Chapter 14: Move, and You Die

After a restless night, unlike before, Lin Fan felt an unprecedented clarity and vigor. He woke early, practiced a little, and soon heard a call from outside.

Today.

It was the first day he would go to the mine vein. With an imperial decree in hand, he had to check in at the mine.

...

“Young master, this is the mine vein. See over there? That’s the main vein. The mine shaft goes about five miles deep, and below is perilous—many workers have died there. Your task this time is to go to the secondary vein. It’s less than a tenth the depth of the main vein, but please be careful, young master.”

Lin Fan arrived at the mine vein, wearing a miner’s helmet, and was gradually led into the mine by a supervisor.

His unusual presence immediately drew much attention.

“What are you all staring at? Do your own work!” the supervisor frowned, glaring fiercely at the crowd and shouting.

“Young master, I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave. You only need to mine ten spirit ores before you can go.”

“Thank you,” Lin Fan nodded. Ten spirit ores—that was straightforward enough.

No sooner had the supervisor left than miners from all directions surged forward, looking at Lin Fan with ill intent. One of them said, “You, today you’ll mine a hundred spirit ores for me.”

Bullying?

A word flashed through Lin Fan’s mind. These miners were no good; even if they knew the young man might have some backing, they spent their days in this dark, hopeless place, their minds already twisted.

Even knowing the boy had influence outside, once inside the mine, he had to obey their rules.

The mine supervisor couldn’t watch over the entire area all the time.

There would always be lapses. Losing one or two workers by accident was all too normal for the mine.

Upon hearing this, Lin Fan frowned slightly. He was here just to go through the motions—he didn’t want trouble. But when faced with this bullying, he was not afraid.

He snorted lightly, and his cultivation surged forth explosively. At the peak of Earth Dan Realm, his power was considerable within this mine—only three or so warriors at the Heavenly Dan Realm could remain unaffected.

The others’ faces changed abruptly; they hadn’t expected this fair-skinned young man to possess peak Earth Dan cultivation.

“He’s a tough nut to crack. Luo, this kid’s not easy to bully,” the man who demanded a hundred spirit ores laughed cruelly and glanced at a Heavenly Dan powerhouse beside him, teasing.

Within this mine, the hierarchy was strict. The few Heavenly Dan powerhouses leaned against the stone wall, meditating. They held no pickaxes, and the baskets in front of them were filled with spirit ores—roughly a hundred or so.

It seemed these ores were not mined by them but contributed by others.

The rest all had pickaxes, and the stronger warriors carried more spirit ores in their baskets, while those who had never set foot in even a Divine Pill Secret Realm carried almost none.

Yet, the ones who truly mined the ore were these workers.

“New here? Listen up. I don’t care how strong your background is outside. Here, if you’re a dragon, you better crouch; if a tiger, you better lie down. Deliver a hundred spirit ores in five hours, or else...”

The man called Luo slowly opened his eyes, casting a cold glance at Lin Fan and spoke flatly.

His tone was commanding, not merely instructing.

When his words fell, everyone watched Lin Fan with keen interest, as if expecting him to resist.

In this oppressive mine, there was little fun—only teasing newcomers.

Most who came to the mine were criminals.

These criminals were no good; only when taught a lesson would they behave.

They had endured much hardship and naturally wanted to see others suffer as well.

Lin Fan took a step after step toward the Heavenly Dan expert. To everyone’s surprise, he picked ten spirit ores from the man’s basket and tossed them into his own.

“Or else what?” Lin Fan asked calmly, looking at Luo right before him.

Hiss!

Is this kid looking for death?

The crowd gasped. The abused lower-tier warriors from the True Spirit Secret Realm gleamed with anticipation.

They were at the bottom of the mine’s hierarchy, always suffering oppression. If someone could teach these bullies a lesson, they would be delighted.

Luo stared seriously at Lin Fan, then laughed heartily, his voice echoing through the cave and disturbing the other meditating Heavenly Dan experts.

He slowly stood, a fierce, brutal aura bursting forth. His eyes suddenly bloodshot, as if endless bloodthirst gathered within.

His gaze was like a savage beast’s, sizing Lin Fan up as prey.

“Well, well! It’s been a long time since I’ve met someone this interesting. Let me see... the last one was about three months ago, right? Old Seven, what happened to that guy?”

Luo fixed his gaze on Lin Fan, laughing wildly.

The one called Old Seven was the man who initially demanded Lin Fan mine a hundred spirit ores. He laughed, “That guy was arrogant too, but in the end, he was torn apart alive. See those bloodstains over there? That’s where he left his mark.”

Hearing this near-threatening tale, Lin Fan smiled slightly, then suddenly moved. His pickaxe was like a sharp blade, slashing heavily toward Luo.

“Hmph! You? Dare to challenge me...”

Bang!

Before Luo finished, he saw the pickaxe, which had been coming straight at him, suddenly change course with meteor-like speed—he couldn’t react in time.

The pickaxe stabbed heavily into Luo’s shoulder, piercing through his arm. Majestic flames surged along the blade, burning the wound, sizzling loudly.

In moments, Luo, a Heavenly Dan powerhouse, was gravely wounded.

This...

Everyone was stunned. They had never imagined such a scene.

An Earth Dan peak warrior had severely injured a Heavenly Dan expert with a single strike.

Keep in mind, Luo was among the strongest of the Heavenly Dan experts in the mine.

Lin Fan narrowed his eyes, looking at the man before him. Having practiced dual cultivation with the sorceress, his power steadily improved. Now he had reached the limits of the Earth Dan Realm.

In a few days, he would likely break through to the Heavenly Dan Realm.

Taking down a peak Heavenly Dan warrior was naturally not too taxing.

At his current strength, only a Divine Pill Realm expert could truly threaten him.

As for the Heavenly Dan experts, even several of them together would not intimidate him.

“Don’t move. If you do, you’re dead.”