"Orphans?" Mo Hua found it hard to believe. "The 'Lone' in Lone Mountain City is the same 'lone' as in orphan?"
"Not entirely," Master Gu explained. "Lone Mountain City borders Lone Mountain, and Lone Mountain's original name should have been 'Guhuang Mountain.'"
"The mountain was rich in Bright Yellow Copper Ore. This ore was pure golden-yellow, dazzling and splendid. Plated onto Spirit Artifacts, treasures, and palaces, it shone even brighter than gold, and was thus greatly favored by aristocratic families and renowned figures."
"Later, the Bright Yellow Copper Ore was overmined until it was picked clean. All that remained was this scarred and blackened Mine Mountain. As the mines declined, cultivators dwindled and orphans multiplied, so the mountain came to be called 'Lone Mountain,' and the city became 'Lone Mountain City.'"
Mo Hua glanced around at the dozens upon dozens of frail, dark-skinned orphans carrying ore on their backs. After a moment of silence, he sighed.
Some were born into wealth and lived lives of luxury.
Others seemed to have been born solely to suffer.
And that suffering would only grow, until it consumed them unto death...
Mo Hua frowned, his feelings tangled.
Suddenly, a child carrying a bamboo basket slipped and fell to the ground. Rough, coal-black, worthless ore spilled all over the floor from his basket.
Ignoring the scrape on his knee, the child immediately scrambled up and frantically gathered the scattered ore back into the basket, as though afraid someone might steal it.
Most of this ore was worth less than nothing.
Yet the child still treasured it as if it were priceless.
It was his only means of survival. Only by gathering this worthless mining slag could he earn himself a mouthful of food.
Elsewhere, perhaps other children really would have rushed in to snatch it