Ningdong City is located on the eastern coast of China. Over the past thirty years, thanks to the eastward wind of reform and opening up, it has quietly become an international city. People from all over China and the world have exceeded ten million, with a per capita income exceeding 30,000 yuan.

After the rise of Ningdong City, countless people studied why it could create such miracles. One theory is related to feng shui—the feng shui pattern of Ningdong City is said to be "Big Peng gains water."

Ningdong City, in terms of its terrain, resembles a giant bird. A rising ridge forms the bird's back, while vast forests flank it on either side, like outstretched wings. Situated in an open coastal area, Ningdong has ample space to soar. The vast ocean provides the bird with water and an endless supply of "food"—wealth—making it difficult for Ningdong not to prosper!

The sun was blazing in the sky, like fire pouring down, as if it could ignite everything.

On a stone in the outskirts of Ningdong City, a massive rock crusher roared, churning out small pieces of stone as it "swallowed" one large chunk after another. The rapid economic development has brought about an unprecedented surge in demand for construction materials, with stone being a prime example.

Stone quarries naturally emerged and have been quite profitable.

Fang Ming gritted his teeth, carrying a large stone, and trudged forward step by slow step.

Although quarries use various types of machinery, there are still many places where machines cannot reach. Naturally, manpower is needed in these situations.

"Bang!"

Fang Ming thrust his waist, shook his shoulder, and a stone weighing nearly 200 kilograms flew two meters before crashing heavily to the ground, sending up a cloud of dust.

"Damn, this kid is strong as an ox."

"Yeah, look at that waist, a typical dog's waist, one night could definitely handle three or five women."

……

Hearing the unadulterated gossip coming from not too far away, Fang Ming wiped the sweat from his forehead. This weather was simply too hot, even spitting on the ground felt like it would evaporate with a "fizz".

Fang Ming comes from a remote village. A month ago, his father suddenly fainted while working in the fields. After being sent to the hospital for examination, it was found that he had heart and lung problems and needed long-term bed rest and expensive imported medicine. The family was suddenly plunged into crisis. As the eldest son, he made a choice - to go out to work to alleviate the family's difficulties. However, he had no education or experience, only physical strength, and was eager to make money, so he could only find a job in places like this quarry - this is his first day working here.

"Fang Ming, come here quickly, the mountain is about to explode!"

Following the shouts, Fang Ming discovered that Xie Ting was waving at him fifty to sixty meters away. He then pointed at himself.

Shishan is huge and solid, so using machinery to excavate it is too inefficient. Many times, explosives are simply used to blast it open, which is what's known as "blasting mountains."

When blasting mountains, it's very dangerous because the strong explosions cause rocks to fly everywhere. These rocks are no less deadly than bullets and can easily kill someone if they hit you.

So when he heard that they were dynamiting the mountain, Fang Ming shivered. He looked back and saw a plume of mushroom smoke suddenly rising hundreds of meters away, like an atomic bomb had exploded.

"What the heck is this?"

From the place where it exploded, a creature with the head of a dragon and the body of a horse suddenly burst out. What terrified Fang Ming even more was that the creature was charging straight at him. The distance of several hundred meters vanished in an instant, and it was right before him.

He wanted to run, but it was too late. The monster reached him and bit down on the back of his right hand!

...and they all came out at once!

"!"

Fang Ming forcefully shook his hand, trying to shake off the creature that was biting him. But where could he shake it off? Not only couldn't he shake it off, but the creature slowly grew smaller and smaller, actually burrowing into his right hand!

"Bang!"

Fang Ming fell to the ground like a broken sack. As if that wasn't enough, a stone flew out of nowhere and hit him squarely on the forehead, knocking him unconscious.

When Xie Ting saw Fang Ming fall to the ground, he was startled and rushed over. Upon closer inspection, he discovered a large amount of blood gushing from Fang Ming's broken forehead, instantly soaking the ground.

"Fang Ming!"

Xie Ting immediately crouched down, his right hand pressing firmly on Fang Ming's forehead wound. If this kept bleeding, it would be fatal.

"You can't cover it like that, let me."

Zhao Anguo took off his top and pressed desperately on Fang Ming's forehead.

The dragon head horse monster was still drilling into Fang Ming's right hand. Xie Ting and Zhaoanguo, who were trying their best to stop it, couldn't see it. The monster burrowed deeper and deeper until it was completely inside. After that, a small bump rose on the back of Fang Ming's right hand, like there was a tiny bug inside. After rolling around for a while, it gradually calmed down, as if nothing had happened at all.

"Huh?! It's not flowing anymore?"

Xie Ting was stunned. He realized that Fang Ming's forehead wasn't bleeding anymore.

"Huh? Really."

Zhaoanguo took the cloth away from Fangming's forehead and found that it was really not bleeding anymore.

"This... wound is this small??

Fang Ming's forehead only had a small cut, it looked like it was just scratched by something.

Zhao Anguo's face changed drastically. He remained silent for a long time before finally striking Fang Ming on the forehead several times, causing his skin to tingle. "This... this... what is going on?"

"I… I… where… how would I know?"

Xie Ting was dumbfounded. This was too magical, no, it was too outrageous! He looked down at his palm, which was still covered with a lot of...

A wound that large would bleed so much, it's a miracle to stop it at all, how could such a small wound heal so quickly?!

Slowly opening his eyes, Fang Ming immediately closed them again. The intense stimulation caused his eyes to well up with tears instantly.

"What's wrong?"

After a while, Fang Ming opened his eyes again. Besides Xie Ting and Zhaoanguo, he found that there was a large circle of people surrounding him, all from the construction site.

Just now, a mountain collapsed and you got hit by a rock, fainting. You bled quite a lot.

Xie Ting loudly recounted what had just happened.

He sat up, Fang Ming shook his head a bit. He felt a little heavy, but nothing else was amiss. He touched his forehead and found only a tiny scratch, the smallest possible.

"I was hit by a rock? Is this true?"

Xie Ting immediately became agitated, spreading his own palm and saying, "This is yours, and also, there's your mark on Lao Zhao's clothes."

"Yes, you see, just now your forehead was breaking out with many spots, I used a cloth to cover it and stop them."

Zhaoanguo passed the garment over, Fangming took it and saw that there were indeed large patches.

What's going on?

What on earth is going on?

Fang Ming glanced at Xie Ting, then at Zhaoanguo, and found that their expressions didn't seem like they were joking.

But, if what they said is true, then the wound on my forehead couldn't be this small, could it?

"Xie Ting, are you colluding with Lao Zhao to trick Fangming? Look at his forehead, that little scratch was probably caused by a woman working hard last night, not by being hit by a stone."

"Yeah, I think that's a pig. That's not how you disguise yourself."

……

The people around burst into laughter, clearly not believing Xie Ting and Zhao Anguo. They were blushing furiously, but now they couldn't even explain their situation—Who was Fang Ming? There wasn't a single scratch on his forehead!

"Scram, scram! What are you looking at? Get back to work! I'll dock your pay if I see you slacking."

Fang Ming turned around and saw that it was Liu Meng, the foreman of the quarry. The people around him dispersed with a shout of "Boom!", leaving only Fang Ming behind.

"Hey, what's going on here?"

Liu Meng wiped the sweat from his face and glared at Fang Ming, as if they were enemies from across lifetimes. The weather was too hot today, and he was a fat man, so he sweated profusely. His mood was naturally sour. Just now, he saw people gathered on the wooden tower and felt furious. He immediately charged over.

"Well, Liu ge, it's nothing. It's not working hours, right? Everyone is just hanging out and chatting together."

Zhao Anguo hurriedly smiled and explained, in the quarry Liu Meng was heaven, everything was up to him, he didn't want to offend the other party.

"Humph! Besides this kid, everyone else is done with their work!"

Liu Meng waved his hand fiercely, dispersing the people before he finally said to the other party: "Kid, was it you who fell just now?"

Fang Ming was taken aback and nodded, saying, "Yes, Liu Ge, what's up?"

"He looks like he's got the makings of a good worker, but why does his head spin as soon as he starts working? Pack up your things and go to finance to collect a hundred bucks and scram! We don't need slackers on our construction site!"

The work at the quarry is very demanding, it's not something an ordinary person can handle. The most important thing is to be tough. This kid here fainted from heat exhaustion after just a little while, Liu Meng wouldn't want someone like this. If anything were to happen, he would have a lot of trouble.

Fang Ming, hearing this, immediately retorted, "Liu Ge, I'm fine. I just fainted because a rock hit my forehead when we were climbing the mountain earlier. It wasn't heatstroke!"

Liu Meng was delighted, pointing at Fang Ming's forehead and saying: "Wow, this is really seeing a ghost in broad daylight! You have something on your forehead - that small scratch must have been caused by a stone?"

"This…"

Fang Ming was dumbfounded. His forehead was slick with sweat, and it certainly didn't look like he had been hit by a rock!

"Zhaoanguo and they could prove..."

After thinking for a long time, Fang Ming finally managed to squeeze out such a sentence.

Liu Meng impatiently waved his hand and said, "Cut the crap, get lost. If you don't leave, I'll have someone throw you out."

Looking at Xia Wen striding out of the stone quarry with a small bag, Liu Meng couldn't help but grin triumphantly. "Well, it only took one day to get her hooked. There's no way I'd let you keep her here! That little flower is mine to pick."

The sun was scorching hot, Fang Ming was walking slowly with a small travel bag on his back. Beads of sweat the size of mung beans were rolling down his forehead, but he didn't seem to mind.

"If you're unlucky, even drinking water can get stuck in your teeth."

Fang Ming couldn't help but spit on the roadside. Half an hour ago, he was driven out of the quarry by Liu Meng because he was too bad at his job.

Frustration, extreme frustration!

Sitting down on the roadside, Fang Ming picked up a stone at random and unconsciously tossed it back and forth between his hands.

What's wrong?

He doesn't deny he lacks culture, but falling short is absolutely impossible. He was strong as a leopard since he was young! Working at the quarry is just child's play for him.

I finally found a job, but I was fired before even finishing the first day. It wouldn't be so bad if we weren't in dire need of money at home, I could just look for another one. But now, I can't afford to waste any time!

"Ah!"

Suddenly, Fang Ming's hand trembled, and the stone he didn't catch flew out.

"Huh?"

Fang Ming pressed the back of his right hand against his eye and stared intently for a while before saying, "Did I see a ghost? Am I seeing things? How did a shadow just appear on the back of my hand?"

Just now, Fang Ming discovered a shadow suddenly appeared on the back of his right hand. He was startled and dropped the stone as a result. But when he looked again, there was nothing there.

He scratched his head and looked at the stone he had thrown a few meters away, wondering if it was the cause.

After a moment's hesitation, curiosity ultimately prevailed. Fang Ming stood up and walked over, carefully extending his hand towards the stone.

"!"

Fang Ming's hand flew back quickly - just as his right hand was about to reach the stone, a faint shadow immediately appeared on the back of his hand!

A cold sweat broke out on his back, Fang Ming raised his head and looked at the sky. He found that the dazzlingly white sun was still hanging high in the sky, and his heart felt a little calmer. Even in broad daylight, he wouldn't be afraid of ghosts.

After the fear in his heart slowly disappeared, Fang Ming felt a surge of surprise. The stone before him was clearly unusual, and it might even be worth some money!

Holding the stone in his hand and examining it carefully, Fang Ming discovered that the strange stone was only the size of a fist. Its surface was rough like sandpaper, with some lines that he couldn't quite identify. It looked grayish-green and, to be honest, didn't seem much different from other stones found in the mountains and countryside.

After researching for a long time, Fang Ming still couldn't figure out what was going on.

"Forget it, never mind, let's just take it and talk later."

Fang Ming shoved the stone into his travel bag and continued striding towards Ningdong City Center. Losing his job at the quarry was depressing, but there was no use dwelling on it; he had to find another one!