Chapter 309: Use

The metal chain emitting spiritual fluctuations clearly had another purpose. The fluctuations themselves had no effect, but the fact that the Ghoul King could wield it as a weapon and easily rip it through the air showed how extraordinary it was.

At the very least, the chain was far sturdier than the greatsword Li Pin wielded. Just for that alone, it could be reforged into a weapon he could use.

Li Pin turned his attention to the transparent crystal. He took it and held it in his hand, carefully examining it. After inspecting it for a moment, he couldn't discern its purpose.

At that moment, a slight noise came from ahead. It didn't seem like it came from a Ghoul or a Majin.

Upon hearing it, Xing Hui seemed to realize something and quickly called out, "Who's there?"

Hearing their voices, the source of the sound quickly responded, "Xing Hui?"

Soon, a figure emerged from around the corner. They seemed excited to see Xing Hui.

It was a woman who appeared to be under thirty. However, she looked somewhat disheveled, likely from being on the run for too long.

Xing Hui was both surprised and delighted to see the figure. "Xing Ying! It's great that you guys made it out!"

"Are you guys alright?"

Both of them were genuinely relieved for each other's safety.

The Ghoul King was a terrifying creature. Martial Saints were different from Astral Cultivators. Although their qi and blood could attract demonic creatures, the attraction wasn't strong. It was just like how tigers would hunt deers but wouldn't waste time on rabbits. This was why they managed to escape with only the loss of two team members.

After a moment, Xing Ying turned her gaze toward the fallen monster, whose corpse looked like a small mountain. Her eyes were filled with disbelief. "You guys... killed this monster!?"

"It wasn't us," Xing Hui denied quickly. He turned to Li Pin and introduced him respectfully. "This is Martial God Li. It's only thanks to him that we had the courage to return to the mining area once again."

At first, Xing Ying seemed unfamiliar with the title. "Martial God?"

But her eyes soon widened in realization. "A Martial God!? Has a second Martial God appeared in Molong Country!?"

"A second?" Xing Hui shook his head. "I think Martial God Li attained a breakthrough before Shi Shihu. He might actually be the first Martial God in Molong, maybe... even one of the world's first batch of Martial Gods. He might have... might have attained it earlier than the three hundred disciples taught by Martial God Li Pin on Crimson Flame Island."

This world had countless experts stuck at the Extreme Martial Saint stage, many of whom were just one step away from breaking through, lacking only the right guidance.

People were also terrified of death, and any step forward after this was riddled with dangers.

Take, for example, the condensation of the Lifeform Force Field. Everyone knew that the extraction of the Vitality, Qi, and Spirit would undoubtedly result in the death of the practitioner. That was why no one dared to take the risk to attempt it.

However, people later discovered that a strong enough mental spirit, supplemented with external objects, could preserve one's life even after the extraction of the Vitality, Qi, and Spirit to condense the Lifeform Force Field.

Furthermore, they'd also have a chance to return to life from a dying state and thereby condense a Lifeform Force Field. This would form the foundation for the Martial God realm. Those Extreme Martial Saints who would fight in the King of Century Martial Competition in pursuit of every smallest opportunity would definitely dive onto this path in succession.

If they were fortunate enough to have the help of Master Astral Cultivators to simulate the celestial movements with Astral Technique and the support of legendary astral equipment, their paths to becoming Martial Gods would naturally be smooth.

This world never lacked geniuses. Those who had become Martial Saints were already extraordinary to begin with.

However, no matter how exceptional a person was, becoming strong enough to defeat a Ghoul King, a creature as strong as a Top-Tier Astral Cultivator, head on in merely two months... was unimaginable.

Xing Hui, Xing Ying, and Yue Ying exchanged glances. At this moment, the three of them had come to a decision.

The group then went several hundred meters deeper. They then found the seriously injured Yue Ya and Ri Chi amidst a stretch of sand and rocks, enough to completely bury a person underneath.

What followed was, of course, a scene where the teammates, having narrowly escaped death, poured out their emotions to one another.

After a brief conversation, Xing Ying, a Martial Saint who appeared to be in her twenties but was likely in her early thirties, approached Li Pin and expressed her gratitude with respect. "Thank you, Martial God Li, for saving us. The Moon Fang Squad has no way to repay you, except to serve you loyally. Please, take us in, Martial God Li."

"You guys don't have to do this," Li Pin said.

He had no intention of taking in followers.

Seeing that Xing Ying insisted, Li Pin cut to the chase. "Your two teammates are severely injured and require urgent treatment. It's best for you to leave the mining area first."

Hearing that, Xing Ying couldn't say anything more. She simply responded, "Alright."

Li Pin also had been injured in his battle with the Ghoul King. Even though his recovery skill would heal him in a few days, it was unwise to stay in the Black Gold Mine for much longer.

The group immediately headed back.

On the way back, Wen Xingchen, looking at the heavily damaged Moon Fang Squad, couldn't help but ask, "The Moon Fang Squad usually only operates on the outskirts of dangerous areas, taking on contracts from lords to hunt ferocious beasts and demonic creatures that escape from perilous regions. Why did you come here this time and venture so deep inside?"

"It's because we were too arrogant and greedy," Xing Hui said with a bitter smile. "We thought that with our coordination, traps, and the various tools we've prepared, killing Ghouls wouldn't be hard. At first, our operations went smoothly... but in a perilous region, anything can happen."

The Moon Fang Squad comprised two grandmasters and five Martial Saints. Among the five members, there were three Extreme and two Top-Tier Martial Saints. This was a strong lineup.

Ghouls had qi and blood values of around 160 points, just barely approaching the category of high-tier demonic creatures. They were slow but had high defense and strong attacks. With their team's lineup and prepared traps, they could indeed kill Ghouls.

"As for why we went deeper into the mining area..." Xing Hui paused briefly before continuing, "We stumbled upon a clue... somewhere in the Black Gold Mine, there seems to be a special place. It's said to be where the batch of Astral Cultivators were annihilated during the Great Moon era... We thought we'd find many astral equipment, left behind from the battles."

Wen Xingchen was a little surprised when he heard this.

The Black Gold Mine was the Great Moon's biggest mining area, bringing them countless amounts of wealth yearly. Toward the later phase of the era when ferocious beasts and demonic creatures were rampant, the Great Moon had not only sent large numbers of soldiers into the mine but also a group of Astral Cultivators that were trained by the royal family.

In the end, the entire army was annihilated.

Even in the rampant era, rare astral equipment was scarcer than legendary ones. Few Astral Cultivators had access to top-tier astral equipment. However, as Astral Cultivators from the royal family, their equipment wouldn't have been subpar. At the very least, there'd be a good number of high-grade astral equipment.

No wonder the Moon Fang Squad had been willing to take the risk.

Xing Hui continued, "We've ventured into the mine several times and even found a place that resembled what the clue pointed us to. But... we found nothing. It made us wonder if the clue was fake. After wasting months, we grew unwilling to give up, thinking maybe the clue pointed to a different part of the mine. So, we searched further and went deeper."

He let out a long sigh. "And this time, we were almost wiped out."

Wen Xingchen didn't know how to console them. In the end, he only said, "The Black Gold Mine has been abandoned for decades. There are too many rumors about it. Even for natives of Molong Country, it's hard to tell what's true and what's not."

Xing Hui bitterly smiled. "We were too greedy, dreaming of striking it rich overnight."

When Li Pin heard their conversation, he asked, "You guys have been in the mining area for so long. Did you find the area where the Majins are active?"

"We did!" Xing Hui said immediately. "But it's been so long, so the Majins could have roamed to other areas."

"It's better than searching aimlessly," replied Li Pin.

"Benefactor, when you're ready to leave, let me know, and I'll take you there."

"No need. You should take care of your teammates first. Just let me know about the rough location of where the Majins are."

Xing Hui assumed that Li Pin didn't fully trust them yet, so he quietly handed over a map they had drawn over the past few months, marking several spots where demonic creatures had appeared.

Looking at the map with only one key location marked, they sighed. It was this sole mark that had led them to lose two of their teammates, people with whom they had shared countless life-and-death experiences.

Xing Hui handed the map over to Li Pin."Here, Benefactor...."

"There's no need to address me as such." Li Pin said, accepting the map.

The group exchanged information and quickly arrived outside the mining area, the sunlight landing on them after a long time.

The mines had an overwhelmingly oppressive feeling to them that everyone felt as if an entire lifetime had passed.

The group walked for a while before discovering a camouflaged SUV hidden by the trees.

Yue Ya and Ri Chi were gravely injured, and the medical facilities in Xiangye City wouldn't suffice to heal them. Xing Hui and his team bid farewell, promising that they would come to follow Li Pin once their teammates had recovered, and then they quickly left.

Li Pin didn't think too much of their words. However, Wen Xingchen was filled with emotion.

These were five Martial Saints!

It was a tremendous force, yet Li Pin didn't seem to care and turned them away so easily. If this force were to join Xiangye Territory, even if the neighboring Xiangshi City were to have three thousand soldiers, they wouldn't dare act recklessly.

However, he would never oppose Li Pin's decision in the slightest. After personally witnessing Li Pin's incredible strength during the mine expedition, he realized that Li Pin was their greatest opportunity in Xiangye Territory.

Now it was up to them to see if they could seize the opportunity.

***

At Xiangye Territory.

In the study,Li Pin fiddled with the transparent crystal, trying to figure out what was so special about it.

Over the years, his mental spirit had continuously grown stronger, and his "Clairvoyance" gift had developed enough to perceive simple information from external objects.

Li Pin activated his Clairvoyance gift and focused on the crystal.

As he did so, he quickly detected something. "

Hmm!?

"

This transparent crystal seemed... to have a memory function! It could record and store information!

Li Pin tried it out, and the result left him a little surprised. "It can really store a portion of a person's memory."

What an ability... recording memories.

It reminded him of the jade strips and hereditary jade talismans described in cultivation novels. The information stored in jade stripes and hereditary jade talismans could be learned by a person immediately as if the information had been channeled directly into one's memories.

"That's not right!" Li Pin quickly realized something. "Memories do not purely contain information like videos and books!

Other than the basic information, the most important part of a person's memories would be their unique understanding and comprehension of certain things and information!"

Just like skills, techniques, and secret arts, which couldn't be comprehended through mechanical memorizing. However, these details could be inscribed within this transparent crystal through its memory ability.

"This is a Skill Crystal that can contain a person's insight!"