Chapter 159: Forty-Three Thousand Grade-One Spirit Stones

Once he had made up his mind, Lu Chen dialed the communicator again.

Dong Mingjun had assumed the Dragon King was calling to urge him about the spirit stones. He had not expected to hear a question the moment the connection went through.

“Captain Dong, do you need spirit weapons?”

“Spirit weapons... Your Excellency, Dragon King, there are spirit weapons in the Misty Space?!” he asked eagerly.

Since the Dragon King had put the question that way, he had clearly obtained one from the alternate dimension.

“Of course,” Lu Chen replied. He immediately took a spirit sword from his inner space.

At once, the black mire of the swamp condensed into a gigantic claw, which poured the Laws of Energy into the runic formation.

Whoosh!

A massive sword of white radiance flashed into existence and shot straight toward the pitch-black sky.

The entire valley and forest shone as brightly as if it were broad daylight.

The claw rose, then fell, cleaving the void in two.

A colossal fissure opened in the ground ahead and spread toward the pile of boulders more than twenty yards away.

Crack!

The boulders, each weighing several tons, turned to powder in an instant.

A sharp collective gasp came from the many humans listening in on the call.

“How about it?” Lu Chen asked again.

He still did not know whether the spirit sword required a blood-binding ritual, but judging solely from the power it had displayed, he believed the humans would be tempted.

“Your Excellency, Dragon King, we’ll take it. How many spirit stones?” Dong Mingjun asked, visibly excited.

He had a powerful feeling that the spirit sword in the Dragon King’s hand was a perfect match for him.

Ever since Dong Mingjun had begun practicing Zhang Sanfeng’s sword cultivation method, his cultivation had advanced at astonishing speed. In just a few short months, he had already reached the late fourth stage.

The weapon he currently carried was an ancient sword obtained from the Dao Academy.

It was said to have been forged from meteoric iron. Although it bore no runic formation, it could barely resonate with the Laws of Energy within his body, allowing it to unleash tremendous combat power. In broad terms, it was equivalent to a first-grade spirit weapon.

For that reason, the Crisis Response Team had been analyzing the ancient sword, hoping to decipher the secret behind its transmission of the Laws of Energy and thereby mass-produce similar weapons.

So far, however, the research had made no groundbreaking progress.

In the end, the ancient sword was not a true spirit weapon. As his strength increased, Dong Mingjun had gradually felt the limitations imposed by it; it was utterly incapable of unleashing his full power.

Judging from its activated state, the precious sword in the Dragon King’s hand was at least a fourth-grade spirit weapon. If he could purchase it, he estimated conservatively that his strength would double.

Naturally, the Crisis Response Team needed a weapon like that.

“I still have four spirit weapons on hand. I’ll give you all four for eight thousand spirit stones.” As he spoke, Lu Chen took out the spirit sword and three spirit blades.

“No problem,” Dong Mingjun agreed immediately.

For Xia Country, spirit stones were an important strategic resource. But whenever they could be exchanged for something more valuable, they would not hesitate to spend them.

The four spirit weapons were not as valuable as the spirit-energy cannon, but they could raise the Crisis Response Team’s combat strength dramatically in a very short time. They would also provide the expert group with additional research samples.

There was therefore no need to report the matter upward. Dong Mingjun could make the decision himself.

Seeing how readily the other party had agreed, Lu Chen also realized just how important spirit weapons were to humanity.

He was reminded of the pyramid tombs within the waterfall space. The bronze coffins he had opened seemed to contain many similar weapons as well.

Lu Chen had previously examined them with the Laws of Energy but had sensed no unusual aura. They were probably ordinary weapons.

Even so, he was certain that the remaining pyramids contained spirit weapons. After all, any intelligent life capable of creating a runic protective barrier would have had no reason not to upgrade and refine its weapons.

After returning to the waterfall space, he could investigate the pyramid tombs once more. If he found spirit weapons among them, he could continue selling them to the humans of Blue Star.

It was a long-term business—and a monopoly.

He was certain that the remaining twenty or thirty pyramids would bring him many pleasant surprises.

Half a day later, Dong Mingjun hurried to the outskirts of the hot-spring valley with his people.

The number of accompanying personnel was astonishing—fully five or six hundred.

Aside from several dozen members of the Crisis Response Team, there were also researchers. Judging by their clothing, most of the rest appeared to be construction workers.

The sight took Lu Chen somewhat by surprise. He had no idea what they intended to do.

“Your Excellency, Dragon King, given the importance of the Misty Space, our Crisis Response Team has decided, after careful deliberation, to conduct more thorough exploration and research there in the next phase.

“We therefore plan to build a temporary helipad near the valley to facilitate our future expeditions. Rest assured, this is purely peaceful in nature. It will not affect the beasts or the monkey troop living in the valley. We hope you can understand.”

After the two sides met, Dong Mingjun immediately offered an explanation.

Lu Chen did not mind. He had never intended to remain permanently in the hot-spring valley.

As for Golden Point and the monkeys, how they would coexist with humanity in the future would depend on their own fortune.

It was true that Lu Chen felt some affection for them, but he was not going to worry about every little thing on their behalf.

Besides, as long as they did not bring disaster upon themselves, he believed Dong Mingjun and the others would refrain from slaughtering them indiscriminately out of consideration for him.

Dong Mingjun had also brought several dozen specially made suitcases filled with spirit stones.

Everything was exactly as previously agreed: forty-three thousand first-grade spirit stones in total. Thirty thousand were payment for the spirit-energy cannon, eight thousand for the four spirit weapons, and the remainder was compensation for Lu Chen’s protection.

As humanity’s research into the various alternate spaces deepened, they had long since learned that those places contained countless unseen dangers.

This time, they were not planning a quick trip in and out. They intended to remain there for an extended period, and the danger involved was self-evident.

One careless mistake could easily result in heavy casualties.

The expert group in particular could not afford to suffer any losses.

That was why the Crisis Response Team had decided to pay an additional five thousand spirit stones to have the Dragon King protect them.

Lu Chen was naturally happy to earn a little extra.

After a brief inspection, he unceremoniously tossed the more than forty thousand spirit stones into his inner space for storage, intending to consume them gradually when he had time. Given his current size, he could digest only a few hundred at a time.

Trying to consume more within a short period would simply be wasteful.

It would probably take nearly a month to absorb all the spirit stones.

Of course, Lu Chen was not worried that the humans had tampered with them. There was still a long road ahead, and they would have many more occasions to rely on him in the future.

Moreover, judging from their previous dealings, Dong Mingjun and the others were people who valued their reputation. They would not be so shortsighted.

Not long after he accepted the spirit stones, night fell. When the spatial rift opened again, Lu Chen led the humans into the Misty Space.

He went in first, followed closely by more than a dozen helicopters that flew through the rift.

A large number of construction personnel entered the Misty Space as well, busying themselves with preparations to build temporary facilities and provide logistical support for the expeditions to come.

During his previous exploration, Lu Chen had stopped and started along the way, taking many unnecessary detours. This time, with a precise anchor point, he could use magnetic-field sensing to lock effortlessly onto the exact location of the colossal stone city.