Sister Xiao landed with a thud. She immediately picked herself up and continued running, jumping into another shaft and scaling its uneven walls in quick leaps.

Her breath was growing ragged, but she couldn’t slow down. The other overseers wouldn’t be far behind and she had to reach the Elder’s abode before they managed to catch up.

She circulated her qi and jumped several feet into the air to enter another open duct.

The ventilation shafts didn’t just provide the miners with fresh air. Their long arteries splintered throughout the entire mine, forming a veritable labyrinth of their own. Their layout made them a hurdle even for cultivators, but there was no quicker way to traverse the mine.

A deep shaft opened up before her. She dove in without hesitation. Her neatly braided hair fluttered in the whooshing wind as she fell freely in the darkness.

Abruptly, her muscles tensed and she kicked her feet against the wall behind her. She was propelled forward, straight into a narrow opening in front of her. She managed to slide in without harm and continued her run without breaking a stride.

All this, she performed while relying almost solely on instinct. Her thoughts were elsewhere, occupied by the two crystals hidden in her tightly clenched hand.

“ Brilliant radiance shall be its herald. Phenomena protect it, unsoiled by mortal plane. Birthed with a name, cherished by the Heavens…”

The cryptic words of the Earth Mysteries Scripture continued to ring out in her mind.

The disciples sent to the mine were required by the Sect to memorize its contents. Most of the text focused on ways of distinguishing between different grades of spiritual crystals, but it also contained some heavily redacted snippets about natural treasures. Not enough to learn what exactly the two crystals in her hand were, but enough to determine their value.

Upper Sky Rank!

Her fingernails dug into the skin of her palm as the words rang out in her mind.

At this point, it didn’t even matter where exactly the value of these treasures lay. Their grade alone made them worth waging a war over. They were something completely beyond the scope of a lowly outer disciple, much less a failure removed from the active sect roster like herself.

If she could sell just a single one, she would become rich beyond her wildest dreams.

Treating her injury would no longer be a distant pipe dream. She would be able to afford a donation to the Temples that would make a Saint rush down to attend to her. And it would still leave her with enough money to purchase cultivation resources that would propel her to the next realm. She would return a queen of the outer disciples!

And if the treasure happened to be compatible with her own dao…

Her heart sped up.

Even becoming a peak Elder wouldn’t be out of question.

She could never forget the looks of her brothers and sisters when they learnt about her injury.

Qi deviation during ascension. Major meridians raptured. Her Immortal Sigil fractured.

She managed to preserve some of her strength - enough to fend off the jackals that always popped up in such circumstances - but she couldn’t fight the empty gazes.

When it became clear that she would never step another foot on the Immortal path, she became an outcast. Her fellow disciples, friends and rivals alike, people she had spent her whole life with, turned away from her. The Sect had cut her off too, loath to waste its precious resources on someone who could never progress again.

With her injury merely kept at bay, she couldn’t even accept normal missions to earn her keep that way.

Her only solution was the mine. A dead end. Mortal work suitable for those who had given up on the Immortal path. Before, she had nothing but scorn for those who chose it. Now, she wasn’t even qualified.

The favors she had accrued over the years had crumbled into nothing overnight. The senior responsible for mortal assignments, a pathetic no one with meager talent, had taken all the savings she had left and it still wasn’t enough. In the end, within the secrecy of four walls, Xiao had gone on her knees and begged.

And what for? It would take her twenty years to save up for treatment while her condition worsened every day.

Her skin crawled whenever she heard the miners braying at her, “We greet the Immortal!” She understood the need to keep them in check. But if a lowly disciple dared to call himself an Immortal in the sect, he would invite so much ridicule there would be no need for disciplinary action. He would commit suicide out of shame.

To hear these wretches adulate her as an Immortal when she wasn’t even allowed to step through the Sect’s gates was nothing short of torture. The humiliation burnt like fire.

“It ends now.”

She stopped by a small crevice and opened her hand to look at the two crystals again. With the seals in place, they stopped seeping any energies and even the runic symbols marking their surface vanished. They looked almost ordinary. But their allure didn’t lessen. The tiny white crystals reflected in her widened eyes.

She hesitated. It was not too late, she could still bring both of them to the Elder. Who knows? If His Excellency happened to feel charitable, the reward could cover the cost of her treatment, solving her troubles altogether.

But she was lying to herself. Her mind was set from the moment she laid her eyes on them.

And, besides, even a single treasure of this grade had no right appearing in a place like this. For two such treasures to appear at the same time…

“Even a Sage wouldn’t be able to imagine it.”

She firmly pushed one of the crystals deep inside the wall’s crevice. There was no need to conceal it further. With the seals intact, the energies it seeped into the world were so minute, it was nigh impossible to detect.

“ No turning back now.”

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She launched herself off the ground and disappeared in another shaft without looking back.

Elder Xi’s abode was located deep within the mine. The grotto it occupied was carved by his own hands, leaving the walls unnaturally smooth and sleek. Its ceiling was high and adorned with hundreds of luminous crystals that simulated sunlight. There was even vegetation, a small brook, and wandering animals, making the visitors coming here from the dark and claustrophobic shafts of the mine feel as if they’d stumbled into a pocket dimension of legends.

Sister Xiao stopped by the gate and used a pulse of her qi to announce herself.

Leaves rustled softly in the wind. A single pink petal flew over the gate. She watched it as it twirled in the air above her head and didn’t move as it landed gently on her cheek.

If the circumstances were different, she would’ve loved nothing more than to just close her eyes and submit to the serene atmosphere. But her anxiety mounted with every passing moment. She couldn’t retreat now, there was no explanation for why she’d come with only one of the crystals. All she could do now was prepare herself for the impending audience, rehearsing in her mind all the ways it could transpire. A single careless word or expression could decide her life.

Minutes went by before she finally decided to sit down and enter meditation. Even in such a situation, the elder was too grand a figure to grant her an audience straight away. It was only expected that a disciple wouldn’t be received immediately. If she was discovered just standing outside the gate, it would look suspicious.

She tried to rouse her qi. It used to be brisk and vigorous like a mountain spring, but ever since the accident, it became sluggish and torpid, making her think of stagnant waters in an overgrown pond. It took her a few breaths of time just to complete a single cycle. With her dantian almost empty, she’d need several days before she could fully replenish it.

It’s all going to change now…

Finally, the gates opened.

“Ah, junior sister, I’m sorry to have kept you waiting…”

A teenage boy, no older than fourteen, stood at the entrance. Unlike Xiao, he was draped in luxurious blue robes that hung loosely around his body.

His eyes were bright and alert as if on the watch for anything interesting. Curls of fine, blond hair hugged the sides of his slightly plump face that still revealed trappings of childhood.

His lips rose in an easy smile, revealing a neat row of white teeth.

Xiao immediately stood up and bowed, “Senior brother, thank you for receiving me. I have a matter to report to Elder Xi.”

She didn’t dare to show anything but utmost respect. Her elder brother might look ten years younger than her, but that only proved his ability. Aging slows down with cultivation, but it very rarely reverses. For Hang Min to appear so young merely invited reverence.

Couple that with his blue robes of an inner disciple and the fact he was chosen as a personal disciple by Elder Xi and it all amounted to a single conclusion. Hang Min was an extraordinary existence, destined for peaks she could never even dream of.

Though it might change now…

“Teacher already guessed you would be coming,” the teen replied with a boyish smile. “I don’t think there is anyone in the mine who didn’t sense the treasure when it was unearthed.” He cast her a meaningful gaze, “Why, judging by your looks, one would guess you have dug it out yourself.”

Only now did Xiao have a chance to look at her clothes. Her face grew red. It was not like she actually looked like a slave, but the dark blotches of dirt staining her robes were impossible to miss.

The boy couldn’t help laughing seeing her embarrassment.

“Calm down, younger sister. It’s not an official reception. I’m sure Teacher will not take it as a deliberate slight. In fact, it only shows your utmost diligence and devotion to the Sect, come now.”

Xiao could only bow her head.

“Thank you, elder brother.”

They walked through the compound in silence. Despite her nervousness, Xiao soon found herself dazed by the incredible variety of rare plants and animals on display. Some, she was even able to recognise from the manuals she had studied at the Sect. A little thought at the back of her mind screamed that a single of these living ornaments would suffice to cover the cost of her treatment, but she quieted it.

Finally, they approached a pagoda. The crystals providing the sunlight were truly miraculous. The narrow steps of the building weren’t just bathed in light but also warm; a calming scent of sandalwood suffused the air around them.

Even her qi seemed to perk up. The mine was dense in spiritual energies, but not of a kind that helped alleviate her injury. They were harsh and corrupting, continually trying to invade her Qi Sea. Here, the environment was calming and nourishing, reminding her of the blessed lands she enjoyed in the Sect.

“Enter.”

They entered a study, but stopped just a few feet past the threshold. Several meters further in, a man in his thirties sat at a low table. His black hair was neatly trimmed, revealing a smooth forehead devoid of wrinkles. High cheekbones were prominent on his slightly gaunt face. In his hand was a small brush which he periodically tipped in ink as he worked on a manuscript. He exuded an aura of elegance and cleanliness.

Xiao subtly circulated her qi. She used the same art that prevented the dust from touching her person in front of the miners, but for a completely opposite purpose. It was to avoid soiling Elder’s home with the dirt she had brought in on herself.

“Outer Disciple Xiao Yun greets venerable Elder—“

She began with a slight quaver, but the man quickly interrupted her.

“Don’t waste time. Present it.”

Xiao stumbled over her words and awkwardly reached into her robes to retrieve the crystal. She didn’t approach the Elder, but merely offered the treasure in her two outstretched hands.

The elder didn’t bother looking up from his work. The crystal rose by itself and flew towards him before landing softly on the desk.

Several minutes went by in silence.

Elder Xi continued his work, seemingly disregarding the treasure altogether.

Hang Min loitered at the back with the same faint smile and relaxed figure. Sister Xiao's posture was frozen in a supplicate bow, making her feel like her back might snap. The qi in her meridians was running low and she feared that the art protecting her could break at any second.

“You can leave now.”

The judgment was rendered.

A wave of relief washed over her. All her instincts screamed to leave immediately, but she fought them down and remained unmoved, stubbornly fixing her eyes on the wooden floor. Just a hint of indignation appeared on her stern face. She didn’t have much time to rehearse for her audience with the elder, but she’d managed to prepare at least that.

Elder Xi cast her a look.

“Hang Min,” he said.

“Yes, teacher.”

“Your junior sister has made a contribution to the Sect. Award her… fifty crystals.”

“Yes, teacher.”

It was more than an outer disciple would be able to earn in three years. Hang Min pulled out a small pouch from his robes, as if the number didn’t make any impression on him one way or another.

Xiao managed to bend her back a few degrees further. In truth, the reward had exceeded her expectations. But it was still woefully short of what the treatment for her injury would cost.

“I don’t deserve it!” She quickly exclaimed, but the audience was already over. Elder Xi didn’t even bother replying, while Hang Min gently pulled on the corner of her robe and escorted her outside.

On her way back, Xiao had to stop herself from skipping. Maintaining a gratified smile was almost too easy, all she had to do was conceal the relief from showing too clearly on her face. She patted the small pouch, but her true thoughts lied elsewhere. She couldn’t wait to retrieve the other crystal from the crevice she had left it in.

Back at the pagoda, the elder put away his brush and inspected the treasure more carefully. He undone the seals created by sister Xiao, letting the spiritual energies freely manifest themselves, before quickly redoing them himself.

His disciple waited patiently.

“Is the treasure to your liking, master?”

“Unfortunately, it’s completely worthless.”

“Master?”

The man didn’t reply. He continued to probe and prod the tiny crystal with his qi, provoking waves of spiritual energies in response. His brush moved on its own, diligently copying the runic symbol etched on the treasure’s surface. Finally, he put the crystal away, locking it in a small jadeite box.

He considered something in silence.

“Still, a treasure of this kind shouldn’t have appeared in this mine.” He scribbled a few words on the papers occupying his desk. “Since you’ve been bored recently, you can go down and investigate its birth.”

A smile bloomed on the young man’s face.

The elder cast him an annoyed look. “Don’t overthink things. Such treasures naturally oppose the heavenly order. Studying its origin will do you some good.”

“Yes, master.”

Hang Min was happy. His master obviously wouldn’t lower himself to interrogate a mere outer disciple. Just entertaining the thought that such a lowly creature might have dared to deceive him was like slapping his own face.

Hang Min didn’t bother himself with such concerns.

He flashed a boyish smile and saluted.“I’ll strive to do my utmost for the Sect.”