Chapter 1147: The Heavenly Duke Isn’t Worth Much (First Update!)
Palace Lord Gong Yun snorted, saying calmly, “If this news is true, I’ll grant you that one percent of divine stones. Since that little wretch Qiang Tianfei is the Grand Emperor, then who is the Heavenly Duke Hong? Why, when I struck him, did he only flee without fighting back?”
Qin Mu’s spirits soared, and he opened his mouth wide, “For this news, I want the raw stones produced from your mine! If you dig up any raw stones, they’re mine!”
Palace Lord Gong Yun thought for a moment, then shook her head, “The Heavenly Duke Hong isn’t worth that price.”
Qin Mu sighed, looking quite regretful, thinking to himself, “Can’t sell the Heavenly Duke for a good price anymore…”
Palace Lord Gong Yun said, “Tell me Hong’s true identity, and I’ll tell you the locations of the other ancient mines.”
Qin Mu shook his head, saying, “I have ways to find those mines. I can’t betray a friend for such a small matter. You’ll have to pay more.”
He raised two fingers, “Give me two percent of the divine stones!”
Palace Lord Gong Yun’s expression turned strange, and she shook her head, “The Heavenly Duke Hong’s true identity isn’t worth that price. I won’t buy it. Once I verify the little wretch Qiang Tianfei’s identity, I’ll give you one percent of the divine stones from each excavation.”
Seeing that she had no intention of raising the price, Qin Mu showed disappointment, asking, “What kind of divine stones does this ancient mine of yours produce?”
Palace Lord Gong Yun casually tossed one over, saying, “It’s this kind of stone. In the past, the Creators didn’t understand primal energy or primordial spirit, nor did they know how to cultivate the soul, so the secret of this divine stone was never unlocked. This time I came, I also figured something out—this mine, like the Primal Beginning Mine, can produce ancient god eggs. So this divine stone must have another use! Take this one and study it.”
Qin Mu took the divine stone and examined it closely. It emitted a seven-colored radiance, with eight corners and twelve edges, but strangely, it seemed to be alive!
When he pinched the upper and lower corners of the stone, it began to collapse inward, while the internal space turned outward, cycling back and forth, giving him a profoundly mysterious feeling!
It was different from the Primal Beginning divine stones.
He wanted to explore the stone’s abilities, but for now, finding a good place to establish a foothold was more urgent. Once he had a secure spot, he could study it slowly.
Qin Mu pocketed the divine stone, took his leave, and thought to himself, “Selling the Heavenly Duke’s identity to other Heavenly Dukes would definitely be worth one percent of divine stones. Too bad I can’t casually sell it to others, or it would harm him… I really wish I could sell the Grand Emperor and the Heavenly Emperor for a good price too! But if I did, they’d definitely kill me at all costs.”
After walking a distance, Qin Mu took out the Lapis Lazuli Heavenly Canopy again, saying casually, “This treasure land has been taken by Palace Lord Gong. Luckily, she owes me a favor and promised me one percent of the divine stones. But I also need to find a land no less valuable than this, to mine more treasures, so I can trade for more divine stones from her. Where can I find such a place?”
The Void Beast wandered aimlessly forward.
Qin Mu relaxed, his eyes flickering, “The ancient god egg on the celestial sphere—its true purpose is for that ancient mine of the Nüxin Clan. It most likely needs that mine to mature and break out of its shell. So, no matter what, it has to find me another mine!”
“Only then can I get more divine stones from Palace Lord Gong.”
Qin Mu gazed leisurely at the mysterious large eyes appearing and disappearing around him, thinking, “And it knows that I habitually store treasures in the Qin Continent, so it can take the opportunity to absorb these divine stones and be born sooner! But once I find an ancient mine, why would I keep the divine stones I get in the Qin Continent? Heh heh…”
After two days of travel, the Void Beast arrived before an ancient mine.
Qin Mu’s spirits lifted, and he was about to leap down from the bone mountain when suddenly the ground below opened into a deep abyss, and a tongue like a waterfall shot out, coiling toward him.
His hair stood on end, and he quickly activated his divine consciousness, filling the belly of the Void Beast hidden underground with sharp spikes.
The beast, in pain, fled through the void.
Cold sweat ran down the back of Qin Mu’s neck. Void Beasts were still extremely powerful; an adult Void Beast’s strength was somewhere between the Jade Capital and the Empyrean realms, and Yan’er could certainly match it.
But such giant beasts were elusive and unpredictable, and even a powerhouse like Yan’er, at the peak of the Empyrean realm, could die on the spot if ambushed by one!
He swept his divine consciousness through the void, driving away all the Void Beasts lurking nearby, then breathed a sigh of relief and called for Dragon Qilin and Yan’er to come down, saying, “This mine should be one of the five most ancient ones. Stay close to me; I’ll use the Lapis Lazuli Heavenly Canopy to protect us.”
Dragon Qilin and Yan’er quickly followed him.
Qin Mu held the Heavenly Canopy and stepped into the mine, saying, “The Primal Beginning Mine was full of Primal Beginning divine stones, so it was extremely dangerous. Even the eight ancient gods carrying the coffin died there. Luckily, we have the Heavenly Canopy, which grants wishes, or we’d die too.”
Yan’er was puzzled, thinking, “Why is the young master talking to himself?”
She didn’t realize that Qin Mu wasn’t talking to himself but to the ancient god egg inside the Heavenly Canopy.
His goal was to make the ancient god egg protect them, which made his behavior seem odd.
This ancient mine was nestled between mountains with steep, wall-like peaks. Entering the mountain range, everything was shrouded in a vast chaos, like darkness yet with a hint of light, but visibility was limited.
In the midst of the chaotic haze, a few sparse plants grew, their roots in the chaotic energy. These plants had dragon scales, each scale shining brightly.
Qin Mu approached to look and saw his own internal organs reflected!
Startled, he thought, “This plant is strange—could it turn into a divine dragon and fly away?”
He also saw some plants blooming and bearing fruit, but not knowing their medicinal properties, he dared not pick them casually.
“I wonder if they can be used as medicine? The Medicine Master’s opportunity has come—if he were here, his medical skills might advance further, and my Medical Heaven Palace would have hope!”
They gradually ventured deeper into the mine. Suddenly, Qin Mu stepped on a bone. Frowning, he circulated his primal energy to push back the surrounding chaotic energy.
The chaotic energy was incredibly heavy; even a tiny wisp weighed like a mountain. Pushing it back took great effort.
Then he saw, scattered on the mine floor, the skeletons of Creators!
All these corpses were facing outward, as if something terrifying had happened inside the mine, and the Creator miners had fled in panic, only to die on the way out!
Qin Mu frowned deeply, propping up one skeleton to examine it for wounds, but found none.
“How did these Creator miners die?”
He steadied himself and bowed to the Lapis Lazuli Heavenly Canopy. The canopy opened, letting down beams of precious light that pushed back the chaotic energy.
Qin Mu, leaning on the Heavenly Canopy, continued forward.
The mine was very deep, gradually sloping downward into a tunnel.
Suddenly, Qin Mu stopped. He saw a Creator skeleton still clutching a divine stone in its hand.
This stone was round, like a sphere containing inner light. Qin Mu reached out to take it from the skeleton’s hand, but the moment he touched it, the stone turned to dust.
He frowned and moved on. Along the way, many divine stones had been mined by the Creator workers, but all of them had had their power absorbed by something!
Even the divine stones still embedded in the mine walls turned to ash at the slightest touch!
A sense of unease grew in his heart. “This mine… it’s probably empty. Which means the ancient god inside it has likely already been born!”