Chapter 280: Chapter 280: Yun City’s Mine Vein, Don’t Miss Out

Yun City was not well-known in Qing State. It was neither a wealthy region nor a city on the state border. Its only claim to fame was Cloud Stone, a type of pristine white rock commonly used in construction that some people made special trips to transport.

Other than that, it was utterly unremarkable.

Yang Chan reviewed the information he had on Yun City. There was really nothing special about it.

He skimmed over the parts about the mild climate and frequent rain. The entirety of Qing State was more or less the same, so this was hardly unique.

If you were to tell people from other states, especially those near the ice fields, they might be very curious. After all, a mild climate was a rarity in their bitterly cold lands. But for the people of Qing State, it was perfectly ordinary.

However, the records mentioned the existence of a mineral vein—an iron mine, at that—which made Yang Chan take a closer look. The Cyan Yuan Sect had arranged for people to excavate it. The ore was of average quality, but as it was an iron mine, an indispensable resource for Artifact Refining, the sect naturally wouldn’t abandon it.

A portion of it was sent to the Cyan Yuan Sect, and a portion went to the Court.

The mission Yang Chan had accepted was to make a trip there, supervise for a few days to check for any embezzlement, and then bring the account books back to the Cyan Yuan Sect.

At first, Yang Chan had been worried that, since the mission involved account books, there might be assassination attempts on the person delivering or inspecting them. But he later realized he was overthinking it. The Cyan Yuan Sect regularly sent people from various halls to go over and bring back the accounting records.

If there were any problems with the accounts, they would have been discovered long ago. Realizing this, Yang Chan sighed at his own paranoia.

This was within Qing State’s borders. To dare make a move on a Cyan Yuan Sect disciple was truly courting death.

When Yang Chan went to accept the mission, the disciple recording it had given him a few odd looks. It wasn’t because there was something wrong with the mission, but because he felt there was something wrong with Yang Chan.

For a Pharmacist to accept a mission with no real perks, one that required several days of travel back and forth plus a few days’ stay at a mine, was considered a great waste of time.

Naturally, the disciple’s look was strange.

Yang Chan, for his part, was unfazed. He had anticipated this kind of reaction when he accepted the mission. However, the mission had no danger, making it an excellent choice for him.

The main reason was that there really weren’t any better missions available in Yun City. The roles of mine supervisor, ore recorder, and the like were even longer-term. Only disciples who had just grasped Power would accept them. They were safe, long-term missions that also awarded Sect Contribution Points.

In Yun City, the status of a Cyan Yuan Sect Official Disciple was quite high, unlike back within the sect itself. At the same time, these missions came with a lot of free time, allowing for more Cultivation.

’If I were a disciple who had just grasped Power, I’d want a mission like this too,’ Yang Chan thought. ’It’s a chance to stay away from danger while being highly respected. It would be a comfortable life.’

By accepting this mission, Yang Chan would no longer be randomly reassigned to Silver State.

Although the possibility was small with Gu An around, completely eliminating the risk was the best choice for Yang Chan. One could only feel secure with a failsafe in place.

This mission would delay him by two or three days at most, which was nothing to him. If he were sent to Silver State, it would be for a very long time—months, at the very least. The choice between the two was an easy one to make.

There weren’t many experts in Yun City. The five major families each had a master at the Peak of External Cultivation presiding over them, and all were Affiliated Forces of the Cyan Yuan Sect.

According to the intelligence Yang Chan had obtained, the masters of the five families had all reached External Refining of Iron Bone Perfection. They were also relatively old, with little chance of breaking through to Inner Refining. Their Combat Power wasn’t considered very high.

The relationships between the various families in Yun City were not harmonious, but under the protection of the Cyan Yuan Sect, a situation where one family was completely annihilated would not occur.

After all, these forces paid a tribute of Cultivation Resources every year, so the Cyan Yuan Sect naturally had to protect them. Thus, while there might be struggles among them, it would never reach the point of mutual destruction. And this was precisely the situation the Cyan Yuan Sect was happy to see.

The Cyan Yuan Sect didn’t want the families to be too friendly with each other, but it also didn’t want their fighting to become too vicious. The former could pose a threat, while the latter could reduce the number of parties paying tribute.

So, naturally, there was constant strife, but it never escalated to the point of wiping out an entire clan.

If the Cyan Yuan Sect noticed anything amiss, it would dispatch sect members to handle it, ensuring it would never become a threat.

The previous rise of the Three Major Sects that were later destroyed was partly an intentional move by the Cyan Yuan Sect. They didn’t want the Imperial Family to become too wary of them; after all, the Imperial Family would only be at ease if there were checks on the sect’s power.

The subsequent annihilation of the Three Major Sects happened not only because they had become somewhat of a threat, but also because they had involved sects from other states, posing a direct threat to the Cyan Yuan Sect.

Once a threat was identified, it had to be eliminated—with full force, leaving no room for survival.

Yang Chan understood the situation in Yun City. Having estimated the Combat Power there, he concluded there was no threat. Even if things went south, he could use his Wind-Stepping Technique to escape.

Yang Chan firmly believed that only the cautious could long endure.

After accepting the mission, Yang Chan set off for the Earth Fire Institute. He had already gathered the materials for Refining the Cyan Spirit Pill, Guiyuan Pill, and Qi Replenishing Pill, and he needed to produce a batch for backup.

Fortunately, Elder Hua’s demand for the materials for these three elixirs wasn’t very high, which allowed Yang Chan to gather a full set. It took a bit longer than before, but the impact was minor.

Yang Chan took the prepared Alchemy Materials and went straight to the Earth Fire Institute. When he emerged again, he was carrying a collection of bottles and jars.

Among them were not only the Cyan Spirit Pills, Guiyuan Pills, and Qi Replenishing Pills he would take on his journey, but also poison he had refined—Poison Pills, to be precise.

When he set out, he could coat his Hidden Weapons with the Poison Pill’s contents. They would be lethal on contact. Even an Inner Master wouldn’t be able to handle the consequences.

"Pharmacist Yang, Pharmacist Zhao Yi is here to see you."

Yang Chan had just returned to his courtyard after his Alchemy session when he heard Han Bingyu’s message, which surprised him slightly. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

He had heard that Zhao Yi had been busy trying to refine the Lantian Jade Refining Pill these past few days. ’Logically, he shouldn’t have had the time to come looking for me,’ he thought, ’unless...’

"Pharmacist Yang, you’ve heard the news about the Secret Realm appearing in Silver State, right?"

"They say all sorts of rare medicinal ingredients have appeared inside, and that’s just on the outskirts! Deeper in, there are even materials for refining the Three Revolutions Nourishing Viscera Pill and the Five Revolutions Nourishing Organ Pill!"

"I heard you want to refine the Three Revolutions Nourishing Viscera Pill. You can join the mission to Silver State, and if you find the necessary Alchemy Materials, you can take them for yourself!"

Zhao Yi strode in nonchalantly and, upon seeing Yang Chan, began to persuade him with great enthusiasm.

His level of enthusiasm far exceeded their previous encounters. He almost had the air of a street hawker yelling, "Step right up, an opportunity not to be missed!"