The other groups of yamen runners who left Sanxiang City at the same time as Ren Qing and the others only arrived at the temporary camp at Twin Peaks Mountain two days later.
As expected, they had been ambushed by wild beasts along the way, so few survived, and all bore injuries.
This was only because Restraint Officers had intervened, otherwise they would have been completely wiped out.
After that, the beasts suddenly stopped their indiscriminate attacks. Perhaps Song Rong had realized it was futile, or maybe he had other plans?
Under Ren Qing's arrangements, the yamen runners gradually joined the excavation work at Twin Peaks Mountain.
The one-wheeled soil carts he had designed were also manufactured. With these tools, the efficiency of transporting sand and soil had greatly improved.
Now, the temporary camp was beginning to resemble a small village.
The military tents had suffered damage from wind and rain, so the yamen runners built simple wooden houses around the cave.
The water supply issue was resolved by tapping into several mountain springs within Twin Peaks Mountain. However, the lack of large-capacity containers made transportation troublesome, so they would have to find clay later to make pottery.
The only silver lining was that one of the yamen runners had experience firing pottery.
....
At the break of dawn.
Ren Qing woke up and spent a few minutes maintaining his Great Miao Blade.
Then he went out alone to search for traces of wolves nearby, hoping to hunt a few to aid his cultivation of the Divine Leg Sutra.
Over the past two days, with the help of wolf blood, he had reaped considerable benefits.
Ren Qing had secretly tested it in the mountains, his werewolf transformation had already reached his waist and abdomen. He estimated it wouldn't be long before he could fully transform.
Once that happened, his strength would see a significant boost, especially after adapting to wielding the blade with both hands in werewolf form. His slashing speed would likely increase several times over.
Unfortunately, he couldn't consume too much, or his body would be completely bestialized by the erosion.
Progress in other techniques, however, was mediocre, especially the Human Skin Book. Without medicinal baths, it could only be described as stagnant.
This left Ren Qing somewhat helpless, but since you can't have your cake and eat it too, he would simply consume lifespan to forcefully advance if he encountered real danger.
He crawled away from the camp, using his Double Pupils to track animal traces.
But after searching for over an hour, the wolves seemed to have wised up. The only thing he found was a wild boar rolling in a mud pit.
Ren Qing swiftly shattered the boar's spine with his fist, then carried the hundred-jin carcass back to camp.
He casually tossed it onto an open space, signaling Xiao Wu to handle it.
The other yamen runners in the camp remained expressionless.
Apart from growing accustomed to it, witnessing the bizarre methods of the Restraint Officers had long since numbed them to shock.
Ren Qing was about to find a place nearby to practice his blade when he noticed some commotion in the inner camp.
"Hehehehe..."
The purplish-green frog-man Restraint Officer, named Huang Ziwan, had just emerged from the cave and was rinsing off dust with water.
When Huang Ziwan spotted Ren Qing, his gaze turned mocking, and he let out strange chuckles.
Before Ren Qing could react, Huang Ziwan quickly signaled with his eyes for him to look nearby.
Song Zongwu stood there with his four arms crossed, saying coldly to Ren Qing, "Bring a pickaxe and wait for me in the cave."
"Understood, Senior Song."
Ren Qing's expression stiffened, what was coming had finally arrived.
In truth, Song Zongwu had hinted two days ago that mining could temper the body. Ren Qing had pretended not to understand, but now retribution had come swiftly.
With a bitter smile, Ren Qing grabbed a pickaxe and headed into the dark cave.
Along the way, he noticed Guo Qing and a few others pushing soil carts, covered in dust. The dim light kept them from spotting Ren Qing.
Since he was going mining, Ren Qing continued inward, stopping only when he reached a fork.
Before him were five mining tunnels, likely corresponding to the five Restraint Officers. The sound of hammering echoed from two of them.
After a closer look, the third tunnel didn't seem to have been dug out, the rocks bore signs of extensive corrosion.
Probably the frog-man Restraint Officer's work.
The remaining tunnels either had claw marks or looked like they had been punched open with half-meter-wide fists.
Only the first tunnel appeared normal.
After waiting briefly, Song Zongwu arrived carrying five or six shovels.
"Senior Song..."
Ren Qing greeted him awkwardly, about to explain himself when Song Zongwu spoke earnestly.
"Ren Qing, I know your talent is exceptional, but precisely because..."
Mindful of the other Restraint Officers in the cave, Song Zongwu chose his words carefully. "The more so, the more you must temper your body and master every ounce of your strength with precision."
Ren Qing wanted to tell him he could advance the Human Skin Book at any time, but after opening his mouth, he wisely shut it again.
"Ren Qing, lend me your blade."
Ren Qing quickly handed over the Great Miao Blade.
Song Zongwu unsheathed it, examining it closely before sighing. "Liu Hu's craftsmanship has improved, I almost didn't recognize it."
"Senior Song, do you also use a blade?"
"No, but this will suffice."
Just as Ren Qing was puzzled, Song Zongwu ran his palm along the blade, then swung it hard at the stone wall.
Sparks flew!!
A square boulder two meters in size slowly fell, sending dust billowing.
Ren Qing's heart leaped to his throat. While the Great Miao Blade was well-made, it was far from being able to cut through metal like mud, the edge would surely be damaged.
Song Zongwu returned the blade to Ren Qing. "Don't worry. I may not know how to wield a blade, but at least I won't damage it."
Ren Qing glanced at the Great Miao Blade and found the edge still pristine, with traces of blade oil remaining.
Song Zongwu smiled. "Start digging with the pickaxe first. Once you've adjusted, you can switch to the blade."
"Thank you, Senior Song."
Ren Qing spoke sincerely. Relying on the information stream had indeed left him lacking in tempering, he was grateful Song Zongwu had pointed it out in time.
"No need."
Song Zongwu waved it off.
His high regard for Ren Qing was only partly due to talent. What mattered more was Ren Qing's steadfastness in adhering to the principles of techniques.
The Blindless Method inevitably mutated users into Hundred-Eyed Ones if they swallowed human eyes. Even if they repented, the mutation should have led to the One-Eyed Bearer.
Yet Ren Qing had advanced into the unheard-of Double Pupil Bearer, proving he had never taken the shortcut of consuming human eyes.
The same went for the Taotie Method. The Food Eater and Giant Stomach paths were relatively easier to cultivate, one could grow stronger simply by eating in large quantities.
Yet Ren Qing had still chosen the Second Stomach, the mutation path Song Zongwu believed held the most potential.
Song Zongwu patted Ren Qing's shoulder. "The deeper you dig, the harder the rock becomes. Even I find it strenuous."
Ren Qing couldn't help but ask, "Senior Song, why use a shovel? Wouldn't bare hands be faster?"
Song Zongwu picked up a shovel and lightly squeezed, it crumpled like scrap metal.
"To me, a shovel is as soft as tofu. Using it teaches me to handle heavy things lightly, allowing better control over my strength."
With that, he walked into the first tunnel, leaving Ren Qing dumbfounded.
Huang Ziwan passed by Ren Qing with a weird chuckle, entering the third tunnel.
"Tsk tsk tsk, as expected of Old Man Song. He almost makes me want to dig all night."
Before long, a pungent odor wafted out, accompanied by the sizzling sound of corrosion.