I attained sainthood through alchemy on the cliff.

The first light of dawn could not dispel the heavy silence and panic hanging over Black Mountain Pass.

The village's last vestige of peace was shattered by harsh shouts, the jarring clang of gongs, and the cracking of whips striking the ground.

The disciples of the Iron Bones, Rock, and Gale families, like fierce jailers, kicked or smashed open the already dilapidated doors of each house, brutally driving out the terrified villagers.

Cries, pleas, children's sobs, and old people's coughs mingled together, but were forcibly suppressed by the martial artists' cold rebukes and whip flashes.

The crowd, like lambs to the slaughter, was pushed and shoved, converging on the open space at the village entrance.

Widow Li's face was as pale as paper, and her body trembled uncontrollably. Beside her were Carpenter Zhang and his wife. Carpenter Zhang's face was filled with anger and helplessness, his fists clenched until they turned white, but he dared not resist the Rock Martial Arts School disciple holding a steel knife beside him. Ya Ya stared with terrified eyes, clutching her mother's clothes tightly, her little face flushed red, but she forced herself not to cry out.

The crowd grew larger and larger, a dense mass of about a hundred people, all with ashen faces and despair in their eyes.

Most of the elites from the three major martial arts schools had already entered the mine tunnels and set up their forces. About twenty disciples remained at the village entrance to drive away the villagers. Although the number was small, each of them exuded a powerful aura and wielded sharp blades, enough to intimidate these unarmed villagers, most of whom were not skilled in martial arts.

The blacksmith's shop door was also banged on.

Standing outside the door was a young man of about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, dressed in the dark blue uniform of an elite disciple of the Iron Bone Martial Arts School, with a silver-threaded fist and bone emblem embroidered on his chest. His face was stern, and his sharp eyes carried an undisguised arrogance.

He wore a long, narrow straight sword at his waist, and his aura was calm and refined, clearly indicating that he was at the early stage of the Flesh Refining Realm!

This man is Han Li, one of the personal disciples of Liu Zhenwei, the master of the Iron Bone Martial Arts School. He is ruthless and highly valued by Liu Zhenwei. This time, he was entrusted with the responsibility of "escorting and supervising" the villagers.

"Uncle Chen, the master has ordered all villagers to assemble at the village entrance to assist in the search of the mine tunnels." Han Li's voice was devoid of any emotion. His gaze swept over Chen Shan, who was hunched over and had a cold expression on his face, as well as the apprentice "Stone" next to him who was looking dull and stupid with his head down. A hint of contempt flashed in his eyes.

"Okay, old man, I'll go right away." Chen Shan tugged at his sleeve.

However, Han Li suddenly spoke up, his tone carrying a playful, almost condescending tone: "The master specifically instructed that since you, Uncle Chen, are advanced in years and have difficulty walking, and have lived here for many years and are familiar with the situation, you don't need to go into the mine with the team. You can stay in the shop and keep an eye on things."

Upon hearing this, the coldness on Chen Shan's face froze instantly. Although he quickly recovered, a complex mix of emotions, like a raging storm, surged beneath his lowered eyelids!

Not having to go into the mine? Is it out of pity? No! It's that old scoundrel Liu Zhenwei's deliberate humiliation and torture!

He wanted to keep this "useless person" alive so he could watch with his own eyes how Liu Zhenwei would step over the corpses of everyone in Heishan'ao, ascend to the filth realm, and achieve fame and success!

He wanted to live forever in the shadow of failure and humiliation, not even having the "qualification" to die as "bait"!

An aura, a mixture of overwhelming hatred, deep-seated humiliation, and chilling killing intent, almost broke through the restraints on Chen Shan's hunched body!

But he forced himself to suppress it, his withered fingers digging deeply into his palms. He lowered his head and said in an even more humble and hoarse voice, "Thank you... thank you for your consideration, Master. Thank you for conveying the message, Junior Nephew Han."

Han Li seemed quite satisfied with Chen Shan's reaction. He quite enjoyed the feeling of controlling the fate of others, especially the fate of a former genius.

He didn't glance at Chen Shan again, his gaze falling on Yang Jin: "This mute apprentice is surprisingly strong, and he even has the strength of the Skin Refining Realm. Alright, let's go with him; perhaps he'll be of some use. Let's go!"

Yang Jin kept his head down, his eyes blank. Upon hearing this, he only uttered two "ah ah" sounds, nodded awkwardly, and took a step to follow Han Li.

Just as he passed by Chen Shan, Chen Shan seemed to stumble due to "excitement" and bumped into Yang Jin's shoulder seemingly unintentionally.

In an instant, Yang Jin felt Chen Shan silently slip a cold, hard object, about the size of a thumb, into his hand.

At the same time, a barely audible yet crystal-clear voice, like a needle, entered his ears: "Crush it if necessary. To save your life, or... to create chaos."

Yang Jin was startled, but his face remained blank as he silently clenched the object in his hand. It felt like iron but not iron, like jade but not jade, and there seemed to be fine lines on it.

He didn't linger and followed Han Li, stumbling along the path towards the crowd gathered at the village entrance.

Chen Shan stood at the shop entrance, watching Yang Jin's figure gradually disappear into the crowd, then looked at the villagers at the village entrance whose faces were full of despair, and finally his gaze fell on the dark mine tunnel. His hunched figure looked particularly lonely in the morning light, yet it seemed to contain the power of a volcano about to erupt.

"Liu Zhenwei...you will pay the price for your arrogance and ruthlessness..." he muttered to himself, then turned and slowly closed the shop door.

The moment the door closed, the last trace of weakness in those cloudy eyes vanished completely, leaving only a cold, iron-like resolve.

The open space at the village entrance was crowded with people, and the atmosphere was so oppressive it was suffocating.

Han Li led Yang Jin over, and several disciples from other martial arts schools, mostly in the mid-to-late stages of the Skin Refining Realm, immediately came to greet them.

Han Li scanned the dense crowd, channeled his inner strength, and his cold, sharp voice echoed throughout the area:

"Listen up, everyone! The thief Yang Jin may be hiding in the mine tunnels, and there may be clues to rare treasures deep within. By order of the three Grand Masters, you are all required to enter the mine tunnels immediately to assist in the search! You must obey commands along the way, and you must not make any noise or attempt to escape! Anyone who disobeys will be executed without mercy!"

He paused, his gaze turning sinister, and added, "This journey may be risky, but the martial arts masters will lead the way. You only need to follow closely and search carefully. The martial arts school will reward you afterwards! Now, set off!"

The threats in their words and the empty promise of "reward" instilled even greater fear in the villagers, but under the glaring threat of weapons, no one dared to resist.

The crowd began to move slowly, like a river of despair, surging towards the entrance of the abandoned mine tunnel, which resembled the maw of a giant beast.

Yang Jin lowered his head and mingled in the crowd.

He deliberately slowed his pace, using the pushing and shoving of the crowd to subtly approach the location of Widow Li, Ya Ya, and Carpenter Zhang.

Han Li led six or seven elite disciples, including two late-stage Skin Refining Realm disciples from the Gale Martial Arts School who were skilled in tracking, three mid-stage Skin Refining Realm disciples from the Rock Martial Arts School who were sturdy and responsible for maintaining order in the group, and two ordinary Skin Refining Realm disciples from the Iron Bone Martial Arts School. They walked on the flanks and rear of the group, like sheepdogs herding sheep, their eyes scanning the crowd warily to prevent anyone from escaping or causing trouble.

Their attention was mostly focused on the periphery and those trying to break away from the group, and they did not pay much attention to the subtle changes within the crowd.

Yang Jin finally got close to Widow Li and the others.

Taking advantage of a brief lull in the crowd, he pretended to lose his footing and gently bumped into the carpenter.

Carpenter Zhang was already filled with anger and vigilance. After being hit, he immediately glared at the carpenter, only to meet a pair of unusually calm and clear eyes.

These eyes... are completely different from that dull and wooden appearance of the "stone"!

Carpenter Zhang was taken aback.

Yang Jin spoke quickly and clearly in a very low voice: "Uncle Zhang, it's me, Yang Jin. The martial arts school is lying. They want to force us to feed the poisonous insects in the mine, creating an opportunity for them to kill the Insect King and steal the treasure! Trust me, wait for my signal, and if you have the chance, take Aunt Li, Ya Ya, and anyone you trust and do as I say!"

Carpenter Zhang's pupils constricted, and his whole body trembled violently!

He almost cried out, but when he saw Yang Jin's calm, almost cold eyes, and when he thought of the mysterious deaths of the Sun family father and son, the rumors of Yang Jin's "resurrection," and the unusual behavior of the three martial arts schools at this moment... a chill mixed with anger rushed to his head!

He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to calm down, and nodded almost imperceptibly, a resolute glint in his eyes.

Using the crowd as cover, Yang Jin then conveyed warnings and instructions in the same brief and rapid manner to Wang Chuan, a young hunter he had observed before who was usually taciturn but had clear eyes and a strong physique, and Zhao Tiezhu, a farmer at the end of the village who had once resisted the oppression of the Sun family.

At first, the group was utterly shocked, but soon, their instinct for survival and their resentment toward the violence perpetrated by the martial arts school overcame their fear, and they all expressed their understanding through their eyes or subtle gestures.

The message, like an undercurrent, quietly spread among a few core, trusted individuals.

Amidst the despair of the crowd, a faint yet tenacious will to resist quietly emerged.

The group slowly entered the cold, damp mine tunnel, which smelled musty and faintly of sulfur.

The flickering firelight illuminated the pale, terrified faces. The further in you went, the more stifling the air became, and the terrain began to slope downwards.

Han Li and his team began to drive the crowd toward the designated "bait zone".

It was a relatively open area, but with many branching paths that connected to passages deep within the cave.

As Yang Jin moved with the flow of people, he used his mental connection to sense A Tu, who was lurking near the cave and acted as his other pair of eyes.

A-Tu transmitted a clear thought: "They... have separated... the experts... have gone deeper (the main battlefield)... some people... are driving away and restraining the centipedes... the centipede king is deep inside... very quiet... but moving..."

The opportunity is drawing ever closer.

Yang Jin gripped the cold object Chen Shan had given him tightly, then touched the woodcutter's knife at his waist. His gaze swept over Han Li's indifferent back in front of him, and then over Zhang the carpenter, Wang Chuan, and the others whose eyes were beginning to show determination.

He knew that when the Crimson Flame Centipede King roared and the rustling sound of the swarming insects approached like the footsteps of death, it would be the moment for him to crush what he held, for Atu to trigger the collapse, and for everyone to fight to the death!

The hunt is about to begin.

But who the real prey is remains to be seen.