Seeing that the Sacred Leader insisted on finding trouble with Lu Ji, Shen Tian wiped his sweat. He had no idea Lu Ji had escaped with the tiny bit of her body left. He thought she had been eaten.
What if the Sacred Leader cannot find her after searching the valley of fog? Will he think that I’m disguised by that demon?
Shen Tian was terrified by his thought and said, “Master! Relax! Relax!”
The lightning aura around the Sacred Leader flickered. “Don’t worry, Tian’er. I’ve got your back!”
It felt good to have such support, but that was not what Shen Tian needed now.
“Master, it’s okay. Although Mother Vine Lu Ji captured me by mistake, she did not hurt me at all. Let’s forget about her!”
Zhang Yunxi frowned upon hearing it.
Why is Junior Brother shielding that demon? He seems weird today...
Sssss!
Is Junior Brother under some kind of illusion technique of the demon?
Zhang Yunxi secretly cast a seal that could remove illusion techniques on Shen Tian.
Oh, it feels so good!
Shen Tian felt his body get lighter.
Zhang Yunxi asked again, “Junior Brother, are you sure that you want to let her go?”
Shen Tian nodded and replied, “Master is the Sacred Leader. He cannot take back his word. When that demon let me free, she mentioned that there was a Spirit Stone Vein in the valley not far from here. She is willing to give that to me as compensation.”
Upon hearing the words ‘Spirit Stone Vein’, the old Taoist priest was excited, “Spirit Stone Vein? Where? How big is it? Is it enough for us?”
Shen Tian said helplessly, “It should be quite big since a big demon like the Mother Vine could cultivate in it.”
The Sacred Leader looked at Shen Tian carefully and asked, “Did she really give you the stone vein willingly?”
Shen Tian nodded guiltily. “Maybe... She felt guilty?” As your disciple, I’m willing to give this stone vein to the sacred ground. Take it as a token of gratitude for saving me.”
The Sacred Leader shook his head and said, “Since it was given to you as compensation, it belongs to you. The sacred ground will not take it.
“Never mind. Since the demon wants to repent for what she did, I’ll give her another chance. She’ll go free today. However, if I catch her doing such a thing again, I’ll not forgive her!”
...
The little vine on the far end of the plain was relieved to see the lightning disappear.
It was so scary! I thought it was going to strike me again! Even the Heavenly Dao did not want to exterminate me!
Although I have successfully undergone Nirvana, the Nirvana Spirit Water was taken away by that evil woman!
But the essence of my bloodline is still preserved! As long as I have this Spirit Stone Vein, I’ll get all that back! I’ll not let fate decide what I can become! I’ll become stronger after 3,000 years!
Just as the little vine was imaging how she would dominate the Eastern Wilderness, she started shaking uncontrollably.
A man covered in lightning and heavenly aura was coming her way. His face was covered completely. However, the little vine could tell that the man was very strong.
Lu Ji would not have been able to beat this man even before she was injured. Presently, she was just a little vine that could barely handle a normal Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Damn! Why is a human Saint in the For Plain! Why does he want to bully me!?
Just you wait! After I have cultivated for 3,000 years, I’ll kill every single one of you!
Lu Ji was talking to herself before she felt the earth started to tremble. She felt something moving vigorously underneath her, something huge and had a very bad feeling about it.
What is this Saint doing now? Even he is robbing me now!?
A gigantic green crystal was pulled out of the ground and floated in the air. It was covered in dense Spirit Qi—simply approaching it would make one feel refreshed.
It was the Fog Plain’s Spirit Stone Vein, and the Divine Firmament’s Sacred Leader was absorbing it with his mighty prowess.
This Spirit Stone Vein was priceless and very valuable!
A few small kingdoms could be bought by the Spirit Stones present in the vein alone.
What was more important, the Spirit Stone Vein could absorb the wastage of Spirit Qi present in the surroundings. If it was placed in the sacred ground, it could enhance the Spirit Qi present there. Thus, the entire sacred ground could benefit from it.
...
Azure Lotus was very jealous.
This stone vein smells so good! I want to suck it dry!
Why did I not take Shen Tian as my disciple? I could have at least 40% of this Spirit Stone Vein that way!
Indeed, Azure Lotus was very jealous now. However, he was not the only one who felt frustrated. The one who felt most frustrated was not even a human. It was the little vine that was stuck in between the sunken soil.
It looked at the giant Spirit Stone Vein floating in the air in despair, feeling its whole life was meaningless now.
The entire Spirit Stone Vein is gone! Not a single bit is left!
Humans! You are so despicable!
You took my Nirvana Water! You took my Divine Juice Wine! And now, you want to take my Spirit Stone Vein!?
Although I’m not human, you guys are really inhumane!
Karma will find you one day!
The Heavenly Dao is so unfair!
The little vine looked at the Spirit Stone Vein helplessly, full of hatred and resentment. However, no one knew about it as Jiu’er was too far from there...
The huge Spirit Stone Vein shrank in the Sacred Leader’s palm and eventually became palm-sized. The Sacred Leader had employed a special spatial skill—he placed the vein in the void and compressed the void to get this effect. It was very similar to how Azure Lotus had handled the Great Golden-Winged Eagle.
However, compared to the stone vein, the Great Golden-Winged Eagle was so much easier.
“Tian’er, I’ll plant this at the Saint Mountain when we get back.” The Sacred Leader continued. “There will be two stone veins in the Saint Mountain now. The original one belongs to the sacred ground, and this one belongs to you.”
Shen Tian was very touched. Honestly, he had been prepared to give everything to the sacred ground. He would be extremely happy if he got 30% of the benefits. He had never dreamed that the Sacred Leader would give him the entire stone vein!
He is such a good leader! I’m so touched!
Shen Tian said excitedly, “Master, how can I take everything for myself!”
The Sacred Leader patted on Shen Tian’s shoulder and said, “Why not? I think you deserve it.
“You are the Saint and eventually will become the Sacred Leader. You must treat the sacred ground as your own home.
“What the sacred ground has is what you are going to have in the future. Anyway, it is your fortuitous opportunity, to begin with. You can accept it with pride.
“Once you reach Immortal Ascension, we will be so proud of you. This stone vein is nothing compared to that.”
Azure Lotus got even more jealous upon hearing the Sacred Leader’s piece.
I want to treat the sacred ground as my home too...
Why must I be scolded for taking some Spirit Stones from this ‘home’?
Junior Brother, you are so biased!
...
The Sacred Leader Token suddenly vibrated, and Zhang Yunting’s anxious voice sounded.
“Father! Father! I’m Yunting, can you hear me? There’s an emergency! First Senior Brother had a hunch a few days ago and tried to reach the Golden Core Ninth Refinement Stage. But today, he suffered a Qi Deviation, and... his Golden Core broke!”