The Secret of the Mine

Lin Ye looked toward the depths of the mine.

This mine belonged to Qingyun Sect's Black Iron Mine. It produced a low-grade crafting material that wasn't worth much.

Of course, miners were mostly ordinary people. Few martial artists would take on this kind of backbreaking labor.

"I wonder if there's any danger inside..."

As Lin Ye was thinking, a sudden cry rang out from within the mine.

"A demon beast!"

Next came the panicked figures and shouts of the miners.

Lin Ye's gaze sharpened. He immediately rose and charged into the mine.

The inside of the mine was spacious. Torches hung on the walls, casting a dim light.

After running about a hundred meters, Lin Ye saw Foreman Wang and several miners surrounding a pitch-black demon beast that resembled a pangolin.

The beast was nearly two meters long, its body covered in black scales. Its claws were sharp, and it was frantically clawing at the cave wall.

"It's a Burrowing Beast, a first-level demon beast, equivalent to the third level of Body Tempering!" Foreman Wang cried when he saw Lin Ye. "Little brother, help us!"

Without hesitation, Lin Ye drew the iron sword from his back and charged forward.

The Burrowing Beast sensed danger and turned to pounce at him. It was fast; its claws cut through the air with a shrill whistle.

Lin Ye dodged to the side and thrust his sword at the same time.

"Clang!"

The iron sword struck the Burrowing Beast's scales, leaving behind nothing but a white spot.

"What hard scales!"

Lin Ye was slightly startled.

Stung by the blow, the Burrowing Beast grew even more ferocious. Its tail swept toward him like an iron whip.

Lin Ye shifted his footing and slipped away like a swimming fish, then struck again with his sword.

He aimed for the Burrowing Beast's eye.

"Pfft!"

The iron sword pierced its eye, sending blood spraying.

The Burrowing Beast let out a bloodcurdling scream and thrashed wildly.

Lin Ye seized the opportunity to strike three times in succession, each blow precisely aimed at a vulnerable spot: its eyes, mouth, and other weak points.

The Burrowing Beast crashed to the ground, twitched a few times, and fell silent.

"Whew..."

Lin Ye lowered his sword and breathed lightly.

The battle had been brief, but he had used all his strength.

"Little brother, you've got some moves!" Foreman Wang came over and clapped Lin Ye on the shoulder, still shaken. "Burrowing Beasts usually stay deep in the mine. They rarely come out. No idea what got into this one today."

"Maybe something startled it." Lin Ye put away his iron sword. "Foreman Wang, what should we do with the beast's corpse?"

"Demon beast corpses belong to whoever kills them." Foreman Wang smiled. "The Burrowing Beast's scales can sell for ten contribution points, and its claws for five. The meat can fetch a little money too. Little brother, you've struck it rich."

Lin Ye's eyes lit up.

Fifteen contribution points, plus the twenty-four-point reward for the mission, made thirty-nine points.

"Thank you, Foreman Wang."

"No need to thank me. You're the one who killed it." Foreman Wang waved his hand. "By the way, those sword strikes of yours were quick and precise. Have you trained in swordsmanship?"

"I only know a few basics," Lin Ye replied modestly.

"Basics?" Foreman Wang shook his head. "Doesn't look that way to me. Your footwork and the angle of your strikes were beyond what an ordinary third-level Body Tempering cultivator could manage. Brother, you've been hiding your skills pretty well."

Lin Ye was startled, but he kept his expression calm. "You're joking, Foreman Wang. I just got lucky."

Foreman Wang gave him a look, then smiled without pressing further.

"All right, let's drag this beast out and deal with it. There shouldn't be any more trouble today. You can head back to the wooden hut and rest."

"Yes, sir."

Lin Ye dragged the Burrowing Beast's corpse out of the mine.

He didn't deal with it right away. Instead, he set it down beside the wooden hut, then continued keeping watch at the entrance.

Only after dusk, when the miners had finished work and left and Foreman Wang had gone too, did Lin Ye return to the hut and begin processing the beast's corpse.

By the time he finished, it was completely dark.

Lin Ye wrapped the scales and claws in cloth. He salted the meat, intending to take it back as provisions.

Once he was done, he sat cross-legged and began cultivating.

As soon as he circulated his cultivation technique, he sensed something was off.

The spiritual energy deep in the mine seemed denser than outside?

"Could there be something deep within the ore vein?"

Lin Ye opened his eyes and looked toward the pitch-black mine.

He hesitated for a moment, then stood up and walked inside with a torch.

The mine was deep, and the farther he went, the hotter it became.

After about a quarter of an hour, Lin Ye reached the depths of the mine.

The miners had excavated a huge cavern here. Scattered Black Iron Ore was embedded in the surrounding walls, gleaming with a dark sheen in the torchlight.

Holding up the torch, Lin Ye carefully sensed where the energy was coming from.

At last, his gaze fell on a corner of the cavern wall.

There was a chunk of ore there, darker in color than the rest, about the size of a fist, with faint dark-golden patterns.

"Is this Black Iron Essence?"

Lin Ye's pupils contracted.

Black Iron Essence was the essence of Black Iron Ore. One jin could be refined from a hundred jin of ore, and it was used to forge high-grade common weapons.

One jin of Black Iron Essence was worth a hundred contribution points!

The chunk before him weighed at least three or four jin!

"I've struck it rich..."

Lin Ye took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

Soon, he noticed something was wrong.

This Black Iron Essence didn't seem to have formed naturally.

A peculiar pattern surrounded it, like some kind of formation, drawing in the energy around it to nourish the Black Iron Essence.

"Someone set up a formation here to nurture the ore?"

Lin Ye's heart tightened.

The art of nurturing ore used formations to gather spiritual energy and nourish the ore, raising its quality.

Anyone who could master such a technique had to be at least an inner-sect disciple, perhaps even an elder.

"This Black Iron Essence belongs to someone."

Lin Ye realized it at once.

If he tampered with it, he would surely be discovered.

At best, he'd be expelled from the sect. At worst, his cultivation would be crippled—or he'd even be executed.

Lin Ye suppressed his greed and turned to leave.

But just then—

[Special energy source detected. It can be absorbed and converted into points.]

[Absorb?]

Lin Ye stopped in his tracks.

Convert it into points?

He looked at the Black Iron Essence, torn with indecision.

Absorbing it might get him caught.

But if he didn't, this Black Iron Essence was worth at least three or four hundred contribution points—a fortune to him.

And it could be converted into points...

"I'll absorb just a little first and see what happens."

Lin Ye finally made up his mind.

He walked up to the Black Iron Essence and pressed his hand against the ore.

"Absorb."

The numbers flickered:

[Beginning absorption of special energy...]

[Warning: The absorption process may damage the energy source's structure and trigger the formation's alarm.]

[Continue?]

"Stop!"

Lin Ye immediately withdrew his hand, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

That was close.

If he'd triggered the formation's alarm, the person who set it up would know at once.

When that happened, he wouldn't be able to get away even if he tried.

"Looks like I can't touch this Black Iron Essence."

Lin Ye sighed and turned to leave.

But as he reached the entrance, a question suddenly occurred to him.

"Since someone set up a formation here to nurture the ore, they must come to check on it regularly. I took this mission—could I be suspected?"

"No, I need to find a way to distance myself from this."