Chapter 135: Stunned
Chapter 135: Stunned
The Ling Dang bell fell into the dirt pit and instantly transformed into an adorable little kitten.
Even though he’d seen this same scene many times, Gao Jing still felt it was incredibly unbelievable.
There was just no way to explain it scientifically!
He couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle Xiao Jiu’s head, a fatherly smile appearing on his face.
Xiao Jiu was the nickname fans on Bilibili gave to Nine Apertures.
It wasn’t the only nickname; there were others like Jiu Jiu, Lord Nine, Jiu Mei, and Jiùwō.
But the most people called him Xiao Jiu.
Gao Jing readily accepted this nickname too, happy to go along with the crowd.
Meow! Meow!
Nine Apertures nuzzled affectionately against Gao Jing’s palm, his expression showing deep pleasure and contentment.
“Xiao Jiu,” Gao Jing said, his tone earnest and meaningful. “You’ve grown up now. You should learn to earn your own way and support the household. The chance is right in front of us! Success depends entirely on you!”
Ever since he got this mystical animal companion, Gao Jing had tested its abilities many times.
And he’d discovered something fascinating: the little creature was highly sensitive to diamonds. It could sense their exact location even from twenty or thirty meters away.
Most importantly, Earth Spirit Cats lived deep in the Abyss underground. Besides their natural talent for stealth and hiding, they were also extremely good at digging tunnels and hunting prey like moles and other underground creatures.
This gave Gao Jing an idea.
He could get diamonds—Gangpo Stones—for free!
Of course, Gao Jing wasn’t thinking of making Nine Apertures dig tunnels into jewelry stores to steal diamonds.
Whether it could even do that was one thing.
More importantly, that kind of act went against his personal principles.
With access to his Storage Space, taking part in illegal trades would be ridiculously easy for Gao Jing.
But even during the times when his money troubles were at their worst,
he’d never once considered using illegal means to gain wealth.
Digging for diamonds in Crater of Diamonds State Park today, however?
That was totally fine.
After all, it was the world’s only diamond mine open to the public. They actively encouraged visitors to come treasure hunting.
And they even used tricks to lure tourists.
Well, Gao Jing wasn’t going to be polite to such “USA-ers”!
Meow~
The little Nine Apertures dipped his head, promising to do his best to “earn stones” and support the household.
“Good boy,” Gao Jing laughed. “Go on, my precious.”
Meow!
Six sharp, hooked claws shot out from each of Nine Apertures’ pink paws.
They curved like crescent moons,
gleaming with a cold, metallic light!
He swiftly started scrabbling, digging a deep tunnel at the bottom of the soil layer with incredible speed.
Gao Jing’s job was to help clear away the mud and rocks he threw out.
People in the USA placed a high value on privacy.
Quite a few people had come to the park today to hunt for diamonds.
But when digging, everyone strictly followed the rules, maintaining a considerable distance between each other.
They didn’t disturb one another.
Meanwhile, Ji Yu was happily sifting soil at the screening station.
Sheltered by the pit, Gao Jing didn’t need to worry at all about Nine Apertures’ secret being discovered.
Crucially, Nine Apertures dug incredibly fast.
Within just a few minutes, he had vanished deep into the tunnel he was digging!
But Gao Jing still maintained a soul connection with him.
He could sense everything the little creature did underground.
Digging down about ten meters deep, the little fellow seemed to sense something.
He immediately started digging towards the lower right.
In barely six or seven minutes, he’d struck paydirt!
He swiftly retreated back to the surface.
As soon as his head popped back out of the hole, he opened his mouth and spat out a rock that looked like frosted glass.
Meow! Meow!
He then looked up at Gao Jing, calling out demandingly.
So fast?
Gao Jing was overjoyed. He eagerly picked up the beige raw stone.
It was a diamond!
Gao Jing already had some knowledge about diamonds, and he’d been cramming information recently. His eye and experience had improved considerably.
Most importantly, Nine Apertures was only drawn to Gangpo Stones.
He wouldn’t have worked so hard just to bring back a useless rock for his master!
“Good boy,” Gao Jing crouched down, suppressing his inner excitement as he ruffled the little one’s head. “Well done!”
This diamond was about the size of a 5-cent coin. It looked a bit like a lump of rock sugar coated in dirt.
Its surface glowed faintly.
That’s just how uncut, raw diamonds looked.
Only after being meticulously shaped and polished by skilled craftsmen could they unleash the sparkling brilliance that made women crazy!
Gao Jing didn’t have the expertise to appraise it, nor could he tell how much this raw stone was worth.
But it was an excellent start.
“You can do it! Go for it!”
Nine Apertures returned to the tunnel to continue his treasure hunting.
Gao Jing didn’t stay idle either.
Even though Nine Apertures was doing the actual work, Gao Jing made a show of digging around his own hole. Otherwise, he could easily draw suspicion.
He brought Ji Yu two more buckets of mining soil.
At first, Ji Yu was full of confidence as she washed the soil, hoping to find diamonds in the sand.
But soon, her arms began to ache, and fine beads of sweat dotted her forehead.
She did find several small stones that looked like gems,
exciting Ji Yu greatly.
However, some kind diamond hunters nearby examined them and declared all were worthless.
This was actually quite normal.
If diamonds were that easy to find, this place would have been packed tight long ago.
Even local treasure seekers like them often had to put in long, exhausting hours of hard work
to make even a small discovery.
As for tourists? Pure luck.
Frankly, having that kind of luck made buying lottery tickets seem smarter!
After this happened a few times, Ji Yu’s excitement quickly faded.
Gao Jing cheerfully helped her wash the soil a couple of times
before returning to his own pit.
Nine Apertures was incredibly efficient. Burrowing dozens of meters underground, it brought back a raw stone each time.
It returned to the Witch Artifact to rest twice.
Besides consuming a lot of Gao Jing’s Totemic Power, the diamond it inhabited also shrank noticeably.
Clearly, this work came with a cost.
But it was more than worth it!
After over an hour of digging,
Nine Apertures’s efforts resulted in Gao Jing gathering a total of twenty-seven raw stones, big and small.
The largest among them weighed at least forty carats.
No doubt it broke the all-time record for the heaviest diamond ever found at Crater of Diamonds State Park!
Even the smallest ones were two to three carats each.
While cutting and polishing diamonds resulted in significant loss,
if news of such a haul got out, it would shake the entire American!
Gao Jing might even face trouble just getting them all back home.
This clearly showed rich diamond deposits still lay hidden beneath the park.
But Gao Jing decided not to let Nine Apertures dig anymore.
By now, Xiao Jiu seemed utterly exhausted and weak. Its brief rest periods barely helped, clearly needing proper recovery time.
Feeling a pang of concern, Gao Jing immediately let it return to the Ling Dang Witch Artifact to recuperate,
re-attached to the Bronze Anchor.
This haul was more than enough anyway.
They could always come back later.
As long as Crater of Diamonds State Park kept operating this way,
all those diamonds buried deep below
would be his!
Gao Jing filled the massive holes dug by Nine Apertures back up with loads of soil and gravel, stamped it down hard to seal them completely,
ensuring no one could discover them.
He then dug two new pits nearby
to keep up appearances.
Seeing it was about time, he took a freshly dug bucket of mining soil over to Ji Yu again.
“I give up,”
His senior schoolmate, drenched in sweat, looked pitifully at Gao Jing. “It’s just too exhausting.”
If all that hard work actually paid off, she would have pushed through.
But it was one disappointment after another.
Her fantasies were completely crushed; the letdown was heavy.
Hanging on this long
was already quite impressive.
“Well, finish this last bucket, and we’ll call it a day,”
Gao Jing said cheerfully, patting the plastic bucket he carried. “I’ll help.”
It was the final bucket,
and with Gao Jing assisting,
Ji Yu managed to summon a bit of energy, nodding. “Alright.”
Gao Jing dug out two big scoops of soil onto the sieve and spread it over the mesh.
Ji Yu, holding the wooden frame with both hands, washed it in the large trough.
She’d gotten the hang of it by now,
just lacking the strength.
Under their constant shaking, muddy water washed away the earth, leaving pebbles of various sizes behind.
Senior Ji’s weary gaze suddenly focused.
She stared at the sieve, her beautiful eyes widening in astonishment
as if witnessing something unbelievable, frozen in shock.
“Ah~”
The next second, an earsplitting shriek burst out uncontrollably,
filled with boundless excitement,
echoing throughout the entire Arkansas Crater of Diamonds State Park!