CHAPTER 243: CHAPTER 0243: HARVESTING SPIRIT STONE - PART 1

"Eighty thousand years ago, we had the opportunity to develop many Green Planets, as we’d sent out numerous communication devices. Unfortunately, a war broke out that bombed the Empire Technology Tower into ruins. I was left with only this single phone, which is how I’m lucky enough to be in contact with you. The other Green Planets remain unreachable because interstellar calls require a dedicated, one-to-one connection. Recently, Xuanwu Star has sent out many more phones, but it will take another eighty thousand years for them to reach those planets," Gao Si said.

"Can’t your Cosmic Battleships or Spaceships reach the speed of light?" Zhang Bin asked.

"Not yet. Only rockets can achieve that speed, but they aren’t suitable for transporting people," Gao Si explained. "And even if they were, interstellar travel often spans thousands, or even tens of thousands, of years. By that point, we’d either run out of energy or die of old age. So, for now, we Xuanwu Star People are focusing on exploring nearby planets and establishing Interstellar Teleportation Arrays to transfer important Treasures."

"You haven’t revealed the secret of my phone, have you?" Zhang Bin asked worriedly.

"Of course not. Just like for you, this is my greatest asset for rising up. Why would I ever tell anyone else?" Gao Si said.

"Hehehe..."

The two of them chuckled slyly. Coming from poor backgrounds with similar experiences, they understood each other well.

"My brother, we can finally start some real interstellar trading. Have you prepared the Treasures I need?" Zhang Bin asked excitedly.

"Hehe... I have more Treasures here than you can imagine. I can provide anything you need, all things that Earth doesn’t have and can’t produce," Gao Si said with a sly laugh. "But first, I need to gather enough energy to send you an Interstellar Teleportation Array. Only then will you meet the basic conditions for trading. Also, my brother, you have to pay off your debt before I’ll trade with you."

"Debt? Isn’t it just one thousand Spirit Stones?" Zhang Bin said. "I’ll go Qi gathering right now to prepare them."

"No, no, no. It’s two thousand Spirit Stones. Last time, I also transmitted the Pure Heart Mystique to you, and that’s worth another thousand," Gao Si stated.

Two thousand Spirit Stones? That seems like a hefty price. Zhang Bin felt he might be getting the short end of the stick. However, when he recalled the miraculous effects of the Savage Overbearing Body Art and Pure Heart Mystique he’d received, he decided it was still worth it. He didn’t try to back out of the deal. They talked for a while longer, and then Zhang Bin hung up.

Without any delay, he took several of his pets and headed deep into the Great Green Mountain.

These pets were, of course, Da Huang, Xiao Qian, Hong Ya, and Xiao Jin. The rest stayed home to guard his Spiritual Medicine. He brought them along to act as his protectors, as they could sense dangers and enemies that he himself couldn’t. The perceptive abilities of animals were truly miraculous.

Creating Spirit Stones was a huge secret that could never be revealed.

He walked slowly through the dense forest. As he passed, the Spiritual Energy from the trees was drawn out, forming a whirlwind that flowed into the Spirit Stone Maker in his hand.

Then, like a hen laying eggs, a Spirit Stone would periodically drop out from the back of the device.

Each one was about the size of a walnut. They were a brilliant, crystal-clear emerald green, as beautiful as any gemstone, and emitted the fresh fragrance of grass and trees.

If any knowledgeable Cultivator were here, they would surely recognize these as Top-Grade Spirit Stones, which were essentially free of impurities and formed from pure, condensed Spiritual Energy. Middle-Grade and Low-Grade Spirit Stones, in contrast, contained large amounts of impurities. Naturally, the value of a Top-Grade Spirit Stone was immense.

"It’s so beautiful." Zhang Bin held a Spirit Stone in his other hand, examining it carefully with a look of fondness. A powerful sense of joy welled up in his heart. From this day forward, I can produce an endless supply of Spirit Stones! Whether for my own Cultivation or for nurturing Spiritual Medicine, everything will now be much more convenient.

However, he soon realized the problem. Even working at his utmost capacity, he could only produce fifty Spirit Stones a day.

That means I’ll have to work continuously for two months to get the two thousand Spirit Stones to repay Gao Si. But I also need Spirit Stones for cultivating Spiritual Medicine and for my own Cultivation, so two months might not be enough. It could take three months or even longer. Who knows when I’ll ever be able to trade with Gao Si for the Treasures I need from Xuanwu Star.

He immediately called Gao Si to complain.

Gao Si just laughed. "Brother, what are you complaining about? Once you break through to the Liquid State, your Qi gathering ability will increase manifold. You’ll be able to make over a hundred Spirit Stones a day. Later, when you reach the Seed Condensing Realm, you might even produce several hundred or a thousand a day! You’re a rare cultivation genius. I believe that if you trade with me for some Treasures, you’ll quickly break through to the Liquid State, then the Seed Condensing Realm, the Minor Tree Realm... When that happens, will you still be worried about making enough Spirit Stones?"

He’s right. There’s no need for me to work so hard producing Spirit Stones right now. I should focus on raising more funds to attend the Hero Auction and get the Spiritual Medicine I need. After I break through to the Liquid State, my speed will increase dramatically. Then I can quickly pay off my debt and trade for Treasures from Xuanwu Star. Zhang Bin agreed with Gao Si’s logic, his mind already calculating.

A look of anticipation crossed his face as his imagination ran wild. How cool would it be to have Gao Si send over a Cosmic Spaceship or a Cosmic Battleship? Or maybe an extremely powerful Magical Treasure? I’d be invincible...

It took half a day for him to snap out of it. He couldn’t help but laugh at himself. Looks like I enjoy a good fantasy. Still, I’d better be realistic. The most important thing is to protect my secrets and not let anyone find out. Otherwise, it’s a dead end. I’ve already witnessed the terror of the state’s power.

The person who knows most of my secrets isn’t Liu Ruolan, Xiao Fang, or my parents. It’s Liu Ruomei. I gave her a large amount of Spiritual Water and taught her the miraculous Pure Heart Mystique. To make matters worse, there’s a mind-reading expert constantly probing Liu Ruomei’s thoughts. It’s only a matter of time before they uncover the secrets that belong to me. It seems I have to deal with this huge potential threat immediately. Otherwise, disaster is sure to strike sooner or later.

Thinking of this, he made a very important decision.

He immediately got in his car and drove toward Liu Ruomei’s villa, his expression grim. He wasn’t going for a romantic tryst; he was going to do something of extreme importance