Michael would be satisfied even if the Energy Vein underneath the Primedival Pyramid was only 1-Star. Millions of Inferior Energy Stones clustered together were still worth a fortune.
But then again, Michael couldn't tell how many Energy Stones were waiting for him underneath the Primedival Pyramid or what was left of the Undead Pharaoh's home. Ten, tens of thousands, or millions of Energy Stones could be waiting for him to mine.
One way or another, Michael doubted that the Energy Vein in Paradise Valley was a 1-Star vein if the Undead Pharaoh, the strongest Pharaoh of the Second Epoch, decided to live there. He ruled from the Primedival Pyramid and was put to rest in his home after Starheaven Pharaoh and others eliminated him.
It was a fact that the Sacred Desert was only a Beginner Region right now. However, the Sacred Desert was much more than that before. The Starheaven Pharaoh told Michael before how big the Pharaoh's lands had been. They'd ruled over massive expanses as extensive as Advanced Regions.
[As far as I remember, the Starheaven Pharaoh and his 'allies', if you can call them that, in the first place, controlled 67 Beginner Regions and 13 Intermediate Regions before everything fell apart. But I don't know how many Energy Veins they'd controlled, where they were located, let alone their star rating. Still, I think you are right. There is no way the Undead Pharaoh's Energy Vein was a 1-Star Energy Vein.] Danny agreed with Michael's conclusion, only for the World Serpent to reappear in his mind.
[I hope you realize that a high-ranked Energy Vein will attract the attention of various powerhouses once the news reaches the public.] It said in Michael's mind.
Michael could only snort at that. He already had more than enough things to attract powerhouses. The growing amount of Aether in his Aethyr, the SoulStar Fragments collecting dust in his War Rune, and a 'bunch' of Soultrait Symbols have yet to be put into good use. Adding an Energy Vein into the equation wouldn't change too much. It might attract some people's attention, but Michael would give his best to keep the Energy Vein, or its star rating, a secret until he was strong enough to thrash Divine Lifeforms.
The Energy Vein would help him grow stronger, whether it was merely a 1-Star Energy Vein or a 10-Star Energy Vein. Obviously, the latter would be better, but Michael wasn't going to be picky. He would accept whatever was thrown his way.
"If the Energy Vein had a high star rating, more powerhouses would have come to Paradise Valley to check on it. No matter how many millennia had passed, they wouldn't have forgotten a dying Energy Vein. The powerhouses, old enough to remember the Energy Vein, are either dead, or they don't think highly of the Energy Vein," Michael responded to his brother. Still, Starheaven Pharaoh and Rebecca heard him.
"I wouldn't be so confident about that," Starheaven Pharaoh announced, "The Sacred Desert changed a lot after our high-time ended. Everything changed slowly, but that doesn't mean the Energy Vein's star rating changed. Thousands of years are a long time, but they're insignificant for some of the powerhouses. I got to know them when I was alive. They might not even realize that thousands of years have passed."
"But I agree that some powerhouses must have forgotten the Energy Vein. They stopped caring when everything changed. And now that they're stronger than most if they are still alive, which I guess they are the Will wouldn't look kindly upon them if they attacked a Beginner Region, which the Sacred Desert has degraded to, at this point."
Michael was not sure if he was reassured hearing this, but he nodded. Meanwhile, Rebecca sighed deeply.
She had been listening to their discussion and felt like jumping from a bridge. When she decided to join Michael, Rebecca had never thought so many crazy things would happen to him. Michael's actions were far from ordinary, and his Summons couldn't be considered normal either. In the first place, Rebecca wasn't sure when she noticed Michael doing something normal or for something ordinary to happen to him.
Being able to claim Paradise Valley was crazy. Being on good terms with a Sacred Beast was extraordinary as well. Still, the sudden revelation of an Energy Vein's existence and the fact that numerous mighty powerhouses might be coming to hunt them for the Energy Vein were the cherry on the top.
It wasn't like the problems with the Supreme Human Alliance were already enough. No, Michael had enough enemies in the Untamed Jungle as well. Rebecca thought that she could destress in Paradise Valley, which was part of the reason she had been focusing on Paradise Valley.
But that didn't seem to be possible anymore. Destress? While being Michael's subordinate? That was impossible.
She exhaled heavily and chose to intercept their discussion.
"The energy level in the Sacred Desert is rising steadily over the last few decades. It's a slow process, but the energy level will reach the threshold of a low-ranked Intermediate Region in less than 100 years," She pointed out, "There are also some rumors as to why the Sacred Desert has been changing slowly, but nobody knows about the Energy Vein. At least, I haven't heard anyone debating the possibility of an Energy Vein."
"The energy level is rising?" Starheaven Pharaoh asked, a trace of curiosity flashing through his eyes when Rebecca nodded in affirmation.
"That means the Energy Vein is already done transmuting everything in its surroundings. That makes sense, I guess. The material used to fill the tunnels and cave shouldn't have been high quality. The excessive energy produced by the Energy Vein must be spreading further now that everything is already overflowing with energy."
"Soeverything around the Energy Vein has been infused with so much energy that it cannot contain anymore?"
"That should be the case" The Starheaven Pharaoh nodded, but there was a hint of hesitation, "If there is no unknown variable I've missed."
Michael cleared his throat and stretched his body a little.
"What are you doing?" Rebecca asked.
"Isn't that obvious? I'm going to remove the ruins of the Primedival Pyramid to check out the treasure trove I've been missing," Michael announced as if it was obvious.
"Tell the workers to stop with the expansion of the settlements. We're going to focus on the Energy Stone Mine for the next few weeks," Michael ordered, his expression turning dead serious, "After that, we will transform Paradise Valley into an impenetrable fortress. We will leave the passages leading out of Paradise Valley for now. Instead, let's transform Paradise Valley into a fully developed area before we expose it to the rest of the Sacred Desert."
That being said, Michael disappeared in the Summoning Gate's energy pool. He materialized in the Basic Summoning Gate in the Sacred Desert and used Cosmic Stride to appear above the sunken ruins of the Primedival Pyramid.
The Cursed Seals of the Wolf Curse manifested all over his body as he unleashed Extraction. However, True Extraction wasn't the main tool of his excavation work.
The World Serpent's Major Seal glimmered brightly in his eyes.
Swallow Domain and True Extraction had been unleashed.
A Pyramid was waiting to be devoured.