Of the three high-grade spirit springs, Yang Kai claimed one, the Eight Directions Sect occupied another, and the third was held jointly by cultivators from the two sects.
The fifteen medium-grade spirit springs were also swarming with people.
The few Eight Directions Sect disciples there didn't actually have the strength to secure a high-grade spirit spring on their own, but everyone was wary of the fierce Luo Yuan. Thus, no one dared to provoke the Eight Directions Sect. Who knew when Luo Yuan would return? If they ran into him, given that he had beaten and driven off the two great protectors, Gaoshan and Liushui, no one could stand against him.
At the high-grade spirit spring where Yang Kai was, after he and Hua Qingsi collected a batch of source crystals for a while, his expression suddenly shifted. He instructed Hua Qingsi, "I'm going down to take a look."
Source crystals couldn't just erupt from below without reason. Yang Kai estimated there must be some secret beneath this spirit spring and was very eager to explore it. Now that his Golden Blood Thread net was spread above the spring to block the flying crystals, and Hua Qingsi only needed to collect them when their momentum slowed, he didn't need to remain here.
Moreover, Liu Yan was also here. If some blind fool dared try to seize the spring, the two of them could handle it easily.
"Be careful!" Hua Qingsi didn't try to stop him upon hearing this, only offering a grave reminder.
Yang Kai nodded, his figure flickering as he plunged downward once more.
Just like before, the moment he entered the spirit spring, a tremendous repulsive force surged up from below, as if trying to push him back up. Mixed within it were countless source crystals whistling through the air, crackling against his body.
His entire body ached, but he endured, circulating his Source Power and activating his Space Secret Art. Only then did he feel some relief.
He continued sinking downward. The deeper he went, the greater the resistance became, and the density and concentration of the surrounding spiritual energy grew thicker.
Yang Kai reached out and took out the Mysterious Boundary Bead. He opened a spatial rift within this Emperor Treasure, held the bead before him, and let the surging spiritual energy and the source crystals mixed within pour into the Small Mysterious World.
He had no idea how far he sank. His surroundings were a hazy white, visibility reduced to nothing. Even with his Divine Sense extended, he could only perceive about thirty meters around him; anything further was blocked by the boundless spiritual energy.
At a certain moment, Yang Kai's figure suddenly halted, his feet finding solid ground.
This must be the bottom. He stood still for a moment, silently sensing. He could clearly feel the powerful currents surging below. Furthermore, the space down here wasn't the cramped area he'd imagined; it was vast beyond measure.
He stood with a strange expression for a while in thought before extending his Divine Sense, cautiously exploring his surroundings.
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh* – chunks of source crystals, mixed with the surrounding spiritual energy and carried by the surging currents, continuously shot upward.
Yang Kai focused his vision, piercing the obstruction around him to trace the direction from which the crystals were coming, and strode toward it.
Along the way, the Mysterious Boundary Bead continuously devoured the spiritual energy and source crystals in this place, its gains unimaginable.
Before long, he suddenly stopped, his gaze narrowing as he fixed his attention ahead.
In that hazy world filled with liquefied spiritual energy, a colossal silhouette seemed to loom before him. Despite the distance, Yang Kai could still make out its blurred outline.
This colossal object bore no trace of life, and its true nature was unknown. However, all the source crystals were flying out from that direction.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment, then stepped forward.
Soon, he arrived before the dark mass. Getting closer, he finally saw clearly what it was.
For an instant, Yang Kai froze on the spot, utterly speechless.
A long while passed before he burst into hearty, unrestrained laughter.
He discovered that the colossal object blocking his path was, without a doubt, a massive Source Crystal Mine. Fist-sized chunks of source crystals were breaking away from this mine, then, following the direction of the spiritual energy currents, splitting into eighteen streams and shooting upward.
The source crystals the cultivators above were collecting were clearly fragments that had broken off from this enormous mine.
The mine itself gleamed brightly, without a speck of impurity, its quality pristine. Such a huge and pure source crystal mine was probably impossible to find a second one like in the entire Star Boundary, something that only existed in the primordial ages.
Silently sensing the eighteen hidden streams of spiritual energy flowing upward from the mine, Yang Kai fell into thought.
"Eighteen spirit springs... are actually all connected? If that's the case, then if I take this mine away, the people up there..."
He frowned, thinking for a while, before his growing excitement became increasingly difficult to contain. His vast Divine Sense, like a flood dragon emerging from the sea, surged out from his consciousness sea. It transformed into an invisible force that enveloped the mine.
The next instant, Yang Kai's expression changed, his cheeks paling instantly. Beads of sweat, large as soybeans, rolled down his forehead, and his entire body began to tremble.
He had still underestimated the volume of this mine. With his current strength of Divine Sense, he could only barely envelop it, but was utterly unable to pull it into the Mysterious Boundary Bead.
The Mysterious Boundary Bead was a world unto itself. While it could take in anything, even living people, doing so required Yang Kai to expend his Divine Sense power. The amount required varied depending on the object's volume, the density of its spiritual energy, and the degree of its resistance.
Just like when Yang Kai had first taken his Dharma Body into the Mysterious Boundary Bead. Although the Dharma Body hadn't resisted him then and had even cooperated, its sheer size had still caused Yang Kai to instantly become drained.
The mine before him followed the same principle. Its volume was undoubtedly many times smaller than when the Dharma Body had first formed, but it was a Source Crystal Mine, its energy impossibly vast. To take in such an existence, Yang Kai estimated that if he forced it, his consciousness sea might suffer damage.
This thought flashed through his mind, and his focus shifted. He sent a mental message to his Dharma Body, which was inside the Mysterious Boundary Bead.