Chapter 460: Counting the Harvest

Wang Qingshan and Wang Ruyan each took out a blue pill, swallowed it, and restored their magic power. They collected the valuables from the two corpses, then used fireballs to burn the bodies before heading towards the cave.

After restoring his magic power, Wang Qingshan emptied the contents of several storage bags he had retrieved from Su Yihang. As a colorful glow passed over, a large pile of items appeared on the ground. Wang Qingshan and Wang Ruyan exchanged glances, both involuntarily gasping.

There were ores, spirit herbs, wooden boxes, spirit bamboos, and monster materials, an astonishing quantity that exceeded Wang Qingshan's expectations. After a careful inventory, they found that the most valuable items were the spirit herbs, numbering over three hundred plants. Most were century-old spirit herbs, with seven plants over five hundred years old. Among them were three six-hundred-year-old Fiery Glaze Fruits, which are fire-attribute spirit fruits perfectly suitable for refining third-tier elixirs.

"Qingshan, we've gained a lot this time. I think we shouldn't wander around anymore; we should just wait to be teleported out." Wang Ruyan suggested this, noting that their current gains—a magic artifact-level cauldron and a batch of materials for refining magic artifacts—were already substantial. The ruins contained third-tier demonic beasts, and if they continued to roam and encountered another one, they might not be able to escape.

Wang Qingshan nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. I just wonder how Uncle Eighteen and Twelfth Brother are doing. I hope they are safe!" With his natal magic artifact destroyed, he had lost a significant reliance in combat, so there was no need to keep wandering around.

In a certain underground cave, Wang Qingjun sat slumped on the ground, his face weary but his eyes full of joy. The golden armored guard stood motionless before him, its golden long saber showing several finger-sized chips. A large pit hole was visible on the stone wall, with faint golden and red light points shimmering within. He had been continuously mining red gold ore and had never left the spot.

After a short while, Wang Qingjun's spiritual sense had mostly recovered. He replaced the spirit stones for the golden armored guard, and with a flick of his incantation, the golden armored guard continued to swing its golden long saber, striking the stone wall...

Inside a hidden mountain cave, Wang Changhao sat cross-legged on the ground, his face pale, eyes closed, and his left arm missing. The cave entrance was sealed, and several second-tier puppet beasts stood motionless to the side.

After a long while, Wang Changhao opened his eyes and let out a long sigh of relief. Had Wang Qingshan not lured away the third-tier demonic bird, he would likely have died. With third-tier demonic beasts in the ruins and one arm lost, he dared not act rashly again. He had decided to stay in the cave and wait to be teleported out. To his luck, which had been terrible, he was at least still alive. He wondered how Wang Qingshan and the other two were doing.

Seven days later, Wang Changhao felt a powerful suction force appear out of thin air and hastily retracted all his puppet beasts. His vision blurred, and he suddenly found himself on a desolate high mountain.

Wang Changhao looked around and saw several Foundation Establishment cultivators, including some from the Tang Kingdom and some from the Wei Kingdom. His expression was somewhat tense as he released several second-tier puppet beasts, his face full of vigilance.

"The ruins have closed. Everyone, return home." A deep male voice echoed from the sky. As soon as the voice fell silent, more than a dozen streaks of light ascended from nearby hilltops, flying towards a certain direction. Other cultivators glanced at the puppet beasts Wang Changhao had released, showing some apprehension. They activated their flying magic tools and flew towards their respective strongholds. Now that they were outside the ruins, anyone wanting to start a fight would first need to consult the Core Formation cultivators.

Wang Changhao breathed a sigh of relief, leaped onto the back of a flying eagle puppet, and with an incantation, the puppet flapped its wings gently and soared into the sky. Before long, Wang Changhao spotted the disciples of the Hundred Spirits Sect and descended among them.

Wang Ruyan, Wang Qingshan, and Wang Qingjun had already rejoined the Hundred Spirits Sect disciples. Seeing Wang Changhao, all three were delighted. Of the two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators who entered the ruins, only just over a hundred left alive. Those who survived had smiles on their faces.

The Tang Kingdom's Foundation Establishment cultivators suffered more casualties, which was normal given their smaller number entering the ruins and being targeted. The most tragic outcome was for the disciples of the Myriad Beasts Sect; not a single one returned alive.

Sect Master Lu Zhe of the Myriad Beasts Sect wore an extremely grim expression. Su Yihang was a disciple he had personally nurtured, to whom he had specially bestowed a third-tier talisman and a protective spirit charm, yet he had not returned alive.

"Fellow Daoist Li, were there third-tier demonic beasts in the ruins? Not a single one of our Myriad Beasts Sect disciples returned alive." Hearing this, Wang Qingshan and Wang Ruyan's hearts tightened, but their expressions remained normal.

Seeing Lu Zhe's distressed face, Li Haifeng looked at his disciples, "Did any of you encounter third-tier demonic beasts? Did anyone come across disciples from the Myriad Beasts Sect?" "To answer Martial Uncle Li, there were indeed third-tier demonic beasts, birds, and insects in the ruins. They weren't numerous, but their power was significant. Several of our sect's disciples died at the hands of a third-tier demonic beast." Disciples from other sects also sent private messages to their elders, reporting similar encounters with third-tier demonic beasts and insects.

"Life and death are predestined, and wealth is in the hands of heaven. Since they chose to enter and didn't return alive, that was their fate. The Golden Sun Sect's ruins are now closed, and who knows when they will open again. Let's all return home!" Li Haifeng proposed. Guang Dongren and the other Core Formation cultivators did not object; they were all eager to return and check their disciples' gains.

Thus, they all departed for their respective homes. Guang Dongren left with the Hundred Spirits Sect disciples and the four of Wang Ruyan's group. Wang Ruyan felt a bit uneasy, worried that Guang Dongren might inquire about the Wang family cultivators' gains in the ruins.

To her great relief, Guang Dongren did not ask a single question. Instead, he personally escorted them back to Qinglian Villa. Guang Dongren already knew about the gains of Ye Tong and others; those spirit herbs were enough for him to cultivate to the ninth level of Core Formation. As for what Wang Ruyan's group of four obtained, that was their fortune, and Guang Dongren would not inquire. Of course, the main reason was that Wang Changsheng had reached Core Formation; otherwise, Guang Dongren would certainly have questioned them.

"If Fellow Daoist Wang comes out of seclusion, I hope he will fulfill his promise." "Once my husband emerges from seclusion, I will certainly relay your words to him. Please rest assured, Master." Wang Ruyan said respectfully. Guang Dongren had indeed been good to the Wang family, so Wang Changsheng would naturally not betray his trust.

Guang Dongren nodded, then departed with his disciples. Not long after, Wang Ruyan and the other three appeared inside the council hall.

Their expedition to the ruins had brought them a huge fortune, with the combined value of their acquired items exceeding a million spirit stones. In addition, they had also found a batch of jade slips.

After examining several jade slips, Wang Ruyan discovered that the owner of the immortal's cave was indeed a Nascent Soul cultivator. One jade slip recorded the owner's insights into artifact refining, along with methods for crafting several magic artifacts. The most valuable discovery was the refining method for a magic artifact called the "Mountains and Seas Pearl." The piled-up refining materials on the ground were indeed for crafting the Mountains and Seas Pearl, and there were three sets of them.

The large blue cauldron was called the Nine Dragon Cauldron. Strictly speaking, it was an artifact refining furnace, a magic artifact specifically designed for refining. The three drops of black liquid inside the cauldron were One-Origin Heavy Water. One-Origin Heavy Water is a precious water-attribute material; a single drop weighs as much as ten thousand catties. No wonder Wang Ruyan had to exhaust all her magic power just to retrieve the Nine Dragon Cauldron. Besides these items, there were also several cultivation techniques: a Profound-grade cultivation method called the "Nine-Origin Golden Jade Art," which could be cultivated up to the Nascent Soul stage, and two other Profound-grade cultivation methods that could be cultivated up to the Core Formation stage: the "Evergreen Spirit Transformation Art" and the "Spirit Taming Manual." The "Nine-Origin Golden Jade Art" was a metal-attribute cultivation method, and the "Evergreen Spirit Transformation Art" was a wood-attribute method. As for the "Spirit Taming Manual," it was suitable for cultivators who enjoyed commanding spiritual beasts and birds.