Secret of the Mine

Lin Ye looked toward the depths of the mine.

This mine was a "Black Iron" mine belonging to the Qingyun Sect, which produced a low-grade refining material of little value.

Naturally, the miners were mostly ordinary people; very few martial artists would do such grueling labor.

I wonder if there is any danger inside...

Just as Lin Ye was thinking this, a startled cry suddenly echoed from within the mine.

"There's a demonic beast!"

Following that came the panicked figures and shouts of the miners.

Lin Ye's eyes narrowed. He immediately stood up and rushed into the mine.

The interior of the mine was quite spacious, with torches hanging on the walls providing dim light.

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

The beast was nearly two meters long, covered in black scales, and possessed sharp claws that were currently digging frantically into the mine wall.

"It's a Burrowing Beast, a first-rank demonic beast equivalent to the third stage of Body Tempering!" Foreman Wang shouted hurriedly upon seeing Lin Ye, "Little brother, help us out!"

Lin Ye did not hesitate; he drew the iron sword from his back and charged forward.

The Burrowing Beast sensed the danger and turned to pounce on him. It was fast, its claws slicing through the air with a piercing whistle.

Lin Ye dodged to the side while thrusting his sword out.

"Clang!"

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

Such tough scales!

Lin Ye felt a jolt of surprise.

The Burrowing Beast, stung by the pain, became even more violent, its tail sweeping out like a steel whip.

Lin Ye shifted his feet, sliding away like a fish, and struck with his sword again.

He aimed for the Burrowing Beast's eyes.

"Puchi!"

The iron sword pierced into its eye, and blood splattered.

The Burrowing Beast let out a shrill, miserable cry and struggled frantically.

Lin Ye seized the opportunity to strike three more times, each blow landing precisely on its weak points, such as its eyes and mouth.

The Burrowing Beast collapsed with a thud, twitched a few times, and then went still.

"Hoo..."

Lin Ye sheathed his sword, breathing slightly heavily.

Although the fight had been brief, he had used his full strength.

"Little brother, great skills!" Foreman Wang walked over and patted Lin Ye on the shoulder, still shaken, "These Burrowing Beasts usually stay deep in the mines and rarely come out. I don't know what got into this one today."

"It might have been disturbed." Lin Ye put away his iron sword, "Foreman Wang, how should we handle the beast's carcass?"

"The carcass belongs to whoever killed it." Foreman Wang laughed, "The Burrowing Beast's scales can sell for ten contribution points, the claws for five, and the meat can fetch some money too. Little brother, you've made a killing."

Lin Ye's eyes lit up.

Fifteen contribution points, plus the twenty-four points from the mission reward, made thirty-nine contribution points in total.

"Many thanks, Foreman Wang."

"Don't thank me, you killed it yourself." Foreman Wang waved his hand, "By the way, I saw those few strikes of yours—fast and accurate. Have you practiced swordsmanship?"

"I only know the basics." Lin Ye said modestly.

"Basics?" Foreman Wang shook his head, "I don't think so. That footwork of yours, the angle of your strikes—that's definitely not something an ordinary third-stage Body Tempering cultivator would have. Brother, you're hiding quite a lot."

Lin Ye felt a start, but he kept his expression calm: "Foreman Wang is joking, it was just good luck."

Foreman Wang looked at him, smiled, and did not press the matter further.

"Alright, drag this beast out and process it. There shouldn't be any more trouble today; you can go back to your wooden hut to rest."

"Yes."

Lin Ye dragged the carcass of the Burrowing Beast out of the mine.

He did not process it immediately, instead leaving it by the wooden hut while he continued to stand guard at the mine entrance.

It wasn't until evening, when the miners finished their work and left and Foreman Wang had departed, that Lin Ye returned to the hut and began to process the beast's carcass.

By the time he finished, it was completely dark.

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

After finishing these tasks, he sat cross-legged and began to cultivate.

As soon as he began circulating his cultivation technique, he sensed something was wrong.

The spiritual energy deep within the mine seemed to be denser than it was outside.

Could there be something deep inside the vein?

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

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

The mine was very deep, and the further he went, the higher the temperature became.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Lin Ye arrived at the depths of the mine.

The miners had already excavated a massive hollow here, and scattered Black Iron ore was embedded in the surrounding walls, gleaming with a dark luster under the light of his torch.

Lin Ye held the torch high, carefully sensing the source of that energy.

Eventually, his gaze landed on a corner of the cave wall.

There, a piece of ore with a deeper color than the rest sat, the size of a fist, with faint dark-gold patterns running through it.

"Is this Black Iron Essence?"

Lin Ye's pupils constricted.

Black Iron Essence was the refined essence of Black Iron ore; it took one hundred catties of Black Iron ore to extract one catty of Black Iron Essence, and it was a material used to forge superior-grade mortal weapons.

One catty of Black Iron Essence was worth one hundred contribution points!

And the piece in front of him weighed at least three or four catties!

"I'm rich..."

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

Soon, he discovered a problem.

This piece of Black Iron Essence did not seem to have formed naturally.

Around it, there were peculiar patterns, like some kind of formation, gathering the surrounding energy to nourish this piece of Black Iron Essence.

Someone set up a formation here? To cultivate the ore?

Lin Ye felt a chill in his heart.

Cultivating ore was a secret technique that used formations to gather spiritual energy to nourish ore and improve its quality.

Anyone capable of mastering such a secret technique had to be at least an inner disciple, if not an elder.

This Black Iron Essence has an owner.

Lin Ye realized this immediately.

If he touched it, he would inevitably be discovered.

If that happened, the best-case scenario was expulsion from the sect; the worst-case was having his cultivation crippled or even being executed.

Lin Ye suppressed the greed in his heart and turned to leave.

But just then.

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

[Absorb?]

Lin Ye's footsteps faltered.

Converted into points?

He looked at the Black Iron Essence, a battle raging within his mind.

If he absorbed it, he might be discovered.

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

Besides, it could be converted into points...

I'll just absorb a tiny bit and see.

Lin Ye finally made his decision.

He walked up to the Black Iron Essence and reached out to press his hand against the ore.

"Absorb."

Numbers flickered:

[Beginning to absorb special energy...]

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

[Continue?]

"Stop!"

Lin Ye immediately pulled his hand back, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

That was close.

If the formation alarm were triggered, the person who set it up would know instantly.

By then, he wouldn't be able to escape even if he wanted to.

"It seems this piece of Black Iron Essence cannot be moved."

Lin Ye sighed and turned to leave.

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

"Since someone set up a formation here to cultivate the ore, they must come to check on it frequently. If I accepted this mission, will I be suspected?"

"No, I have to find a way to clear my name."