Chapter 21: The Undeserved Disaster

If it had been just Chu Hao alone, he definitely wouldn't have dared to venture deep into the Blackwood Forest. But with so many people together… he didn't mind entering the forest to have a look.

"What mine?" Chu Hao asked.

"An old abandoned mine, don't worry, there's nothing dangerous inside, just make sure you don't get lost down there!" The girl in purple said with the air of someone looking to beef up their ranks.

After thinking it over, Chu Hao agreed to join them, as he was indeed eager to see the deeper parts of the forest.

The girl returned to the caravan with a smile and introduced Chu Hao to the others.

This girl's surname was Yang, named Yang Suyun, originating from Yue City, and born into a large merchant family. However, aside from Yang Suyun and her servant "Elder Cheng," the other 15 people were hastily recruited by her in Yue City.

Such recruitment happened in every city, usually in the central plaza, where most mercenary groups set up camp, making it convenient to accept missions. There were also many individual soldiers wandering there, taking on tasks that didn't require teamwork to complete.

For example, Yang Suyun's mission to search for leftover ore in an abandoned mine required simply reaching the Blackwood Forest; what came after was a matter of luck.

The Yang Family paid each person an "appearance fee" of ten taels of silver, and for every piece of the required mineral found, they would be additionally compensated based on the weight—essentially a commission.

And it was quite substantial.

Chu Hao had seen the reference ore Yang Suyun had brought out; it was all white but seemed to have swirling clouds within it, unlike anything he had ever seen. Yang Suyun referred to this ore as Cloud Mist Stone, and its specific purpose was left unsaid by her.

However, as long as the ore weighed one gram, Yang Suyun would purchase it at the price of ten taels of silver!

So valuable!

Chu Hao couldn't help but be astonished. The Yang Family surely wouldn't engage in a loss-making business, meaning that if Yang Suyun was willing to buy it for ten taels per gram, they must be making far more than that!

What on earth was the Cloud Mist Stone used for to be worth so much!

Yang Suyun kept tight-lipped, and it was unclear whether she was good at keeping secrets or simply didn't know either.

In principle, Chu Hao should not have encountered Yang Suyun's group, but as he was circling the outskirts of the Blackwood Forest, he somehow ended up on the side closer to Yue City.

The group then moved toward the depths of the forest, each member treading with extreme caution.

In the forest, not only were there terrifying ferocious beasts, but even the inconspicuous little insects could be deadlier!

They were highly poisonous, and a sting from them could be very bad news! It wasn't possible to carry too much medicine when out exploring, and if bitten by one of those poisonous creatures, five out of ten people would die.

The team was a mixed bag, with the oldest being "Elder Cheng," who was over sixty, and the youngest, Ba Hu, even a year younger than Chu Hao, though most were middle-aged.

Such freelance fighters generally didn't possess great strength, not qualifying to join mercenary groups, thus only taking jobs that didn't require much might. Otherwise, ten taels of silver would not be enough to lure anyone out of the city—even with a sizeable commission, the minerals weren't easy to find!

When traveling, most people adhered to the principle that it was better to observe more and say less. Despite nearly twenty people in the group, there was little communication along the way; most simply kept their heads down and pursued their own path since they would be searching separately once they entered the mine anyway.

Due to the perils within the forest, their travel pace was slow, and it would take about two days to reach the location of the mine. That evening when they stopped to rest, they were attacked by a ferocious beast.

It was a third-tier Middle Mahayana realm Fire Cloud Leopard, its fur looking like blazing flames, both beautiful and radiating danger. With everyone's joint efforts, the Fire Cloud Leopard was driven off, leaving everyone breaking out in a cold sweat.

—This was only because the Fire Cloud Leopard was pregnant and did not give its all; otherwise, driving it off would have cost them several lives!

The ferocious beasts in the Blackwood Forest weren't too strong, with no Great Mahayana realm creatures, so this Fire Cloud Leopard probably ranked as a tyrant. However, among Chu Hao's group, there were no real powerhouses; they only managed to drive off the leopard, whereas if they had Fu Xue, the female Tyrannosaurus... they might have ended up feasting on leopard meat that night.

After fighting side by side, the group grew noticeably closer, as battlefields were the places where friendships were easily formed.

"Ding Hao, your sword isn't bad!" Ba Hu walked up to Chu Hao, his eyes fixed on the Red Shadow Sword.

—Ding Hao was the alias Chu Hao was using.

Chu Hao smiled faintly; the sword had cost him thirty thousand taels of silver, and with good reason—the quality matched the price. He nodded and replied, "Thank you!"

"Sell it to me!" Ba Hu said, his eyes filled with greed, "One thousand taels of silver, what do you say?"

One thousand taels?

That wouldn't even buy a tenth of it!

Chu Hao shook his head, "I'm not interested in selling the sword!"

"Ding Hao, I really like this sword!" Ba Hu emphasized, with a tone that began to reveal his displeasure.

"I like my sword as well, and have no intention of selling it!" Chu Hao emphasized back.

"Three thousand taels! How about three thousand taels?" Ba Hu persisted.

Chu Hao frowned; he initially had no particular opinion of Ba Hu, but now the man was being rather shameless.

Must he sell it to you just because you like it? What kind of logic is that!

"Not selling," his voice turned cold.

Ba Hu looked at Chu Hao and, after a while, a smile appeared on his lips, "Ding Hao, in all my life, nobody has ever dared to say no to me!"

"Well, you've heard it today!"

"Hahaha, you will regret this!" Ba Hu laughed boisterously, his youthful exuberance overflowing with arrogance, "You're merely a First Tier Lesser Mahayana realm, you are not worthy of this sword! You will regret this! I can guarantee it!"

Murderous intent flashed in his eyes.

Chu Hao's heart chilled; this young man must have been spoiled rotten, devoid of any concept of right and wrong! And this was outside the city; even if he produced the Blood Wolf Order, could it truly deter the other party?

The youth was at the Third Tier of the Lesser Mahayana realm, incomparably stronger than Chu Hao by more than a small margin! Of course, for now, he only dared to threaten verbally, but what if they entered the mine... The space within was vast, and a few deaths would be like casting stones into the sea, and it was even possible not to find a body!

Chu Hao too felt a surge of killing intent; to think of murder over a mere sword? The youth's disposition was truly deplorable!

Indeed, a Third Tier Lesser Mahayana realm was stronger than him, but in a battle of life and death, who would live and who would die was still uncertain! After all, how sharp was the Red Shadow Sword? The environment in the mine was extremely complex, and higher strength did not necessarily mean one would have the last laugh!

A hint of a smile also appeared on Chu Hao's lips, "Then we'll just have to wait and see!"

"You're seeking death!" Ba Hu whispered scornfully and walked away with disdain.

What an unwarranted disaster!

Watching Ba Hu's retreating figure, Chu Hao thought to himself that in this world, one couldn't avoid trouble just by staying out of it—unless you were so poor that you became invisible, escaping others' notice!

The mere Red Shadow Sword had provoked Ba Hu to murderous thoughts, but owning Fortune Full Building, which was like a hen that laid golden eggs, how many would have their eyes on him, wishing to remove him and take his place? Among them, Liu Heng's family should have the strongest killing intent, for if Chu Hao died, Fortune Full Building would be theirs!

Strength, he needed strength, the kind of strength that would deter anyone's coveting!

He was deeply engrossed in his thoughts when he suddenly felt like he was being watched. He sharply turned his head to see that Yang Suyun's beast pet was staring at his backside, baring its teeth and drooling.

Upon seeing Chu Hao turn to look, the ferocious beast opened its mouth even wider, full of hostility.

"Keep looking, and I'll cook you into dog stew!" Chu Hao joked. Not only had he offended people, but now he had also caught the attention of a fierce dog—this kind of ferocious beast was known as a Big-Ear Red Dog, relatively docile and easily tamed, unlike most ferocious beasts which could never coexist peacefully with humans.

Stared down by Chu Hao, the fierce dog immediately ran off with its tail between its legs, doubtless to find Yang Suyun for some cuddles and charm.

Another day passed, and the team finally arrived at the mining cave.

The cave was enormous, with the entrance alone being ten meters high and wide enough to allow a horse carriage to freely enter and exit!

If the Cloud Mist Stones were the sole output here in the past, what incredible wealth that would have represented?

Chu Hao thought to himself whether the Cloud Mist Stone was the primary mine or merely an accessory one—there was a huge difference!

"Everyone, bring food and drink, enough for three days, and after you run out, come out to replenish! We are likely to stay here for ten days, any longer and we'll run out of food and clean water," Yang Suyun instructed while having workers unload goods from the carriages to the crowd.

After everyone had received their food and clean water, they entered the mine one by one.

Chu Hao glanced toward Ba Hu; the youth still had his arms crossed, staring back coldly as if he were a snake choosing its prey. With his food and water on his back, Chu Hao entered the mine.

The initial path was fine, but soon the light vanished, and the cave plunged into darkness, lit only by the faint glow of distant torches flickering.

The air quality inside the cave was fairly good, and a breeze blew through, suggesting another entrance or maybe an underground river.

Chu Hao didn't light a torch; not only because the area near the entrance had been well-trodden and finding Cloud Mist Stone there was next to impossible, but also because he needed to be on guard against Ba Hu.

Whoever held a torch in the dark became the most visible target.

Chu Hao moved silently; in fact, he didn't want to confront Ba Hu right away, as his First Tier Lesser Mahayana realm cultivation was a significant disadvantage. No matter how exceptional one might be, in the face of absolute power, one could only succumb.

The mine was not only vast at the entrance, but inside it seemed to be another world, with numerous branching paths intricate as an ant's nest.

Chu Hao was not afraid of taking the wrong turn; his analytical capability was astounding, and any path he took would be etched into his mind, constructing a mental model and revealing a three-dimensional map of the entire mine.

It seemed that Ba Hu couldn't have caught up with him—if they indeed encountered each other, that would be just too coincidental.

(Dear readers, this new tender book needs your recommendations and collections~~~)