Chapter 3589 — Charging Successful
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
It was the first time for all these newcomers to come here, and one by one they could not resist looking about in curiosity. Yet wherever they were, even if they but let their gaze linger a moment too long, they would at once draw the stern eyes of the guards nearby, as though the next instant those men might pounce and kill—frightening the whole lot into silence, so that none dared glance left or right anymore, and they could only follow honestly behind Meng Jueming.
Taking in all their behavior, and seeing that they had been cowed into obedience, Meng Jueming at last put on the imposing airs of the senior steward brother and explained: "The Hall of Spirit Jade, like our Welcome New Pavilion, is one of the few halls on the North Island that stand independent of the Three-Tiered Pavilion. It is charged solely with overseeing the mining of spirit jade and its distribution—you might say that every piece of spirit jade on our North Island is taken out from this Hall of Spirit Jade."
An independent hall? Wei Zhao's heart stirred slightly. So on the North Island of Cloud Terrace Island, besides the Three-Tiered Pavilion, there were other independent halls after all. The Welcome New Pavilion was a gathering camp for newcomers, the Hall of Spirit Jade oversaw the spirit jade mine—no doubt the other independent halls each had their own unique functions as well.
At this, one of the newcomers spoke up: "Senior Brother Meng, you said before that these mountains of ours all sit atop a spirit jade mine. If that's so, then anyone could just find a hidden spot and dig down and get spirit jade—even if the Hall of Spirit Jade wanted to stop them, it couldn't, could it?"
At these words the newcomers all nodded thoughtfully. True, the Hall of Spirit Jade looked to have no small number of men, all of them experts—but the vein stretched across several great mountains, and even if every expert of the Hall of Spirit Jade were sent out to patrol without sleep or rest, they surely could not cover it all.
Do not overestimate a cultivator's moral integrity—and likewise, do not underestimate a cultivator's daring. Spirit jade moved men's hearts, and however powerful the Hall of Spirit Jade might be, it could not hold back cultivators' pursuit of it. To find a hidden spot and secretly dig for spirit jade—say nothing of others, even the weakest newcomers of the Azure Cloud Pavilion present here could not help but conceive such a notion.
"Find a hidden spot and secretly dig for spirit jade yourselves? Heh—in your dreams!" Meng Jueming gave a cold laugh, sweeping his gaze over all the newcomers as though they were idiots, and only after he had taken his full measure of superiority did he explain: "You think because the vein runs through the whole mountain range, you can just dig a few dozen yards anywhere and strike spirit jade. In fact, wherever spirit jade deposits lie, the top experts of the Three Pavilions have already laid down formations. In places covered by those formations, never mind digging spirit jade—you couldn't dig up so much as a clump of mud. You'd only bring the formation's backlash down on yourself: light, grave injury; heavy, death! Spirit jade may be mined, but the mountain's foundation must not be shaken. Otherwise, with the foundation dug out and ruined, no one will be able to cultivate in peace in their cave dwellings!"
Sss—!
The newcomers all drew a sharp breath of fright. And as it happened, there had indeed been some among them who had entertained that very notion—only they had not yet grown familiar enough with the surroundings these past two days to make their move. Now, hearing Meng Jueming's words, they were struck with dread after the fact. Had anyone dared to muster the nerve and try it these past two days, by now his corpse would likely be lying exposed in the wilds.