Chapter 105: Making a Fortune

"Thank you, thank you," said Zao Yunbu, one of the leaders. The other team leaders also chimed in with their thanks.

Many, however, felt a sense of disgust. They had risked their lives to help the Su Yuan Sect secure first place, and now they were expected to offer thanks in return. What kind of logic was that?

Despite their dissatisfaction, with Bao Li and Hu Jing's power on display, everyone had to feign obedience.

Guan Wen was in a bad mood and stopped engaging in banter with them.

After the group confirmed their direction, a journey of about ten li was nothing to them, merely a few quick movements.

The group quickly reached the approximate landing site of the Insect Crystal meteor shower. They divided their search areas and, one after another, pulled out their Tan Jin illumination tools.

Now that they had arrived, Guan Wen couldn't just stand by. He had just pulled out his Tan Jin, ready to join the search with everyone, when Shi Chun approached him again.

Guan Wen found him irritating the moment he saw him, thinking this "dark character" talked too much and was annoying whenever he opened his mouth.

Shi Chun knew he was already unpopular, but he paid no mind. He spoke frankly: "Brother Guan, there's no need for you to trouble yourself with such minor searching tasks. You should be concerned with the important matters. It would be best for you to find a high vantage point to oversee operations, like that..." He turned and pointed to a nearby hilltop. "You can guard there with your treasure. Should anything change, we won't have to run around aimlessly looking for you. If something unexpected happens, we can head straight here, making it easier for you to lead us to a quick escape."

"That makes sense," someone agreed.

"Yes, Brother Guan, you should stay here and oversee," another chimed in.

"Exactly. If anything happens, we won't be scattered without a clue."

The group of leaders again voiced their agreement; they naturally supported anything that benefited them.

Seeing everyone agree, Guan Wen, feigning compliance, replied, "Alright, since that's the case, I'll go wait for you on that hilltop. You all should also be extra careful."

In reality, this suited him perfectly. He was quite unwilling to engage in such menial tasks, especially alongside members of these lower-tier sects.

Maintaining a snow-white appearance and the serene demeanor of a handsome man required him to forgo certain things; those who stooped to perform menial tasks could not project such an image.

Regardless, his gaze towards Shi Chun softened considerably. He realized this fellow wasn't so annoying after all; while his words might have been harsh, he was actually quite reasonable and practical.

Thus, the matter was settled. He ascended to the hilltop to await the others.

Each sect then formed its own group and proceeded to search in a different direction, moving cautiously and guarding against any sudden, unknown risks.

The mountain fog was very light; it didn't significantly impede visibility, especially at close range.

Towering, majestic ancient trees stood alongside bizarre trees with gnarled, tentacle-like branches. Old vines hung haphazardly, exuding a unique savagery. Flat ground was rare, replaced by numerous oddly shaped rock formations and ravines. The ground was very damp, covered in moss, dead branches, and decaying leaves, making it easy to step on something with a crunch. Animals seemed absent, and everything appeared increasingly eerie under the purple gaseous flames.

Shi Chun, equally cautious, once again used his vital energy to activate his right eye's special ability.

He had no choice; it was a matter of survival. In this dreadful place, he couldn't feel at ease without carefully observing his surroundings using his right eye's ability.

However, as soon as the ability was activated, he couldn't help but stumble slightly.

Wu Jinliang, who was vigilantly observing the surroundings, reacted quickly, reaching out to steady his arm. "What's wrong?" he asked, surprised.

Shi Chun replied in a low voice, "It's nothing. I just activated my right eye's ability a moment ago, and I've used it too frequently. My vital energy can't replenish quickly enough, leaving me feeling a bit weak."

He knew he had to be grateful for his recent cultivation breakthrough to the high-martial realm; otherwise, the repercussions might have been far more severe.

He believed his physical body was already strong enough, and his vital energy more robust than most people's, yet he hadn't expected that continuous use of his right eye's ability would still be too taxing.

It seemed that for his right eye's ability to be fully mastered, his physical body needed to become even more powerful.

Wu Jinliang asked, "Why don't you meditate to recover?"

Shi Chun shook his head. "Where would I find the time to meditate and rest now? My right eye's ability is already activated. If I don't use it now, it will go to waste. Besides, there's no time for me to slowly recover."

He raised his hand, pushed away Wu Jinliang's steadying arm, and motioned for them to continue their search.

So Wu Jinliang went ahead, holding the Tan Jin and staying alert, while Shi Chun remained behind, repeatedly using his right eye's ability to scan the surroundings for any unusual risks. In his right eye's vision, he quickly caught sight of flickering blue glows, which indicated the hiding places of Insect Crystals, but he showed no intention of digging them up.

Neither of them focused on searching for Insect Crystals. How many could two of them dig up anyway, especially since his right eye's ability would soon fade?

The two made their way up a hilltop. Once Shi Chun confirmed there were no immediate risks, he reached out and grabbed Wu Jinliang's shoulder.

They stopped together, exchanged glances, then both gripped their Tan Jin, put them away, and extinguished the gaseous flame light.

Shi Chun glanced at the occasionally flickering gaseous flame lights deep within the surrounding mountain forest, and whispered, "It's about time. We've put enough distance between us. There should be no one around him anymore. Waiting too long might lead to unexpected trouble."

Wu Jinliang naturally understood what he intended to do. "How should we proceed?" he asked.

Shi Chun replied, "We'll give him a pile of Insect Crystals. I'm sure he'll be very pleased."

"Heh heh, good, let's do it that way," Wu Jinliang said with a sly grin, pulling off the black pouch attached to his belt.

He extended his foot to probe the ground. As soon as he touched a rock, he squatted down, opened the pouch, reached out, grabbed a protruding piece of rock, and with a magical crunch, crushed it. He then threw rock pieces similar in size to Insect Crystals directly into the pouch.

Shi Chun, meanwhile, remained vigilant of their surroundings, even though his right eye's ability had already vanished.

After filling the pouch with nearly a hundred bulging stones, he closed its opening, and the two descended the mountain.

The two did not wander off; instead, they carefully and quietly made their way back along the path they had explored earlier.

They were heading back to find Guan Wen.

There was no need to worry about not finding him in the dark; Shi Chun's earlier words had essentially pinned Guan Wen down. Unless something unexpected happened, it was unlikely he would leave his original spot.

After carefully making their way back to the foot of the target mountain, Shi Chun pulled out another Tan Jin illuminator. He then took off the black cloth pouch from his waist, patted Wu Jinliang's arm, folded the pouch in front of Wu Jinliang, and hid it in his own clothes. Wu Jinliang nodded in understanding.

The two ascended the mountain, observing their surroundings as they went.

Guan Wen remained under a few large trees on the hilltop, having not moved. He held his magic artifact, 'Wind Scale,' vigilantly surveying his surroundings. In this dangerous environment, he was indeed prepared to respond to everyone at any time.

Of course, any response would depend on the situation; he was also prepared to flee first if things truly went south.

During this time, he took out a paired talisman and repeatedly tried to contact the other groups outside, but received no response. Only then did he realize the rumors were true.

Suddenly, he saw a light flashing below and immediately grew wary.

In the dead of night, with a light approaching, he easily spotted it.

After all, with fog present, visibility would still be somewhat affected at a distance, making it hard to see people clearly, so he couldn't help but stare intently.

As the two ascending figures drew closer, he finally recognized them. He frowned, but then, seeing the bulging black pouch in Wu Jinliang's hand and the joy on both their faces, he realized something, his eyes lit up with anticipation.

After the two arrived, he immediately asked, "Why are you back?"

Wu Jinliang swung the heavy pouch in his hand, looking incredibly delighted. "Brother Guan," he exclaimed, "Moon Sea is indeed Moon Sea! It truly lives up to its reputation; we came to the right place. There are so many Insect Crystals here! We just casually searched and dug a bit, and got nearly a hundred of them!"

"My senior brother's black cloth pouch was borrowed by them, and our black cloth pouches aren't enough. Brother Guan, the black cloth pouch on your person is useless just sitting there; it's just idle. Why not lend it to us first?"

"Are there really so many Insect Crystals here?" Guan Wen was greatly excited, his eyes shining again. The matter of borrowing a black cloth pouch was forgotten for the moment; he'd deal with it later. First, he reached out to demand the bulging pouch in Wu Jinliang's hand for verification. "Come, come, let me see." Wu Jinliang chuckled and presented the full pouch with both hands.

Shi Chun quickly moved to Guan Wen's side and slightly behind him, with the gaseous flame of his Tan Jin providing illumination.

Guan Wen, holding the pouch, was highly expectant and was about to tear open the pouch to check inside.

Wu Jinliang quickly warned, "Brother Guan, be careful! These Insect Crystals can move; don't let them escape!"

Right, Guan Wen thought, realizing he was overly excited. He first put the magic artifact 'Wind Scale,' which he was half-holding, back into the pouch on his waist, and then carefully opened the pouch with both hands.

Just as his eyes peered into the pouch, the short knife in Shi Chun's hand was plunged directly into Guan Wen's back, a clean and fatal blow. Simultaneously, the illuminating Tan Jin was gripped, and its light instantly vanished.

The moment the light vanished, Wu Jinliang's palm blade swiftly cut, slashing Guan Wen's throat with a crunching sound. The large broadsword he held also pressed horizontally against Guan Wen's chest, to prevent Shi Chun from failing or the target from having any power to retaliate.

With a thud, the bulging black cloth pouch in Guan Wen's hand fell to the ground.

"Take him away," Shi Chun prompted in the darkness.

Wu Jinliang immediately put away his knife and, at the same time, grabbed the pouch from Guan Wen's waist. It contained all of Guan Wen's belongings, and he strapped it onto his own waist.

Immediately afterward, he grabbed a handful of dirt from the ground and directly stuffed it into Guan Wen's mouth and nose, to prevent blood from dripping too quickly.

Shi Chun, standing behind, did the same, stuffing a handful of dirt into the knife wound.

As the two carried Guan Wen away, they didn't forget to pick up the bulging black cloth pouch that had fallen to the ground.

Instead of descending the mountain, the two leapt onto trees, swiftly moving towards their first landing point from earlier, remembering there was a deep ravine nearby. After finding the spot, and before burying the body, they cut off one of Guan Wen's wrists and took his bracelet because the organizers of the assembly could locate people based on their bracelets. For the two of them, Guan Wen could disappear, but his corpse could not be easily found.

After emerging from the deep ravine, Wu Jinliang threw the bracelet, the paired talisman, and other such items, one by one, deep into the Moon Sea mountain forest. Let whoever wanted to find them search at their leisure.

The metal pinecone-like magic artifact, of course, was not discarded. Wu Jinliang held it in his hand, shaking it for Shi Chun to see, and, barely suppressing wild laughter, exclaimed, "Chuntian, we're rich! We're rich! We've struck it rich!"