Gu Xiechen, a little hesitant, watched as Banruo and Mohe Little Zhang Daoist carried an electro-pole, a mouth, and approached with the severed arm of an orange Crystalline Human. Seeing Gu Xiechen’s conflicted face through the visor of his transparent combat suit, Little Zhang Daoist couldn't help but chuckle: "Junior Brother Gu, you aren't going soft on them, are you? Hey, steady yourself. If you, who are not a Daoist cultivator, harbor such softness, what sort of Dao are you cultivating? How many of our magic tools and elixirs have been obtained from successfully cultivated demon beasts? If you count them as advanced beings, aren't these too?"

Penghua heavily clapped Gu Xiechen on the shoulder.

Gu Xiechen looked at the wildly struggling, writhing red Crystalline Human, and an illusion of countless white lilies seemed to drift before his eyes again. He suddenly smiled, and with a gentle expression toward the red Crystalline Human, he said, "We are indeed bandits, robbers, and executioners. This is, after all, the very nature of us humans." He raised his foot and stomped, crushing the red Crystalline Human’s head. A fist-sized red Christal sphere rolled out from the creature’s bursting chest and was snatched up by Penghua, who tucked it into his storage pouch.

"Survival of the fittest, natural selection—the rise of a higher civilization is built entirely on the sacrifices of lower civilizations, starkly and brutally so!" Gu Xiechen stated calmly. "Tell the brothers to hurry up and move deeper through these tunnels."

A squad of Special Bureau soldiers suddenly charged out from the busy chokepoint of the Crystalline People, the commanding officer excitedly waving toward them: "Colonel, come over here! Something fascinating! This is the first time we've found anything like this; the Academy of Sciences guys will be interested!"

Fascinating? Gu Xiechen hurried over, with Penghua and the others following curiously.

Dozens of small red and orange Crystalline People lay scattered in the tunnel, closer to the blast point. Their bodies were covered in fissures, and large amounts of red mist sprayed out from within them. These Crystalline People didn't even have the strength to curse, only glaring angrily at Gu Xiechen. Beside them were piles of transparent and semi-transparent crystals, each the size of a human head, shimmering with an enchanting luster under the illumination of the combat suits' carried lamps.

"Hey!" Penghua suddenly pounced forward, clutching a pale blue transparent crystal. He laughed loudly: "Old long-nose, look quickly! Is this 'Profound Jade Essence'? Did I see correctly? 'Profound Jade Essence'!"

Little Zhang Daoist lunged over, also seizing a head-sized, pale red, semi-transparent crystal, and he cried out in shock: "Heavens, it's 'Earth Fire Marrow'! It really is 'Earth Fire Marrow'! By the Three Pure Ones above, this Marrow must have been formed from spiritual jade refined by earth fire for at least three thousand years! Ugh, stop daydreaming!"

Profound Jade Essence—Gu Xiechen recalled the records in the Zhou Tian Strange Treasure Compendium about this heaven and earth spiritual object. It was the essence of jade condensed from supreme Yin and extreme coldness, gathering the vitality of countless years of water essence. It was the perfect material for refining supreme Yin magic tools, and it could also be used in elixirs. Elixirs made from it could rapidly boost the power of cultivators whose Five Elements affinity was Water or who practiced Water-attribute techniques. For cultivators with other affinities or techniques, it provided the effect of calming the mind, settling the spirit, and dispelling inner demons.

Earth Fire Marrow, conversely, was the essence of beautiful jade that had absorbed countless essences of Blazing Fire, diametrically opposed to the Profound Jade Essence. It could refine the most devastatingly powerful Fire-attribute magic tools and Fire-attribute lightning techniques in the cultivation world. If it solidified into a paste, just three drops could dispel the damage caused by all evil or chilling spells, making it the bane of all aberrant sorcery.

The sickly little monk from Sanwen Temple and the stout monk from Tiekan Temple shrieked in unison and rushed over, frantically grabbing the transparent crystals from the ground and stuffing them into their storage pouches!

Gu Xiechen also lunged forward. He grabbed the sickly little monk by the neck and threw him backward, nearly tossing him out of the tunnel. The three stout monks from Tiekan Temple saw a blur of shadow; Gu Xiechen flashed in front of them, knocking all three of them flying with a punch each. The Iron Cage Demon Subduing Divine Ability of Tiekan Temple was the strongest body-tempering method in the cultivation world, but their robust physiques, painstakingly honed for decades, were still no match for the powerful body Gu Xiechen possessed from successive fortuitous encounters. They were beaten back without even a chance to resist.

Placing his foot firmly on a piece of Earth Fire Marrow, Gu Xiechen stood tall and declared, "I am commanding this hunting operation, so these treasures are temporarily under my custody!"

The sickly little monk and the others looked pleadingly at Gu Xiechen, while Penghua threw his head back and laughed three times, giving Gu Xiechen a thumbs-up.

Siren, Aredia, Banruo, and Mohe charged forward simultaneously. They made no attempt to hide the spiritual fluctuations, amplified to their limits after absorbing the Blazing Flame Orchid substance, and spread them out. This potent spiritual wave forced the Daoist Alliance disciples, including Little Zhang Daoist, to retreat repeatedly, their faces turning pale.

The strongest among these Daoist Alliance disciples was only Little Zhang Daoist, who was merely on the cusp of breaking through the Qi Core stage to reach the ninth turn of the Qi Condensation stage. He hadn't even managed to generate the Qi Core flame yet. After consuming the Blazing Flame Orchid substance, the latent potential of Siren and the other three had been thoroughly unlocked. Their current spiritual power intensity was at least equivalent to a Golden Core stage cultivator's thirty to forty percent. Combined with their strange and unpredictable Boundary powers, their actual combat strength was nearly comparable to a Golden Core cultivator—hardly a match for Little Zhang Daoist and his peers.

Little Zhang Daoist jumped up in agitation, pointing at Penghua and Gu Xiechen and cursing, "Zombie! That surnamed Gu, you're turning on your allies! So many treasures!"

Under Gu Xiechen's command, the Special Bureau soldiers were continuously bagging the transparent crystals on the ground and sending them into Gu Xiechen's small Qiankun Pouch. A cursory glance showed at least two to three thousand transparent crystals scattered about. This hoard was an enormous fortune, not just in the current cultivation world, but even thousands of years ago.

Gu Xiechen adopted a posture of intending to claim it all, which was why Little Zhang Daoist was jumping up and down.

Before Penghua could speak, Gu Xiechen began earnestly: "Daoist Little Zhang, I am a businessman. My principle is to let everyone get rich together; harmony brings wealth! But regardless of everything, I am the overall commander of this operation, so it is only reasonable that I safeguard all the proceeds first."

"But!" the sickly little monk also grew anxious. Profound Jade Essence was a supremely Yin and cold spiritual object. Their Sanwen Temple had several miraculous medicines requiring Profound Jade Essence as an ingredient. If he could obtain a few pieces, once synthesized with their sect’s secret spiritual medicines, this little monk would have a chance to form a Golden Core within three years! This was an extraordinary matter; how could he not be anxious?

Waving his hand with authority, Gu Xiechen said, "Everyone, note down the total quantity of all gains. When we return to Earth, we will distribute the harvest reasonably based on each party's contribution to this hunting operation!"

Little Zhang Daoist stomped his feet and cried out, "Nonsense! Your people's weapons and equipment are so powerful, why would we even need to exert ourselves? Little Zhang Daoist and the others essentially came to mooch and take a look at the sights on Pluto. No one expected to discover such precious and numerous natural treasures here! If they had known, they would have summoned their Old Ancestors from their respective sects!"

Gu Xiechen smiled, his smile gentle. "These conventional weapons are quite useful against low-level Crystalline People, but their effectiveness against the higher-tier ones is much weaker."

After a pause, Gu Xiechen comforted the Daoist Alliance disciples: "What is our relationship? We are comrades forged in the hail of bullets on Paradise Star! Everyone knows my guiding principle as Gu Xiechen. These treasures will be shared by all, but everyone should have a clear idea of who gets more and who gets less!"

Penghua curled his nose, grinning smugly at Little Zhang Daoist: "Old long-nose, my junior brother speaks rightly! This is a heavenly treasure, not octopus balls on the street. My junior brother is commanding this time, and my junior brother is from the Nine Nethers Dao! In short, those who are on good terms with my Nine Nethers Dao get a little more; those close to us brothers get a little more; and those who participated in this hunt also get a little more. Is that clear to everyone?"

Little Zhang Daoist was straightforward. He immediately agreed with the opinions put forth by Penghua and Gu Xiechen.

The relationship between Zhongnan Mountain and the Nine Nethers Dao was that of ironclad allies! He and Penghua shared a 'childhood sweethearts' connection, which meant he could claim two extra shares. He decided that later he would simply use his sect's secret techniques, even if it cost him some vital energy, to capture a few more high-level Crystalline People—that would naturally secure him more treasures.

The sickly little monk and the other Daoist Alliance disciples exchanged glances and also agreed with the terms proposed by Penghua.

Gu Xiechen smiled with satisfaction.

An unexpected massive haul. With just these heavenly materials in hand, the power of the Nine Nethers Dao within the Dao Alliance would be significantly consolidated upon returning to Earth!

Guided by several soldiers, the group passed through a passage about two kilometers long and arrived in a circular chamber, about a hundred meters in diameter, also constructed from tightly packed crystal pillars. Dozens of soldiers holding high-energy lamps shone brilliant, piercing light into the chamber, making it transparent. A large pile of crystals and colorful ores in the center of the chamber reflected the light, casting mesmerizing, rainbow-like colors.

Profound Jade Essence, Earth Fire Marrow, Grand White Metallic Gold, Wind-Tempered Dark Silver, Glorious Wind Red Copper, and other rare heavenly materials were piled into a small mountain fifty meters high before their eyes.

"Heavens!" Gu Xiechen was stunned speechless.

"My Great Ancestor!" Penghua's saliva was dripping onto the floor.

Little Zhang Daoist, the sickly little monk, and the others were staring wide-eyed. They frantically counted on their fingers, calculating how many supreme magic tools could be forged and how many miraculous elixirs could be refined from the bounty before them. Since the spiritual energy of Earth began to wither and fade thousands of years ago, Daoist Alliance disciples had only heard of such magnificent accumulations of heavenly materials in myths and legends. Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined so many treasures piled up before them today. Reminder for intermission.

Monthly passes, clicks, recommendation votes—if it’s a vote, I want it! Comrades, work hard and throw them in during the double monthly pass period! (To be continued)