Considering that Zhou Yueshan was a member of the punishment team and had been in the Sun Sect Mine for many years, he was likely to have unexpected trump cards or life-saving methods. Because of this,Su Zhan knew better than to be overconfident.
"I need to be prepared."
"First, the Clones will keep mining to quickly gather low-grade spirit stones. With enough spirit stones, I can upgrade the Black Mark to a higher level, create more Clones, and further improve my protection and profits."
"Second, I must find my positioning stone and remove it without anyone noticing."
With his current strength, Su Zhan could leave the mine anytime he wished.
Even if fourth-levels of pursuit were mobilized, he was certain he could escape.
However, as long as his positioning stone remained in the mine, it was a constant threat. Worse still, if he killed a member of the punishment team, an entire Fourth-Level squad would immediately be dispatched to hunt him down.
If luck turned against him…
They might even send a Fifth or Sixth-Level powerhouse.
After all, the death of a punishment team member was no trivial matter—the mine would take it extremely seriously.
That made retrieving his positioning stone the top priority.
"This would be difficult for most people… but for me, it's simple."
"Zhou Yueshan, you want to probe my secrets, don't you?"
Su Zhan's eyes glinted coldly. "Then try to keep your life."
⸻
Night
One of the positioning stone storage rooms in the mine.
"Master Yuan, one man died today and has been dealt with. The rest are all here. Thank you for your hard work."
The supervisor held a large bag containing all the positioning stones collected from the miners.
The stones were handed in daily to prevent any group of miners from killing a supervisor, stealing their own stones, and escaping.
Master Yuan took the bag without even glancing inside.
He simply poured the contents onto the floor.
Among the many positioning stones were more than a dozen low-grade spirit stones. Master Yuan nodded slightly and motioned for the next bag.
This was the "care fee."
To keep the position of supervisor for long, one had to pay it. Otherwise, by the next morning, someone else might already have the job.
After being collected, the positioning stones were not guarded by a Fourth-Level Extraordinary Realm cultivator, but instead by several Second-Level guards who rotated shifts through the night.
If any stone lit up, they would immediately report to the punishment team, who would use the stone to track and kill the escapee on the spot.
Soon, all the positioning stones from the Second-Level mining area were handed over.
"You'd better guard these well. If anything goes wrong, none of you will survive."
"Yes, Master Yuan!"
Satisfied and with his pockets full, Master Yuan left.
The stones—so many they looked like stars scattered across shelves—were arranged in places where they could easily be seen.
The stronghold was kept completely dark so any glow from a positioning stone could be seen right away.
Once the arrangement was complete, only a few Second-Level guards continued patrolling. The rest gathered in a corner and began gambling.
⸻
A strange, humanlike shadow emerged from the darkness.
It had no trace of life force. If you couldn't see it, you would never sense its presence.
But it could clearly sense the position of all nearby living beings.
Using this advantage, the Clone avoided every patrol as it moved through the stronghold, scanning each shelf of positioning stones.
"Found it."
Within minutes, Su Zhan had located his own stone among the countless others.
The Clone reached out and took it, then replaced it with a brand-new positioning stone from the clone space.
The count had to match—if even one was missing, the guards would be punished for failure in their watch, causing a major stir.
Once the swap was done, the Clone collapsed into nothingness and vanished, as if it had never been there. The real positioning stone was instantly transmitted to Su Zhan's hand through the clone space.
"It's in my hand."
He glanced at it once, then clenched his fist.
Crack!
The stone shattered into fine powder.
"The positioning stone is destroyed."
"Now both my preparations are complete."
⸻
The rest would depend on when Zhou Yueshan discovered what had happened.
If it happened later, all the better—he would have more time to kill Zhou Yueshan himself.
Su Zhan's eyes grew sharp.
The moment he learned that everything had been Zhou Yueshan's doing, any sense of kindness or gratitude vanished.
All that remained was the will to kill.
If Zhou Yueshan found out early, Su Zhan would temporarily leave the mine, lie low, and wait for his strength to grow before returning. Even if Zhou Yueshan came in person, Su Zhan could have his Clones ambush him. Even facing Fifth-Level or Sixth-Level pursuers, sacrificing a few Clones would be worth it.
If the discovery came late, he could continue developing in secret, producing even more avatars. With enough of them, even if Zhou Yueshan didn't die immediately, Su Zhan could grind him down until only a sliver of life remained.
"Give me this chance…"
It was as if the heavens had heard his prayer.
⸻
Three days later
No one watched him, no one followed. Su Zhan almost felt uneasy with the silence. The only thing he worried about now was Zhou Yueshan suddenly appearing.
But he was ready.
If Zhou Yueshan appeared, Su Zhan would summon all 22 Clones instantly and activate escape mode.
"Clones after their strength upgrade are incredible.
And in just three days, we've produced 6,561 low-grade spirit stones—all achieved!"
Su Zhan's gaze swept over the avatars' storage space. Once only four cubic meters, it had now expanded to six cubic meters—and inside lay more than six thousand low-grade spirit stones.
This was all thanks to the triple black clones.
Before, each could only produce about sixty spirits stones per day. Now, that number had doubled to one hundred and twenty.
With twenty-two black clones working together, their daily output reached two thousand six hundred and forty low-grade spirit stones.
No…
In just three short days, they had already gathered enough spirit stones for his Black Mark breakthrough to the Eighth Stage.
"Begin absorption!"
This time, Su Zhan didn't even need to take the Blue-patterned Spirit Stones out of the Clones space.
With a single thought, he could draw their energy directly.
In an instant—
"Got it."
The pile of spirit stones vanished, their essence flooding into him.