Workouts and Schemes

"Everyone, this way. This is the mine belonging to the Ouyang Household."

A towering mountain rose before them, and people were already waiting at the entrance.

The group got down from their carriages and walked over.

The sounds of mining, "clang, clang" and "clank, clank," rang out from inside at intervals.

"This mine has been operated by the Ouyang Household for decades. It runs extremely deep and connects to all sorts of places, with passages leading everywhere. Some areas have bred wild beasts, which have made their lairs there."

"Because the area is so vast, some passages have been abandoned, while others contain comparatively precious ores that we cannot excavate for the time being."

"They have inadvertently become our mine guards. Normally, these wild beasts rarely come into contact with the tunnels we are currently mining, so we simply leave them be."

"The mine we are heading toward is somewhat deeper. Most of the places there were left behind after the ore was excavated. Some of the remaining ores possess special nourishing properties, which have instead made the area a paradise for medicinal herbs."

"Some extremely precious medicinal herbs can only be cultivated after being nourished by this kind of ore. Outside, it is nearly impossible for them to find suitable conditions to survive."

The group walked along as they listened to the guide's explanation.

Naturally, this explanation was meant for Lin Xiaotian and Master Huang.

When they were two or three hundred meters from the mine, branching passages began to appear.

"It will no longer be suitable to proceed farther from here. Aside from those participating in this medicinal-herb training trip, everyone else, please wait here."

"Several crude stone dwellings have been dug out nearby. You can rest here and have something to eat or drink."

Master Huang stopped, replied with a "Good," then pulled him aside and gave him a few instructions:

"Lin Xiaotian, no matter what happens inside, the moment you sense something wrong, prioritize staying alive. I can certainly protect you here."

Lin Xiaotian looked at both sides of the cave. The people welcoming them were all at the External Force level, and even some of those stationed here were at least at the External Force level. There were quite a few of them.

He looked at his master and replied:

"Master, there are many External Force practitioners here, and the Ouyang Household's head has come personally as well. They are determined to get their hands on me."

Master Huang nodded.

"That is why I came personally. You need not worry. If we had been surrounded here earlier, then even with my Internal Force cultivation, I might have fallen."

"But after that battle with the Ouyang Household's head, you should have noticed something, right?"

Lin Xiaotian blinked. He had only felt that his master's Eight Extremes Mountain-Shattering Force seemed somewhat different.

At the time, he had merely assumed that his master had trained it better and had not thought any deeper. Now that Master Huang had brought it up, he immediately felt that there had indeed been something unusual about it, though he could not explain exactly what.

Master Huang lowered his voice and slowed his tone.

"Xiaotian, ever since the day you entered the sect, I have hidden in the shadows, quietly observing every prospective disciple."

"Your Blood Qi was somewhat special back then. By rights, you should not have been able to complete the Initiation normally, yet you passed at the critical moment."

"Afterward, I continually observed every one of your training sessions. Through the changes in your outward Blood Qi, you gave me tremendous inspiration. That was how I achieved the effect of amplifying my force."

Lin Xiaotian's eyes widened. After all that, he had actually helped his master grow indirectly.

In other words, his master had come partly because he was confident in his strength, and partly to repay him.

"Master, that really isn't necessary. This matter is quite dangerous. I'm just afraid that whatever I'm involved in is too important to the Ouyang Household, to the point that they would rather offend you than give it up."

Master Huang softened his voice. "Xiaotian, don't think I came merely because I'm grateful for the inspiration you gave my Martial Dao."

"We martial practitioners seek to become strong, and there are some things we must fight for. Even if we know we are facing death, so long as there is a sliver of hope, we must fight for it."

"What the Ouyang Household seeks from you is nothing more than that old bastard Dongli's matter. If they can combine the information they possess with what they learn from you and deduce something..."

"For me, that would also be an opportunity—an opportunity to take my strength one step further."

"Disciple, what I comprehended was Blood-Qi Resonance. I'll tell you about it, and you can use it as a reference..."

Lin Xiaotian gave him a complicated look. After listening to his account, he bowed in thanks, then returned to the fork in the passage.

"All right, let's go. Your teacher really treats you well."

As Ouyang Nianci spoke, she led four members of the Ouyang Household down one of the branching passages.

The farther they went, the darker and more secluded it became. The "clang" and "clank" sounds gradually faded into the distance.

This place seemed like another passage winding through darkness. A faint light illuminated the entire tunnel, casting a murky jade-green glow that inexplicably stirred unease and fear in anyone who saw it.

"Junior Brother Lin, you'll need to be more careful from here on. Some wild beasts appear in this area, and they'll treat us as intruders into their territory."

"We have to stay ready at all times. The moment a wild beast pounces, we must annihilate it immediately."

"Prolonged fighting may attract other wild beasts from the caves nearby, following the sound here."

Lin Xiaotian nodded to show that he understood.

At that moment, a wild beast suddenly roared from somewhere in the darkness and charged over.

Its momentum was fierce, catching them completely off guard.

Even though the special Blood Qi had strengthened Lin Xiaotian in every aspect, he still almost failed to react in time.

He twisted aside and dodged the beast's attack.

The beast's claws actually tore through his clothes.

This really is a good place for training.

"Junior Brother Lin, watch out!" several members of the Ouyang Household shouted.

"Junior Brother Lin, these wild beasts are skilled at hiding in this half-darkness. If you aren't used to the environment, it's easy to fall prey to them."

Lin Xiaotian nodded. That was indeed the case.

Then Lin Xiaotian stepped forward and launched his first attack against a wild beast.

Bang! Bang!

After several palm strikes, he still failed to hit it, which left Lin Xiaotian astonished. Even his eyes widened in surprise.

At that moment, several more wild beasts charged out.

The Ouyang Household members reacted much faster this time. They drew either blades or swords and rushed to kill the beasts that had emerged.

Before long, the wild beasts were all slain.

After Lin Xiaotian adapted to the beast's movements, he also spent some effort killing the one before him.

"Junior Brother Lin, you're quite impressive. Whenever members of our Ouyang Household come here for training, they get injured at the beginning. Many inexperienced ones even need someone who has been here before to protect them."

"Otherwise, they might even lose their lives. Junior Brother Lin, you're something else."

Ouyang Nianci ran over and looked him over, then glanced at the dead wild beast. Her eyes held a peculiar gleam.

"Junior Brother Lin, these wild beasts may be survivors of battles among their own kind, which would mean only the strongest remained. It's also possible that they became strong because they absorbed the essence of these ores."

"Their bodies have become extremely tough. For ordinary practitioners below the External Force level, unless they strike a vital point, it is extremely difficult to kill these beasts."

"Judging from the fact that the vital points on this beast were barely struck by your palms, your palm technique is rather special."

Lin Xiaotian's heart trembled, but his face showed an expression of lucky coincidence as he said:

"I'm just a youngster who hasn't even completed Blood Tempering. How could I possess such palm power? It's only because the Eight Extremes Mountain-Shattering Force of the Huang Family Martial Hall is somewhat special. When it strikes a vital point, the damage is extremely difficult to detect."

The others nodded, while Ouyang Nianci looked thoughtful.

"Here, take this short blade, Junior Brother Lin." Ouyang Nianci directly tossed him a knife.

Lin Xiaotian caught it. It was not an exceptional weapon, but it was still a good blade, reflecting a layer of white light in the dim cave.

"You've experienced the wild beasts in the cave now. If they knew martial techniques, their brute strength and toughness would be nearly equivalent to the External Force level."

"Even when striking a vital point with your feet or fists, you need to kill them in one blow. Only by infusing weapons with our Blood Qi can we produce enough lethality to kill these beasts."

Lin Xiaotian thanked her. He thought about the method he had just used. It was precisely the insight into Blood-Qi Resonance that Master Huang had taught him in the cave.

He had not expected to use it in a moment of crisis.

Blood-Qi Resonance could not only amplify attack power; it could also strike deeper. In other words, it possessed penetrating force.

He had performed too conspicuously just now. He needed to keep a lower profile, accumulate more trump cards, and gain another layer of assurance when dealing with these people's schemes later.

"Junior Brother Lin, we won't fight the wild beasts that appear from here on. We'll leave them all to you. This training will help you tremendously."

"We'll have plenty of opportunities in the future, but Junior Brother Lin may not have many."

Lin Xiaotian expressed his thanks, his face showing excitement, but inwardly he understood perfectly well.

These people were definitely not being as kind as they appeared. First, they wanted to gauge his true strength. Second, they wanted to exhaust his stamina.