Chapter 55 - Any Means Necessary (1/2)

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Deep Mines, Day Sixty-Two:

The first person to miss the quota occurred after two months. Surprisingly, it was not a young child but a woman that looked like she was in her late twenties. She couldn't be considered a beauty, but neither could she be called ugly. When she originally showed up with Yan Zaizen and the rest, her eyes were filled with hope and determination, but now it was filled with desolation and exhaustion.

When she realized that she wouldn't make it, she pressed other people for assistance, but at this time all the miners had stopped trying to deliver more than their fair share due to the quota increase. They hit their limit and rested for the day to restore their energy for the next.

As Yan Zaizen saw this, he couldn't help but feel his heart go soft, but then he remembered the young boy and how if she couldn't reach her quota this time, it's very unlikely for her to do so in the future. Tao was looking at the scene calmly, and when she arrived to ask him for ore, he declined her flatly.

Yan Zaizen could see that he didn't do so without mercy. Tao wasn't someone who was completely emotionless, but more so that he understood the reality of their situation better than others.

The time to deliver their ore was arriving, and the woman was panicking. She even tried to steal another's spatial box, only to be brutally slapped away. With her body dried up of essence energy, she was no longer a cultivator, but a mortal. Her vital energies were at its all-time low, and even if she knew any martial arts, they were absolutely worthless at the moment.

She just stood there crying her eyes out, as if cursing at the cruelty of the world. It truly pulled at Yan Zaizen's heartstrings, but Tao kept him from acting impulsively. Reminding him that one day of support will do nothing for her situation unless you're willing to help her through her entire sentence at the expense of your own safety.

While Yan Zaizen felt a little terrible at leaving the woman to her own fate, an old miner walked towards her with a slight smile. He reached out his hand. Her gaze directed itself towards this man's soft smile, and it seemed as if it was her saving grace at life. The man spoke soft words that only those nearby could truly hear, but with Yan Zaizen's and Tao's previous cultivation, how could they not hear it?

Yan Zaizen's face darkened, but Tao's expression remained the same.

The lady looked awkward for a moment but then nodded decisively. She grabbed his hand, and he took her towards one of the auxiliary tunnels in their main tunnel. The onlookers were confused, but soon their confusion dissipated with heartbreaking realization.

Soft moans and harsh grunts were released from that particular tunnel. Many of the young women's eyes dimmed at this, while the men's eyes lit up in startling realization. They eyed the other women of the mine, looking at them with lascivious gazes.

”In the mine, one must use any means necessary to survive, to struggle for one more day,” Tao said, his words filled with unspeakable meanings. As he did, a harsh shriek sounded behind them and passed them like a meteor. It was originally soft, but then it got louder, and after it reached its zenith, it started becoming softer once more.

Tao looked behind him, seeing a figure descending downwards without any support, his face filled with unwillingness and fear. Yan Zaizen looked down at the pit and saw as the figure continued to descend into the darkness until his shrieks faded from audible range.

”By any means,” Tao repeated, going back to mine once more.