“This... this...” Ethan Brooks's mind was buzzing, a complete mess, as if he had lost the ability to think. He stared blankly at the demon core on the bronze mirror. In that moment, he even hesitated himself. He remembered that there should have been a demon core and half a spirit stone there, but he had clearly eaten the demon core earlier. Now, he suddenly wasn't sure whether what he had swallowed before was the demon core or the spirit stone.

“It can't be that I swallowed the spirit stone, right...” Ethan Brooks was stunned for a long while. With disbelief, he stepped forward and picked up the demon core, hesitantly bringing it to his nose to smell it. That scent made him certain that what he had swallowed before was indeed this core.

“This... what is going on? There's actually another one. Could it be that I remembered wrong, and that demon beast had two demon cores?” Ethan Brooks's mind grew even more confused. He shook his head hard, forcing himself to calm his churning emotions. Staring at the demon core in his hand, then at the mirror, his body gradually began to tremble. An intense light appeared in his eyes, stronger than ever before, as if he was seeing a fortune in gold. He almost couldn't hold onto the demon core in his hand.

“Could it be... that this mirror absorbed the spirit stone and turned the demon core into two!” Ethan Brooks's voice was trembling. He had thought that the mirror's greatest power was being able to blow up the fierce beast, but he hadn't expected it to have such a mysterious function.

“But if that's really the case, why hasn't anyone else discovered this mirror's power after all these years, and why is it only me?” Ethan Brooks hesitated for a moment, looking at the bronze mirror in his hand, unable to come up with an answer.

After a long time, Ethan Brooks was both expectant and nervous, torn between hope and fear, wishing he could immediately get a spirit stone to test it out.

“Spirit stone, I need a spirit stone!” Ethan Brooks's eyes shone with a beast-like light. At this moment, spirit stones had already surpassed gold and silver as the most precious thing in his heart, even surpassing his former desire for official rank.

For cultivators, spirit stones are absolutely essential, especially for Ethan Brooks. In the mix of anxiety and anticipation, his desire for spirit stones was stronger than ever before.

But, the Reliance Sect was just a small sect. Ordinary disciples, except for the monthly pill distribution day, had no way to obtain spirit stones at all—unless by robbing others.

“There’s still a month until the next pill distribution day.” Ethan Brooks looked at the bronze mirror, his expression slowly turning fierce, but he quickly hid it. He thought to himself that with his current cultivation at only the second level of Qi Condensation, even if he tried to rob someone, he probably wouldn't be a match.

“I was short of money back in Yunjie County, and now that I’ve become an immortal, I’m still short of money.” Ethan Brooks was filled with helplessness, his mind turning over ways to get spirit stones.

Chapter 0008 Robert Clark

“I can only wait for a month. But in this month, I have to try to improve my cultivation further.” Ethan Brooks carefully put the bronze mirror into his storage pouch. He knew that the power of this mirror must never be revealed to outsiders, or he would never be able to keep it and might even be silenced.

He lowered his head to look at his body, which was covered in filth. Earlier, he had been too excited to notice it, but now that he was calmer, he walked out of the cave dwelling to the nearby river and washed the grime off.

When he returned to the cave, the sky was already beginning to lighten. Ethan Brooks took out the Qi Condensation scroll and studied it carefully for a long time.

“Once I reach the second level of Qi Condensation, I can use immortal arts. And when I reach the fifth level, I can learn the Windwalking technique, which is an immortal art that allows one to almost fly.” Ethan Brooks closed his eyes, full of anticipation for flying at the fifth level of Qi Condensation. After a while, he suddenly opened his eyes, raised his right hand, and made a grasping motion in the air.

In that instant, he immediately felt the temperature in the cave rise significantly, and even sparks appeared on his right hand. For Ethan Brooks, whose mindset was still that of a mortal, this scene made him instantly excited, but his fluctuating emotions caused the sparks to dissipate.

Ethan Brooks quickly calmed his breath and focused his mind, trying again to circulate his cultivation. But until noon, after dozens of attempts, he could only produce sparks that failed to condense, and the spiritual energy in his body was completely depleted.

“This Fire Serpent Technique is a bit difficult to cast.” Ethan Brooks frowned, but his character was resolute. He did not get discouraged. After recovering his energy, he tried again.

Night fell, and the morning sun rose again. For two days straight, Ethan Brooks kept trying, but repeated failures left him exhausted, his spiritual energy dissipating again and again, and he kept recovering it. Yet the determination in his eyes only grew stronger.

“I refuse to believe I can’t cast this Fire Serpent Technique!” Ethan Brooks gritted his teeth, slapped his storage pouch with his right hand, and immediately the demon core appeared in his hand.

Ethan Brooks knew that if he swallowed this core, and if the mirror truly had mysterious powers, and he had enough spirit stones, then he would lack a reference point.

“Whatever, at worst I’ll just go to the wild mountains and find another demon beast.” After hesitating for a moment, Ethan Brooks decisively put the demon core into his mouth, closed his eyes, and began to circulate his breath. Spiritual energy exploded within him, surging through his entire body.

Time passed slowly. By afternoon, Ethan Brooks opened his eyes, a flash of brilliance in them. Although his cultivation was still at the second level of Qi Condensation, it had improved significantly.

“If I could get three or five more, I should be able to reach the third level of Qi Condensation.” While Ethan Brooks felt regret, he also realized that the higher his cultivation, the harder it became to advance. His anticipation for the mysteries of the bronze mirror grew even stronger. He raised his right hand and grasped at the void.