Not long afterward, Wu Chuan led Jiang Ping An to a much wider cavern.
On the right side of the cavern was a huge hole sealed by a barrier. Within its pitch-black entrance, something terrifying seemed to lurk, sending chills down one's spine.
The miners in the cavern all kept as far away from the hole as possible, their faces filled with wariness and terror, as though an unspeakable horror lay hidden beyond its entrance.
When some of the miners saw Wu Chuan appear, they immediately dropped to their knees and begged through tears:
"My lord, please don't send me in! I can mine for free for a hundred years."
"My lord, spare my life! I only stole something—it wasn't some grave crime. There's no need to wipe me out completely."
"My lord..."
Some miners who were about to be sent into the Deep Pit kowtowed and begged for mercy, weeping bitterly, their faces full of pleading and fear.
Unknown terrors lurked within the Deep Pit. Of those sent in before, only a handful had emerged alive. Everyone else had died.
Even those who came out alive had gone mad.
People instinctively feared such unknown horrors.
Wu Chuan kicked the miner clutching his leg, blasting him apart on the spot. Flesh and blood splattered across the surrounding miners, and the thick stench of blood made them retch.
"Whoever doesn't want to go can die right here."
His cold, sinister voice made the miners shudder. They hurriedly got to their feet, not daring to say another word.
Wu Chuan snorted and asked one of his subordinates, "Is everyone here?"
The subordinate replied respectfully, "They're all here. All the death-row prisoners, including some criminal miners, have been brought over—a total of two hundred and fifty-seven people. Besides that, Manager Ma captured five