Chapter 8: Spirit Stones for a Talisman Treasure, Killing Zhao Mulin in the Mine
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Twelve Radiant Sun Spirit Stones shimmered brilliantly. The burly man picked one up, examined it carefully, then smiled in delight, “Nice, nice—all top-grade.”
After appraising them, the man waved his hand and stored all twelve stones, then looked at Yu Xian and said with a grin, “Give me your storage pouch, I’ll transfer 144 low-grade spirit stones to you.”
“I don’t have a storage pouch,” Yu Xian shook his head.
“No storage pouch?”
The man frowned. “Then how are you going to carry 144 low-grade spirit stones? In a bag?”
Yu Xian replied calmly, “No need to give me the stones. I want to directly exchange them for a talisman treasure. The more powerful, the better.”
“A talisman treasure?”
The man was surprised. After sizing Yu Xian up for a moment, he nodded. “Alright. Wait here.”
Talisman treasures were neither magic tools nor spirit treasures, and certainly not supreme treasures. They were one-time-use items crafted by Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, or even Nascent Soul cultivators who sealed a single spell into the talisman. Once used, it would be destroyed permanently.
The stronger the sealed spell, the more powerful and expensive the talisman treasure.
The man stepped away from the counter and returned shortly with a red talisman.
“This contains a Fire Dragon Spell sealed by a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator. It’s worth 150 low-grade spirit stones. But I like you, so I’ll give it to you for 144.”
He smiled at Yu Xian. “If you find more Radiant Sun Spirit Stones in the future, remember to come back to me.”
“Thanks.”
Yu Xian nodded at the fiery red talisman treasure, took it, and turned to leave.
But after just a few steps, he paused and asked, “By the way, how much does a storage pouch cost?”
The man replied, “Storage pouches are rare items. Very hard to come by. One will cost you a thousand low-grade spirit stones.”
“One thousand…”
Yu Xian nodded and strode away.
The man watched Yu Xian’s back and muttered to himself, “A Qi Condensation rookie buying a talisman treasure? Hah… things are about to get messy. Someone’s going to die.”
With a talisman treasure in hand, Yu Xian finally felt some peace of mind.
This was a powerful weapon. If Zhao Mulin ever discovered the secret of his jade pendant and tried to steal it…
A cold glint flashed in Yu Xian’s eyes—murderous intent surged.
He returned to the teleportation hall and spent another two spirit stones to go back to the mining area.
Standing before the boundless mountains, Yu Xian headed straight for the mine.
There was no time to waste—he still needed a thousand spirit stones for a storage pouch. That was roughly equal to one more Radiant Sun Spirit Stone. He had to dig harder.
In a nearby building, Zhao Mulin squinted from his window as he watched Yu Xian return.
“This brat just got ten spirit stones, and used four of them to run back to the sect and return? What’s he planning?”
He saw Yu Xian leave the teleportation array clearly, and although he had no reason to stop any disciple from coming or going—it wasn’t some black mine run by mortals—he couldn’t help but feel suspicious.
Spirit stones were so precious. This kid just got ten and blew four for a round trip? Is he stupid?
After pondering a while, Zhao Mulin still couldn’t figure it out.
But one thing he was sure of: this kid definitely had a secret.
Narrowing his eyes, Zhao Mulin finally lost patience. He summoned a talisman and pressed it to his body. Instantly, he turned half-transparent.
Invisibility Talisman.
“Let’s see how you’re mining in that abandoned tunnel.”
With that, Zhao Mulin melted into the shadows and made his way to Tunnel 18.
Inside the tunnel, Yu Xian walked close to the wall, guided by the faint reaction of the jade pendant at his chest, sensing the presence of Radiant Sun Spirit Stones within the rocks.
But since this was an abandoned tunnel, even if there were spirit stones left, they would be extremely rare.
After walking about ten meters in, the jade pendant suddenly grew warm, emitting a soft glow.
Delighted, Yu Xian picked up his pickaxe and started digging.
He didn’t know, however, that Zhao Mulin’s transparent form was lurking in the shadows behind him like a venomous snake, watching him mine.
“This kid wandered all over and only started digging here? Could there really be a spirit stone in that wall?”
If so…
Either this brat had a treasure that could detect minerals—or he could read the veins by eye!
Zhao Mulin’s heart raced as he held his breath.
Only the sounds of Yu Xian’s heavy breathing and the pickaxe striking stone echoed in the tunnel.
Half a stick of incense later, a brilliant light burst from the exposed rock, illuminating the entire tunnel.
“What!?”
Even Zhao Mulin, experienced with mining, gasped, “Radiant Sun Spirit Jade!? There’s more!?”
Radiant Sun Spirit Jade—condensed from a high concentration of Radiant Sun Spirit Stones—was incredibly rare. Normally, a single vein might only produce one piece.
But two years ago, this mine had already yielded one. And now there was another?
The brilliance confirmed it—this was definitely Spirit Jade.
But before he could react, the glow vanished—obviously hidden away by Yu Xian.
Heart pounding, Zhao Mulin rushed forward and shouted, “Brat, hand over the Spirit Jade! I’ll spare your—”
But all he saw was Yu Xian’s cold gaze—and the sweeping motion of his hand.
Zhao Mulin’s pupils shrank to pinpricks.
A fiery dragon, three meters long, roared as it burst forth from the red talisman, lunging directly at him!
“No—!!”
Zhao Mulin screamed as his Qi Condensation late-stage cultivation flared. Several defensive magic tools also activated in panic.
But this Fire Dragon had been cast by a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator!
If Zhao Mulin had been prepared, he could have used his own talismans to counter.
But Yu Xian had been far too decisive—he didn’t give Zhao Mulin even a second to react.
No defense. No negotiation. No delay.
The fire dragon engulfed Zhao Mulin. His defenses shattered, and the tunnel echoed with his screams.
Within three seconds, the screams ceased. The dragon vanished, leaving behind a charred corpse.
Yu Xian stepped forward without hesitation, collected the three fallen magic tools, and dragged the burnt corpse deeper into the mine.
He ran for two full hours before stopping at the deepest part of the tunnel, panting heavily.
Zhao Mulin’s corpse was completely unrecognizable.
With a blank expression, Yu Xian searched the body and found a storage pouch.
The invisibility talisman had long since burned away.
“You asked for this. Don’t blame me.”
He muttered softly, then began forming hand seals.
First, he used Wind Blade dozens of times to chop the corpse into pieces.
Then, after restoring his spiritual energy with spirit stones, he cast Fireball—again and again.
One, two, three…
Until he had only two spirit stones left, he had used eighty-seven Fireball spells, finally burning the corpse into ashes and bone fragments.
Outside, the sun had risen. Disciples began their day, mining and searching for treasures.
Yu Xian calmly walked out of the tunnel, went to the river, washed up, and quietly released the ashes into the water before returning to his hut.
Letting out a long breath, he sat down. Sweat soaked through his clothes.
Fear and relief surged in his heart.
If he hadn’t traded for that Fire Dragon talisman, he would’ve already been killed and stripped clean by Zhao Mulin.
If he had hesitated—if he’d tried to talk instead of attacking immediately—he would’ve lost again.
Decisiveness in the face of danger was his only path to survival.
At sixteen years old, Yu Xian’s gaze was already cold and resolute.
After stabilizing his mind with a few breaths, he pulled out Zhao Mulin’s storage pouch.
In the Inner Sect of the White Cloud Sect, storage pouches were freely distributed—but Outer Sect disciples had to earn them through great effort.
The materials, methods, and crafters required for such items were incredibly rare.
They were durable and difficult to destroy, even with magic tools, and were a type of spatial artifact.
Its full name was Sumeru Mustard Seed Spatial Storage Pouch.
Yu Xian injected spiritual energy, closed his eyes, and peered inside.
The next moment, his eyes opened—gleaming with excitement.
Inside were over 300 low-grade spirit stones, and more importantly—
More than 80 Radiant Sun Spirit Stones!
