Chapter 159: Chapter 159: They Impersonated Us

"Calm down," Mo Yan said sternly. "We’re a long way from the exit. If we don’t prepare food and water, going hungry on the way will add a lot of risk."

"I’ve discussed it with Brother Ao. We’ll all live together in the cave. If anyone goes out, it must be in a group of three or more. That will reduce the risk of disappearances."

What he said made sense. The Beastmen’s terror subsided a bit, and they followed him into the cave.

Meanwhile, after one night, Feng Xuan went to check on his roommate the next day and found that he had improved slightly.

He fed him some more water. Just then, the foreman’s voice rang out from outside the door: "Get up, get up! Time for work!"

After Feng Xuan went out, he joined the crowd and lined up. Once the headcount was done, the foreman waved his hand and led them into the mountain cave.

They walked for a long time after entering the cave. Sporadic Fluorite stones provided illumination, making it easy enough to see the path.

When they reached the mining site, the Fluorite stones became more numerous, illuminating the inside of the cave as if it were broad daylight.

The miners knew Feng Xuan was new, so one casually pointed to an old man to teach him how to mine.

The man he pointed to happened to be a Tiger Clan Beastman. His hair was graying, and he looked to be in his fifties or sixties.

"I’m Number 120. Come with me."

Number 120 spoke listlessly. Feng Xuan followed behind him, listening as he explained how to use the tools and how much ore they needed to dig each day.

"If you dig enough, you get ten copper coins a day. If you don’t, you’ll be fined. Newcomers aren’t fined for the first three days. You should hurry up and practice, or you won’t even earn enough for food."

Only then did Feng Xuan realize they had to buy their own food here. Previously, they didn’t get paid but were given meals. However, the meals were just boiled grass roots and tree bark mixed with scraps of meat.

After Number 120 finished speaking, he found a spot and started digging.

Feng Xuan observed him silently for a moment, then followed his example and began to dig.

He held back his strength, digging about half the required amount for the day. He had slipped a few copper coins to Number 120 earlier, who had quietly reminded him not to work too hard.

Just meeting the daily quota was enough; otherwise, they would exploit him and assign him extra tasks.

After the inspection, they could go back. Feng Xuan bought some food on his way back after leaving the cave.

When he opened the door, the man who had been lying weakly on the bed opened his eyes and struggled to sit up.

Seeing Feng Xuan, he said in a hoarse voice, "You saved me."

When Feng Xuan nodded, the man said thank you, then stared blankly at his own wounds.

Feng Xuan said nothing more and gave him a portion of the meat he was holding.

The man seemed surprised by this. He froze for a moment, then said thank you again. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

After a long silence, he suddenly spoke again. "I don’t know what you used to save me, but you shouldn’t have. I’m going to die sooner or later anyway."

The people who sent him to this place never intended for him to escape. If he hadn’t tried to run, he could have lived a while longer. But if he tried to escape... like this time, he’d just be made an example of to warn the other miners.

"At least you’re alive now," Feng Xuan said nonchalantly. "Your family is still out there waiting for you. You failed once, and now you don’t want to live anymore?"

The man was stunned for a moment, then gave a bitter smile. "It’s not that I don’t want to. But... there’s no escape."

"The way out is too long, and it’s lined with heavily guarded checkpoints. I barely made it halfway before I was caught and brought back."

Feng Xuan glanced at him and changed his tune. "Just because you can’t escape now doesn’t mean you won’t be able to in the future. Focus on getting better first."

"Let’s get acquainted. I’m Feng Xuan, a Tiger Clan Beastman."

The man hesitated for a moment. "I’m Ao Er, a Dragon Clan Beastman."

Feng Xuan instinctively thought of Ao Wu. Ao Wu had said he had four older brothers, and this man was also a Dragon Clan Beastman.

’But this man doesn’t look anything like Ao Wu.’

Deciding to test the waters, he asked tentatively, "Do you know someone named Ao Wu?"

Ao Er instantly became agitated. "You know my fifth brother? He’s been missing for years! Do you know where he is?"

Feng Xuan quickly said, "I do. Don’t get excited, you’ll tear your wounds open."

Ao Er calmed himself and waited eagerly for Feng Xuan to answer his question.

"He’s another one of my Female Master’s Beast Husbands. We met on the Beastman Continent."

Realization dawned on Ao Er. "No wonder we could never find Xiao Wu. So he wasn’t on the Beast God Continent."

"Then where is he now? Is he okay?"

Feng Xuan shook his head. "We were separated after we came to the Beast God Continent, so I don’t know where he is either. But given his strength, he shouldn’t be doing too badly."

"That’s good," Ao Er said, sighing in relief. "As long as Xiao Wu comes back, that’s what matters. He knows where home is. Once he’s back, everything will be fine."

Now, when he looked at Feng Xuan, there was a newfound sense of kinship. By extension, they were practically family. In this strange place, having a familiar person was much better than being all alone.

Speaking of the Dragon Clan, Feng Xuan remembered something else. "Second Brother Ao, since you’re from the Dragon Clan, there’s something I’d like to ask you."

Ao Er smiled. "Go ahead."

Feng Xuan told him about how he and his companions had fallen into the hands of the Invincible Alliance and were tasked by them to kill the Dragon Clan’s Clan Leader.

After listening, Ao Er said in disbelief, "He really said that?"

"Yes."

"That Old Thief Yin is simply shameless!"

Ao Er clenched his fists in anger. "Revenge for stealing his wife? Abandoning his wife and daughter? It’s all a bunch of lies he made up! My Female Mother and Beast Father’s relationship is great!"

"Oh, right," he added, "My Beast Father is the Dragon Clan’s Clan Leader. He rescued my Female Mother once when she was being pursued by the Invincible Alliance, and they’ve been together ever since."

"They had a daughter, but not long after my little sister hatched, the Invincible Alliance came knocking."

"Naturally, our Dragon Clan couldn’t just hand over the Clan Leader’s wife, so we fought the Invincible Alliance. Unfortunately, the Alliance Hierarch is too treacherous. He threatened our Dragon Clan’s children to make my Female Mother go back with him."

Ao Er poured out the whole story to Feng Xuan. He was so furious that he snapped off a piece of the wooden bedframe.

"I see," Feng Xuan said with understanding. "Fortunately, we didn’t completely trust him. We were trying to verify the information as we traveled."

The unlucky part was being brought to this place before they even reached Dragon City.

"Speaking of the Invincible Alliance, how could I forget? I was in such a hurry to escape because I have something extremely important to report to the clan."

Ao Er slapped his forehead in frustration. He looked up at Feng Xuan. "I’m a few years your senior, so I’ll call you Little Xuan. Little Xuan, I don’t know if I’ll be able to escape. If I can’t, I’ll do everything I can to help you get out."

"Second Brother Ao..."

"Listen to me," Ao Er interrupted him, his tone serious. "If you can escape, you must help me bring this message back to the Dragon Clan."

Feng Xuan swallowed the words he was about to say. "Go on."

"The Invincible Alliance has found my little sister’s whereabouts and has already sent high-ranking members to find her. They’ve also imprisoned my eldest brother and third brother in the Death Abyss and the Coral Maze City, respectively. The versions of my eldest brother, my third brother, and me that are out there right now are all fakes!"

"Someone is impersonating us and has been in constant contact with the clan!"