"Hard to say… But the bald guy said Su Zhan advanced several levels in just one month. Zhou Yueshan targeted him because he suspected Su Zhan had a treasure. Now, with Zhou Yueshan dead in such a cruel way, the truth might be more complicated than we think."
"They say even the mine owner was personally alarmed by this!"
"Quiet! It's none of our business. Let's hurry back and report."
The three left quickly.
Not far away, a clone was hiding in the shadows, seeing and hearing everything.
"So now, not only Zhou Yueshan's gang knows, but even the Seventh-Level Mortal Realm mine owner is paying attention… I have to get a sect disciple identity quickly and take him down, otherwise there will be endless trouble!"
Inside the Punishment Hall
"…I can conclude that Mr. Zhou must have been killed by Su Zhan!"
"When the five men sent to monitor him never returned, I knew something was wrong. But Mr. Zhou wasn't on any secret mission at the time. After contacting him to confirm, I didn't dare rashly confront Su Zhan, so I endured it for the time being."
"When Mr. Zhou returned, I immediately looked for him out… but before I could find him, his Stone of Life shattered!"
The bald man knelt, trembling slightly, recounting the events with fear—how he had followed Su Zhan alongside Zhou Yueshan, how he first came into contact with him, how he investigated him, and how he swiftly reported the matter after witnessing the sudden shattering of Zhou Yueshan's Stone of Life.
Seated on both sides were the captains of the sixth level of the Mortal Realm.
Standing behind them, without the privilege of seats, were captains of the fifth level.
Members of the Punishment Team at the fourth level weren't even qualified to step inside and observe.
At the very center, sitting at the highest position, was a slender young man dressed in white, idly fanning himself with a paper fan.
He looked to be in his early twenties—much younger than many present.
Yet, he was the master of the entire mine and the only seventh-level Mortal Realm cultivator in the hall. His presence outshone everyone else's. This was Lu Yunhai.
Normally, the death of a fourth-level Punishment Team member wouldn't warrant Lu Yunhai's personal attention. Even the death of a fifth-level captain wouldn't bring him here.
The only reason he had come so swiftly was because he had heard something astonishing—
The youth who killed the fourth-level member had reportedly gone from the first level to the third, and even the fourth level of the Mortal Realm in less than a month!
Such cultivation speed might be unremarkable in major sects or great clans where resources flowed like water—there were even more outrageous examples.
But this particular youth was a kidnapped miner.
Just a month ago, he had been breaking his back in the mines. Yet in the blink of an eye, he had broken through multiple realms and even killed a fourth-level Punishment Team member.
Could anyone believe there was nothing unusual about him?
"Lord," a sixth-level captain rose, knelt on one knee, and said respectfully,
"Zhou Yueshan was an elite among the fourth levels. Even if Su Zhan broke through to the fourth level, killing him would be extremely difficult—unless he reached the fifth level!"
The moment these words were spoken, the air in the hall tightened.
Four consecutive minor realm breakthroughs… from level one to level five in a single month?
That kind of progress could only mean one thing—Su Zhan possessed a treasure. And not just any treasure, but something so precious it made even hardened tremble with desire..
Even Lu Yunhai's heart began to race.
"An unknown brat, promoted from first to fifth level in one month… This is my chance! My once-in-a-lifetime chance!"
If he could seize that treasure, it might help him ascend to the Origin Realm in astonishing speed.
Once he reached Origin Realm, he would be eligible to leave this desolate place and be assigned to guard a city. He would stand alongside his most gifted senior brothers—and perhaps even match Shuang'er.
A year ago, Lu Yunhai had defeated the previous mine master and taken over. On paper, it was a profitable position, carefully arranged by his father. But in reality, he was surrounded day after day by miners and ores.
It was stagnant.
When he learned that his peers had reached the eighth or ninth level—or even broken into the Origin Realm—and had been assigned to guard cities, envy burned within him.
Especially when he heard that Shuang'er had reached the ninth level in just one year and had also been assigned a city to guard.
He wanted out.
Unfortunately, his talent and comprehension weren't enough. After a full year, he was still stuck at the seventh level, far from the eighth.
It angered him.
But now—
A miracle had dropped into his lap. A treasure beyond even the Sun Sect's treasure halls… born right here in his mine.
If he could claim it, his future might not stop at Origin Realm at all.
"Master Lu!"
A fourth-level Punishment Team member burst into the hall, pale-faced, dropping to his knees.
"Su… Su Zhan's positioning stone is gone."
Puff!
Before the man could take another breath, Lu Yunhai's paper fan pierced his throat in a flash.
The speed was so terrifying that the fifth and sixth-level captains instinctively tensed, cold sweat forming on their foreheads.
If that strike had been aimed at them, they doubted they would withstand any better.
This was no ordinary seventh-level power. Lu Yunhai cultivated high-grade cultivation technique, and the fan in his hand was a mid-grade spiritual weapon. Even a fellow seventh-level would struggle to match him.
"Spread the word. Search for Su Zhan starting from the mine's perimeter outward!"
"Anyone who provides information will be rewarded with 100 spirit stones."
"Anyone who helps capture him will receive 1,000 spirit stones."
"And anyone who can bring him back alive—10,000 spirit stones!"
"I want him alive. Even if he's crippled, he must be breathing!"
Lu Yunhai stepped forward, pulled the bloodstained fan from the corpse, flicked it clean, and added coldly:
"If anyone knows where he is and doesn't report it—kill them."
"Yes, Lord Lu!"
The fifth and sixth-level captains saluted and hurried out.
"This alone might not be enough. It has to be foolproof," Lu Yunhai muttered, pulling out a token—the identity token of a Sun Sect disciple.
"Send this token to the sect as fast as possible. Deliver it to my father, and tell him—there's a treasure here, and I need his help."
"Yes, Master Lu!"
Once the messenger left, Lu Yunhai reopened his fan, eyes gleaming as he imagined what Su Zhan's treasure might be.
⸻
Meanwhile, at the center of the storm
In Wind Stone Town, Su Zhan rested in the most luxurious suite of an inn, enjoying a grand meal. Through Clones eyes, he kept watch on the mine's activity.
Clones lurked in the shadows, watching as the Punishment Team rounded up miners, holding portraits of Su Zhan and comparing faces one by one.
Anyone looking like him was dragged away without question.
"Such a massive operation… all aimed at me," Su Zhan pondered, his eyes glinting coldly.
"They'll reach Wind Stone Town soon."
He clenched his chopsticks.
"I was planning to keep a low profile… but if they insist on forcing my hand, then I'll use this chance to kill and plunder."