"In the Xuan Jade Cave, aside from the cold aura, there are some things you must be mindful of. For instance, the millennium-old Xuan Jade here may seem easy to extract, but in reality, each piece has been refined together with the entire vein by some ancient cultivator using unknown powerful techniques. Over the years, the cold aura in the cave has further unified them. Even the sharpest treasures cannot remove them. Otherwise, why would our palace leave so much Xuan Jade here unused? If we could extract all of it and refine it into magic treasures, our palace's power would rival the Taiyi Sect and the Tianmo Sect overnight," the middle-aged man in green robes said with a hint of regret.
"These Xuan Jade can't be removed!" The old woman frowned, showing disbelief.
"Madam Long, if you have doubts, feel free to try. You'll see that Brother Ouyang speaks the truth," said the Venerable Han Li with a smile.
"Oh, really? I'd like to test this," the old woman, her hair trembling, suddenly raised her staff and pointed at a large Xuan Jade the size of a soybean on a pile of rocks.
A yellow light shot from the tip of her staff, striking the Xuan Jade in a flash.
With a dull thud, the Xuan Jade gleamed and remained unscathed.
The old woman's expression changed slightly but then grew serious. A layer of fierce aura appeared on her face. She flicked her sleeve, and a quaint green hammer appeared in her hand.
With a slight shake, she tossed the hammer, which turned into a green lightning bolt.
With a loud explosion, the green lightning struck the Xuan Jade and shattered, the Xuan Jade glowing before disintegrating into a white powder and dispersing in the wind.
The old woman stood stunned.
"Madam Long, don't be surprised. Using even more powerful treasures would only destroy the Xuan Jade, not extract it intact," the Venerable Han Li laughed.
The old woman looked displeased but remained silent.
The gray-robed monk spoke suddenly:
"Brother Han Li, if that's the case, there wouldn't be much Xuan Jade in your palace. Yet, you've been so generous to us. I'm a bit puzzled."
"Haha, Master Mojiu, you misunderstand. Although we can't harvest large quantities of Xuan Jade from the cave, we do have methods to extract small amounts. Junior Sister Bai, please show them," Han Li laughed, nodding to Bai Mengxin.
The white-clad woman nodded and pulled out a small white bottle from her storage bag.
Under everyone's gaze, Bai Mengxin approached the rock pile, opened the bottle, and used her spiritual power to extract a drop of pitch-black liquid.
This liquid, emitting a faint gray aura, floated towards another Xuan Jade in the rock pile.
Han Li's normally calm face changed upon seeing this liquid, though he quickly regained his composure. However, the shock in his eyes was hard to conceal.
The others were focused on the scene and didn't notice Han Li's reaction.
The liquid drop touched the Xuan Jade and disappeared like mud in water.
Instantly, the Xuan Jade was covered in a layer of gray aura, then emitted a crisp sound, and fell from the rock, caught by Bai Mengxin.
The old woman and the monk looked astonished, and Han Li's eyes showed a hint of surprise.
The Venerable Han Li laughed and explained:
"Our sect's founder left behind a treasure that gathers Earth Yin spirit energy, forming a drop of Yin Spirit Water every ten years, which can dissolve stones and metals. Only with this water can we safely extract Xuan Jade from the cave. Therefore, our palace opens the Xuan Jade Cave only once every thousand years, each time extracting only a small amount."
