Chương 267: Rebellion at the Xuanwu Mine

"You two brothers, quickly come taste the delicious dish I specially prepared today." Bringing the food to the two guards outside Qin Jin's residence, Li Shi laughed heartily and began to peddle his wares.

"Brother Li! What dish is so fragrant? I could smell its irresistible, rich aroma from far away." Unable to hold back his impatience, one of the two men stepped forward to take the small tray from his hands, hurriedly placed it at the foot of the steps, and immediately picked up the bowl of soup to admire it.

"Haha, this is my specially made fish soup. I was very lucky to gather enough spices today to make a pot of it. Hurry up and have a taste." Hearing Li Si's kind-faced introduction, how could the two have any suspicions? They both lifted their bowls and took a small sip.

"So delicious!" How could it not be delicious? Fresh and tasty fish meat, crisp wild vegetables, plus a whole bunch of corpse poison squeezed from an indescribable part of the Silver-Armored Jiangshi's body... the flavor was truly rich, savory, and unforgettably robust! Furthermore, to cover up the foul stench, the Divine Chef Song had to take out who-knows-how-many types of exclusive spices from his spatial inventory to add in.

This caused the group of people who had never encountered such a rich and intense aroma to instantly succumb to it. It was just like back in the day when he ate instant noodles for the very first time—simply an irresistible sensation. At this moment, a rare spectacle was unfolding at the main gates of the Xuanwu Mine. A crowd of guards completely lost interest in standing watch. Instead, they shoved and pushed each other, swarming together to fight over Brother Si's peerless fish soup.

The whole scene devolved into a chaotic, messy mass. The two men in front of Li Si, having tasted a small sip, were also overwhelmed by an uncontrollable urgency. Lifting their bowls, ignoring the scalding heat, they tilted their heads back and took massive gulps. Sigh.... Brothers, enjoy it. You will never get to taste such a peerless delicacy ever again in the future. Song Que sighed gloomily.

Taking advantage of the two being wholly engrossed in eating and not paying attention, a saber had silently appeared in his hand at some unknown point. Slash! Clang... clang... A silver light flashed. The two men, still joyfully savoring his culinary skills, widened their eyes in disbelief, dropped their bowls, clutched their throats, and crossed into the netherworld carrying profound questions. After drawing his saber, Grandee Song no longer bothered to hide.

Taking advantage of the group in the distance being engrossed in eating and drinking, completely ignoring this side, he hurriedly opened the door and dashed into Qin Jin's courtyard. Having monitored him these past few days, he knew this guy hid good stuff in his house. It must definitely be a First-Tier saber technique manual! Song Que screamed excitedly in his heart as he ran. Every night, Qin Jin would hole up in his room, grab a scroll of paper from the head of his bed, and study it intensely.

His hands would continuously wave and gesture, and looking at those movements, it was undoubtedly the same technique he used when torturing prisoners. Over these three days, Qin Jin had performed such demonstrations twice, leaving a deep impression on Master Song and fueling his intense desire for it. Today, taking advantage of this opportunity, he naturally had to obtain it. Boom! With time pressing, there was no need for him to be overly cautious.

Kicking the door open and rushing into Qin Jin's room, he roughly tossed the bed planks aside, revealing a messy pile of miscellaneous items underneath. He had previously sensed it using his Domain, but since he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Song Que still had a bit of anxiety in his heart. It wasn't until he unrolled a scroll made of human skin from beneath the pile that he finally set his mind at ease. Suppressing his discomfort, he stored this saber technique manual away.

He quickly looted all the belongings hidden under the bed compartment, the majority of which were unknown ores. After stashing everything into his spatial inventory, Li Si swaggered out and ran toward the valley's exit. At this moment, the guards outside, who had been engrossed in eating and drinking, began to notice the smashing sounds. When they looked over and saw their two brothers dead in a pool of blood, the group instantly panicked. Clang... clang... clang... Reading on Amazon or a pirate site?

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"Enemy attack!"....

"There's a thief!"...

"Sound the alarm!" Having never rehearsed such a scenario before, the brothers of the God-Slaying Sect appeared somewhat flustered. Shouting to the heavens, they ran toward Qin Jin's courtyard. Seeing Li Si running out, someone unaware of the situation asked sternly:"Brother Li, what's going on?"

"Die!!!" Answering his words was a cold, flashing saber light. Only when this guy's head flew high into the air did the others jolt awake from their daze. Glaring at the fleeing Li Si, the furious mob gripped their sabers and charged.

"Li Si is a traitor!"

"Kill Li Si!" When the deed is done, flick one's robes and depart, deeply hiding one's merit and name. Master Song deeply understood the logic of keeping a low profile. Seeing dozens of 'brothers' enthusiastically sending him off with drawn sabers and swords, he tucked his tail and bolted toward the distant passageway entrance. His speed was so fast it left people clicking their tongues in awe.

"Chase him!"

"Men on the gates, pay attention! Kill Li Si!"

"Hurry up!"

"Ouch!!!!"

"My stomach..."....

"My stomach... hurts so much!"

"Bastard! Li Si, this traitor, poisoned us!" A familiar face of many years suddenly turning hostile—how could this group of God-Slaying Sect disciples ever expect Brother Si's routine to be so deep? To endure and bide his time for years, falsely acting close and calling them brothers, all just to wait for a day like this! Truly a deep scheme and a dirty trick! Hearing the people behind him start clutching their stomachs and howling made Song Que secretly rejoice.

Even he hadn't known just how effective that unique fish soup of his would be; it was primarily intended as a backup plan. Being able to strip this mob of their combat power was more than enough to satisfy him. Being in such a joyful mood, Grandee Song naturally had to share it with others. Along the way, he casually took out a few of the simple leftover grenades from his spatial inventory, aimed at the most beautiful buildings along the path, and threw them. Boom!!!... Boom!... Boom!...

The bustling atmosphere filled with explosive sounds was particularly pleasing to the ear. At least, Song Que thought so....... On the other side, deep within the mountain valley. Qin Jin, as usual, was inspecting the day's harvest of Xuanwu Stone and listening to his subordinates report on whether anyone had failed to complete their quota. Using 'human sticks' to practice his saber was his absolute favorite pastime.

Every time he did so, Old Qin felt the intent behind his saber technique progressing exceptionally fast. If it weren't for the mission handed down by the Sect, he truly would have wanted to scrape the meat off the bones of all one thousand-plus slaves here. But today wasn't bad either; there were actually two 'human sticks' available. Brimming with excitement, he approached the two unlucky ghosts.

But before he could enjoy the thrill, the sounds of shouts and ear-piercing alarm bells echoed from the distant entrance, leaving Qin Jin slightly stunned. In truth, since this place was established—or at least during his tenure as the manager—no enemy had ever invaded. Old Qin stared blankly for a moment before jolting awake. Just as he began executing his movement technique to run, a series of booming explosions rang out near the entrance, making Qin Jin burn with intense anxiety.

Ignoring everything else for the moment, Qin Jin hastily rushed back to his own small courtyard. Upon witnessing the devastated scene in his room and finding all the treasures he had hidden beneath his bed gone without a trace, he instantly went mad:"Who! Who was it?!"

"Elder Qin, it was that dog Li Si! He poisoned the food and killed the guards outside. By the time we ran over, things were already like this. That bastard hasn't been gone long; he definitely couldn't have gotten too far." A few God-Slaying Sect members endured their severe stomachaches to explain the situation to him. Qin Jin's eyes radiated a dark, murderous intent so thick it was almost tangible. Without a moment's hesitation, he unleashed his Qinggong at full power and gave chase toward the ravine's exit......

The Mining Area. With Qin Jin gone, the atmosphere here began to turn restless and volatile. Seemingly realizing this was an opportunity, the mine slaves' gazes toward the surrounding guards gradually turned exceedingly strange.

"What are you doing! Get back! Everyone sit down! Sit still on the ground!" The surrounding guards were also feeling particularly panicked, frantically whipping the stubborn ones relentlessly. Fearing Qin Jin's fierce reputation and intimidated by the guards' weapons, the group of mine slaves temporarily refrained from taking any extreme actions. They merely observed the situation with gloomy eyes, remaining completely silent. Clang!... Clang!

Using the excuse of going to the latrine, Hu Zi, who had been secretly hiding in a relatively distant corner, immediately acted according to the plan. He was seen pulling the carefully hidden Moon in the Well saber from the secret compartment and forcefully slashing down at the iron chains on his legs. Accompanied by two ear-piercing metallic clangs, the bindings on his legs snapped cleanly. After more than half a year of imprisonment, he could finally move freely once more.

He had tested it several times before; these leg shackles were made of fine steel and were exceptionally tough. Furthermore, the locks had been filled with lead, making them impossible to pick. In the end, Song Que had no choice but to stealthily send him the Moon in the Well saber to cut them apart. Regaining a new lease on life, Hu Zi shouted in excitement:"Brothers, there are righteous path figures attacking outside to liberate this place! Everyone, follow me and kill the enemy!"

As he spoke, he simultaneously swung his saber to kill a few nearby guards, then quickly ran over to a fellow prisoner who also possessed a 6th Grade cultivation level. Clang! Severing the man's chains, Hu Zi nodded as a signal before hurriedly seeking out the next person. Having been here for some time, he naturally knew clearly who the formidable figures were. Moreover, those people weren't stupid either; all of them were rushing over to his side, waiting to be freed. Clang... clang... clang...

As more and more 2nd Tier martial artists were released, the situation in the mine grew increasingly disastrous for the guards. Although these mine slaves had been locked up for a long time and their blood Qi had severely diminished, their numbers outnumbered the guards by tenfold. With an intense, bone-deep hatred for the God-Slaying Sect members burning in their hearts, their attacks were genuinely desperate, putting their lives on the line.

The nearly one hundred God-Slaying Sect disciples guarding this area only managed to hold on for a short while before quickly being routed and scattered. Chased madly by over a thousand zombie-like mine slaves, they fled wretchedly toward the ravine's exit, forming an incredibly spectacular sight.

"Brothers, follow me and kill!" Hu Zi let out a loud roar, yet his feet barely moved. Waiting until everyone charged out the entrance with bloodshot eyes, he stealthily slipped into a corner. Without alarming anyone, he ran in the opposite direction toward the rear. That direction led to a cliff wall thousands of feet high, a dead end with no path forward. Yet, he still ran toward it without the slightest hesitation.