’It really is a type of ore...’

’An ore from the Cultivation Immortal Realm?’

Inside the mine, Chu Mu gently caressed the tunnel wall, which carried a strange, faint chill. His gaze remained fixed for a long while, confirming his initial suspicions.

It was a type of ore, one that definitely surpassed the scope of Mortal Iron Ore. It was probably like those medicinal herbs that had grown beyond their natural cycle, belonging to... the Cultivation Immortal Realm? A Spirit Ore?

Chu Mu wasn’t certain if his terminology was correct, but the general meaning felt right.

’So because it’s a Spirit Ore, it attracted the arrival of the man in white. And to mine this Spirit Ore, he was willing to pay any price, which led to all the recent turmoil.’

’The man in white came for this Spirit Ore...’

’Then what about Elder Li... and the other Cultivator who recently appeared, the one who clearly knows Elder Li?’

’Did they come for this Spirit Ore, too?’

’The Cultivation Immortal Realm requires even common Iron Ore, so this obviously more exceptional Spirit Ore must be worth much more...’

Chu Mu thought in silence. Whether or not this guess was true was extremely important to him! It could even be a matter of life and death!

’If Elder Li truly has designs on this Spirit Ore, then regardless of his success or failure, someone like me, who has recently grown close to him, will undoubtedly be dragged into the mess.’

’Getting involved in a clash between Cultivators, when I’ve barely even started Qi and Blood Cultivation? That’s just asking to die!’

’Perhaps I can sound him out...’

An idea formed in Chu Mu’s mind. Given Elder Li’s current attitude toward him, testing the waters a bit should be fine.

’He’s gone to all this trouble to nurture me; he couldn’t possibly want me to be cannon fodder, could he?’

’If he really wanted me as cannon fodder, wouldn’t it have been easier to personally prepare a few formulas to bolster my Qi and Blood Cultivation? Why go to such great lengths?’

Chu Mu walked out of the mine. The sun blazed high overhead, and the icy landscape remained, but the "ice sculptures" were now engulfed in a great fire, burning fiercely.

Billows of black smoke rose from the mining pit, and the churning, acrid stench made one want to gag.

"Brother Mu, here!"

Xu Yuan handed him a damp cloth. "Brother Mu, cover your face, quick! This smell is enough to kill a man!"

"Where’s the Hundred Households?"

Chu Mu took the wet cloth, covered his nose and mouth, and asked casually.

"Looks like he was summoned by the Thousand Households..."

"Alright, I’m heading back first. You can tell the Hundred Households for me later..."

He stopped mid-sentence, then suddenly changed his mind.

"Never mind, come back with me!"

"Oh... okay!"

Without asking why, Xu Yuan instinctively agreed, just as he always did, and fell in step behind Chu Mu.

"How’s your Qi and Blood Cultivation coming along?"

Chu Mu glanced at Xu Yuan, who was following him closely, and asked offhandedly.

"It’s amazing!"

Xu Yuan’s eyes lit up as he said excitedly, "Brother Mu, I feel so much stronger now!"

"You know how it was before, Brother Mu. I could barely even lift that saber. Now I can swing it around no problem, WHOOSH WHOOSH..."

Chu Mu fell silent for a moment, then asked suddenly, "Have you ever thought about the future?"

"The future?"

Xu Yuan scratched his head, confused. "What about the future?"

Chu Mu stopped walking. No matter which direction he looked, black smoke from the burning bodies churned and rose into the sky. He could still see more corpses being tossed into the fires.

No one paid any mind. Even many of the Inspectors had already grown numb to it.

What Chu Mu was thinking now was that if his guess was correct, he wouldn’t be able to escape this, not with his close ties to Elder Li.

And what about this little brother who followed his every command? Would he be able to escape, either?

’I doubt anyone would care if an innocent person got caught in the crossfire...’

"Brother Mu, what is it? Just say it clearly!"

Chu Mu shook his head, then changed the subject. "How much money do you have left?"

"What?"

Xu Yuan was a little taken aback.

"Counting what my father left behind, I should have over five hundred silver. I haven’t counted it precisely..."

"Keep what you need for daily expenses. Lend the rest to me."

"Okay."

Xu Yuan nodded, then pulled a thick stack of Paper Currency from his robes and stuffed it all into Chu Mu’s hands.

"I have over a hundred more silver at home. I’ll get it for you when I go back."

"No need. This should be enough."

Chu Mu didn’t count it, just stuffed it into his robes.

Xu Yuan asked, a little curious, "Brother Mu, what do you need so much money for?"

"You’ll know in due time."

Chu Mu shook his head, unwilling to say more.

"Oh..."

Xu Yuan murmured an acknowledgment and, knowing better than to press the issue, quietly followed behind Chu Mu.

Most of the day passed. The chaos they had seen upon leaving Nanshan Town had long since been suppressed, and the streets were already swept clean.

Only a few lingering stains, and the heart-wrenching sobs coming from behind the doors lining the streets, clearly proved that the recent bloodbath that had enveloped the town was no illusion.

Xu Yuan had already gone on ahead home. The bloodstains at his doorway remained, but the corpses were gone.

Everything in the courtyard was as usual. The bedroom door was still tightly shut. Chu Mu paused for a moment, then walked straight to the bedroom door and opened it. Wangcai, who had heard him coming and was whining behind the door, immediately darted over, tail wagging furiously.

Chu Mu ruffled the puppy’s fur, his gaze already fixed on the medicine cabinet in the room.

’The end of next month...’

The words he had faintly overheard at the mine resurfaced in his mind. It was the beginning of the current month. That meant he had less than two months until the end of the next.

After a moment of contemplation, Chu Mu pulled out the thick wad of Paper Currency from his robes. He counted it. A total of over five hundred and sixty silver.

This was undoubtedly a huge sum of money. For a normal person, it was more than enough to live a life free of worry.

But when life wasn’t normal, a little over five hundred silver was nothing.

In the few months since he had come to this world, between studying books, practicing Martial Arts, and learning medicine, he had already spent far more than five hundred silver.

This five hundred silver, used to purchase medicinal ingredients for him to study and refine formulas, while not a completely useless amount, was by no means a fortune.

"White Medicine, Gallbladder Grass, Moon Frost Flower..."

Chu Mu gazed at the Body Refining Technique formula spread out before him, murmuring the ingredients to himself as he began to deliberate.

Although he had focused primarily on accumulating knowledge and experience since he began studying medicine, Chu Mu had actually been contemplating how to improve this formula and enhance its effects for a long time. He already had many potential plans in mind.

Even so, Chu Mu had no idea what the actual effects of his proposed improvements would be.

He even felt that, at his current level, there was a very high probability that his ideas were nothing more than armchair theories.

But now that his original step-by-step plan had been upended, he was ready to take action. It was time to see if his ideas were worth anything.

He held the paper down with a weight, dipped his brush in ink, and slowly began to write. One medicinal name after another, one plan after another... 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

After a long time, the tip of his brush finally came to a rest. Chu Mu stood up and went to the medicine cabinet, checking the drawers one by one. On the paper, he tallied the ingredients he had at home and those he still needed to purchase.

’Fifty-two types of ingredients are needed. I’m still short twenty-three of them, and for twelve of the ones I have, the quantity is insufficient...’

In the end, the paper held a detailed inventory, while Chu Mu’s mind was running a rough cost estimate.

’About a hundred silver...’

Chu Mu’s brow furrowed. His expression was grim.

Just the preliminary preparations would cost about a hundred silver.

But improving a single formula would require an unknown number of trials and errors, and each attempt meant a continuous drain on his funds.

’I’ll just have to take it one step at a time!’

Chu Mu rubbed his forehead. It was a step he had to take sooner or later.

This could involve an Alchemy Inheritance from the Cultivation Immortal Realm. Even if it was only his own guess, he couldn’t possibly back down, much less give up...

...