He slammed the shovel into the earth with all his strength as if he was venting his grief and hatred. His mind was blank as he continued to dig into the ground for a long time. Zhao Jiuge looked at the old man’s kind face for a long time as if he was trying to engrave the old man’s appearance into his heart.

With a sigh, his hands slightly trembled as he buried the old man. At this moment, there was no one who could bring him warmth, no one who could accompany him. Zhao Jiuge’s eyes were soulless as he stood there for a long time. He thought about the more than ten years he had spent with the old man, and his heart felt pain.

At night, the wind in the mountains was very cold.

The mountain wind caused the branches and leaves to rustle. The sound came from all sides, as if the forest was crying or attempting to pacify Zhao Jiuge’s heart.

Zhao Jiuge withdrew his thoughts about his grandpa dying and instead thought about the people of Wang Village. He thought about how Wang Dazhuang and Little Fatty Wang always bullied himself and his grandpa. Zhao Jiuge was just a teenager, but he has already experienced the warmth and coldness of people. “Grandpa, I hope you bless your grandson from the heavens.” After thinking this, a dark expression appeared on his childish face and he was filled with determination. He grabbed the hunting knife and headed down the mountain without any hesitation. He was going in the direction of Wang Dazhuang’s home.

The late night breeze blew across the night sky and the insects in the mountains called out, causing Zhao Jiuge’s heart to become more restless. Thinking about how he was going to get his revenge soon, he moved even faster. Soon, he descended the mountain and closed in on the largest house in the village. However, thinking about it was one thing, but now that it was about to happen, it was different. His heart pounded and his blood flow accelerated as he hesitated. Zhao Jiuge licked his lips and swallowed as he suppressed the nervousness in his heart. He clenched his teeth and climbed over the fence.

Zhao Jiuge hid behind a tree with the knife in hand. Light came from inside the house, and he could vaguely see Wang Dazhaung talking with his mother-in-law. When he saw the face that had killed his grandpa, all the nervousness in his body disappeared. Blood seemed to rush into his head as he rushed into the house.

Only after he rushed inside did Wang Dazhuang, who was talking to his mother-in-law, react. His mouth opened in shock and his eyes filled with panic. Then he realized that it was Zhao Jiuge and he let out a sigh of relief, but then he saw a flash of light. Wang Dazhuang had no time to react before the red-eyed Zhao Jiuge stabbed him with the hunting knife. Zhao Jiuge was filled with inexhaustible hatred as he stabbed Wang Dazhuang three or four more times. Blood sprayed out all over Zhao Jiuge’s fierce face and body. He was an extremely terrifying sight in the middle of the night.

Wang Dazhuang’s expression was frozen on his last moment. His eyes widened with pain and confusion.

Wang Dazhuang’s mother-in-law stared at this for a long time with disbelief and panic before she regained her senses. She looked at the dead man next to her and the blood-soaked Zhao Jiuge before she screamed bloody murder. The terror and panic she felt caused her voice to become hoarse.

Zhao Jiuge succeeded in killing Wang Dazhuang and then immediately ran after he heard the cry from Wang Dazhuang’s mother-in-law. People rushed in after hearing the cry, and only after finding out what happened did they chase after Zhao Jiuge. Frightened, Zhao Jiuge didn’t dare to run toward the official road—he took advantage of the night and ran into the mountains behind the village.

After killing someone, Zhao Jiuge was in a panic and only rushed toward the mountains. He didn’t care about the direction, he just rapidly ran into the mountains. There were many trees and plants along the way, and because he ran too fast, the branches cut his clothes. There were wounds all over his body, but upon hearing the vague shouts of Wang Dazhuang’s servants chasing him, he no longer felt any pain as he ran.

He didn’t know how long he had been running for, but the voices behind him gradually disappeared. Only the sounds of the insects and wind blowing through the tree branches remained. Zhao Jiuge gasped for air, his eyes filled with fear and the smell of blood covering his face.

Due to the tension in his heart, the fingers on his right hand holding the knife became white. He crouched next to a tree and looked at the moon in the sky. He couldn’t help but think of his grandpa and the simple but warm home. He felt helpless as he thought of his grandpa, and he unknowingly fell asleep. The first night of his new life alone passed.

The insects continued to cry and the moonlight shone down beside Zhao Jiuge’s face. It was late night in the mountains, and everything seemed so quiet.

The first ray of sunlight shined through the branches of the trees and landed on Zhao Jiuge’s face. His eyelashes moved and he opened his eyes in confusion. Everything that happened yesterday was like a dream.

His stomach began to growl. He stood up and took a deep breath and his sleepiness went away. He cheered himself up and felt determined to live a better life. Even though the old man had passed away, he would not let the old man worry. He continued to walk through the mountains.

At the age of nine, Zhao Jiuge had gone into the mountains, so he had some survival experience. After killing Wang Dazhuang, he was afraid to go back again, so he could only rush into the mountains. Before, he only foraged and hunted at the outer edge of the mountains, but yesterday, in a panic, he had rushed deep into the mountains. He picked some edible fruits and arrived next to a stream. He drank some water and ate the fruits to recover some strength.

He washed his face and changed his clothes. He then looked at the rising sun to identify his direction and continued forward. Zhao Jiuge decided to cross the mountain range. Although he had never left his village, he had always yearned for the outside world his grandpa had talked about.

He rushed forward for several months, the greenery of the mountains overlapping like ocean waves. There was no smoke from people, so he could only use the sun to get a sense of direction. Along the way, Zhao Jiuge saw many strange herbs and dangerous animals. The unusual scenery and strange things caused his juvenile heart to become excited. The loneliness he felt in his heart gradually faded.

On this day, he had just finished drinking water from a stream when a noise came from some nearby grass. Zhao Jiuge looked over and saw a brown monkey. The monkey was startled by the sudden appearance of a human and ran away, frightened. Zhao Jiuge, still being a child, immediately chased after the monkey. After running for a while, he noticed that the monkey disappeared, so he ran even faster.

“Eh, where did you run to?” Zhao Jiuge had seen the monkey suddenly disappear around here without a sound. He found it strange and waved his hunting knife around before he suddenly heard a soft, hissing sound.

Zhao Jiuge followed the sound and found the opening of a stone cave covered by vines. The hissing sound was the sound of wind blowing through the vines. He pushed the vines aside and entered, and his eyes locked onto the scene ahead. He readied his hunting knife to swing at anything that came at him.

At the start, the opening of the cave would only allow one person to enter. It was dark inside and the ground was covered in dead branches and leaves, making it very soft to walk on. Zhao Jiuge felt nervous at first because the cave became more and more narrow. However, as he walked further in, it became more open and light came in through the walls of the cave.

Just as Zhao Jiugi was carefully observing the cave, he saw something that made all the hair on his body stand up. Not far away was a stone bed, and a middle-aged man was sitting on top of the bed. The middle-aged man was wearing a white shirt and his chest was stained with blood that had long since dried up. He was sitting with his back straight and his hair scattered across his shoulders. Even though his face was deathly pale, it was not difficult to tell that he must have conquered many girls when he was young.

Zhao Jiuge looked at the middle-aged man, and his face looked terrible. “Senior, is this your home?” However the middle-aged man didn’t move, so Zhao Jiuge stepped forward. “Senior?” There was still no response, so Zhao Jiuge became bold and stepped forward to speak again when he suddenly found that the middle-aged man was no longer breathing.

Zhou Jiuge suddenly knelt down and quickly shouted, “Junior mistakenly rushed into your home today. I hope that Senior can forgive my intrusion.” As he spoke, he quickly kowtowed a few times before rushing back toward the entrance without looking back.

“Hehe, little boy, seems like you know some manners. It looks like after waiting 1,000 years, my inheritance won’t end.” The voice was gentle and ancient, but for Zhao Jiuge, it was like the king of hell had spoken. 

Looking back, a figure that looked exactly the same as the middle-aged man appeared.

“Senior, you, this… This… This…” Zhao Jiuge’s eyes widened and he couldn’t speak. This figure was covered in a layer of white light and his face was not pale. He exuded a sense of otherworldliness that shook Zhao Jiuge’s heart. If a cultivator were here, they would know that this was the divine sense formed by a powerful cultivator with their spiritual energy. Zhao Jiuge was still someone who had not stepped onto the path of cultivation.

“I have waited more than 1,000 years for someone to finally come. I can’t stay in this world for long—my divine sense will slowly dissipate.” The middle-aged man’s words shocked Zhao Jiuge. He asked in a trembling voice, “Senior, are you a human or a ghost?”

“Hehe, little brat, you have some fortitude and didn’t run away scared.” The middle-aged man smiled gently and then continued, “Since ancient times, humans were not willing to live for just 100 years, and humans didn’t lack genius. As time passed, various techniques were created, using the spiritual energy of the world to nourish the body and gradually change it. Obtaining great power and seeking to coexist with heaven and earth... This pursuit is called cultivation, or immortal cultivation.”

“Immortal cultivation? Does immortal cultivation allow one to become an immortal? How do you cultivate to become an immortal?” Zhao Jiuge muttered to himself. He was still shocked by everything he had seen and still hadn’t recovered.

“The path of immortal cultivation is very dangerous—one mistake could result in your soul shattering. It is like thousands of people crossing a narrow, wooden bridge, but many still want to pursue eternal life. If you want to cultivate, I can give you an inheritance. Kid, do you want to walk on this abnormal path?” The middle-aged man’s voice was heavy and serious. He thought about his own path from a mortal to a cultivator until he finally fell. His heart was filled with regret. 

At this moment, Zhao Jiuge’s heart was in shock as he listened to the middle-aged man’s words. From Zhao Jiuge’s understanding, immortals were very lofty existences, and now he had a chance to become an immortal. His desire for strength erupted from his heart.

Zhao Jiuge knew that this was a dream opportunity for many people, so he responded without hesitation, “100 years of life, how short.” Although Jiuge was born in a mountain village, he also hoped to one day rise above all as a carefree immortal. Due to the excitement, his face became red.

After the middle-aged man heard this, he was shocked, but he didn’t speak. His hands moved to form a seal and then a ray of white light shot into Zhao Jiuge’s forehead. After that, the middle-aged man’s body became a lot more dim, as if he could dissipate at any moment.

“I have transferred the Sanskrit Heart Sutra into your mind. Sense the spiritual energy from the world and cycle it through your dantian. As for whether you can step into the path of cultivation and enter the Spirit Detecting Realm, that will depend on you. Remember, cultivation is to be taken step by step, and every step is life and death. Only after so many years did I manage to have a little success. The rest of the things are inside this jade tube—comprehend them yourself.” After the middle-aged man finished speaking, he tossed the jade tube toward Zhao Jiuge.

Looking at how Zhao Jiuge was still in a daze, the middle-aged man said, “What? I’m about to disappear from the world and you still haven’t come and called me ‘teacher.’ Haha, to think that I, Ye Wuyou[1], finally found someone to pass my inheritance to.”

Zhao Jiuge memorized that his teacher was called Ye Wuyou. He walked forward and respectfully called the middle-aged man “Teacher.” He looked at Ye Wuyou with curiosity and reluctance. Everything was like a dream—he had just walked away from his sadness from the old man’s departure and then had stumbled upon the shock of today’s surprise. He thought about how if the old man hadn’t died, he wouldn’t have been forced to escape into the mountains after killing someone. Then he wouldn't have had the encounter he had today. However, if he had a choice, he would rather have the old man with him than obtaining this chance.

Seeing Zhao Jiuge’s faint hint of sadness and suffering, the middle-aged man said, “Little brat, remember that only when you are strong enough can you protect the people you want to protect and do what you want to do. The path of cultivation is complicated. If you don’t have strength, you will only be bullied.” The middle-aged man revealed a complicated expression, as if he had a story to tell.

After hearing Ye Wuyou’s words, Zhao Jiuge felt a feeling of empathy. At the same time, he inexplicably memorized his teacher’s words.

“Teacher doesn’t expect you to walk far on the path of cultivation, only that you don’t stain your teacher’s reputation. If one day there is a chance and you have the strength, promise me one thing. Go to a place called Carefree Valley. Let dust be dust and dirt be dirt. None of it has anything to do with me anymore.” The middle-aged man had a lonely expression and seemed to be thinking of something. He didn’t wait for Zhao Jiuge to react before the white light gradually disappeared. His divine sense disappeared and even his flesh turned into dust. From this moment onward, there was no longer a person called Ye Wuyou.

Zhao Jiuge was startled as the teacher he had just met had already left. His teacher’s words still echoed inside his ears. Although they hadn’t known each other for long, his heart was filled with reluctance. However, everything was like a dream—it had come quickly and left just as quickly. After experiencing his grandfather’s death, Zhao Jiuge had matured a lot. He looked at the jade tube in his hand and felt the energy in his mind. He knew it was not a dream. A different path now awaited him.

Zhao Jiuge looked down at the jade tube in his hand and his heart lit on fire. He looked at the jade tube and browsed the contents inside. He was immersed in the contents and didn’t care about what was happening outside. He sat there for two days and one night reading the contents of the jade tube. A new door had opened before Zhao Jiuge.