"You... you dared to attack me! Are you crazy?"
The miner knocked over by Lin Xuanchen crawled back in terror, clutching his dislocated arm. His tone was no longer arrogant, only fear.
Lin Xuanchen didn't look at him again. Instead, he took a deep breath, tossed his pickaxe aside, and silently walked towards his mine cart. It was a shabby, black iron cart with rusted axles. It could carry less than a hundred kilograms, the lowest of the miners.
He knew full well that his outburst was merely a "strengthened state" granted by the system, not true strength.
It was just a borrowed energy.
In five minutes, everything would return to weakness, and he would still be a useless man who hadn't even entered the Qi Refining stage.
Lin Xuanchen gritted his teeth and placed his hand on the pickaxe.
He had to become stronger and complete his counterattack before the system's "protection countdown" expired.
[System Prompt: Physiological Fluctuations Have Stabilized. "Spiritual Root Structure Analysis" Permission Has Been Unlocked.]
[Testing...]
[Spiritual Root Status: Five Elements Spiritual Roots Incomplete / Spiritual Qi Absorption Rate 0.3% (Extremely Low)]
[Spiritual Root Notes: Due to artificial intervention, spiritual roots have been broken and reassembled, resulting in disordered Qi and Meridians.]
[Optional Tasks: Investigate the Cause of Spiritual Root Damage / Collect Repair Materials / Find a Method to Reshape Spiritual Roots]
Lin Xuanchen's eyes grew colder.
"Sure enough... it's not a naturally useless spiritual root."
In the memories he received, the original owner was a member of a branch of the Lin family. Born with medium-grade wood and fire spiritual roots, his aptitude wasn't exceptional, but he was capable of cultivation. However, at the age of six, his spiritual roots suddenly fractured during a "physical cultivation initiation," transforming into mixed five-element roots. The flow of spiritual energy within his body became disrupted, and he could no longer cultivate normally.
To protect their reputation, the Lin family expelled him from the family tree and secretly sent him to the Blood Killing Sect to do hard labor.
And now the system told him: his spiritual roots had been tampered with.
Someone had destroyed his foundation, ruined his life!
"Who was it... the Lin family? Or the Blood Killing Sect? Or... someone else?"
Lin Xuanchen narrowed his eyes, the lingering affection for the Lin family in his heart completely shattered.
[Hint: Stage Quest Chain Generated]
[Main Quest: Reshaping Spiritual Roots]
▸Sub-Quest ①: Obtain 1 "Purifying Spirit Grass" and 1 drop of "True Spirit Blood"
▸Sub-Quest ②: Complete the "Spiritual Vein Sensing" meditation to open up the internal Qi
▸Sub-Quest ③: Obtain a basic cultivation technique
[Completion Reward]: Unlock the "Spiritual Root Reshaping" function; +3 reinforcement points; Activate the spiritual power channeling mechanism
"Purifying Spirit Grass? True Spirit Blood?" Lin Xuanchen frowned.
These were not ordinary items, not even common in the sect. Not to mention that he was just a mining slave now, without even a single spiritual stone.
But he had no intention of retreating.
He looked up at the end of the mine, where the spirit stone veins there faintly glowed, like a giant beast lurking in dormancy.
"Spirit stone veins often give birth to spirit herbs and demonic beasts."
"Perhaps, I can take a gamble."
He lowered himself, pickaxe in hand, and quietly pushed his battered mine cart deeper into the mine.
Several miners behind him exchanged bewildered glances.
"Is that kid crazy? Seeking death deep in the mine?"
"Hehe, he'll live for three days at most. He's probably still trying to fight before he dies."
"Whatever. He's dead, that's good. It gives us more working hours."
Lin Xuanchen ignored their sarcasm. The system panel reappeared, the cold countdown still ticking:
[Protection Countdown: 70:32]
[Reminder: The system's active healing function cannot be used until the first life-or-death mission is completed.]
He understood that this "time travel" was not a gift, but an extremely cruel test.
Only by truly exiting the mines, freeing himself from slavery, and entering the realm of cultivation could he truly control his destiny.
Otherwise, even giving him ten more systems would be a joke.
Lin Xuanchen's steps were firm, and his figure gradually disappeared deeper into the mines.
And at this moment, the gears of fate slowly began to turn.