Behind Low Mountain, within a hollow.

    Watching the giant white-scaled serpent over twenty meters in length, as thick as a water tank, Chen Mu was left with a lingering fear.

    "That was close."

    "So close to letting this creature escape!"

    If it had actually taken the White Jade Plate, he would''ve regretted it so much he might have torn his own hair out!

    Chen Mu immediately commanded the Five Ghosts Yin Spirit to enter the belly of the exotic beast, rapidly locating the Jade Plate.

    Then, enveloped in black smoke, the Five Ghosts "Dishwasher" came online. With repeated infiltration and teleportation, they cleaned off the serpent''s stomach acid that had adhered to the plate.

    "Thankfully..." Chen Mu gripped the Jade Plate and let out a sigh of relief.

    Without time to examine it closely, he quickly put away the White Jade Plate.

    The commotion just now wasn''t small; he needed to quickly handle the chaos at the hollow''s site.

    The ghosts once again entered the body of the exotic serpent beast.

    "Five Ghosts Moving Mountain."

    The entire serpent rapidly deflated, as though it were a section of hose that had run out of water.

    Chen Mu rolled it up from head to tail in a few swift movements.

    He then went to the large hole where the white-scaled serpent had emerged and controlled the Five Ghosts to continue digging downward for over ten meters. They then veered away multiple times as if the serpent had fled underground.

    Finally, the Five Ghosts turned into a solid form and stirred the messy pile of stones in the small hollow even more to destroy as much evidence as possible of the battle.

    After quickly returning to the courtyard at Low Mountain, he proceeded to tidy up the area.

    Not long after he finished, Old Hao had already appeared over the ridge.

    ...

    "A big guy came here?!" Old Hao exclaimed in surprise at the chaotic courtyard.

    "It was a greedy snake, as thick as a water bucket," Chen Mu complained with a pained expression. "I just bought three antler black sheep legs, and it swallowed them all."

    "Not only was its hide thick and flesh tough, but it also knew how to burrow."

    "I put in a lot of effort, but in the end, it still escaped," Chen Mu said with an annoyed face.

    "Such a large snake, that could have been worth quite a bit of money," Old Hao lamented in sympathy. "If only I had come a bit earlier."

    If you had come earlier, maybe you would have been the one it swallowed!

    Chen Mu dissed inwardly.

    That the Five Ghosts Moving Mountain couldn''t penetrate its armor in such a short time indicated that the serpent''s defenses were on par with Perceptive Spiritual Light.

    Old Hao wouldn''t be enough to withstand even a single tail slap from the white-scaled serpent!

    If it weren''t for the breakthrough of the Sand Containing Technique and the newly acquired Sand Shooting Shadow ability, who knows how much effort it would have taken to breach the serpent''s scale armor.

    "Should we report this to the Inspection Courtyard?" Chen Mu pretended to be clueless as he asked nonchalantly.

    "If you think you have too much White Jade Money weighing you down, you can give it to me," Old Hao rolled his eyes.

    "If you really bring in the Inspection Courtyard, after they go through the trouble of investigating for you, aren''t you obliged to give them a tip?"

    "It''s just an exotic snake beast, and it only ate three of your sheep legs. Why bother with the Inspection Courtyard?"

    "Is this the so-called Purple Mansion Mud Pill?" Chen Mu couldn''t help but be astonished.

    He wondered who had created such a Secret Technique, allowing mere mortals of flesh and blood to absorb Earth Spirit Vital Energy and gradually undergo transformation.

    "Earth Spirit Vital Energy is the key," Chen Mu realized.

    "No wonder Director Song from the Scripture Transmission Institute does not recommend extensively practicing Jade Seed Secret Techniques."

    Because the Jade Seed Secret Techniques are just a simplified version of the real Secret Techniques.

    Just like the advanced Sand Containing Technique.

    The Sand Shooting Shadow could instantly break through the tough scale armor of the white-scaled serpent with its immense power.

    But without the Earth Spirit Vital Energy absorbed into the body by the Spirit Armor Technique, he would not be able to execute it.

    "I must protect the White Jade Plate at all costs!" Chen Mu''s heart skipped a beat.

    He now realized that his future cultivation would almost all revolve around Earth Spirit Vital Energy.

    The White Jade Plate was like a movable Daoist sanctuary, akin to a fuel station that follows the vehicle.

    A treasure!

    A great treasure!

    "No wonder the Inspection Courtyard took great efforts to investigate Dong Cheng''s death," Chen Mu tensed up.

    Now he was one hundred percent certain that there were definitely people in the Inspection Courtyard still searching for the White Jade Plate!

    "What if they detect it?" Chen Mu worried.

    The white-scaled serpent had found its way here by following the scent of Earth Spirit Vital Energy.

    Then certainly other Exotic Beasts or Magic Artifacts might also be able to locate places rich in Earth Spirit Vital Energy.

    "The arrival of the white-scaled serpent was indeed timely!" Chen Mu couldn''t help breaking out in a cold sweat.

    His previous careless use of the White Jade Plate was akin to being a glaring beacon.

    "I can''t use this thing for the time being..." Chen Mu gave a wry smile.

    He had to find a way to block Earth Spirit Vital Energy.

    ...

    Two days later, Chen Mu left the Scripture Transmission Institute, disappointed for not finding the information he wanted.

    "I suppose it''s to be expected," Chen Mu shook his head.

    The eight-sided wooden tower of the Scripture Transmission Institute had three floors.

    The first floor corresponded to Jade Seed Integration, the second to Perceptive Spiritual Light, and the third to Perceptive Illusion Breaking.

    Some were dedicated to the main cultivation of Secret Techniques, while others were used to apply Secret Techniques, also storing a vast assortment of books related to planting, taming, and other resource production.

    However, there was a lack of materials related to concocting Elixirs and crafting Magic Artifacts.

    Blocking Earth Spirit Vital Energy was most likely related to crafting Magic Artifacts.

    "Such secret knowledge is probably only in the hands of Director Song Wujie," Chen Mu sighed.

    As a mere junior worker of the external courtyard, he had no way to get in touch with Director Song.

    "Guess I''ll have to make some inquiries on the Ling Boat."