements Sect Cultivator as if by Instantaneous Movement. Waving its black-gleaming mantis blades, it slashed downward.

This person reacted quickly, raising a First-Tier Superior-Grade Talisman and a Middle-Grade Defense Magic Artifact shield.

The black mantis blade flashed past. The Spirit Shield shattered, and the magic artifact shield broke in two, falling to the ground devoid of spiritual power. The mantis blade's momentum, still unchecked, then sliced the Five Elements Sect Cultivator in half.

"Junior Brother!"

The others rushed to the rescue, but unfortunately, several black Spirit Insects burrowed out from the ground and began to gnaw at the fallen Cultivator, giving him no chance of survival.

"Audacious fiend, how dare you commit murder here!"

"The mutated Spirit Insect, Black Wind Mantis! Yuan Tianqing, the prized disciple of the Head of the Insect Controlling Hall? Your master is dead; go and join him!"

The Five-colored Smoke Net descended from the sky, like tangible smog.

The Black Wind Mantis moved swiftly, but it could not evade the Five-colored Smoke Net, which clung to it like a persistent shadow, instantly ensnaring it.

Without its Spirit Insects, an Insect Tamer Master's strength would be critically weakened.

A resplendent sword light flew from the horizon, piercing the sky, as swift as a thunderbolt.

"Shameless old fogey! Bullying the weak with your strength! Overwhelming the few with your numbers!"

Yuan Tianqing, resigned to his inevitable fate, stood still, allowing the sword light to cleave him in two.

The remnant of Thousand Beasts Mountain was executed!

In the Great Wilderness Market, within a filth-laden mud puddle, over a hundred black Spirit Insects crawled out. They wriggled and gathered swiftly, slowly coalescing into the form of a dying old man. He gazed at the distant figure in the sky, unable to conceal the hatred in his eyes.

The main body is gone. From this moment on, I am the original.

The Inner City is very peaceful; it hasn't been searched?

Jia Ren waited quietly for a day, sensing strong Spiritual Power Fluctuations only in the Outer City. The battle had come and gone quickly. He decided to wait another day before cultivating the Mixed Refining Vajra Body.

The ninety-seven Diamond Orchids were sufficient, and with all materials prepared, he could elevate his Mixed Refining Vajra Body to the next stage.

Jia Ren skillfully concocted the decoction, producing a new medicinal fluid. He soaked comfortably in the medicinal bath, absorbing its power to strengthen his physique, striving to reach the higher level of the Crimson Gold Body as quickly as possible.

The Mixed Refining Vajra Body technique operated, continuously absorbing the medicinal power.

The first body refinement focused on the skin.

The second, a deeper tempering, refined flesh and blood in a process of blood exchange.

Once the medicinal power was fully absorbed, the water in the wooden tub turned red, exuding a rich scent of blood. The old blood was gone, replaced by new, more spiritual blood.

Cultivation knows no time. Jia Ren dedicated his time and energy to body refinement and spell practice, and in the blink of an eye, two months had passed. These two months of secluded, arduous cultivation brought rapid progress.

The Crimson Gold Body stage of his Mixed Refining Vajra Body was fully achieved. When he operated the technique at full power, his body seemed forged from crimson gold; even the Black Fang Sword could not leave a scratch on it.

He was limited by the lack of materials for further body refinement. Coupled with the recent incident involving the Five Elements Sect's Diamond Orchid subterfuge, Jia Ren didn't risk purchasing more. This time, there was no one to take the blame for him.

His Mixed Refining Vajra Body stalled at the completion of the Crimson Gold Body stage.

His Turtle Breath Technique reached the Extraordinary Saint Level, Thousand Fantasies Face the Great Grandmaster Level, Thunderous Charge Curse the Great Grandmaster Level, Insect Control Technique (Soul Hosting Seal) the Grandmaster Level, Blood Ignition Technique the Master Level, and Insect Armor Technique the Master Level.

His cultivation progress reached ninety-five percent, not far from the Eighth Layer of Qi Refinement.

The only bothersome issue was... the Spirit Stones were nearly spent.

Since starting body refinement, his appetite had increased dramatically. He consumed five catties of Monster Beast Meat and ten catties of Spirit Rice daily, truly a super glutton. Cultivation Elixirs, body refinement materials, an unlimited supply of Monster Beast Meat—no amount of Spirit Stones seemed enough to cover the expenses.

Jia Ren had no income. As he continued to use up resources, his stockpile of Spirit Stones severely diminished, leaving him with less than one hundred. It seemed he might not be able to cultivate peacefully in the future.

Should the mining of the Spirit Stone Vein be considered? Such a long time has passed; the Qi Family Brothers should have let down their guard by now, right?

A Spirit Stone Vein is a real gold mine, with at least ten thousand Spirit Stones. Anything below ten thousand Spirit Stones is considered a micro Spirit Stone Mine, while a small Spirit Stone Vein contains at least tens of thousands to one hundred thousand Spirit Stones. A medium Spirit Stone Vein is estimated to have one hundred thousand to one million Spirit Stones, and the core area may yield Medium-grade Spirit Stones. A large Spirit Stone Vein is projected to hold one million to ten million Spirit Stones, and Superior Grade Spirit Stones can be mined from the core region. It is said that there are even super large Spirit Stone Mines, where one can dig out Top-quality Spirit Stones that would even tempt Nascent Soul Cultivators, their value beyond imagination.

Jia Ren didn't dare to hope Wang Qian had stumbled upon a super large or a large Spirit Stone Vein. Even a medium one would be enough to make a family incredibly wealthy, capable of producing over a dozen Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Go to the Great Wilderness alone to mine? No sooner had Jia Ren entertained this idea than doubts began to creep into his mind.

The Great Wilderness was too dangerous! Not to mention, the Spirit Stone Vein was located deep within the Great Wilderness, an exceedingly perilous area.

Jia Ren still didn't want to risk an adventure in the Great Wilderness. He had entered the Great Wilderness twice without venturing deep, encountering bizarre demons and evil creatures each time; his luck had been abysmal. He had managed to escape before, but there was no guarantee he would survive another encounter.

Jia Ren was not willing to take risks, even for a Spirit Stone Vein. No matter how many Spirit Stones there were, they weren't as important as his life! Safety came first!

Just because he wouldn't go mining didn't mean others couldn't. Yang Shengwu and Yang Bingzhi were both trustworthy people. Since Wang Qian could invite him to jointly mine a Spirit Stone Vein, there was no need for Jia Ren to keep it all to himself.

Yang Bingzhi might be a bit of a problem; inviting him could draw the attention of the Qi Family Brothers, leading to unnecessary complications. It was better to ask for Yang Shengwu's help.

Use those you trust; don't use those you doubt. With his mind made up, Jia Ren no longer hesitated and left the Great Wilderness Market.

He sent out a Sound Transmission Talisman, which flew deep into the Great Wilderness. Had Yang Shengwu gone to the Great Wilderness to hunt magical beasts again?

"Brother Jia, I finally got in touch with you; let's meet at Grand Wilderness Mountain."

Jia Ren waited for half an hour before seeing Yang Shengwu again. Compared to three months prior, Yang Shengwu's face had darkened considerably. A horizontal scar now ran across half of it, though it was unclear what had caused the injury.

Sigh, it's good that you're alive. Seeing Yang Shengwu again, Jia Ren felt a mix of emotions.

He had intended to ask why Yang Shengwu continued to hunt magical beasts but, on reflection, realized he had no other choice. Yang Shengwu had acquired a fair number of Spirit Stones, but like Jia Ren himself, he was living hand to mouth. Since Yun Niang became pregnant, he likely hadn't dared to stop for a moment. He needed to earn cultivation resources not only for himself but also Spirit Stones for Yun Niang and their future child. Once they'd left the Market, aside from hunting magical beasts, their only option would likely be robbery and murder. It wasn't incomprehensible that Yang Shengwu would resume hunting magical beasts.

"I can't let Yun Niang wander outside with me; I've sent her back to the Inner City to peacefully nurture our child. The risky business of earning Spirit Stones should naturally fall to the man!" Yang Shengwu's face bore a bright smile, just as it always did.

The vast majority of Loose Cultivators lacked specific skills, forcing them to engage in dangerous livelihoods. Hunting magical beasts to earn Spirit Stones and reaching the Late Stage Qi-Refining level made one stand out among Loose Cultivators. Yet, even then, they couldn't escape the fate of a Loose Cultivator: constantly busy and on the move. One day, they would inevitably fall prey to the beasts.

"I had good luck today, caught a Spirit Musk Deer. I'll give you its two hind legs."

"I wanted to get some Demon-Spotting Talismans from you before but couldn't get in touch."

The Storage Bag opened, revealing the carcass of a deer. It was riddled with holes and burn marks, its head severed.

This was a First Order, low-grade Spirit Musk Deer, weighing at least seventy to eighty pounds. After discarding the unsellable parts, it would fetch thirty or forty Spirit Stones. The deer also bore Spirit Musk; if it were of high quality and in sufficient quantity, selling it for over a dozen Spirit Stones wouldn't be difficult.

Not every hunting expedition guaranteed the capture of a magical beast. For a Loose Cultivator, this was a major haul.

"I'll take the Spirit Musk Deer," Jia Ren said. "And along with it, I have a big business opportunity for you. Are you in?"

"Continue selling Demon-Spotting Talismans? I've been waiting for you to say that!" Yang Shengwu exclaimed. "At worst, I'll just sell them outside the Market. It's less risky than hunting magical beasts."

The income from hunting magical beasts was unstable and fraught with danger; naturally, selling Demon-Spotting Talismans was preferable.

"We won't be selling Demon-Spotting Talismans. I need you for mining."

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