The Players all knew why Fang Qingyang had done this: to stop Yang Ling from staying behind.
If he really succeeded, they Players would lose the rare chance to have a powerful ally.
Thinking of this, one Player gritted his teeth and said:
"Once we get out of the mine shaft, we'll beat Fang Qingyang to death. That bastard is absolutely despicable!"
"Supervisor Yang, just tell us what to do, and we'll do it!"
The ordinary miners all looked toward Yang Ling, their expressions solemn.
Li Tianye and the others were struck by a thought, then suddenly understood.
This incident had instead made the ordinary miners realize which side to take next if they wanted to protect their own interests.
A foreman who would sacrifice miners' lives for a power struggle would of course be abandoned at once!
"Our first priority is dealing with the Red Gold Mantises. We'll talk about Foreman Fang after we get out."
"Remember, this is the Zhao State, and there are laws. We can't take lives recklessly."
Yang Ling reminded them, "After we get out, I'll personally escort Foreman Fang and Wang Er to the Prefectural Office in Qingshan City and hand them over to the Iron Clothes Department."
The Players felt a chill in their hearts. They had almost forgotten that this game was so realistic; they couldn't just kill NPCs like they used to.
"Brother Yang, like last time?"
Chen Xu suddenly seemed excited.
Yang Ling nodded. "Like last time."
The others didn't know what he meant by "like last time."
But they soon found out.
Yang Ling held the Red Gold Crane Beak Hoe and dug through the stone as if it were tofu. Before long, he had dug out a great many boulders and blocked off all the side tunnels.
In the end, he left just one tunnel open!
Even that one was blocked until only a hole about the size of a fist remained.
Li Tianye, Wang Haodong, and the others' eyes lit up. They seemed to understand.
"Can you kill monsters in the Divine Domain too? Do these Red Gold Mantises give Experience Points?"
Their hearts immediately burned with excitement.
But when they thought about how dangerous the Red Gold Mantises were, they quickly cooled down.
Even if they could kill monsters and gain Experience Points, Players like them, who weren't even Martial Artists, couldn't afford to get involved.
"Looks like Yang Ling's planning to trap the monsters."
"I suspect he used to be a professional Gold Farmer."
The three Players who had always refused to reveal their identities, and who had all reached Level 10, watched the scene in secret, a flicker of interest in their eyes.
They were Gold Farmers too, so they knew all about trapping monsters.
Once everything was set up, the question was how to lure the monsters over.
Yang Ling looked at Wang Er. "Do you have any pig's blood left?"
Wang Er replied sheepishly, "No, I used it all..."
"I see..."
Yang Ling smiled. "Then I'll have to borrow yours."
What?!
Mine?!
Before Wang Er could react, they had drawn a whole bowl of blood from him.
Pale-faced, he huddled off to the side, trembling.
With Wang Er's blood as bait, everything was ready.
Yang Ling sprinkled it in front of the tunnel, which was only about the size of a fist, then waited quietly.
The ordinary miners' eyes lit up.
That must have been how he killed the Mine Rats earlier!
"Supervisor Yang is a master tactician. If we deal with the Red Gold Mantises, the danger in Mine Tunnel No. 1 will definitely drop even further!"
"Sooner or later, all the Mine Worms in here will be dead. Then mining will be even safer!"
They were excited, and their respect for Yang Ling grew.
The previous supervisor had never bothered with any of this!
About half a minute later,
a Red Gold Mantis crawled out.
Before it could do anything else, a saber cut it in two.
A cool sensation flowed into Yang Ling's body.
It seemed to give more Experience Points than a Mine Rat!
Chen Xu and Chen Guoqing gripped their Fine Steel Pickaxes, ready to get a share of the spoils.
Yang Ling glanced at Li Tianye.
"Tianye, take your pickaxe and stand nearby. If any Red Gold Mantises slip through, you deal with them."
"Oh, got it!"
Li Tianye was excited. He immediately took his place with Chen Xu and the others.
"You others won't be able to handle the Red Gold Mantises, so don't get too close. Your lives come first."
Yang Ling cautioned the other Players and ordinary miners.
Some Players envied Chen Xu and the others, but they knew their own limits and didn't dare go near.
They gained Experience Points just by mining anyway. There was no need to do anything dangerous.
After that, the Red Gold Mantises came in increasingly fierce waves.
Unfortunately for them, the passage was so narrow that they could only enter one at a time.
Every one that came through died.
Every now and then, Yang Ling deliberately let a few through so Chen Xu and the others could practice.
At first, they fumbled around in a panic, but after two or three tries, they were wielding their Fine Steel Crane Beak Hoes with increasing precision.
Before they knew it, the corpses of the Red Gold Mantises piled up in front of Yang Ling to about waist height.
He called over the ordinary miners to clear them away.
The Red Gold Mantises seemed to have dwindled in number, and they were coming less frequently.
Yang Ling still wasn't reassured, so he drew another bowl of blood from Wang Er.
The number of Red Gold Mantises immediately increased.
"Official Saber durability is about to reach zero"
A notification suddenly appeared before Yang Ling's eyes.
He glanced at the Official Saber in his hand. Its blade was riddled with notches.
Sure enough, after he cut down a few more Red Gold Mantises, the Official Saber shattered!
Yang Ling immediately pulled out the Red Gold Crane Beak Hoe and continued luring and killing the Red Gold Mantises.
Only then did the Players present understand what it meant to be ranked in the top ten.
Sometimes, they couldn't even see Yang Ling's movements.
Before you continue