Cultivation Breakthrough, Targeting the Entire Mysterious Iron Ore Mine

"Ling'er, Zhao Yun has entered the Mysterious Iron Ore mine exactly as planned."

"Then, Master, the plan can begin."

Zhao Yun had already sent back word the moment he was captured.

"Hmm, let him stay in the mine for a while. It's perfect timing to let the Ye Family finish clearing out those left behind by Shopkeeper Tong; there's no rush for our plan just yet."

Zhao Yun feigning unconsciousness to be brought into the Mysterious Iron Ore mine was exactly part of Chen Ze's design.

During the two days spent waiting for the Ye Family to finish their cleanup, Chen Ze lived a comfortable life.

With Zhao Ling'er's company, his days were far from dull.

Over these two days, his doppelganger Chen Fan brought back news every day.

The City Lord's Mansion had completely concluded its investigation into the Shopkeeper Tong incident, and they had tacitly accepted everything the Ye Family had done.

The other families were also being suspiciously quiet.

Wannan City was currently peaceful and harmonious, as if nothing had ever happened; people seemed to have deliberately chosen to forget certain things.

However, Chen Ze didn't care about that. It was better if no one was investigating; it made him safer.

News also arrived from Zhao Yun's side.

Last night, there was a commotion outside the Mysterious Iron Ore mine, but it quickly settled down.

When he got up to mine today, everything inside the Mysterious Iron Ore mine was as usual, though there seemed to be a few new miners.

Inside the mine now, hundreds of miners were buried in their work, and the slightest sign of slacking off would invite a round of beatings.

"It seems the Ye Family's cleanup speed is quite fast. I never expected the Ye Family's strength to be so formidable; it's as if the entire Wannan City is shrouded by this one family."

Combining the various pieces of news received over the past few days, Chen Ze reached this conclusion.

But, in a flash, Chen Ze chuckled dryly. "Heh, but this big cake of the Ye Family is destined to have a piece carved out by me."

Inside the Mysterious Iron Ore mine, the doppelganger Zhao Yun was following Chen Ze's instructions, lurking within and playing the part of a qualified miner.

Over these two days, Zhao Yun had already figured out the operation of this mine.

Every miner in this Mysterious Iron Ore mine had either been tricked into coming or was dragged here by force.

Not a single one of them was here of their own volition.

Every miner here had shackles on their feet, restricting their movement.

Each miner had a daily mining quota.

The requirements for this task were determined by each person's cultivation level.

Those at the Qi Refining First Layer had to turn in 10 kilograms of Mysterious Iron Ore daily.

Those at the Qi Refining Second Layer had to turn in 20 kilograms, and so on.

The amount of Mysterious Iron Ore required each day was exactly the limit of what a person could mine in a day.

The Ye Family had long since calculated it; excluding rest time, every miner here had to mine incessantly just to complete their quota.

As for those who failed to meet their daily quota, the light punishment was having no food to eat.

The heavy punishment involved not only going hungry but also being beaten and hung up for public display.

Even then, it wasn't over; any unfulfilled quota would accumulate to the next day.

This cycle continued until the daily quota could be met.

The hundreds of miners here had long since lost any desire to resist.

Now, they were like walking corpses, channeling their spiritual energy, swinging their pickaxes, and bowing their heads to mine.

They had absolutely no room to resist.

They couldn't even die if they wanted to; whether they were mining or resting, there were people guarding them.

The only thing they could do was to linger on in a desperate struggle for survival until their lives reached an end, or until the entire mine was hollowed out.

Zhao Yun, who was currently mining, had just silently tucked a piece of Mysterious Iron Ore into the Myriad Things Space when he suddenly heard a painful wail.

A miner had slowed down for just a moment, only to be met with the guard's whip.

Then, the guard's voice rang out, "Move faster!"

The doppelganger Zhao Yun was not without gains every day. The cultivation level he displayed to others was the Qi Refining Third Layer, so his daily quota was 30 kilograms of Mysterious Iron Ore.

In reality, Zhao Yun could mine over 40 kilograms of Mysterious Iron Ore every day.

Moreover, because he was a doppelganger, even if he mined without stopping, he wouldn't feel tired; his spiritual energy just recovered a bit more slowly.

Coupled with the fact that Zhao Yun could use the Myriad Things Space, he would skim a portion off the top of every haul.

He only needed to turn in his 30-kilogram quota each day, and the rest was tucked away into the Myriad Things Space.

In Chen Ze's residence in Wannan City:

"Master, if we recycle these 10 kilograms of Mysterious Iron Ore to the Myriad Things Shop, the profit is only 2 points. Isn't that too little?

With Zhao Yun's strength, he can only collect an extra 20 kilograms of Mysterious Iron Ore a day right now."

Zhao Ling'er felt a bit doubtful. Although she was clever and had devised this plan together with Chen Ze, she still felt uncertain about whether it would be effective.

"It's fine. My goal isn't just this little bit; this is only the beginning. What I want is this entire Mysterious Iron Ore mine belonging to the Ye Family."

"We can start the operation tonight."

"Understood."

Night fell.

Chen Ze suddenly felt his spirit jolt and let out a low murmur.

"Hmm, my cultivation has broken through again. I've reached the Qi Refining Sixth Layer."

"With my current strength, I should have no rivals within the Qi Refining Realm. Even if I encounter someone at the early stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm, I have the power to put up a fight."

"However, even if I do run into one, if my doppelgangers all attack together, the outcome is far from certain."

"Now is not the time to think about that. Zhao Yun should have already started moving on his end."

Inside the Ye Family's Mysterious Iron Ore mine.

Having finished his daily tasks, the doppelganger Zhao Yun was feigning sleep.

At this moment, Zhao Yun sensed that the three others living in the same mine tunnel as him had fallen into a deep slumber.

The cultivation of these three individuals was the same as what Zhao Yun was currently displaying: all at the Qi Refining Third Layer.

Zhao Yun circulated his Breath Concealment Art, causing his entire aura to vanish. His figure moved like a ghost as he quickly touched the three men in the mine tunnel.

The three men vanished instantly, but in the blink of an eye, their figures reappeared.

Upon reappearing, the three of them exchanged a smile with Zhao Yun.

Following that, the four men in the mine tunnel closed their eyes simultaneously, pretending to sleep.

The four people currently in this mine tunnel were all doppelgangers purchased by Chen Ze.

On the first day of entering the mine, Zhao Yun had already memorized the appearances and mannerisms of these three men, and even asked for their names, all of which he transmitted to Chen Ze.

Upon receiving this information, Chen Ze had directly purchased three doppelgangers from the Myriad Things Shop.

The method Zhao Yun used to make the three men disappear was actually just briefly storing them inside the Myriad Things Space.

At the same time, in a forest a thousand miles away from Wannan City, the doppelganger Chen Fan had long been waiting there.

While storing the three men in the Myriad Things Space, he simultaneously released them at that location.

Chen Ze's purpose in doing this was simply to avoid exposing the Myriad Things Space; consuming 3 points was nothing.

Now, the three men who had entered the Myriad Things Space felt no sensation that they had ever been there.

They only felt their bodies grow light before being startled awake.

Opening their eyes, all they saw was the doppelganger Chen Fan, dressed in a black cloak that covered him tightly from head to toe.

However, they still sensed that something was different; the environment they were currently in was no longer the pitch-black mine tunnel.