Filled with confusion, Xue Changming returned to his residence, a small cave-like room of only a few square feet.
The walls inside were covered in rust, but it was kept relatively tidy.
After closing and locking the door, and confirming several times that no one was around, he opened his palm.
A crystal clear, blue crystal block lay in the palm of his hand. Looking closely, one could see glittering light spots emanating from the center of the crystal block, like a galaxy gathered within the crystal, captivating to behold.
"It really is beautiful," Xue Changming couldn't help but exclaim.
He had never seen anything as brilliant as this Saint Spirit Stone. Even spirit stones paled in comparison, like a candle flame compared to the sun.
"Is this the Saint Spirit Stone?" Xue Changming was reluctant to look away, feeling that this crystal possessed a certain power, deeply attracting him. Vaguely, a voice echoed in his ear, constantly tempting him.
"Eat it, eat it..."
Amidst the repeated enticements, Xue Changming took the crystal and was about to stuff it into his mouth. Only when the icy sensation touched his lips did he finally wake up.
"What was I just doing?" Xue Changming quickly put the Saint Spirit Stone aside, instinctively feeling that something was wrong with it. No normal person would think of eating a mineral.
"What's going on? Why would I want to eat this Saint Spirit Stone?" Xue Changming looked at the crystal in confusion, his heart filled with bewilderment. This was essentially his first real contact with the Saint Spirit Stone. Before, when working in the mining area, he was always separated by robes, and the appearance he saw was different.
"It seems there's a problem with this stone." Xue Changming became suspicious of the Saint Spirit Stone. He found a box, placed it inside, and then wrapped it up and put it in the small backpack at his waist.
Feeling completely secure, Xue Changming finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"I wonder if Uncle is in danger." Looking at the dimly lit room across from him, Xue Changming felt a little ashamed.
Uncle took the Saint Spirit Stone, ultimately, for his sake.
If it weren't to allow him to stay in this mining area, Uncle wouldn't have made such an agreement with the mine foreman, Tiger, risking stealing the Saint Spirit Stone.
If something really happened to Uncle, Xue Changming felt he would be guilty for the rest of his life.
Since arriving here, the first good person he met was Uncle. Although the man was a boisterous middle-aged man, he was exceptionally kind.
He took great care of him and told him many things about the Saint Spirit Stone mining area, which allowed him to quickly integrate into this place.
It could be said that without Uncle, whether he could have survived or not would have been another matter.
It was just a pity that he didn't know Uncle's name; he only allowed Xue Changming to call him Uncle.
Thinking this, Xue Changming touched his chest.
As if remembering something, he took out a palm-sized booklet from his chest.
Xue Changming didn't know where this booklet came from. He only remembered that when he woke up, he had this booklet in his chest.
With his hand on the booklet, he hesitated for a moment before opening it.
A blank piece of paper appeared before Xue Changming. His eyes stared intently at the blank page.
【Those useless, burdensome, so-called human things.】
【Just gently press your handprint.】
【The oath is complete.】
"..." Xue Changming closed the booklet. He had to admit that the words on this booklet were very tempting. He had also considered whether to make a deal to gain power and escape from here.
But every time this thought appeared, it was ruthlessly killed by himself.
Because he didn't know what the price would be.
Xue Changming had also shown the booklet to Uncle, but unfortunately, Uncle couldn't understand the words on it.
Even if he didn't put it away, this booklet would still return to his side.
"If something really happened to Uncle because of my affairs, I would be very remorseful. After all, Uncle only has one month left before he can reunite with his family," Xue Changming thought.
He touched the booklet on his chest and made a decision in his heart. He looked out the window, at the round and scarlet moon descending into the night.
"Dong! Dong!"
Suddenly, a loud bell rang. Xue Changming withdrew his thoughts of admiring the moon and stood up in astonishment.
He knew what this kind of bell meant; it was the sound warning of an impending crisis in the mining area.
"What happened?" Xue Changming hurriedly ran out of the room. He stood on the outside corridor, his eyes looking towards the distant place where flames soared into the sky.
Before long, the surrounding area was filled with prisoners, all with blank expressions.
"What's going on!"
"Is someone invading the mining area?"
"Could it be that disaster has come?"
Everyone spoke their minds, while Xue Changming squinted his eyes, looking at the approaching flames.
Screams, the booming sound of explosions, and cries for help gradually came.
"Help!"
"The Mad Fiends are here! The Mad Fiends are here!"
Mad Fiends!
The crowd instantly exploded, everyone rushing into their rooms, packing their things, and then running away.
No one wanted to face the Mad Fiends, not even the most cold-blooded death row inmates.
Xue Changming still stood in place, his eyes looking at the approaching Mad Fiends. For some reason, he felt that those things had an attraction to him.
He knew what Mad Fiends were.
After the Saint King's palm covered the sky of Yu Yun City, many machines in Yu Yun City went crazy. Those madmen were extremely terrifying; they no longer had humanity; they would destroy everything.
Some of them would carry flames on their bodies, and anyone who got a little bit on them could never get rid of it.
The flames would burn along the human body, slowly devouring the internal organs little by little every day. But the person would not die, only watch the flames slowly devour themselves, constantly suffering from the burning pain, until they went mad with pain and turned into Mad Fiends.
This was the current cruel reality of Yu Yun City. People were constantly worried about whether they would go crazy.
Some places, even just entering, would turn people into irrational lunatics.
The mining area where Xue Changming worked was like this. He needed to wear a special robe to work in the mine.
"Why do I have this feeling..." Xue Changming felt a call, in the crowded sea of fire of countless Mad Fiends. He didn't feel any fear, and even wanted to go down and join the Mad Fiends.
"Silly boy, what are you looking at? Aren't you going to run for your life?!" Someone patted his shoulder, and Xue Changming woke up from this feeling.
He turned his head, and a smile couldn't help but appear on his face.
"Uncle, you're back."
"Yes, if I didn't come back, wouldn't you have been eaten by the Mad Fiends? Come on, let's go!"
Uncle smiled, nimbly running towards the mountain. Xue Changming followed behind him, and the two began to flee this dangerous place.
