Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword
Chapter 168 - 163: The New Spirit Stone Mine Vein (4/5)

Chapter 168: Chapter 163: The New Spirit Stone Mine Vein (4/5)

Mei Yixiang left in a hurry after sitting for only a short while. The reason was that she had received a report from her subordinates saying that a pig with five legs had been spotted somewhere. She immediately rushed off excitedly to see it.

This woman!

Zhou Heng simply couldn’t fathom this woman’s character. She was ever-changing, but overall, it seemed that her ability to cause trouble was quite strong. It was wiser to provoke this troublemaker less. Although she was indeed very beautiful and her status was incomparably noble, Zhou Heng did not want to be constantly worried and bothered.

He entered the Nine Mystic Trial Tower and went directly to the second floor, beginning the refinement of the weapons he had just acquired.

Out of the hundred plus weapons, only nine were magic artifacts; the rest were all of Upper Grade Mortal Artifacts. Zhou Heng looked at the materials they were made of and found them extraordinary, so he bought them all. After all, they didn’t cost much.

With the ability of the Gold Devouring Clan activated, he began plundering the essence from these weapons.

Shoo, shoo, shoo. First, the Mortal Artifacts, unprotected by formations, were completely dead objects, and their essences were immediately extracted by Zhou Heng, turning into streams of particles that entered his body—diverse in color and mottled in hues.

The nine magic artifacts, being protected by formations, had their Artifact Spirits launch counterattacks immediately. However, the highest realm among these nine artifacts was only at the Initial Separation Rank, so how could they be a match for Zhou Heng? He didn’t even need to use the Black Sword; he simply crushed the formations, and the nine magic artifacts instantly turned into Mortal Artifacts.

Combined, these weapons could not compare with the purple bell. Zhou Heng didn’t have to cut his own flesh; in just over ten minutes, he had devoured all the weapons, turning them to dust. Inside Zhou Heng’s body, however, appeared a colored bead smaller than a grain of rice.

With a thought, the bead dispersed, merging into the bones throughout his body, continuing to enhance his body’s strength and power.

"The higher the quality of the metal, the more essence it contains!"

Zhou Heng opened his eyes. This wasn’t hard to guess, but it still needed to be proven to be fully convinced.

"However, high-grade metals are hard to come by. After all, not everyone is an idiot like Ying Bingfeng, sending treasures my way. I’ll have to make up for it with quantity!"

He left the Nine Mystic Trial Tower once again and made another trip to Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, which was naturally the first choice when looking for high-grade items.

"Young Master Zhou!" This time, Ruan Jiaying personally received Zhou Heng. Known as the most beautiful woman in Cold Blue Country, Miss Zi Xing had been exceptionally low-profile recently, as if she had vanished from the world.

Zhou Heng exchanged greetings with her and both sat down, each taking their respective places as host and guest.

"When I first met Young Master Zhou, you were merely in the Body Refinement Realm. But now, you have become an expert of the Land Cleaving Realm, one who makes me look up in admiration!" said the low-profile beauty with a gentle smile, exuding seductiveness from her very bones.

Every beautiful woman is a natural seductress. An unintentional smile or frown can stir hearts.

Zhou Heng had been walking through a world of rouge and powder these days. Lin Fuxiang, Gu Zi, An Yumei, Mei Yixiang, Xiao Huoshui, each one a beauty above standard. Having seen so many beautiful women, he naturally had developed a strong immunity to them.

He smiled slightly and said, "It’s just a bit of luck!"

"Young Master Zhou is really modest!" Ruan Jiaying’s eyes roamed as a sudden charm bloomed. She changed the subject and said, "Young Master Zhou, I’ve always believed that you are the master that our Heavenly Treasure Pavilion has been searching for."

"Oh, why do you think that?" asked Zhou Heng with a smile.

He was no longer the clueless young man he had been in Fengyu City. He knew what Heavenly Treasure Pavilion meant—it was a giant whose business spanned the entire continent.

To grow a business that big, strong support was surely needed, or else it would have been picked clean by others. Hence, there must be experts of the Divine Infant Realm that held sway over the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion; otherwise, how could it suppress the thousands of sects in the various countries?

An Old Ancestor of the Divine Infant Realm looking for a master? What a joke!

Okay, even if it were true, if the servants were stronger than the master, how stifling would that be for the master?

"According to the rules passed down through generations, the true master of our Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, when invoking the Spirit Crystal Pillar, will emit a unique black light," Ruan Jiaying evidently decided to lay all her cards on the table rather than beat around the bush.

"The first time Young Master Zhou used the Spirit Crystal Pillar, I saw a flash of black light. It even destroyed the Spirit Crystal Pillar!"

"In subsequent tests, although Young Master Zhou’s Twin Spirit Body was ordinary, I believe that must have been intentional by Young Master Zhou!"

"Do you think I’m correct?" she asked, her smile radiant as she looked at Zhou Heng, her eyes and brows picturesque, and her aura overwhelming.

Zhou Heng’s mind was instantly filled with countless thoughts. Ruan Jiaying’s words were like lightning streaking across his mind, connecting many things together.

Lately, he hadn’t been pondering why the Black Broken Sword appeared in his dantian. This was actually a crucial matter; much of his achievements could be said to owe to the Broken Sword.

What exactly was the origin of this Broken Sword?

Given the formidable power of this sword, how did it break in the first place?

Above the nine heavens, there are immortals!

Could it be that the Black Sword once belonged to an immortal, who met with a great disaster, perished, and the sword fell into the mortal world, somehow burrowing into his Dantian to make its home?

If the Black Sword is indeed an Immortal Object, that would perfectly explain its ability to devour the Essence of Life, after all, this is beyond the comprehension of mortals. And it is said that immortals are undying and indestructible, so after suffering severe injuries, could that immortal have chosen to reincarnate?

If that immortal once owned the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, then after his demise, it’s only natural that the Pavilion would seek out this reincarnated immortal. That is why even experts of the Divine Infant Realm would obediently serve, content to be subordinates!

After all, we’re talking about an immortal here!

Of course, if reincarnation is indeed a thing, who knows what the intentions are of the Divine Infant Realm experts—whether they plan to kill the reincarnated immortal to truly take over the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, or to force out the secrets of the Immortal Law and ascend to immortality themselves?

In any case, without the requisite strength to take the throne, one would only be devoured by a pack of wolves!

Zhou Heng took a deep breath, pressing all these thoughts deep into his heart, something he could never admit. Although he possessed the Nine Mystic Trial Tower, the gap between him and a Divine Infant Realm expert was immeasurably vast. If he really encountered such an expert, they might very well have the power to snatch away the Nine Mystic Trial Tower.

He would not take such a risk!

Experts of the Divine Infant Realm are far too terrifying, capable of killing him with a mere thought, not leaving him with any chance of escape!

"What a pity, although I too would like to possess a massive enterprise like the Destined Pavilion, I’m really not the person you’re looking for," Zhou Heng shook his head. At most, he had simply come into possession of an Immortal Object, but in thought and consciousness, he remained himself.

Ruan Jiaying revealed a hint of disappointment. She had hoped that by being honest, Zhou Heng would reciprocate, but the man’s lips remained tightly sealed. Did she need to use her charm on him?

But even that might not work; this man’s luck with women was incredible. He had Lin Fuxiang, An Yumei, Gu Zi in the past, and now Xiao Huoshui and Mei Yixiang—constantly surrounded by beautiful women, each with looks, figure, temperament, and background not inferior to her!

If she resorted to using her charms, she really had no confidence in succeeding. She might even get herself into trouble—what a loss that would be!

"Then, Young Master Zhou, what brings you here today?" Ruan Jiaying, knowing Zhou Heng’s reticence, realized that pushing too hard would only backfire. It was better to proceed slowly and carefully.

Zhou Heng stated his purpose, needing to purchase a large number of weapons—of course, Magic Artifacts were preferred. While the rank was not required, the higher the grade, the better.

Ruan Jiaying was greatly puzzled, unable to understand why Zhou Heng would want these things. Did he really have too many Spirit Stones and nowhere to spend them? But the peculiar requests of guests must be accepted as long as they do not violate the regulations of the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

"Oh, by the way, Young Master Zhou, you will soon become very busy!" she said before Zhou Heng left.

"Oh? Why is that?" Zhou Heng asked casually.

"At the border of the Cold Blue Country and Water Origin Country among the four great nations, a Spirit Stone Mine Vein was discovered with an abundance of reserves. All four nations want it for themselves, but the Bright Moon Country has unexpectedly decreed that they should not escalate the matter too much!"

"As a result, the four nations have decided to determine the mining and allocation rights based on high-end battle power. Since Young Master Zhou has advanced to the Land Cleaving Realm and possesses such substantial battle power, it’s inevitable that you will be conscripted for the sake of the nation!"

Ruan Jiaying spoke melodiously, her voice pleasing to the ear and lingering like a joyous song.

Zhou Heng did not respond, leaving the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion to return to the inn. Xiao Huoshui had finally awoken, so he released this seductive woman to sit in his embrace, soft and supple as if she were made of spring water.

"A Spirit Stone Mine Vein?" Xiao Huoshui furrowed her slender brows after hearing what Ruan Jiaying had told Zhou Heng. "This is an opportunity, but also quite dangerous!"

"How so?"

"Every Spirit Stone Mine is formed around a Mother Stone, much like a Formation naturally formed by the earth, gathering Spiritual Energy over billions of years to form the vein. And if the quality of the Spirit Stone Mine is extremely high, a Spirit Core may form within the Mother Stone!"

"A Spirit Core?"

"Yes, a Spirit Core is the purest essence of Spiritual Energy, which not only allows martial artists to rapidly increase their strength but also grants tremendous enlightenment! Upper Grade Spirit Stones are known to aid in the martial artist’s enlightenment, and the effects of a Spirit Core are even stronger, but sadly, each Spirit Stone Mine can only form one Spirit Core, and not every vein will have one!"

Zhou Heng understood that the reason why each of the four nations refused to let go, besides the Spirit Stone Mine promising a continuous income of Spirit Stones, was more importantly the chance to acquire a Spirit Core!

Individuals like Nangong Changkong have been trapped at the First Layer Heaven for who knows how many years, and if they could obtain a Spirit Core, surmounting this minor realm barrier would naturally be within reach!

Therefore, even though it is still uncertain whether there is a Spirit Core, the experts of the four nations are each eager to fight for it!

To risk life and limb for strength is ingrained in the blood and marrow of every martial artist; otherwise, why would the Wind Howl Forest attract so many?

(To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to cast your recommendation votes, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)