Half an hour later, Zhang Chi approached the target mine tunnel but didn’t go in. Instead, he stopped at the entrance and began searching the ground nearby.

Before long, his eyes lit up as he spotted a scorpion with a black back and a white belly.

Then, he gritted his teeth and reached out his hand.

The scorpion scuttled away quickly, but not before stinging him, causing a sharp pain in his finger.

Yet, after the initial sting, he felt no discomfort.

’It really works.’

Zhang Chi was overjoyed.

This type of scorpion was just an ordinary poisonous insect, nothing compared to the Four-legged Strange Snake.

It was even one of the strange snakes’ sources of food.

But it was perfect for testing whether the Jade Pendant could truly grant immunity to poison damage.

The result was clearly to his satisfaction.

The color of the Jade Pendant in his mind barely changed at the moment he was stung.

Only then did Zhang Chi continue forward.

He had actually considered eating the scorpions.

But it wasn’t a great option.

They were too small, hard to catch, and their nutritional value was far inferior to that of the Four-legged Strange Snake.

Soon, Zhang Chi reached the actual location and cautiously slowed his steps.

SWISH!

The next moment, a black shadow flashed, and the impact sent him staggering backward.

At the same time, a sharp pain shot through his right forearm. Something cold and slimy was latched on, biting down and not letting go.

He grabbed the thing, ripped it off, and immediately turned to run.

The creature writhed in his hand like a loach, struggling so forcefully that it almost escaped.

CRACK!

He quickly used both hands to give it a sharp twist, and only then did the thing go still.

After running a safe distance away, he used the light of his mining lamp to finally get a clear look at it. It was a black Four-legged Strange Snake, as thick as a thumb and as long as his palm, with sharp teeth.

There were bloodstains around the Four-legged Snake’s mouth. Its body trembled slightly, but it was already dead.

Seeing this and realizing he hadn’t been poisoned, Zhang Chi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He then "looked" at the Jade Pendant in his mind and found it had turned a deep crimson.

’This thing is really venomous. In my current state, even with the Jade Pendant’s protection, I can only get bitten once a day at most!’

Zhang Chi was astonished.

Yesterday, the Jade Pendant had turned deep crimson because it absorbed all the negative energy the original owner’s body had accumulated over three months.

Now, for the Jade Pendant to reach this state so quickly, it was obviously because the snake’s venom was incredibly potent.

Thankfully, he had been cautious and only lured out one. Otherwise, he would have been finished.

Afterward, Zhang Chi checked his forearm. The wound wasn’t large. Although it hurt, it was just a flesh wound and completely manageable. Only then did he feel completely at ease.

Next, he carefully handled the snake’s carcass and began roasting it over the flame of his mining lamp.

’In my past life, I heard that snake venom is a protein that denatures and loses its toxicity at high temperatures. I hope the same principle applies here,’ Zhang Chi thought to himself.

The Jade Pendant had already reached its limit. If the Four-legged Snake was still poisonous after being roasted, he would be in trouble.

He considered hiding the snake’s carcass to eat the next day.

But in the end, he decided against it.

For one, he was too weak and could encounter dangers he couldn’t resist at any moment; he had to seize every second.

Secondly, if he hid the carcass and it was eaten by insects or rats, all his effort would have been for nothing.

The mining lamp was similar to the kerosene lamps of his past life. It had a glass shade that could be removed.

It was fueled by some unknown oil. The flame wasn’t large, but it was very effective for directly roasting the snake meat.

Soon, the snake meat was sizzling and dripping fat.

Once cooked, the surface was charred black. It looked terrible, but the meaty aroma made Zhang Chi’s mouth water uncontrollably.

’Should be done!’

Zhang Chi blew on it a few times, then carefully bit off the tip of the snake’s tail.

Even if this small piece was poisonous, the effect shouldn’t be too significant.

At the same time, he kept an eye on the Jade Pendant.

The Jade Pendant’s color didn’t change noticeably. Relieved, he devoured the rest of the snake meat in a few bites.

His body craved the snake meat, but the moment it entered his mouth, a wave of nausea washed over him, making him want to vomit.

After all, grilling meat required skill and, more importantly, seasoning to taste good.

This snake meat could only be described as cooked and edible.

But even so, Zhang Chi was very satisfied. At least it wasn’t poisonous, which was much better than eating it raw.

’Huh, the effect is this good?’

There was so little snake meat that Zhang Chi didn’t think he would feel full. He was even wondering if he should switch to a different target tomorrow.

But the next moment, he suddenly felt a warm current spreading from his stomach.

Then, his hunger vanished, and he felt his entire body surge with strength.

’This stuff is really nourishing! And the effects are even better than I expected. At this rate, it won’t be long before my body is fully recovered!’

Zhang Chi was overjoyed.

He even felt like staying in the mine and not going back out.

But he quickly dismissed the thought.

This place was too oppressive, filled with all sorts of hidden dangers.

His Jade Pendant also needed to go outside to recover.

So, he rested for a while before returning to yesterday’s spot and discreetly resuming his mining.

This time, he found that he was noticeably stronger, and mining was much easier.

Even so, he kept a low profile, maintaining roughly the same efficiency as the day before.

He was capable of digging more, but he didn’t. He had completely resolved to lay low and survive.

When evening came, he once again earned only a single Iron Coin.

"Kid, how was it today?"

But before he could even buy a flatbread, Old Xu appeared beside him.

"I earned one coin. I was just about to offer it to you, sir."

Zhang Chi was startled. He understood what the man wanted and cursed him inwardly, but he had no choice but to hand over the Iron Coin.

’I can’t risk getting searched and having my secrets exposed before I become a Cultivator,’ he thought.

He especially didn’t want to alert the man before he was ready to make a move.

More importantly, now that he had the nourishing exotic snake meat, the flatbread was insignificant.

"Not bad. Keep up the good work, and I won’t treat you poorly!"

Old Xu was taken aback for a moment, then his face broke into a wide smile. He unceremoniously took the Iron Coin and went to buy some wine.

Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.

Even though Zhang Chi had to "pay respect" to Old Xu every few days, his body, nourished by the exotic snake meat, had recovered to the state it was in before he arrived here.

In fact, thanks to the constant labor, he had become even more solid.

Normally, it would have taken him several months to reach this level of recovery.

But the exotic snake meat had clearly shortened that time significantly.

This reduced his risks but also made his changes too rapid.

He had been trying to hide it.

For instance, he kept his head down when he spoke so no one would see his healthy, ruddy complexion.

He also used ragged clothes to cover his body, doing his best not to reveal his newly firm and full muscles. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

But even so, his roommates were looking at him more and more often.

’It’s time!’

On the morning of the sixteenth day, Zhang Chi finally decided he could wait no longer.

Instead of hunting a Four-legged Snake as he did every day, he went to a mine tunnel filled with miasma.

He chose this place precisely because it was safer for him.

If any other Mining Slaves appeared, he could retreat into the depths of the miasma at any time.

Then, he took off his clothes, sat down cross-legged, and began the process of Introducing Spirit into the Body.

This step wasn’t actually difficult; it required four conditions in total.

First, one needed a healthy body. Zhang Chi had prepared for so long that his Blood Qi was abundant, fully meeting this requirement.

Second, there had to be Spiritual Qi available for absorption.

The Spiritual Qi here contained the Cold Iron Gold Fiend, but with the Jade Pendant to filter it, this condition was also met.

In fact, for a Qi Cultivation Early Stage Cultivator, the Spiritual Qi here was quite abundant.

The third condition was to have a Spirit Root.

Normally, the Spirit-Banning Shackles would suppress Zhang Chi’s Spirit Root.

But with the Jade Pendant, this restriction could be ignored. This condition was also met. In fact, Zhang Chi’s Spirit Root was quite good, which would make the breakthrough even smoother.

The fourth condition was the incantation for Introducing Spirit into the Body, which was also not a problem.

His predecessor had obtained it from Old Xu long ago.

Plus, his predecessor had already failed once, and he himself possessed the analytical learning ability from his past life. He had spent the last period studying it specifically, so he had already grasped it completely.