Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Feigned Death Plan
"You little bastard, you actually tricked us? Why? You’ll die a horrible death!"
"You killed us! The disciples of the Cyan Cloud Sect will find out the truth. They won’t let you get away with this."
"You’ll be buried with us!"
Old Xu and the others had thought Zhang Chi was going to lead them out, or perhaps just dump them on a path frequented by Mining Slaves and pretend he had nothing to do with it.
They had assumed that approaching the mine tunnel where the Four-legged Snakes lived was simply passing by.
But only now did they realize that Zhang Chi was killing them now that they had served their purpose, silencing them forever.
If they had known this was going to happen, they never would have been so cooperative.
Unfortunately, this realization came far too late.
All they could do was scream and curse to vent their hatred.
And as the Four-legged Snakes bit them, they were powerless to resist, and a large amount of venom was instantly injected into them.
Even though they were Cultivators, with their Spiritual Power sealed, they couldn’t withstand it at all.
And so, they all died very quickly.
Even their muscles and bones began to melt.
Only then did the Four-legged Snakes truly begin to tear at their flesh.
They were soon devoured completely, consumed down to the last bone and scrap of clothing.
In the mine tunnel, only pickaxes, mining lamps, and other tools remained.
’You say I tricked you, but didn’t you trick me first? Now we’re even!’
Outside the mine tunnel, a smile appeared on Zhang Chi’s face.
Killing these enemies made him feel refreshed and mentally clear.
At the same time, seeing the strange snakes feed filled him with a secret fear.
’These strange snakes are too vicious. Thank goodness I’ve had the Jade Pendant to help me.’
’Their reproductive ability seems to be very strong, too.’
’After all, the Guards had just cleared them out a little over two months ago.’
He had thought that after his own hunting during this period, there wouldn’t be many of the strange snakes left.
He was even a little worried that there wouldn’t be enough strange snakes to completely dispose of the bodies.
But now, he realized he had been overthinking it.
The number of strange snakes had long since recovered.
However, he also knew that with this incident, these strange snakes were probably going to suffer for it.
The strange snakes had "caused trouble" again. The Disciples of the Cyan Cloud Sect would surely be furious and send more powerful Guards to clean them up. The strange snakes might even be completely wiped out.
So, Zhang Chi immediately rushed into the mine tunnel, used himself as bait, and ran back and forth a few times to catch twenty of the strange snakes, hiding them in a remote, abandoned tunnel.
With ten pairs of strange snakes, they could start breeding again once this incident blew over.
’Open!’
Then, Zhang Chi returned. This time, he didn’t enter the Snake Mine Tunnel, but instead squatted down.
He channeled his Spiritual Power directly into his hands and, with a CRACK, used immense force to break open his shackles.
It turned out this was the only way to open the shackles.
And while it looked simple, it was actually because Zhang Chi’s situation was rather unique.
Normally, once these shackles were put on, sharp spikes on the inside would pierce the Cultivator’s ankles.
After that, the Forbidden Spirit Rune’s power would travel up the Cultivator’s legs, filling their entire body like the roots of a great tree.
In this way, the Cultivator’s Spiritual Power, physical strength, and even their Divine Sense would be locked away.
To remove the shackles, one would first have to make the Rune Power retreat back into them.
If one tried to remove them by force, or even by cutting off the Cultivator’s legs, the Rune Power within the Cultivator’s body would instantly explode, causing them to die with every bone in their body shattered.
And to make the Rune Power recede, a Cultivator would either need to have Foundation Establishment Cultivation themselves or have the help of a Foundation Establishment Master.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, it was nearly impossible for the Mining Slaves to ever regain their freedom.
This information wasn’t exactly a secret among the Mining Slaves.
Fortunately, Zhang Chi had the Jade Pendant, which had directly absorbed this negative Rune Power.
That was why, after becoming a Cultivator, it was so easy for him to break the shackles.
Since he could break them, there was naturally no need to keep the shackles on.
Or rather, from the moment the Jade Pendant had successfully upgraded, Zhang Chi had already decided not to leave the mines.
He planned to undergo Cultivation in Seclusion within the mine for a while, and once he was strong enough, he would escape the mining camp.
He had considered keeping the shackles on and continuing to lie low among the Mining Slaves.
But if he did that, the Guards would definitely notice something was wrong.
After all, his roommates were all dead, yet he was alive. The Guards would surely single him out for questioning.
Up close, even with the Qi Concealment Technique and the shackles, the fact that he had become a Cultivator could not be hidden from those veteran Cultivators whose Divine Sense was not suppressed.
Therefore, leaving was tantamount to suicide.
Even if he got incredibly lucky and managed to escape disaster, he would still have to waste his evenings—his Cultivation time—and go through the trouble of maintaining his disguise.
’How vicious!’
Zhang Chi’s face was cold as he looked at his bloody ankles and the shackles with their menacing spikes.
At the same time, he felt an unprecedented sense of relief.
It wasn’t just because he had successfully broken the shackles, but because he was now one giant step closer to escaping this living hell.
Before, he could only take small, shuffling steps even when running. Now, he could finally walk with long strides.
As for his ankles, although the injuries were severe, with a Cultivator’s Physique, they wouldn’t be difficult to heal.
CLICK! CLICK!
He snapped the open shackles in his hand shut, and the latch instantly clicked back into place.
Then, he tossed the shackles into the mine tunnel where the strange snakes were.
He quickly dealt with the scene, even tossing the pickaxe and mining lamp in after them.
This would create the illusion that he, like his roommates, had been eaten by the Four-legged Strange Snakes.
This way, even if the Cyan Cloud Sect had some means of tracking the shackles, he wouldn’t be found.
Phew!
「Half an hour later.」
Protected by the Jade Pendant, he entered a mine tunnel filled with poisonous miasma. He didn’t stop until he was a hundred meters deep, where he finally let out a sigh of relief.
The poisonous miasma here was strong; a normal Qi Cultivation Cultivator would never dare to venture in.
Hiding here was undoubtedly the safest option.
No normal Cultivator would ever imagine that someone could hide in here.
There was also some Middle Grade ore here, the very same that Old Xu and the others had dug up earlier.
The Ore was of little use to him for now, but if he managed to escape in the future, he could sell it.
If he could obtain an Iron Refining Skill, he could even purify this Ore into Cold Iron.
That would make it much more convenient to carry.
He had even used his own immense strength to quickly dig up some Ore from near the Snake Mine Tunnel and scattered it inside.
This was also part of creating his illusion.
It would make people think that he, Old Xu, and the others had met their end out of greed for the Ore.
In addition, he had obtained a relatively new set of clothes that he had stripped from Old Xu and the others, as well as two meat patties and three leather waterskins filled with fresh water.
As for anything else, there was nothing.
Old Xu and the others were, in fact, just as exploited as he was; they didn’t have a single Iron Coin on them.
But he was already very satisfied.
Because his true gains were his relative freedom and safety, as well as the Cultivation Technique and Magic he had just acquired.
He had already moved the large stones covered in writing in here; they were right beside him.
Although the mine tunnel was dark and he had abandoned his mining lamp, as a Cultivator, his eyesight was astonishing, and he could still make out the outlines of the characters.
With the help of his Divine Sense, he could also trace the scratches with his hand to confirm the words.
Therefore, studying this Cultivation Technique and Magic would be no problem at all.
However, he didn’t rush to begin his Cultivation.
There was too much poisonous miasma here. Even with the Jade Pendant, he didn’t dare to absorb Spiritual Qi.
Otherwise, under the combined effect of the Gold Fiend and the poisonous miasma—and considering his Jade Pendant had already absorbed too much negative energy today—it would most likely exceed its limit.
Before starting his Cultivation, he first had to thoroughly comprehend the Cultivation Technique.
Besides, he speculated that the Guards would be entering the mines to look for people very soon.
If he were cultivating here then, it was highly likely he would be discovered.
So, in the next moment, he immediately pressed his ear to the rock wall of the mine tunnel and began to wait quietly.
