Chapter 113: Mining Observations

A few months after Lu Sisi's departure, Li Xuanxuan emerged from seclusion, having broken through to the fifth level of Fetal Breath, the Jade Capital Wheel. His strength now ranked third in the family, surpassed only by his two capable assistants, Li Qiuyang and Chen Donghe, both at the fourth level of Fetal Breath.

The activities at the Azure Crow Mine grew livelier day by day. Li Xuanxuan gathered a group of strong Shan Yue people to work at the mine. The wages in the four towns, which had been steadily decreasing due to surplus labor, immediately increased significantly. The negative effects of overpopulation on the people of the four towns were greatly alleviated, and their lives became much more comfortable.

A large cluster of small houses was built along the mine vein. With the combined efforts of the three families, a respectable small town had been established there over the past few months. For the first year, the Li family was responsible for dispatching Spirit Cultivators to guard the Azure Crow Mine.

As per the agreement, each of the three families sent one Fetal Breath cultivator to the mine for mutual supervision. Li Xuanxuan had already sent Li Qiuyang there, and it had been several months.

When Li Xuanfeng descended to the mine, riding the wind, the three Fetal Breath cultivators were already waiting on the ground. The surrounding miners knelt in unison.

"Welcome, Senior!" the three exclaimed in unison. Li Xuanfeng merely waved his hand, nodded towards Li Qiuyang, and addressed him, "Clan Uncle."

He then looked at the Fetal Breath cultivators from the Lu and An families, and nodded, saying, "No need for such formality."

With a sweep of his spiritual sense, he saw that these two individuals were only at the third or fourth level of Fetal Breath, both in their late forties or fifties. Waving his hand to dismiss them, Li Xuanfeng whispered, "Clan Uncle, how has the mine been these past few months? Why did you summon me so urgently?"

Li Qiuyang cupped his hands in greeting. The boy who had consumed the serpent-dragon fruit in the mountains was now over thirty, a grandfather, and a man of imposing appearance, holding a long saber, truly embodying the demeanor of a family elder. He replied, "Mining has just begun. We've extracted seven pieces in three months, and the output should gradually increase from now on. However, for the past few months, miners have frequently lost their voices. Last month, there were only one or two cases, but this month, there are dozens. We had no choice but to send a message to the family."

"Lost their voices…" Li Xuanfeng, with a long bow on his back, frowned in confusion. He replied, "Take me to see these people."

Li Qiuyang nodded repeatedly, leading Li Xuanfeng for a while, past various large and small tents, until they reached a large courtyard.

There were many Shan Yue people at the mine, and most of the buildings had distinct Shan Yue characteristics. This large courtyard was likely built by the Lu and An families. Inside, a dozen or so people were squatting against the wall, most of them Shan Yue miners relocated by the Li family, all looking uneasy.

Seeing Li Qiuyang and Li Xuanfeng approach, the steward in the courtyard grew very nervous. He called up each of the squatting Shan Yue miners, who then knelt respectfully on the ground, anxiously staring at the earth-covered ground.

Li Xuanfeng placed a hand on the shoulder of the foremost Shan Yue miner. His True Essence circulated a few times, but he found no abnormalities. His expression became slightly strange, as he discovered a spiritual orifice in the middle-aged man's Sea of Qi, which was absorbing and expelling spiritual energy.

"To possess a spiritual orifice, what a pity." These words struck the middle-aged man like a bolt of lightning, causing him to babble incoherently. His expression was a mix of excitement and sorrow. Looking at the middle-aged man's slightly graying temples and complex expression, Li Xuanfeng turned and instructed, "Take this man back and find a suitable clan maiden for him to marry."

Li Qiuyang nodded. Immediately, a few clan soldiers stepped forward, took hold of the man who was both crying and laughing, and led him away. Li Xuanfeng then picked out a few more individuals from the dozen or so for examination. He found nothing unusual in any of them, and inquired, "Was there anything unusual about these people before they lost their voices?"

"No…" Li Qiuyang shook his head and replied, "However, four of these dozens of people had previously mined Azure Crow ore…"

Li Xuanfeng nodded thoughtfully, his gaze lingering on the people before him for a moment. He took the dark greenish-black Azure Crow raw ore that Li Qiuyang handed him. As his True Essence circulated, he sensed a trace of sharp metallic energy. He then said in a deep voice, "It's most likely due to this Azure Crow ore… Clan Uncle, please summon those two back."

Li Qiuyang nodded upon hearing this. He found the cultivators from the Lu and An families. They stood uneasily before Li Qiuyang, guessing that this Li family Spirit Cultivator was probably looking for faults in their work, and were filled with apprehension.

"People at this mine frequently suffer from loss of speech. Are you aware of this?" Both were stunned by Li Xuanfeng's words. They meekly assented, secretly thinking, "Do Spirit Cultivators still care about the illnesses, old age, and deaths of mortals? Loss of speech isn't a disability; as long as they can work, who cares if they live or die…"

Li Xuanfeng, however, pondered for a few breaths. The Azure Crow Mine was, after all, a spiritual mine. The metallic energy within it could be harmful to mortal bodies. Losing one's voice was a minor symptom. Li Xuanfeng feared that if these thousands of people worked day and night at the mine, their life force would dwindle within a few months, resulting in thousands of needless deaths.

"How are the shifts arranged at the mine now?"

"There are over four thousand miners, and the mine can accommodate about a thousand. We use two shifts, rotating every three days, responsible for mining and facility construction."

Li Xuanfeng waved his hand and said, "Divide them into four shifts for mining. Don't let the miners stay at the mine for too long. When I return to the clan, I will arrange for more people to rotate shifts frequently."

Seeing the two repeatedly assent, Li Xuanfeng shook his head and departed on the wind to report to Li Tongya. Li Qiuyang, however, watched the two respectfully wait for Li Xuanfeng to leave, then privately showed signs of disapproval, frowning to himself as he mused, "No wonder these two families only have twenty to thirty thousand people, while my Li family has grown to over sixty thousand in a few decades. These people clearly don't treat others as human beings. They probably don't even supervise farming, let alone maintain the welfare of the populace. These twenty or thirty thousand people exist solely to support their own clan members…"

"Brother Qiuyang!" The two approached with grinning faces. The Lu family cultivator winked and chuckled, "Your senior has left this matter to you. We have other important matters, so we'll take our leave first."

With that, they didn't wait for Li Qiuyang's reply. They left, arm in arm, laughing loudly, causing Li Qiuyang's eyelids to twitch slightly in annoyance.

"These two spend every night at the mine in revelry, with women sent to their rooms daily. They do nothing but eat, drink, and indulge in pleasure. What a waste of their cultivation! In my Li family, even cultivators would be seized by the clan head and held accountable. They are truly worthless!"

Turning towards his own small courtyard, Li Qiuyang, in a change of thought, felt relieved. He let out a cold laugh and whispered, "Go on and enjoy yourselves. In a few more years, I'd like to see what your two families will use to stop my Li family."

Li Qiuyang returned to his room, finished giving instructions, and began meditating cross-legged. Meanwhile, in the large courtyard elsewhere, the sound of banqueting, music, and merriment filled the air, as the cultivators from the Lu and An families drank and conversed lightheartedly.

"This mine is truly a good assignment! No need to endure the expressions of those back home. All matters are handled by Li Qiuyang of the Li family. How comfortable!"

"Indeed!" The An family cultivator burst into laughter. He took a small sip of the spiritual wine in his hand, smacked his lips contentedly, and replied, "The Li family is an upstart, after all, rising too quickly. Their Spirit Cultivators are too young; they actually still care about mortals! In this entire Ancient Dawn Path, which family doesn't treat mortals as mere tools? Mortals are supposed to serve cultivators; when do cultivators ever consider mortals?"

The Lu family cultivator nodded, looking relaxed and at ease, and chuckled, "Look at this Li family. Although their strength is considerable, they're firmly tied down in the west by the Shan Yue, serving as our barrier. It's said that there are over a dozen Spirit Cultivators among the Shan Yue, and even a king at the peak of Spirit Cultivation. They're not to be trifled with!"

Flaunting the information he had acquired, the Lu family cultivator looked up slightly, only to hear the An family cultivator ask, "I heard that your Lu family has a high-level cultivator training within the Azure Pond Sect. That's quite a powerful backing."

The Lu family cultivator shook his head, his expression somewhat downcast, and replied, "Our two families have been in-laws for many years; we know each other well. That person cultivated on Moon Lake Peak and was at the peak of Spirit Cultivation in earlier years. He failed and died during his breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, which was over eighty years ago! Besides the Moon Lake Peak Master within the sect having some lingering ties with my family, there's no one else who could be considered a powerful backing."

After speaking, he lowered his head and said to the An family cultivator, "That's nothing compared to the genius in your An family!"

The An family cultivator sighed slightly, then grumbled indignantly, "That elder of mine truly dotes on An Jingming. He has free rein over all the clan's cultivation resources! They say the rice he eats every day is spiritual rice. It makes us so envious. If the family were so attentive to me, I might even have a chance to reach Spirit Cultivation."

"Alas." The Lu family cultivator let out a soft sigh, his expression becoming more dejected, standing out starkly amidst the courtyard's music and revelry. He said, head bowed, "You and I are already over fifty, yet we haven't even cultivated the Jade Capital Wheel. What hope is there for Spirit Cultivation in this life? We might as well enjoy the remaining fifty years, to not have lived in vain!"

The An family cultivator was also greatly saddened by these words. After finishing his wine, he choked out, "Eight or nine out of ten things in life don't go as planned… I've long since accepted that."

And so, amidst the languid music, the two raised their cups, weeping and embracing each other in sorrow.