Demonic Demoness Training Project

Before taking out the loan, he lacked initial capital, making it difficult to make any progress. However, after taking out the loan, his seemingly hopeless situation was completely turned around.

Could this be what people call startup capital?

"One round takes half an hour, earning one spirit stone. There are twelve hours in a day, and if you spend six hours panning for gold, you can do twelve rounds, conservatively estimating twelve spirit stones..."

"No, no, that's not how it works. I'm not very familiar with using the Qi-Gathering Cauldron yet, and I'm still in the exploratory stage. Because I can't control the speed of the Qi well, let me try again. It should take less than half an hour."

Lu Li became more and more excited as he thought about it. He had never seen so much money since he came to this world. His father used to be a low-grade metalworker and worked in a stamping workshop. His monthly salary was less than one spirit stone.

However, Old Duan poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

"I ask you, is your spiritual power limitless?"

"Spiritual power?"

Lu Li could vaguely sense the presence of spiritual energy. After just one round of operation, something was indeed missing from the Qi-Mixing Cauldron. At this rate, he could only run it for one more round before the spiritual energy inside the Qi-Mixing Cauldron would be completely exhausted.

"The Qi-Gathering Cauldron consumes very little spiritual energy, and even mortals can operate it because it contains a first-stage, fourth-type golden spirit core, which contains a small amount of spiritual power. You are still a mortal and cannot supply it with spiritual power."

"So I need to meditate to recover?"

"Exactly."

Lu Li scooped up another round of mixed ore and used the Qi-Mixing Cauldron to separate it. The Qi-Mixing Cauldron was indeed unable to be activated again. His chest heaved up and down and he felt a slight heat. So he poled the boat to the shore, entered the awning, sat cross-legged, and switched the form of the Qi-Mixing Cauldron.

[Aiki Kettle·Zhoutian State]!

After entering the Zhou Tian state, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth flowed into his body in an orderly manner along with his breathing. This spiritual energy circulated once in Lu Li's body and was finally absorbed into the He Qi Cauldron.

Nourished by spiritual energy, Lu Li felt some subtle changes in his barren body. These changes were extremely subtle, and their effects would only become apparent over time. But without a doubt, everything was moving in a positive direction.

It might not be impossible to forge a complete automaton in a month.

Just kidding. In his past life, he learned a course from scratch in one night and took the exam the next day. He built a puppet in a month. This battle was still too extravagant.

After meditating and breathing for three cycles, about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the spiritual energy inside the Aikido was replenished.

Lu Li got up again, poled the small boat, and entered the turbulent river to begin the third and fourth rounds of gold panning.

This cycle repeated itself endlessly, and time quietly slipped by. It seemed like only a short time had passed before the first light of dawn appeared on the eastern horizon.

"It's morning."

Whether it was because he was used to staying up late, or because meditation could really restore his energy, or because he had made too much money in one night and was therefore emotionally excited, Lu Li just couldn't feel sleepy at all—except for an itchy scalp and an abnormal heart rate.

Oh no, is he going to suddenly die?

Chapter 15, 85% complete, a rare find.

Lu Li rubbed his flat chest, which was not beating his heart rate, and wondered if he should take a nap. Logically speaking, he was racing against time right now. He wanted to earn more money to buy all the materials as soon as possible and then refine the Qi-Melting Cauldron.

But reason tells him that if he doesn't go to sleep now, he might die suddenly.

After weighing the two options, Lu Li ultimately chose to continue working himself to the bone. Since it was still dark and he wasn't sleepy, he could get up and continue panning for gold.

He devised a plan for himself: in the mornings he would focus on mining and selling ore, in the afternoons he would catch up on sleep, and at night he would hide and secretly separate miscellaneous ore under the cover of darkness.

At the latest, he must gather two hundred spirit stones within fifteen days, leaving at least ten days to refine the puppet.

As the sun rose high in the sky, Lu Li looked into the distance and saw several people approaching the shore. These people were all dressed in white robes with crescent moon patterns embroidered on their chests, clearly disciples of the White Moon Palace.

"When collecting miscellaneous ores, those with high lead content are given priority."

One of the disciples shouted this at the top of his lungs, and as soon as he finished speaking, the gold panners on the river sprang to life. They rowed their boats to the shore, dragging baskets and sacks filled with various minerals, and rushed forward in a swarm.

The disciple opened one of the sacks, picked up a handful of lead, rubbed it in his hand, sniffed it, then frowned and put it down.

"The quality is so-so. Here's the deal: three coins a pound. Will you sell it or not?"

Upon hearing the offer, the money-grubber's face immediately fell, and he said with a mournful expression:

"Master Dao, this isn't the first time I've done business with you. You should recognize me. My name is Ren Qi. I really can't afford to eat at three copper coins a pound."

“Sell it or leave it. If you don’t want to sell, there are plenty of others who will. I won’t say anything about the low lead content in your bag of mixed ore, but at least 60% of it is sand.”

"This……"

The gold prospector's face darkened further. The other party was a disciple of a sect, and he had already mustered up his courage to haggle.

He pursed his chapped lips as if he wanted to say something, but his voice was weak and was quickly drowned out by the noise of the crowd.

"Master Dao, take a look at mine. It has a high lead content."

“I have some too. I’ve sifted through this three times, specifically to remove the blue lead.”

Because Lu Li chose a remote location for gold panning, he arrived the latest. He stood at the very edge of the crowd. Although these gold panners did not have the same tools as him, they were indeed skilled in order to sell the ore at a higher price.

Even though they are both mixed minerals dredged from the same river, different locations and different washing methods can result in vastly different qualities of the refined minerals that are ultimately retrieved.

Looking at those swarming, bald heads, Lu Li suddenly realized something.

"Why are all these guys bald?"

"It's no wonder that prolonged exposure to lead blue will cause you to go bald. The higher the purity of the lead blue you are exposed to, the more bald you will become."

"Wow, lead poisoning too."

"Not only blue lead, but also void stone and flowing light sand are harmful to mortals, but they are actually not bad for cultivators."

"And they also panned for gold..."

Lu Li choked back the rest of his sentence as he realized he had said something foolish. In both this life and the next, there are far too many professions that involve risking one's life for money.

To take a recent example, the stamping workshop, where he works high-intensity night shifts every day, is a form of physical abuse, and he is destined not to live long in the long run.

As a low-level metal fitter, his father was not like him, who could only use a file to rub small parts in the stamping workshop. Low-level metal fitters had the right to operate the mechanism to carry out stamping operations. However, that year the mechanism went out of control, and his father's waist was sawed off by the blade. After being brought back, he died two days later.

We're all risking our lives for money, we're all going to die, we're all the same.

Thinking of this, Lu Li only regretted that he was too ignorant and could not compose a poem to express his hatred for the rich.

At this moment, Lu Li heard a disciple of the White Moon Palace in the crowd say loudly:

“I’ve examined the mixed ores you three have. The content is acceptable, and they’re all about the same. But right now, I only want to buy thirty catties.”

“Master Yanshi, I’m cheaper than those two. I’m 32 coins a pound.”

“I…I…I’m thirty-one coins.”

"Don't listen to their nonsense. I only need twenty-five. I'm the cheapest. Sir, please take a look at mine."

Wow, there are also scabs.

Lu Li was speechless. He looked at the twenty or so kilograms of blue lead in his small bag and suddenly felt that he had lost his competitiveness in the face of such an extremely low price.

With several gold diggers bidding against each other, the disciples who were buying the lead were already grinning from ear to ear, and the price was finally settled at twenty-two coins per catty.

"Okay, then I'll buy yours."

The disciple nodded slightly and was about to pay when a childish voice suddenly came from behind the crowd.

"Wait, can I take a look at mine?"

The crowd turned to look at the voice and saw a young man dressed in coarse linen clothes. He was thin and not very tall. He stood at the back of the crowd, and people could only notice him when he raised his hand.

"Hey, I recognize him, he's the kid who rented the boat yesterday."

"How old is he? He probably doesn't even know all the types of spirit ore. What right do you have to speak? Go away, Master Yanshi's time is very precious."

"This kid probably scooped up a sack of sand and came here to fill it with mixed ore."

The White Moon Palace disciple standing in the center of the crowd was getting impatient. Lu Li squeezed through the crowd, handed the sack to the other party, and opened the drawstring. Immediately, a greenish-blue treasure light appeared.

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and suddenly felt an itch on their scalp.

"This isn't mixed ore, it's lead oxide, extremely pure lead oxide!"

"How is this possible? How could he possibly obtain lead blue with such high purity?"

The White Moon Palace disciple was taken aback at first, then carefully picked up a strand of blue lead and gently sniffed it.

Previously, Lu Li hadn't been able to see clearly from a distance, but now that he was closer, he discovered the disciple's extraordinary feature: the tip of his nose was cone-shaped, with a small hole at the bottom.

As the lead was sucked into the small hole, the disciple groaned, his head jerked back, his eyes rolled upwards, and he fell backwards. Fortunately, his companions behind him caught him, preventing him from falling to the ground.

Lu Li took the opportunity to examine the other person's nose, guessing that the person's respiratory tract should also have been modified to have the ability to analyze spirit ore. With just one sip, he could know the composition, which was quite convenient.

The art of prying is indeed profound and extensive!

Heh heh, this person seems to be a puppet of the same type as myself.

I don't know if the other party's nose is lethal, or how it compares to my own Aikido.

While Lu Li was pondering, the disciple had recovered. He looked at Lu Li's sack with burning eyes and exclaimed in admiration:

"Hmm—pure! This is potent, 85% pure, a rare find!"

Chapter 16 From Gold Prospector to Shopkeeper

"Eighty-five percent!"

A gasp rippled through the crowd as dozens of eyes turned to Lu Li, their gazes burning with desire, like an old bachelor eyeing a rare beauty.

Having panned for gold in the Liubao River for decades, they had never heard of such high-purity lead.

"How is this possible? How did this kid do it?"

"Did they find some special salvage location? Or did they master some gold panning technique that they didn't know about?"

“I heard him say that he used to do this kind of work with his father. Could he be that man’s son?”

The crowd was abuzz with discussion. They couldn't help but recall a legendary tale from the Liubao River. When they came to their senses, they looked at Lu Li with different eyes, some with suspicion, some with envy, and some with greed.

Upon seeing this, Lu Li's heart skipped a beat. He thought that the purity of the spirit ore was already very low at 85%. If he used the combined gas kettle for a second round of differential centrifugation, he was confident that he could bring the purity closer to 90% or more.

In his view, being too conspicuous was not a good thing, but he had no choice but to do so. If he were to sell miscellaneous minerals or their crudely processed products like other gold prospectors, he would not be able to collect two hundred spirit stones in a short period of time.

After a brief discussion, the leader of the White Moon Palace disciples stepped forward and asked:

"Kid, where did you get this blue lead?"

“My father drew it on the river map for me. There are several sedimentation points at the bottom of the Liubao River. The environment there is special, and lead will naturally settle there.”

Lu Li said this, and he had already mentioned his non-existent gold-digging expert father to everyone yesterday.

In the next few days, he would definitely sell spirit ore, and this excuse would also attract the covetousness of others, but he would rather accept the former than directly expose the existence of the Qi-Mixing Cauldron.

“I’ll offer you a price of one tael of silver and two and a half spirit stones per unit. We’ll take all of these ores. If there’s any blue lead left, keep it. We’ll come back to collect it in a couple of days.”

Lu Li was not surprised by the price. The 85% purity lead, without the need for refining, could be used directly for refining weapons. There was no need to rent refining tools from the sect, which would save a lot of money.

"it is good."

Lu Li nodded in agreement. And so, under the watchful eyes of everyone, Lu Li accepted the spirit stones handed to him by his disciples, held them to his chest, feeling the warmth of the spirit stones and the pounding of his own heart.

At the same time, the greed in the eyes of the people around him intensified, and Lu Li dared not linger, so he hurriedly left the scene.

Lu Li boarded his small boat and was about to leave when several other people rowed over, their faces full of flattery. Some of them were familiar faces he had met at the ferry yesterday.

"What's your name, bro? How about we team up?"

"Are you selling your gold mining spot? You must know of other spots, right?"

Lu Li didn't want to deal with these people, but he couldn't resist their numbers. He wasn't very skilled at rowing boats either. After a struggle, the ten people in three or five boats blocked him on the shore.

The crowd acted as if they wouldn't let Lu Li leave until he told them the tricks and the best spots, even more frantic than the fishermen of their past lives.

Lu Li had anticipated this situation.

He was able to quickly locate the slag deposits using the combined gas kettle. The Liubao River had been sedimented for decades or even centuries, and there were countless hidden deposits there; he certainly couldn't collect them all by himself.

Therefore, he had already had ideas about selling locations.

Firstly, he could earn more money by making full use of the means of production, transforming himself from a simple worker into a manager who directs gold miners.

Secondly, by eating the meat and leaving some soup for others, the others can obtain more spirit ore, which will also distract the sect disciples in the following days.

"You may call me Duan Li. If you want to buy, that's fine. It's one tael of silver per point."

"Brother, this isn't right. It's not easy for any of us to get out here."

"Yes, give me a discount. Why don't you come to my boat for a get-together, brother? I have two jars of wine on board. Let's make friends."

"No need for that. One tael of silver, and I guarantee you won't be disappointed with the income. But let me make this clear first: Father only left me a few spots, so from now on, it will definitely be the highest bidder who gets them."