I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

In the spring of 1938, the Shaojialing Iron Mine

"Snapped!"

A Japanese soldier supervising the miners lashed Zhao Mancang across the back with a whip! His already tattered cotton-padded coat was torn open, and bright red blood seeped from the hole, causing the young man to grimace in pain! The crucial point was that he dared not stop what he was doing and, along with the Third Master in front of him, carried a basket of iron ore and forced himself to quicken his pace forward.

The third master in front glanced back, his lips twitching slightly, before quickening his pace. His clenched teeth and trembling facial muscles betrayed his inner rage and hatred! The surrounding miners merely glanced up and continued working; such incidents were commonplace and they were numb to them. Unless they were the ones being mocked, no one cared.

"Hurry up! If you delay the train's departure, you lowly people will all die!" The Japanese soldier gripped his gun with both hands, glaring menacingly at the miners who were working hard.

Zhao Mancang, 19 years old, a third-year history student at Zhongzhou University—yes, he's a transmigrator! He's been in this world for over a month, and to his dismay, after all this time, he's finally given up. No system, no cheat codes, no unparalleled magic manuals—all the awesome stuff in transmigration novels has absolutely nothing to do with him! All he has is a little knowledge of the war storyline from his university days in the future, and a head full of unrealizable ideas!

The thought of his time-travel experience filled him with rage! He entered Zhongzhou University right when the global pandemic was just beginning. He had only been home for winter break after one semester when the entire country went into lockdown, and even visiting relatives was forbidden! For the next two and a half years, he went to school quite often, but the time he spent in face-to-face classes with professors was less than the amount of hair on Third Master's head! He spent most of his time at home taking online classes on his phone, and the villagers laughed at him for attending a "homebody" university!

Finally, the policy was relaxed and we could return to school after the winter break. In order to complete the winter break assignment given by the teacher to investigate the historical sites in our hometown, I accidentally fell into the cave while searching for the legendary Ten Thousand People Cave in the deep mountains, and then I traveled through time!

When he woke up again, he was lying in the arms of the bald old man in front of him, with two old oxen and six or seven goats beside him. Before he could figure out what had happened, he was captured by a group of traitors and a dozen Japanese soldiers and forced to work as a laborer in this iron mine. The cattle and sheep were, unsurprisingly, destroyed by those bastards. In any case, he hasn't seen a single hair on them since!

What utter bad luck! This past month has been absolutely miserable! Mining and transporting ore every day is exhausting, like being a dog. And to make matters worse, we only get two meals a day: cornbread buns and a thin corn porridge so runny you can see your reflection in it. After a month, this once strong young man has been reduced to skin and bones, his eyes are black, and he's covered in wounds. It looks like a gust of wind could blow him over!

The sleeping conditions were even worse. Over three hundred laborers were crammed into a dozen or so thatched huts, worse than a refugee camp. Not only were they drafty, but there wasn't even a proper heated brick bed; everyone slept on the floor, shoulder to shoulder. The stench of their feet was enough to make anyone faint, and at night, the sounds of teeth grinding, farting, and snoring were deafening!

The third uncle in front of us isn't actually that old, only forty-three, two years younger than my father! But he's of high seniority, so he's quite the big shot in the village with a bunch of grandchildren. He's unmarried and makes a living herding cattle, occasionally gathering herbs and hunting pheasants and rabbits for some pocket money. He lives a leisurely and comfortable life!

"Damn it, those Japanese devils are ruthless! Look at this back, it's almost like a checkered bed sheet! Bear with it, apply some kudzu root to prevent infection!" During the meal, Third Master picked a handful of kudzu root, mashed it into a paste, and applied it to the wounds, looking at the crisscrossing scars on his back and couldn't help but curse. (Kudzu root is a small grass that grows by the roadside and has hemostatic and bruise-reducing properties.)

"Hiss..." Zhao Mancang hissed in pain, his anger rising. Everyone else who transmigrated had a system and a cheat code, but he had nothing and was stuck in this hellhole to suffer this torment! Did he offend the judge in his past life? A perfectly good college student suddenly became a shepherd boy?

"Alright! Put on your coat quickly. It's still chilly these days, so don't catch a cold. I don't know what sins we committed to have to be laborers here. When will this ever end?" Third Master said dejectedly after bandaging the tattered cloth.

"..." Zhao Mancang didn't know what to say. With this kind of body, it would be a miracle if he could even survive, let alone escape! If he really had a chance to escape, he probably wouldn't be able to run two miles before he was exhausted to death!

For over a month, I've been scheming to escape. Now that I've transmigrated to this era, I should bravely fight the enemy, defend my homeland, and make a name for myself! Staying cooped up in this iron mine and eventually dying from exhaustion and being thrown into the deep mountains would make me the most pathetic transmigrator in history!

He devoured two cornbread buns in one go, sipped his porridge, and glanced at the surrounding terrain. His immediate priority was to find some good food to nourish himself and Third Master. With such heavy work, if they didn't eat enough, they might just die here in these deep mountains one day!

"What are you looking at?..." Third Master asked when he saw that the man was not speaking and was looking around.

"Third Master, do you think there might be some good food in that courtyard over there?" Zhao Mancang gestured with his chin towards the small courtyard where the Japanese soldiers lived not far away.

"Of course! Those Japanese devils will enjoy it! In the morning, when they were carrying ore, they could see the cooks preparing chickens from afar. Six or seven chickens, a big white basin, it looked so tempting!..." Third Master said, squinting his eyes.

"We need to find a way to get some good food!" Zhao Mancang said softly, his eyes full of determination!

"Huh?... Don't be reckless, kid! The Japanese are ruthless! It's not worth risking your life for a bite to eat!" Third Master said, glaring at him.

"...I know what I'm doing!" Zhao Mancang remained unmoved. To make a name for himself, he first had to survive! Living such a miserable life would be a disservice to his identity as a transmigrator!

"..." Third Master, I wonder if this kind of life is truly like an eternity!

The entire iron mine was separated into two worlds by a wall. Behind it was the mine pit and the place where these laborers lived, which was so dirty and chaotic that it was comparable to a garbage dump! They did the most arduous work, lived in houses that resembled cowsheds, and were whipped by Japanese overseers from time to time. They lived like animals!

Inside the courtyard, it was a completely different story. The Japanese soldiers changed their tune as soon as they returned. They ate meat, drank alcohol, gambled, and frequently kidnapped women for their own pleasure! Often, some mentally unstable women would run out, disheveled, only to be torn to shreds by the guards with machine guns! They were more despicable than demons! Every time gunfire rang out, accompanied by the cries of women, the people inside the thatched huts cursed the Japanese soldiers as inhuman!

But that's all!