In the dim and damp mine tunnel, Lu Ye carried a mining basket and held a pickaxe in his hand, taking one step after another forward.
The young man's expression was somewhat melancholy, his eyes focused on the empty space in front of him, as if staring at something.
To outsiders, there was nothing in front of Lu Ye, but in the young man's field of vision, he could see a translucent shadow.
It looked like the shadow of a tree, gray and indistinct, with lush branches and leaves. The branches split from one-third of the trunk, supporting a semi-circular canopy.
Lu Ye had been in this world called Jiuzhou for more than a year, but he still hadn't figured out what this thing was. He only knew that when his attention was sufficiently focused, this shadowy tree had a chance to appear in his field of vision, and no one else could detect it.
"Truly a miserable life," the young man sighed.
A year ago, he suddenly woke up in this unfamiliar world. Before he could get familiar with the environment, the force he was in was attacked by a group of bandits. Many people were killed, and he, along with some other young men and women, became captives of the bandits and were sent to this mine to become lowly mine slaves.
It was only later that he learned from the scattered conversations of others that the force he was in belonged to the Haotian Alliance, a sect called Xuantian Sect.
The name of this sect sounded cool and powerful, but in reality, it was just a minor sect.
The attackers of the Xuantian Sect were the Evil Moon Valley under the command of the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge.
The Haotian Alliance and the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge were the two major factions in this world, both formed by countless large and small forces, constantly clashing and trying to completely eliminate each other, a conflict that had lasted for hundreds of years.
In Lu Ye's view, this struggle was simply the conflict between the lawful and the evil factions, and he had been inadvertently caught up in this great tide of conflict.
Over the years, the Jiuzhou continent had been ravaged by war, and every year, small forces like the Xuantian Sect were uprooted, but soon more forces sprang up like mushrooms after the rain, occupying various territories and making the situation even more chaotic.
Being a mine slave was fine... Lu Ye consoled himself. Compared to those who were killed, at least he was still alive.
His survival wasn't due to any special abilities, but because the Evil Moon Valley needed some laborers. People like Lu Ye, who had no cultivation and were young, were the best choice.
In fact, the mine slaves in this mine were not just from the Xuantian Sect but also from other small families and sects.
The Evil Moon Valley was not weak and had occupied many territories over the years. The original forces in these territories were naturally destroyed, and some of the useful people were sent to various places to be enslaved.
These people all had one thing in common: they had not yet opened their spiritual orifices and had no cultivation, making them easy to control.
There was a saying in the Jiuzhou continent: demons cannot transform without opening their orifices, and humans cannot cultivate without opening their orifices.
To cultivate, one must open their spiritual orifices. Only by opening the orifices does one have the qualifications to cultivate.
Opening the orifices is not an easy task. Among ordinary people, only about one in a hundred can open their orifices after systematic training. If one comes from a cultivation family or sect and has guidance from elders, the ratio might be higher.
Lu Ye had not been able to open his orifices, so he could only dig in the dim mine tunnel for a living.
However, being a mine slave was not without a way out. If one could successfully open their orifices and report to the overseer, they would have the opportunity to participate in an assessment. If they passed, they could become a disciple of the Evil Moon Valley.
However, very few mine slaves could open their orifices. Working in the dim environment all day, barely getting enough to eat, how could they open their orifices?
So, almost all the mine slaves had resigned themselves to their fate, working hard every day just to get a full meal.
Lu Ye had no sense of belonging to the Xuantian Sect. After all, he had just arrived in this world when the Xuantian Sect was destroyed, and he didn't know anyone in the sect.
He didn't want to become a disciple of the Evil Moon Valley either. It wasn't a proper force, and just the name gave it an evil feel, destined to fall sooner or later.
But he couldn't stay here as a mine slave for the rest of his life. After all, he was a modern elite, and what's the point of living without dreams?
So, he had been trying to open his orifices for the past year. He originally thought that the shadowy tree, which only he could see, might provide some magical help, but so far, the shadowy tree was still just a shadow, offering no help and sometimes even affecting his vision.
Lu Ye seriously suspected that there might be something wrong with his eyes.
Turning a corner, a faint light appeared in the distance, one of the mine tunnel exits.
Today's harvest was good. If he turned in the minerals in his basket, he would get three contribution points. Adding the points from the previous days, he would have about twelve points. Two points could be exchanged for two steamed buns, and the remaining ten points would be enough to exchange for a Blood Qi Pill.
The Blood Qi Pill was a very low-level pill, not an aid for opening orifices, but to open orifices, one must have abundant blood and qi. Although the Blood Qi Pill was low-level, it was suitable for someone like Lu Ye who had not yet opened their orifices.
The Evil Moon Valley was not being kind by providing Blood Qi Pills. They understood human nature well. This cheapest and lowest-level pill could make people with hope work harder in the mines.
For example, Lu Ye... he worked very diligently every day.
Thirty paces from the mine tunnel exit, Lu Ye's gaze inadvertently swept over a corner to the left, where a large rock lay.
He continued walking without stopping, and when he was about ten paces away, he put down the mining basket on his back, tightened his grip on the pickaxe, and took out a rock of appropriate size from the basket, weighing it in his hand.
In the next moment, he ran towards the large rock. Just before reaching it, he slid to the side, stepped on the rock wall, and used the rebound to dive towards the back of the rock, like a nimble leopard.
Two figures were crouching behind the rock, using it to hide their bodies. They hadn't expected anyone to discover their presence.
Hearing the noise, they tried to get up but it was too late.
Under their terrified gaze, Lu Ye threw the rock in his hand, hitting one of them on the nose. The man let out a painful cry and fell backward, blood streaming from his face.
Lu Ye's pickaxe swung again but missed the second person, who reacted quickly and dodged.
However, Lu Ye had already rushed to him and kicked him in the stomach. The man's face contorted in pain, flying backward and kneeling on the ground, spitting out a mouthful of sour water.
Lu Ye stepped forward, grabbed the man's hair, and recognized his face, sneering, "I wondered who it was, it's you two!"
He recognized these two men, disciples of the Liu family. After the Liu family's territory was occupied by the Evil Moon Valley, some of the young disciples were sent here to be mine slaves.
Strictly speaking, Lu Ye and the Liu brothers were in the same boat.
"Didn't I tell you not to let me see you again, or I'd kill you!" As Lu Ye spoke, he picked up a rock from the ground and smashed it down.
The blow was hard, and the younger Liu brother only groaned once before being knocked unconscious.
Lu Ye then walked to the older Liu brother.
The older Liu brother's forehead was smashed, blood blurring his vision. Seeing Lu Ye approaching, he was terrified and crawled away, pleading, "Spare my life, we didn't know it was you, we thought it was someone else... spare my life!"
The Liu brothers had been hiding at the mine tunnel exit with no good intentions.
Before they were captured, they were pampered, and even as mine slaves, they were unwilling to endure hardship. However, mine slaves were lowly, and the Evil Moon Valley people didn't treat them as humans. Without minerals to exchange for contribution points, they couldn't get food.
So, the two brothers often squatted at a mine tunnel exit, robbing lone mine slaves. Many people suffered, not only losing the minerals they had worked hard to mine but also being beaten half to death.
The last time they tried to rob Lu Ye, they were not a match and were taught a lesson.
He hadn't expected to run into these two brothers again so soon.
Different people have different natures. Among the mine slaves, there were lazy and greedy ones like the Liu brothers, and there were those with dreams like Lu Ye.
Over the past year, the contribution points Lu Ye had earned from mining, besides ensuring his daily meals, were all exchanged for Blood Qi Pills.
In total, he had taken no less than thirty Blood Qi Pills.
This had made Lu Ye's physique stronger than most mine slaves. Although he wasn't muscular, the strength within his body surpassed that of ordinary people.
Dealing with two lazy mine slaves was no problem for him.
The older Liu brother was still begging for mercy, but Lu Ye ignored him, grabbed his hair, and raised the rock in his other hand, smashing it down.
After more than a year as a mine slave, Lu Ye had seen too many tragedies and understood that in this dog-eat-dog world, any pity or sympathy was useless.
The mine slaves were not united. Mine slaves from different forces were destined not to unite, and they often fought over good minerals, leaving each other bloodied.
People died in the mine tunnels every day, and one could see scattered skeletons every few steps.
Many mine slaves starved to death because they were robbed.
The older Liu brother fell to the ground with a thud.
Lu Ye picked up his pickaxe, put the mining basket back on his back, and walked towards the exit. He didn't kill the Liu brothers, not out of mercy, but because injured mine slaves generally didn't survive long.
Just a few steps away, a person suddenly rushed in from the exit, panicked.
"Get out of the way!" the person shouted, slapping Lu Ye.
In that instant, Lu Ye felt a chill all over his body, for he saw a faint blue light in the person's palm.
It was the light of spiritual energy, meaning the person was a cultivator!
Opening the orifices was the qualification for cultivation and the title of cultivator.
The spiritual energy of cultivators was a very magical force. Lu Ye had once seen a cultivator from the Evil Moon Valley in action. Although the power wasn't overwhelming, the person had shattered a rock with a light slap. Witnessing that magical moment, Lu Ye had resolved to open his orifices and become a cultivator.
He had also secretly assessed that even the lowest-level cultivator in the Evil Moon Valley could easily beat ten of him.
So, when he realized that the person attacking him was a cultivator, he knew he was in big trouble.
In the critical moment, he stopped and leaped backward.
His chest went numb, and the sound of bones breaking echoed. Lu Ye was thrown backward and fell to the ground.
The intense pain cleared his mind. Realizing he was still alive, he immediately got up.
"Hey!" the cultivator was surprised. Although he hadn't used full strength, just a casual slap, it shouldn't have been something a mine slave could withstand.
Seeing the mine slave's face in the dim light, he exclaimed, "Lu Ye?"
Lu Ye was already in a position to run but was stunned by the voice. "Manager Yang?"
This cultivator surnamed Yang was a minor overseer at the mine. Lu Ye often dealt with him, as the Blood Qi Pills were exchanged from him, so they were familiar with each other.
Manager Yang had a good opinion of Lu Ye, as hardworking and diligent mine slaves were rare.
However, a good opinion was one thing, and there was a huge gap between a cultivator and an ordinary person like Lu Ye, who had not yet opened his orifices.
After recognizing Lu Ye, Manager Yang was relieved that his slap hadn't killed him. Lu Ye had exchanged many Blood Qi Pills from him over the past year, making his physical condition stronger than the average mine slave. Plus, it was just a casual slap, not intended to kill, so it wasn't surprising that Lu Ye survived.
Manager Yang was surprised, but Lu Ye was on edge.
Cultivators from the Evil Moon Valley generally didn't care about the lives of mine slaves. They knew that mine slaves often fought and brawled in the mines, and unless they saw it, they usually didn't intervene.
Lu Ye had just beaten the Liu brothers bloody and unconscious, and then Manager Yang slapped him. In Lu Ye's view, this was clearly a reprimand from Manager Yang.
However, he soon realized it was not the case, as Manager Yang's expression was panicked, not like he was avenging the Liu brothers.
While he was thinking, Manager Yang's face showed surprise, as if encountering Lu Ye was a good thing. He stepped forward and grabbed Lu Ye's shoulder, "Follow me!"