Abyssal Mine, Ten Deaths No Life

Beneath the Nine Desolations Mountain Range, at the westernmost edge of the Great Wu Dynasty, lay a network of mines resembling an ant's nest.

It was known as the Abyssal Mine.

This place was the final destination for all the most heinous criminals in the Great Wu Dynasty.

Within the dim mine shafts, the clanging of chains mingled with the rhythmic striking of pickaxes against rock walls, a ceaseless din.

Occasionally, the crack of whips, the curses of overseers, and the ever-present sounds of wailing could be heard.

"Old man, you gonna play dead with me?"

"I'm telling you, playing dead won't work on me. Even if you all die here, no one will shed a tear for you."

"Damn it, didn't you hear me? Get up and work, get up!"

An overseer roared, his whip lashing down repeatedly onto a withered body at his feet.

Each strike of the whip tore away small pieces of flesh and bright red blood.

Yet, the person on the ground remained motionless, no matter how brutally they were beaten.

After a short while, the overseer kicked him, a look of disgust crossing his face. "Damn bastard, died after just a couple of hits. Useless!"

"Hey, you two over there, come and throw this old guy into the pit."

As soon as he spoke, two figures approached from nearby. They hoisted the corpse and carried it deeper into the mine.

The other miners around them paid no mind to the scene. Such events happened daily, and it would be their turn sooner or later.

Li Yan carried the corpse, swaying like a walking dead man. Before long, they arrived beside a large pit.

The pit was incredibly deep, and waves of scorching heat billowed up from below. Looking closely, one could even see faint flames.

The two reached the edge of the pit and, with a combined effort, tossed the body in.

With a sound akin to something falling into water, both men let out a sigh of relief.

They exchanged a glance, wordlessly. Then, Li Yan whispered, "Damn it..."

The youth beside him glanced at Li Yan and turned to walk back.

This was the Abyssal Mine, known as the Ten Deaths Ground. No one who entered here had ever left alive. That pit was the final resting place for those who arrived.

After a period here, no matter who you were or how capable you were outside, you would be tormented until you lost yourself, becoming a soulless mining machine.

"No, I absolutely refuse to stay here!"

Gritting his teeth, Li Yan spoke in a low voice.

He had a secret: he wasn't from this world.

In his previous life, Li Yan had been a "super blessed ox-horse" working a 007 job, so exhausted he didn't even remember how he died.

He thought his previous life was bad enough, but transmigrating had made things even worse. Could he tolerate this?

As the old saying goes, life is precious, love is even more so, but for freedom, both can be cast aside!

He had already died once, what was there to fear?

He would either escape or die again. Make him, Li Yan, continue to be a slave? Impossible, absolutely impossible!

However, when Li Yan returned to the mining area, the overseer was already waiting for him with a ferocious expression.

"You beast, how dare you slack off!!"

As the angry roar echoed, the overseer's whip was already raised.

Crack!

The whip, woven with a special technique, landed heavily on Li Yan's body.

"Ugh!"

A searing pain shot through his back, but wailing was useless. The next whip was already falling.

Li Yan instinctively raised his head to block.

"Damn bastard, you dare to block?"

The overseer's roar reverberated through the mine shaft, followed by even more brutal lashings.

Before long, Li Yan had become a bloody mess, lying on the ground and twitching feebly.

Perhaps fearing Li Yan would actually die, or perhaps tired from beating him, the overseer glanced at Li Yan with disdain and turned to leave.

Throughout it all, none of the surrounding miners reacted, including the youth who had helped dump the body.

But no one noticed the hint of near-mad violence in Li Yan's eyes, hidden beneath his curled-up form.

After an unknown amount of time, the sounds of metal clashing gradually faded.

To prevent them from dying too quickly, there was a short rest period each day.

Once everyone had left, Li Yan finally moved. He painfully crawled to the side, leaning against the wall. Li Yan slowly sat up, trying several times to get to his feet but collapsing back to the ground, exhausted.

He sat there for an unknown duration.

Soon, the sound of footsteps signaled the start of work. One by one, the miners, like walking dead, dragged their pickaxes and pushed their wheelbarrows, beginning another round of labor.

The overseer arrived too, but as soon as he saw Li Yan sitting motionless by the wall, his brow furrowed deeply.

This guy was supposed to be specially dealt with; the goal was for him to suffer before dying. If he died now, the overseer feared he wouldn't be able to explain himself.

Without delay, the overseer strode forward, unusually crouching down to check on Li Yan's condition.

He grabbed Li Yan by the hair, yanking his head up.

In that instant, the overseer saw a pair of eyes – human eyes, yet not quite.

They were more like the eyes of a starving, monstrous worm!

This is bad!

Alarm bells blared in his mind. Just as the overseer was about to move, Li Yan was faster. A sharp piece of rubble shot towards the overseer's throat with Li Yan's hand.

Bang!

The sharp piece of ore shattered the moment it struck the overseer's throat!

The overseer shoved Li Yan away violently, clutching his throat and collapsing to his knees, coughing heavily.

He was a martial artist, albeit only at the lowest level of Body Tempering. Still, it was fortunate he was at that level; otherwise, that blow would have directly ended his life.

Having narrowly escaped death, boundless rage followed. Ever since he arrived at this place, he knew his future was hopeless.

Therefore, he took pleasure in tormenting these scumbags. For years, none of these wretches had been able to resist, let alone attempt to kill him.

He never expected that after hunting geese for years, he'd be pecked by a sparrow today.

No, he had to make this brat experience all his methods, dying amidst endless pain and regret.

With that thought, the overseer slowly turned his head to look at Li Yan.

But that single glance extinguished the overseer's raging inferno instantly.

At some point, Li Yan had acquired a pickaxe.

"Scumbag, die for me!"

A roar echoed through the mine. The pickaxe in Li Yan's hand swung down fiercely.

Squelch!

This time, there was no mistake. The sharp pickaxe head smashed directly through the overseer's skull, instantly rendering the murderous overseer incapable of resisting.

But Li Yan didn't stop. He struggled to pull out the pickaxe, raised it, and swung again.

Once, twice, thrice...

By the time Li Yan was completely exhausted, the overseer's head was so mangled that it was unrecognizable, let alone capable of rage.

Dropping the pickaxe, Li Yan looked around. All the miners were staring at him, their eyes filled with sheer terror.

He killed an overseer. How dare he?

Yes, killing an overseer was a fate worse than death. They couldn't even imagine what kind of torture Li Yan would face.

Li Yan himself knew how serious killing an overseer was in the Abyssal Mine. He didn't even need to think about his future suffering.

Damn it, you want to torture me?

Dream on!

With that thought, Li Yan picked up the pickaxe again.

If I die, who will you torment?

Just as Li Yan was about to end his own life, a cold, mechanical voice sounded in his ear:

[Congratulations to the host for completing the first kill. God of Slaughter Plunder System binding in progress... Binding successful!]