Becoming a god starts with one certificate becoming eternal.

The foreman pocketed the copper coin, his tone casual and almost nonchalant, yet every word he uttered was uttered with strict adherence to rules:

"Keep your movements steady, don't get blown off by the wind. That miasma stuff, you can breathe in a thin layer for a few days, it won't kill you immediately. But don't think you're made of iron, you have to stop when you need to, in order to survive."

These were the best words of care he could offer.

Ye Xiao could tell that there was mostly comfort in his words, but he didn't call him out on it... Regardless of whether the words were true or false, the money was at least real.

"Is the pay calculated on a daily basis?" Ye Xiao asked.

The foreman glanced at him, as if he already knew the answer, and didn't even bother to lift his eyelids:

"Calculated by the hour, one hundred and fifty coins per hour, settled every three days."

He paused, then added, his voice as cold as wiping a knife's edge clean:

"People die quickly at the North Furnace, so I'll send the money directly to your house. That way, if something really happens to you, your family won't be left with nothing."

When the veteran workers heard about the wages, a strange look appeared in their eyes. One hour of work was equivalent to several days of hard work for them.

But no one felt envious or jealous, because it was something that truly required risking one's life.

Ye Xiao nodded, grabbed a rag to cover his mouth and nose, and walked out of the shed.

"Ye Xiao..."

Someone called him; it was a repairman a few years older than him, his brow furrowed deeply, someone he knew well:

"You really want to go? That place... you might be okay after breathing in the miasma for two days, but after three days you'll start coughing up blood, and you won't live much longer."

Ye Xiao glanced at him.

There was no passion in his eyes, only the calm that came from calculating the costs clearly... Mother's medicine money, Xiaoxue's life, the alleyway money.

"I need money."

A simple sentence, yet it made everyone's hearts tighten.

The repairman opened his mouth, but in the end, he could only pat Ye Xiao on the shoulder and say, "Well... be careful."

……

After stepping out of the shed, Ye Xiao walked towards the North Furnace.

Before long, the north wind blew in, carrying the smell of rust, and made my eyes sting.

The North Furnace is located at the end of the workers' quarters, near the waste ventilation duct.

All around were half-collapsed furnace bodies and rolled-up iron sheets. When the wind blew through, the iron sheets made a soft rustling sound, like someone sharpening a knife in the dark.

Before Ye Xiao even got close to the furnace, a fishy-sweet smell suddenly wafted into his nose.

That's not smoke.

It is a "cold poison" that flows out of the miasma well.

When the wind blows, invisible dust sticks to the skin, feeling like fine needles pricking it.

Ye Xiao pulled the gag tight, but it still couldn't stop the miasma from entering his nasal cavity. His throat immediately felt like it had been scraped by hot ashes, and his chest felt a burning pain from the cold and spicy sensation.

He then realized that the most deadly thing about the Northern Furnace was never that it would kill you instantly.

However, he had already realized that his purpose in coming to Beilu this time was not to emerge unscathed, but to prove one thing: as long as he could still stand, the "Light" character in his destiny might be able to pull him back from the brink of death.

A makeshift porridge stall stood beside the stove, steam rising from the iron pot. The aroma of rice was faint, yet it felt particularly pungent in the chilling heat.

The person in charge of the stove provides meals, which are this kind of thin porridge; you can scoop as much as you want and eat your fill.

For the people of the Silent Alley, this hot meal was incredibly tempting. If it weren't for the frequent deaths at the North Furnace, the foreman wouldn't always be worried about finding someone to "top the furnace," and there would be a ton of people vying for the job.

An older worker nearby whispered a warning: "The miasma here is thin; one breath won't kill you. But if you inhale too much, your lungs will fill with sludge. Once you cough up black stuff, don't come back."

Several veteran workers were busy at the foot of the furnace, their movements heavy, their coughs intermittent.

Someone glanced at him and said coldly:

"Newbie? Be careful. If the wind blows, your skinny arms and legs will roll down."

Ye Xiao grunted in agreement and stepped onto the rusty iron ladder.

The iron ladder was as narrow as half a finger joint, and so rusted that it could scrape off skin. Looking down, all that could be seen was a pitch-black expanse, blown by the wind, with no bottom in sight.

The wind cut in from the side, carrying miasma and iron dust, turning the corners of my clothes into thin blades that stung my face.

If it were anyone else, their heart would sink and their legs would go weak.

Ye Xiao, however, did not stop for a moment.

Every step felt like walking towards death, yet it was as steady as stepping on a stake.

The higher he went, the thicker the miasma became, and his chest felt like it was being squeezed and twisted outwards. When he reached the edge of the furnace, the heat and cold wind crashed against his chest, making his vision go white.

His body swayed suddenly.

If it were even an inch off, it would fall.

The old worker next to me yelled, "What are you standing there for? Push the iron filings down! It's windy, be careful!"

Ye Xiao bent down to grab the shovel, but a gust of wind pushed him from the side, making him feel like he was about to be pushed off the edge of the furnace.

A burning pain in my throat made my breathing erratic, my chest clenched violently, and everything went black.

In an instant, he instinctively lowered his leg.

My back and waist were taut, and my breathing returned to its normal rhythm.

The power of the Crimson Blood Stake rose from the soles of his feet, like a nail, pinning him back to the edge of the furnace.

The wind blew again, but he remained unmoved.

The experienced worker was taken aback: "A newbie here for the first time... can he keep things under control?"

Another veteran worker was even more surprised: "Logically speaking, he should have been lying down and vomiting by now."

Ye Xiao did not respond.

He gripped the shovel tightly, continuing to breathe with the Crimson Blood Stake, and then used the stake's force to push away the iron filings.

The miasma, like a living thing, seeped into his chest cavity layer by layer.

Each breath felt like pressing a mouthful of burning ash into his lungs, stinging his vision until it went white, yet he still maintained his breathing rhythm.

The wind cut in again, forcing him to sink half an inch.

The tearing pain of qi and blood caused by standing meditation, combined with the burning pain of miasma, feels like two blunt knives churning back and forth inside the body.

【Crimson Blood Stakes - Beginner Level: 21/300】

The moment the character "光" (light) appeared in his destiny chart, Ye Xiao was almost jolted awake by the pain.

The surge of qi and blood is more severe than usual.

The pain was also more intense.

But each time you grit your teeth and get through it, the 'membrane' under your skin seems to be stretched open little by little, becoming more resilient.

Ye Xiao felt a slight tremor in his heart.

He originally only wanted to confirm whether the "Light" character in his destiny chart could suppress the erosion of miasma, but now he vaguely realized that... the environment here seemed to be forcing his stance training to progress faster.

For everyone else, the Northern Furnace was a death sentence.

But it could become the whetstone that sharpens his life.

He didn't draw a conclusion immediately, but suppressed his inferences and guesses and continued pushing the iron filings against the wind.

After a few breaths, he realized it wasn't just miasma.

Instead, the miasma combined with the cold wind and heat forced the body to tear even more violently, which is why the stance training progressed faster.

But the price is extreme suffering; even if someone else had the same fate, they simply couldn't endure it.

Time was fragmented by the sound of the furnace wind and the shovel.

It got dark quickly.

【Crimson Blood Stakes - Beginner Level: 85/300】

Ye Xiao held his breath, the sweat on his forehead freezing in the cold wind. The heat under his skin finally coalesced, and when the wind blew again, he only felt a slight sinking, no longer being blown around.

My arms are sore and my bones are burning.

His movements, however, were as steady as iron nailed to the edge of a furnace.

The old worker glanced at it from afar and muttered under his breath, "This kid... he's risking his life like it's his life."

As Ye Xiao climbed down from the edge of the furnace, his whole body felt as if it had been burned, and he was in so much pain that his skin went numb.

The old worker casually scooped up a bowl and handed it to him: "Besides being paid a lot, the top chef's bowl is also filling. Eat it while it's hot."

Ye Xiao took the bowl; the rim was scalding hot. He didn't hesitate, lowered his head and swallowed several mouthfuls. The hot porridge went down his throat, finally filling the empty space in his stomach.

But as soon as the heat settled in my stomach, the spiciness that had been scraped out of my chest by the miasma rose up again, and my throat felt like it was covered with rust.

He forced down the remaining half bowl, wiped the porridge from the corner of his mouth, and turned to go back to his room.

As soon as I relaxed, a sudden rush of heat surged in my throat!

"puff!"

A mouthful of black blood splattered on the ground, its stench mingled with the bitter taste of coal ash.

His chest felt like it had been wrung dry from the inside, his vision went blank, and he couldn't even stand steadily.

This is the most ruthless aspect of the Northern Furnace.

Even if it doesn't kill you on the spot, it will slowly drain you dry until you collapse.

Although the miasma here wasn't very thick, he endured it for most of the day, and the accumulated damage was still unimaginable.

Ye Xiao leaned against the wall and caught his breath.

He could feel that the pain in his lungs was not spreading, but rather closing in little by little, as if an invisible hand was pulling him back.

He looked up and gazed outside, his eyes as cold as iron.

"To be continued tomorrow."

……

In the blink of an eye, three days later.

The wind in the north furnace did not warm up; instead, it became even harsher.

On the third day at dusk, the furnace was still filled with ash, smoke, and the buzzing sound of iron.

The workers took breaks whenever possible, trying to minimize their exposure to the miasma.

Only Ye Xiao had very little rest time, as if he were nailed to the edge of a stove.

It's not that he's not afraid of death.

It was after these three days that he finally confirmed it: the Northern Furnace would make him weak and uncomfortable, but as long as he could still stand, he could recover.

What makes him even more unwilling to stop is that this place has unimaginable benefits for the cultivation of the Crimson Blood Stake!

Others are hiding.

He was using miasma, cold wind, and heat waves to grind the stake harder inch by inch.

Ash smoke billowed along the edge of the stove, and the wind suddenly seemed to slow down by half a breath.

【Crimson Blood Stakes - Beginner Level: 299/300】

The moment the character "光" appeared in Ye Xiao's destiny chart, he almost heard his bones screaming.

The pain was no longer intermittent, but rather a tearing sensation that ran from the soles of the feet, shins, backs of the knees, back, and chest, as if trying to split the whole person in two.

The closer one gets to a breakthrough, the more the stance becomes like a knife...

This step, we either go for it or we go for it.

It's going to break.

Ye Xiao gritted his teeth and forced all his breaths back into the depths of his throat.

Keep your legs steady.

He also managed to calm the pain in his chest.

Even the wind seemed to be calmed down by him.

He knew that if he relaxed even for a moment, he would collapse completely.

If we just hold on a little longer, we can move up one more level.

He chose to persevere.

The old worker's shovel slipped halfway from his hand, and he exclaimed, "Is this kid a human... or iron?! Another one died yesterday, and he seems completely unaffected."

"It's not just that he doesn't get enough rest."

A voice next to him lowered its head: "After it was cooked, his appetite was frighteningly large. Three bowls on the first day, six bowls on the second day, and today... I saw him scoop out ten bowls with my own eyes."

The old worker's Adam's apple bobbed: "Eating so much of that thin porridge...aren't you afraid of stuffing yourself to death?"

"I was puzzled too, but he just managed to hold on."

The man shook his head: "He eats and then rests, then goes back to the furnace like nothing happened. This is the North Furnace, where people only get three hours of rest a day. Anyone would definitely break down here. But this kid seems to be using everything he eats to save his life."

The wind howled along the edge of the furnace, and ash smoke billowed.

No one spoke anymore.

The wind around us suddenly stopped for a moment.

From the bottom of the gravel slope came heavy footsteps, each step landing on one's heart.

The workers' expressions changed drastically; some instinctively took a half-step back, their throats dry.

"Didn't they always think this place was unlucky? They never set foot here except on those few days... So why did they come?"

Three members of the Green Owl Gang walked against the wind.

The corners of their clothes fluttered in the stove wind, like three slowly unfolding knives.

The closer they got, the more tense the workers' backs became, even suppressing their coughs.