A small mining craft plunged deep into the abyss of the dark, yawning pit.
The surroundings fell into utter silence, as if the vessel had entered a dark world. Even Tian Xiao, with his soldier's willpower, couldn't help but feel a shiver crawl up his spine.
The red lights on both sides of the vehicle flickered to life.
Two beams of bright red light sliced through the darkness, piercing into the even deeper, shadowed tunnel of the mining pit.
At the far end of the tunnel, more than a hundred meters wide, three lights flickered, casting off twelve warning signals, buzzing as they drilled into the rocky layers.
These were three other H3 mining crafts from Yunzhong Group, their numbers higher in sequence.
One was numbered 246.Another, numbered 099.The third, numbered 712.
Clearly, these three had formed a private team.
In Yunzhong Group, the base didn't mind miners forming groups as long as daily quotas were met and no trouble was caused. They didn't interfere with miners' camaraderie.
Tian Xiao, however, took this more seriously.
Upon seeing the numbers of the three mining crafts, his mind immediately recalled the three miners who had discovered the fractured veins years ago—and overnight, struck it rich.
But this…
What surprised him was that the trio had already infiltrated the area so early, as if they had discovered something and had begun extracting it here.
Wait!
Though all H3 mining crafts shared similar scanning capabilities, the three of them, even as seasoned miners, shouldn't have been able to detect anything deeper in the rock layers. Certainly, they wouldn't have needed to spend a month mining this area.
Tian Xiao's sharp instincts told him that something was off.
He adjusted the direction.
The mining craft veered, and the two beams of light followed, shifting as he turned away from the tunnel.
But just before leaving, Tian Xiao secretly activated the mini drone aboard the craft. The tiny insect-sized machine rolled off the edge of the tunnel, its four delicate mechanical arms gripping the edge of the rocks, advancing rapidly toward the three crafts ahead.
After exiting the tunnel, Tian Xiao didn't fly far. Instead, he chose to power off the lights and warning signals, hovering silently in the pitch-black abyss of the pit.
On the screen, he saw the drone's live feed.
The mini drone, capable of static, jump, and flight movements, was primarily used for exploring hazardous environments or precisely probing rock fractures. It was highly functional, with a clear image feed.
Soon, the drone neared the area where the three crafts were working.
The feed showed one craft acting as a light source, analyzing the surrounding environment. The other two crafts, one on the left and the other on the right, operated the multi-functional drills, working tirelessly.
Rocks were flying everywhere!Fallen stones littered the tunnel, the scene chaotic.
Tian Xiao watched from the drone's shifting perspective. Hundreds of holes had been drilled into the sides of the tunnel, clearly the work of the trio.
"D*mn it."
"What was that craft earlier about?"
"It almost barged right in! Doesn't know the rules, d*mn it."
Inside craft number 246, one voice erupted with a barrage of complaints, clearly a person with a fiery temper.
Another voice chimed in:
"Yeah, I almost broke out in a cold sweat myself…"
"We finally found this place, tracked the markers your cousin left, gathered some resources. If he'd blown it, we'd be in trouble."
The voice belonged to craft number 712, speaking cautiously, as if they were hiding something.
"It's fine."
A third, calmer voice emerged from craft number 099, soothing the others:
"I checked earlier—3377 is a rookie, joined Yunzhong Group less than a month ago. Doesn't know anything, probably didn't even notice us, or maybe just didn't understand the rules."
"Are you sure it's fine?"
"Don't worry, we've buried everything underground. No one could have discovered it unless they got really close."
"Good. If we got caught, I'd skin him alive."
"Sh*t, these days, it's terrifying when rookies come in. Someone else's turf, and they think they can just barge in."
"Alright, whatever. Let's keep going."
"Agreed," 099 said.
The complaints stopped, and the drilling noises resumed.
The sound of rocks clattering against the vehicle's hull echoed in the tunnel.
What they didn't realize was that beneath their craft, a tiny drone, no larger than a fingertip, was silently recording their excavation site.
After some time, a sharp noise rang out.
Clink!
In the feed from the drone, Tian Xiao could clearly see a patch of brownish-blue rock that had appeared in the drilled hole, its hardness remarkable, causing the multi-functional drill to jam against it.
Tian Xiao leaned forward, instinctively drawn to the sight."Qinglong! What is this?"
In many ways, Tian Xiao wasn't a professional miner. He didn't know every mineral by sight.
Qinglong, however, was different…
It was a walking encyclopedia, always ready to answer.
"Master, this is H7-Level Purple Xenon Ore, which contains H5-Level Phoenicite Ore. The latter is mainly used to resist dozens of external strong light rays, commonly used in the production of shell coatings for H7 to H9-class vehicles. The current market price is about 2,000 yuan per kilogram. The former goes for around 10,000 yuan per kilogram."
As Qinglong spoke, laughter echoed from craft 246.
"Haha... another one."
"This one's probably about three kilograms. At least worth twenty thousand!"
Craft 246 had already fully extracted the raw ore embedded in the rock and handed it over to 099 for examination.
"Keep going!" 099 said, a hint of excitement in their voice.
"Your cousin's intel really paid off. This area's Purple Xenon Ore is scattered all around. Preliminary estimates show there's at least several tons here. We've struck it rich!"
"Haha..."
The trio continued their work.
The drone's feed showed that 099 didn't place the raw ore into the craft but instead lifted a slab of rock beneath it.
The moment the slab was lifted, Tian Xiao's heart skipped a beat and then raced.
There, inside the hole, was a sizable cache of Purple Xenon Ore, covering almost a third of the hole's surface, estimated to weigh at least 300 kilograms.
This was worth nearly two million yuan, all of which would go to the base, and immediately be divided into a sixty-thousand-yuan share.
It was at this moment that Tian Xiao understood completely.
The so-called fractured vein…
Was nothing but a fabrication.
The Purple Xenon Ore was scattered throughout the entire tunnel, a shattered mine of ore.
The trio—099, 246, and 712—had simply mined all the Purple Xenon Ore in the area, continuing their work for over a month. Then, they staged the entire thing by extracting the ore at once, creating a fake discovery of a fractured vein, generating the illusion of an overnight fortune.
Clever…
This ensured that the news would be contained, preventing it from being discovered by the base or other miners and sparking competition.
But in doing so, the rumor of the fractured vein misled other miners, prompting over a dozen to risk their lives in a thunderstorm to work in the pit, only to be buried alive.
On one side, there was heaven. On the other, hell.