Winning Over Frozen Soil

Zhang Chen sat bolt upright in bed, unease flickering in his eyes. He stared at the reddening sky on the horizon, uncertainty written across his gaze. "Something's wrong! Very wrong! Why am I dreaming about these things? Could it be that I dug up a grave and got tangled up with whatever strange thing was inside?"

Dreaming it once would have been one thing, but twice in a row???

Zhang Chen stroked his chin, deep in thought. After a moment, a faint guess arose in his heart. "There's another possibility. I drank that drop of blood before, and then my body mutated. Could these dreams have something to do with that drop of blood?"

Countless thoughts raced through Zhang Chen's mind. Only after a long while did he begin tapping his knee idly with his fingers. Considering the transformation of his body, the only explanation was probably the change brought by that drop of blood.

Moreover, the perspective in his dreams had always been that of the hand. So, his dream of that mysterious tomb was most likely connected to that drop of blood.

"That drop of blood..." Zhang Chen examined the bloodline within himself, his gaze settling on the crystal core. A trace of wariness appeared in his eyes. "Could some demon be trying to borrow my body to be reborn? Is it changing my body now, strengthening its own physique so it can bear the power of that hand's resurrection?"

"That doesn't seem likely either!" Zhang Chen shook his head and dismissed the possibility. First, the Light of the Righteous God protected his body. If there truly were anything abnormal, the Light of the Righteous God would not have remained completely unresponsive. More importantly, his Golden Finger had not given any warning. Whether it was the crystal core or all the changes in his body, the Golden Finger had defined them all as "skills."

Zhang Chen looked at his Golden Finger Interface:

Name: Zhang Chen

1 Skill (Second Tier): Light of the Righteous God (0/5000)

2 Skill (Unranked): Dragon Qi (0/2000)

3 Skill (Unranked): Blood Control (0/100000)

Points: 4690

"Bloodsucking mutated into Blood Control. In other words, every change inside my body is in the form of a skill. They were all caused by the Golden Finger and are still under its control. Besides, I share a bloodline connection with that crystal core. I can sense everything about it and grasp every trace of its movements. That crystal core is like one of my fingers—once a thought stirs in my heart, it responds." Relief appeared in Zhang Chen's eyes.

"Since it's a change brought about by the Golden Finger, there's nothing to worry about! As for why I keep having these dreams, it must be the mental fragments left behind by that blood. The crystal core in my body has already mutated. There seems to be a drop of unfathomably mysterious blood within it, as though it is nurturing something. But I can feel that I share a bloodline connection with the blood inside the crystal core, our fortunes linked together. What lies within that crystal core is another incarnation of myself. And every time I continue to draw blood, it brings some inexplicable benefit to the crystal core."

As he grew more familiar with the new skill and gained a deeper understanding of his body's structure, Zhang Chen felt that he had somehow gained a new understanding of skills.

"Interesting. I'd like to see what you'll eventually turn into. As long as the Light of the Righteous God in my body remains at a higher level than you, even if you truly have something strange about you, you won't be able to escape the palm of my hand." Zhang Chen made up his mind. From now on, the Light of the Righteous God would be his main skill. Its level had to stay ahead of every other skill. Even if something really went wrong in the future, he could still force it back into line with the Light of the Righteous God!

Having figured out the crux of the matter, Zhang Chen relaxed and began considering the Ancient Tomb. "Only another ten meters before I can reach the deeper levels of the Ancient Tomb? Then I'll be able to enter it. When the time comes, countless opportunities will unfold before me, and that mere Fox Spirit can be suppressed with a flick of my finger. For now, I'll lie low and give that Fox Spirit some leeway."

"Uncle Wang, I can only wrong you for now!" Zhang Chen silently observed a second of mourning for Wang Wu, then got up to feed the chickens and prepare breakfast before heading into the mountains to hunt.

Zhang Chen stewed meat for breakfast. He was still at the age of growing, and if his nutrition failed to keep up, he would be ruined.

After breakfast, Zhang Chen took a food jar, packed the cooked meat inside, then carried a basket on his back and headed into the mountains.

A food jar was what people in ancient times used as a lunchbox. When rural folk went into the mountains to work, they kept their food and water in one.

The sound of reading already drifted over from next door. Looking at the candlelight reflected on the paper window, Zhang Chen could not help sighing. Though that poor Scholar Zhang Chen was not much as a person, his diligence in studying and learning to read was truly first-rate. The poor Scholar Zhang Chen went to sleep later than Zhang Chen every day. Sometimes, when Zhang Chen got up in the middle of the night to relieve himself, the poor scholar was still studying hard. And every morning, before dawn had broken, when Zhang Chen rose from bed, the impoverished Scholar Zhang Chen would certainly already be up and reading.

"That kid isn't simple. Ordinary people don't have that kind of perseverance." Zhang Chen muttered to himself. "I wonder when Five Six Teacher will return. Then I can learn to read too. Otherwise, I'll surely be at too great a disadvantage."

When he reached the village entrance, Zhang Chen waited for a while. Then Wang Wu, noticeably thinner than before, appeared in his field of vision.

"Uncle Wang, I brought you breakfast." Zhang Chen waved to Wang Wu in the morning light.

Before Wang Wu had even drawn near, his reproachful voice rang out. "Didn't I tell you? From now on, I'll handle my own three meals a day. What if that monster drags you into the fire because of me? That would be terrible."

"I'm not afraid!" Zhang Chen handed over the food jar with a smile.

"Don't bring it next time!" Wang Wu scolded Zhang Chen, but he did not refuse the kindness. He squatted down and began eating right there.

"Is there really no way to restrain it?" Zhang Chen looked at Wang Wu wolfing down the food, then at his full beard, disheveled hair, and weathered face, before cautiously asking.

"If you run into it, all you can do is count yourself unlucky!" Wang Wu replied irritably.

Zhang Chen said nothing, a thoughtful look appearing in his eyes. This world was becoming increasingly incomprehensible to him. Since mysterious forces like the Fox Spirit existed, why had he never heard any legends of demon slayers?

If such things existed, they would surely have been passed down as myths and stories. Neither he nor Wang Wu could possibly have heard not the slightest whisper of them.

"Maybe our horizons are too narrow. Or perhaps such mysteries are too rare, so not even a word or two was passed down," Zhang Chen muttered inwardly.

After Wang Wu finished eating, the two headed into the mountains together. Wang Wu walked ahead and earnestly cautioned him, "You brat, be careful. Keep farther away from me these days, and don't bring me food anymore. My life and death are up to fate, my wealth and honor up to Heaven—but I, Wang Wu, will never submit! No matter what that thing's origins are, I, Wang Wu, will never submit!"

Wang Wu was an old Hunter. He had killed creatures all his life and held the power of life and death over wild beasts, so naturally he carried a streak of Sha Qi about him.

Following behind Wang Wu, Zhang Chen said with a smile, "What are you saying, Uncle? We're family. Why speak as though we were strangers? If not for you back then, I would have starved to death long ago."

Hearing Zhang Chen's words, Wang Wu shook his head. "It's different. You're still young, and you have a better future ahead of you. I can't drag you into this. Besides, if both of us die, who'll bury us afterward? There won't even be anyone to see us off on our final journey."

There was an indescribable obsession in Wang Wu's voice. He seemed especially concerned about being buried after death.

Perhaps that was the knot in the hearts of the older generation.

Zhang Chen could not persuade Wang Wu, but he had already made up his mind to do as he pleased. Even if the Fox Spirit took revenge on him, at worst his days would become a little harder. He absolutely could not let Wang Wu starve to death.

After parting from Wang Wu, Zhang Chen first went to the cave to feed the bumblebees. Looking at the beehive gradually taking shape, a smile appeared on his face. "Once I raise a million bumblebees, with a single thought they'll blot out the sky and cover the earth. Even an army of a thousand troops and ten thousand horses will have to Retreat Three Miles."

Of course, Zhang Chen knew it was unrealistic to raise a million bumblebees with his unranked Beast Control Technique alone. But one had to set a small goal for oneself. What if it really came true?

The shrill whistle shook the wilderness. The peregrine falcon beat its wings and shot into the clouds, soaring freely through the sky. Zhang Chen carried his basket as he went to inspect his traps. After checking more than a dozen of them, he counted today's haul: two pheasants, one wild duck, and two rabbits.

"Rabbits are overrunning the land in these times—they're practically becoming a disaster. It's a pity rabbit meat doesn't keep hunger at bay, and the more you eat, the hungrier you get. Otherwise, it would make excellent rations." Zhang Chen shook his head inwardly.

Rabbit tasted excellent, and it was lean meat from head to toe. The only pity was that the more rabbit one ate, the hungrier one became. If someone ate nothing but rabbit meat, they could literally starve to death.

"And my slingshot still doesn't have a suitable string. Finding proper rubber bands for a slingshot in these times won't be easy. I can only wait until my skills improve, hunt some large, fierce beasts, and pull out their sinews to make bands." Zhang Chen muttered as he headed toward the deep forests, beginning his daily honey-gathering routine once more.

After finding a spot where flowers bloomed in riotous splendor, Zhang Chen did not hesitate to activate the Beast Control Technique. He began capturing the bees in the air and commanding them to gather honey for him.

After less than two hours, Zhang Chen stopped gathering honey. Then he looked into the jar and found that there was actually less honey than before.

"I'd forgotten—there's a season for collecting honey. Once the honey-gathering season passes, the flowers fall and bear fruit, and naturally there'll be no nectar left to gather. I may understand that, but there's nothing I can do to change it. After all, I can only control beasts for one shichen each day." Zhang Chen shook his head. "My worries are a little unnecessary. All I can do is catch as many bees as possible each day in suitable places and find larger flower cushions."

Zhang Chen looked at the honey in the jar and carefully covered its opening with gauze. Honey could not be sealed up immediately after being collected; it had to be aired out first, allowing the moisture within to evaporate, before it could become honey that would not spoil.

Inside a hive, hundreds or thousands of bees clustered together, beating their wings to evaporate the water from the honey. But Zhang Chen did not have such convenient conditions and could only rely on natural evaporation.

"Next comes digging into the Ancient Tomb. There are only ten more meters to go before I should be able to reach the tomb's true barrier. If I can break through the entrance and rush inside, I'll strike it rich. Never mind ten meters of Frozen Soil—even if it were a hundred, a thousand, or ten thousand meters, I'd dig straight through it." Zhang Chen carried his tools into the burial chamber, picked up his chisel and hammer, and began chipping away at the Frozen Soil.

"Come to think of it, why is there Frozen Soil here? This completely defies common sense, doesn't it?" Feeling his palms go numb from the vibrations, Zhang Chen's brows drew together slightly as he sensed something was wrong.

This Frozen Soil was clearly no ordinary Frozen Soil. Even the icy chill within it was not that of ordinary ice.

"Could some mysterious power from within the Ancient Tomb have leaked out, creating the Frozen Soil here?" Zhang Chen guessed inwardly. "And because that mysterious power leaked out, large amounts of Experience Points are dropping here."

"Interesting." Zhang Chen fell into thought. He recalled the tremors from his dream. The Ancient Tomb had clearly undergone a violent shake, allowing that Jade Tablet to draw upon the true dragon's blood.

"Who knows how many years have passed since that great tomb was buried? The Earth's plates shifted, seas turned to mulberry fields—Changes of Time were only natural. Unfortunately, my dream was incomplete. It came in fragments, and I saw only part of the scene. I roughly know the structure of the burial chamber, but I have no idea what arrangements lie within." Zhang Chen sighed. After all, he had seen those fragments through the blood's third-person perspective, not through the eyes of that mysterious man who had arranged the great tomb.

Zhang Chen dug with great vigor, but after chiseling away for half a day, he had no choice but to run outside and bask in the sun to dispel the coldness that had seeped into his body.

"At this pace, I'm afraid I won't be able to break through these final ten meters of Frozen Soil in less than three to five years. This won't do—I need to think of something." Zhang Chen looked up at the blazing sun in the sky and sprawled lazily across the sand, feeling the chill inside his body gradually dissipate.

Zhang Chen had two ideas. The first was to raise his skill level and see whether he could unlock some kind of Da Li skill to speed up his digging. The second was to light a fire with wood inside the passage before leaving each day. After being scorched by fire all night, even if the Frozen Soil did not melt, it would certainly be affected, speeding up his excavation.

"So now I have another task to add." Zhang Chen stopped resting, picked up an axe, and wandered through the mountains in search of suitable deadwood and branches, gathering them to carry back to the underground cave.

"If I weren't afraid the gunpowder would blast the cave down, I'd definitely use it to blow apart this Frozen Soil directly." As he chopped down trees in the mountains, Zhang Chen cursed under his breath.

For him, digging through the Frozen Soil was not the goal; collecting Experience Points was. If the Frozen Soil collapsed from an explosion, that would be a real disaster. He would have to clear away all the dirt again, adding who knew how much work. Zhang Chen was a smart man—he would never do something so stupid.

P.S. Sorry, I forgot to split it today. Here, have a whole chapter.

Thanks to "Three Purities Reader" for the hundred coins.