LAVW – Chapter 28 The Mighty Miner

Solitary confinement was so miserable—how could anyone possibly gain weight?

The spirit stone lamps in the stone chamber were always lit, making it impossible to distinguish between day and night. There were no other living beings, no sounds, and nothing to pass the time. Shi Qian felt like he was going to suffocate from boredom.

To keep himself from sinking into despair, he had no choice but to find his own amusement.

However, with such limited options, all he could do was eat, eat, and eat.

Later, when Wang Lianzhi entered the stone chamber, she spent most of her time meditating and healing in silence. Still, just having her there helped ease Shi Qian’s worsening mood and stopped him from completely devouring all the supplies.

The beautiful older sister saw him but never said he had gained weight.

Besides, he hadn’t eaten much in the past few days—how could he have gotten fat?

Shi Qian thought it over and confidently changed his response: “Squeak Squeak!”

I’m just fluffy! You’re just too weak to handle the weight of a little chinchilla!

His weakness had nothing to do with Long Ye. Though he looked pitiful, he was actually in much better shape than Wang Lianzhi had been when she first entered the chamber.

Long Ye casually wiped his hands on his clothes and easily picked up the little spirit beast.

Though his face was still too grimy to see his true features, his expression brightened with delight, his eyebrows lifting. “I’ve reached Foundation Establishment!”

Shi Qian lifted his head. “Squeak Squeak.”

I knew that already.

Ever since Long Ye appeared, Shi Qian’s cultivation had begun to rise. The increase was gentle, transformed through their ancient contract, bringing no discomfort.

However, because it was such a gradual process, the boost was limited. When they formed their contract, Shi Qian’s Foundation Establishment cultivation only raised Long Ye from the fifth to the eighth level of Qi Refinement. Now that their cultivation levels were roughly equal, Shi Qian had only gained some experience, but he was still a ways from advancing.

Still, lying around and passively benefiting from the efforts of a cultivation fanatic—how great was that? Thinking about the future made it even better.

Shi Qian generously congratulated him: “Squeak Squeak!”

Congratulations! You’re at Foundation Establishment like me now. Work hard and keep advancing!

Long Ye also recalled their contract at the ancestral hall.

Since he had been able to gain cultivation from Brother Qian, then in theory, he should also be able to help Brother Qian’s cultivation grow. As long as—he became stronger.

With that thought, Long Ye nodded and earnestly responded, “Alright, I’ll work hard.”

Shi Qian immediately understood that Long Ye had figured it out.

Pleased with his good little brother, Shi Qian didn’t hold back his praise: “Squeak Squeak.”

Brother Ye, you’re great! As a reward, I’ll give you a cleansing spell.

Looking at the dirt-covered Long Ye, Shi Qian lifted his tiny paw and cast a large-scale cleansing spell on him.

Spiritual energy swept over Long Ye, removing the filth from his body.

In Shi Qian’s mind, this was equivalent to dry cleaning. Personally, he preferred a proper wash, so he conjured two water orbs and thoroughly rinsed Long Ye’s face and hair.

As Shi Qian busied himself with washing Long Ye, Wang Lianzhi spoke up.

She gazed at Long Ye, who had changed so much in just a short time. His figure and facial features seemed to have aged several years.

“The changes in you are too drastic—I almost didn’t recognize you.”

By rough estimation, she had spent about ten to fifteen days in the secret realm.

However, Long Ye had undergone a complete transformation, shedding his youthful, boyish look and maturing into a young man. His facial structure became more defined, and the last traces of childishness had disappeared. With his taller stature, broad shoulders, and long legs, he now truly looked like a man.

As Wang Lianzhi observed the now unfamiliar-looking Long Ye, her gaze fell upon his freshly cleaned hands.

On the back of Long Ye’s hand, where his true appearance was now revealed, a few dark-colored scales stood out.

Wang Lianzhi couldn’t identify what kind of scales they were and asked in shock, “Long Ye, are you… part demon beast?”

Long Ye raised his hand and glanced at it as well. “I’m not sure.”

“I’ve never shown any other physical traits before. I’ve always looked like a normal person.”

“My father was definitely human. I never met my mother. Based on what little my father told me, she didn’t seem to have any special traits either.”

Shi Qian, now finished with his task, squatted on Long Ye’s now much taller head and chirped, “Squeak Squeak.”

What a coincidence, I’ve never seen my father either.

Long Ye relayed the message to Wang Lianzhi: “Brother Qian says he hasn’t seen his father either.”

Looking at the one big and one small figure before her, Wang Lianzhi gave them an apologetic smile. “Don’t dwell on it. I shouldn’t have asked so much. I just found the scales on the back of your hand unusual—I’ve never seen anything like them before.”

Shi Qian understood her reaction.

Of course dragon scales were unusual.

The dragon and phoenix clans had long since become legends in the cultivation world. No one had seen one in thousands of years, and many people no longer believed in their existence.

But it wouldn’t be long before Long Ye caused a huge sensation—when he transformed into a true dragon, proudly soaring through the skies, and shocked the entire cultivation world.

Having survived a brutal baptism of blood, Long Ye was now well aware that the scales on his body were no ordinary matter.

It was thanks to this very hand that he had managed to tear apart several powerful Foundation Establishment demon beasts right after his own breakthrough, earning his chance to enter the stone chamber.

Recalling those dark, harrowing days, Long Ye turned his gaze back to the round and fluffy little spirit beast. “What were you two planning just now?”

Shi Qian: …

Uh… actually, he and the pretty sister had already planned to leave—without waiting for Long Ye.

Wang Lianzhi glanced at Shi Qian and gave him a knowing look.

Then, in a tactful and considerate tone, she smoothly changed the subject: “I was about to check out the treasures on the stone platform and pick one. Want to take a look together?”

Hearing about potential loot, Long Ye became interested and walked toward the stone platform.

Meanwhile, Shi Qian obediently remained still, letting himself be petted while minimizing his presence.

After scanning the treasures on the stone platform, Long Ye turned to Wang Lianzhi and said, “Sister Lianzhi, I don’t have anything particular in mind. You choose first. Or if you’ve already decided on something, I can help you retrieve it.”

When he arrived earlier, Wang Lianzhi had looked quite relaxed, as if she had already taken time to rest. But she had also spent some time accompanying and taking care of the little spirit beast.

Wang Lianzhi declined his offer. “I’ve already picked one—the long halberd. But aside from that, nothing else really caught my eye. You should choose something for yourself.”

Since Long Ye didn’t have any particular preference, Wang Lianzhi retrieved the long halberd, intending to take it back for reforging.

Long Ye hesitated, seemingly unsure of what to pick.

Shi Qian then pointed at a specific spiritual herb—the Stonebone Thornflower, the very one that could have helped Long Ye reach Foundation Establishment.

“Squeak Squeak.”

Take this one.

Long Ye had been too talented, managing to reach Foundation Establishment on his own before even using the herb. But the Stonebone Thornflower was still incredibly useful. Its main effect was strengthening the bones and muscles, and it was particularly effective during breakthroughs. For spiritual herbs, the best ones were always those that suited one’s needs.

The Stonebone Thornflower was a rare variety, and Long Ye didn’t recognize it.

But since Shi Qian had pointed it out, Long Ye simply reached out and took it.

At the same time, two teleportation arrays appeared.

Shi Qian turned his head and chirped a reminder: “Squeak Squeak.”

Leave through that one.

To get closer to the teleportation array, they first had to pass by the stone tablet.

Wang Lianzhi glanced at it and suddenly recalled something. “Long Ye, you can leave your name on the stone tablet too.”

Seeing Wang Xingzhi’s name on the tablet, Long Ye immediately understood—the tablet inside the stone chamber was connected to the one outside.

If a name was inscribed here, it would also appear on the external stone tablet, allowing others to see it. Long Ye had witnessed many cultivators looking at Wang Xingzhi’s name with admiration. It would be a lie to say he wasn’t tempted. Who wouldn’t want to achieve greatness and become strong?

He took out his sword, preparing to carve his name.

Shi Qian’s warning stopped him in his tracks.

“Squeak Squeak?”

You’re not thinking of using your real name, are you?

Long Ye hesitated. Using his real name would be too conspicuous. Unlike Wang Lianzhi and Wang Xingzhi, he had too many things to consider.

Shi Qian, on the other hand, had a completely different way of thinking—his mind worked in a much more mischievous direction.

He wickedly suggested, “Squeak Squeak.”

Why not make up a fake one? Write “Long Aotian.”

“Squeak Squeak.”

Any other name would make us look weak, but this one is different.

Long Ye thought: It really does sound like something that would provoke a fight…

Amused by the idea, he happily carved the three characters “Long Aotian” onto the stone tablet.

Shi Qian also pulled out his little sword and left behind a much smaller name.

—”Long Mao” (Dragon Cat).

Both Long Ye and Wang Lianzhi fell silent.

After a few moments, Wang Lianzhi sighed, “Looks like Brother Qian really likes cats.”

She would never forget the scene of Shi Qian enthusiastically petting that huge black demon cat. That thing was massive.

Long Ye, however, thought about something else entirely.

Brother Qian actually wants to take my surname…

He couldn’t help but smile.

After leaving behind his grand name, Shi Qian turned his gaze toward the spirit stone lamps mounted on the walls. They had been lit for countless days. At one point, out of sheer boredom, Shi Qian had even tried to turn them off—only to find there were no switches, and they simply wouldn’t go out.

Holding a grudge.

Clearly, being locked up had affected him more than he wanted to admit. Not entirely rational, Shi Qian stirred up Long Ye’s rebellious streak: “Squeak Squeak.”

Let’s pry out the spirit stones from these lamps! They must be top-quality ones.

Long Ye, still in a good mood, saw no reason to refuse. Plus, as someone who had experienced true poverty, he had now developed a deep appreciation for frugality. Without hesitation, he began dismantling the lamps, extracting the still-usable spirit stones inside.

They didn’t take too many—leaving two lamps behind to provide light for those who would come after them.

Watching this, Wang Lianzhi quietly took out a small pouch from her belongings.

As the chamber dimmed, Shi Qian contentedly stepped onto the teleportation array.

A moment of dizziness and swaying—he closed his eyes, then opened them again. In the blink of an eye, they were transported outside the Ancestral Hall, landing somewhere unknown.

Before they could take a single step forward, the two of them—and one small beast—instinctively retreated, concealing their presence and finding a place to hide.

In the next instant, three cultivators came charging through, pursuing a fourth.

Two of them blocked the escape routes, while the third launched the attack. In no time, the fleeing cultivator fell to the ground.

These three were strong. Standing not far away, they actually began arguing over the kill.

One of them, dissatisfied, said, “That was my kill! What are you doing?”

“I saw him almost escape, so I made a move. How was I supposed to know he was so weak?” the second one defended himself, though his words only served to aggravate the situation.

The third, acting as a mediator, said, “Alright, alright, stop fighting. Lao Qiu, you’ve got three kills, I’ve got four, and Mingzhe has four too. We’ll help you get another one, and then we’ll head to the Cultivation Method Hall.”

“Hmph! We agreed that one was mine! I did all the work, and he just swooped in and stole the credit?”

“The next one, I’ll let you do more of the work. Mingzhe didn’t do it on purpose,” the mediator continued to soothe him. “We’re all on the same side. No point in fighting each other—otherwise, we’ll end up isolated and become nothing more than someone else’s easy prey. Just free kills for them.”

“Right, I didn’t mean to take it. The next one, I’ll make sure to leave for you.”

“Alright then.”

With that settled, the three of them set off in search of their next target.

Wang Lianzhi gripped her sword tightly, disbelief in her expression. “I don’t understand… What do they mean by ‘becoming someone else’s free opportunity’?”

Opportunities in secret realms were supposed to come from the realm itself. How could simply entering the realm make a person an opportunity?

Shi Qian chirped, “Squeak Squeak.”

They’re killing on purpose. They have to kill before going to the Cultivation Method Hall.

Long Ye relayed Shi Qian’s words, then added, “It’s obvious—killing lets them steal whatever opportunities the victim had. I suspect that killing someone also grants access to places they were qualified to enter.”

“They’ve completely lost their minds…” Wang Lianzhi murmured. She had once used similar reasoning to warn Shi Qian about the dangers of this place, but now, it was playing out in the worst way possible.

Now that this method of stealing opportunities through murder had been discovered, every cultivator in the secret realm would have to watch their back—including them.

But danger and opportunity always went hand in hand. The longer they hesitated, the more they would fall behind, and falling behind meant even greater danger.

Shoving aside her hesitation, Wang Lianzhi said, “It looks like other places might be accessible now. I’m going to search for the Weapon Refining Grounds of the War Sect—there might be a legacy there that suits me. What about you two?”

Shi Qian looked at Long Ye. “Squeak Squeak.”

I’ll follow your lead.

Long Ye thought for a moment before shaking his head. “Let’s check out some other places instead.”

He wasn’t interested in weapon refining, so it was natural that he wouldn’t go with Wang Lianzhi.

“Alright,” Wang Lianzhi said. “Be careful.”

Then, she pulled out the small pouch she had prepared and handed it to Long Ye. “This is for Brother Qian.”

Although it was called a pouch, it was clearly the kind of delicate embroidered one women used—not something specially made for its purpose.

Shi Qian sniffed it and immediately sensed the presence of a storage space within. He shook his head. “Squeak Squeak.”

You should keep it.

“No need to be polite.”

Seeing that Long Ye didn’t take it, Wang Lianzhi simply stuffed it into Shi Qian’s paws, making him hold it with both of his tiny claws.

With his tiny arms and legs, there was no way Shi Qian could refuse.

After Wang Lianzhi left, Shi Qian opened the pouch and found it filled with spirit stones—mostly low-grade, but still a considerable amount.

She must have seen him and Long Ye scraping spirit stones out of the lamps and thought they were so poor that she, a beautiful senior sister, had to step in and help.

Shi Qian clutched the pouch and looked at Long Ye. “Squeak Squeak?”

Brother Ye, what do we do?

Long Ye: “What else can we do?”

“Squeak Squeak?!”

“What else can we do—what does that even mean?!”

Long Ye smirked. “Talk about it later. If nothing else works, maybe you should just marry her?” he joked, all while keeping his attention on their surroundings. After scanning the area, he picked a direction and asked, “Brother Qian, is this way safe?”

Shi Qian raised his nose and sniffed. “Squeak Squeak.”

Safe for now.

They proceeded along the path Long Ye had chosen.

Shi Qian stashed the pouch away and suddenly exclaimed, “Squeak Squeak!”

You actually said something like ‘marry her’! Something’s wrong with you.

Long Ye shrugged. “What’s wrong with saying that? It’s not like you’d actually go with her.”

Shi Qian: ?

Something was definitely off with Long Ye today—he seemed like he’d given up on everything.

Shi Qian decided to motivate him. He patted the storage pendant hanging from his neck and said, “Squeak Squeak.”

Sister Lianzhi has tons of spirit stones, so many spirit fruits, and even made me a robe.

But Long Ye simply replied, “Yeah, and despite all that, you’re still walking with me, aren’t you?”

That… was true.

Long Ye seemed to be reflecting on something. “For you, making friends is as natural as eating and drinking. Everyone likes you. That’s a good thing—it means you’ll always have people protecting you.”

Shi Qian: Touched.

But then Long Ye added—“I used to never understand why my dad insisted I socialize more. Now I get it. But I’m not like you… I’m not naturally likable.”

Shi Qian: I treated you like a brother, and you—

Puffed up with indignation, Shi Qian lied straight to Long Ye’s face. “Squeak Squeak.”

My mom is single.

Long Ye immediately shut up—and nearly tripped.

“Squeak Squeak.”

But she doesn’t like humans. You wouldn’t stand a chance.

Shi Qian huffed. Brother Qian advises you to be kind—otherwise, I might just introduce you to my mom.

Long Ye sighed, then reached out and pinched Shi Qian’s chubby cheek. “I just worry about you,” he admitted. “But I guess I don’t have to anymore. I actually learned a really strong technique—it can even handle late-stage Foundation Establishment beasts.”

Shi Qian’s ears perked up. “Squeak Squeak?”

What technique?

Long Ye gave a brief explanation—it was essentially an advanced, lethal version of the move Shi Qian had once used to scare off the Giant Hair Beast.

Shi Qian praised Long Ye’s strength aloud, but deep down, he was genuinely impressed.

The cultivation world sure has a lot of tough guys.

Do none of you fear pain?

Now an upgraded “tough guy,” Long Ye led Shi Qian through the secret realm, avoiding risks as they moved. The number of cultivators hunting others had increased dramatically, making every step a cautious one.

While dodging dangers, they also searched for treasures. By the third day, Shi Qian took out his token again—only for a cascade of red beads to fall.

Were those really beads? No, they were forty… forty heads.

Long Ye glanced at them, did a quick calculation, and estimated that there were probably only around a hundred people left in the secret realm.

Shi Qian listened and commented, “Squeak Squeak.”

Killing everyone doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll pass the trials.

Long Ye replied, “People always think they have a chance. Everyone dreams, and in dreams, it’s too easy to lose sight of reality.”

He dreamed too, but he was also keenly aware of his own weakness and the harshness of reality. That understanding made it easier for him to grasp why others acted as they did.

Shi Qian sprawled across Long Ye’s head. “Squeak Squeak.”

Whatever. I’ll dream too.

A wave of homesickness hit Shi Qian—he missed Brother Mouse and Mama Mouse. Thinking back to when he first arrived in this world, running carefree around Five Leaf Mountain… Those were the good old days, a memory worth revisiting to soothe the chaos of the secret realm.

…Though the pigeons and mountain chickens probably wouldn’t agree.

Shi Qian didn’t get much time to dream—Long Ye shook him awake.

The moment he opened his eyes, he was greeted by the sight of a half-excavated mountain.

It wasn’t particularly tall, but veins of silver and blue shimmered faintly between the rocks, like scattered stardust. At night, it would surely glow like a child’s dreamlike painting—radiant and enchanting.

Just as Shi Qian was marveling at the beauty, a streak of silver flashed across the mountainside.

Chasing after it was… an actual child.

A small, delicate golden boy—Wang Xingzhi—held what looked like a hoe and was shouting, “Xiao Yin, stop running around!”

At his call, the silver sword flew back to him, curling around his side.

The sword’s tip kept poking at the storage pouch on Wang Xingzhi’s waist, clearly interested in whatever was inside.

Wang Xingzhi clutched his pouch protectively. “The whole mountain is full of star silver ore. If you want to eat, dig it yourself! The stuff in here is your rations for later.”

Long Ye thought: The rumors were wrong. This isn’t some sword wielder—this is another sword ‘dad.’ Just… a very small one.

Shi Qian: “Squeak?”

What’s that thing in his hand for?

“Probably for mining star silver.” Long Ye answered. “That stone chamber and even the inheritance shrine might be made from refined ore-rich earth. No wonder people couldn’t get out. But this ore is really tough—hard to mine, even for cultivators.”

That alone told them it had to be valuable.

Shi Qian immediately perked up.

Tough guys, let’s get to work mining.