Luring the Prey into the Trap

This was the first time Chen Ze had heard the name Wu Li. Although he felt a moment of confusion, he quickly understood.

The Wu Li that Zhang Tai spoke of must have been his accomplice.

However, since Chen Ze had already killed two people who had snuck in over the past two nights, he couldn't be certain which one Zhang Tai was referring to.

"Although I don't know who this Wu Li you're talking about is, I have indeed already killed several people who, like you, tried to sneak in and ambush me at night."

Hearing Chen Ze say this, Zhang Tai became even more certain that Wu Li had already died at Chen Ze's hands.

It was just that he couldn't quite grasp what Chen Ze meant by saying he had killed "several."

But that didn't matter; the most important thing now was how he could survive.

Seeing that Zhang Tai remained silent, Chen Ze pressed his blade a little closer to Zhang Tai's neck.

"Let's talk about your problems first! What is your goal in targeting me? I don't believe I know you people! I shouldn't have any grievances with you, either."

Zhang Tai still didn't speak; he was still thinking about how to save his life.

"If you promise to spare my life, I'll tell you everything. I guarantee I'll leave Wannan City and never appear before your eyes again."

Chen Ze gave a contemptuous laugh and said, "Heh, have you still not realized your situation?"

For someone like this who wanted to harm him—and who had been captured by him—how could Chen Ze possibly let him go?

With a backhanded motion of the hand holding the heavy blade, he slashed, and Zhang Tai's other arm went flying.

Just as Zhang Tai was about to open his mouth to scream in agony, Chen Ze pulled a rag from somewhere and stuffed it directly into his mouth.

Zhang Tai could now only emit muffled "woo-woo" sounds, writhing in pain on the ground.

Chen Ze no longer needed to hold the blade to Zhang Tai's neck; without his arms, Zhang Tai had no room left to resist.

Chen Ze just watched quietly as Zhang Tai struggled on the ground, letting him fully savor the agony.

Chen Ze could not summon a shred of pity for someone who wanted to harm him.

Zhang Tai struggled in pain for a long time. What caused him such torment was not just the severed wound, but the terror of having lost both arms.

He hadn't expected Chen Ze to be so decisive.

Without his arms, he had completely become a cripple.

The previous arm had already been burned away without a trace, but the arm that had just been severed lay right before his eyes.

If he could reattach it in time, perhaps he could still save that hand.

Zhang Tai realized this, endured the pain in his arm, stopped screaming, and looked at Chen Ze with pleading eyes.

Chen Ze also saw the look in Zhang Tai's eyes. "What? Can you talk properly now?"

Zhang Tai nodded with difficulty.

Chen Ze crouched down, straightened Zhang Tai up, pulled the rag out of his mouth, and tossed it aside.

"Speak! Don't wait for me to ask again. My patience is limited, and you still have two legs left to be cut off."

Hearing Chen Ze say this, Zhang Tai's heart trembled. This man is simply a demon.

But he only dared to think that in his heart, and immediately said, "I'll talk, I'll tell you everything."

He had confirmed that Chen Ze wasn't just talking; he was truly capable of doing it.

Then, Zhang Tai stated a name directly: "It was Shopkeeper Tong. It was Shopkeeper Tong who sent us to capture you."

"Shopkeeper Tong? The Shopkeeper Tong of Tongfu Restaurant?"

Chen Ze was greatly surprised to hear this name; he never would have imagined that Shopkeeper Tong would be the one targeting him.

"Haven't I already paid back all the money I owed him?"

"He wants to capture you to mine ore."

Once Zhang Tai said this, Chen Ze understood immediately; everything had a trail to follow.

Following that, Zhang Tai recounted the cause and process of the matter to Chen Ze.

The situation was quite simple: Shopkeeper Tong had discovered a deposit of Mysterious Iron Ore. Mysterious Iron Ore was an essential material for crafting Magic Artifacts, and controlling a mine meant having a constant, inexhaustible supply of resources.

Shopkeeper Tong had originally wanted to swallow this lucrative prize all by himself.

But realizing his own strength was insufficient, he found a powerful family he was on good terms with to mine it in secret.

The fewer people who knew, the more they would profit, and it would also reduce the number of people coveting it—especially the City Lord's Mansion and several other families.

However, mining required manpower, and since it wasn't just ordinary ore, common mortals couldn't do the work; they had to find cultivators to do the digging.

But they naturally couldn't go about finding cultivators to mine in an open, blatant manner, or the mine would be exposed sooner or later.

So, Shopkeeper Tong and that family came up with this method: any Rogue Cultivator without family or support became their target.

As long as people had desires, they would set all sorts of traps for these Rogue Cultivators.

They would trick them by saying there was a job that paid well in Spirit Stones, or that there was some opportunity somewhere—in short, they used all kinds of methods to lure people over first.

And for someone like Chen Ze, they would first make them owe a debt they couldn't possibly repay.

When the time came to collect the debt, they would tell them about a job where they could earn a lot of Spirit Stones.

It was the same trick of luring people in, and once they were lured, they could never hope to get out.

With experts guarding the place, escaping was simply impossible.

If you didn't want to die, you had no choice but to mine endlessly, and Chen Ze was exactly that kind of person.

Yet, they never expected that Chen Ze would actually return the Spirit Stone in the end.

But they would not easily let go of a target they had set their sights on.

They had already investigated someone like Chen Ze very thoroughly.

Low cultivation, no backing, and no acquaintances.

Even if someone like Chen Ze went missing, no one would care.

So, they prepared to use their final resort: knock him out directly and take him away.

As long as they found the right opportunity, they just had to avoid being discovered.

Even if they were discovered, it wouldn't be much of a problem.

They would just release the person they had captured and wait for another chance.

Zhang Tai and his cohorts had done this not just once or twice.

They simply didn't expect that this time, they had kicked an iron plate in Chen Ze.

"I've already said everything I know, can you spare my life?" Zhang Tai pleaded.

Chen Ze shook his head. "Heh, in your eyes, human life isn't even worth as much as a dog's. You've done so many evil deeds, and on top of that, you schemed against me. Do you think I have any reason to let you live?"

"In your next life, be a good person!"

Having said that, Chen Ze raised his hand and struck with his blade, finishing off Zhang Tai without giving him another chance to speak.

He then tossed a Fireball, watching as Zhang Tai's corpse burned into ashes bit by bit.

Shopkeeper Tong, is it? If it weren't for the fact that I transmigrated and gained a system, the original owner would have already been dragged into the Mine by now, starting a life of endless labor.

Chen Ze's gaze turned sharp in an instant. "You are capable of such unconscionable acts. Since I've encountered this, I naturally have to intervene. Besides, you were the ones who came looking for me first."

Chen Ze had already made up his mind; Shopkeeper Tong was now a man he had to kill.

He could only blame Shopkeeper Tong for scheming against him; they had now crossed paths and formed a deep grudge.

He had to cut the weeds and dig up the roots, otherwise, Shopkeeper Tong would certainly come looking for him again.

Shopkeeper Tong had already lost two Qi Refining Sixth Layer cultivators at Chen Ze's hands; the next ones to come for him would only be of even higher cultivation.