Cultivating With Mutated Heavenly Spirit Roots-Chapter 87: Spirit Stone Mine

When Fang Hong saw Luo Hao’s tightly furrowed brows and solemn expression, he knew the situation was unusual.

It was truly perplexing that a cultivator at the Late stage of Golden Core would sigh repeatedly and be so unsettled.

He secretly wondered what major event could cause Senior Brother Luo to lose his composure like this.

A moment later, Luo Hao slammed a jade slip onto the stone table, producing a crisp sound.

His expression even carried a hint of lingering anger.

"Senior Brother, what exactly happened? Why are you so angry?" Fang Hong, sitting beside him, couldn’t help but ask.

"Alas, it’s all because of those matters in Zhao State," Luo Hao sighed deeply, his face full of helplessness.

"Zhao State? What happened to Zhao State?" Fang Hong’s heart tightened upon hearing this, feeling a subtle unease.

"Zhao State has officially launched a large-scale war against our Qin," Luo Hao said with a heavy tone.

"A large-scale war? This, when did this happen?" Fang Hong’s face showed surprise at the news.

"Just ten days ago," Luo Hao said, "This time is different from before; it’s not a small border skirmish, but the Zhao Emperor himself is personally leading the army, clearly determined to completely annex our Qin."

"Currently, some territories in the eastern part of Qin have already been captured."

Upon hearing this, Fang Hong’s heart trembled, and the scene of him snatching the golden thunder bamboo flashed in his mind. Could it be that the Zhao Emperor was enraged by this, leading him to personally dispatch troops?

"So, Senior Brother, you called me here because you want me to go to the front lines to participate in the battle?" Fang Hong inquired.

Luo Hao waved his hand and said, "Junior Brother, you’ve only recently reached Core Formation, and you probably haven’t even refined a Spiritual Treasure yet, so don’t go to the front lines for now."

"I called you here because I want you to guard a spirit stone mine."

"A spirit stone mine?" Fang Hong was startled.

"This spirit stone mine was only recently discovered by the sect and is currently being excavated. It’s quite important to our sect. You’ll go and guard it for a period of time and safely bring back the spirit stones to prevent them from being stolen by those from Zhao State."

Luo Hao took out a storage bag and handed it to Fang Hong, earnestly instructing him.

"Alright, I will bring back the spirit stones," Fang Hong accepted the storage bag and agreed.

As a member of the sect, Fang Hong couldn’t very well refuse under these circumstances...

The two chatted for a while longer, then Fang Hong bid farewell to Luo Hao and left Purple Cloud Peak.

He flew through the air, high above, checking the items in his storage bag as he flew.

Inside the storage bag were a token engraved with the sect’s mark, a map, and a large pile of empty Storage Pouches, presumably for holding spirit stones...

Fang Hong opened the map and examined it closely. The spirit stone mine was located in the northeastern corner of Qin, near the Zhao State border. The terrain was remote, but precisely because of this, it needed to be guarded.

No wonder he was sent to guard it; if cultivators from Zhao State truly discovered this place, they would likely immediately move to seize it.

Fang Hong put away the map, increased his flying speed, transforming into a crimson streak of light, and headed straight for his destination.

For now, he could only put aside the matter of refining flying needles.

...

Ten days later, Fang Hong finally arrived at the spirit stone mine, following the map’s guidance.

The mine was situated in an inconspicuous small valley, surrounded by mountains, with a secluded terrain.

At this time, the valley was covered by a faint grey fog, clearly an concealment formation set up by the sect to hide its Qi.

Fang Hong took out a communication talisman, injected Dan Fire into it, and threw it into the grey fog.

Soon, Fang Hong’s communication talisman received a response.

An old man in a yellow robe flew out from the grey fog, his cultivation being early stage of foundation building.

His expression was wary, his gaze fixed on Fang Hong, clearly guarding against uninvited guests.

"I am Fang Hong, sent by the Sect Leader’s command to guard the spirit stone mine," Fang Hong cupped his fists, announced his identity, and at the same time, took out the token Luo Hao had given him.

Upon seeing the token, the yellow-robed old man’s wary expression dissipated. He politely responded, "So it’s Fang Junior Brother. I am Cao Kun. Junior Brother, please come in quickly."

With that, he waved his hand, and the formation immediately opened a gap, inviting Fang Hong inside.

"Junior Brother looks a bit unfamiliar, and to form a Golden Core at such a young age, this old man is impressed," Cao Kun praised as he led the way, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

He had met most of the Elders in the sect, but never Fang Hong, which made him somewhat curious about Fang Hong.

"To be honest, I’ve only recently reached Core Formation, and my magical power is shallow. I’ll have to ask Senior Brother for much guidance during this time," Fang Hong humbly replied.

"Haha, no problem, no problem," Cao Kun laughed heartily, then led Fang Hong through the mist and into the valley.

The valley was densely vegetated, and a faint path wound through the woods in the hundred-zhang wide small valley. At its end, a cave entrance was clearly visible – that was the mine entrance.

The two descended along the cave, gradually going underground.

Below was a spacious grotto, filled with passages and stone chambers, where occasional "clang, clang, clang" sounds could be heard, which were the sounds of miners excavating.

"This is a low-grade spirit stones mine, quite large in scale. The sect has already begun large-scale mining, and we’ve hired a group of mortals to assist with the excavation," Cao Kun introduced as they walked.

"Currently, besides me, there are five early stage of foundation building disciples guarding this place. They conduct daily patrols and maintain order. With you here, it adds another layer of security."

"Senior Brother, how long will it take to mine such a mine?" Fang Hong asked.

"If there are no accidents, it should be completed within half a year," Cao Kun replied after a brief thought.

"Half a year, not too long..." Fang Hong nodded, making a mental note.

Afterward, the two chatted about Zhao State’s invasion and analyzed the changing situation, talking for two hours.

It wasn’t until dusk that Fang Hong returned to his stone chamber.

Back in his stone chamber, he immediately set up defenses.

With a flick of his finger, three Formation Flags landed in various corners of the room. Spiritual power flowed, forming a simple defensive formation.

This place was near the border, and the situation was unstable, so it was not suitable for refining complex Spiritual Treasures for a long time, in case of any changes.

However, refining some practical formation tools was fine.

He took out a pile of Demonic Beast materials and Ore, spat out a wisp of Dan Fire, and began refining.

...

Three days later, a brand new set of formation tools was completed.

The tools had a warm luster and emitted spiritual light, clearly indicating they were top-grade Spiritual Artifacts.

This was the "Five Elements Demon-Trapping Formation" he had personally refined, consisting of five Formation Flags. It could both attack enemies and set up a formation to trap them, possessing powerful might, and it was also one of the formations his beloved wife, Su Shan, had taught him.

Fang Hong put away the tools, walked out of the mine, and inserted the Formation Flags one by one around the valley.

Currently, the mine valley already had two layers of protection: the "Mist formation" and the "Golden Armor formation," set up by Cao Kun. Although they could be considered sturdy, they were still insufficient against a Late stage of Golden Core cultivator.

Now, with the addition of his "Five Elements Demon-Trapping Formation," the three formations complemented each other. Even if a Late stage of Golden Core cultivator wanted to force their way into the mine valley, they would have to expend a huge amount of magical power, which would be far from easy...