Chapter 490

Chapter 490: The New Iron Pick

Upon receiving the iron pick, Ji Yang was filled with joy.

He initially thought the new iron pick would be heavier than the previous one, but when he held it, he discovered it was surprisingly light in hand.

However, as Ji Yang swung it, the iron pick felt solid and gave a sense of comfort.

When Ji Yang infused his energy into the iron pick, it seemed to come alive. He could clearly sense the mine spirit inside.

No, perhaps it should now be called a tool spirit.

With the infusion of energy, the spirit within the iron pick appeared quite excited and continuously absorbed Ji Yang’s energy, yet it did not unleash the power it was capable of.

This puzzled Ji Yang, prompting him to look at Elder Chai and inquire about what was happening.

Elder Chai noticed Ji Yang’s curiosity, maintained his calm expression, and gently stroked his beard before explaining:

"Don’t worry, this is normal."

"Even the most skilled master craftsman cannot create a complete spiritual treasure."

"Right now, it is just a semi-spiritual treasure, but with the mine spirit, it has bypassed the most critical step in upgrading to a top-quality treasure."

"From now on, you only need to nourish it with your energy for a few months, and it will upgrade to a spiritual treasure, becoming closely tied to you and showcasing immense power."

"If you comprehend the essence of the Way, you can replace energy with your own essence, which will further enhance its power and allow it to perfectly express your essence, achieving a synergistic effect."

Just as Elder Chai was about to continue speaking, he recalled the rumors he had heard. With Ji Yang’s Talent Jealousy, reaching the Nascent Soul Stage would be difficult, let alone the Unity with the Dao stage.

Thinking of this, Elder Chai immediately fell silent, reluctant to overly discourage Ji Yang. Nourishing the pick with energy could still transform it into a spiritual treasure.

However, when Ji Yang heard this, a light sparkled in his eyes.

Essence of the Way? He had that!

Soon, the iron pick stopped absorbing Ji Yang’s energy, and its glow began to fade. Elder Chai informed Ji Yang that he could come every day to do this.

The iron pick was not yet capable of unleashing its full power, but it was still better than a top-quality treasure.

Ji Yang looked around and, considering this was Elder Chai’s residence, decided not to test it immediately but to wait until he could find an open space to try its power.

"By the way, since the spiritual treasure has a spirit, as its master, you can give it a name. If it resonates well with the spiritual treasure, it will be much easier to use."

Hearing this, Ji Yang smiled widely.

Naming? He excelled at that!

Didn’t he see how Little Black and Little White had joyfully rolled their eyes when he named them?

"I think this iron pick, with its all-silver appearance and crafted by Elder Chai’s extraordinary skills, can be described as a masterpiece. It has the might to swing and disperse clouds! It embodies a grand presence from all sects heading west!"

As Ji Yang described it, Elder Chai’s demeanor softened, and he nodded eagerly, clearly pleased with Ji Yang’s words.

If the name was good, he might even consider waiving the costs for the supplementary materials he had added.

Under Elder Chai’s expectant gaze, Ji Yang earnestly suggested:

"How about calling it Little Gold?"

Elder Chai was momentarily taken aback, his excitement vanished entirely, and his body couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

Meanwhile, Ji Yang remained immersed in the wonder of his new spiritual treasure.

"Little Gold, come and perform!"

After absorbing energy once, Ji Yang could sense the emotions of the iron pick.

After naming it, the pick seemed extremely excited, even bouncing out of his palm, clearly pleased with the name he had chosen.

Following Ji Yang’s command, Little Gold jumped into Elder Chai’s courtyard and immediately dug up two liang of soil from below.

Seeing this, Ji Yang’s face lit up with delight as he clapped his hands repeatedly:

"Good, good, good!"

"It truly is a spiritual treasure! It has such spirit!"

However, when Ji Yang turned to see Elder Chai, whose face looked as dark as coal and whose body trembled with anger, he faintly sensed that something was wrong.

"Get out!"

"Take your Little Gold and roll away!"

…

As angry shouts erupted from Jixian Peak, a beam of Escape Light swiftly left the mountain top.

The disciples below were startled by the shout.

What happened? Why was Elder Chai so furious? Had something gone wrong with crafting a tool?

Some disciples wanted to find out what was happening, but now they dared not provoke his wrath.

At this moment, Ji Yang was already far from Jingtan Peak, but the lingering anger of Elder Chai still echoed in his ears.

Holding Little Gold in his hand, Ji Yang shook his head slightly.

Was it really necessary to be that angry? Was his name not good enough?

Forget it, Elder Chai did help him a lot this time, so he wouldn’t hold it against him.

"How could someone who crafts tools understand the subtleties of naming?"

"Right, Little Gold?"

Ji Yang murmured, looking at the iron pick in his hand.

As the iron pick stirred restlessly, Ji Yang took it as a positive response and sped off toward Jingtan Peak.

The new iron pick was ready; he should continue his mining endeavors.

But before leaving, he needed to give instructions about the peak’s affairs.

With Nine Heavens Thunder Escape, he could easily run back and forth, mining while also taking care of matters on the peak.

At Jingtan Peak, the three beasts sat upright.

Ji Yang stood in front of them, assigning their main tasks.

Little Black was in charge of the spiritual grains area and catching pests, Little White was responsible for the spiritual plants area and catching pests, and Xuanqing was in charge of security and pest control at Jingtan Peak.

After giving his instructions, another portal of lightning calamity opened, and Ji Yang’s figure quickly vanished into it.

As Ji Yang’s figure disappeared, the three beasts finally regained their focus from Ji Yang’s orders.

Though they hadn’t understood everything Ji Yang said, if they pieced together his words, it clearly expressed two words:

"Manual labor!"

Previously, they managed to catch pests with Ji Yang’s help, but now that he was gone, they had to handle the vast spiritual field on their own, which made Little Black and Little White extremely displeased!

They were spiritual beasts; how could they waste time on such tasks?

Plus, they couldn’t even eat the spiritual plants planted in the area!

In contrast, Xuanqing looked indifferent. Although he made progress while asleep, he still found it somewhat boring.

Now that he would have spiritual grains to eat every day, it was just right for him to digest them.

He intended to become the strongest turtle of the Xuanwu clan!

While the two beasts were grumbling, they suddenly had a bright idea.

Ji Yang was gone, and Ye Wuchen was also absent; wasn’t it their time to take control of Jingtan Peak?

Since they couldn’t eat the spiritual plants on Jingtan Peak, surely they could eat the plants in other areas, right?

They were no longer the weak beings they once were; their courage had increased with their cultivation level, and they had grown somewhat tired of the spiritual grains.

The two beasts exchanged glances, each realizing the same thought in the other’s eyes.

But before they could act, they needed to bring Xuanqing along; they didn’t want to be discovered and didn’t want Ji Yang to find out.

…

"Bang, bang, bang…"

At the Demon Spirit Ore mountain of the Heaven Demon Sect, the sounds of mining continued without interruption.

Steward Wu led two Heaven Demon Sect cultivators on a tour and nodded slightly.

Since the last incident where several miners defected, the Demon Spirit Ore mountain had finally returned to its previous rhythm.

Fortunately, he had some connections; otherwise, he would really have been reassigned after that incident.

But now, with the turmoil in the Cultivation World, there weren’t many miners to be found. Even as a steward, sometimes he had to take a few swings at the ore to help meet the sect’s monthly production goals.

He wondered how long this kind of life would continue.