In response, Su Rui lifted him up and gave him a little shake. “You’re actually pretty light.”

Cen An shot him a glare, struggled to get down, and walked around the empty mine shaft.

It was another monster level; there were no ore deposits, but the stone walls were covered with mine moss. Cen An took out his pocket knife and began collecting it.

Su Rui leaned in. “What’s this for?”

Cen An always had plenty of patience for this kind of detailed work. As he worked, he explained gently, “Mine moss is a plant unique to these tunnels. Though common, it has many uses. It can be made into moss bandages and moss energy cakes—the former heals wounds, while the latter restores fullness and boosts energy slightly… well, for you guys, that’s probably what you’d call ‘superpowers.’ Besides, it can also be used to make moss talismans. They’re only the most basic kind, but…”

The torchlight fell on his profile, casting a serene and peaceful glow.

As he spoke, he sensed something was off and turned to look—Su Rui was staring intently at him.

This man’s features were naturally sharp; his eye sockets were deeper than average, and his brow ridges were more pronounced, giving him an air of someone best not to cross. So when he stared straight at someone, his gaze was intensely aggressive.

Cen An felt slightly uneasy. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing.” Su Rui rubbed his nose, nuzzled up against him, and nudged him with his elbow. “And what else? What else can you make? Tell me more.”

Cen An shook his head helplessly. “We could make moss soup… Move over a bit, you’re squishing me!”

What’s with all this talk of sharpness and aggression? He’s just a dog in human form.

【Congratulations! You have obtained 8 pieces of Cave Moss】

【Congratulations! You have obtained 5 Copper Ore】

【Congratulations! You have obtained 3 Coal】

【Congratulations! You have obtained 2 Mica】

They were already on the eighth level of the mine. They hadn’t seen the exit yet, but there were slightly more varieties of ore here.

Cen An looked slightly worried. “We’re not actually going to have to go all the way to the bottom of the mine to get out, are we?”

Su Rui poked a little bug until it spun around in circles. “How deep is the bottom?”

“As far as I know, at least thirty levels, at most a hundred…” Cen An said helplessly. “Alright, stop playing around. Let’s head down to the next level.”

Su Rui tossed aside his little stick, stood up, and shielded him as they entered the lower level of the mine.

The first sound to reach their ears was the rush of water.

After all, the mine was underground; it was only natural to find groundwater… Yet Cen An’s brow furrowed deeply.

A mine level with water likely harbors a special type of mutant beast: the Cave Hydra.

That creature isn’t easy to deal with… but as his gaze swept over Su Rui’s profile, hmm, with this guy around, there didn’t seem to be much to worry about.

The ninth level of the mine was quite small, roughly two hundred square meters—about the size of a single lecture hall.

A stream ran through the center, dividing the entire chamber into two sections in a 1:3 ratio.

There were no ore deposits on the ground, but Absorbent Grass grew on both sides of the stream. Although this plant wasn’t unique to the mine, it wasn’t exactly common either…

“Wait, what are you doing!” Just as Cen An was analyzing the situation in his mind, he saw Su Rui rush forward impatiently to grab the Absorbent Grass, startling him.

“Huh? Don’t you want this?” As soon as Su Rui grabbed the Absorbent Grass’s leaves, he felt a sharp pain in his finger. Looking down, he saw a drop of blood oozing from his fingertip.

“Huh?” He was instantly intrigued. When he poked it with his stick, the Absorbent Grass actually began to sway as if it were alive. Upon closer inspection, he saw that its stems and leaves were covered in fine, sharp teeth, and the swaying was caused by the rhythmic movement of those teeth, much like chewing.

Cen An groaned in exasperation. “Doesn’t your hand hurt? Be careful—if you touch it again, you might get bitten.”

He took some cave moss from his backpack. Three portions of cave moss made one moss bandage; he cut a small piece from it, applied it to Su Rui’s finger, and secured it with spider silk.

Su Rui’s wound wasn’t very big to begin with, and it had already scabbed over as soon as the bandage was applied. He was still curious about the Absorbent Grass, so he decided to touch it with the finger he’d used to apply the bandage.

The Absorbent Grass was just as good-natured—it gave him a chomp, and a piece of the bandage was instantly torn off.

Cen An had held back as much as he could, but he couldn’t resist any longer and kicked him from behind.

“You can’t pick Absorbent Grass with your bare hands—their fangs are very sharp. You have to use a trowel to dig out the roots… Once they’re out of the soil, their fangs stop moving. See, like this.” He gently dug up a plant of Absorbent Grass.

The Absorbent Grass, which had been wriggling and jumping just moments ago, now lay limp in his palm like a salted fish, its sharp teeth hanging down docilely.

Su Rui nodded in understanding and began collecting them clumsily, mimicking his movements.

The two of them harvested every last bit of Absorber Grass in the area before standing up.

Cen An: “Strange. Without any ore, this should be the monster layer, but why aren’t there even any monsters?”

Not even a single mine-cave hydra in sight…

He peered into the water. The river wasn’t deep, and it was crystal clear to the bottom, with only the small fish and shrimp typical of mine-caves swimming within.

“Never mind that,” Cen An said, “but how come there isn’t even an entrance to the lower level?”

Small caves have their advantages—you can see right to the bottom at a glance… No path above, no opening below. Were they trapped here?

Su Rui looked deep in thought. “Why don’t we just get some sleep first and figure this out tomorrow?”

Cen An pretended not to hear him and carefully circled the mine.

The stone walls had no gaps for air to pass through, no hidden passages… After examining every inch and pondering for a moment, his gaze settled on the small stream inside the cave.

The stream originated from the rock wall—likely formed by water collecting within the mountain. Its destination was a crack between the opposite rock wall and the ground; it went without saying that it flowed into the next level of the mine.

He pondered for a moment, then asked, “Can we block this stream?”

“Oh? How?” Su Rui leaned in, clearly intrigued.

Cen An gestured, “Use dirt or stones to block the stream right here.”

Su Rui snapped his fingers, and an ice wall materialized out of thin air where he’d pointed. The already meager flow was immediately blocked. “Is this good enough?”

Cen An nodded, rolled up his pant legs, and waded into the stream bed to feel around…

【Congratulations! You have obtained 1 Cave Hydra Shell】

Hmm… Cave Hydra shells are actually quite useful; ground into powder, they can be used to make defensive potions. But that wasn’t what he was looking for…

“Ah, found it!” Cen An stumbled, but luckily, Su Rui was right beside him and caught him.

Where he had touched, a small whirlpool formed in the riverbed, sucking water and mud down together, revealing an entrance to the lower level.

Cen An and Su Rui exchanged a glance, and both jumped down.

The tenth level of the mine.

Cen An was counting in his head when he suddenly felt Su Rui, who was holding him, tighten his grip.

He looked up, and Su Rui gave him a shushing gesture.

Cen An immediately covered his mouth and nose, listening intently. There was the sound of water, and then…

His whole body tensed. A cough! A human cough!

In the blink of an eye, the two had landed.

The coughing grew louder all of a sudden, accompanied by labored gasps. “W-who’s there?”

It was no exaggeration to say that, in that instant, the hairs on Cen An’s body stood on end!

A person had actually appeared in this sealed mine shaft! Was this a living person, or some kind of creature?

What surprised him even more was that Su Rui actually raised an eyebrow. “It’s you.”

“You two know each other?” Cen An’s heartbeat slowly returned to normal, though his face remained a bit pale. “Could you introduce him to me?”

“We don’t know each other,” Su Rui replied crisply. “He just showed up in my territory, and I let him off the hook.”

“Alright, thanks for sparing my life,” the voice sounded sullen, as if devoid of strength.

Cen An slowly turned his head.

The tenth-layer space was slightly smaller than the ninth, roughly a hundred square meters.

Yet this hundred-square-meter space was arranged with a distinct sense of daily life: right at their feet lay a pile of sun-dried cassava and ground fruit, shriveled and unrecognizable, yet there was a considerable amount; to the left were logs and hay, along with a small, haphazard bundle of herbs—had Cen An not been so well-traveled and knowledgeable, he wouldn’t have been able to identify them; beside them lay a stack of animal hides, mostly of low grade from common beasts, with the occasional Level 1 or 2 mutant beast mixed in;

A small stream flowing down from the upper levels also cut through the mine, dividing the entire cavern into a 1:3 ratio. A waterwheel had been installed on the stream; the flowing water turned the wheel, grinding the dried cassava placed in the stone trough ahead. However, thanks to Cen An and his companion, the stream was now completely dry…

Further in, there was a small fire pit, and in front of it stands a stone bed covered with a layer of sun-dried cave moss… Leaning diagonally against the stone bed is a person.

This person appears to be in his early fifties, slender in build, with a refined demeanor and a pale complexion; he occasionally covered his mouth and coughed twice. Even upon seeing Cen An and his companion drop down from above, the man seemed to have little energy left. “Since you two are passing by, please restore the river water for me. Otherwise, I’m afraid I won’t have anything to eat tonight. The next entrance is in the corner—take your time, no need for me to see you off.”

Upon hearing this, Cen An’s first thought was: Is it almost evening already?

Then he said sheepishly, “The river above is frozen over, but it’ll melt in a moment… We stumbled in here by accident. May I ask, sir, how do we get out of this mine?”

The man opened his eyes and looked at him, finding this young man slightly more to his liking than the other one, and asked, “How did you get in here?”

Cen An hurriedly replied.

The man said, “The place you came in is the exit. Since it’s sealed now, it’ll probably open again in about three months.”

“Three months?” Cen An was startled. That would mean summer would be almost over! What about Xiao Yi? What about his vegetables!

“Is there any other way?”

“Well…” Under Cen An’s anxious gaze, the man replied slowly, “Actually, there is.”

“Please enlighten me, Senior. I will certainly offer a reward,” Cen An said earnestly.

Behind him, Su Rui grumbled impatiently, “What reward? If you won’t tell us, we’ll just beat you up.”

Cen An shot him a glare.

To his surprise, the man laughed. “Hmph. I wonder who sent their little brother to find me, only to… return pregnant.”

Su Rui exploded in fury. “Who sent him? That idiot went on his own!”

The man snorted with a laugh, saying listlessly, “He really is a fool.”

It was unclear whether he was referring to Yin Xiang or Su Rui.

Only then did Cen An realize that this man was the one who had previously given Yin Xiang the fertility potion… Given this past conflict, it wouldn’t be appropriate to ask him for help now.

Besides, Su Rui clearly disliked this man, and Cen An didn’t want to upset Su Rui over it.

“Never mind then.” Cen An shook his head. “I’ve troubled you, Senior.”

Saying this, he pulled Su Rui along and headed toward the opening in the corner of the wall.

The man, however, seemed slightly intrigued. “You’re not asking me? Are you planning to endure three months here with this stupid dog?”

Su Rui was still wondering who the “stupid dog” was when he heard Cen An say calmly, “Three months? You managed to endure it even while gravely ill. We’re young and strong—what can’t we endure? We can’t very well let our friends down just to get out.”

Although Su Rui didn’t quite understand what the two were talking about, he keenly sensed that Cen An was angry. He immediately turned around. “I’d better go beat up that old guy…”

Cen An helplessly grabbed him, only to hear the other suddenly burst into laughter. After the fit of laughter, he coughed for a while before panting, “Time only hastens aging; don’t believe in love… Little one, come here. I’ll tell you how to get out.”

Cen An thought to himself, Who’s the little rascal here… He looked at Su Rui, who whispered, “Go on, it’s free advice. Once we’re done, I can beat him up.”

Even though you’re speaking very quietly, this mine shaft isn’t that big—there’s no way he couldn’t hear you, right…

Cen An shook his head helplessly, walked over, and smiled. “Senior, Su Rui, and I are soulmates. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt him.”

The man actually laughed again, as if at some bizarre joke, and coughed as he said, “Alright, I won’t let you hurt him. Listen carefully: somewhere between the 20th and 30th levels of the mine, there’s another exit. This exit appears randomly on one of those levels, and only during the morning and the first half of the night. If you can find this exit, you’ll be able to get out.”

It still sounded hard to find, but it was more practical than waiting three months. Cen An thought for a moment, then asked, “May I ask, Senior, are there any Rock-Vein Shadow Vines in the later levels of the mine?”

The man seemed to pause for a moment, glancing at him. “You do look quite like one…”

Cen An didn’t catch that. “Like what?”

“Nothing.” The man suddenly lost interest. “There are some on the eleventh level. Go on.”

Cen An thanked him again.

As soon as he stood up, Su Rui immediately leaned in and asked, “Can we beat him up now? And what exactly is that Rock-Vein Shadow Vine?”

Cen An shot him a speechless look, pulling him back to keep him from causing trouble. “Alright, let’s hurry to the eleventh level… The Rock-Vein Shadow Vine is a type of vine that can be used to make a rope ladder. With a rope ladder, we’ll be able to climb back up after we go down.”

The two walked to the lower entrance in the corner and found a rope ladder there. It seemed this person also needed to go to the eleventh level.

They descended the rope ladder and, as soon as they opened their eyes, saw a vast expanse of Rock-Vein Shadow Vines. The vines wound their way across the entire stone wall.

Cen An didn’t hold back, cutting down every vine in sight. Rock-Vein Shadow Vines grow rapidly—they can cover a large area in just a few days—so leaving only the roots behind was sufficient.

【Congratulations! You have obtained 60 Rock-Vein Shadow Vines】

It takes 10 Rock-Vein Shadow Vines to craft a single rope ladder, so this isn’t enough. However, these aren’t hard to find; there will surely be more in the caves ahead.

Cen An unlocked the recipe and quickly crafted six rope ladders. “Let’s go—we need to hurry.”

The two continued their descent.

The twelfth level.

Ore deposits suddenly became much more abundant.

In addition to iron ore and copper ore, there were now silver ore, green crystals, and fluorite.

Silver ore and green crystals are used to craft tools, while fluorite is the most valuable—it can be used to make luminescent armor, a type of armor specifically designed for mining that glows in the dark, eliminating the need for torches.

As usual, he gathered every last piece of ore and continued downward.

The thirteenth level was the monster level.

This level is home to Level 2 Mutant Beasts: Hard-Shelled Crabs. They resemble crabs, with each one as large as a cast-iron pot. Their shells are extremely hard, comparable to ore.

Not only is its defense high, but this crab is also very fast, its jet-black bodies crawling across the ground like a swarm of iron turtles.

For Cen An, this crab is undoubtedly very difficult to deal with, but for Su Rui…

He raised his hand and summoned a burst of flame, and a group of crabs was instantly roasted.

The aroma of grilled seafood wafted through the stone cave.

Cen An suddenly felt hungry. He glanced back and realized Su Rui was hungry too.

No wonder—they’d fallen down that morning, and by now it was probably evening; they hadn’t eaten for two meals.

“Let’s eat first,” Cen An said, waving his hand. There was no need to rush.

His backpack contained some prepared smoked meat, which he’d originally intended to eat for lunch. There were also sweet asparagus and baby bok choy—even eaten raw, they were sweet and crisp. Half a can of the white grass soup remained; since it had been in his backpack, it was still warm, and there was enough for both of them to drink… though if they were to stay a few more days, they’d inevitably have to ration their food…

Just as he was mulling this over, Su Rui waved over there with particular glee, and down onto the clearing came half a deer, two chickens, a basket of assorted seasonings, and a cast-iron pot…

“You… what are you bringing all this for?” The chickens were fine. The deer, well, I can barely understand that, but what’s with the iron pot? Did you somehow guess we’d fall down here, you little rascal?

Su Rui replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world: “I’m waiting for you to cook me something delicious!”

Cen An watched him silently.

Su Rui looked back at him with an innocent expression: “Well, since I have spatial abilities now, of course, I can bring whatever I want.”

After a moment, Cen An gave in, rubbing his temples as he stood up. “Fine, at least we won’t have to worry about going hungry for a while… How do you want the venison? It’s not convenient to roast it in the cave—should we braise it? Or make garlic-flavored meat chunks? The chicken’s still alive; let’s put it away for now and eat it tomorrow… Hmm, you brought a pretty complete set of seasonings…”

He chattered on as he tidied up, while Su Rui sliced the meat while being scolded.

A fire was lit inside the stone cave.

Since Su Rui had brought plenty of wild garlic, the venison was ultimately prepared as garlic-flavored meat.

The bright red venison was diced. They didn’t have butter, but Su Rui dug out a palm-sized chunk of beef fat, which would do just fine.

The cast-iron skillet was heated, and as soon as the beef hit the bottom… a pool of rich, oily juices melted out. The venison was added, and each side had to be seared until golden brown.

The garlic cloves were tossed in as well, and the aroma of garlic quickly filled the air. Cen An then directed Su Rui to grind some pepper and sprinkle it over the meat. After all, this was only his second time cooking venison, so he might as well treat it like beef.

The fragrant steam wafted out from the cracks, making it even more tempting.

Su Rui picked up a piece of sweet asparagus, took a couple of bites, glanced at the pot, took another couple of bites, then another couple… He looked at Cen An. “What are you thinking about?”

Cen An rested his chin on the back of his hand, using Su Rui’s jacket as a cushion beneath him. “I’m wondering if I should send some food up to that guy.”

That man had cursed Su Rui, and Cen An had been furious at first. But in the end, he’d told them every last detail about how to get out, without asking for anything in return, which made Cen An feel a little uneasy.

However, upon second thought, that man had, after all, once drugged Yin Xiang, so he said, “Never mind, I was just thinking about it. I guess I won’t…”

“I think we should,” Su Rui interjected. Seeing Cen An’s surprise, he added confidently, “I didn’t bring any staples. Let’s go up and steal some cassava ground fruit or other ground fruit to bring back.”

Cen An was at a loss for words. “What do you mean by ‘steal’? Can’t we just trade for it…”

But since Su Rui was willing to go up, he felt reassured.

After a moment’s thought, he took twenty-one fresh flowers from his backpack and opened the recipe.

Though the Hundred-Flower Cough-Relief Pills were named “Hundred-Flower,” the name was actually a bit of a stretch—only seven fresh flowers were needed to make a single pill. Cen An made three of them.

He didn’t know what ailment the person had, but for treating a cough, these Hundred-Flower Cough-Relief Pills were quite effective.

After wrapping the pills in leaves, he lifted the lid of the iron pot and scooped out a portion of garlic-flavored venison chunks.

It wasn’t much—less than a tenth of what was left—but it still weighed about a pound. In his previous life, a person in their fifties would certainly have been satisfied with that.

As for the ability users of this world… well, they’d just have to sample a taste.

The two of them climbed back up the rope ladder.

The fire on the tenth level had already died down. In the darkness, one could only hear the occasional cough and labored breathing that sounded extremely strained.

Cen An spoke softly, “Senior, have you gone to sleep?”

“What are you two kids doing up here again?” the man’s voice rang out, showing not the slightest sign of sleepiness.

Cen An pulled out a torch. “Thank you, Senior, for answering our questions today. We’ve brought you some gifts.”

By the light of the torch, he noticed the person on the bed looked even paler. “Are… you all right?”

The other person snorted lightly, as if finding the question trivial, then nodded his chin, gesturing for him to bring the items over.

Two leaf-wrapped packets, one large and one small, were handed over. The man glanced down. “Hundred Flowers Cough-Relief Pills?”

“You have keen eyes, Senior.” Since he recognized them, Cen An saw no need to explain further. “Please get some rest, Senior. We’ll head back down now.”

Lin She watched as the youngster scrambled up and then slunk back down, and suddenly chuckled softly, “He really is the spitting image…”

He pretended not to notice Su Rui behind him, quietly stealing two cassava roots from him, then tilted his head back and swallowed all three Hundred Flowers Cough-Relief Pills in one go.

The floral scent filled his senses, instantly suppressing the itch in his throat and greatly easing the chest tightness he’d been feeling for days.

A low voice echoed through the cave: “See? You were just as foolish as he back then…”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Cen An and the other man returned to their own stone cave. The garlic-scented venison in the pot was still hot. They casually split some chopsticks and began eating straight from the pot.

The venison had been cut by Su Rui into uniform, square cubes, which were pan-fried with garlic until fragrant. Only pepper and a pinch of salt had been sprinkled inside; no other seasonings were needed. Cen An hadn’t even added chili peppers—the dish was meant to be enjoyed for the pure flavors of the meat and garlic.

He picked up a piece and put it in his mouth… First came the rich aroma of butter, followed immediately by the spiciness of the pepper and the garlic scent—the blend of flavors was exquisite and irresistible.

The venison was a bit lean, with distinct fibers; as he slowly chewed, each strand of meat was saturated with a savory, umami flavor.

Cen An was surprised himself—could it really be this delicious?

If he thought it was good, Su Rui liked it even more; he polished off half the pot of venison in the blink of an eye. Once Cen An had eaten his fill, he hugged the pot close to his chest, as if to say: I’m going to finish this whole pot today!

Cen An could only shake his head at the sight.

After dinner, the two descended another two levels before deciding to rest for the night.

Although their physical strength was replenished by the white grass soup, mental energy was just as important. Setting Su Rui aside for the moment, as an ordinary person, Cen An knew that in this pitch-black environment, not getting enough sleep could easily lead to danger.

What Cen An was most grateful for now was that he’d worried about returning too late from his first trip deep into the mountains, so he’d asked Tian Yuan to look after Xiao Yi. Otherwise, he’d be kicking himself right now.

Surprisingly, Su Rui’s spatial pocket was stocked with plenty of animal hides. The two of them pulled them out, spread them out haphazardly, and slept huddled close together for the night—and it wasn’t as uncomfortable as they’d expected.

Early the next morning, Cen An woke from his sleep feeling warm all over. He had a weak constitution and usually woke up with cold hands and feet.

Last night, he’d been nestled next to a massive furnace, and even in this damp, chilly mine shaft, he’d actually felt hot.

The massive furnace shifted and asked, “What’s for breakfast?”

Cen An urged him to get up and clear the moss from the mine shaft; for breakfast, they ate moss energy cakes.

Surprisingly, these energy cakes actually tasted pretty good. The tender moss, dried over the fire, was fresh and crispy, much like seaweed crackers. They were also very filling; Cen An was full after eating just half.

Su Rui, on the other hand, polished off three and a half in one go.

Then they began exploring the cave.

Next, they headed to the sixteenth level.

As usual, the two of them set up the rope ladder and climbed down.

Cen An turned around and gasped, “How is there a house here?”