After the death of their fellow student, Omari and the rest followed Boot in silence, no longer descending but walking along a flat, dimly lit tunnel. All thoughts of escaping had left their minds. They quietly followed Boot, their hands shaking, giving each other fearful glances. After a while, they reached a small shop built into the rock, and Boot quickly lined them up in a straight line.
One by one, they were asked to hand over their spatial pouches. Even though they were low-level pouches, Boot checked them one by one and took all the spirit stones inside. He gave half of the spirit stones to the shop owner, another yellow-robed cultivator.
The shop owner placed four worn spatial pouches and four pickaxes on the dusty counter, and the four students walked forward one by one, taking one pouch and one pickaxe each. After getting the necessary tools, the students went back and stood in a straight line.
Boot walked forward, taking slow, deliberate steps.
"Welcome to the Celestial Gate Sect. You'll start your journeys here as our sect's precious miners," Boot said with a smile, then continued, "You will, however, get the opportunity to become official students. Prove your talents, survive the hardships you'll face down here, and maybe you might get selected and officially join the Sect."
"Enough of that. Now, let me tell you about your daily tasks. All of you need to deliver two hundred spirit stones each day. Here, we don't mine regular spirit stones; we mine flame stones."
He pulled out an orange spirit stone and showed it to the new recruits.
"Flame stones are orange in color, as you can see. Every week, you get rewarded with five stamina pills, and at the end of every month, you get five orange spirit stones. Laziness will not be tolerated, which is why there are those put in place to discipline you."
"Before you're sent to your posts, here are your tokens. Make sure to keep them around your necks at all times."
Boot finished handing the students jade tokens with strings tied around them to make them wearable around the neck.
Soon after that, four yellow-robed cultivators came and took one new recruit from Omari's group, each of them going down a different tunnel.
Omari was led down the tunnel to the west. He watched as other workers mined, their bodies seeming like they would break at any moment. Some of them were even losing their hair, their eyes blank with no hope left. Behind the miners stood a yellow-robed cultivator holding a whip.
Anyone who dared to slow down even for a second would get whipped until they were nearly unconscious and could only continue after consuming a stamina pill.
"Here. Now get to work!!" the cultivator guiding Omari ordered as he pointed next to an old, wrinkled woman, demanding that Omari begin mining.
Omari clenched his fist as he walked forward. He held his pickaxe with both hands and lifted it. He took a deep breath and gritted his teeth, slamming the pickaxe down into the rock. Using his anger, he kept digging until an orange, rock-like crystal appeared.
He quickly pulled it out and felt its warmth before placing it in his pouch. He continued, each strike hitting harder than the last. His breath turned sharp, and his grip tightened until his knuckles burned.
"Am I going to live the rest of my life like this... What am I going to do... how am I going to survive this?" his mind raced.
The hours crawled by. Omari's arms throbbed, and the mines filled with the same dull rhythm of metal on stone.
Far above the mountain, the sky rippled. Five hooded figures stepped out of thin air. Two of them were women. Following them, the Twin Emeralds arrived on their flying swords. Finally, a brilliant golden light coalesced, revealing a figure resplendent in shining gold robes. It was the King of the Iron Crescent Kingdom, Sheng Zhenwu.
"Ghost Step! Come out! This Emperor demands an audience!" King Sheng Zhenwu's voice rippled out in powerful waves, reaching every corner of the Celestial Gate Sect.
Deep in the mines, Omari's eyes widened at the sound. "The king... This is about the Majesty Lion. It doesn't matter. He might be my way out of here." His mind began to plot, a spark of hope igniting in the crushing darkness.
Above, when no immediate response came, the Emperor's face hardened. "Ghost Step, do you truly wish for me to act? I doubt your Celestial Gate Sect would survive the blow!"
"Preposterous!!" a student wearing a white robe with a purple token hanging at his waist yelled, leading more than a hundred other white-robed cultivators forward, followed by hundreds of yellow-robed cultivators. They were all standing on their swords to help them fly.
"How dare you threaten my teacher... our Sect Leader!!" the young cultivator yelled, pointing his finger at the King.
One of the five hooded figures standing with the King walked forward.
"Little brat, kneel!!!" he said, releasing a wave of spiritual energy. Before his energy could reach where the young cultivator was standing, an old man appeared in front of the youth in a flash of white speed, leaving afterimages. Even though he appeared to be walking, no one saw his movement except the five hooded figures and the King.
"Sheng Zhenwu... Do you honestly think your power is capable of destroying my Celestial Gate Sect? Don't make me laugh." The old man spoke while stroking his beard, his long hair cascading down his back. He wore a black and green robe. He was the leader of the Celestial Gate Sect, Ghost Step—one of the fastest people on the entire Eldara continent.
"So... what brings you to my Sect, Zhenwu...? Get to the point," Ghost Step asked.
"Straight to the point as always, huh, Ghost Step. You have something that belongs to me—that young one you took from me. Omari Siwang. Bring him to me," the Emperor demanded.
Ghost Step froze for a few moments, trying to understand what the King was saying, then spoke.
"If you're talking about one of my new recruits, then you're too late. They've already joined my Celestial Gate Sect. And what kind of teacher would I be if I were to sell off my own students?" Ghost Step smiled.
"Ghost Step, this is a serious matter. Don't make things harder than they have to be. Bring me Omari Siwang and I'll leave your sect. If not, then today we will go to war. Are you sure you can risk that, seeing that your calamity is approaching?" The King's anger could be felt in his voice.
This Sheng Zhenwu... he actually brought an entire army to my Sect. I guess he won't leave this matter alone if I don't compensate him, Ghost Step thought, using his divine sense to observe an army of thousands standing a few miles away, waiting for the King's command to attack.
Ghost Step walked forward on the air with grace, with zero fear in his eyes. "Celestial Gate students... go back to your duties."
The students bowed and flew back into the Sect. Only the white-robed student with a purple token stayed behind.
Ghost Step's expression grew serious. "My Celestial Gate Sect doesn't follow your orders. This is not your kingdom, Sheng Zhenwu... but I will compensate you."
The King raised an eyebrow. "My, Majesty Lion was killed. How can you compensate for that?"
Ghost Step pulled out a pouch and threw it at the King. After using his divine sense to check it, the King was shocked. It was filled with ten thousand flame stones, one of the rarest spirit stones in existence.
Flame stones... If it wasn't for that mysterious figure helping you build your sect and setting up this dangerous formation, this mine would've been mine by now, the King thought.
"Your gifts are always amazing, old man, but this is not enough."
Ghost Step lowered his eyebrows. "I will also make sure that he will never rise up in the world... That will be his punishment. Is that enough for you?"
Ghost Step turned around. "Don't push your luck, Sheng Zhenwu. The Celestial Gate Sect is always prepared for war." His voice was deep and cold as he vanished in a flash of speed, leaving afterimages.
"Going to war is not a good idea, especially in this old man's territory. He will take both of us down with that formation," the King sighed, then turned around with his people as they flew away.
Ghost Step appeared in his manor at the highest point of the mountain, instantly slamming his hand on one of the tables, breaking it.
"Just you wait, Sheng Zhenwu... I'm so close. In a few years, my calamity will descend, and then I'll make sure your Kingdom falls."
One of his students entered. "Go tell the yellow robes... I want that Omari Siwang to suffer for almost bringing disaster to my Sect."
The white-robed student bowed and turned around, leaving to deliver the message.
In the mines, Omari was busy digging with his pickaxe when a white-robed cultivator entered the mines. He flew on his sword until he reached the center, then withdrew it before landing on the ground.
All the yellow-robed cultivators who saw him bowed down.
"Omari Siwang, bring him to me," he demanded.
Omari raised his head. "Maybe they are handing me over to the kingdom people... I just hope they are easier to escape from".
"Which one is Omari Siwang?" Boot asked.
Omari quickly raised his hand.
"I'm Omari Siwang."
The only thing on his mind was leaving the mines. At this point, anything was better than the mines to him.
"Follow me."
Omari quickly followed behind Boot. His heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird, but a fragile, desperate hope still flickered within him. Anything was better than the mines. They went up the stairs until they reached the center. They then entered a room that looked like a cave with a small bed. There was a white-robed cultivator standing there, and now six yellow-robed cultivators, including Boot.
Mo Jie, the white-robed cultivator who had brought Omari to the Celestial Gate Sect, sighed as if feeling sorry for the ten-year-old standing in front of him. "Come closer," he ordered.
Omari stepped forward, but the moment he closed the distance, a sharp crack split the air. Pain exploded across his cheek, and he hit the ground face-first before he even understood what had happened.
Mo Jie had slapped him.
"Begin," Mo Jie ordered coldly.