The sky had already sunk into inky blue, and all was silent across the wilderness, with only Shen Ji’s robes rustling in the night wind. He traveled swiftly, his figure, phantomlike, sweeping over the rugged mountain paths, until he finally arrived at the West Mountain black mine, rumored to be a living hell on earth.
The mine was hidden deep within the dense forests of West Mountain, sealed off from the outside world by earthen and stone walls over ten feet high.
Atop the walls, in two watchtowers built from rough logs, shadowy figures could be seen moving about, their vigilant gazes sweeping over the dead, silent darkness below like searchlights.
Those imprisoned here were common folk and servants who had been abducted or sold here after committing offenses. Rumor had it that behind this man-eating mine stood some powerful and influential figure in the capital.
Shen Ji silently vaulted over the high wall, and a foul stench of ore dust, sweat, and blood hit him full in the face.
Straight ahead, several pitch-black mine shafts looked even more eerie and terrifying under the thin starlight, like man-eating monsters.
Not far away, a cluster of ramshackle makeshift shacks was where the miners lived.
Every room was packed with six or seven people. Shen Ji could sense the intertwined auras of despair, numbness, and suffering here, punctuated from time to time by heart-rending coughs or heavy wheezing like a broken bellows.
Across from the shacks stood a row of brick-and-stone buildings, brightly lit, from which endless sounds of laughter, cursing, and revelry drifted over. Inside, the guards and overseers were drinking and playing finger-guessing games with abandon, as if in another world.
Shen Ji carefully avoided the patrolling guards passing by, walked to the crude shacks, and carefully checked for Shuo Feng’s location, finally finding the dying Shuo Feng in the middle room.
Against the wall of the room, Shuo Feng lay curled up quietly in the corner, his breath faint. His body was crisscrossed with old and new whip wounds, bloodstains mixed with filth, and he was nothing but skin and bones. His once-handsome face was bruised and swollen, his lips split… a pitiful sight that bore no trace of the bright and graceful young man he had once been.
Shen Ji hid in the shadows and waited patiently until everyone in the room had fallen into a deep sleep. He then slipped quickly into the room and fed Shuo Feng the healing medicine he had taken from his space. The cool liquid slid down his throat, stirring Shuo Feng’s unconscious mind. Shuo Feng’s eyelashes fluttered a few times before he struggled to open his eyes.
When his blurred vision finally focused with effort and he made out the cold but faintly concerned features before him, Shuo Feng’s pupils contracted sharply, filled with disbelief. “Shen… Heir Shen? You… how could you…” His cracked lips moved, his voice hoarse and so faint it was almost inaudible.
“Don’t make a sound. I’m here to take you away.” Shen Ji said curtly, his voice very low. He helped Shuo Feng up in one motion, and the two quickly left the shack.
Shuo Feng was too badly injured; every movement made him gasp in pain. The medicine had only provided temporary relief, and his entire body was supported by Shen Ji.
After settling Shuo Feng temporarily in a secluded corner nearby, Shen Ji said in a low voice, “Wait for me here for a moment.” Then his figure quickly moved toward the high wall.
Shen Ji approached the wall silently. Huge torches were stuck at intervals along the top of the wall, crackling as they burned, while below the wall, several guards patrolled back and forth.
Shen Ji pulled a small black bottle labeled with a skull from his space… his last remaining “trump card.” Condensing wisps of invisible cold air at his fingertips, he evenly scattered the gray powder from the bottle onto the torches at the two gates and the watchtowers!
BOOM… !!!
An earth-shattering explosion suddenly tore through the deathly silent night sky! The sturdy wooden gates were instantly ripped into countless burning fragments by the violent blast, bursting open with a roar!
Both watchtowers let out cracking sounds at the same time, swayed violently in the firelight, and collapsed with a crash, sending stones and wood splinters raining down! The mine instantly fell into chaos.
“Ah… !”
“Enemy attack! We’re under attack!”
“The wall collapsed! Someone come quick!”
The dead silence of the night suddenly boiled over! Cries, curses, and the guards’ harsh shouts mingled into a din, chaos like a pot of porridge boiling over!
Chaos was the best cover! Like a bolt of black lightning, Shen Ji dashed back to Shuo Feng’s hiding spot in a few strides and, without a word, scooped up the still-stunned Shuo Feng in his arms!
“Hold on tight!” Shen Ji barked, putting force into his steps as he charged toward the nearest huge breach!
“Over there! Grab him!” A torch-bearing guard with sharp eyes happened to spot Shen Ji leaping out of the breach with someone in his arms and immediately roared at the top of his lungs, “Someone’s escaping! With a prisoner! After them!”
With a rush, a squad of ferocious-looking guards, blades in hand, charged out from behind like hyenas that had caught the scent of blood! Torchlight flickered wildly through the dark woods.
Shen Ji, carrying Shuo Feng, did not slow down in the slightest; phantomlike, he darted left and right using the terrain, deliberately choosing the most difficult paths. He intentionally led the pursuers behind him farther and farther from the mine, gradually deeper into a narrow valley.
“Damn it! Is this kid part rabbit? Running that fast!”
“He’s run into a dead end! Let’s see where he can run now! Catch up and chop him to pieces!”
The pursuers chased into the valley, panting for breath. Just then, Shen Ji, running in front, stopped abruptly and carefully set Shuo Feng down behind a large boulder.
“Stay put, and don’t make a sound.”
Shen Ji turned and walked straight toward the seven or eight ferocious mine guards chasing after him. A sliver of moonlight leaked through the narrow gap of the valley, illuminating Shen Ji’s expressionless face… his eyes as cold as a frozen deep pool.
The guards were startled by his sudden turn and icy stare, then closed in with sinister grins: “Hahaha, kid, can’t run anymore? Or trying to play the hero? You’re asking for death!!”
Their answer was Shen Ji’s suddenly unleashed killing move! Shen Ji moved so fast that only afterimages remained! An icy-cold aura filled the narrow space. There were no flashy techniques… only the most direct, most lethal apocalypse attack!
His strikes were vicious and efficient. In just a few breaths, only a thick smell of blood and dead silence remained in the valley.
Shen Ji flicked the blood accidentally splattered on his hand, turned with an indifferent gaze and a calm expression, ignored Shuo Feng’s shock and confusion, walked straight over, and helped the young man up again, his movements still steady and strong, as if the bloody slaughter just now had never happened.
As for whether the miners in the mine could seize this once-in-a-lifetime chance to escape with their lives? That would depend on their own fate. Still, with such a huge commotion, some of them should be able to get out.
Shen Ji did not linger. His figure melted into the deeper darkness of the night as he brought Shuo Feng to Old Li’s place to settle him in.