The interior of the mine shaft was far more oppressive than Chen Ping had imagined.
The torchlight flickered with a dim, sickly yellow glow, illuminating only a fraction of the darkness.
The air was foul, thick with dust and a peculiar, faintly nauseating smell.
Slippery mud and loose stones lay underfoot. Jagged rocks jutted from the ceiling, looking as though they might collapse at any moment.
The clanging sounds of pickaxes striking rock echoed through the narrow tunnels. The noise was dull and monotonous, punctuated only by muffled coughs and the sound of labored breathing.
Chen Ping received a short-handled mining pick and a crude wicker back basket.
He was assigned to Tunnel Bing-Seven, a branch tunnel located deep within the mountain’s gut. The miners working there were all sallow and emaciated, with sunken eyes and numb, lifeless expressions.
No one spoke. Only the rhythmic strike of metal against stone filled the air.
Chen Ping found a spot where the ore vein seemed slightly more exposed and swung his pickaxe.
Clang!
Sparks flew.
The hard rock wall yielded only a single piece of rubble the size of a fingernail.
A tremendous recoil sent a numbing shock shooting up his arm.
The rock here was more than ten times harder than the blocks at the Back Mountain Stone Quarry!
Gritting his teeth, he swung the pickaxe again.
Once, twice…
Sweat soon soaked through his thin clothes, mixing with the pervasive dust to form a layer of sticky mud plastered against his skin.
With every breath, he felt tiny particles invading his nostrils and sinking deep into his throat, carrying a strange, icy sensation.
That peculiar mine odor seeped into his lungs with each inhalation.
After just half a day’s work, Chen Ping felt a tightness in his chest. His breathing became difficult, and a faint, throbbing headache set in.
This wasn’t mere exhaustion. It felt more like… a slow erosion of his body.
Ore Toxin!
The rumors were true.
The air in the Spirit Mine District contained a life-threatening poison.
The longer one stayed, and the deeper one dug, the more severe the poisoning became.
Over the next few days, this feeling grew increasingly pronounced.
Returning to his shack after work, he often felt dizzy. His vision blurred, his limbs felt weak, and a weight like a heavy stone pressed constantly on his chest.
He forced himself to practice the Vitality Technique, but it helped much less than before.
Chen Ping’s heart sank. All at once, he felt he had lost both his strength and any means of saving himself.
The bold aspirations of just days ago were being quickly worn away by the Ore Toxin.
He had to find a way.
Unless he found a way, reaching one thousand jin of strength was out of the question. He might not even survive three months.
Chen Ping began paying attention to the miners around him.
During breaks, he sat silently in a corner, pricking up his ears to catch their whispers and complaints.
“Cough… cough… This damned place. Another two months here, and I’ll probably cough myself to death…”
“Save your breath. Focus on saving up enough Spirit Crystals to trade for some Purifying Grass…”
“Easier said than done! A hundred jin of ore for just two Spirit Crystals! A single stalk of Purifying Grass costs five! That’s two and a half months of your life!”
“Still better than being poisoned outright… I hear that grass not only detoxifies but can also boost your strength by a lot…”
“Nonsense! You’d need to live long enough to save up first…”
Purifying Grass!
The name struck Chen Ping like a bolt of lightning in the darkness.
He inconspicuously moved closer to two old miners who were whispering. He offered them a small piece of dried Wild Boar meat he had prepared himself.
The dried meat was a rare treat, even though miners in the Spirit Mine District had no shortage of food.
“Brothers,” Chen Ping said, feigning weakness and confusion in his voice. “I overheard you mention… Purifying Grass? What is that? Can it really cure the poison from this mine?”
One old miner glanced warily at him, then at the dried meat in his own hand. After a moment’s hesitation, he spoke quietly.
“You’re new, lad? Becoming a Regular Disciple so young means you have talent. But with talent like yours, why would the Managers send you down here? It’s strange!”
The old miner sighed softly before continuing.
“You must learn about Purifying Grass! The sect’s Medicine Hall supplies it especially for this mine poison. Eat one plant and it expels most of the poison built up in your body. You feel better all over! I hear it does us mortals a great deal of good and even makes us much stronger!”
“It’s that powerful?” Chen Ping put on a look of surprise and longing. “Then… where do I get it? Is it expensive?”
“Expensive? It’s more than just expensive!”
The other old miner lowered his voice further, his tone filled with despair.
“You saw those sect Immortals outside? You can buy it from them, five Spirit Crystals a plant! We work ourselves half to death for a month to dig one hundred jin of ore, and get just two Spirit Crystals! Five Spirit Crystals… two and a half months of our lives, and even that might not be enough!”
Five Spirit Crystals!
Chen Ping’s heart sank heavily.
That price was astronomical for miners like them. The source of this chapter is g.com.
“Isn’t there… any cheaper way?”
Chen Ping persisted, unwilling to give up. A barely perceptible note of urgency entered his voice. “What about… seeds? Growing it ourselves?”
“Seeds?”
The first old miner snorted derisively, as if mocking Chen Ping’s naivety.
“Spirit herb seeds are treasures too! But… I hear Purifying Grass is considered the lowest-tier spirit herb in the eyes of Immortals. Its seeds aren’t as precious as the mature plants. The Immortals sell them too, at much cheaper prices—about one Spirit Crystal per seed! I heard many disciples bought them before…”
He paused, shaking his head with another sigh.
“But what’s the use? They all got cheated! They give you seeds—but can you grow them? Spirit herb seeds need Spirit Fields! They need Qi nourishment! We Mortals haven’t even seen what a Spirit Field looks like. Buying a seed just to keep as a decoration? A complete waste of one Spirit Crystal! Better off saving up for mature grass. Even though… sigh!”
The old miner spoke with heartfelt regret, as if he himself had fallen for this trick in the past.
One Spirit Crystal per seed!
Pure elation instantly dispersed the tightness in Chen Ping’s chest.
His heart pounded violently against his ribs, as if trying to break free.
Spirit Fields? Qi?
His Jade Pendant space!
That small patch of land inside—the soil had an oddly warm, moist feel. The Spirit Grain planted there grew incredibly fast.
Could that place inside… be a Spirit Field?
Could it contain Qi?!
The thought spread through his mind like wildfire.
The Jade Pendant space was his greatest secret—and his only chance to survive.
Suppressing the urge to jump up in excitement, he maintained an expression of bitterness and despair on his face as he thanked the two old miners.
In his heart, a crystal-clear plan had already formed.
Wages! He needed his wages! He absolutely had to receive this month’s wages!
One Spirit Crystal!
He would buy one Purifying Grass seed!
And with that single seed… he would grow himself an entire future.
Just like back then, when he obtained that single Spirit Grain seed—it would save his life!