Chapter 89

The stone sphere in front of him was about the size of a fist. Unlike the earthy yellow exterior of the Wu Earth Stone, this stone sphere looked like gold, with a surface shimmering with a speckled luster.

This is the Wu Earth Essence Stone, no doubt. The Wu Earth Essence contained within, in terms of both concentration and quality, far surpasses that of the Wu Earth Stone. This is the Wu Earth Essence Stone that can increase the chances of a cultivator breaking through to the Martial Realm.

Yang Junshan tried his best to suppress his excitement, reaching into his waist pouch. However, his hand stopped midway, helplessly. Before entering the mine, all items on each person had to be handed over to the overseer for safekeeping, leaving only a bamboo basket, a mining pick, and two shovels. At this moment, even if Yang Junshan had a spirit-sealing box, he wouldn't be able to take it out through the array path.

After feeling the Wu Earth Essence Stone in his hand for a moment, Yang Junshan had no choice but to bury it under the pile of ore slag he had dug up, alongside the dozen or so Wu Earth Stones.

Putting on his mining pick and bamboo basket, Yang Junshan walked out of the mine tunnel without hesitation. Just as he reached the fork at the entrance of the tunnel, he encountered two miners chatting and laughing.

Seeing Yang Junshan come out, the two miners glanced at the bamboo basket on his back. One of them mocked, "Kid, did you dig a barren tunnel?"

Yang Junshan smiled wryly and said, "My luck wasn't too good!"

The other miner laughed and said, "You don't look very old, so you must be a newbie. Mining is a skill that requires experience. The more you do it, the more you will gain."

Yang Junshan smiled bitterly and said, "Thank you for your advice."

The two miners nodded at Yang Junshan and turned to enter a mine tunnel not far from him. Soon, the sound of mining could be heard from inside.

Yang Junshan sneered. The tunnel they entered wasn't much better than his. Clearly, these two weren't experienced miners either; they were just taking advantage of his youth.

However, what made Yang Junshan uneasy was that the number of miners in the Green Tree Village mine was increasing, and the frequency of cultivators passing by this tunnel had also increased. This made his mining and cultivation intermittent. In the past, one Wu Earth Stone was enough for him to cultivate for two days in the mine, but now, after three days, he still hadn't absorbed all the Wu Earth Essence from the one he had.

In the past, Yang Junshan had thought about using a storage bag to avoid detection by the array path. He had even planned to find a storage bag, but now, with all items being handed over before entering the mine, a storage bag would be impossible to hide.

The next day, Yang Junshan hurriedly entered another of the three tunnels he had previously confirmed. The Wu Earth Stones in the previous tunnel had been mostly mined by Yang Junshan, and even if there were any left, they would be increasingly difficult to dig. He had spent a whole day mining to find the Wu Earth Essence Stone but found nothing.

He needed to find another tunnel containing Wu Earth Stones, as he could confirm that there was at least one Wu Earth Essence Stone there, and the mining of ordinary Wu Earth Stones would be easier than in the previous tunnel.

Despite his mental preparation, after digging for half a day, the scene before him made him somewhat amused and frustrated. He didn't find any Wu Earth Stones, but he did find a rich vein of soft earth, clearly of very high quality.

Half an hour before going down the mine, Yang Junshan went to the usual meeting place with Chu Chuang and others to collect the refined ore they had already screened, and to inform them of a couple of places where there might be rich veins, enough for them to mine for two or three days.

However, this time, Yang Junshan carried a full basket of raw ore. From a distance, he could hear Chu Chuang and the others discussing.

"Damn, the spirit grains in town are getting more expensive!"

"Chu Chuang has reduced our mining fees and the quota for refined ore, and we've all increased our yield of soft earth powder, but in the end, we're still buying the same amount of spirit grains as before."

"If it weren't for Chu Chuang, you wouldn't even be able to buy the spirit grains you have now."

"Ah, he didn't mean it that way, but the quality of the spirit grains is getting worse. The black-hearted grain merchants are mixing in more sand and grass roots, and their attitudes are becoming more arrogant. We can only grit our teeth and swallow the blood."

"The old man Liang in the eastern part of the village hasn't eaten spirit grains for over ten days to save resources for his grandson's cultivation. At his age, his cultivation will likely collapse soon, and he won't live much longer."

"Compared to other villages, our village is in a better situation, thanks to Chu Chuang leading us."

Yang Junshan silently approached with the bamboo basket. The adults, upon seeing him, showed great respect and called out, "Young Master Yang!"

These people were the villagers who had led the strike with Chu Chuang. After the incident, Chu Chuang became the mine leader of Green Tree Village. Since they had all risked their lives, this bond of life and death made them the most trusted brothers.

Yang Junshan was not originally part of their circle, but they saw him as someone who clearly mastered the secret technique of prospecting. Since Chu Chuang met this "Young Master Yang," the amount of refined ore they screened each day increased by ten percent, and the yield of soft earth powder increased by one and a half times. Therefore, even though Yang Junshan always took a basket of refined ore from them without mining, they had no complaints and respected him even more.

Chu Chuang hurried over and, seeing the full basket of raw ore, complained, "Oh, Young Brother Yang, I told you not to mine. Just find some rich veins for us and find a place to cultivate. Why did you dig again..."

Yang Junshan used one hand to unload the 200-pound basket of raw ore and threw it to the ground, where the stones rolled out with a "clatter."

"Wow!"

Even Chu Chuang, a seasoned miner, couldn't help but exclaim when he saw the basket of raw ore. "This ore is of such high quality. The so-called rich veins we found before are just slag compared to this. Young Brother Yang, Young Master Yang, where did you find this?"

Yang Junshan smiled helplessly and said, "I found it by chance. Have the brothers crush and screen the refined ore and divide it among themselves."

Chu Chuang quickly waved his hands. "No, no, the quality of this basket of ore is too different from the others. We can't take such a big advantage."

"It's fine, it's fine. Just take it. I've already collected enough soft earth powder. I'll probably leave soon, and when I do, I'll tell you about this rich vein. It should be enough for all of you to mine for a few days and increase your income."

Yang Junshan had already collected enough soft earth powder. He stayed in the mine only for the Wu Earth Stones. Even Han Xiusheng had repeatedly urged him to collect other minerals. Now, with Wu Earth Stones on his mind, he didn't care about the soft earth ore.

However, the more indifferent Yang Junshan was, the more grateful Chu Chuang and the others became. The quality of these rich veins was almost a generation higher than ordinary ore, and the yield of refined ore after screening would likely increase significantly. For Chu Chuang and the others, this was a substantial income, and Yang Junshan was willing to give it away.

At Chu Chuang's gesture, one of the brothers carefully picked up Yang Junshan's basket, and another collected all the scattered raw ore.

"Brother Yang, what can I say to you?"

Yang Junshan smiled. "We're all friends, and helping each other is what we should do."

Chu Chuang's eyes showed even more gratitude as he looked at Yang Junshan, then glanced at the other brothers, as if they were sharing a silent understanding. He then looked back at Yang Junshan, hesitating.

The other brothers, seeing this, went to do other tasks. Yang Junshan smiled. "Brother Chu, just say what you need!"

Chu Chuang hesitated. "We, the poor brothers, have received much help from Brother Yang. I, Chu Chuang, shouldn't be greedy, but now our lives are difficult, and I have to ask Brother Yang for a way out."

Yang Junshan, seeing the seriousness in Chu Chuang's words, became solemn. "Please speak."

Chu Chuang whispered, "I won't hide anything from Brother Yang. After learning your identity, I sent someone to town to find out about Third Master Yang..."

At this point, Chu Chuang glanced at Yang Junshan's face, but seeing no displeasure, he continued, "Unexpectedly, I heard many things about Third Master Yang from town. Recently, it's said that his village hasn't reduced its production despite the locust disaster. They say Third Master Yang has plenty of grain. So, I boldly ask Brother Yang for a way to exchange for some spirit grains from Third Master Yang."

Yang Junshan raised an eyebrow and heard Chu Chuang quickly add, "Of course, the price will not be unfair to Third Master Yang. We will exchange with ground soft earth powder, and the price will be according to the market..."

Chu Chuang bit his lip and said, "Even if it's a bit higher, it's fine!"

Yang Junshan was surprised. "Even higher? What's the point? Why not just buy from town?"

"Oh, Young Master Yang!"

Chu Chuang complained, "The real difficulty isn't the price, but that even if you have the money, you can't get the goods. The spirit grains in town, mixed with dry grass and sand, are supplied in limited quantities, and everyone is fighting for them, no matter the price!"