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To outsiders, there was nothing in front of Lu Ye, but in the boy's vision, a semi-transparent shadow could be seen.

It resembled the shadow of a tree, hazy and indistinct, with lush branches and twigs that split to the left and right from about a third of the way down the trunk, supporting a semi-circular canopy.

Having been in this world called Kyushu for over a year, Lu Ye still doesn't understand what this thing is. He only knows that when he concentrates his attention enough, there is a chance that this shadow tree will appear in his field of vision, and no one else will notice it at all.

What a tragic life. The young man sighed.

A year ago, he suddenly woke up in this strange world. Before he could even get used to his surroundings, his territory was taken over by a group of bandits. Many people were killed, and he and some other young men and women became prisoners of the bandits and were sent to this mine to become lowly mine slaves.

Only later did he learn from scattered conversations with others that the faction he belonged to was the Haotian Alliance, a sect called the Xuantian Sect.

This sect's name sounds cool and domineering, but in reality it's just a third-rate little sect.

The one that attacked and captured Xuantian Sect was Xieyue Valley, which was under the command of Wanmo Ridge.

Haotian Alliance and Wanmo Ridge are the two major factions in this world, both formed by the alliance of countless forces, large and small, who have been fighting and vying for each other's complete annihilation for hundreds of years.

In Lu Ye's view, this struggle is simply a confrontation between the lawful and evil factions, and he was just accidentally caught up in this tide of conflict.

Throughout the years, war has raged across the Nine Provinces. Every year, small forces like the Xuantian Sect are eradicated, but soon more forces spring up like mushrooms after rain, occupying territories in various places and making the situation even more chaotic.

"So be it, I'm a miner," Lu Ye consoled himself. Compared to those who were killed, at least he was still alive.

His survival was not due to any special ability, but rather because Evil Moon Valley needed menial tasks, and someone like Lu Ye, who had no cultivation and was still young, was undoubtedly the best choice.

In fact, the miners in this mine were not only from the Xuantian Sect, but also disciples from other small families and sects.

Evil Moon Valley is quite powerful. Over the years, it has conquered a lot of territory. The original forces in these territories were naturally wiped out, and some of the usable people were sent by Evil Moon Valley to various places for enslavement.

These people all share one characteristic: they are not yet enlightened and have no cultivation, so they are easy to control.

There's a saying in the Nine Provinces: "A demon cannot take human form without enlightenment, and a human cannot cultivate without enlightenment."

To cultivate oneself, one must open one's spiritual aperture; only by opening one's spiritual aperture can one be qualified to cultivate.

Opening the spiritual aperture is not a simple matter. Among ordinary people, only about 100 can open the spiritual aperture after systematic training. If one comes from a cultivation family or sect and has elders to guide them, this percentage may be higher.

Lu Ye was unable to open his spiritual aperture, so he could only make a living by mining in this dim mine tunnel.

However, the miners are not without a way out. If they can successfully enlighten themselves and report to the person in charge, they will have the opportunity to participate in an assessment. If they pass the assessment, they can become disciples of Evil Moon Valley.

However, very few miners were able to gain enlightenment. Working all day in this dim environment, barely having enough to eat, how could they possibly gain any insight?

So basically 99% of the miners have resigned themselves to their fate, working hard every day just for a full meal.

Lu Ye didn't feel any sense of belonging to the Xuantian Sect. After all, the sect was destroyed as soon as he arrived in this world, and he didn't know who was who among the people in the sect.

He didn't want to become a disciple of Evil Moon Valley. It wasn't a legitimate force; just hearing the name gave people a sense of evil, and it was bound to fail sooner or later.

But he can't stay here as a mine slave for the rest of his life. That would be unbecoming. He is, after all, an elite of the new era. What's the difference between a person without dreams and a salted fish?

So for the past year he has been trying to get to the bottom of things. He originally thought that only the shadow tree he could see could provide him with some wonderful help, but even now, the shadow tree is still just a shadow. It can't help at all, and sometimes it even affects his eyesight.

Lu Ye seriously doubted whether there was something wrong with his eyes.

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After rounding a bend, a faint light appeared in the distance; that was one of the mine tunnel exits.

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Today's harvest is good. I should get three contribution points by handing over the ore in the mine basket. Counting the points I accumulated in the past few days, I have about twelve points. I can exchange two points for two steamed buns, and the remaining ten points are just enough to exchange for a Qi and Blood Pill.

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Qi and Blood Pill is a very low-grade pill, not an aid for opening the mind. However, to open the mind, one must have abundant Qi and blood. Although Qi and Blood Pill is low-grade, it is just right for people like Lu Ye who have not yet opened their mind.

The reason why Evil Moon Valley was willing to offer the Qi and Blood Pill was not out of kindness, but because they understood the ways of the human heart. This cheapest and lowest-grade pill could make those who had hope work harder to mine.

For example, Lu Ye is very diligent every day.

Thirty feet from the mine exit, Lu Ye's gaze inadvertently swept across a corner to his left, where a huge rock lay across the road.

He continued walking forward without stopping until he was about ten zhang away. Then he put down the mining basket he was carrying on his back, tightened his grip on the pickaxe, and took out a stone of a suitable size from the basket, weighing it in his hand.

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The next moment, he started running towards the boulder. When he got close to it, he slid to the side, stepped onto the rock wall of the mine tunnel, and used the rebound force to swoop down behind the boulder like a nimble cheetah.

Two figures were crouching behind a boulder, using it to conceal their presence, completely unaware that the newcomers would discover their presence.

Hearing the noise and seeing Lu Ye, it was too late for him to get up.

Under the horrified gazes of the two men, Lu Ye raised his hand and threw the ore in his hand, hitting one of them squarely on the bridge of his nose. The man immediately cried out in pain and fell backward to the ground, blood streaming down his face.

Lu Ye swung his pickaxe again, but missed the second person. The person reacted well and dodged by tilting his head.

However, Lu Ye had already rushed in front of him and kicked him in the abdomen. The man was immediately in pain, fell to his knees, and spat out a mouthful of sour water.

Lu Ye stepped forward, grabbed the other man's hair with one hand, saw his face clearly, and sneered: "So it's you two brothers!"

He recognized the two men; they were disciples of the Liu family. After the Evil Moon Valley conquered the Liu family's territory, some of the Liu family's young disciples were sent here to serve as mine slaves.

Strictly speaking, Lu Ye and the Liu brothers were also bound by fate.

The website updates slowly; please download the Aiyue app to read the latest chapters. Didn't I tell you, don't let me see you again, or I'll kill you all! As Lu Ye spoke, he casually picked up a stone from the ground and hurled it down hard.

The blow was quite severe; Liu's second son only managed a groan before being knocked unconscious.

Lu Ye then walked toward Boss Liu, whom he had previously injured.

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Liu Laoda's forehead was smashed open, and blood blurred his vision. He vaguely saw Lu Ye walking towards him and was so frightened that he scrambled to his feet, pleading, "Spare us! My brother and I didn't know it was you. We thought it was someone else!"

The Liu brothers, lurking furtively at the mine exit, clearly had no good intentions.

Before being captured, both of them were pampered and spoiled. Even after becoming mine slaves, they were unwilling to endure hardship. However, mine slaves were of lowly status, and the people of Evil Moon Valley did not treat them as human beings. Without ore to exchange for contribution points, they could not obtain food at all.

So the two brothers would often squat in front of a certain exit of the mine tunnel and rob those lone miners. Many people were unlucky as a result, not only losing the ore they worked so hard to mine every day, but also being beaten half to death.

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Last time they tried to rob Lu Ye, but they were no match for him and got a lesson.

Unexpectedly, just a few days later, I ran into the two brothers again.

Just as rice feeds a hundred different kinds of people, among the miners there were lazy and gluttonous like the Liu brothers, and there were also dreamers like Lu Ye.

Over the past year, Lu Ye used all the contribution points he earned from exchanging ores to buy Qi and Blood Pills, in addition to ensuring his daily food and clothing.

He consumed no fewer than thirty Qi and Blood Pills in total.

This resulted in Lu Ye having a physique stronger than most miners. Although his body was not particularly robust, the power contained within his body surpassed that of ordinary people.

Dealing with two lazy and good-for-nothing miners was a piece of cake.

Liu was still begging for mercy, but Lu Ye pretended not to hear him, grabbed his hair, raised the stone in his other hand, and smashed it down hard.

Having lived as a miner for over a year, Lu Ye had witnessed too many tragedies and had long understood one thing: in this dog-eat-dog world, any pity or sympathy was useless.

The miners were not all harmonious. Coming from different factions, they were destined to be unable to unite. For a piece of good ore, they would often fight to the death.

People die every day in the mine tunnels, and every so often you can see a skeleton scattered on the ground.

Many miners starved to death because they were robbed.

Old Liu collapsed instantly.

Lu Ye picked up his pickaxe, put his mining basket back on his back, and strode towards the exit. He didn't kill the Liu brothers, not because he was soft-hearted, but because wounded miners usually didn't survive long here.

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They had only taken a few steps when a person suddenly rushed in from the exit in a panic.

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"Get out of my way!" the man hissed, slapping Lu Ye across the face.

In that instant, Lu Ye felt a chill run through his body, because he saw a pale blue light flowing through the other person's palm.

That was the light of spiritual energy; in other words, the one who attacked him was a cultivator!

Only those who open their spiritual apertures are qualified to cultivate and are qualified to be called cultivators.

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A cultivator's spiritual power is an extremely magical force. Lu Ye once saw a cultivator from Evil Moon Valley make a move. Although it didn't have a very strong aura, the person simply shattered a piece of ore with a light palm strike. It was after witnessing that magical scene that Lu Ye made up his mind to open his own spiritual aperture and become a cultivator.

He had secretly estimated that even the cultivator with the lowest cultivation level in Evil Moon Valley could easily defeat ten of him.

Therefore, when Lu Ye realized that the person attacking him was a cultivator, he knew that he was about to be in great trouble.

In a life-or-death crisis, he abruptly stopped and leaped backward.

A numbness shot through his chest, followed by the sound of bones breaking. Lu Ye was sent flying backward and crashed to the ground.

The intense pain cleared his head considerably, and after realizing he was still alive, he immediately got up.

Huh! The cultivator who made the move was somewhat surprised. Although he hadn't used his full strength in that palm strike, but had just casually struck out, it shouldn't have been something the mine slave could withstand.

Seeing the miner's face in the dim light, he blurted out: Lu Ye?

Lu Ye was already in a position to turn and run away when he heard the voice and was extremely surprised: Manager Yang?

This cultivator surnamed Yang was a minor manager at the mine. Lu Ye often dealt with him because he had obtained the Qi and Blood Pill from him, so they were quite familiar with each other.

Manager Yang thought highly of Lu Ye, after all, it was rare to find a miner as hardworking and resilient as him.

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However, while he was optimistic about him, there were no special privileges. Until he attained enlightenment, there was an insurmountable gap between a mortal like Lu Ye and a cultivator.

After recognizing Lu Ye, Manager Yang felt relieved that he hadn't been able to kill him with one palm strike. Lu Ye had exchanged a lot of Qi and Blood Pills from him over the past year, so his physical condition was already stronger than that of ordinary mine slaves. In addition, since he had only struck casually and had no intention of killing anyone, it was not surprising that the other party was able to survive.

Across from Manager Yang, Lu Ye felt a surge of unease.

The cultivators of Evil Moon Valley generally don't care about the lives or deaths of the mine slaves. They also know that fights and brawls often occur among the mine slaves in the mines, and they basically ignore them unless they happen to witness it.

Just as Lu Ye had beaten the Liu brothers until they were bleeding from their heads and unconscious, Manager Yang slapped him on the face. In Lu Ye's eyes, this was clearly Manager Yang disciplining him.

To see the latest and correct content, please download Aiyue Novels. However, he quickly realized something was wrong, because when Steward Yang rushed in, he looked flustered and didn't seem to be standing up for the Liu brothers.

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The website updates slowly; please download the AiYue app to read the latest chapters. Download the AiYue app for a better reading experience. Just as he was lost in thought, Manager Yang revealed a look of delighted surprise, as if meeting Lu Ye here was some good fortune. He leaned forward and grabbed Lu Ye's shoulder: "Come with me!"