Starting from the imperial palace guards, his clones spread all over the world.

Chapter 722 Underground Spirit Mine
But as cliché as it may be, Liang Jin was well aware that if there really was such a group of people with crazy ideals, they would be a force to be reckoned with.

Just like the Adventists in "The Three-Body Problem," their core members are often not ordinary people struggling to make ends meet, but elites from all walks of life.

The reason is simple: ordinary people are busy making a living every day, and the burden of life has already bent their backs. They care about three meals a day, firewood, rice, oil and salt, and whether they can survive tomorrow. Where do they have the extra energy and mind to worry about whether aliens will invade centuries later, or to think about how to reshape the world order, such grand but ethereal propositions?
Upon closer examination, the philosophy of the Yinxi Society bears a striking resemblance to that of the "Adventists."

In those ancient myths and legends, some true and some false, mythical beasts that ruled the heavens and the earth in ancient times, possessing supreme power and unfathomable wisdom, were once the true masters of this world.

The ancestors of humankind worshipped it, offering their most precious sacrifices and praying for protection and favorable weather.

The Yinxi Society clearly inherited this ancient "worship" and took it to an extreme.

They believe that the world today is morally corrupt, disorderly, and rampant with greed, and is beyond redemption.

Only by inviting back those former gods—that is, powerful divine beasts—to regain their authority and cleanse the filth with thunderous means can we completely reverse the situation and reshape a "pure" world of humanity.

It is impossible for ordinary people to generate and believe in such extreme ideas.

The lives of ordinary people in this world today are even more difficult and arduous than those of the common people in the previous "Three-Body Problem" novel.

They struggled daily on the brink of life and death, their only thoughts being how to get the next bite of food and how to protect their families from the suffering of cold and hunger.

Those who have the extra energy and resources to delve into sociology and philosophy, and who can also access the secrets of "mythical beasts" that only exist in ancient books and oral traditions, must be the elite class in this social structure who possess knowledge, wealth, leisure, and even a certain degree of power.

In this martial arts world, the so-called "elite class" is often closely linked to strong personal martial arts skills, illustrious family backgrounds, or secret sect lineages.

They truly wield power and authority; their energy is immense.

Such people are often "hidden in plain sight," perhaps holding high positions in the government, perhaps dominating a region, or perhaps lurking in some unknown corner, weaving a vast network of relationships.

They lurk in the shadows of normal society, acting mysteriously and making them difficult to guard against.

What's even more frightening is that this extreme ideology possesses an extremely strong power to manipulate and unite people.

It can make a third-rank martial artist who has cultivated diligently for decades and has already joined the ranks of the world's strongest willingly and without hesitation sever his meridians and face death for the sake of his so-called "lofty ideals"!

This absolute control over individual will and the fanatical dedication to organizational goals are far more dangerous than an army that fights openly!
However, as the saying goes, things will turn into their opposites when they reach their extremes.

It is precisely because of the extremism and non-mainstream nature of its ideology that it is destined to be unacceptable to secular society, and can only lurk and crawl in the dark like a rat in a sewer, daring not to be exposed to the sunlight.

This also explains why Liang Jin, who rose to power in the Western Desert and controlled a vast force, had never heard of the "Yinxi Society" before.

Clearly, without a certain level of strength and status, one simply cannot access these hidden organizations shrouded in the mists of history.

They are like undercurrents in the deep sea, seemingly calm on the surface, but actually harboring enormous energy and danger.

"If we calculate the time, we arrived about a day earlier than the rendezvous time agreed upon by Hua Nongying and her accomplices."

This brief time difference became a crucial window that could be exploited.

"In that case, we can take advantage of the fact that the experts sent by the Yinxi Society have not yet arrived and go to the Dry Dragon Gorge Spirit Mine to conduct an investigation and make some necessary preparations."

A clear strategy quickly took shape in Liang Jin's mind.

Yin Xi would meticulously set a trap to harm him. Now that he has seen through her treachery, he naturally cannot sit idly by and wait for his death, nor can he foolishly wait until the other party has gathered a large number of experts and made perfect arrangements before forcing his way in.

The best strategy is to turn the tables and take the initiative!

"I will first go and take a look at the spirit mine in Hanlong Gorge!"

Liang Jin instructed Leng You:

"You stay here and press Hua Nongying for more information. See if you can extract any more valuable details, especially about the characteristics of their contact experts, their communication methods, or whether there are any hidden mechanisms in the spirit mine that we haven't discovered yet."

Leng You solemnly obeyed the order:

"Yes, my lord! I understand!"

Liang Jin nodded slightly and said no more.

With a slight movement, he slipped out of the tent like a ghost, without disturbing a single breath outside.

Outside the tent, the sky had completely darkened, and the thick night, like a huge black velvet cloth, enveloped the entire Yumenshan mining area.

Nearby, the mine owners were having a lively open-air dinner, with bonfires leaping, voices clamoring, and the aroma of meat and wine mingling with the dusty smell of the mining area filling the air.

After days of marching, the soldiers were able to relax and drink with the anxious and obsequious mine owners, creating a noisy atmosphere.

Unbeknownst to anyone, a figure that seemed to blend into the night sky had already soared into the heavens, silently sweeping across the noisy banquet and speeding northward.

Liang Jin's lightness skill had already reached a state of perfection. When flying, he was not only as fast as lightning, but also calm and collected, like a ghost without a physical body. Even martial artists with keen senses could hardly catch his trace in the darkness and noise.

Crossing the continuous peaks of Yumen Mountain would be a difficult and dangerous task for ordinary people, but for Liang Jin, it was as easy as walking on flat ground.

In less than a quarter of an hour, he had already flown to the northern foothills of Yumen Mountain.

In stark contrast to the brightly lit, mine-filled, and bustling scene on the southern slopes, the northern slopes appear exceptionally desolate and lifeless.

The pale moonlight fell on the brown rocks and sandy land. As far as the eye could see, there was almost no sign of human habitation, let alone any indication of mining.

Clearly, this area is not a jade mining region and has long been forgotten.

A massive, brown canyon, as if cleaved by a giant axe of a god, winds its way through the mountains on the northern slope—this is his destination: Dry Dragon Gorge.

In the rainy south, there are bound to be babbling brooks and even roaring waterfalls in the canyons, with lush vegetation on both banks.

But in this arid western desert, the name "Dry Dragon Gorge" is truly fitting, consisting only of exposed, wind-eroded brown rock walls with countless gullies, and sand and gravel piled up at the bottom of the valley.

Under the moonlight, the entire canyon resembled the dried skeleton of a giant beast that had been dead for many years, lying quietly on the wasteland, exuding an aura of desolation and death.

Liang Jin hovered in mid-air, his gaze sharp as he surveyed the deep canyon below.

With the naked eye alone, in this hazy moonlight and complex terrain, trying to quickly find the deliberately disguised entrance to the spirit mine is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Without further hesitation, he flipped his hand, and the [巳面] appeared in his palm.

He gently placed it on his face, and the moment the edge of the mask touched his skin, he felt a cool sensation, as if it had become one with his flesh and blood.

"Fire eyes, open!"

As he silently recited the mantra, Liang Jin's vision underwent a dramatic transformation.

The world before my eyes was no longer a dark and blurry outline, but presented a strange, semi-transparent energy perspective.

His gaze, like the most sophisticated detector, rapidly scanned every inch of the canyon.

Soon, in a corner that seemed no different from the surrounding rock walls and was covered with traces of wind erosion, he found the entrance to the spirit mine.

"Found it. It was indeed well hidden."

Liang Jin moved swiftly, swooping down silently like an owl, landing precisely in front of the rock face.

With a casual wave of his hand, a surge of concentrated internal energy, like an invisible giant hammer, struck the cleverly disguised entrance to the mine.

"Oh!"

With a muffled thud, rubble flew everywhere, easily shattering the debris and camouflage slabs covering the cave entrance, revealing a dark, narrow mine entrance that could only accommodate one person at a time. A cold wind, mixed with the smell of dirt and decay, rushed out of the cave.

Without hesitation, Liang Jin vanished into the darkness of the mine in a flash.

The cave was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, but to Liang Jin, who had activated his Fire Eye, it was no different from daytime.

The mine is deep and winding, descending with a rather steep slope.

The traces of carving on the cave walls, some old and some new, confirmed what Mi Lanyue had said earlier.

The first half of this mine was left by miners long ago. They may have been attracted by some kind of mineral vein clue and invested a lot of manpower and resources to dig downwards, but in the end they seemed to have gained nothing, only digging up ordinary rocks. They thought they had made a mistake and abandoned it in disappointment.

Such abandoned mine shafts are commonplace in the Yumenshan Mountains, which have been mined for thousands of years, and are not unusual at all.

Later, Mi Lanyue and her people, relying on their ancestral secret techniques and their persistent pursuit of the divine tortoise's trail, found this place.

Building upon the work of their predecessors, they continued their arduous journey deeper into the earth.

Finally, after countless hours of hard work and sacrifice, they not only unearthed a spirit ore containing special energy that was buried very deep, but also confirmed through a family secret method that the divine tortoise was sleeping deep underground beneath this spirit ore!

According to Mi Lanyue's description, the existence of the divine tortoise continuously absorbs the "spiritual energy" contained in the surrounding spiritual ore.

Minerals that have had their spiritual energy completely drained will become dull and lifeless. Although they will still be hard, they will be no different from ordinary rocks and will no longer be able to be used to make Soul Jade, becoming complete waste.

When Liang entered the bottom of the mine, a relatively spacious excavation face suddenly opened up before him.

Sure enough, he saw that the surrounding rock walls were inlaid with a large number of minerals that had the texture of crystals or jade. These were spirit ore raw stones.

They are harder and denser than ordinary jade, which is one of the main reasons why mining spirit stones is exceptionally difficult.

"These are the raw materials for Soul Jade?"

Liang Jin reached out and touched a cold piece of raw stone. Under his fiery vision, he could see that the halo inside most of the ore was extremely dim, almost extinguished, as if the core of the shell had been hollowed out.

"It seems that the so-called 'spiritual energy' contained within has indeed been completely drained, turning it into worthless waste."

"According to Mi Lanyue, once the spiritual energy in a spirit mine has been completely absorbed by the divine turtle, it will leave and seek another place to live."

"Although most of the ore in this spirit mine is ruined, a small portion still shows faint energy shimmering within it under the Fiery Eyes of Truth... Does this mean that the divine tortoise is still deep underground and hasn't left?"

Liang Jin's gaze swept carefully across the cave, and he quickly locked onto those unusual minerals.

What sets them apart from the surrounding waste is that a soft and mysterious aura slowly flows within them, as if life is breathing within them—that is the spiritual energy that has not yet been absorbed.

Although Liang Jin could not accurately perceive what form of energy this so-called "spiritual energy" was, he could roughly guess that it must be a special energy that had some profound connection with the internal energy cultivated by martial artists.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why the Soul Jade would have such a strange and fatal reaction to a martial artist's internal energy.

The Soul Jade is given such an ominous name because the creation of each finished Soul Jade is often accompanied by the fall of a powerful martial artist. Once a martial artist attempts to channel their inner energy into the Soul Jade, their inner energy will be instantly and frantically drained away, like a river bursting its banks, leading to the shattering of their meridians and the depletion of their dantian, resulting in death in an instant!

Therefore, in ancient times, unless a martial artist was nearing the end of their lifespan and wished to leave behind a legacy, or was seriously injured and wished to preserve their techniques, they would never easily attempt to create a Soul Jade, as that would be almost tantamount to suicide.

Based on the information revealed by Hua Nongying while she was under a spell, and using his Fiery Eyes to track the energy traces, Liang Jin quickly discovered the Soul Jade, which had been cleverly hidden in several inconspicuous corners of the cave.

These are not raw stones, but finished products that have undergone preliminary processing and are in a state of "awaiting activation".

He came to a crevice in the rock, reached in, and took out a crystal about the size of his palm, which was a deep purple color.

"It's actually a purple soul jade!"

A hint of surprise flashed in Liang Jin's eyes:
"They really went to great lengths to deal with me!"

Then, in another corner, he found a second purple soul jade of the same quality.

It is icy to the touch, yet you can feel the hidden, yet powerful energy within it that is both subtle and awe-inspiring.

Hua Nongying's plan was clear: once Liang Jin was lured here, she would look for an opportunity to suddenly activate the pre-buried soul jades.

Once the Soul Jade is activated, the terrifying power contained within it will erupt and surge out instantly, forming a powerful energy turbulence field.

Liang Jin, caught in the middle of it, would instinctively exert all his internal energy to resist, protect himself, and even counterattack when faced with a sudden attack and energy shock.

At that time, his vast and powerful internal energy will roar and roam freely in this narrow and enclosed cave, inevitably touching and colliding with the exposed, unidentified spirit ore stones around him.

No one knows what kind of chain reaction will occur when powerful internal energy comes into contact with these ores containing special energy.

In this confined space deep underground, where the structure is not necessarily stable, any burst of energy beyond control means great uncertainty and danger for Liang Jin, who is in it!

Fortunately, Liang Jin had already foreseen everything.

Without any hesitation, he pocketed the two priceless yet extremely dangerous purple soul jades.

This not only eliminated a potential threat, but also brought in a huge windfall.

"Now, let me see for myself whether that so-called divine tortoise is really sleeping right here."

Liang Jin's gaze slowly moved down, focusing on the soles of his feet.

Although the ability of the Fire Eye to see through things is not limitless, it is not difficult to see through a rock wall that is thousands of meters thick.

He focused his gaze, his eyes like an invisible drill, piercing through layer after layer of rock, soil, and veins... probing into the depths of the earth.

Initially, everything was normal, and the geological structure was clearly visible from the perspective of the fire eye.

However, when his gaze penetrated to a depth of several hundred meters, a sudden change occurred!

"Ok?"

Liang Jin's brows furrowed suddenly!

A familiar, extremely uncomfortable sense of obstruction has returned!
It was as if some invisible, resilient barrier existed deep underground, desperately hindering his gaze from probing further!

This feeling is not simply a matter of physical obstruction, but more like an interference and shielding at the energy level.

He had experienced this feeling twice before, and each time it left a deep impression on him!

One time was outside the mysterious underground palace at Burial Dragon Ridge; the other time was when facing the Void Ghost!
When he tried to observe them with his fiery eyes, he always felt a kind of blurriness and obstruction, unable to see their core clearly.

And at this moment, deep underground in the Dry Dragon Gorge, he felt a similar sensation again!
"It seems that something extraordinary might be lurking down there."

Liang Jin felt a chill run down his spine; his previous guesses seemed to be confirmed to some extent at this moment.

Mi Lanyue and Yin Xi's certainty that the divine tortoise was hiding here probably wasn't solely based on the degree of spiritual energy loss from the spirit ore.

They must possess some unique, unknown detection method.

Liang Jin's unusual reaction through his Fire Eyes also confirmed their judgment from another angle—there was a very high probability that there really was a divine tortoise that had lived for countless years underground!

"If... if we continue digging downwards, could we really 'dig' that divine tortoise out of its thousand-year slumber?"

A bold and crazy idea involuntarily rose in Liang Jin's mind.

Yinxi Society may have been limited by manpower and time. After digging into the spirit ore layer, the progress was slow due to the ore being too hard, and they were unable to continue to go deeper.

But Liang Jin is different. He commands a large army and can mobilize tens of thousands of laborers and soldiers. He also controls the power of gunpowder, which is not yet widespread in this world!
If he were determined to continue excavating downwards regardless of cost, it would not be impossible for him to reach that mysterious depths.

However, this thought was quickly suppressed by a deeper sense of caution.

The consequences of digging up the divine turtle are unpredictable!

Nearly a thousand years ago, the once powerful ancient Ulan Kingdom mobilized its entire nation's resources, gathering many of the strongest individuals of that era to lay a trap, but ultimately failed in the face of that divine tortoise, which even led to the kingdom's downfall.

Just how terrifying is the strength of a mythical beast that can live for over a thousand years?
Nobody knows!

Leaving aside the ethereal divine tortoise, let's talk about the giant snake on Dragon Transformation Island. It has only lived for a little over a hundred years, yet its strength has already steadily reached the first rank, making it the pinnacle of the world!

Even Liang Jin today needs the "Destroyer Armor" to dare to compete with it.

If he were to face this divine tortoise, which may have lived for more than a thousand years and whose profound knowledge was unfathomable... Liang Jin had no confidence whatsoever.

That could very well be a fight to the death.

Moreover, he clearly remembered that when the witch spirit mentioned that many ancient shamans regarded preventing the divine beasts from reviving as their destiny and duty.

Does this mean that the complete awakening and arrival of mythical beasts in this world is not a blessing for the existing world order and for humanity, but a catastrophe?
An excessively powerful and uncontrolled force, once it descends, will inevitably become the greatest destabilizing factor, often followed by destruction and chaos.

"That's all..."

Liang Jin let out a long breath, the burning passion in his eyes gradually cooling down:
"I am far from being strong enough right now. But time is on my side."

He possesses a system, and he has unlimited possibilities.

Given enough time to develop steadily, he will be able to create more miracles, and his strength will grow at a speed that is unimaginable to ordinary people.

There is no need to touch the flames that are enough to consume you before you have fully grown wings.

"Hold on and develop. It's not too late to explore these forbidden secrets when you're strong enough."

Liang Jin made a rational and prudent decision.

Adventure requires a balance of ability and skill.

However, just as he was about to give up the exploration and turn to leave the deep mine, his gaze habitually swept over the cave's surroundings one last time, including the rock strata below and to the side—

"Um?!"

A short, startled gasp suddenly escaped from Liang's mouth!

His gaze suddenly froze on the depths of the rock strata in a certain direction to his side and below!
"There are... people heading underground?!"

"Who are those people? Wait! Their path... they're actually trying to get close to the energy shield where the divine turtle is?!"

"This mine shaft... isn't the only passage! There are other paths leading underground!!"

Liang Jin's pupils contracted slightly.

With his keen eye, he could clearly "see" two relatively small figures moving slowly down a naturally formed crevice in another direction, about several hundred meters away from the mine.

The gap ultimately led to the core area where the divine tortoise might be sleeping, which he had been unable to see through earlier!

At first, Liang Jin's first reaction was that it was a backup plan of the Yinxi Society or some other force.

However, when he focused his gaze and saw the outlines of the two energy halos more clearly, he immediately dismissed the idea.

Judging from the energy intensity and body shape, those two figures were clearly... two young children!

"Interesting... This is really interesting!"

"I thought I had seen the whole picture, but unexpectedly, things took a turn for the better, and I made this unexpected discovery. Now that I've stumbled upon it, how can I not go and investigate?"

He observed carefully for a moment, noted the approximate location of the natural crack on the ground, and then, without lingering, moved with lightning speed and quickly retreated from the mine along the same route.

With his superb lightness skill and keen eye for positioning, Liang Jin quickly traversed several mountain ridges and arrived at a secluded corner on the other side of Hanlong Gorge.

What appeared before him was not a man-made opening, but a dark, bottomless crevice naturally split open in the earth.

The gap varies in width, with the widest part being only a few feet wide and the narrowest part only allowing one person to pass sideways. It meanders and twists, like a hideous scar on the earth.

At the edge of the crack, on the thick trunk of a crooked old tree, a sturdy long rope woven from a mixture of hemp rope and leather strips was clearly wrapped.

One end of the long rope was firmly tied to the tree trunk, while the other end hung down, disappearing into the chilling darkness of the crevice, its destination unknown.

The two children that Liang Jin saw with his keen eyesight had clearly descended into the crevice using this rope.

"The wonders of nature are indeed beyond human comprehension."

Liang Jin was filled with emotion.

The people of Milanyue and Yinxi spent countless efforts and went through many hardships to find and confirm the location of the spirit mine and barely managed to open a path to the Divine Turtle region.

Who would have thought that on the other side of this mountain range, geological movements would naturally create a crack that leads directly to the target area!

The coincidences involved are truly astonishing.

Without any hesitation, Liang Jin walked to the edge of the crack, glanced at the bottomless darkness, and then leaped down, rapidly gliding into the unknown depths of the earth.

(End of this chapter)