The night grew darker.

Li Dahuo sat alone by the candle, silent and deep in thought.

Xia Ming... Xia Ming...

He repeated the name over and over, as if in a trance.

Meanwhile, in the Thirty-seventh Cave, a different scene unfolded.

A grass curtain blocked the howling wind outside, keeping the cold at bay.

Inside the cave, a bright oil lamp flickered, casting warm light.

Besides the lamp, there were two cozy stoves burning, thick blankets on stone beds, and on the wall hung a chart of meridians gifted by Jiang Liang.

All of this was earned by Xia Ming himself.

The more diligently he worked, the more Jiang Liang would value him, and the better treatment he would receive.

After absorbing the soul stone in his palm, Xia Ming took a deep breath and closed his eyes slowly.

In his mind, he repeated the term "spirit root," and familiar images of diodes surfaced again.

One, two, three, four!

As he looked at the four diodes in parallel, a smile crept onto Xia Ming's face.

Eight hours a day, these four diodes were hard-earned.

Capital!

This is my capital for a turnaround!

Four diodes, four independent spirit roots!

Xia Ming couldn't help but feel proud.

But he also couldn't help but worry.

If other cultivators knew he harbored four independent spirit roots in his body...

He feared he might be ground into powder, his bones used for wine, his blood for elixirs.

And the progress of these four diodes varied.

The water spirit root progressed the fastest, followed by fire, wood, and earth.

Unfortunately, the gold spirit root was exceedingly rare.

Otherwise, he could have achieved the accomplishment of the five-element spirit roots by now.

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Perhaps because there was a large river nearby, most disciples of the Great River Sect had water spirit roots.

One area nurtures its people; under the nourishment of the river's spiritual energy, water spirit roots naturally became more common.

In addition to the rapid progress of his spirit roots, Xia Ming's magnetic field sensing ability had also improved.

Not only had the sensing range increased, but the lines of sensing had become denser.

The improvement in sensing ability made it easier for Xia Ming to perceive acupuncture points.

In this virtuous cycle, Xia Ming couldn't help but sigh.

This is sustainable development!

...

Sixtieth day of winter.

Li Dahuo again bowed to Elder Jiang Liang, both probing each other.

Li Dahuo proposed fifteen to one, and Jiang Liang replied, "The door opens to the west, feel free to leave."

Sixty-first day of winter.

At dawn, Li Dahuo left for Soul Cliff.

Later, he returned with wine and bowed to Jiang Liang again, and they talked happily.

Twenty to one, they shook hands and reconciled.

Sixty-second day of winter.

Li Dahuo collected seven corpses from the seventeenth cave and sold twenty items.

...

Sixty-ninth day of winter.

Different worlds have different calendars.

In this world, there are four seasons, each with a hundred days, rotating rigorously.

As winter continued, the temperature dropped, water turned into ice, and survival became tougher.

Especially in the already bleak Soul Cliff, it felt like descending into an icy abyss.

In the Thirty-seventh Cave, Xia Ming sighed at the increasing cold. Even by the stove, he still felt constrained.

He heard that several lower levels had frozen to death, so Jiang Liang brought back some laborers from the menial department to fill the gaps.

Laborers were as expendable as cattle and horses.

It was on this day that Xia Ming encountered a special corpse.

In his magnetic field perception, he saw an extremely unique water spirit root.

Most people's spirit roots were ribbon-shaped, like veins rooted in the body.

But the spirit root he saw now resembled a clear spring.

Profound, lively, unlike dead matter.

The moment Xia Ming saw this spirit root, he felt unsettled.

Could it be...

That spirit roots also have different grades?

Xia Ming suddenly felt a malicious intent from this otherworldly realm.

Determined, he placed the clear spring spirit root into his own magnetic field.

Electrolysis!

Direct electrolysis!

Following the black magnetic lines, a large mass of swirling aqua blue particles flowed into Xia Ming's body.

Clutching his fist, Xia Ming felt a tremor throughout his body.

The concentration of this clear spring spirit root's particles exceeded that of ordinary spirit roots by tens of times!

As Xia Ming clenched his fist, the aqua blue diodes in his mind began to change.

First, the two light blue tips lit up, then the entire diode started vibrating.

In the anticipation of Xia Ming's gaze, a bright blue light slowly lit up.

Activating the water spirit root!

Taking a deep breath, Xia Ming felt his soul tremble, and his whole body relaxed.

Opening his eyes and relaxing his hand, Xia Ming's eyes flickered with surprise.

Have I... obtained a spirit root?

Xia Ming could clearly feel that he had become different.

He felt closer to this world, as if something else was gradually integrating into his body with each breath.

The cold in the cave seemed more bearable now.

Cold... isn't it just another manifestation of water spiritual energy?

Could it be that I really have a spirit root?

The surprise came too suddenly, and for a moment, Xia Ming was uncertain.

...

Seventieth day of winter.

As dawn broke, Xia Ming waited outside Jiang Liang's door.

The humble little donkey humbly asked for a test spirit stone to check his spirit root.

After a deep look at Xia Ming, Jiang Liang directly refused him.

Seeing the little donkey's dejection, Jiang Liang comforted him.

Concentrate on collecting corpses, don't be distracted, spirit roots are fated, how can they be obtained by force?

Go back to work, and from now on, add two soul stones daily.

After saying this, Jiang Liang summoned a leafy boat, rode the wind, and headed into the distance.

Watching Jiang Liang's departing figure, Xia Ming slowly clenched his fist.

How could he not know?

Elder Jiang Liang only saw him as a tool.

Even calling him a tool was an embellishment; in reality, Xia Ming was just a beast of burden.

Back in the Thirty-seventh Cave, Xia Ming's mind was restless, unable to calm down.

Jiang Liang's silence, the deathly silence of Soul Cliff, made Xia Ming's heart grow colder.

Was he, Xia Ming, going to stay in this place forever?

To work for Elder Jiang for a lifetime?

All for a few ounces of soul stones?

No!

He had already endured enough of such hardships in his past life!

Was he to endure the same in this life?

Absolutely not!

What difference was there between this cave in Soul Cliff and that damned matchbox?

At the thought, rebellion surged in Xia Ming's heart to the brink.

But cruel reality slapped Xia Ming in the face.

Without Jiang Liang's permission, he couldn't even leave Soul Cliff.

Unable to escape this cage, even if he had a spirit root, what could he do?

Having a spirit root, but no follow-up cultivation techniques.

If this continued, when would he set foot on the immortal path?

When could he pursue true freedom?

Apart from the spirit roots, Xia Ming also realized that his spiritual soul seemed to be experiencing some issues.

Because he had been consuming soul stones during this period, his spiritual soul kept growing stronger.

Xia Ming had already faintly felt a sense of stagnation.

In other words, his spiritual soul had touched the limits of his physical body.

If he wanted to continue growing, he could only cultivate.

He needed to cleanse his body with spiritual energy and become stronger.