Immortality begins with upgrading buildings

Chapter 55 Qiu Qianhai's Big Darling

About half an hour later, Ji Yuan and Qiu Qianhai returned to that body of water.

Guided by the two cultivators, the three members of the Qin family looked around and then followed the direction Ji Yuan had left in.

Ji Yuan and Qiu Qianhai, along with other cultivators, followed closely behind.

A large group of people searched forward like they were looking for a needle in a haystack.

Their thinking was simple: wait to find Qiu Qianhai. Putting everything else aside, if they managed to snatch his head using their various spells... it would be much more profitable than mining here.

Unfortunately, after wandering around all night, we still didn't see anyone.

It wasn't until dawn the next day.

Left with no other choice, the three members of the Qin family had to temporarily return to Zengtou City.

After they left, Ji Yuan and Qiu Qianhai settled down. The two rested there for a day, and Ji Yuan listened to Qiu Qianhai's long explanation of the Qingbo Pool and the Cold Iron Sand.

Legend has it that a vein of cold iron sand is hidden deep beneath the Qingbo Pool, and every so often, an earth dragon rises from the bottom of the water.

Once the earth dragon turns over, many cold caves leading directly to the mineral veins will appear at the bottom of the water.

The icy cave spews out intense cold air, which is fatal even to those in the mid-stage of Qi Refining. Therefore, when the earth dragon turns over, cultivators underwater can get out as quickly as possible.

Each time the earth dragon turns over, it brings some cold iron sand out of the ore vein.

The miners at Qingbo Pond mostly dig up these cold iron sands that are brought out with them.

As for why it's said to be the majority... that's because after the earth dragon's transformation, a small portion of the cold cave will be blocked by collapse.

Once blocked, this cold cave becomes a dead end.

Not only was there no cold air emanating from the ore vein inside, but there was also a large amount of cold iron sand.

So if you encounter such a dead hole, you're basically going to make a fortune, especially with the price of cold iron sand rising so much.

As for digging down the dead hole to find the cold iron sand vein... without the strength of the Foundation Establishment stage, even if you find the vein, you're just courting death.

The bottom of Qingbo Pond is mostly sandy, and pale blue iron sand is mixed in with this lake sand.

Miners need to use rakes and sand nets to dig them out.

Fortunately, both Xiong Youfu and Lin Laogou had this item in their storage bags.

……

That evening, in Zengtou City, at the Qin family's residence.

Upon returning from Qingbo Pond, Qin Wei met with his father, Qin Long. After Qin Wei recounted everything that had happened on his trip, Qin Long spoke.

"Qiu Qianhai is either still hiding in Qingbo Pond, or he has returned to Blackwater Workshop."

"Personally, I think he's still hiding in Qingbo Pond, trying to play dumb with us. Besides, we've already communicated with the Zhu family about Heishuifang; they'll keep an eye on things for us, and they'll let us know if there's any news."

The Zhu family of Heishui is similar to the Qin family of Zengtou.

Large families tend to interact more and help each other, so that each other can maintain their positions.

Qin Wei nodded and said in a deep voice, "Alright, I've had Zhang Kai and Hu Da disguise themselves and stay at Qingbo Pool. I've also spent spirit stones to bribe quite a few people. They'll notify us of any news about Qiu Qianhai."

"Um."

Qin Long nodded slightly, "Since your grandfather entrusted this matter of your third brother to the two of us, we must definitely handle it properly."

"Father, rest assured, my third brother's revenge will naturally be avenged in blood!"

That being said, Qin Long still felt that there was another reason why the old man in his family was so ruthless in chasing Qiu Qianhai.

Qin Long also asked that question once.

Since the old man didn't say anything, he didn't dare to ask any more questions.

"..."

That is, until the next day.

Ji Yuan and Qiu Qianhai, who woke up early, came to the shore. Today, the two of them were going into the water.

This was also the first time Ji Yuan had gone into the water to make a living since he had transmigrated six months ago.

You don't have to go yourself to catch spirit fish, but you have to find cold iron sand on your own.

Ji Yuan piloted the Black Wind Boat, while Qiu Qianhai piloted the mid-grade magic boat he obtained from Lin Laogou. After they went deep into the water, they separated.

After sinking to the bottom of the water, Ji Yuan put away the Dharma boat.

He crouched on the sandy bottom of the lake, sensing the icy cold around him while straining his eyes to find a faint blue hue in the murky water.

The surface-level iron filings must have all been picked up.

Therefore, if they wanted to gain something, they had to use the second method. Ji Yuan took out an iron rake and a sand net. First, he used his spiritual power to manipulate the iron rake and rake the sand hard a few times. When it was almost done, he manipulated the sand net to filter the lake sand that had been dug out.

This cycle repeats itself, progressing little by little.

Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye. Ji Yuan mechanically filtered all the lake sand. Just as he was thinking of leaving, he suddenly noticed out of the corner of his eye that there was a faint blue halo mixed in with it.

This is... the money has been withdrawn!

He quickly filtered the sand carefully, and finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the full half ounce of cold iron sand in his hand.

It's good to have some gains, even if the gains are rather small.

But after obtaining this half-ounce of cold iron sand, Ji Yuan seemed to have become completely cut off from it.

For the rest of the day, he didn't even see a trace of the cold iron sand. By the time he came out of the water at dusk, he had only harvested half an ounce.

"call--"

Qiu Qianhai then emerged from the water.

How much do you have?

"Half an ounce, and what about you?"

"I have a little more than you, more than one or two ounces."

Qiu Qianhai had worked here for a while before and was more experienced than Ji Yuan, so he naturally dug up more.

"It's alright. It's normal that you're new here. When I first arrived, I didn't even see a trace of Frost Iron Sand. We have no experience and don't know the fixed locations where Frost Iron Sand is found. It's perfectly normal."

That's the principle.

However, when they went back into the water the next day, they only caught so little, and Ji Yuan lost interest.

His previously dormant thoughts began to stir again.

Upgrading the [Fish Pond] requires 5 catties of Cold Iron Sand, and we are still more than 3 catties short. At this rate of digging only a little bit every day, how long will it take?

It's better to spend more spirit stones and buy it from someone else.

This is Qingbo Pond, which is rich in cold iron sand. There shouldn't be any problem in buying some here, right?

Or, to be bolder, pick a few villains, kill them, and snatch the Cold Iron Sand from their hands.

If everyone in the world can endure the tribulations of cultivation, then I, Ji Yuan, can certainly do so as well.

The risk of this method lies in the battle of wits, but the benefits are not easily noticed by the Water Dragon Sect.

After some deliberation, Ji Yuan decided to find someone to buy some first, and then decide what to do when they were really too few...

On the third day, Qiu Qianhai called him to go mining together, so Ji Yuan decided to go into the water to try it out. This time he caught more, but only about an ounce.

The results were too low, so Ji Yuan gave up.

On the fourth day, he stopped going into the water and instead swam around the Qingbo Pool. When he encountered a lone cultivator, he would go up and ask him a few questions.

Then he asked if the other party had any Cold Iron Sand for sale, and the price he paid was naturally the same as that of the Water Dragon Sect.

Faced with such a behemoth, he dared not engage in a price war.

But buying it with money wasn't so easy. First, everyone was digging less, and second, he didn't dare to buy it openly. So, after a whole day, he only managed to collect half a pound of cold iron sand.

Even so, he was satisfied.

If he harvests half a pound every day, he can upgrade his [Fish Pond] in less than ten days.

If the Qin family doesn't come again, he can return to Zengtou City and continue his cultivation in peace.

In the evening, not long after Ji Yuan returned to his residence, he saw Qiu Qianhai piloting a magic boat and leaping out of the water.

Even while still in mid-air, he had already put away the magic boat, and landed heavily on the ground, wincing in pain.

Moreover, as soon as he landed, he rushed into Ji Yuan's house. With extreme joy in his eyes, he took out a cloth bag from his storage bag, placed it on the table, and opened it.

Inside were all cold iron sands still damp with water.

A huge pile, far more than what Ji Yuan collected today.

Ji Yuan stepped forward and weighed it in his hand; it weighed at least a pound.

"You dug up more than I bought?! Did you rob me?!"

Ji Yuan stared at him in astonishment.

Qiu Qianhai quickly put a finger to his lips as a shushing gesture, and then whispered:

"Come on, come with me into the water, I'll show you my big treasure!"

Dude, something about what you're saying doesn't sound quite right... Ji Yuan looked at Qiu Qianhai with suspicion.

"Let's go, would I lie to you?!"

Qiu Qianhai stuffed the pound of cold iron sand into Ji Yuan's hand, and then rushed towards Qingbo Pool again.

(End of this chapter)