Chapter 216
Chapter 216
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 216
Chapter Title: The Life of a Miner
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What is the life of a miner?
From the outside, mining wasn't a job that earned much respect.
Miners spent their days digging through dark, cramped mountainsides, their bodies caked in dust, swinging pickaxes nonstop to extract ore until they were utterly exhausted.
As a result, hardly anyone dreamed of becoming a miner as a child. Most were people forced into it out of desperate financial need.
And Seok Jang was no different.
Seok Jang, the manager of the Namgok Mine.
In truth, he had once walked a smooth path far removed from manual labor.
Born into a well-off family, he grew up without hardship, learned the family business, married a beautiful wife upon reaching adulthood, and was blessed with a daughter so precious she could rest in the apple of his eye.
But tragedy strikes without warning.
While expanding the family business, he was swindled by a trusted friend and lost everything.
He lost his friend, his shop, his family's estate, and all their land.
Tang! Tang! Tang! Tang!
—We know everything you've got in there! Come out!
All that remained were the debt collectors hounding him.
Eventually, overwhelmed by the constant pressure, his wife fled like she was escaping. Seok Jang plunged into profound despair.
He drowned himself in alcohol for days on end, and the villagers shook their heads pityingly, convinced he'd never recover.
Then one day, as usual, Seok Jang staggered home dead drunk and collapsed into a snoring sleep.
He stirred awake at the faint presence in the room—and when he saw what it was, no words would come.
It was his daughter, now grown into a young girl.
His precious daughter, whom he cherished more than life itself, was tenderly covering him with a blanket.
She patched up the drafty holes in the walls with cheap cloth, then quietly slipped out.
Even after she left, Seok Jang lay frozen, unable to move.
Hot tears simply streamed from his eyes.
Everyone else had given up on him—except for one person who stayed by his side.
The daughter he was supposed to protect had become his protector.
Is there anyone in the world as foolish as me?
Having wept through the night, Seok Jang made a vow.
He would at least become a father his child could be proud of.
From the next day, he quit drinking cold turkey and took any paying job he could find.
He even accepted the grueling manual labor he'd once scorned as beneath a son of a prominent family.
At first, his back screamed and his shoulders felt like they might cave in, but his body gradually adapted. Before long, he handled the heavy work with ease.
And so, as Seok Jang chipped away at his debts through backbreaking labor, one day a fellow worker shared some news.
—Have you heard the latest?
—What news?
—They're recruiting a few miners at the Namdo Iron Gate. Even rookies can apply.
He wasn't a martial artist, but even he had heard of the Namdo Iron Gate.
Besides, miners?
It was a job he'd never even considered in his life, so he planned to let it go in one ear and out the other.
But the ore they handled was so valuable, the pay was astronomical. Word was, the monthly wage was in silver taels...
Whoosh!
—Seok Jang from Maeyang County here! I've mostly done construction, but I've taken any heavy labor job in the village!
Upon hearing the pay scale, Seok Jang applied without a second thought.
Unusually, the Namdo Iron Gate selected miners directly from the sect, interviewing them face-to-face with the foremen.
So there he sat, tense before several foremen.
And he received an utterly unexpected reply.
—You're hired.
—...Pardon?
It was exactly what he'd hoped for, yet Seok Jang couldn't quite believe it.
Deciding based solely on his unremarkable work history, without a single question?
He wondered if few people applied to be miners there, but seeing everyone else rejected confirmed that wasn't the case.
Thus hired on the spot, Seok Jang awkwardly prepared to leave but couldn't hold back his curiosity.
—Why pick someone unremarkable like me?
There had been applicants with more experience, greater strength—even prior mining experience. Yet he was the only one selected.
It was only natural to question it. The foreman slowly checked the paper and replied.
—Worked five years without missing a single day. And your only family is one daughter.
Nodding in satisfaction, the foreman continued.
—A man with something to protect is strong. We look forward to working with you.
—...!
That day, Seok Jang set foot on the path of a miner.
Afterward, he demonstrated talent in leadership and manpower allocation, dramatically boosting output and rising swiftly through the ranks.
And when he finally stood as the overall supervisor and manager of the Namgok Mine, he faced a bolt-from-the-blue crisis.
No more ore to mine.
The iron deposits in the mine had been completely exhausted.
The miners were forced into unpaid leave, but they couldn't simply rejoice.
I can't just sit idle.
The Namdo Iron Gate had trusted and hired him.
Thanks to them, he'd paid off his debts through hard work, secured a modest home, and lived a normal life with his daughter.
When the sect faced crisis, he couldn't turn his back.
And the other miners felt the same.
Uniting their resolve, Seok Jang led them in a voluntary search of the Namgok Mine.
Clinging to the belief that more iron ore must be buried somewhere.
Huff... huff... huuuff...
Short of breath? Hang in there just a bit longer. The rest spot's coming up soon.
Seok Jang never shirked from venturing deepest into the mine for explorations.
Seeing him lead by example at the forefront inspired the others to follow faithfully.
Today, focused on searching, shift change arrived before they knew it. He led a few miners toward the rest area they'd prepared inside.
There, they encountered the previous shift waiting.
Seeing their exhausted, slumped figures, Seok Jang encouraged them while inquiring about results.
Good work, everyone. So, did you find anything today?
One man shook his head regretfully.
Afraid not today either. We focused on the northwest, but the path dead-ended.
I see.
No results today either.
Shaking off a flicker of disappointment, Seok Jang addressed the previous shift.
You've earned your rest. Head on back.
Will do. Just need a breather for these aching legs first.
Conversation done, Seok Jang turned to the miners behind him.
Let's move out again.
Northwest blocked? Time to try northeast.
He set the direction and prepared to lead them onward.
But then.
Halt.
Seok Jang suddenly stopped, speaking in a low,grave voice.
...?
Perplexed by the abrupt pause before even starting, the miners looked to him for explanation. But he stared silently at the ground.
Then his gaze shifted upward to the ceiling, sensing something.
Rumble... rumble...
From that moment, a low vibration began to echo through the entire mine.
As everyone stared in confusion, Seok Jang whipped his head around and bellowed.
Everyone, take cover!
His shout unleashed chaos.
Kaboom!
The massive mine collapsed in ruin.
Ugh...
Seok Jang, who blacked out briefly, blinked and pushed himself up.
Recalling the disaster, he urgently scanned his surroundings.
Phew.
By some miracle, all the miners in his sight were safe.
True, everyone but him was unconscious, but no one bore life-threatening injuries.
Just before the full collapse, his warning prompted them to huddle under solid rock.
Fortunate, but what in the world caused this...?
A sudden mine collapse.
He'd never anticipated such a natural calamity.
And today of all days, with visitors from the Namdo Iron Gate deep inside.
Seok Jang fretfully recalled the two men who'd visited that day.
They'd gone far deeper than here, surely trapped and isolated.
The sect would send rescuers once informed.
But trapped without water or food, they had only three days.
They needed extraction within that window to survive.
So Seok Jang thought—but reality dawned on him swiftly.
Hoo... hoo.
Disaster. He'd overlooked one crucial fact.
As time passed, Seok Jang's breathing grew labored, his face ashen.
Over a dozen people crammed in a confined space.
And critically, their trapped area was completely sealed.
Air's running out!
Feeling his breaths shorten rapidly, Seok Jang desperately clawed at gaps with his tools, but the rubble wouldn't budge.
Despair began to creep in.
But he couldn't give up.
His daughter—his family—waited outside.
Tools failing, he tossed them aside and dug with bare hands.
His frantic scrabbling yielded nothing, yet he persisted.
But as death loomed inescapably, tears welled in his eyes.
His daughter was to marry next year, and he'd die without seeing it.
Regrettable.
Yet his feeble strength couldn't overcome the situation, no matter how he struggled.
His throat tightened, movements slowed.
His head spun, vision blurred.
I want to live. If I can just live, I'll do anything.
So please.
Please, anyone... save...
With his final wish, Seok Jang's head drooped.
But in that instant.
Kwaaaang!
A deafening roar exploded in his ears.
And warm sunlight bathed his face.
...A dream?
Moments ago, he'd been buried in the mine's heart, certain he'd never see the sun again.
Soon, a man appeared before him.
He looked at Seok Jang and said,
You held out without passing out. Well done.
At the voice, Seok Jang laboriously lifted his head.
He had to thank the benefactor who saved his life—and the miners'.
But with the sun at his back, the man's face was hard to discern.
Stammering, Seok Jang asked,
Who... are you, benefactor?
Seok Jang wanted to know his savior's name.
So one day, he could repay the debt.
The man smirked faintly.
I am the master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, lord of ten thousand souls.
Fresh air filled his lungs, clearing Seok Jang's mind.
With it came the overwhelming presence of the man before him, prickling his skin.
And at last, he realized the identity of the figure.
I am this cult's Cult Leader.