Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes

Chapter 247: Chapter 239: Equipping the Evil Vein

The mining tunnel stretched onward. The deeper he went, the wider the passage became.

What was once a narrow path, barely wide enough for one person, gradually opened into a corridor two to three zhang wide. The low, reachable arch of the ceiling also rose to over a zhang high. The rock walls were studded with dark purple Evil Ore, and Evil Qi seeped out continuously from the crevices, forming a visible, thin crimson mist within the tunnel.

The Evil Essence Unity technique operated automatically, absorbing all the incoming Evil Qi. The crimson mist within three feet of his body grew noticeably thinner than in the surrounding areas.

After about a hundred zhang, the tunnel came to its first fork.

There was a branch tunnel to the left and to the right. They were narrower than the main path, but likewise studded with Evil Stones.

Li Yuan extended his Divine Sense into the left branch. After more than thirty zhang, it was blocked by the dense Evil Qi, making it impossible to see what lay deeper inside.

The situation in the right branch was much the same.

Li Yuan chose to take the left path first.

The branch tunnel twisted and turned, descending downward. Traces of Demon Beast activity began to appear on the ground.

First, there were scattered claw marks. Three-toed prints were etched into the gravel on the tunnel floor, half an inch deep with sharp edges. Further on, the claw marks grew more numerous, and there was more than one type.

There were three-toed prints, five-toed ones, and also a wide, flat drag mark, as if left by some kind of many-legged creature.

There were marks on the rock walls as well. Deep, overlapping claw marks stretched from the floor high up the walls.

The branch tunnel ended in a recessed space, about three zhang square. The ground was covered in a layer of crushed ore dust, and in the corner were several clumps of a grayish-white, silky material, like the remains of some insect’s nest.

The nest had been abandoned. The aura was stale; its owner was long gone.

Li Yuan committed the direction and length of this branch to memory, then returned to the main tunnel and entered the right branch.

The right branch was longer. The concentration of Evil Qi deep in the fork was more than double that of the main tunnel, and the thin crimson mist had become a thick, deep purple fog.

The absorption rate of his Evil Essence Unity technique kept pace with the rising concentration, and Li Yuan’s internal reserves of Evil Qi grew rapidly.

Li Yuan extended his Divine Sense forward and stopped in his tracks.

Twenty zhang ahead, a scorpion, dark purple from head to tail, was lying in the middle of the tunnel, gnawing on a piece of Evil Ore held in its two pincers. It was about a zhang long, its tail arched high, the stinger at its tip gleaming with a dark luster.

Tier One Middle Grade. A Scorpion.

The Scorpion sensed Li Yuan’s presence. It dropped the ore from its mouth, opened its pincers, and pointed its stinger toward him.

Li Yuan raised his right hand. Fireball Technique.

BOOM.

The Scorpion’s carapace cracked under the intense heat. The impact of the Fireball sent its body tumbling several zhang down the tunnel, where its limbs twitched a few times before falling still.

Li Yuan walked over and used the Golden Blade Skill to sever the Scorpion’s stinger and pincers, storing them away. ’Can’t let them go to waste.’

He continued deeper.

While exploring, he encountered two Poisonous Centipedes.

They were larger than the Scorpion, nearly two zhang long. Their countless legs propelled them through the tunnel at high speed. However, their Cultivation was also only Tier One, so they stood no chance against the Magic of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Over the next hour, Li Yuan explored each of the branch tunnels one by one. Aside from a few abandoned nests and several Tier One Evil Beasts, the only things of real value were the layout of the tunnels and the flow of the Evil Qi.

By the time he returned to the end of the main tunnel, the outline of the entire Evil Vein had formed a complete three-dimensional image in his mind.

The main tunnel suddenly opened up at its deepest point.

The end of the tunnel was not a rock wall, but a naturally formed underground cavern.

The cavern was about ten zhang square with a ceiling three to four zhang high. The dome was densely embedded with dark purple Evil Ore, resembling an inverted starry sky. The four walls were also covered in Evil Ore, its color even deeper than outside—almost pure black—with a heavy luster to its surface.

The concentration of Evil Qi was at its peak.

A thick, dark purple fog churned within the cavern, so dense that its flow was visible to the naked eye. Like currents of water, Evil Qi seeped from the Evil Ore on the walls, converging toward the center of the cavern.

The Evil Essence Unity technique operated at full capacity.

The surging Evil Qi was intercepted and completely absorbed. It followed the Body Tempering path to seep into his muscles and bones, the soul-tempering path to wash over his Divine Soul, and the conversion path to be transformed into Spiritual Power. All three pathways operated at full capacity. As Li Yuan stood in the center of the cavern, the dense fog of Evil Qi around him was devoured, circle by circle.

A complete three-dimensional structure of the entire Evil Vein formed in his mind.

A panel popped up.

[Evil Vein fully explored]

[Special Equipment Condition Met: Complete exploration of the Evil Vein’s full layout]

[Equippable Object: Evil Vein (Complete)]

[Special Equipment Affix Preview: Evil Vein Nourishment (Blue)]

[Effect: Greatly increases Evil Qi absorption efficiency; absorbing Evil Qi can slowly improve cultivation aptitude]

[Permanence Condition: Equip this Evil Vein for a cumulative total of fifty years; Nurture this Evil Vein to the point where it can produce Mid-grade Evil Stones]

[Equip to Special Equipment Slot?]

A blue-rarity affix.

It had a dual effect. The great increase in Evil Qi absorption efficiency was a direct cultivation bonus, while the slow improvement of his cultivation aptitude was a long-term passive benefit.

The conditions for making it permanent were harsh. A cumulative fifty years of equip time, plus nurturing the Evil Vein to the point where it could produce Mid-grade Evil Stones.

At the same time, information appeared in Li Yuan’s mind: the mechanics of the Special Equipment Slot were different from a normal one. After being equipped, the Evil Vein would not disappear, nor would it be consumed upon becoming permanent.

With a thought, he equipped it.

The hexagonal slot for Special Equipment on the panel lit up with a faint golden glow, and a line of text appeared within it.

[Special Equipment: Evil Vein (Blue)]

The moment the equipment process was complete, Li Yuan’s perception underwent a dramatic change.

The Evil Vein beneath his feet felt as if it had come alive.

The previously chaotic seepage of Evil Qi changed its flow all at once. The Evil Qi that had been diffusing in all directions stopped spreading and instead began to circulate rhythmically along the vein’s rock strata.

The Evil Qi flowed from the smaller branches at the vein’s extremities into the main tunnel, spiraling its way toward the depths. After completing a great cycle in the natural cavern, it seeped from the rock layer at the cavern’s bottom back into the Evil Ore of the various branches.

A complete, self-sustaining Evil Qi circulation system had formed.

At the same time, the location and state of every piece of Evil Ore in the vein flooded into Li Yuan’s perception.

’On the left wall of the main tunnel, a fist-sized Evil Stone was just gnawed on by a Scorpion. The layer of Evil Ore deep within the fifth fork has the deepest color and highest quality. Three Evil Stones on the cavern’s dome are slowly accumulating new mineral layers—it’s extremely slow, but they are indeed growing.’

The entire Evil Vein was not a static mineral deposit, but a living organism. The Evil Qi circulated within it, nourishing the growth of the ore, just like blood circulating through a body.

Li Yuan raised his hand, feeling the endless stream of Evil Qi surging from the Evil Vein.

The efficiency of the Evil Qi supply was completely different from before.

Now, the Evil Vein directly and orderly transported the Evil Qi from within itself to him. There were no intermediate steps, and the efficiency far surpassed the method using the Array Foundation Stone.

The passive absorption of Evil Essence Unity and the active transport from the Evil Vein superimposed on each other, creating a double-layered effect. Evil Essence Unity processed the Evil Qi, and the Evil Vein supplied it. With the two working in concert, his cultivation efficiency increased by at least several times.

Li Yuan stood in the cavern, sensing every channel of the Evil Vein.

’The Special Equipment Slot is equipped with an Evil Vein. What about Spirit Veins, then?’

’The essence of a Spirit Vein is the same as an Evil Vein; they are both underground energy channels. Evil Veins circulate Evil Qi, and Spirit Veins circulate Spiritual Qi. If an Evil Vein can be a special piece of equipment, then in theory, a Spirit Vein can be as well.’

’But the circumstances surrounding Spirit Veins and Evil Veins are completely different.’

’No one wants an Evil Vein. The Evil Ore is of low value, and Evil Qi is harmful to ordinary cultivators. The Primordial Yang Sect only assigned this Evil Vein to me after assessing that it wasn’t worth mining.’

’But Spirit Veins are core resources for Sects and factions. No power would willingly hand over a Spirit Vein for the exclusive use of a single Foundation Establishment Cultivator.’

’I’ll have to find one myself. Perhaps there’s one in the Ghost Mist Forest.’

Li Yuan didn’t linger. He left the Evil Ore mine.

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