The disciple who’s entire job was to guard the mines looked miserable.

  His eyes looked like a dead fish, void of any light with dark circles around them. His brown hair was messy and unorganised, and he walked with a slouched position. Gon even noticed how he sometimes zoned out, as if he were going through a micro sleep.

  Yup, this kid is definitely being overworked more than a salaryman. Hell, is that white hairs I’m seeing as well?

  But to the disciple, Gon also looked as miserable as he was.

  In fact, he was aware of Gon’s ‘reputation’ in the sect a few years back.

  And Gon’s appearance, a scrawny and weak labourer without even a drop of Qi made him even more scared to become like him.

  Even if his belly was a lot more round than usual, sticking out of the stick figure that was Gon.

  Well, with kids like this, a bit of love is enough to get them to ease up. I’ve dealt with these kinds of people enough as a foreman before.

  “What are you waiting for? Haven’t you worked like a donkey enough?” Gon said.

  “Huh?” The disciple replied.

  “Man, come and sit down. What’s there to guard now? Enjoy the feed with the rest of us boys. Here, I’ll grab you a plate.” Gon led the way with the disciple, making way through the crowd to get another plate with a generous amount of meat.

  The disciple hesitated for a moment, but the exhaustion of running back to the Ethereal Life Sect really made him disinterested in doing any more work.

  Besides, all of the workers were holding a massive barbeque. If they were offering him food, why shouldn’t he take the deal?

  He was a bit shocked, since it was the first time they had interacted with him so amicably.

  Usually, there was a gap between the social hierarchies and groups between the workers and disciples.

  But seeing Gon’s face light up into a bright smile, even though he was in an even worse state than he was, made him listen.

  Gon and the disciple sat side by side, and he himself gave the disciple a plate.

  Gon waited and watched as he began to eat, his dead expression easing up as he enjoyed the meal.

  Gon followed up, getting a mug of beer for the disciple as well.

  “You know, I never got your name. Even though you’ve been here for a year. You can call me Gon.” Leading the conversation, Gon likewise decided to eat as well.

  In between bites, he managed to say his name. “I’m Li Han.” He took a drink of his mug to clear up his throat. “I thought your name was Kuang Gong? I was there when you were taken to the mines as a dreg of the sect.”

  Gon patted his shoulder. “The times have changed, Han. I don’t regret it one bit. As a sign of my true life, I decided to give myself this name.”

  Han looked at Gon with confusion, but with a hint of admiration as well.

  There’s no way… He’s in such a miserable state, and yet he doesn’t regret it at all? I remember when he talked back to that crazy girl, and everyone there agreed with him. But she was the descendent of the Sect Leader, and her word is basically law in the sect.

  Before Han took another bite of his meal, he had to ask a question.

  “How can you not regret? You lost your one opportunity to become a cultivator. Now you’ll live your entire life as a slave of the sect.”

  Gon took another swig of his mug. “Really? Is there such a difference between you and me?”

  Though the crowd had returned back to celebrating when they saw Gon ease up Han, they paid attention to their conversation.

  Though he was enjoying the free food, Han was still a guard and sect disciple, and a cultivator at that. Even if he was using this as an excuse to slack off, he still held inherent superiority over these labourers and miners.

  “Of course there’s a difference. I can control qi, and I’ve stepped on the path of cultivation.”

  “And yet, you’ve been working like a dog for a year. Guarding us miners, standing all day, and even running around to send a message without getting back up. The sect sure treats you like they would a slave. You look even more exhausted than most of the workers here.” Gon raised an eyebrow, giving Han a perplexed look.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Don’t you get tired of it?”

  Han wanted to retort back, but only looked down with a frustrated gaze, his jaws clenched. He ate another bite of meat to forget about it, and just to enjoy the small break he got.

  Since no one else would really come here, he could relax for the moment anyway. Those who came to collect the Spirit Jades only came during the day.

  “I’m a miner. To cultivators, I’m just a pile of trash. You’re an Outer Disciple. To Inner Disciples, you’re garbage, let alone what the sect itself thinks. They make us dream big by selling us the goal of Immortality, and make sure to wring out every use they can out of us to support them. Truly absurd.” Gon licked his lips after cleaning up his plate. He left the conversation hanging, waiting for Han to bite.

  “So then, the solution is simple, right? Just become the strongest, so no one can treat you like trash.” Han smiled as if he said a revelation, revelling in his goal of becoming a powerful cultivator.

  Gon gave a serious gaze to Han, putting away his empty plate. “Li Han. Would you be willing to guard this mine for another 100 years to maybe enjoy a few years of freedom?”

  “That’s a completely different scenario.”

  “To me, both are the same. I’m not interested in sitting on my ass in some cave or fighting my entire life to maybe reach that goal of Immortality and supreme power. Sure, it sounds good being the most powerful person in existence, but I still want to enjoy my life. I still want to pursue my own dreams. But unless you or I have some amazing talent, we’re just the small guys made to do the hardest jobs.” Gon said his piece, and went to get another piece of meat on his plate. “Oi! Pass the meat fresh off the grill here!”

  Han was confused. He continued to eat, but thought back to Gon’s words. It’s not like what he’s saying is anything profound. But, it is better to be more realistic. I’m just going to be stuck here as a guard unless I somehow manage to show more worth to the sect. And then what? Do the same thing over again? Maybe if I was an elder, I could live a more relaxed and luxurious life, but so far my prospects aren’t likely.

  When he realised he’d finish a plate, he looked over to see Gon offering him a new one with cooked meat. This guy Gon. Ever since he fell from being a disciple, he’s changed this much? No, maybe he was always like this in the beginning. No one else would’ve defied the Sect Leader’s granddaughter like he did back then.

  “So what’s your dream? Don’t tell me it’s just to become the strongest cultivator out there?” Gon asked.

  Han took a drink, spending some time thinking about his answer. “Well, to be honest, I just want to make my family live comfortably. My dad pushed me to become a disciple no matter what. They think I’m being trained to be a powerful cultivator, but I’m too embarrassed to tell them I’m just a guard. Not really being paid that much Spirit Jades for it as well, so…”

  “So you’ll just keep working as a guard, until hopefully you can gain enough money to buy some cultivation manuals, and then maybe you can train enough to get a better job, or become an Inner Disciple?” Gon faced away to let out a burp.

  Han continued to eat, unsure of what to say.

  “To be honest, I’ve been saving up all my money. Either use it to buy some resources in the sect, or leave and travel around for a bit. And… You know…” Han began scratching the back of his head, almost ashamed to say the next words.

  Gon had an inkling of what he wanted to say. “I won’t laugh.”

  “I wanted to try being a painter again. I used to enjoy it a lot as a kid, so… Well, I’d like to try.” Han didn’t know why he mentioned such a dream, but perhaps the mugs of beer and the atmosphere helped.

  “Sounds hard. Whenever I saw those paintings, I could never get how a human could manage to paint it. I could spend a hundred years, and the best I’ll come up with is a stick man. But it sounds fun. The problem is that it’s hard to make a living off of it. It might even be harder than just working as a guard of this mine for the rest of your life.” Gon saw Han become meek when he mentioned his goal, but he wanted to push Han to be more open.

  Somehow I have a feeling this isn’t a rare occasion amongst all the disciples. Everyone wants to be strong, but they all have their own reasons. But I don’t think the Ethereal Life Sect can facilitate those dreams.

  Han held his head back as he let out a deep sigh. “I know. But I’d rather that than do this for the next five years, or keep hoping to the heavens I get lucky somehow. My talent is barely enough to enter the sect, and they won’t invest in me, so us Outer Disciples need to work and pay for our own resources.”

  Gon let out a yawn. The urge to fall asleep came once again. “Just don’t waste your life meandering about. If you have the urge to try something else, then go in head first. Otherwise your soul will regret it later on.” He patted Han’s back. “Hey, at least you don’t have to work like a guard all day. Take it easy with us here. Not like we’re gonna do anything, we just went through a life and death situation.”

  Gon stood up, walking towards the grass where a bunch of other miners had fallen asleep. That grass seemed like the most comfiest bed in the world, as Gon flitted between sleep and reality at every step.

  And Li Han sat on the log, with a plate of food and a mug of beer, thinking on what he should do. If my soul will regret it later on, then I should try it at least once, right? Gon, for someone working a miserable job, you somehow seem way more content than me. How did you get to that point?

  As Gon yawned, words appeared in his mind.

  Quest… Complete? Successfully befriended the Guard of the Mines.

  System: …

  System Recalibrating…

  Honestly, not everything needs to be done with bruteforce. The fact you thought I should have started a fight in the middle of a barbeque, is beyond me. Use some common sense.

  Gon collapsed on the grass, enjoying the softness and falling asleep.

  And he enjoyed the sleep very, very much.

  For the sleep of a miner after a hard day of work and a hearty meal was the peak of one’s life.

  Yet even during his sleep, Gon fell into a dream.

  He stood in an endless horizon, where the sky was the dark night of space, and the ground was a giant glass that reflected the dark space of twinkling stars and swirling galaxies.

  Gon stood there, unperturbed.

  Awaiting its response.

  He expected this much inevitably.

  System Announcement.

  Begin Mandatory Questline and leave the mines.

  If you do not accept this quest in 10 seconds, your heart will stop beating.