Chapter 4.

Taeyang felt a sturdy hand grab his neck from behind. In the next moment his face smashed the ground. The hand raised him up like a little child and its owner walked out of the hut.

??? - You are lucky we are short of workers, I, Wu Chen would have killed you instantly.

Taeyang - Allow me to explain…

Wu Chen - If you open that mouth of yours, I will kill you.

Confused, Taeyang tried to explain but Wu Chen did not let him. Rather Wu Chen flaunted his strength and swung Taeyang’s body about as he walked. Taeyang felt powerless and weak in Wu Chen’s hand.

“What realm is he at? Mid-tier, top-tier, peak?” Taeyang thought. He could tell Wu Chen was at the foundation establishment realm but he couldn’t determine what tier he was on.

Wu Chen - We are all working hard to get as much resources as we need to survive the western cold wind and you dare to slack off. I would take you to the deep regions and work you to your breaking point.

Taeyang - Senior, please listen…

Wu Chen - You court death!

Once again Taeyang tried to explain but Wu Chen’s roar caused him to shiver. The killing intent Wu Chen released at him made him shut his mouth. Wu Chen’s eyes made it crystal clear that he would die if he opened his mouth again.

Wu Chen swung his hand up and with a vertical swing down he slammed Taeyang into the ground. With his face pressed hard on the ground, Taeyang looked up at eyes that glared down at him.

Wu Chen - Do you really think I would not kill you? We may be short of workers but one less won’t make much of a difference.

With a snort, Wu Chen raised him up and walked away. Taeyang gagged under Wu Chen’s tight grip. Blood dripped from his forehead down his chin and dyed the white ground red.

In no time Wu Chen arrived a large cave. Taeyang heard the sounds of metals as they clashed on hard rocks. Two men guarded the cave entrance. They bowed slightly as Wu Chen angrily walked past them. The inside of the cave had dozens and dozens of people working in it. Some used pickaxes to mine Qi stones while a few went round and gathered the mined Qi stones with baskets and wooden carts.

Wu Chen - Manager Xi!

Wu Chen called out and tossed Taeyang to the ground. A man responded and ran up to me. The man had a very slim statue. He didn’t look malnourished but looked very weak.

Manager Xi - Sir Wu.

Wu Chen - Take this bastard to the deepest area and work him to his bones. Beat him senseless if he doesn’t cooperate.

Manager Xi - Yes sir.

Wu Chen stormed out of the cave. Taeyang took in a deep breath, he could finally breathe now that Wu Chen had left.

Manager Xi - You are new here?

Taeyang looked up at Manager Xi and examined him. Manager Xi was quite slim, with brown short hair, brown colored wide eyes, and a black tattered garment. He had a smile on his face and his right hand stretched out to Taeyang.

Taeyang - Yes, about a week ago.

Taeyang received the outstretched hand and got to his feet. ‘Foundation realm,” he thought. Manager Xi raised a brow at him, Taeyang’s words caught him off guard.

Manager Xi - A week ago? For you not to have been sent here, seems you were or are special.

Taeyang - I’m not special.

Taeyang refuted manager Xi’s praise and turned to those mining. They did bother about the duo and went on with their work. At one end Taeyang found a pile of pickaxes.

Manager Xi - Do you know why you were brought here?

At manager Xi’s question Taeyang turned back and tightened his fist. His eyes burned with rage and he so wished he could beat Wu Chen up.

Taeyang - I was cultivating and just made a breakthrough when he burst into the hut and attacked me.

Manager Xi - Who? Sir Wu?

Taeyang - Yes.

Manager Xi placed rubbed his chin and thought quietly. Taeyang case had a twist in it and if he didn’t handle it well he could end up being punished or he could loose his life.

Manager Xi - Grab a pickaxe and come with me.

Taeyang - Huh? Okay.

Taeyang did as he had been told and followed manager Xi who led him deeper into the cave. At first the deeper they went the more people they saw but then the numbers dropped as they continued further.

Manager Xi - Circulate your Qi and protect yourself from the cold.

As soon as manager Xi instructed, Taeyang felt a chilling sensation. It came out of nowhere and attacked his body. Just as manager Xi had said, Taeyang circulated his Qi, but he could barely fight the cold.

Manager Xi - You’ll get used to it.

Taeyang followed manager Xi who led the way without stopping for a second. The further in they went the lesser the number of people they came across and the more paths they came across. Sometimes, there were two paths, sometimes three. Soon they arrived at a big cave room.

Manager Xi - Solidify your realm first before you begin mining. After mining one thousand Qi stones you can rest for an hour before mining another hundred.

Taeyang - Alright.

Manager Xi faced the way they came from, took some steps then halted. “What’s your name?” he asked.

Taeyang - Taeyang.

Manager Xi - Alright. I won’t make things difficult for you after all we are both on the same realm. Even if you just broke through your strength wouldn’t be far behind mine. You should take advantage of your break and cultivate with the Qi stones you haven’t mined. It may look like a useless effort but at least it will prevent your realm from dropping. Many here don’t know that the cold slowly eats at your. Qi.

Taeyang - Thank you, I will.

Manager Xi left and Taeyang sat on the cold floor close to the cave walls. Solidification of his realm was his top priority. Before anything else his foundation needed to be strong and solid.

*****

Two days went by in a flash, manager Xi decided to pay check on Taeyang’s progress. During this two days neither Wu Chen nor anymore else had come to check or look for Taeyang. Manager Xi found it weird, Wu Chen would have to check on his progress. And if he was as special as manager Xi thought, one of the elders would have come looking. Yet for two days no one came.

Manager Xi - Huh? So many?

Manager Xi eyes widened when he stepped into the cave room. Several piles of Qi stones laid before his eyes. Because of them the cave room looked crapped.

Taeyang - Manager Xi, you are here.

Manager Xi faced Taeyang who stood at one end of the cave room. A pickaxe in his hand and tons of Qi stones at his feet.

Manager Xi - How long have you been mining?

Taeyang - A day plus I guess.

Manager Xi - You didn’t solidify realm?

Taeyang - Huh? I did. It took me a few hours to solidify my realm.

‘A few hours? It took me almost two days,” Manager Xi thought. ‘But still a days worth of work shouldn’t be like this.’

Manager Xi - Young lad, have you mined before?

Taeyang - Hm? Oh, yeah. We had an ore mine in our village.

Manager Xi - I see. Let’s go get some mine carts and transport these back. Right now we are the only ones that can reach this far because of the cold, so we’ll have to transport them alone.

Taeyang - Alright. You were right about the cold eating at our Qi.

Manager Xi smiled and led the way. Taeyang placed the pickaxe on his shoulder and followed him.

Manager Xi - I didn’t notice until I reached the foundation realm. Sadly my aptitude for cultivation isn’t above average, I wouldn’t be here.

Taeyang heard him give a quiet sigh. It seemed he had a chance to leave this mine but his talent wasn’t high enough for him to leave.

Taeyang - Sorry manager Xi.

Manager Xi - Haha it’s not big of deal. Being a manager here is not bad. Except the small occasional dangers my life is pretty good.

Taeyang - Occasional dangers?

Taeyang raised a brow at manager Xi even though he knew manager Xi couldn’t see it. He wondered what kind of dangers lied in the mine. Though the cold could be consider a danger Taeyang knew manager Xi wasn’t talking about that.

Manager Xi - We aren’t the only ones in the mine neither are we the only ones interested in the Qi stones.

Taeyang eyes twitched at manager Xi’s words. From what he heard he realized something or some creatures lived in the mine.

Manager Xi - Relax, it’s winter. Most of them are hibernating in the deep areas. The cold affects them too and if they don’t manage their energy they wouldn’t have any left to fight it.

Taeyang - How strong are they?

Manager Xi - Most are as strong as a mid-tier foundation realm cultivator. While some are as strong as a peak-tier.

Taeyang released a sigh of relief. Manager Xi’s explanation calmed him down a bit. He had a bit of confidence in running away from a beast equivalent to a mid-tier. Running from it shouldn’t be any different from running from wide animals.

However, a loud growl caused him to freeze. His heart flew out of his chest and his breathing halted. Manager Xi turned to him and flashed him a smile.

Manager Xi - It seems you are hungry.

Taeyang - Huh?

Taeyang placed his hand on his stomach. A sheepish smile appeared on his face while he scratched his head. In truth he was really hungry.

Manager Xi - Everyone is entitled to a meal once a day. You can get yours now if you want.

Taeyang - That would be great.

Manager Xi nodded and moved forward. Taeyang sighed as low as possible. He felt relieved and awkward at the same time.

Taeyang - Right, do we work everyday?

Manager Xi - It’s winter, we have to. We need as much Qi stones as we can get to survive it. Winter in this place isn’t like the outside, it is quite intense.

Taeyang - Oh… what’s going on?

The ground vibrated and caused the duo to react differently. Taeyang frowned while manager Xi tsk and bit his lower lip. Something was coming and it was coming fast. Manager brought out a bead and pressed it hard until it cracked to pieces. A blue light shot out from his hand and flew in the direction of the entrance.

Manager Xi - We need to get to the entrance.

The vibrations became much more rapid. Taeyang nodded at manager Xi, they had to get to the entrance as fast as possible. Guards were stationed there, most likely for moments like this. At the very least this should be one of the reasons why they had been stationed there.

Like a volcano, the ground before them erupted. It spat out rocks and debris in all directions. A loud cry echoed, a large creature stared down at them with its mouth wide open.

Manager Xi - Tch, Death worm!