Chapter 6

Lin Dahai tucked the flatbreads close to his body, then glanced at the sky and said to Wangchuan,

“I can tell you pick things up quickly and you’re cautious. Let’s speed things up today. I’ll take you out of the village first and walk you over to the iron mine so you can familiarize yourself with the place.”

“Great!”

Su Wangchuan’s eyes lit up.

Those two flatbreads had indeed been given at the right time.

According to Lin Dahai’s original plan, it would already have been difficult to go out mining today.

The remaining time was supposed to be spent in the village getting familiar with NPCs, then gathering the team after daybreak tomorrow to start the daily routine together.

But who did not want to touch the gold-farming work sooner?

Who did not want to earn more money?

Lin Dahai led Su Wangchuan out of the village.

At the village gate stood two guards, tall and powerfully built, their bodies solid and imposing, their gazes exceptionally sharp. At a glance, they were clearly seasoned fighters.

Lin Dahai lowered his voice in warning.

“These two were trained as hunters by the village. They are close to quasi-martial artist level.”

“Quasi-martial artists?”

“That means they’ve trained in combat. Either one of them could easily take down seven or eight adult men.”

Lin Dahai’s words made Su Wangchuan feel a faint stirring of excitement.

He had trained his body for years, with strong core strength. Among people his age, he was considered quite powerful…

Wait. Why was he even thinking something like that?

Su Wangchuan felt inexplicably unsettled.

This was just a game world.

He had actually subconsciously placed his real self into it just now…

“Brother Lin, what kind of world is this, exactly?”

Su Wangchuan pressed the question.

“I don’t really know either.”

Lin Dahai frowned and sighed.

“I’ve been in the game for over a month, but I’ve never left Blackstone Village. The company requires mining, so most of every day is spent in the mine. After coming back, the village is closed-off, and we don’t dare go out at night… Don’t think too much about it. We’re here to make money, not to play a game.”

“Gold farming, I get it. It’s just that this game feels far too real. In the future, it’s definitely going to become a phenomenon-level hit.”

“Exactly.”

The two chatted as they left the village.

Only then did Su Wangchuan notice that Lin Dahai was not carrying a basket. After asking, he learned that Lin Dahai had returned temporarily and had left his basket with his companions in the mountains.

The iron mine was not far from Blackstone Village—only seven or eight li away. Someone quick on their feet could run back in just over ten minutes.

But carrying a load, it would take more than an hour.

Lin Dahai explained this to him.

It was now noon, twelve o’clock. In another two hours, the county’s ore-collection convoy would arrive at the mine. If they hurried over now, they might still manage to dig up some iron ore and earn a few flatbreads’ worth of money.

Su Wangchuan’s heart burned with eagerness.

For this well-paid job with excellent benefits, he could not wait to get involved as early as possible.

The two left the village along the dirt road. On both sides stretched endless rice paddies.

The fragrant scent of the fields once again gave Su Wangchuan the illusion that he was walking in the real world.

After several li, his steps gradually grew heavier.

Su Wangchuan adjusted his breathing, using a breathing method he had developed during fitness runs. It immediately felt much easier.

The shock in his heart deepened.

Lin Dahai laughed beside him.

“When you pass through here in the future, you need to be very careful. Sometimes yellow weasels, wild rabbits, or pheasants hide in the fields. If you run into a yellow weasel, ignore it. If it’s a rabbit or pheasant and you have the ability, take it down and bring it back to sell. Wang Dalang buys them for fifty copper plates each… Village hunters might also want them as drinking snacks.”

Su Wangchuan nodded with a smile.

“There aren’t any other wild beasts in the paddies, right?”

“None that I’ve encountered so far.”

Lin Dahai shook his head and smiled.

“Company people usually travel in groups, so we’re not too afraid of danger. But you still have to be careful. The wild beasts in this world are all vicious. If you handle things poorly, people really can die.”

“……”

A chill ran through Su Wangchuan’s heart.

He looked at the rice fields on both sides with a bit more vigilance.

Past the paddies was a small orchard. Beyond the orchard rose a low hill.

According to Lin Dahai, once they crossed this hill, they would see the iron mine.

Lin Dahai specifically reminded Wangchuan that the mine was already considered deep in the mountains, far from the village and the main road. Any kind of wild beast could appear, so it was best not to act alone.

“Later I’ll introduce you to the company people. In the future, everyone mines together, logs in together, eats and lives together. If danger shows up, we can handle it as a group.”

“Alright!”

Following Lin Dahai, Su Wangchuan quickly crossed the hill and entered a dense forest.

Inside the forest, a dedicated road had been cleared. The ground was paved with碎渣 from broken ore, stretching all the way to a mine entrance where the light was much dimmer.

The mine entrance was over two meters high. From inside came the continuous clanging of pickaxes, mixed with men’s voices, creating a lively din.

“Progress is a bit slow today.”

“Mining is really tough.”

“In another hour, the ore convoy should be here…”

“No helping it. Old Lin isn’t here. We’re short one strong arm.”

“Old Lin has it easy, making money without breaking a sweat.”

At that, Lin Dahai’s face flushed red. Before even entering the mine, he shouted loudly inside, cursing as he went.

“What nonsense are you spouting? What do you mean I make money easily? Heipi, you bastard, why don’t you go receive the newcomer next time?”

“Old Lin, you’re back?”

“This time the newcomer is sharp and sensible.”

“Oh? And a handsome one, too.”

“Welcome, welcome.”

Inside the mine, the light was already dim. Several men who had been digging for a long time were filthy from head to toe, their facial features barely visible.

Su Wangchuan, who was naturally fair-skinned, seemed to carry his own halo when he walked in.

Lin Dahai gave a brief introduction.

“Wangchuan, this foul-mouthed guy is Heipi. Working with him is Old Li, one of the earliest veterans to arrive in Blackstone Village. Over there, that group—tall one is Zhang Kai, the fat one is Wei Zhe… Everyone, this is Wangchuan, the newcomer. For now, he’ll be in my group.”

Su Wangchuan hurriedly greeted each of them.

A newcomer had to stay low-key and humble.

“Haha…”

“Welcome, Wangchuan.”

“Wangchuan, that’s a good name… Just look at it, even his name sounds cultured.”

The mine buzzed with laughter.

There were other miners inside as well, but they only cast brief glances before lowering their heads again, swinging their pickaxes and smashing the wall with force.

“Wangchuan, we’ll work over here.”

“Today I’ll let you try it out first so you can adapt.”

“That’s right.”

“First day here, just get used to it. This damn game world is just like the real one—mining can dig you straight into doubting your existence.”

Heipi’s foul mouth was as unpleasant as ever.

Wangchuan followed Lin Dahai to one side of the tunnel.

Lin Dahai dragged over a basket, weighed the pickaxe in his hands, then raised it high and slammed it down hard against the tunnel wall.

CLANG!!

CLANG!!

Sparks burst from the wall.

After several swings, Lin Dahai had only smashed out a few shallow pits.

“Wangchuan, watch closely.”

“These dark-colored parts are iron ore. The lighter-colored areas around them are just ordinary soil. What we need to do is pry these iron ores out one piece at a time and load them into the basket.”

“Usually, we first break away the surrounding soil that isn’t as hard. That way, we can concentrate our strength and knock down the iron ore more easily.”

After watching for a bit, Wangchuan immediately grasped the technique.

But when he actually tried it himself, he realized just how difficult it really was.