Cultivation Begins with Daily Intelligence Reports

160: Opportunities in abandoned mine shaftsThe next morning, at the first hint of dawn, Lin Lingbao and Lin Lingyue, “escorted” by a guard, left Lin Family Village and headed deep into Black Mountain.

Lin Lingbao had changed into a coarse short tunic, and the wound on his back was carefully bandaged, but every step he took still caused his brows to furrow.

Lin Lingyue carried a small bundle containing a few changes of clothes and a small bottle of healing elixirs that Lin Jingyu had asked the spirit doctor to provide.

She carefully supported Lin Lingbao, her gaze unusually firm.

”Brother Bao, slow down,” Lin Lingyue said softly.

”It’s fine, Yue’er, I can manage,” Lin Lingbao gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and looked at Lin Lingyue’s slender profile, his heart filled with guilt and tenderness.

”I’ve dragged you into this...”

”Don’t say that,” Lin Lingyue interrupted him, her voice gentle yet firm:

”To be alive, to be with you, what does going to the mine matter? The Patriarch has given us a chance, and we must seize it.”

Lin Lingbao nodded heavily, hope rekindled in his eyes: ”Yes! Three years, after three years, we’ll start anew!”

As an accomplice who nearly brought about the family’s destruction, three years of atonement was not a long time.

The Black Gravel Mine was located in a desolate valley on the outskirts of Black Mountain.

It once produced minerals such as Black Jade Iron and Azure Luan Stone.

However, as excavation became more difficult, output steadily declined.

After a collapse, the path into the mine’s interior was blocked.

The Lin family did not organize anyone to clear it, and it had been abandoned for over twenty years. The entrance was overgrown with vines, and the mine cart tracks were long rusted and broken, scattered across the ground.

A cold, damp scent mixed with rust and earthy mildew wafted out.

”This is the place,” the guard pointed to a dark, narrow mine entrance, wide enough for only a few people to walk abreast, and said coldly:

”Your task is to clear the collapsed rubble inside and transport it to the designated dumping area outside.

This storage bag contains some food and water, enough for one month. After a month, someone will naturally come to deliver supplies.

There’s a dilapidated shack over there where miners used to live; clean it yourselves. Remember, three years, don’t even think about running away!”

After giving his instructions, the guard turned and left, leaving the two to face the desolate and eerie mine.

Lin Lingyue looked at the deep entrance and instinctively shivered. Lin Lingbao held her hand and said in a deep voice, ”Don’t be afraid, Yue’er, I’m here.”

It took them half a day to barely clear out a habitable space in the rickety shack.

Inside the shack, there was only a broken wooden plank bed and a wooden table that was almost falling apart.

”Brother Bao, your injury isn’t healed yet, so rest today. I’ll go clear it,” Lin Lingyue said with concern, looking at Lin Lingbao’s pale face.

”No!” Lin Lingbao flatly refused.

”I’ll go with you! This place... I don’t feel safe letting you go in alone.” He struggled to his feet, picking up a simple iron pickaxe and a basket.

The mine was pitch black, with only a low-quality glowstone in Lin Lingyue’s hand emitting a faint light.

The air was murky, filled with dust.

Underfoot were scattered broken stone and standing water. The further they went, the narrower the space became, with crisscrossing passages like a maze. Occasionally, they could hear the drip-drop of water falling from the rock ceiling, which was particularly eerie in the silence.

They found the collapse point, where a large amount of rubble blocked the passage.

Lin Lingyue carefully began to pry at the edge stones with the pickaxe, while Lin Lingbao, enduring the pain in his back, laboriously moved the dislodged stones into the basket.

”Cough, cough...” The flying dust made Lin Lingyue cough.

”Yue’er, go out and get some fresh air; it’s too dusty in here,” Lin Lingbao said with concern.

”I’m fine.” Lin Lingyue stubbornly shook her head, wiping the dust from her face. ”We’ll work together and clear this section quickly.”

The strenuous physical labor soon left both of them drenched in sweat. Lin Lingbao’s wound was soaked with sweat, causing sharp pangs of pain, but he bit his lip and persevered without a sound.

Lin Lingyue’s hands quickly developed blisters, which then broke, seeping blood, but she merely frowned.

However, with spiritual energy present, these minor injuries were nothing to them.

Days passed in this arduous, day-in, day-out labor. During the day, they toiled in the dark, damp, and perilous mine, clearing what seemed like an endless supply of rubble.

More than ten days passed, and Lin Lingbao’s back wound slowly scabbed over with the help of elixirs and Lingyue’s careful tending, but the cold, damp environment slowed his recovery, and the work made the pain almost unbearable.

Lin Lingyue’s once delicate fingers became rough, her palms covered in thick calluses and cracks.

At night, returning to the drafty shack, eating coarse, cold rations, they found their only solace in huddling together for warmth and softly whispering their hopes for the future.

”After three years, we’ll rent two acres of good land and plant some spirit grains and vegetables...”

”Yes, and raise a few black-feathered chickens to lay eggs to nourish you...”

These simple dreams sustained them as they struggled onward in their desperate situation. Lin Lingbao’s resentment towards Lin Jingyu had long vanished, replaced by deep gratitude and a determination to atone.

One day, as they were clearing a particularly narrow branch mine tunnel that seemed to have been untouched for a long time, Lin Lingbao’s pickaxe struck the cave wall, emitting a dull thud, different from the sound of rubble.

”Hmm?” Lin Lingbao stopped, feeling the rock wall, sensing that it seemed hollow behind. He struck it a few more times, and the sound became more distinct.

”Yue’er, listen, there seems to be a space behind this!”

Lin Lingyue leaned closer, pressing her ear to the wall, listening carefully: ”It sounds like... wind?”

They exchanged glances, both seeing surprise in the other’s eyes. How could there be a hollow space deep within this abandoned mine?

Lin Lingbao took a deep breath, channeling his limited spiritual energy into the pickaxe, and forcefully struck the rock wall!

Crash! Rubble tumbled down, revealing a dark opening just large enough for one person to crawl through! A colder wind, carrying the scent of ancient dust, blew out from the cave, caressing their faces.

Lin Lingbao and Lin Lingyue’s hearts pounded violently.

Deep within the dark opening, Lin Lingbao and Lin Lingyue, holding the glowstone, carefully crawled inside.

The faint light of the glowstone dispelled a small patch of darkness ahead, illuminating a narrow stone chamber just large enough for a few people to stand.

In the center of the stone chamber stood a half-human-tall, dilapidated stone tablet covered in dust and cobwebs. At the base of the tablet, some faint, ancient characters seemed to be carved, and at the top of the tablet, a dull, dark blue gem the size of a dragon’s eye was embedded.

The moment they stepped into the stone chamber, that dark blue gem, as if touched by the breath of living beings, flickered... very faintly.

A nearly imperceptible, cold, and ancient aura, like the breath of a sleeping giant beast, quietly diffused through the air.