Chapter 5154 — Mining Again
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
Apart from these two, the other targeted figures were still only at the stage of cozying up to people—a vast distance yet from being genuinely won over.
This was only natural. Everyone spent their days in cultivation, after all; even fellow disciples of the same sect rarely found occasion to gather together, and those with real bonds of friendship were rarer still. Under such circumstances, adding the prerequisite of harboring resentment toward the Primordial Alliance made the odds naturally minuscule—and every one of the Primordial Alliance's people was exceedingly guarded. To approach them out of the blue without sufficient prior acquaintance made the difficulty all but insurmountable. That only two could be won over in a month was entirely reasonable.
Time slipped past, and in the blink of an eye a full three months had gone by since the quasi-disciples entered the transfer archipelago. On this day, Xin Yi'an did something unprecedented: he gathered everyone on the small island where the teleportation formation stood. The isle was not large—compared with the true islands it was little more than a speck of standing room—yet it was more than ample to hold a hundred-odd people.
When everyone had arrived, Xin Yi'an spoke aloud: "Everyone, three months have passed, and I trust the quasi-disciples of every Primordial sect have grown familiar with this place; your strength has advanced considerably as well, and no few of you stand at the very brink of breakthrough. I congratulate you. Still, you must press on without letup, strive to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage as soon as may be, and not disappoint the hopes of the senior brothers leading your respective sects."
"Yes!" the crowd answered in unison.
"There is one other matter—indeed, it is the chief reason I have called you all here today. After so long, I trust everyone has heard of the Primordial Trial?" Xin Yi'an asked.
Heads nodded on every side. This was no secret; even these quasi-disciples from the mundane world could learn of it from their leading senior brothers or others. The Primordial Trial, after all, was what the disciples of the entire Primordial Alliance awaited most eagerly—it came up every few days, and there was simply no avoiding it.
"Very good. So beginning tomorrow, we shall make preparations for the Primordial Trial," Xin Yi'an announced.
"Preparations? What preparations?" The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. Was this a reminder to hone their strength well before the Trial began?
Word had it that this Primordial Trial was no ordinary affair—to plunge in without sufficient strength was little short of courting death. For the quasi-disciples, of course, the pressing task was to break through to Foundation Establishment; otherwise they did not count as members of the Primordial Alliance at all, and talk of the Trial was nonsense.
"Do not misunderstand me. The preparations I speak of are not your personal preparations, but preparations for all of us. Entering the Primordial Trial requires spirit jade to activate the teleportation formation; that formation has lain sealed for ages, and reopening it demands spirit jade in enormous quantity. If that condition cannot be met, the formation cannot be opened, and everyone's Primordial Trial goes up in smoke." Xin Yi'an explained the situation to them.
"Spirit jade? Where are we supposed to get that?" Now it was not only the quasi-disciples; even the training disciples of the various Primordial sects looked at one another in dismay. They were neither sect elders nor people of deep background—how could they possibly get their hands on such a rare commodity, especially when the quantity required was no small sum?