Chapter 719: Sleeping on Brushwood and Tasting Gall

"Did you make up the story about the divine blood, or is it true?"

Li Yi was walking through the ore tunnels of Chishan Mountain, accompanied by the slave master Ji Hei; along the way, he couldn't help but feel curious about the so-called divine blood and asked aloud.

Slave master Ji Hei thought for a moment, then smiled and said: "An ancient legend says that crimson gold was formed from the blood of gods falling upon the earth, which is why crimson gold is the most valuable. There are even rumors that, if one is lucky, uncoagulated divine blood may still be buried within the ore of Chishan Mountain. And divine blood warriors all believe that bathing in divine blood grants a body like a god's, and even the chance to inherit a new divine bloodline."

"Although there are warriors with dual divine bloodlines, they are born only from the direct descendants of two divine blood families—not from bathing in divine blood."

"I'm just a slave master with limited knowledge; I can't judge whether the divine blood tale is true or false. But this legend has been passed down through generations. The Lord of Chishan Mountain himself once searched for divine blood—he blasted open ten great mountains, lost the wealth of ten great mountains, and still found nothing. In the end, he gave up."

Li Yi nodded slightly: "I see. Besides precious crimson gold, are there other treasures in these great mountains?"

"Once, a slave unearthed the remains of a Hundred-Mountain Lord, and also found a fragment of an ancient divine weapon. Both were major events that shook Chishan Mountain—I still remember them clearly," said slave master Ji Hei.

"It seems the Lord of Chishan Mountain is indeed very wealthy," Li Yi remarked.

Slave master Ji Hei chuckled: "He's a powerful warrior from the Thirty-Mountain Lord's domain, naturally possessing the wealth of thirty mountains—of course he's rich. Great Yi, you're a direct descendant of divine blood; in the future, you'll become a lord yourself, even surpassing the Lord of Chishan Mountain."

Li Yi wasn't interested in his flattery; he was pondering just how powerful the Lord of Chishan Mountain truly was—could Xuan Yuezi, a peak Third Flower cultivator, defeat him?

After all, the strongest force he could currently deploy was a peak Third Flower cultivator.

Although the End Law cultivation world did have Dao Achievers, he hadn't yet recruited any. The former Cang Erzi was a Dao Achiever, but after the End Law era, his realm collapsed—he didn't know whether he'd recovered in the Xuan Immortal World yet.

"Great Yi, this way—your companion is in the deepest mining zone. I promised Xiu Xiang I'd let you see your companion, but whether I can bring him out is beyond my promise. I hope you won't be angry about it," slave master Ji Hei added.

"That's enough," Li Yi nodded slightly.

Xiu Xiang had already done his utmost. Facing a Mountain Lord alone, even with his wealth and influence, it was impossible—he wouldn't demand the impossible.

Meanwhile,

deep within the Chishan Mine,

Jiang Mingtian, as a slave, swung his bronze hammer with all his strength, pounding the rock before him like the others in the Wildlands, determined to shatter the mountain and expose the crimson gold within.

It was the most primitive and inefficient mining method, but the people of this world possessed immense physical strength.

Years of mining, coupled with the scorching heat of Chishan Mountain, had left Jiang Mingtian and the other slaves blackened and emaciated, their backs crisscrossed with whip scars. But unlike the others, though his body suffered, his soul had been tempered into something extraordinarily strong.

Moreover, the spiritual energy within Chishan Mine carried a peculiar force—like the essence emitted by divine blood. Prolonged absorption could alter one's physical constitution.

Ordinary slaves knew nothing of cultivation, so they merely worked themselves to death here, worn out by exhaustion.

But Jiang Mingtian was different—he understood the Evolution Method. Though he looked black and thin, his core was still evolving.

Otherwise, an Earthling's body would have died long ago mining here.

BOOM!

His bronze hammer shattered a patch of rubble, revealing several pieces of crimson gold.

Seeing the valuable crimson gold, Jiang Mingtian's gaze flickered. While no one was looking, he opened his mouth and swallowed a piece of crimson gold—inside his belly lay a storage magic treasure.

Thinking of the storage magic treasure, Jiang Mingtian couldn't help but recall Li Yi.

After Li Yi killed Xu Wenda at the Golden Academy, he gave Jiang Mingtian three storage magic treasures. Though, when he first entered this Wildland world, he was defeated by a group of savage warriors and stripped of everything, he kept a precaution—he swallowed the second storage treasure.

And it proved to be the right choice.

With this storage treasure, Jiang Mingtian secretly gathered much crimson gold within Chishan Mine.

"If I return to Earth, I'll forge a suit of armor and a divine sword from this crimson gold—I'll rule the world," Jiang Mingtian thought to himself: "I've seen the mountain guards use weapons forged from crimson gold—they're utterly indestructible."

He was extremely cautious in collecting the crimson gold, knowing that if exposed, he'd die horribly—he wasn't strong enough yet to challenge the Lord of Chishan Mountain.

"Jiang Mingtian, how long are we going to stay here? Don't we find a chance to escape?" Another blackened, emaciated slave approached—Zhao Fangji, like Jiang Mingtian, sold into Chishan Mine by a slave master.

Zhao Fangji's duty was to collect crimson gold and deliver it to designated locations.

So he rarely interacted with Jiang Mingtian.

"We'll leave, definitely—but not yet. This is an excellent place for cultivation. With the strange energy radiating from Chishan Mountain, our bodies are transforming. Earthling bodies are too weak. Once the transformation is complete, I'll find my chance to leave," Jiang Mingtian whispered.

"Besides, I still intend to find the legendary divine blood within Chishan Mountain."

Zhao Fangji, while gathering crimson gold from the ground, murmured: "Do you have any leads?"

"After absorbing Chishan Mountain's energy, my body transformed, and I've gradually developed a sense of connection to this place."

Jiang Mingtian swung his massive hammer harder, shattering the rock ahead: "In this direction, there's an energy pulling at me—I suspect it's hidden divine blood buried deep within the mountain."

"After all this time as a slave, if I don't take some treasure with me, how can I be satisfied? By the way, how's that mountain lord-level Qiongqi doing?"

Zhao Fangji replied: "I don't know—I've never seen that mountain lord-level Qiongqi."

"Last year, when that mountain lord-level Qiongqi was sleeping, I sent my soul out and slipped a Beast Taming Talisman into it. That was the highest-tier Beast Taming Talisman I ever forged—at great cost. I couldn't immediately tame a mountain lord-level Qiongqi, but over time, it should've gradually been influenced by the talisman—after all, people here don't know cultivation, let alone how to break a Beast Taming Talisman."

Jiang Mingtian swung his hammer, whispering low.

"You're insane," Zhao Fangji said, pausing mid-collect. "You, at your realm, want to tame a mountain lord-level Qiongqi? That's a mythic beast—its power is terrifying. No wonder the Qiongqi went berserk in the mountains those days—it was searching for you. Lucky you hid deep in Chishan Mine, masked by the crimson gold's aura, or we'd be dead."

Jiang Mingtian smirked: "The bold die full, the timid die hungry. What's there to fear? We're slaves, beaten daily, forced to toil like beasts. If we don't risk everything, how do we rise? If I find the divine blood and tame that Qiongqi, I'll be king when I return to Earth. Zhao Fangji, don't tell me you're content mining here—you're also gathering strength, waiting for your chance to rise, aren't you?"

"I've already become a divine blood warrior—my bones turned silver, my blood turned silver, and I've mastered the power of silver lightning. That's why I'm eager to leave," Zhao Fangji said.

His traits matched Li Yi's old ones exactly.

After all, Zhao Fangji had also eaten silver fruit—but those fruits alone hadn't granted him bloodline power. Here in Chishan Mine, he absorbed too much of the special essence leaking from the crimson gold, which triggered his transformation into a divine blood warrior.

"Above divine blood warriors come direct descendants of divine blood. You should have patience—stay longer. Wait until you become a direct descendant before leaving. If we miss this chance, we won't get another." Jiang Mingtian said.

Zhao Fangji slung his basket full of crimson gold onto his back, and as he turned to leave, he added: "Your transformation hasn't reached the blood stage yet—whipping won't reveal anything. Not me. If I'm whipped and silver blood spills, my identity as a divine blood warrior will be exposed. Then I'll draw trouble—if the Warrior Captain or a Mountain Lord notices, I'll never get another chance to escape."

"I see."

Jiang Mingtian nodded: "Then I'll wait until I finish mining this section. I feel I'm about to reach the area where the divine blood might be hidden—it won't take many more days."

"Then hurry. I'll try to turn in more crimson gold these days to avoid punishment from the overseers," Zhao Fangji said, then without delay, hurried off like the other slaves, carrying his load.

Their chances to meet were rare—only once every two or three days.

Jiang Mingtian fell silent again, his hammer strikes growing stronger.

His current strength made mining effortless—he merely restrained his power to avoid drawing attention. If a slave displayed warrior-level strength, he'd be noticed—and then he'd have to stop hiding.

"I really should leave. A weak slave in Chishan Mine usually survives only two years. I've already been here over a year—if I don't go now, the overseers will notice me."

Jiang Mingtian thought to himself.

The slaves from his batch were nearly all dead. Only he and Zhao Fangji, who understood cultivation, had survived this long.

"I wonder how Hu Fei and Li Yi are doing—are they still alive?"

He sighed.

Of the four who traveled together, all were captured. He, Zhao Fangji, and Hu Fei were sold as slaves. Hu Fei was unlucky—he was bought away mid-journey. Li Yi seemed to have been left behind in that mountain village.

He shook his head.

Jiang Mingtian returned to mining. He couldn't concern himself with others now—just surviving was enough. But if he escaped soon, he'd destroy that village and search for Li Yi and Hu Fei.

He couldn't just abandon them in this Wildland—especially Li Yi. Without the storage treasure Li Yi gave him, he'd have died long ago.

Though the storage treasure held nothing valuable, it contained many nutrient solutions.

Slaves starved most of all. Without those nutrient solutions to survive his initial injuries, he'd have died long ago—he wouldn't have made it to now.

(End of Chapter)