Nearby…
Under a large tree, a few supervisor were laughing and shouting as they gambled.
"Big! Big!"
"Small! Small!"
"Damn it, I lost again!"
"Hahaha! Give me your money! Today's my lucky day!"
The ground around them was littered with blue positioning stones, glowing faintly in the dirt.
From nearby mines, several miners looked over, envy and hatred on their faces—but none dared move closer. Instead, they lowered their heads and continued digging.
The mine's management was incredibly loose. Just a few supervisor oversaw hundreds of workers. They barely moved. No one patrolled. No one watched closely.
It should've been easy to escape.
But no one tried.
Why?
Because of those glowing positioning stones.
Each miner had one implanted without permission—somewhere in their body. As long as it stayed there, every step was tracked.
"There are so many stones on the ground… and I don't even know which one is mine…"
Su Zhan muttered, staring at the scattered blue glow.
At this moment, Su Zhan was hiding in a tree some distance away. Under the cover of the dense branches, he silently observed the blue stones scattered on the ground below.
These blue stones were known as positioning stones.
But they didn't track objects—they tracked people.
Once a drop of blood was dripped onto one, it would bind itself to that individual. If the person moved more than five kilometers away, the positioning stone would begin to glow. The farther the distance, the brighter the light.
It was precisely because of these stones that the miners never dared to escape.
No matter how fast they ran—could they be faster than the special punishment team stationed in the mine?
The minimum requirement to join the punishment team was to reach the fourth level of the Mortal Realm. Take Mr. Zhou, for example—the man who had spoken up for Su Zhan the day before—he was a member of that very team. That's why the bald overseer acted so submissively in front of him.
They were strong.
And they killed without hesitation.
The moment someone tried to flee, the punishment team would be dispatched immediately. Using the positioning stone to lock onto the target's location, they would swiftly hunt the person down—and show no mercy.
They killed on the spot.
"Let's give it a try first."
Su Zhan closed his eyes and shifted his consciousness into Clone No. 1's perspective.
"Clone No. 1, start running."
At his command, Clone No. 1—who was already moving through the dense jungle about four kilometers away—suddenly broke into a sprint, rushing toward the edge of the mine's boundary.
This also revealed a powerful trait of the shadow clone: No matter how far it was from the original body, it could still receive orders and transmit its perspective without delay.
Su Zhan even suspected that this wasn't just a long-range connection…
It was distance-immune.
Perhaps this was an ability unlocked in the first stage—or maybe even the second?
"Left."
"Right."
"Watch your step."
Through the shared perspective, Su Zhan precisely guided Clone No. 1's path. "About 4.4 kilometers now."
He was also silently calculating the distance.
He knew the layout of the mine and the surrounding area like the back of his hand—not by accident, but because he had long been thinking about escape.
Many times.
He had secretly asked around and gathered information from others.
The mine had no rules against talking about escape. After all, with the positioning stones in place, no one believed running away would work anyway.
So, Su Zhan had been able to learn everything he needed.
"4.5 kilometers."
"4.8 kilometers."
"4.9 kilometers."
"Five kilometers."
When the distance finally reached the limit, Su Zhan opened his eyes and stared at the positioning stones on the ground.
Nothing happened.
No light.
Everything was still.
But he wasn't satisfied just yet. Clone No. 1 continued sprinting forward—and he needed confirmation.
Several minutes passed.
When Clone No. 1 had reached a distance of at least six kilometers, and the stones still remained dim, Su Zhan finally let out a breath of relief.
This time, it was real.
No doubt about it—his cheat was working.
Su Zhan's eyes blazed with excitement.