On Yuanling Mountain, a rather simple banquet was underway. Shen Wulei and Jiang Kui sat at the head of the table, while Fang Qingyuan and Zhang Yuan accompanied a dozen or so fellow disciples.
Of the more than one hundred Qi Refining Cultivators Shen Wulei had brought this ti, only a dozen or so belonged to the Beast Taming Sect. Among them, a re two or three were Core Disciples.
Now that Fang Qingyuan and Zhang Yuan were Core Disciples, their status and seniority were respectable enough to command deference. These fellow Beast Taming Sect disciples were quite courteous to Fang Qingyuan.
At the banquet, the wine they drank was from Zhang Yuan’s personal stock, and the food was made from the fine ingredients Fang Qingyuan had prepared for Jinbao.
Yuanling Mountain was in a remote location, so a simple reception was enough to fulfill their duties as hosts. Besides, no matter how hard Jiang Kui might try to curry favor with Shen Wulei, it would be a waste of effort.
Shen Wulei took a sip of his wine and said to Jiang Kui, who was beside him:
"You’ve managed this Yuanling Mountain quite well. The mortals live and work in peace, and you all seem to get along harmoniously. The Spirit Plants on the back mountain are also lush and cover a massive area. At a rough glance, I’d estimate it’s about five or six hundred acres, right?"
Jiang Kui observed Shen Wulei’s expression and replied matter-of-factly:
"Thank you for the praise, Senior Brother. The Spirit Plants on the back mountain are just to provide a livelihood for the mortals at the foot of the mountain. The sect takes half the profits from their yield. I imagine the Music Master and Senior Brother Zhao were already aware of this. Is it possible they didn’t ntion it to you?"
Shen Wulei’s expression froze. He drained his cup of wine, then stood up and announced:
"We’ve had our wine and eaten our fill. It’s ti to get to work. All disciples, follow out of the mountain to begin mining."
The mont Shen Wulei finished speaking, the dozen or so disciples below rose in unison and silently filed out.
Jiang Kui chuckled softly and opened the Mountain Protection Array, allowing them to pass. Outside Yuanling Mountain, the remaining hundred-odd Qi Refining Cultivators were mostly bewildered to see Shen Wulei erge so quickly.
They had only been setting up camp for half a day, and Shen Wulei was already in a hurry to go mining. ’Isn’t he even going to stay on Yuanling Mountain for a few more days?’
Shen Wulei led his disciples out of Yuanling Mountain. Seeing that Fang Qingyuan had followed them, he said:
"Nephew Qingyuan, there’s no ti to waste. Take us to the location of the Crimson Iron Ore."
Seeing that Shen Wulei didn’t want to spend another mont on Yuanling Mountain, Fang Qingyuan was inwardly amused. He naturally stepped forward to lead the way.
And so, Yinbao took the lead, flying at the very front. Trailing behind it were a dozen or so beast-ships. The shadow cast by a procession of this scale was large enough to blot out the sun. Wherever they passed, the beasts on the ground prostrated themselves, not daring to move a muscle.
After flying for two hours, the site of the Crimson Iron Ore ca into view. Fang Qingyuan directed Yinbao to descend, eventually landing on a patch of reddish earth. He then turned to Shen Wulei, who had landed behind him, and said:
"Senior Uncle, please look. This is the location of the Crimson Iron Ore."
Shen Wulei’s eyes scanned the surroundings. Then, with a wave of his hand, the Cultivators from the dozen or so beast-ships disembarked in an orderly stream, spread out, and began to get busy.
Of these one hundred-plus Qi Refining Cultivators, aside from the dozen disciples from Beast Taming Mountain who served as a security force, the rest were mostly recruited Loose Cultivators.
These Loose Cultivators were willing to trade mining labor for their own cultivation resources. They hadn’t had it easy, and so were even deep in debt, belonging to the lowest rung of the Cultivation Realm.
The idea of Cultivators personally doing the mining would sound incredible to mortals, but that was the reality. As long as the price was right, what was a little digging?
Shen Wulei summoned an accompanying disciple and whispered a few words in his ear. The disciple nodded in understanding and walked away.
Afterward, Shen Wulei looked at Fang Qingyuan and said:
"Nephew Fang, thank you for bringing us here. I can see that things are busy on Yuanling Mountain, so why don’t you head back? You can leave things here to us."
Hearing this, the smile on Fang Qingyuan’s face didn’t waver as he replied:
"It’s no trouble. They’re not short one person on Yuanling Mountain. In fact, it seems Senior Uncle is the one who’s short-handed right now. I’ll stay and see how I can help. Every little bit counts."
Seeing Fang Qingyuan shalessly refuse to leave, Shen Wulei decided not to bother with him any longer. ’A re Qi Refining Seventh Layer Cultivator can’t stir up any trouble anyway.’
Under the direction of the Beast Taming Sect disciples, the Loose Cultivators began to set up arrays, fell trees, and build the camp.
The reserves of Crimson Iron Ore were astonishing, and it was estimated that the mining would take several decades. It seed Shen Wulei was in for a long stay.
「Seven days later.」
A human encampnt had sprung up on the border of the Wilderness Forest.
Over a hundred buildings had been constructed, scattered across a stretch of leveled ground. Not far away, a river that had been redirected by magical arts ensured a water supply for the nurous Cultivators and their Spiritual Beast Transport Beasts.
Furthermore, the most important installation was the array set up on site: a second-rank, high-grade Eight-direction Spirit Summoning Beast Gathering Array that covered a radius of several miles.
Once this array was in place, even Shen Wulei breathed a sigh of relief. The Barbaric Wilderness was treacherous; without the protection of an array, ’it feels like walking around naked.’
When all the preparations were complete, Shen Wulei gave the order, and the nurous Loose Cultivators officially began to dig.
As cubic ter after cubic ter of earth was hauled up, the soil containing Crimson Iron Ore was collected. This ore-rich earth was then transported to a nearby refining array. After a complex process, tons of ore would go in, and blocks of scarlet Red Iron Spiritual Material would co out.
「Half a month later.」
The first batch of Red Iron Spiritual Material was loaded onto the beast-ships. Escorted by seven or eight Beast Taming Sect disciples, it set off toward the distant Celestial Gate Mountain.
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