"It's okay, but I lost a lot of ore fragments during the mining process; I'd say I barely managed to dig it out."
Uncle Tie Hu nodded slightly. "There are still a few hours left before dark. It's your first day, so just persist as long as you can. Don't worry about achieving a perfect mining result."
According to Uncle Tie Hu, a high level of mining skill was judged by the time taken and whether the mined ores were damaged. The best outcome was, naturally, zero damage—a perfect mining result. However, this kind of perfection only existed in an ideal situation. Every strike with the pickaxe inevitably hit some corners and chipped off some fragments.
Wang Mu rested for a moment, wiping a few beads of sweat from his forehead. After that initial experience, he directly used his Action Points.
Holding the pickaxe again, he felt a difference.
He took a deep breath, found a head-sized piece of Iron Crystal Ore, and the iron pickaxe in his hand began to operate like a precise machine.
CLANG, CLANG, CLANG...
A crisp, melodic striking sound arose.
"Huh..." Uncle Tie Hu, who was nearby, took a sip of water and looked over, then froze. No way? He just mined once, and he's already applied all the techniques I mentioned? Such high talent?
By this time, each of Wang Mu's strikes seemed calculated. The Iron Crystal Ore was buried deeper and was larger than the previous one. Yet, it was completely exposed in less than one hour, with barely any damage to its edges or corners.
A near-perfect mining job... Uncle Tie Hu was stunned. Such rapid growth? It took me a full three years to reach this level when I mined Iron Crystal Ore back then... This... this... he achieved this level after just one try?
And afterwards, Wang Mu maintained the same speed and quality, quickly mining one piece of Iron Crystal Ore after another. Each piece almost retained its original shape as it was buried in the ground! Every extraction was perfect, continuing until the sun set.
Wang Mu took a look at the proficiency of his Mining skill.
[Mining (2)]
It increased faster than Chopping and Fishing had before. With the same Action Point, and lasting only half a day, why did Mining increase so quickly?
Wang Mu pondered. It must be... because all my attributes and abilities have also improved, right? Thus affecting everything. With the same Action Point, the skill proficiency gained is now much higher than before. This rate of improvement, I guess, will only start to slow down when I reach certain extreme limits and bottlenecks.
"It's night. Let's go back," Uncle Tie Hu said. He then fell silent for a moment, looking at Wang Mu with a somewhat dejected gaze. He was beginning to understand why his younger brother, Tie Niu, would always let out inexplicable sighs when he returned home half a year ago. Damn, this kid's talent is off the charts! He got it in one lesson!
At this moment, Wang Mu, drenched in sweat, was a bit excited. He felt greatly improved.
Carrying a bamboo basket full of ore, Wang Mu returned to the village. He first drew several buckets of well water to wash himself off, then had a hearty meal. Taking advantage of the pleasant moonlight, he did a little fishing in Yunlai Creek for relaxation.
When the moon was high, Wang Mu, carrying a few fish, returned to his wooden hut. His body was quite exhausted, but he could feel the changes within.
When he woke up the next day, there was hardly any soreness or weakness. Instead, his breath was even and continuous, and he was still full of vitality.
Eating well helps. Those fish all contained Spiritual Energy. Even though I can't cultivate, my body has been nurtured by it. Combined with a year of exercise, it's far from an ordinary person's body now.
If a regular person mined like he did for one day, without strong recovery abilities, they would probably struggle to even get up the next day. Yet, Wang Mu's body had already undergone changes.
He still had some Action Points left today, and Wang Mu planned to use them right away to enjoy the benefits earlier and also to mine more high-quality ores sooner.
Uncle Tie Hu wasn't in the best of spirits today, but his eyes held a bit more anticipation. "Today, I'll tell you about some special Mortal Ores," he began.
"First is Mystic Iron Ore, a relatively rare ore. This kind of ore is a favorite among those outsiders. For them, these ores can be used to forge Divine Weapons."
"Among Mortal Ores, there are even more special ones, such as Outer Heaven Meteorite Iron, though we don't have that here."
"Mystic Iron Ore has an extremely heavy rebound force. However, it also requires tremendous strength to mine; otherwise, it's very difficult to break it from the earth. Therefore, it demands a very strong physique."
"Purple Crystal Ore is an internally unstable ore. It's easily shattered and requires careful use of one's own strength when mining, placing high demands on one's Control Power over their physique."
"Magic Magnetic Ore is a type of ore that emits special spiritual power. You've been fishing for half a year, and your skill has reached Old Man Yu's level. This ore shouldn't be difficult for you."
"Blood Jade Ore—this is an ore you must pay close attention to. Whether it's a Mortal Ore or a Spiritual Ore, if it has 'blood' in its name, it will usually drain a person's physique significantly! It demands very high Control Power over one's own physique!"
"Don't underestimate these special Mortal Ores. They often have unique uses and serve as auxiliary materials for Immortal Sect disciples when crafting tools. They are equally indispensable."
Uncle Tie Hu spoke very patiently. The majority of ores placed different demands on one's physique. It wasn't just about being strong; one also needed strong Control Power, among other things.
After Uncle Tie Hu finished speaking, he just watched from the side. He hadn't slept well after returning home yesterday. He felt as if his own talents were being crushed, experiencing an indescribable sense of decline, and then he had been mocked by his younger brother, Tie Niu...
Today, he gathered his spirits and continued to observe, wanting to see if yesterday's Wang Mu was just a flash in the pan...
And then...
Then he saw Wang Mu begin to excavate one special ore after another.
The whole process doesn't look human; he's like one of those Puppets created by Immortal Masters, perfectly extracting each ore. No, he's even more terrifying than those Puppet machines. Even they can't perfectly extract every single ore without making mistakes. But Wang Mu makes none.
By the end of the day, he had mined several pieces of Mystic Iron Ore. He hadn't encountered the other types, which was a bit regrettable.
Uncle Tie Hu watched the setting sun in the distance. It took me a year to mine my first piece of Mystic Iron Ore, and a full five years after that to perfectly extract one... A sense of his own twilight years unexpectedly rose in his heart. I'm getting old.
And so, things continued this way for Wang Mu.
「One and a half months later.」
One night, Wang Mu lay on his wooden bed, performing his usual daily perception:
I've been mining every day; my physique should be much stronger than before. Too bad the village is so peaceful, with no Travel events to trigger. I've had the Pocket World Mine location unlocked for so long, but no Travel events have occurred. What a pity. Travel events can trigger special plots, yield good things, or lead to meeting new characters.
[Action Points: 1]
[Cultivation: Chopping(15), Fishing(13), Mining(6)]
[Travel: (!)]
Wang Mu immediately sat up. "There's a Travel event!"
Without hesitation, he used his Action Points to perceive.
[Travel: Pocket World Mine (Night)]