Qin Ruqing giggled and suddenly became excited, “Alright, it’s unanimous! Let’s get to work and empty out these places, or we’ll lose!”

“Forward!”

The clown-faced flying boat chugged forward.

Their second destination was a mine.

This was also opened with the jade key and was an area enclosed by the Celestial Bureau.

Qin Ruqing and the others didn’t know much about rare minerals, so they let Tang Zifeng, the expert, identify them.

After inspecting, Tang Zifeng said seriously, “This is Red Flame Spirit Crystal. It’s a very precious fire-attribute mineral, a high-grade crafting material that can be used as a base, an energy source, or fuel…”

Qin Ruqing nodded, “Brother Tang, don’t let your hands shake, I know you’re excited. But let’s be clear, anything related to crafting, we’ll take a portion and the rest is yours. Whether you share it with the Tang family is up to you.”

So, the four of them started digging with their hoes.

The hoes were provided by Tang Zifeng.

Qin Ruqing had also brought her own.

Anyone who plays farming games knows you need to bring an axe, hoe, fishing rod, and sword when you go out.

You can’t worry about taking up inventory space because if you have them, you’re prepared.

If you don’t, you’ll need them right away.

However, Qin Ruqing’s mistake was that she brought ordinary hoes, which couldn’t break the coating on the high-grade minerals, even with added spiritual power.

So, she had to give up on her hoes.

After they dug out all the mine’s minerals, they turned to go to the third place.

But then there was a problem.

The jade key suddenly stopped working.

They could detect spatial fluctuations but couldn’t open the door.

Qin Ruqing knocked on the jade, asking Tang Zifeng, “What’s wrong with it? Is it broken?”

Tang Zifeng took the jade, inspected it, and shook his head, “It’s not broken.”

He looked at the invisible space ahead and said seriously, “The corresponding imprint source has been cut off.”

Qin Ruqing understood, “Oh, it’s like they cut the power.”

“Stingy, they opened only two doors and then locked the rest.”

“Fifth Sister, it won’t open. What do we do now?” Qirong was really getting into the mining.

Qin Ruqing said…

The main gates were tightly shut, so what could they do?

They couldn’t just go smashing the doors.

That would be too extreme.

Considering there wasn’t much time left in the Secret Realm, they needed to enhance their strength and recuperate first before strategizing.

During this time, Luwei refined the Heart of Earthfire, Qirong strengthened his body, and Tang Zifeng discussed with Qin Ruqing about her life-bound artifact.

Qin Ruqing said without hesitation, “I have Thunder Spirit Fire and Light Dust. Let me know what else you need.”

Tang Zifeng glanced at her and didn’t ask where she got the materials.

He just nodded, “The vein we found this time will work. Red Flame Spirit Crystal is a top-tier fire-attribute mineral that matches your attributes and is an excellent base material. With this, you have the main materials for your life-bound artifact. I can find the auxiliary materials myself.”

Qin Ruqing nodded eagerly, “I’m counting on you.”

Tang Zifeng smiled for some reason and asked, “What shape do you want the artifact to be? I know the attributes: critical hit and speed.”

Without hesitation, Qin Ruqing said, “Lotus-shaped! Maybe like a lotus lamp or a hand-held lotus. It would be great if it could change sizes!”

Her innate flame was lotus-shaped, and her Dao Physique was also called Blue Lily Lotus.

Qin Ruqing had grown increasingly fond of the lotus.

If her artifact could also be lotus-shaped, it would complete the set. It felt perfect!

Tang Zifeng, understanding her reasoning, smiled and said, “Alright.”

Then Tang Zifeng started drafting the design for Qin Ruqing’s artifact.

Meanwhile, besides cultivating, Qin Ruqing was also figuring out how to secure the benefits they had gained.

Sitting cross-legged, she seemed to write in the air, though no marks were visible. Only the faint glow at her fingertips suggested she was indeed writing something.

After finishing, Qin Ruqing formed a seal to confirm and then opened her palm, as if something had landed on it.

Folding the invisible item, she mused, “I wonder if this independent space can send out a wordless secret message. There might be a delay, but no matter how long, once I leave the secret realm, the signal will connect, and the message will be sent instantly. There should be enough time.”

“To avoid any mishaps, I won’t write the whole message. Just need to tell the ancestor to prepare the family decree. The ancestor has always worked well with me, and although she might worry, I can explain later. To be safe, I’ll keep the message vague.”

“Now that I have a plan, it’s time to leave…” Qin Ruqing sighed but felt calm.

Tang Zifeng looked over, and Luwei opened her eyes.

Qirong wiped the sweat from his forehead and stood straight.

Qin Ruqing turned to Lu Wei first, “Third Sister, how’s the refining going?”

Luwei smiled silently and opened her palm to reveal a cluster of orange-red flames, the very earthfire that nearly blew Qin Ruqing to bits in the Earthfire Pool.

Lu Wei said, “The Clear Frost Spirit Flower worked well. I used the protective vein pill made from it and refined the earthfire…”

Through a period of intense training, Lu Wei advanced to the seventh level of Qi Refining, Qi Rong to the ninth level, and Tang Zifeng also to the ninth level.

Lu Wei specialized in alchemy with dual fire and wood spiritual roots, which was quite impressive.

Qi Rong asked Qin Ruqing, “Sister, should we break the jade token and leave now?”

Qin Ruqing smiled, “No, we need to find someone first.”

Lin Yijun was startled to see this group suddenly appear in front of her. “You! What are you doing here again?” she stammered.

After losing the valuable Xuanxin Liquid, Lin Yijun’s team had been searching the secret realm for resources.

She had already informed her family about the situation, but since the floating island was isolated, there would be a delay in communication.

The family probably hadn’t received the news yet.

Lin Yijun planned to gather enough resources to report back.

The rare treasures from the floating island had been decreasing in recent years, making it harder to find valuable items as time went on.

She was only delayed by two days when she encountered this troublesome group.

She felt incredibly unlucky.

Lin Yijun almost dropped her whip in fear and jumped back ten meters.

Her family quickly surrounded her.

Qin Ruqing clicked her tongue and said kindly, “Fairy Yijun, why are you so nervous?”

Lin Yijun thought they were here to silence her and stammered, “Elder Qin, those rumors weren’t spread by me. People only suspected you because you weren’t there at the time. It has nothing to do with me!”

Qin Ruqing nodded, “Yes, I know. You even spoke up for us.”

Lin Yijun was confused, “So, why are you here?”

Qin Ruqing replied, “We don’t want to leave the secret realm alone. We thought we’d accompany you out.”

Lin Yijun was baffled, “What?”

She thought Qin Ruqing must have gone mad from cultivation.

If they wanted to leave, they could just break the jade token themselves.

Why involve her?

After a few days, Lin Yijun realized Qin Ruqing really wasn’t there to harm her.

She was just following them.

Additionally, for some reason, the family teams hadn’t found many treasures this year.

Lin Yijun had to admit it was partly her fault because she had taken most of their resources with her demon-slaying array.

With weakened strength and few resources left, the family teams began thinking about leaving the secret realm.

Someone suggested leaving together, and the teams gathered as one.

Lin Yijun, stuck in the middle of the group, couldn’t understand why Qin Ruqing was following her.

But there was no need to think about it anymore.

It was indeed time to go.

Lin Yijun thought mischievously, Fine, keep following me.

My mother and the others might already be waiting for me outside the floating island.

When they see you, they can capture you!

Lin Yijun guessed the beginning but not the end.

Indeed, her mother received the message and waited outside the floating island, but they didn’t capture the Qin family’s “little monster” as Lin Yijun had hoped.

Instead, they politely greeted the Qin Ruqing as an equal and then said, “Elder Qin, would you like to visit our Lin family?”

The Qin Ruqing smiled cheerfully and politely replied, “I’ve long heard of the Lin family’s great reputation, but I have pressing matters to discuss with the Celestial Bureau after leaving the floating island. I will visit another day.”

Matters to discuss with the Celestial Bureau! Lin Yan and the rest of the Lin family felt a stir of emotions.

It was clear that the Qin family had the support of the Celestial Bureau, and the issue of the Mysterious Heart Liquid would need careful consideration.

The Scribe (Recorder), who was observing the scene outside the floating island through a water mirror, pulled at his beard and exclaimed to Fifth Lingyu in surprise:

“What kind of audacity does she have to dare to use the name of the Celestial Bureau?”

The scribe was truly bewildered.

Have the young people nowadays become so bold?

Fifth Lingyu lounged on his reclining chair, laughing uncontrollably at the sight of the crowded scene in the water mirror.

“Didn’t you see? She just dares!”

The little mouse snuck into the secret realm, filled her belly, and now openly brought a group of people out with her.

Her audacity indeed reached the heavens.

The scribe frowned, “So how do we capture her now?”

Fifth Lingyu glanced at him, “Who said we need to capture her? On what grounds would you do so? Do you want to announce to the world that the Celestial Bureau meddled inside the floating island?”

“Don’t worry,” Fifth Lingyu smiled faintly, “The little mouse, having eaten her fill, will come to confess herself.”

“After all, she still wants to take the leftovers back home.”