129: Chapter 129 Was my physical ascension to sainthood solely for digging tunnels for you in the Northwest?

The workshop door was violently pushed open, and the sunlight outside mixed with the cold wind poured in, dispersing much of the smell of machine oil.

All the sewing machines stopped in an instant.

Those hundreds of once self-proclaimed "Protagonists" were now all shrinking their necks like quails.

They were all too familiar with these footsteps. The leather shoes struck the concrete floor with a steady rhythm, without any hesitation.

Gu Changan walked in.

He wasn't holding a baton, just carrying a black briefcase. But the inmates present, even the once ruthless Ye Fan, subconsciously straightened their backs, pedaling their sewing machines furiously, terrified that this Yama would find fault with them.

Xiao Aotian shivered all over.

He had just finished folding the canvas tent in his hands, the stitches so tight that not even water could seep through. Seeing Gu Changan walking straight toward him, his heart, which had just calmed down, jumped back into his throat.

"Tea... Team Leader Gu." Xiao Aotian swallowed, subconsciously shielding his pile of finished products, "I wasn't slacking off. Look, I've over-fulfilled the task of one hundred pieces. Can you not deduct my points? I'm still counting on saving up enough points to trade for a ham sausage to eat."

Ever since he lost his System and his cultivation, this former Aotian Old Ancestor's material needs had downgraded to a heartbreaking level.

Gu Changan stopped in front of him, his gaze sweeping over the pile of neat tents, and nodded.

"Good craftsmanship."

Xiao Aotian breathed a sigh of relief, and just as he was about to force a smile, he saw Gu Changan take out a red-headed document from his briefcase and gently tap it onto the sewing machine table.

"Pack up, and come with us."

Xiao Aotian froze, his face turning deathly pale. He gripped the edge of the sewing machine tightly, as if clutching at a life-saving straw: "Where? I'm not going! I don't want to change prison wards! I'm doing just fine pedaling the sewing machine here; I've already fallen in love with this job! The Ye Fan is here to chat with me, and Divine Doctor Lin Chen gives me health advice—I don't want to leave!"

He was genuinely terrified. Having stayed in this hellhole for a few months, he had heard that Gu Changan had some "special missions" that worked people to death.

Gu Changan pulled over a folding chair, sat down, and unhurriedly took a fountain pen from his pocket to sign the document.

"Who said anything about changing your prison ward? This is a 'Special Talent Secondment Order'."

"Secondment?" Xiao Aotian's eyes widened.

"The country is currently working on the Great Western Development." Gu Changan pointed in the direction outside the window, "West of the Qinling Mountains, a highway spanning three provinces is being built. One section of the tunnel has extremely complex geological conditions. It's all a mixture of granite and basalt, with extremely high hardness, and it also has to pass through several underground river belts."

Xiao Aotian was confused: "What does this have to do with me? Don't you have tunnel boring machines?"

"Two tunnel boring machines went in, and their cutter heads were completely shattered." Gu Changan's tone was calm, as if he were discussing a trivial matter, "Machinery can't operate well in that place, and using too much explosive risks causing a collapse. The engineering department is frantic; if the project is delayed, the daily losses will be in the tens of millions."

Xiao Aotian had an ominous premonition: "So..."

"So I thought of you." Gu Changan looked at him with an admiration that would make a capitalist weep, "You have a Cultivator Physique; although your cultivation is sealed, your Physical Body strength remains. Your bone density is fifty times that of a normal person, and your muscle explosive power is comparable to hydraulic pliers. Making you pedal a sewing machine here is truly a waste of talent."

Xiao Aotian opened his mouth wide, pointing at his own nose: "You... you want me to go dig a hole?"

"It's mountain excavation," Gu Changan corrected, "and also making a contribution to national infrastructure."

"I'm not going!" Xiao Aotian stood up abruptly. As a former Sect Master, that shred of remaining self-esteem made the veins on his neck bulge, "I am Aotian Old Ancestor! I once split the Heavenly Gate with a single sword! You want me to dig stones like a coolie? This is an insult to me! A gentleman can be killed, but not humiliated!"

The surrounding inmates all cast sympathetic glances.

The Ye Fan muttered in a low voice: "Brother, stay tough. At worst, you'll just get your sentence extended; don't lose face for us protagonists."

Gu Changan wasn't angry; he just watched calmly as Xiao Aotian vented. After he finished shouting, he conjured a shovel from behind him as if by magic.

This shovel was different from ordinary ones. It was pitch black, the shovel head emitting a strange cold metallic luster, and the handle was engraved with several special reinforcement runes.

"This is a new gadget the research institute just came up with." Gu Changan stroked the handle, "High-carbon nano-alloy steel, mixed with some 'Black Iron' confiscated from your illegal Sect. According to mechanical tests, as long as you swing it with full force, one shovel down can dent even tank armor."

Xiao Aotian looked at the shovel and actually felt a strange sense of familiarity. That was the Black Iron from his hometown!

"The air in the Northwest is good." Gu Changan continued to throw out bait, "It's not an enclosed environment like a prison. You'll be working in the mountains; look up and you'll see the blue sky, look down and you'll see wild grass. Moreover, as long as your progress is fast, I'll give you extra meals every day. All the beef noodles you can eat, and there will be real, large chunks of beef inside."

Xiao Aotian's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

Blue sky. Wild grass. And big bowls of beef noodles. He had been eating boiled cabbage in prison every day; his mouth had long since gone bland.

"And," Gu Changan leaned forward, lowering his voice, "according to the 'Regulations on Sentence Reduction for Major Meritorious Service', if you can use your personal strength to break through that three-kilometer tunnel, I can help you apply for a sentence reduction. Pedaling a sewing machine in this dark, sunless workshop for twenty years, or going to the Great Northwest to sweat for your freedom—you choose."

Xiao Aotian's psychological defenses began to collapse.

He looked at the Ye Fan. The Ye Fan was bowing his head, pedaling the foot pedal frantically, pretending not to see the transaction here.

"Then... do I get a salary?" Xiao Aotian asked tentatively.

"Yes." Gu Changan smiled, "Calculated as an Advanced technician, but first we have to deduct the 300 million fine you owe the country. It's estimated it will take you a few hundred years to pay it off, but at least it's something to look forward to, right?"

Xiao Aotian gritted his teeth, staring at the pitch-black shovel for a full minute.

"I'll do it!"

He grabbed the shovel, feeling its heavy weight. Since he couldn't cultivate, he would build the road!

Three days later, in the hinterland of the Northwest. This was deep in the uninhabited mountains. The wild wind, whipping up sand and gravel, stung when it hit one's face.

A military helicopter hovered in mid-air, the roar of its huge propellers echoing through the valley.

Gu Changan wore sunglasses, holding binoculars in his hands, overlooking the construction site below.

The tunnel entrance, which should have been at a standstill, was now filled with flying dust.

A figure wearing an orange reflective vest and a red hard hat was outputting frantically on the hard rock wall, like a humanoid tyrannosaur.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Every swing of the shovel was accompanied by sparks flying everywhere.

The iron-hard basalt, under the blessing of Xiao Aotian's terrifying Physical Body strength and the special shovel, crumbled like tofu dregs.

There was no need for explosives at all. He was the best humanoid explosive.

Xiao Aotian was shirtless, sweat flowing down his sturdy, muscular lines, glistening in the sunlight. While digging, he let out a roar similar to venting.

"Open for this Old Ancestor!" "This shovel, for the beef noodles!" "This shovel, for the sentence reduction!"

With a loud rumble, a two-ton boulder was pried loose by him directly with the shovel, then hugged with both hands and slammed heavily into the nearby dump truck like throwing a shot put.

The entire dump truck shook three times from the impact, and the chassis sank several centimeters.

The workers responsible for clearing the debris nearby were dumbfounded, not even reacting when their cigarette butts fell onto their crotches.

"Director Gu, this... this is too fierce." The head of the engineering department nearby held the data sheet, his hands shaking, "One person equals three work teams! At this rate, the original six-month schedule can be completed in a month!"

Gu Changan put down the binoculars, a satisfied arc curling at the corners of his mouth.

"Cultivators, after all, have abundant energy; if you don't find them some heavy work to do, they tend to let their minds wander."

He looked at the figure below who was working with such fervor.

The Xiao Aotian who was once high and mighty, viewing Mortals as ants, was gone. In his place was a laborer who was creating value with his own hands for the sake of life and freedom.

"Tell the cafeteria to add two chicken drumsticks to his meal tonight." Gu Changan instructed, "Also, have the technical department record his exertion movements and muscle group status; this is an excellent sample for studying ergonomics."

"Yes!"

The helicopter slowly ascended and flew toward the Qinling Mountains. There, an old debt still needed its final settlement.