Chapter 353 352: A Gift from the Lord

Arriving at the death site of the Desert Sea Robbers, Jiang Qiu casually waved his hand, stirring an invisible gust that instantly blew away the sand lingering in the air.

Although he hadn't mastered the Gale Spirit Charm, as a Half-Step Fusion Realm expert, his aura was powerful enough that with a bit of control, he could generate an effect similar to a strong gale.

As his gust swept by, the wreckage strewn across the ground was revealed. There was almost nothing left but a few charcoal-like fragments; even reddish flesh was a rare sight. It was clear that most of the bodies had been melted by the Fiery Flame Spirit Charm, leaving almost nothing behind.

In fact, it wasn't just the bodies that were gone; most of their belongings had vanished as well. Only a few scattered fragments remained, which were swept up by the wind and carried off into the distance.

But Ni'Er thought otherwise. Staring at a patch of wreckage in the distance, she once again extended a delicate finger and whispered, "Grandpa, it looks like there's some of the Sand Mine the Desert Sea Robbers stole over there."

"Hm?" Her grandfather squinted, but he couldn't see anything. "There's nothing there..."

"..."

Jiang Qiu glanced back at the pair, then looked in the direction Ni'Er was pointing. A brief scan was all it took for him to easily detect a foreign object buried beneath the sand, which seemed to contain faint traces of Kun Earth Spirit Charm.

He ambled over and casually dug a hand into the sand, pulling out a handful of shimmering ore fragments. They resembled black jade, their many smooth, flat facets gleaming faintly.

He wasn't sure if it was because they had been shattered by the impact, but they were completely broken apart. However, the Kun Earth Spirit Charm within them had not dissipated.

This was one of the few materials containing Spirit Charm that could be found for miles around. For the people of the Desolate Realm, this was likely a decent resource.

"So there really is Sand Mine..." Staring at the few fragments in Jiang Qiu's hand, the grandfather was stunned, a touch of melancholy welling in his heart.

He had actually known for a long time that his granddaughter was somewhat unusual. He started bringing her along when she was very young to help him find Sand Mine, and even other, rarer ores.

It wasn't that special tools for detecting ores didn't exist in this land; he simply couldn't afford them. Thanks to his granddaughter's special intuition, they were usually able to gather enough decent resources to trade for food.

'It's just a shame... we haven't gathered enough resources this time, and we already have to head back with this great sir...'

"Is this stuff valuable here?" Jiang Qiu asked casually. "How much does it sell for?"

"Sir, this is the material our currency is based on. It can be used directly as money. Ten pounds of this can be exchanged for one pound of water."

The grandfather answered truthfully, holding nothing back. After all, this was common knowledge in this world; Sand Mine was the foundational mineral of the Desolate Realm's monetary system.

This miraculous ore that grew within the Desert Sea would often surface due to unique weather phenomena, or be carried to the surface by giant beasts living deep underground.

The locals all made a living by gathering it, a source that was constantly replenishing. For Oasis City, this material might have an even more important purpose; it seemed that after some especially complex processing, it could be used to power the legendary Arrays.

For him and his granddaughter, however, it was simply the currency they depended on for survival, used to trade for water and Oasis Fruit.

"Hm, ten pounds for just one pound of water?" Jiang Qiu murmured, then casually tossed the Sand Mine in his hand to the old man. "You take this, then. These Desert Sea Robbers only had a few tons of Sand Mine on them. Dig it all up, and then we'll get back on the road."

"Ah?!"

The grandfather was stunned. Ni'Er was stunned. Their eyes widened in disbelief; they had never heard anything like it. Setting aside how the sir could possibly know how much Sand Mine the Desert Sea Robbers had...

...the very act of giving the Sand Mine to them was completely unfathomable. That was the loot the Desert Sea Robbers had plundered!

"I'll blow the top layer of sand off for you. That should make it easier to find," Jiang Qiu said with a casual wave of his hand. A powerful gust peeled back a layer of the sand, revealing several glittering, ink-black chunks of Sand Mine. "I told you I'd reward you for guiding me. Consider this your payment."

Sand Mine was extremely dense; a fist-sized chunk was estimated to weigh over a hundred pounds. Therefore, the grandfather and granddaughter should be able to carry a great deal of it in their back-baskets.

Of course, Jiang Qiu assumed they would take as much as they could carry, which would probably still leave a large portion behind. But the result...

THUD.

The heavy back-basket settled onto Ni'Er's back. She adjusted the vine-woven shoulder straps, a grin revealing teeth as white as snow. "Hehe, Grandpa, it looks like there's three thousand and seventy-two pounds here! We're rich! We can buy so much Oasis Fruit!"

"Yes, yes, wonderful! Quickly, thank the sir! Thank the sir!" The grandfather was beaming, pressing his hands together and bowing to Jiang Qiu. "May you be blessed with boundless fortune and longevity, Sir!"

"Thank you, Sir."

Ni'Er also gave a polite, shallow bow. Her movements were fluid, without the slightest strain, as if the basket on her back were filled with feathers and not three tons of incredibly dense Sand Mine.

Jiang Qiu was silent for a moment. "What is that back-basket of yours made of? It's surprisingly sturdy."

"Sir, this is made from Oasis Vine, which is cultivated in Oasis City. A small back-basket like this can bear up to ten tons. But the material is quite expensive. The ones Ni'Er and I are carrying were rented from a noble in Oasis City. We can't afford to buy our own yet..."

"Oh. Impressive."

Jiang Qiu nodded but didn't press further. He could see that the grandfather didn't actually know why his granddaughter was so strong, and Ni'Er herself had even less of a clue.

'A plain-looking sixteen-year-old girl. Her body shows no signs of Spirit Charm, yet her strength is astonishing. Could she have some kind of unique bloodline?'

'Only someone with a special bloodline could possess such immense strength with almost no trace of Cultivation.'

'It can't be that everyone in this world is this freakishly strong, can it?'

But he didn't dwell on it. Jiang Qiu was only momentarily curious and gave Ni'Er another glance. He had no interest in raising the girl into some peerless prodigy; that would take far too long.

His top priority was still to gather information on the Desolate Realm, then learn the coordinates of the Nine Venerable Great Realm, and finally, head there to rescue Liu Zili and the others.

With that thought, Jiang Qiu continued on with the grandfather and granddaughter, heading toward the nearest Oasis City. About an hour later, a patch of green emerged from the Desert Sea. In the distance, a forest of grayish-green trees grew among the dunes.

Nestled within that forest was a lush green oasis, where buildings in the distinctive style of the Desolate Realm rose and fell, forming the vast Oasis City.

A breeze drifted over from that direction, carrying a refreshing coolness that soothed both body and soul.

"Sir, we've arrived at Little Oasis City Number 777."