Gateway of Immortality-Chapter 370: Cold Gold Ore

Even though the group was quite strong, they were still left in a miserable state while being pursued by the evil spirits.

Kong Xin swiftly darted into the cave, and the others hurried to follow. However, to their dismay, the cave turned out to be a dead end!

In an instant, the entrance was completely blocked by evil spirits. The eerie wails outside grew increasingly piercing, making it impossible to tell how many of these creatures had been alerted within the underground cavern.

Everyone's expressions changed drastically. They glared at Kong Xin with hostility, including Qin Sang, who had already developed a killing intent.

It was one thing for Kong Xin to tell harmless little lies to take a shortcut, but leading them straight into a dead end was no different from sending them to their deaths. Such a crime was unforgivable!

"You must have a death wish!"

The red-robed woman flew into a rage, her artifacts aimed directly at Kong Xin, her killing intent fully revealed.

Unexpectedly, Kong Xin remained calm and composed, as if he had nothing to fear.

Qin Sang frowned. He found Kong Xin’s actions rather strange. What was the point of this? After all, Kong Xin himself was trapped as well. If they were all going to die, he would be the first to go. No fool would be stupid enough to plot a scheme that would only lead to their own demise. freēnovelkiss.com

With that in mind, Qin Sang shifted his gaze away from Kong Xin and instead began examining the surroundings. When his eyes landed on the cave walls, his expression subtly changed.

Kong Xin calmly pointed toward the depths of the cave. "Everyone, take a look at these stone walls. Notice anything different compared to outside?"

The group was taken aback and turned their heads.

Thanks to Kong Xin’s reminder, they finally noticed something unusual. Unlike the completely black stone outside, these walls faintly glowed with a white, icy radiance.

At the most conspicuous spot, they could even make out the outline of a fingernail-sized crystal embedded within the rock.

"These..."

The first to recognize this cold radiance was the cultivator surnamed Bao. Shocked, he exclaimed, "Could this be Cold Gold's mother lode?"

"Cold Gold?"

Most of the group had at least heard of Cold Gold.

Qin Sang recognized it even earlier than the cultivator Bao.

The notes given to him by Shopkeeper Wu contained descriptions of rare spiritual materials, including Cold Gold. When incorporated into artifacts, it not only granted extreme cold properties but also significantly enhanced their durability—an incredibly valuable material.

To think they had yet to reach the true depths of Endless Valley, and they had already stumbled upon a Cold Gold vein. This place was indeed a land of treasures.

Kong Xin nodded.

"That’s right. This is indeed Cold Gold's mother lode. After refining, it can be processed into precious Cold Gold."

"Originally, the area above was swarming with ghostly creatures—far more than what you see now. Tens of thousands of them had occupied the surrounding mountains, turning this place into a death trap. No one dared to intrude, which is why this hidden passage remained undiscovered."

"Were it not for that, this mother lode would have long since been excavated."

"After the recent upheaval, I noticed a dramatic change in the lair here. The number of ghostly creatures had significantly decreased, so I took the opportunity to sneak in and investigate. That’s when I discovered this passage and the mother lode."

"Unfortunately, my cultivation is too weak to mine it alone, nor do I dare to publicize its existence. If I partnered with other forces, I’d likely be devoured without even my bones remaining. Thus, I had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure.

"If you all don’t want the Cold Gold, I won’t insist. The exit is just ahead. If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to check for yourselves.

"However, it won’t be long before this place’s secret is exposed. Sooner or later, others will find this passage, and the mother lode will fall into someone else’s hands...

"Walking away empty-handed from a treasure trove—won’t you regret it?"

The cultivator Bao eyed him suspiciously and asked, "What are you suggesting? You’re willing to share the mother lode with us?"

Kong Xin said matter-of-factly, "Whoever finds it gets a share—I understand this principle well. Whatever we mine, we split evenly among all present. Consider it my way of making amends. Otherwise, I doubt any of you would let me off so easily. Besides, with evil spirits lurking outside, mining this mother lode will require all of us working together."

By now, more and more evil spirits had gathered outside, slamming against the cave entrance. The pressure on the group was mounting.

Kong Xin said no more, simply waiting for the others to decide.

Bao suddenly chuckled and glanced around at the group. "A treasure is right before us. Are we really just going to give up? The evil spirits may be strong, but as long as we use our trump cards and work together, holding them off for a while shouldn’t be too difficult. We mine as much as we can, and if things get dangerous, we retreat immediately. We’re all seasoned cultivators; we know when to advance and when to retreat. As long as we act wisely, do we really need to fear dying for greed?"

Qin Sang also felt tempted.

A fist-sized Cold Gold's mother lode would only yield a grain-sized piece of refined Cold Gold. But if the vein was large enough, even after splitting it among everyone, it would still be well worth the effort.

However, their primary objective remained the most important task.

Qin Sang exchanged a questioning look with Wandering Man, who gave a slight nod, showing no objection.

Clearly, no one could resist the allure of Cold Gold. Since they were certain the exit was just ahead, they chose not to pursue the matter of Kong Xin’s earlier deception.

Without further delay, the group quickly adjusted their formation, working together to fend off the evil spirits, giving Kong Xin time to mine. Kong Xin retrieved a gleaming blue sword and infused it with spiritual power. With a flash of blue light, he swung the sword at the stone wall.

Bang!

A crisp sound rang out.

To everyone’s shock, the blue light shattered upon impact.

The full-powered slash from Kong Xin had left nothing more than a shallow sword mark on the stone wall!

Kong Xin smiled bitterly. "This place has nurtured Cold Gold's mother lode, and the entire vein has been affected by its properties, making these rocks unnaturally tough. This blue sword is the sharpest treasure I could find after exhausting all my means. I even tried five-elemental spells and other techniques, but none were effective. The only option is brute force—slow and steady mining..."

The group exchanged glances.

At this rate, with Kong Xin barely managing to carve a single mark with each swing, how long would it take to excavate the entire vein? A lifetime?

"I refuse to believe that a few chunks of rock can withstand our artifacts!"

The red-robed woman snorted coldly, withdrawing her artifact from resisting the evil spirits and redirecting it toward the stone wall in a swift, piercing strike.

Puff!

Her needle-like artifact easily embedded itself into the wall, and for a moment, her face lit up with satisfaction. However, before she could celebrate, she felt an immense resistance through the artifact. It managed to penetrate less than a cun before getting stuck, completely drained of its momentum.

The artifact trembled violently as she tried to force it deeper, but the stone wall remained unmoved.

With no other choice, she retrieved her artifact and tried several more times. Each attempt ended in failure. Her face alternated between shades of green and white before she finally fell silent.

Bao and the elderly man summoned their own artifacts, but their results were no better than Kong Xin’s.

Meanwhile, Kong Xin continued striking the stone wall with his sword, but the efficiency was dismal. After dozens of slashes, he barely managed to extract a single piece of Cold Gold's mother lode.

Qin Sang, wielding his Black Dragon Stone, repeatedly smashed the incoming evil spirits outside the cave. However, they kept pouring in endlessly. Even with everyone working together to fend them off, there was no telling how long they could hold out.

Realizing this, Qin Sang exchanged a brief voice transmission with Wandering Man before speaking aloud. "Daoist Kong, I have a spiritual sword. Though it isn't of the highest quality, I am quite confident in its sharpness. Why don’t we switch? Let me handle the mining while you focus on keeping the evil spirits at bay."

The ebony sword had been forged from fragments of an astra and later tempered with a killing symbol. If nothing else, its sharpness far surpassed that of any ordinary artifact.