35: Chapter 35 A Glimmer of Hope

Outside the Mine Cave, the setting sun was like blood, dyeing the entire Mining Site a dark red.

Yuwen Jinyuan and five others stared intently into the cave like hungry wolves, their eyes filled with anxiety and anticipation.

Suddenly, a burst of hurried footsteps approached.

Black Bear and Fox rushed out from the cave, covered in dust and in a wretched state.

Their bodies were coated in dust, their hair disheveled, and their chests heaving violently; they had clearly just experienced a thrilling and harrowing event.

Yuwen Jinyuan's eyes lit up. He rushed forward in a few strides, grabbed Black Bear by the collar, and asked eagerly.

"How is that kid?"

His voice carried a trace of imperceptible tension, and he stared fixedly at Black Bear, wanting to know the answer from his expression beforehand.

Black Bear puffed out his chest, a smug expression appearing on his face, and said in a booming voice.

"That kid? He got buried by rocks! At that time, stones were falling down in the Mine Cave with a pitter-patter, just like a hailstorm. The commotion was earth-shaking; he had nowhere to hide at all!"

As he spoke, he gestured wildly, his face full of the expression of showing off his own achievements.

Fox hurriedly nodded and bowed, fawningly chiming in: "That's right, that's right, Brother Yuan! When that kid was buried, he didn't even struggle much before being completely submerged by the giant rocks. I saw it with my own eyes; the scene was, tsk tsk..."

As he spoke, he snuck a glance at Yuwen Jinyuan's expression, wanting to observe whether his words satisfied the boss.

After hearing this, a satisfied smile instantly bloomed on Yuwen Jinyuan's face.

His eyes were filled with pride and excitement. He patted Black Bear's shoulder heavily and laughed loudly: "Well done! You kid performed a great service this time; there will definitely be rewards for you later!"

Subsequently, he looked at Fox, the corners of his mouth lifting to reveal a satisfied expression, "You're not bad either; you cooperated well. Having you guys handle things is truly effective!"

"Hahaha!"

His laughter echoed through the empty Mining Site, carrying an insufferably arrogant tone.

Then, with a wave of his hand, he said decisively: "Alright, this place is not suitable for staying long. Let's go!"

After saying that, he strode towards the Grass Hut without looking back.

His back view exuded a carefree and smug air, as if he had already trampled all threats under his feet and had firmly taken control of the entire Mining Site.

Black Bear and Fox looked at each other and smiled, a flash of cunning and excitement in their eyes, and hurriedly followed.

Skinny Monkey and the others exchanged glances, understanding each other's meaning, and followed closely. The group swaggered away from the cave entrance like victorious generals; that arrogant appearance was nauseating.

As their figures gradually faded into the distance and the stirred-up dust slowly settled, the noisy cave entrance returned to peace.

On the Mining Site of The Mine, Steward Wu lay lazily on a wooden chair.

This should have been a pleasant moment, but his eyes revealed helplessness and worry, his brows furrowed slightly, as if entangled in a thousand worries.

"Sigh!"

He shook his head slightly, a heavy sigh escaping his lips, exhaling all the worries in his heart.

In fact, he had long known about Yuwen Jinyuan collecting protection fees.

This situation was just like the Man in Bamboo Hat from a year ago.

Yuwen Jinyuan used various means to urge the Miners to work day and night, causing the Spirit Stone production to climb again, allowing more Spirit Stones to flow into his hands in another way.

The Spirit Stones that Yuwen Jinyuan gathered by collecting protection fees amounted to tens of thousands, which truly made a contribution to the Sect.

These additional gains had an undeniable effect on the Sect's resource expansion and his own promotion.

That said, he had not expected that Yuwen Jinyuan would actually plot to murder others in order to achieve his goals.