Chapter 377: Accompanying Crystal Vein, An Unexpected Joy

Zhou Chen immediately continued to swing his pickaxe, mining according to the technique he had just mastered.

His mining efficiency had increased threefold out of thin air.

Just one hour later, Zhou Chen had already dug out over a dozen pieces of Ore, which added up to the value of three pieces of Low Grade Immortal Crystal.

He had easily completed today's task.

They were allowed to keep the remaining Ore; after all, they couldn't take it out, nor could they absorb and utilize the Immortal Spiritual Qi within.

Instead, by a twist of fate, it had become hard currency for these Mine Slaves.

"Not bad."

Elder Zhang walked over, took a look at the Ore Zhou Chen had dug out, and nodded with satisfaction.

"Your Comprehension Ability is good; you mastered the force-application technique so quickly."

"At your current efficiency, the daily task of digging out three pieces of Low Grade Immortal Crystal should not be difficult to complete."

Zhou Chen cupped his hands: "Thank you for your guidance, Elder Zhang."

"It is nothing."

Elder Zhang waved his hand: "In the mine, we are all suffering people; we should help each other when we can."

"Right, I see your cultivation is at the First Layer of the Venerable Realm?"

"In the Lower Realm, being able to Cultivate to the Venerable Realm should count as a Genius, right?"

Zhou Chen nodded, not denying it.

Elder Zhang sighed: "Unfortunately, in the Spirit Realm, the Venerable Realm is just the beginning."

"In this mine, there are at least hundreds of thousands of Venerable Realm Cultivators. Geniuses are everywhere here; one swing of a hoe could crush a whole group of Prodigies."

"I am only at the Third Layer of the Venerable Realm."

"As for the manager of the mine, he is at the Quasi-Immortal Realm."

"In the Spirit Realm, the Quasi-Immortal Realm can only serve as a small manager; one can imagine how cruel the cultivation environment is here."

Zhou Chen's heart sank.

He had originally thought that his Breakthrough to the First Layer of the Venerable Realm would count as having some strength in the Spirit Realm.

But now it seemed he was still far behind.

"However……"

A gleam of light flashed in Zhou Chen's eyes: "Although the Spirit Realm is cruel, it also means there are more Opportunities."

"As long as I can survive here, my strength will inevitably advance by leaps and bounds."

He put away the Ore and continued to mine.

But this time, he had a new discovery.

Continuously circulating Spiritual Qi while mining, although consuming a lot, also refined his Spiritual Qi during the process.

Moreover, although the Spiritual Qi inside the mine was thin, its quality was extremely high.

Every breath he took, the Immortal Spiritual Qi he inhaled was a hundred times purer than the Spiritual Qi of the Tianxuan Continent.

"No wonder……"

Zhou Chen seemed to realize something: "No wonder the Cultivators of the Spirit Realm are so strong."

"Although the cultivation environment here is harsh, the quality of the Spiritual Qi far exceeds that of the Lower Realm."

"If I can persist in my Cultivation here, breaking through to the Second or Third Layer of the Venerable Realm shouldn't take too long."

He calculated secretly in his heart while continuing to mine.

Three days later.

Zhou Chen had completely adapted to life in the mine.

Mining for eight hours a day, he could dig out five to six pieces of Ore worth of Low Grade Immortal Crystal.

After deducting the daily task of three pieces, he could still have two to three pieces left each day.

At this rate, he could save about thirty pieces a month.

But one hundred thousand pieces of Immortal Crystal……

It would take over three thousand months, which is more than two hundred years.

"Too slow……"

Zhou Chen frowned.

Two hundred years, he couldn't afford to wait.

Furthermore, although the environment of the mine allowed him to Cultivate, the efficiency was too low.

He had to find a way to leave this hellhole.

At this moment, Zhou Chen opened his opportunity panel as usual.

[Name: Li Tie]

[Realm: Venerable Realm Seventh Layer]

[fate: Mine Slave (White)]

[Destiny: Originally a Genius from a small Family in the Lower Realm, he was hunted down for offending an enemy and had no choice but to use the Flying Immortal Token to escape to the Spirit Realm. After becoming a Mine Slave, he spent his whole life mining and eventually died of old age in the mine, living to be three thousand three hundred and twenty years old.]

[Recent Opportunity: None]

[Name: Wang Dachui]

[Realm: Ninth Layer of the Emperor Realm]

[fate: Laborer (Green)]

[Destiny: A general of a Dynasty in the Lower Realm, captured after being defeated in battle, his whole Family was killed. He luckily escaped to the Spirit Realm and became a Mine Slave. Fifty years after mining, he was starved to death for failing to complete his tasks, living to be two thousand one hundred and eighty years old.]

[Recent Opportunity: None]

[Name: Zhao Shitou]

[Realm: First Layer of the Venerable Realm]

[fate: Unlucky Person (Green)]

[Destiny: An Elder of a Holy Land in the Lower Realm, framed due to being involved in Sect infighting, he accidentally entered an ancient teleportation array and came to the Spirit Realm. He originally had a chance to redeem himself, but just as he was about to gather enough Immortal Crystal, he was backstabbed by a companion and died, living to be two thousand five hundred years old.]

[Recent Opportunity: Three days later, behind the rock wall on the east side of the mine, he will discover an Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein containing a large amount of high-grade immortal crystal. However, because he does not know how to hide it, he will be discovered by the mine manager; the Immortal Crystal will be confiscated, and he will have his legs broken and be thrown into the abyss mine to wait for death.]

Zhou Chen's eyes lit up instantly when he saw Zhao Shitou's opportunity panel.

"Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein?"

"high-grade immortal crystal?!"

He suppressed the excitement in his heart and continued reading.

An Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein is an extremely rare existence among Immortal Crystal veins.

Ordinary Immortal Crystal veins can only produce Low Grade Immortal Crystal.

But an Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein, due to its special geological environment, can produce Medium Grade or even high-grade immortal crystal.

One piece of high-grade immortal crystal is equivalent to ten thousand pieces of Low Grade Immortal Crystal!

One hundred pieces of high-grade immortal crystal is one million pieces of Low Grade Immortal Crystal!

And redeeming himself only requires one hundred thousand pieces of Low Grade Immortal Crystal……

"I'm rich……"

A smile curled on the corner of Zhou Chen's mouth.

But he quickly calmed down.

According to the hint from the opportunity panel, this Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein will only be discovered by Zhao Shitou in three days.

Wealth moves people's hearts; because Zhao Shitou did not know how to hide it, he was discovered by the mine manager, not only was the Immortal Crystal confiscated, but he also had his legs broken.

"It must be done covertly; no one can be allowed to discover it."

A cold light flashed in Zhou Chen's eyes.

He began to carefully observe the layout of the mine.

The east side of the mine was exactly the area Zhao Shitou was responsible for excavating.

The rock wall there looked no different from other places, but when Zhou Chen swept it with his Divine Sense, he discovered an anomaly.

The Spiritual Qi fluctuation in that area was denser than in other places.

Although the difference was very subtle, for a Cultivator of the Venerable Realm, it could still be detected.

"That's it……"

Zhou Chen said to himself.

But he did not act immediately.

There were too many people in the mine now; acting rashly would definitely lead to being discovered.

Moreover, the mine had guards patrolling regularly, so he had to avoid their patrol times.

Zhou Chen began to secretly observe the patrol patterns of the guards.

He discovered that the guards patrolled every two hours, and each patrol lasted for a quarter of an hour.

And the time when the Mine Slaves rested was exactly in the gaps between the guards' patrols.

"The Opportunity has come……"

A gleam of light flashed in Zhou Chen's eyes.

That night, the mine plunged into darkness.

Most of the Mine Slaves were resting, recovering the Spiritual Qi they had consumed during the day.

Zhou Chen pretended to rest, but in reality, he was waiting in secret.

He calculated the patrol time of the guards well, and as soon as the guards left, he immediately got up and quietly went to the east side of the mine.

This was Zhao Shitou's mining area, but Zhao Shitou was now fast asleep.

Zhou Chen swept the rock wall with his Divine Sense and precisely locked onto the location of the Accompanying Immortal Crystal Vein.

"Right here……"

Zhou Chen casually set up a concealment Formation to ensure that no noise would be emitted.