58 The Stone Man Trade Moves the Heart, Connecting Two Blessed Lands

The True Yuan Sea in the empty aperture churned, creating massive waves with dazzling golden brilliance, illuminating the surrounding crystalline membrane.

The surface of the golden sea continued to rise until it occupied ninety percent of the empty aperture, at which point it finally stopped.

Ninety percent!

After Qi Tian continuously used two Rebirth Worms, his aptitude reached ninety percent again.

The transaction with the Crane Sect was successful. Qi Tian sold the entire body of the Mire Crab and acquired much of what he desired, especially the Jiuyou Nether Spring.

"He Fengyang is still persistently asking me to engage in the Courage Soul Worm trade, but now is not the right time. I can only engage in the Stone Man trade; the enormous benefits from this will surely make him interested," Qi Tian thought to himself.

In a Blessed Land, if there are enough Stone Men, a Gu Immortal can dig underground and mine a vast amount of resources. Metals, gemstones, ores, Gu insects, and underground creatures would flow in endlessly.

On the market, Stone Man slaves are in high demand.

Qi Tian quickly expanded the Stone Man tribe using Courage Soul Worms. The few hundred Stone Men he had left previously grew to tens of thousands in just a few days.

This was largely due to the large number of fox packs and crab swarms that perished during the natural disaster, leaving behind many souls which formed Courage Stones.

As long as the Stone Men continue to grow their souls, more Stone Men will emerge, and the high efficiency of the Courage Soul Worm in strengthening souls was the key factor in the rapid expansion of the Stone Man tribe.

Other Gu Immortals could use Soul Path insects to grow souls for the Stone Men, but the cost would be too high!

Soul Path insects were far more valuable than a single Stone Man.

Only Qi Tian, who controlled the Soul-Dispersing Mountain, could afford to cultivate Stone Men on such a large scale.

---

"Not selling Courage Stones, but selling Stone Men?" Crane Fengyang looked at the letter in his hand with a gloomy expression.

In the Fox Immortal Blessed Land, the Courage Soul Worm from the Soul-Dispersing Mountain was exactly what the Crane Sect needed. Once the Courage Soul Worm increases the soul foundation, the entire Crane Sect's disciples would become three times stronger.

And since Courage Stones cannot leave the Soul-Dispersing Mountain, they can only be mined on-site, which would allow Crane Sect disciples to enter and exit the Fox Immortal Blessed Land. Over time, when Qi Tian's vigilance weakens, the Crane Sect could secretly make their move more easily.

But Qi Tian refused to sell Courage Stones, which made Crane Fengyang grit his teeth in frustration.

Here was a proud Gu Immortal who had been humiliated by a mere mortal. Despite his battle prowess, he could do nothing.

It hadn't been long since the last transaction, but Qi Tian had already cultivated a large batch of strong, young Stone Men.

Though Crane Fengyang was angered by Qi Tian's preference for using Courage Soul Worms to cultivate Stone Men instead of letting the Crane Sect train disciples, the sheer number of Stone Men was enough to tempt even him.

The price Qi Tian quoted in the letter also tempted Crane Fengyang. Even if the Crane Sect didn't use them, reselling the Stone Men would still be a big profit.

Moreover, Crane Fengyang had been under immense pressure from the sect due to the lack of results from the Fox Immortal Blessed Land's affairs. If the Stone Man trade succeeded, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

So, despite knowing it was a trap, he had no choice but to agree.

---

Qi Tian lay on a fox-skin lounge chair, looking at the response letter from the Crane Sect.

In the letter, Crane Fengyang not only agreed to the trade but also explicitly proposed trading the Courage Soul Worm. To facilitate the trade, he was willing to sell the Relic Soul Insect. He even offered to personally assist in helping Qi Tian overcome the seventh natural disaster.

Qi Tian sneered at this offer. He would never allow a wolf into his home.

As for the resources Qi Tian sought in the trade:

The Egg Spring Worm, Jiuyou Nether Spring, and other resources had been reduced in quantity, but Qi Tian had still secured them.

The Purple Crystal Relic Soul Insect was rejected, as Crane Fengyang insisted that Qi Tian agree to the trade of the Courage Soul Worm first.

Qi Tian wasn't disappointed by the rejection of the Purple Crystal Relic Soul Insect. He had already reached the peak of the Fourth Transformation and didn't need it for now.

As for the Heaven-reaching Worm and Divine Thought Worm, Qi Tian hadn't even mentioned them. After all, Crane Fengyang wouldn't agree. If Qi Tian had the Heaven-reaching Worm, how could the Crane Sect control him?

The Stone Man trade, for Qi Tian, was secondary to obtaining resources. The main purpose was to alleviate the pressure on Crane Fengyang, giving him time to expand the Fox Immortal Blessed Land. Qi Tian also needed to maintain a fragile relationship with the Crane Sect in order to stabilize the current situation.

With the Crane Sect as an ally, other forces wouldn't be able to interfere.

He glanced at the letter again. At the end, Crane Fengyang had set a meeting time and asked Qi Tian to open the portal to send the Ground Worms over.

This was a massive trade, but due to the enchantment in the Cave Land, these Stone Men could not leave the Blessed Land's portal directly.

Thus, the Ground Worms were needed.

The Ground Worms were at the Fifth Transformation level, consisting of both parent and child worms. They created a cosmic pathway between two Blessed Lands.

"This is exactly what I need. With this excuse, I can refine two pairs of Ground Worms," Qi Tian thought.

A Ground Worm would be needed to connect the Night Soul Blessed Land and the Fox Immortal Blessed Land, but Qi Tian had not mentioned the material needed for the Ground Worms before, as he didn't want Crane Fengyang to suspect his true intentions.

---

Half a day later, Crane Fengyang received Qi Tian's reply. He opened it and found a long list of Gu worms and materials.

"Oh? He's worried that I might tamper with the Ground Worms, so he wants to refine them himself?" Crane Fengyang sneered, "How could a mortal like him know the secret formula for the Ground Worms!"

"Hmm? It really is the secret formula for the Ground Worms!" Crane Fengyang's expression changed as he recognized the formula. "Could it be true that he has a Gu Immortal backing him?"

The secret formula for Ground Worms was very common, but it was usually only known between Gu Immortals, as it required the power of a Blessed Land and could only be used within it.

Since Qi Tian had already made it clear, Crane Fengyang had no choice but to agree.

In his dealings with Qi Tian, he had learned that Qi Tian was very cautious, and he had never placed much hope in this plan.

---

The Fox Immortal Blessed Land, in the vast western grasslands.

Qi Tian planted two Ground Worms and instructed a batch of fox groups to guard them.

One of the Ground Worms was used to connect to the Crane Sect for the Stone Man trade, and the other was connected to the Night Soul Blessed Land. Its child worm had already been sent to the Night Soul Blessed Land via the Cup and Exchange Worm.

Soon after, with the encouragement of the Stone Men's leadership and the Earth Spirit's help, tens of thousands of Stone Men jumped into the Ground Worms and were sent to both the Crane Sect and the Night Soul Blessed Land.

After this was completed, Qi Tian also made his way to the Night Soul Blessed Land.

With the Ground Worms in place, Qi Tian could freely travel between the two Blessed Lands.

Upon arrival in the Night Soul Blessed Land, Qi Tian settled the Stone Man tribe in the western Fire Coal Stone District.

The western area, with its volcanic lake geysers, had a vast amount of metal and mineral resources close to the earth's surface, making it a perfect location for mining.

This was the main reason Qi Tian sent the Stone Men here.

Then, Qi Tian moved on to the Nine Nether Lake at the center of the Blessed Land.

After so much delay, it was time to heal the Nine Nether Ghost Lotus.