Inside the Qianqiu Tower, Hong Le, who was in charge, felt the humming of the formation's core, and his legs went limp.

"Shopkeeper."

The maid who was taking a nap together showed a hint of charm.

"roll!"

But at this moment, Hong Le didn't care about himself. He pushed away the maid in front of him and ran towards the bottom of Qianqiu Tower.

…

Beneath the earth, a large hole was torn in the spiritual barrier between the jadeite vein and the cloud crystal vein.

The eyes of the two demon cultivators who were originally attacking each other were filled with crystal clear light.

"Dongtian Stone!"

"Qi Yousan, if you chase me again, I will die with you."

Luo Hao roared. He was not surprised that his senior brother attacked him. He had thought about killing his senior brother more than once.

What is surprising is why they are taking action now.

Qi Yousan's face was gloomy. He was now wondering what went wrong. He wanted to kill his junior brother, but not now.

Just before, he did it for some reason.

Looking at the Cave Heaven Stone in front of him, he looked at his junior brother who was escaping to the side, hesitated for a moment, and grabbed the Cave Heaven Stone.

Compared with a large, thick and worthless green jade stone, a cave stone is worth tens of thousands of spirit stones.

If all the cave stones in front of us were dug out, we could buy any spiritual object.

As for how to deal with the large quantities of cave stones, that is a matter for the future.

Looking at the South China Sea, everyone knows that the Dongtian Stone mine is monopolized by the Qianqiu Chamber of Commerce.

But as a magic cultivator, there is no such thing as entering a treasure mountain and returning empty-handed.

There were not only these two demon cultivators in the Qingyu Mine Cave, but soon other hidden guys were also attracted.

Several figures came out from all around the mine and plunged into the Dongtian Stone Mine.

The two demon cultivators who were frantically digging in the mine sensed the humming of the restriction and also realized that someone else had come in.

But everyone's current attention is on the Dongtian Stone. Although they are wary of each other, they will start to mine once they have chosen a place.

On the side of the jadeite vein, Shen Lian's figure merged with the earth and rocks, sensing the demon cultivator rushing into the cave stone vein.

I didn't expect that there were so many demon cultivators hiding in the jade mine, more than a dozen in total.

These demon cultivators were different from him. They were not meticulous in their work and simply swung their magic weapons and chopped towards the cloud crystal stone veins.

But the more this happened, the more satisfied Shen Lian felt.

This time, Qianqiu Chamber of Commerce can only suffer.

Some demon cultivators were not so concerned with spiritual objects as to sacrifice their lives. After mining some cave stones, they sensed the fluctuations of the formation's restrictions and began to flee.

…

"My good brother, I hope you won't let me get the chance."

In the vast forests, birds and beasts were chirping. Luo Hao walked quickly along the mountain. He only dug a small part of the ore from the cloud crystal mine and ran out.

Compared to the opportunities within the mine, life is the most important.

However, when Luo Hao entered a valley and was about to walk through the mountain, he found a figure in front of him, looking at him in mid-air.

“Senior Brother!”

Suddenly, Luo Hao's expression froze.

"Junior brother, where are you going... hehe..."

In horror, Luo Hao wanted to escape, but suddenly his sea of ​​consciousness seemed to be torn apart. He couldn't help but hold his head with his hands and screamed loudly.

In the blink of an eye, Luo Hao was taken away by a wave, and Qi Yousan, who appeared in the valley, also disappeared.

After a few breaths, Shen Lian appeared outside the valley.

The two culprits who broke the ban were brought to justice by him, Shen!

…

A few days later.

Shen Lian appeared outside the Yunshang main mining city.

The sounds of cranes and eagles could be heard from afar, and a team of more than a dozen foundation-building monks blocked his way from afar.

The leading cultivator was at the ninth level of the foundation building stage.

This was the first time he had seen a guard team of such size and strength.

Seeing that these monks were all wearing the uniform of the mining city guards, Shen Lian did not show anything and continued to fly forward.

Soon, he was stopped.

"Fellow Daoist, I am the patrol commander Mu Tianhua. Please take out your identity jade token for me to see."

The monk who spoke was dressed in a black robe, and his eyes were full of scrutiny as he looked Shen Lian up and down.

Not only that, this team of monks was in a semi-encirclement state, looking at Shen Lian vigilantly.

Shen Lian took off his jade token from his waist and threw it towards Mu Tianhua.

"Commander Mu, I am Lu Shan."

Mu Tianhua returned the greeting calmly, still examining Shen Lian, and said, "Daoyou obtained this jade talisman in the Red Crystal Mine City. It took you more than 100,000 miles to get to the main mine city. Did you encounter any demon cultivators on the way?"

"My magical power is pretty good, and the journey was smooth."

Shen Lian smiled slightly.

His answer was quite pertinent. Here in the Tianzhu Mountain mining area, the Golden Core True Person is the first level, the False Core is the second level, and the Foundation Establishment Level Nine cultivator is the strongest person after the True Person.

"Don't blame me, Fellow Daoist Lu. Recently, the demon cultivators have been in chaos and attacking the mining city. I am just doing routine work."

After a brief explanation, Mu Tianhua continued to ask questions.

"I wonder what Brother Lu is doing in the main mining city?"

"Purchase spiritual objects for cultivation."

Shen Lian did not hide it and replied.

"Fellow Daoist, you have come at the right time. Now that the demons are causing chaos, it is time for us cultivators to uphold the righteous path, slay the demons and protect the law."

After hearing this, Shen Lian suddenly felt something was wrong.

We just met by chance, and he started to pump me up right away. This is obviously a conspiracy.

"Fellow Daoist, the sect has issued an imperial decree that all cultivators in the mining area are obliged to eliminate the demonic cultivators. What do you think, fellow Daoist?"

Shen Lian looked at the group of monks in front of him, and then looked at the monks in the distance who were also stopped by the patrol team.

This is obvious, and the next response must be correct.

"Exterminating demons and defending the Way is naturally the responsibility of cultivators like me."

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Lu is indeed open-minded. There is no need for me to say any more nonsense."

Mu Tianhua rubbed his fingers and a smile appeared on his face.

"Friend Mu, I just came out of the mountains, but what big thing happened?"

"You may not know, Fellow Daoist Lu, that a great demon appeared in Tianzhu Mountain. His name is Yuan Ling. Perhaps Fellow Daoist Lu has heard of this demon's name before.

Now, this devil has been promoted to the late Jindan stage, and even escaped from the hands of Master Jinyuan of my Yunshang Sect.

Now it is wreaking havoc on the entire mining area and trying to massacre the mining city. We monks should do our part to slay the demon."

"I see."

Shen Lian raised his eyebrows.

Damn it, I shouldn’t have come to the main mining city if I had known.

When we were searching for a few demon cultivators' souls before, we found that the old demon Yuan Ling was only in the middle stage of the Golden Core, but his combat power was comparable to that of the late stage of the Golden Core.

Now he has been promoted to the late stage of Jindan. Doesn't that mean he has the strength to compete with the great perfection of Jindan?

Zhenren Jinyuan is the powerful Jindan Great Perfection master who is stationed in the main mining city of Yunshang Sect.

The combat power comparable to that of a Golden Core Great Perfection is equivalent to having the strength to integrate the magic cultivators in the mining area.

No wonder they have to force people to join their group to resist the evil cultivators.

"Friend Mu, does this old demon dare to attack the mining city?"

Shen Lian nodded and asked.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, I am also following orders. After entering the city, just report my name to the guard at the city gate."

"In addition, fellow Daoist and I are both at the ninth level of foundation building. There will be spirit stones as rewards, and we will each share half."

"That's not necessary. Let's leave the rewards to Fellow Daoist Mu and all the other fellow Daoists."

A flash of understanding passed through Shen Lian's mind, and he said lightly.

Mu Tianhua glanced at the monk next to him, clasped his fists, and the smile on his face became much friendlier.

"Thank you very much, Fellow Daoist Lu."

Shen Lian looked around and asked calmly, "Fellow Daoist Mu, are we really going to go to war with the demon cultivators?"

"That requires the decision of the ancestors. How can you and I, who are only at the foundation-building stage, know that?"

Mu Tianhua explained without any ambiguity: "In short, the mining area has been unstable recently. If you have a female Taoist partner of the same realm, you should be careful."

"Mu still has to inspect the mining area, so I'll take my leave now. We'll meet in the city later. Please have a few drinks with Brother Lu."

Watching Mu Tianhua and his men go away and head towards a stream of light in the distance, Shen Lian showed a thoughtful look.

It is probably impossible to leave now, as there are many patrol teams like Mu Tianhua around.

Moreover, the patrol team's size and realm have been raised to the foundation-building level, which also shows that they are well prepared to deal with emergencies.

Stay here for a while and find another opportunity to leave.

They came all the way to the main mining city. This was Shen Lian’s second time here. The last time he came, the security was not so strict.

At this moment, the formation above the city was looming, and there was still residual demonic energy appearing in the east and north directions of the city.

This is clearly the aura that could only be left behind by a fight between Jindan level experts.

Could it be that the demon cultivators were so bold that they even dared to break into the main mining city? Not long after, Shen Lian figured out the whole story. Before that, he killed the cultivator named Lin Yang and got the news that his master was hiding near the main mining city, so he ran to the Qingyu mining city.

The ones who left their aura outside the city were Master Lin Yang and others, who were noticed by the Yunshang Sect's Zhenren stationed in the main mining city, and a war broke out.

However, this battle did not leave behind any Jindan-level demon cultivators.

When Shen Lian landed at the guard tower in front of the main mining city gate, he found that there were more than a dozen foundation-building cultivators who were about to land.

Obviously, all the foundation-building cultivators who come to the main mining city will be forcibly conscripted, whether they like it or not.

"Lu Shan, who introduced you here?"

Inside the building, a fake alchemy cultivator took a look at Shen Lian's identity jade card and spoke lightly.

"Introduction?"

Shen Lian was stunned.

Obviously I was forced.

"Oh, it's Fellow Daoist Mu Tianhua."

"Um."

Without even looking up, Fake Dan Zhenren threw the identity jade talisman to Shen Lian, and casually picked up a jade slip with the word "Mu".

"Ninth level of foundation building, five thousand spirit stones..."

"Senior, please leave all the spiritual stones to Fellow Daoist Mu and other fellow Daoists."

Hearing this, Master Jiadan didn't even look at Shen Lian, but threw the spirit stone he had grabbed back into the storage box beside him.

He picked up another jade talisman and threw it to Shen Lian.

"Refine this talisman to record your war merits. After the demon slaying is over, you can exchange your war merits for spiritual objects."

"Also, once you enter the city, you are not allowed to leave without permission unless you have a demon-killing mission."

"Next."

…

After leaving the guard tower and entering the city, Shen Lian also learned the whole story from the monk next to him.

Yunshang Sect issued an order half a month ago to suspend the transportation of various minerals.

All sects, chambers of commerce, and cultivators will be incorporated into the demon-slaying system.

Individual cultivators will determine the amount of combat merit based on the number of demon cultivators they have hunted down, and redeem them for the spiritual items they need for cultivation.

The Chamber of Commerce and the Sect need to determine the overall combat merit of the monks they have sent out to allocate the subsequent share of ore sales.

With one decree, the Yunshang Sect directly closed all the mining areas in the northern part of the South China Sea, and changed from free trade to distribution according to work.

At least that's the case on the surface, but in private it depends on who can hide it better.

As soon as Shen Lian entered the city, he sensed a powerful aura in the distance passing through the city gate.

The spiritual light dissipated, revealing a cultivator who looked like a wealthy man from the mortal world. He looked indifferent, and without even looking at anyone, he walked towards the Yunshang Tower in the center of the city.

"Master Nan Yue."

"I heard that his home in Qianzhu Mountain Range was robbed by a demon cultivator, and more than a thousand of his Taoist companions, wives, concubines, disciples and servants were slaughtered. Now he has entered Tianzhu Mountain to find the culprit."

Shen Lian looked at Master Nan Yue who disappeared in the distance. He was a witness to the theft of Master Nan Yue's house.

Speaking of the enemy of Master Nan Yue, perhaps we have to trace it back to the now popular old demon Yuan Ling.

At least the information Shen Lian knows now is confirmed by the memories he collected from the demon cultivator.

The old demon Yuan Ling is most likely the one who practiced the Yin-Yang and Five Internal Organs Refining Demonic Art.

Now, the combat power of this old demon Yuan Ling is comparable to that of a golden elixir master.

Shaking his head, he quickly walked around the shops in the city.

Under the decree of the Yunshang Sect, ordinary first-grade, second-grade, and medium-grade spiritual objects are still in normal circulation.

However, the upper-grade second-level and lower-grade third-level cultivation resources were all stuck.

However, this has little impact on Shen Lian.

…

"Fellow Daoist, there is only this small piece of second-level lower-grade lightning stone in this shop."

In a shop called Lingfang Pavilion, Shen Lian put a fist-sized lightning stone into his bag.

As long as it was a thunder-attributed ore, he would collect them all into his storage magic weapon, regardless of their low grade.

After searching the small shops, Shen Lian looked towards Qianqiu Tower.

The Qianqiu Tower in the main mining city is much more magnificent than the previous Qianqiu Tower, and its area alone covers more than ten miles.

There were pavilions, towers, waterside terraces and flower gardens, and the outside was shrouded in formations, while the inside was filled with spiritual energy like fog.

He walked slowly towards Qianqiu Tower and was soon invited in by a servant. He entered an quaint single room and was served spiritual tea.

Shen Lian sipped the spiritual tea quietly, occasionally glancing at the streets in the city.

These past few days, while he was collecting thunder-attribute ores in the main mining city, he also confirmed one thing.

That is, even though he was forcibly conscripted by the Yunshang Sect, he still had his freedom. He just had to find a team to leave the city and escape far away from the mining area.

This rule cannot restrain him at all.

Unless the Jindan Zhenren follows him personally, no one can stop him if he wants to run away.

No matter how good the spiritual objects that the Yunshang Sect brought out were, they were not to his liking. After he collected some thunder-attributed ores, he would flee far away to find a place to make the Golden Elixir.

Let's leave the task of eliminating demons and defending the Dao to other fellow Taoists for the time being.

(End of this chapter)