At the westernmost edge of the Great Wu Dynasty, beneath the Nine Desolations Mountain Range, lay mine tunnels crisscrossing like an anthill.
They were called the Abyssal Mine.
This was the final destination for all those guilty of heinous crimes in the Great Wu Dynasty.
Within the dim tunnels, the clinking of chains mingled with the blows of iron picks against rock walls, ringing out without cease.
Now and then came the crack of whips, the overseers' barks, and the ever-present wails of agony.
"Old bastard, are you playing dead in front of me?"
"I'm telling you, playing dead won't work on me. Even if every last one of you dies here, no one will shed a single tear for you."
"Damn it, didn't you hear me? Get up and work! Get up!"
An overseer roared as the rope whip in his hand repeatedly lashed a withered body at his feet.
Every strike sent flecks of flesh and crimson blood flying.
Yet no matter how he was whipped, the person on the ground did not move.
Before long, the overseer nudged him with his foot, then curled his lip in disgust. "Motherfucker, he died after only a couple of hits. Useless trash!"
"You two brats over there, come toss this old bastard into the pit."
The words had barely left his mouth when two figures approached from nearby, hoisted the corpse, and carried it deeper into the mine tunnels.
The other miners around them turned a blind eye to the scene. Such things happened every day. Sooner or later, it would be their turn.
Li Yan carried the corpse, swaying like a walking corpse himself. Before long, he reached the edge of a vast pit.
The hole was incomparably deep. Scorching waves of air surged up from below, and if one looked closely, faint firelight could be seen within.
The two men reached the pit and worked together to throw the corpse down.
As a sound like something falling into water drifted up, both of them let out a breath.
They looked at one another in silence. Then Li Yan said under his breath, "Damn it..."
The young man before him glanced at Li Yan, turned, and headed back.
This was the Abyssal Mine, known as one of the ten absolute deathlands. To this day, not a single person who entered had ever left alive. That pit was the final destination of everyone sent here.
After staying here for a while, no matter what kind of person one had been outside or how capable one was, they would be tortured until they lost themselves and became soulless mining machines.
"No. I absolutely refuse to stay here!"
Gritting his teeth, Li Yan spoke in a low voice.
He had a secret: he was not from this world.
In his previous life, Li Yan had been an overworked corporate mule blessed with a 007 schedule. He could not even remember how he had died.
He had thought his previous life was miserable enough, but transmigrating had somehow made things even worse. How could he endure that?
As the old saying went: life is precious, love is dearer still; but for freedom's sake, both may be cast aside!
He had died once already. What was there to fear about death?
Either he escaped, or he died again. Trying to make Li Yan continue being a slave in the dark? Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
Yet when Li Yan returned to the mining area, the overseer was already waiting for him with a savage expression.
"You beast, you actually dared to slack off!!"
As the furious shout rang out, the overseer's whip was already raised.
Smack!
The specially woven whip lashed viciously across Li Yan's body.
"Urgh!"
A searing pain flared across his back, but screaming was useless. The next lash had already come down.
Li Yan instinctively raised his hand to block it.
"Motherfucker, you beast, you dare block me?"
The overseer's roar echoed through the mine, followed by even more brutal lashes.
Before long, Li Yan had become a blood-soaked figure, lying on the ground and twitching faintly.
Perhaps afraid Li Yan would truly die, or perhaps simply tired from whipping him, the overseer cast Li Yan a disdainful glance and turned away.
From beginning to end, none of the miners around them showed the slightest reaction, including the young man who had thrown the corpse away with Li Yan.
But no one noticed the nearly crazed savagery in Li Yan's eyes beneath his curled-up body.
Who knew how much time passed before the clamor of metal against stone gradually faded away.
Afraid these people would die too quickly, they were still given a little time to rest each day.
Once everyone had left, Li Yan finally moved. He painfully crawled to the side and leaned against the wall, slowly sitting up. Several times, he tried to stand, only to slump back to the ground without strength.
After sitting there, who knew how much more time passed.
Before long, footsteps sounded. It was time to begin work again. One miner after another arrived dragging iron picks and pushing wheelbarrows like walking corpses, beginning another round of labor.
The overseer came as well. But when he saw Li Yan sitting motionlessly against the wall, his brow immediately furrowed.
Someone had specifically instructed them to look after this fellow. They wanted the boy to suffer every torment before dying. If he died now, the overseer would have a hard time explaining himself.
At once, the overseer strode over, crouching down in a rare display of concern to inspect Li Yan's condition.
He grabbed Li Yan by the hair and yanked his head up.
At that very instant, the overseer saw a pair of eyes—human eyes, yet not quite human.
They were more like the eyes of a ravenous beast!
This is bad!
Alarm bells blared in his mind. Just as the overseer was about to move, Li Yan moved faster. A sharp shard of stone shot toward the overseer's throat in Li Yan's hand.
Bang!
The sharp ore shattered the instant it struck the overseer's throat!
The overseer violently shoved Li Yan away, clutching his throat as he dropped to his knees and coughed in great heaving gasps.
He was a martial artist. Though he was only at the lowest level of the Body Tempering Realm, it was fortunate that he was in the Body Tempering Realm. Otherwise, that strike truly would have taken his life.
After surviving the calamity, endless fury came flooding in. Ever since arriving in this place, he had known that there was no hope for the rest of his life.
Thus, he had always taken pleasure in tormenting these scum. Over the years, none of these people had ever been able to resist him, much less attempt to kill him.
Who would have thought that after hunting geese all year, today he would have his eyes pecked out by a sparrow?
No. He had to make this brat taste every single one of his methods and die amid endless pain and regret.
With that thought, the overseer slowly turned his head toward Li Yan.
But the moment he looked, the overseer's blazing fury was instantly doused.
At some point, Li Yan had somehow acquired a pickaxe.
"Scum, die!"
His roar shook the mine as the pickaxe in Li Yan's hand came crashing down.
Splurt!
This time, there was no surprise. The sharp pickaxe head smashed straight through the overseer's crown, instantly robbing the murderous overseer of all ability to resist.
But Li Yan did not stop. With great effort, he pulled out the pickaxe, raised it, and smashed down again.
Once, twice, three times...
By the time Li Yan was utterly exhausted, the overseer was not merely out of breath—his head had been smashed beyond recognition.
Dropping the pickaxe, Li Yan looked around. At that moment, every miner was staring at him, their eyes brimming with terror.
He had killed an overseer. How could he dare?
That was right. Killing an overseer was more terrifying than death itself. They dared not imagine what kind of torment Li Yan would suffer.
Li Yan himself knew how grave it was to kill an overseer in the Abyssal Mine. There was no need to think about what would happen to him afterward.
Damn it, you want to torture me?
Dream on!
With that thought, Li Yan picked up the pickaxe again.
If I die, let's see who you can torture!
Just as Li Yan was about to kill himself, a cold mechanical voice sounded by his ear:
Congratulations, Host, on completing your First Kill. God of Slaughter Plunder System binding in progress... Binding successful!