Cultivation begins with ice harvesters

Chapter 101: Exploration

As a Qi Refining Level 7 cultivator, Tong Bingfeng's true purpose is to deter others. If the Spirit Ice Mine is invaded by evil cultivators or first-tier high-grade demonic beasts, he will be needed to deal with it.

As a partner, Liu Zong naturally preferred the relatively tedious daily management of the Spirit Ice Mine. Only when his cultivation took a crucial step forward and both parties stood on the same level again could the scales that had lost their balance be restored to their proper equilibrium.

Sun rises and sets, day and night alternate, and time flies by.

In the first few days, Tong Bingfeng did not leave the Lingbing Mine rashly, but stayed here steadily. He even took the initiative to negotiate with several shop owners who came to discuss the deal.

While the individual purchases of these shop owners could not compare to Meng Lan's, as the number of trading partners increased, the previously stockpiled spiritual ice was successfully sold off. Apart from the share that should be paid to the Chen family, they were able to exchange it for pieces of white spiritual stones.

The shop owners were satisfied with the presence of a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator in the spirit ice mine. After all, sufficient strength meant a stable supply of spirit ice and a greater buffer against various dangers.

In the midst of busyness, two months slipped away silently through my fingers without leaving a trace.

The somewhat chaotic and busy daily life in the spirit ice mine has also become orderly again. With the mining puppets undertaking most of the spirit ice mining tasks, the main focus of cultivators Tong Bingfeng and Liu Zong has shifted to their daily cultivation.

The mining puppet is made entirely of first-grade high-quality copper, iron, and spirit wood. It resembles a large spider and is adept at climbing. Its two forelimbs, which are dedicated to mining, are similar to a cultivator's arms. Each forelimb holds a mining tool that has been specially forged into one piece, and it methodically and completely harvests pieces of spirit ice.

The puppet operates on the spiritual power supplied by spirit stones, and there is a special place on its back to store spirit stones. It consumes about two spirit stones per day.

"Aside from the high price, this mining golem is simply the best example of a workhorse that consumes little and produces a lot."

"Everything at the Spirit Ice Mine is on track now, and it's time to venture into the depths of the Ice Domain to search for some precious spiritual herbs."

Tong Bingfeng surveyed the well-organized scene within the mine, and his heart began to settle down. As for the invasion of external enemies, after the previous battle, there was no need to worry for at least three years.

After advancing to the seventh level of Qi Refining, relying solely on conventional methods such as circulating the Great Heavenly Cycle, refining the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and refining fixed elixirs is far from sufficient to rapidly improve one's cultivation.

Not to mention, he was planning for the much more distant Foundation Establishment stage. Whether it was forging a higher level of Dao foundation or transforming the mana in his dantian into liquid, he needed even more precious spiritual objects to increase the success rate.

Any spiritual items that can fulfill these two needs are usually not circulated in the market; over 90% are kept in the treasuries of various sects and families.

As a rogue cultivator, it's impossible for him to get a share of the profits; his only hope is to explore and search in the remote depths of the icy region.

"Fellow Daoist Liu, I am preparing to explore the depths of the Ice Domain soon. This is a long-distance communication talisman. As long as I do not leave the Ice Domain within a radius of five thousand miles, I will receive the message immediately."

"These communication talismans are extremely valuable, so please use them with caution, Fellow Daoist Liu. They should only be used when the fate of the Spirit Ice Mine is at stake."

Before leaving the spirit ice mine, Tong Bingfeng handed over a first-grade high-quality long-distance communication talisman engraved with extremely intricate patterns, and solemnly gave him instructions.

At the same time, upon closer inspection, a drop of bright red blood, though dried and seeping through, is still clearly visible at the end of the talisman.

To use a long-distance communication talisman, one must use the essence blood of a cultivator as a medium, so each use must be done with utmost care.

Essence blood is the heart's blood born within a cultivator's body. Each Qi Refining stage cultivator has about a hundred drops. Each drop takes about a year to recover after use, so the cost is unimaginable. Moreover, for a Qi Refining stage cultivator, once more than 15% of their essence blood is consumed at once, which is 15 drops, their essence may be damaged and they may never recover.

If it weren't for ensuring the Lingbing Mine as the only stable source of spirit stones, Tong Bingfeng would never have been willing to shed a single drop of his essence blood.

"I understand the priorities. Fellow Daoist Tong, please feel free to search deep within the Ice Domain. I will take care of everything regarding the Spirit Ice Mine."

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Tong, on your fruitful journey and may you take another step closer to the Foundation Establishment Path."

Liu Zong solemnly put the long-distance communication talisman into his pocket, making a solemn promise.

Half a day later, with the sun high in the sky and the temperature in the Northern Ice Region at its highest, Tong Bingfeng left the area of ​​the Spirit Ice Mine, quickly determined his direction, and transformed into a streak of light, speeding away.

During his time guarding the Spirit Ice Mine, in addition to his daily rigorous training, he naturally never forgot to explore the surrounding area of ​​the Spirit Ice Mine.

After years of continuous and unremitting efforts, Tong Bingfeng has a good grasp of the ice area within a radius of two hundred miles around the spirit ice mine.

As for the demonic beasts that live and reproduce within this area, those that pose a threat to the spirit ice mine have basically been killed and become part of their spoils, which have long been transformed into resources needed for daily cultivation.

He had a relatively clear goal for this expedition: the first was a hot spring located 500 miles northeast of the Spirit Ice Mine, in the ice domain.

Under the constant erosion of low temperatures in the northern ice region, almost the entire area except for Ling Island is submerged under a bottomless layer of ice. Moreover, this ice layer, which forms day by day, does not melt easily, and the occasional high temperatures of three to five days have no substantial impact on it.

Ironically, even in such a icy region, some peculiar areas occasionally appear. For example, Ice Heart Lake, which is not far from Ice Spirit Island, never freezes and no matter how low the temperature, it will never form any ice layer.

The hot springs are an even more peculiar place. A continuous stream of high temperature gushes out from the ice layer, forming a small hot spring area that neither expands nor shrinks. Moreover, because it is shrouded in white mist all year round, visibility is suppressed once you enter it, and you lose your usually sharp sense of direction.

"Legend has it that the first Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Chen family obtained some kind of opportunity by risking his life in Ice Heart Lake, which allowed him to successfully break through. I wonder what about this hot spring that is always shrouded in mist?"

The first thing that came to Tong Bingfeng's mind was a piece of news that everyone on Ice Spirit Island knew but could not verify, and a bright light shot out from his eyes.

"I dare not hope for any particular opportunity, I just hope I won't leave empty-handed."