Chapter 775: Chapter 775
Zhao Yunjian and the others were busy cleaning up the snake meat, while Fang Bai wasn’t idle either. He walked to the edge of the lake, allowing his Divine Sense to spread out beneath the waters.
"It’s actually a Yellow Core Stone!"
Fang Bai’s Divine Sense delved into the depths of the lake. After searching the lakebed for a moment, his attention finally settled on a fist-sized rock, and he felt a surge of joy in his heart.
The fist-sized rock emitted a faint earthy yellow glow. The surrounding Earth Element Qi gave off a profound and heavy aura akin to that of the great earth itself and continually rose upwards, spilling out over the surface of the lake.
"The lingering Earth Element Qi on the lake’s surface must be released from this Yellow Core Stone!"
Fang Bai thought to himself.
"Uncle Zhao, wait for a moment. I’m going to take a look underwater!"
Fang Bai turned his head and called out to Zhao Yunjian and the others who were still dealing with the snake meat. He then circulated his water Element Qi and leaped, plunging into the lake with a "splash." With a stroke of his arms, his body glided through the water like a fish, diving towards the depths of the lake.
The lake was tens of meters deep. An ordinary person plunging into it was akin to falling into endless darkness, unable to see anything. However, with his Divine Sense to guide him, Fang Bai faced no issues. After jumping into the lake, he swam directly towards the Yellow Core Stone glowing with earthy yellow light on the lakebed.
With Fang Bai’s current realm of cultivation, circulating his water Element Qi allowed him to remain submerged for ten days and a half-month without any issues. He could even swim freely in oceans and seas, so this small lake, no bigger than a soccer field, presented no challenge to him whatsoever.
Yellow Core Stones are essential materials for forging Earth Spiritual Artifacts and are considered exceptionally rare treasures in the Cultivation World and among immortals. Moreover, Earth Spiritual Artifacts possess potent defensive capabilities and are indispensable for martial artists who travel on adventures and engage in combat.
Although Fang Bai currently lacked the ability to refine Elixirs and Spiritual Artifacts, with the Yellow Core Stone in hand, he could use it to craft Spiritual Artifacts once his Cultivation Level rose. He could also integrate the Yellow Core Stone into existing Spiritual Artifacts like the Blood-Drinking Mad Blade or the Houyi Bow to make them more durable and solid.
Fang Bai held the Yellow Core Stone in his hand, examining it closely before revealing a satisfied smile on his lips.
He then tossed the Yellow Core Stone into the inexhaustible space within his Spatial Ring. With a push of his toes against the lakebed, his body soared upward like a shooting arrow, bursting through the surface with a "whoosh," gliding several meters through the air before landing on the shore.
By the time Fang Bai came ashore, Zhao Yunjian and the others had finished dealing with the snake meat. They looked at him respectfully, waiting for him to speak, ready to leave together and return to Zhao Family Village.
Regarding Fang Bai’s sudden dive into the lake, Zhao Yunjian and the others were tactful enough not to inquire.
In Zhao Yunjian’s view, Fang Bai was like a living immortal; whatever he did had its reasons, and it was beyond the comprehension of mere mortals like them.
Zhao Yunjian and the others had accompanied Fang Bai into the mountains to pick Earth Immortal Ginseng, and it had been four to five days. Fang Bai knew that if he didn’t return soon, the people from Zhao Family Village would start to worry, so with a wave of his hand, he said, "Let’s go! Back to Zhao Family Village!"
He led the way with Zhao Yunjian following closely behind, and Zhao Guoqiang and the others trailed behind the two, all of them full of energy and excitement.
For the hunters from Zhao Family Village, this trip into the mountains was the most rewarding day of their lives. They could already imagine the joyful scenes of their family members in the village welcoming them upon their return.
The hunters’ speed on their return journey was much faster than when they had ventured into the mountains. Although they encountered many wild chickens and rabbits along the way, they were too lazy to bother with them now. With the Hundred-Year Wild Ginseng and the century-old snake meat as their prized treasures, everything else seemed uninteresting.
Three days later, Fang Bai and his companions returned to Zhao Family Village.
"Folks of Zhao Family Village, we are back!"
As soon as they reached the entrance of Zhao Family Village, Zhao Guoqiang opened up his loud voice and excitedly started to shout.
Hearing Zhao Guoqiang’s voice, the villagers living at the head of the village were the first to run out. Then the news spread from one to ten, and from ten to a hundred, quickly reaching the entire Zhao Family Village.
When they learned that the team that had entered the mountains had returned, men and women, young and old from Zhao Family Village nearly emptied out their homes, all flocking to the village entrance.
Seeing all those who had entered the mountains returning safe and sound, each hunter’s family breathed a sigh of relief, approaching their own husbands or fathers to offer warmth and care.
"Yunjian, the haul from this trip seems pretty good, huh?"
An older villager, seeing the bags large and small that the hunters like Zhao Yunjian were carrying, all bulging, couldn’t help but ask.
How well the hunt went was the question most cared about by the families of those who had entered the mountains – after all, it was related to their livelihood for the coming period.
Hearing the villager’s question, the hunters looked at each other and all broke into joyful smiles.
"Thanks to Mr. Fang’s help, during this trip into the mountains, every one of us made a small fortune!"
Zhao Yunjian said to the villagers with a smile.
"This time, we dug up four stalks of Hundred-Year Wild Ginseng! Among them, one is over three hundred years old!"
Zhao Guoqiang, with a smile brightening his face, took out a box containing the four ginseng stalks from the backpack behind him, then opened the box one by one, showing off to the villagers.
Some of the experienced old hunters in Zhao Family Village knew their stuff. They crowded forward to take a look and saw that the ginseng Zhao Guoqiang brought out were indeed four stalks of Hundred-Year Wild Ginseng. One of them was truly over three hundred years old, which excited them immensely.
"These four ginseng stalks could probably sell for several millions! Yunjian, you guys struck it rich! Rich indeed!"
An older hunter said, his expression full of envy.
Zhao Yunjian replied to Third Uncle Zhao with a smile, "Those four stalks of wild ginseng were found and harvested by Mr. Fang and us. Mr. Fang said that after we sell the ginseng, he doesn’t want a penny of the money. Instead, he’s letting us – the dozen or so hunters who accompanied him into the mountains – split it evenly! Third Uncle Zhao, your son Zhigang also went into the mountains, so he will have a share of the ginseng money too!"
He paused, then added, "I did some calculations. The four ginseng stalks could sell for more than ten million. Each of us, the dozen or so hunters who entered the mountains, could receive about a million each! With this money, life will be much better from now on!"
The old hunter known as "Third Uncle Zhao" blushed with excitement, and making a bow to Fang Bai, he said, "Mr. Fang treats our villagers’ sicknesses for nothing in return, and he doesn’t even want the money from selling the ginseng. He is truly a good man! The villagers of Zhao Family Village are grateful and indebted to Mr. Fang!"
Fang Bai waved his hand with a smile and said, "Treating sicknesses is a mere trifle. As for the money from selling the ginseng... to be honest, I’m not short on money, so I don’t need the ginseng money!"
The four stalks of wild ginseng were a tremendous gain that delighted the villagers, and when Fang Bai explained about the Hundred-Year Snake meat, each villager became equally excited.
Mr. Fang is a person like an immortal, and he said that snake meat can eliminate all diseases and prolong life. It must be true, so the villagers treated the snake meat as an even greater treasure than the wild ginseng, taking it home to cure for future consumption, planning to eat a little each day.