In the blink of an eye, the throng of people huddled together dispersed completely. The site fell silent, even taking on an eerie, desolate air.The dim, flickering oil lamp flames danced, casting all shadows to and fro.Only two men remained on the scene. One kept his eyes fixed on the shimmering purple nebula above; the other kept his eyes fixed on the first man.The former was Shi Chun, whose gaze never strayed from the nebula.After sizing him up a few times, the supervisor who had issued the earlier orders still found him unfamiliar. His eyes lingered on the wound on Shi Chun's arm for a moment, then he asked again: "Which team are you from?"Shi Chun ignored him completely. Not only did he ignore the question, but he also darted forward, leaping onto the rib bones of the skeleton. He pushed off the dragon bones with his foot, then leaped lightly onto the serpent's skull, its fangs bared ferociously. Taking a couple of steps forward, he stood right in front of the shimmering purple nebula, examining it closely with curiosity.Seeing this, the supervisor looked slightly alarmed and snapped: "What are you doing?"He asked his question, and Shi Chun asked his own—each ignoring the other. "What is this thing?"The supervisor replied: "How should I know? Only Mr. Shen would be sure."Time was running out; Shi Chun dared not hesitate any longer. After a brief observation, he reached out his hand to touch the shimmering purple nebula.Witnessing this, the supervisor's voice turned stern once more: "What are you doing? Didn't you say we were waiting for Mr. Shen?""He's not here yet, is he?" Shi Chun turned his head to look down at him, coaxing: "Do you think Mr. Shen will tell us what this is when he arrives? Don't you want to know what it is?"The supervisor froze for a moment, then suddenly darted forward, leaping onto the dragon bones as well. He stared at Shi Chun, then glanced at the shimmering purple nebula from time to time.Shi Chun exchanged a few glances with him. Seeing that the man fell silent, he no longer hesitated. His outstretched hand finally sank slowly into the shimmering purple nebula.The supervisor kept his eyes fixed intently on Shi Chun's hand. Every now and then, he glanced back at the passage behind them, seemingly more worried than Shi Chun that Shen Youkun might appear suddenly.After swirling his hand around in the nebula several times, Shi Chun couldn't help but let out a soft "Huh" of surprise. He finally understood why the supervisor who had touched it earlier had been exclaiming in astonishment—there was no sensation at all. His hand seemed to have plunged into the shimmering purple nebula, yet he felt nothing. And the nebula itself was like an ethereal illusion, remaining completely undisturbed by the intrusion of a foreign object.He even tried blowing hard at it several times, but to no avail.The supervisor, watching from the dragon bones, glanced back at the passage behind them to confirm no one was coming. Then he also darted forward, landing on the other side of the shimmering purple nebula. He stretched out his hand and touched it too, swirling it around side by side with Shi Chun, one on the left and one on the right.The faint doubts he'd had about Shi Chun earlier were now completely forgotten—at least for the time being.He probably never imagined that he would fall in line with a stranger so quickly, without even needing much persuasion.At that moment, the two men definitely had the air of watchdogs helping themselves to the goods.Finding that he could feel nothing, Shi Chun looked up and down at the nebula, then set his other hand to work as well. He waved both hands around the empty space surrounding the nebula, trying to sense the source of power that kept the shimmering purple mist floating there.Suddenly, both men let out a simultaneous "Huh" of surprise—they had both noticed the shimmering purple nebula stir slightly, as if it had been disturbed.The supervisor looked utterly baffled.But Shi Chun quickly fixed his gaze on his left arm, specifically on the wound there. He felt a cold, stinging sensation.As he had waved his hands around, his injured left arm had unconsciously drifted into the shimmering purple nebula as well. It seemed that this injured arm was the one that had stirred the nebula.He tried shaking his left arm again, and sure enough, the shimmering purple nebula swayed once more, churning like clouds and mist.The supervisor, watching through the nebula, also spotted this and immediately asked: "What's going on?""Who the hell knows..." Shi Chun muttered in surprise, then suddenly sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth. The wound throbbed violently, and fresh blood began to flow again. The cold, stinging pain shot through every nerve in his body, causing him to shudder violently. For a split second, he felt as if his soul had left his body. He knew something was terribly wrong, and he didn't dare hesitate another moment. He quickly pulled his arm back and stepped away.The supervisor was startled by his reaction and also quickly withdrew his hand, stepping back a pace from the nebula.As Shi Chun retreated, his fear grew. He noticed that the shimmering purple nebula was now like a piece of cloth, with one corner being drawn out by his bleeding wound.Shi Chun immediately waved his right hand repeatedly, trying to sever the connection between the nebula and his wound—he felt as if something was burrowing into his body. But just like before, no matter how many times he waved his hand, it had no effect on the nebula at all.He immediately channeled his cultivation energy to cast a spell, yet he still couldn't break the link. The terror of the unknown flooded his heart.Suddenly, as if nourished by the fresh blood, the nebula seemed to awaken. It suddenly burst forth with new radiance. Starting from the wound on Shi Chun's left arm, the light spread rapidly across the entire nebula, like sweeping away a layer of dust and dimness. In an instant, it became even more vivid and bright, radiating a fresh, vibrant energy.Even more terrifyingly, Shi Chun's body seemed to have become a funnel. The nebula poured into his body through the wound on his left arm like flowing water."Ugh..." Shi Chun threw his head back and let out a muffled groan of agony.Although he was wearing a mask, the supervisor could sense the intensity of his pain. He was thoroughly frightened, worried that he might be implicated. He scrambled to jump down from the serpent's skull, landing on the ground between the dragon's ribs. He stepped back two paces, craning his neck to watch, his eyes filled with nothing but shock and uncertainty.In the blink of an eye, all the shimmering purple mist had been completely absorbed into Shi Chun's body.Fresh blood dripped from his arm once more. Shi Chun felt as if countless ants were gnawing at his entire spine, and his head was pounding so hard it felt like it would split into a thousand pieces.The excruciating, tearing pain made his legs buckle. He slipped off the already slanted, uneven serpent's skull, crashing down onto the dragon bones with a thud, then tumbled between the ribs and hit the ground with a heavy clang.The pain from the fall was nothing compared to the agony he was in now. The unbearable pain came from inside his body, causing him to break out in a cold sweat. He curled up on the ground, clutching his head and writhing, his throat emitting low, beast-like gasps. His eyes were wide open as if blinded by pain, yet he could see nothing at all.The supervisor watching from the side was truly alarmed. He wanted to step forward to help, but he didn't dare get too close—as if he was afraid of catching whatever afflicted Shi Chun.Just as Shi Chun thought he was done for this time, he suddenly realized that his consciousness was returning. Yes, the pain didn't feel as unbearable anymore.He immediately became acutely aware that the excruciating pain was receding like a tide—coming suddenly, and vanishing just as quickly. But the aftereffects it had left on his body couldn't disappear in an instant. His body felt like it had been torn apart, no longer belonging to him.The supervisor standing nearby watched in astonishment. He noticed that his colleague didn't seem to be in as much pain anymore, but beneath the mask, a faint purple light seemed to be flickering in his right eye—though the light was slowly fading away.After regaining his consciousness, Shi Chun lying on the ground also realized that his eyesight had gone haywire—he couldn't see things clearly.He quickly checked his vision, only to discover that it wasn't that he couldn't see at all. When he closed his right eye, his left eye saw perfectly normally—the scene inside the mine was exactly the same as before.But when he closed his left eye, what his right eye saw was a strange, hazy scene—a translucent blend of various colors near and far. Occasionally, ethereal streaks of light flashed across his field of vision, some twinkling, others writhing. The overall background of the scene was a deep, azure blue, vast and profound.This illusory scene seemed unaffected by the dim light inside the cave—what should be bright was bright, what should be dim was dim.At that moment, through his right eye, apart from the outline of the giant dragon skeleton, everything else like the cave walls seemed to have vanished, replaced by a hazy, translucent vista stretching out into the distance.He knew this must be the aftereffect of absorbing the shimmering purple nebula. He had no time to think about it further. After testing his ability to move his limbs, he immediately reached out to the supervisor, who was watching him with a mixture of shock and doubt. He gasped weakly: "I'm in so much pain... Quick, help me to Mr. Shen. He should be able to save me—hurry, help me, hurry..."The supervisor noticed that the purple light in his right eye had completely disappeared. He hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward, tentatively prodding him with the tip of his shoe. Then he slowly knelt down beside him, touching him with his fingers. Convinced that there was no immediate danger, he placed his fingers on Shi Chun's wrist to check his pulse. He found that Shi Chun's pulse and vital energy were indeed chaotic and unstable. He clicked his tongue disapprovingly: "Who told you to touch it recklessly? You brought this on yourself."Even though he said that, he still helped Shi Chun to his feet and supported him as they walked toward the exit.It wasn't that he was particularly kind-hearted and eager to help—it was that he absolutely had to hand Shi Chun over to Shen Youkun, letting the man explain himself. Otherwise, he would have no way to account for the disappearance of the shimmering purple nebula to Shen Youkun. With Shen Youkun's powerful family background, he was not someone the supervisor could afford to offend.He could only imagine how furious Shen Youkun would be when he found out that the man he was holding had absorbed the shimmering purple nebula into his body. Whether Shen Youkun would save him or kill him was anyone's guess.They hadn't even taken a few steps when, lost in his thoughts and silently wishing Shi Chun luck, the supervisor suddenly let out a muffled grunt and stumbled forward. He was violently thrown off balance, separating from Shi Chun, and a spray of blood splashed between them.The supervisor clapped his hands to his neck in horror, staggering backward until he slammed into the cave wall. His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Shi Chun. Blood gushed like a spring between his fingers—the wound on his neck was too deep, too wide. He trembled violently, sliding down the wall with a gurgling sound in his throat.Shi Chun, who had wielded the knife, had struck with too much force. His body spun uncontrollably several times, colliding with one of the dragon's ribs. He lost his balance and crashed heavily to the ground.He lay on the floor, gasping for breath for a moment. Despite the agony wracking his body and the strange, overlapping visions clouding his sight, he summoned all his strength to climb to his feet. He stumbled unsteadily toward the exit as fast as he could, daring not to waste a single moment.He couldn't afford to delay. If Shen Youkun caught up to him, he would be done for.Years ago, he had wanted to make Shen Youkun wish he were dead, but he had failed to achieve that goal. This time, if Shen Youkun got his hands on him, he would surely return the favor in full—making him truly experience what it meant to be alive but wishing for death.He sheathed his small knife, patted the dirt off his clothes, and tried to avoid looking too disheveled.He also grabbed a handful of dirt and rubbed it over his whipping wound, which was bleeding again. A fresh, bloody injury would only arouse unnecessary suspicion.He knew his face must look terrible right now, and anyone who saw it would be suspicious—but fortunately, his mask concealed his features.He soon reached the T-shaped corner of the mine tunnel. He struggled to steady his wobbling body, trying his best to look as if nothing was wrong.As he turned the corner, he immediately saw the group of people waiting there—and he also saw a sight that filled him with shock and doubt. When he closed his right eye, he saw a group of ordinary people. But when he closed his left eye, what he saw was a group of hazy, white, mist-like figures shaped like humans.The entire group turned to look at him, especially Wu Jinliang among them.Before anyone could open their mouth, Shi Chun spoke first: "Make way. I have urgent news to report to Mr. Shen."This time, no one tried to obstruct him. Even though some people clearly disliked him, the crowd quickly stepped aside to clear a path for him.On either side of the path, some people were sitting on the ground, looking dejected. After all, they knew the good stuff would never fall to them. Being able to skip work and wait for their meal was already the best they could hope for—they might as well enjoy the moment of peace.
