Translator: AnubisTL

Having pinpointed the approximate location of the Western Mausoleum Divine Temple, Li Qing didn't rush to set out immediately.

Instead, he remained in the Wen River Valley area, observing the mortals from the villages as they mined for yin stones.

At a mining site near the drying riverbed, Li Qing remained concealed, silently watching the mortals from Lian Family Village diligently excavate a pitted and uneven stone wall.

Clang!

A crisp, metallic sound suddenly rang out. One of the miners, swinging his pickaxe, seemed to have struck something.

A jet-black crystal dislodged from the recessed stone wall and fell into the miner's hand.

Li Qing narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed intently on the peculiar dark crystal.

If his intuition was correct, this black crystal was likely the so-called yin stone!

From the crystal, Li Qing sensed a trace of extremely pure yin energy.

Though faint, the energy was remarkably pure, far surpassing any yin energy he had encountered before. Even the profound yin power he had witnessed at the Moonchase Grand Assembly paled in comparison.

"It's just too weak," he mused. "It looks like it could dissipate at any moment."

"But if I could gather enough of it, that would be a different story!"

"I wonder what the Western Mausoleum Divine Temple needs so many extremely yin and gentle materials for."

Just like that, the brief daylight hours passed quickly. As dusk approached, the mortals from Lian Family Village hastily packed up their tools, showing no lingering attachment to the site, and swiftly departed with all the yin stones they had mined.

"Time to go, time to go. The village has been restless lately. Be careful on the road."

"I heard Lian Feng has been in a daze ever since he returned at dawn. He can't remember anything about being abducted last night!"

"Hiss... Could he have encountered something unclean?"

"Ahem, watch your tongue. Say less and hurry back to the village."

"..."

They were naturally referring to the man Li Qing had captured yesterday. After questioning him about relevant matters, Li Qing had used his divine sense to erase the man's memories.

The man's dazed state was likely a result of this memory wipe.

Once everyone had left, Li Qing stepped into the area where they had been mining yin stones.

The moment he entered, he felt an inexplicable chill.

"These yin stones are being mined by mortals, making the process extremely inefficient. The Western Mausoleum Divine Temple commands numerous cultivators. Why don't they use the power of cultivators to mine these stones?"

A flicker of doubt arose in Li Qing's mind. Even a cultivator in the qi refining realm would surely be far more efficient at mining yin stones!

To resolve this question, Li Qing pressed two fingers together and prepared to try mining himself.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Several sword-like streams of true essence shot forth, slicing through the pitted stone wall like tofu. Chunks of rock crumbled and tumbled to the ground, revealing numerous jet-black crystals.

Without hesitation, Li Qing reached out and telekinetically drew the dark crystals into his palm.

In that instant, he sensed something was amiss!

The moment the yin stones touched his hand, he felt a faint but unmistakable drain on his lifespan.

The sensation was eerily similar to when he had claimed two spiritual objects from the Moonlight River during the Moonchase Grand Assembly.

"Hiss... This thing actually drains one's lifespan?"

Li Qing was genuinely surprised. He had become acutely sensitive to his lifespan; even the slightest reduction would trigger his alarm.

Staring at the jet-black crystals in his hand, which radiated an intensely yin and gentle energy, Li Qing finally understood why cultivators left the yin stone mining to these inefficient mortals.

After all, a cultivator's lifespan was undoubtedly far more valuable than that of a mortal.

"Constantly mining such extremely yin materials... these villagers are fortunate if they live past forty," Li Qing murmured, a hint of pity in his voice.

This was a world brimming with spiritual energy, not some so-called End of Dao Era!

Even with rudimentary productivity, the nourishing effects of even sparse spiritual energy should allow a healthy mortal to live to seventy or eighty without much difficulty.

He still couldn't discern the purpose of these yin stones, but Li Qing had no intention of continuing the mining operation.

He gathered the yin stones into his storage pouch and prepared to leave.

Having just arrived in the Nether Domain, this eerie and mysterious great domain left him with the unsettling feeling that some astonishing secret lay hidden within its depths.

"Forget it. For now, finding Wu Chong and the others takes priority. Any mysteries I can't unravel will have to wait."

No sooner had these words left his lips than Li Qing, who was about to head toward areas with more immortal cultivators, froze in his tracks.

Before him, a faint human figure materialized from the pitted stone wall.

Upon seeing this spectral figure, Li Qing's pupils constricted sharply.

After all these years, I'm actually seeing a Yin Spirit here!

"I've heard rumors of ghost cultivators in the Nether Domain. Could this be one of them?"

"Something's off," Li Qing murmured, squinting. "This Yin Spirit is too dull, utterly lacking in spiritual intelligence."

In his understanding, ghost cultivators, though lacking fleshly bodies, possessed the same agility and awareness as living beings. They shouldn't be this inert.

Moments later, several more Yin Spirits drifted from the pitted stone walls.

These spirits varied in appearance but shared one common trait: they were all dull and devoid of spiritual intelligence.

Soon, the surrounding yin energy was drawn toward these faint spirit bodies, converging into the pitted stone walls behind them.

As the yin energy gathered, chunks of jet-black crystals formed within the stone—revealing the origin of yin stones!

"Intriguing..."

Li Qing's words finally caught the attention of the Yin Spirits.

Whoosh!

The ethereal spirits snapped their heads toward Li Qing's position.

In an instant, they surged toward him, their eagerness boding ill.

"Seeking death! Mere Yin Spirits, not even true ghost cultivators, dare to threaten me?"

Li Qing snorted coldly, a brilliant golden light erupting from his deep, dark eyes.

In an instant, several dazzling blades of spiritual sense materialized and slashed through the air.

Soul Condensing Slash!

The Yin Spirits charging toward Li Qing were instantly shredded like fragile paper.

As the shattered fragments of spiritual sense dissipated into the air, Li Qing's keen spiritual sense captured traces, allowing him to discern the true nature of these entities.

These Yin Spirits were not ghost cultivators. In life, they had been ordinary mortals, but even in death, they found no peace. Instead, they had transformed into bizarre beings that absorbed yin energy and condensed it into yin stones.

"Even in death, they find no rest? How truly tragic."

"In life, they mined yin stones; in death, they continue to produce them. This cycle has no end."

Li Qing exhaled deeply, his apprehension toward this so-called Nether Domain deepening.

Logically, the frail divine souls of mortals should dissipate immediately upon death, leaving no spirit bodies behind unless extraordinary circumstances intervened.

Yet in the Nether Domain, mortals retained their spirit bodies even after death—a phenomenon bordering on the miraculous.

Having clarified these truths, Li Qing wasted no time. He soared into the air, heading directly toward the Western Mausoleum Divine Temple.

(End of the Chapter)

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