Chapter 30 Searching for Mineral Veins "From now on, we must not be separated by too much distance..."
The cave was deep and dark, with a path winding into the bottomless darkness. The two prepared themselves, lit a lamp, and began their exploration.
Qiao Yanshen activated his spiritual energy detection, and a pure aura swept over him. "Such rich spiritual energy, this place is truly a feng shui treasure land."
The wall was also covered with a layer of crystal-clear ice, within which vague shadows moved. When Shen Lixia got closer, she saw that they were some kind of extremely small and delicate creature, emitting a faint glow that, along with the lamplight, illuminated the darkness. She reached out and poked the surface, but the creature did not move; it simply floated there naturally.
For a moment, only faint footsteps echoed.
The deeper they went, the more microorganisms appeared. After going an unknown distance, the icicles at the top and the surrounding ice layers were full of life. Whether it was plants or tiny microorganisms, they all emitted light, making the surroundings look like a fairyland, while the lamplight dimmed. Qiao Yanshen put the lamp away and looked down to see that the ice layer under his feet was particularly dazzling, showing a different dark color.
"The further in you go, the fresher the air becomes." Shen Lixia was walking when she saw the person in front of her stop and curiously peered out, her gaze falling on the crystals beneath the ice. "What is this?"
Qiao Yanshen observed the cold light flowing across the surface and the chilling aura emanating from it, and he understood immediately, "This is the mineral vein that True Monarch Mingji spoke of—let's select materials from here."
As she said this, she didn't move, but instead stared thoughtfully at the mineral vein hidden beneath the ice.
Shen Lixia squatted down to take a closer look, and her spiritual energy detected a faint chill, immediately understanding Qiao Yanshen's thoughts.
“Since we’re already here, we should take the best.” She said, standing up and continuing to walk forward. “The deeper we go, the more spiritual energy gathers, and the more creatures there are. There must be some kind of treasure.”
After all, the scenery here is already extraordinary, and an ice cave has sustained so many lives.
Qiao Yanshen shook his head, his steps still halted. "But there could also be danger."
The boy laughed.
“Senior sister, you’re not new to knowing what kind of person I am,” she shrugged, her hand resting on the longsword at her waist. “You can’t get anything good in these things without taking a gamble.”
After saying that, she ran her hand along the hilt of the sword to the blade, looking quite dashing. Qiao Yanshen chuckled and followed in her footsteps.
"From now on, learn basic swordsmanship with me, and then go to Wan Jian Feng for further instruction. This hand gesture is not neat enough for drawing the sword, and it is easy to drop it."
"Senior sister, please stop embarrassing me..."
“If I ever get to go back, I’ll have to keep an eye on your daily expenses.”
"It wasn't that kind of betting! I have a clean record and my conscience is as clear as a mirror!"
While joking and laughing, Qiao Yanshen secretly channeled his spiritual power and slowly walked back to Shen Lixia, so that she wouldn't be caught off guard if anything happened. The light on the ice illuminated the two of them, casting fleeting shadows as they continued walking forward.
The mineral veins gradually increased, distributed on the surrounding ice walls or the ice layer above, shimmering with a faint light.
Reaching the end of the road, Qiao Yanshen saw that the space ahead was open, but there was a break in the middle, and he had to carefully climb down. The spiritual energy was so dense that it had become a large fog; one could almost pinch droplets out of it. The fog ahead was the thickest, which must be the source.
"Li Xia, let me go down and scout ahead."
Shen Lixia nodded and stayed above to keep an eye on the surroundings for Qiao Yanshen. Because of the high altitude, the view was wide open, and any movement could be spotted at a glance.
Qiao Yanshen channeled her spiritual power, causing the shattered ice to slightly deform and slowly spread down to the bright, flat ground below. The light from her spiritual power mingled with the reflection of the ice, creating a tapestry of varying shades. She drew her sword and swept away the slowly drifting white mist, the sword's aura sharply cutting through a clear expanse. As the mist dissipated, a mineral vein was revealed. Unlike the previous ones, it was not a deep, dark blue; instead, it shimmered with iridescent light, spreading out in soft, variegated halos.
After confirming there were no other dangers, Qiao Yanshen returned to the fault line and said to Shen Lixia above, "You can come down now."
Upon hearing this, the girl nimbly flipped over and slid down the path Qiao Yanshen had previously taken. Just before landing, she leaned forward, positioned herself next to Qiao Yanshen, and jumped down with her knees bent.
Qiao Yanshen subconsciously took a step toward her, and then reached out his hand—a firm touch landed on her arms.
Oh no!
Despite being a quick-witted person, Shen Lixia, who was caught in Qiao Yanshen's arms, did not immediately recoil as if electrocuted. Instead, she stood there for a few seconds, and only after Qiao Yanshen released her did she belatedly blink to prove that time had not stopped.
I did it subconsciously.
Qiao Yanshen coughed lightly, "Let's go, there's something strange about the mine ahead."
"Oh..." Shen Lixia squeezed out this reply, quickly raising her hand to pat her face, her voice regaining its usual energy, "Let's go! Did we really find something good!"
Their breaths were still imprinted on each other's bodies, the lingering warmth quickly dissipating.
Reaching the ore vein, Qiao Yanshen brandished his sword, its blade hovering above the ore, pondering where to begin cutting. Shen Lixia leaned closer to examine it closely, and just as the cold tip of the sword was inches from the gleaming surface, she suddenly heard a low, aggrieved sob emanating from within.
So she gently pushed the longsword away with her fingertips and sent a message to Qiao Yanshen through her spiritual power: "Senior sister, please put the sword away for a moment."
Then, she carefully stroked the surface of the ore. "Would you like to talk to me? I can hear your voice."
The soft voice stopped abruptly, as if it had just been a hallucination. Qiao Yanshen sheathed his sword and bent down with her to examine the surface of the vein closely, wondering what was amiss.
The two exchanged spiritual energy, and Shen Lixia explained that there was a suspected spiritual entity in the mine, which must have been born from bathing in spiritual energy for too long, in other words, it had become a spirit.
Recalling Yan Xueya's words, Qiao Yanshen told Shen Lixia about the natal sword, and Shen Lixia curiously bent her finger and tapped the ore lightly.
"If it possesses its own consciousness, then a sword spirit will emerge the moment the sword is forged. This world is truly wondrous; all things have a spirit—I now understand this."
"You've always felt that way, haven't you?"
"Yes, the tree in front of our door has one too."
Qiao Yanshen blinked. "Have you spoken to it?"
Seeing Shen Lixia nod, she wasn't too surprised.
After hearing the legends about the Four Symbols, this matter didn't seem so strange anymore. And it was expected that my junior sister, who loved things in nature, would share a common language with these creatures.
Next time, she wants to listen to the whispers between the person and the tree.
“Since it possesses sentience, its greatest desire should be to remain here. Besides, forging a sword inevitably involves tempering it in fierce fire; for us to take it would be as cruel as sending a living person into a fire pit. So…” Shen Lixia stroked her chin, “we might need to deceive it a bit…”
“If it’s unwilling, don’t force it.” Qiao Yanshen shook his head. “There are many mineral veins here, just find another one.”
Shen Lixia was stunned for a moment, then, as if she had expected it, she sighed, "As expected, Senior Sister would say that! I shouldn't have told you."
Qiao Yanshen narrowed his eyes and smiled, "You will tell me."
The two stepped back and began discussing their next move. The vein of minerals flickered with fluorescent light, and as if sensing the silence, a small voice spoke again: "Have they left?"
"Shh..."
Shen Lixia raised her eyes and whispered to Qiao Yanshen, "It's not just one, but a pair of sentient veins. I'll try to communicate with them using the method we agreed on first, and Senior Sister, please cooperate with me."
After speaking, she moved closer to the mine and lit a bright flame with her fingertips. The owner of the voice felt the heat approaching, screamed, and then tried to play dead, but Shen Lixia exposed her.
"I heard you—if you keep pretending to be ostriches, I'll slice you all into pieces." The firelight illuminated the boy's squinting eyes, making his narrow profile appear even more cunning.
Hearing this, one of the spirits hidden in the mine couldn't help but retort: "If you destroy us, the spiritual energy in this mine will be lost, and the spiritual vein will be ruined. It might even collapse, and we'll all die then."
"That's really awful!" Shen Lixia snapped, raising her hand to tap the side that had given the voice twice, as if tapping a child's forehead. The spirit on the other side seemed pleased, chuckling softly. It sounded extremely gentle, and for some reason, somewhat similar to Qiao Yanshen's voice, unintentionally touching Shen Lixia's heartstrings, causing her initially fierce aura to soften somewhat. The young man looked over there, simultaneously sending a telepathic message for Qiao Yanshen to come and take a look as well.
The two faced each other across the two mines. After a moment of silence, the mine spirit, with a soft voice, said, "I like them... Didn't you always say you wanted to go out? Cultivators are people who travel the world; they can definitely roam everywhere."
The unpleasant-speaking mine spirit was rendered speechless by its words, and after a long while, it muttered, "But if we go out, we'll be burned, and we might get hurt... Besides, I don't want to be separated from you."
Shen Lixia sensed a familiar meaning in the sound and couldn't help but recall Simmons's eye roll earlier. She immediately wanted to imitate her and roll her eye back.
Unfortunately, they didn't have eyes, so they were definitely blind. Qiao Yanshen, however, noticed her subtle expression and curiously asked why.
She relayed the conversation, and the other person, upon hearing it, raised their hand to cover their face with their long sleeve, concealing their smile.
"Then let's go out together."
"But who can guarantee where we'll go next? If we get separated after we leave, how will I ever find you again...?"
Hearing this, Shen Lixia understood—this was a pair of spirit mines born together. Judging from Yan Xueya's words, it must have taken a long time to accumulate such rich spiritual energy, forming a mysterious cave. Since the mines were adjacent, their spiritual consciousness must also be symbiotic. Once they gained the feelings of living beings in the world, it was only natural that they would feel an inseparable bond.
The soft-voiced spirit chuckled gently: "Then let them swear an oath."
Immediately, Shen Lixia realized that it seemed to be very close to her, and its voice became clearer: "This cultivator, are you here to find materials for making swords? We can go out with you, but you... you have to make a promise."
“Okay.” Shen Lixia nodded readily.
If my senior sister could hear this, she would definitely agree.
"From now on, we must not be separated for too long or too far. If I become a swordsman, I wish to be with my two sworn brothers who share a deep bond, and to sing in harmony with each other."
Thus, Shen Lixia found herself in a difficult position. A sworn sisterhood is a two-way street; no single person can guarantee anything. If it's not mutual, forcing it will be futile. She thought for a moment and then relayed Kuang Ling's words to Qiao Yanshen.
Qiao Yanshen, who was gently stroking the surface of the mineral vein as if feeling the chill, listened to the story, nodded slightly, and his eyes met Chen Lixia's gaze.
"Li Xia, are you willing?"
Why are you asking this as if it were at some grand ceremony?
A flush instantly rose to Shen Lixia's face. She quickly raised her hand to pat her cheeks and shook her head a couple of times. Seeing her like this, Qiao Yanshen couldn't help but chuckle. "This is a decision we made together. If you want to know my attitude, then I'm willing."
After all, he had promised from the beginning, both in his heart and in his words, that he would stay with her until they found their way home.
The girl stopped rubbing her face, the heat still lingering, whether from her own pinching or from the lingering emotions she had been experiencing. She bit her lower lip, suppressing her pounding heart, and silently recited a passage from a calming text—even though she didn't remember it very clearly.
Is there some kind of magic in my senior sister's voice? Now that I hear it, it's even more captivating than Chang Yi's melodious voice just now.
"I..." Shen Lixia hesitated for a long time before finally saying firmly, "I do."
She drew her iron sword and lightly traced a line across her fingertip, blood immediately welling up. Qiao Yanshen did the same, and the two of them rotated their wrists together, letting the blood drip onto the shimmering ore. The bright red flowed onto the crystal-clear surface, mingling with it before finally disappearing.
"Alright, then we'll go with you."
Once the vow was fulfilled, the cracks at the root of the vein meandered and then naturally fell away, leaving a smooth and regular cut surface.
Something seemed to be connected and intertwined in the darkness.
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Author's note: Finding materials is like forming a pact!
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