Chapter 5: Master Mo

After a while, Han Li felt a tightening around his waist, his body suddenly lightening as he was lifted upward.

Turning his head, he saw that the senior brother closely following him was holding him with one arm while nimbly climbing the rope with his other hand and legs. Han Li noticed the sun hanging directly overhead.

So, he hadn’t managed to complete the climb after all. A pang of sadness hit Han Li. Despite his best efforts, why couldn’t he keep up with others?

In no time, they reached the top of the cliff, where only six children were resting nearby. Wu Yan was speaking with a wealthy-looking man in his fifties, dressed in a deep blue robe with his hands behind his back. Hall Master Yue and Protector Wang stood beside him, along with a few others, all waiting as the senior brothers brought up the slower children one by one.

Once all the children had been brought up, Hall Master Yue stepped forward, facing the group of children solemnly.

“There are seven who passed this time. Six of you will enter our sect’s Hundred Forging Hall, officially becoming inner disciples of our sect,” he said slowly.

“As for the other, Wu Yan, who was the first to reach the cliff and performed outstandingly, he will be directly sent to the Seven Supreme Hall to learn the sect’s secret techniques.” Hall Master Yue glanced back at the man in the blue robe, who stroked his beard and nodded approvingly.

“As for the rest…” Hall Master Yue surveyed the remaining children, gently stroking his chin with his right hand. After a brief pause, he continued, “Zhang Tie and Han Li, although you didn’t reach the cliff in time, your performance was remarkable, showing you can endure the hardships of martial training. You two will first train under some instructors to build your foundation. In six months, you’ll be tested again. If you pass, you’ll become inner disciples. If you fail, you’ll be sent to the outer sect as outer disciples.”

Han Li glanced at the other child who stepped forward, named Zhang Tie—the one who had been right behind him, also hanging on the rope, nearly reaching the cliff’s top.

“Protector Wang, give the remaining children some silver and send them home,” Hall Master Yue said coldly, looking at the last few children.

“Yes, sir!” Protector Wang stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and led the disqualified children down the cliff.

“Zhang Jun, Wu Mingrui, take these successful candidates to the hall and hand them over to Vice Hall Master Gu and Instructor Li.”

Two young men stepped forward, accepting the order. They divided Han Li and the others into two groups and started heading down the cliff. One of them was the cold-faced senior brother. As they descended, Han Li couldn’t help but glance at Wu Yan, who was still talking with the blue-robed elder, showing no sign of moving.

“He’s different from you all. He’s being sent to the Seven Supreme Hall as a core disciple. Once he completes his training, he’ll at least hold the rank of a protector,” the thin-faced senior brother, noticing Han Li’s curiosity, explained. His words carried a trace of envy and jealousy that he couldn’t quite hide.

“It’s all because he has a cousin-in-law who’s a vice sect master. If his cousin hadn’t married Vice Sect Master Ma as a second wife, how could he, past the age limit, get into the Seven Supreme Hall?” the cold-faced senior brother said, his words sending a chill down everyone’s spine.

“Zhang Jun, are you out of your mind? The vice sect master isn’t someone we can gossip about! If other sect members overheard, we’d both face wall-facing punishment!” The thin-faced Wu Mingrui, startled by Zhang Jun’s words, hurriedly looked around. Seeing only the children and no outsiders, he let out a sigh of relief.

The cold-faced senior brother let out a cold humph, clearly wary himself, and said no more. Only then did Han Li learn that the cold-faced senior brother was named Zhang Jun. He vaguely understood their words, realizing that Wu Yan hadn’t entered the Seven Supreme Hall through talent alone but because he had a vice sect master as a relative, allowing him to join effortlessly.

As they walked down the mountain path, the two senior brothers, preoccupied with discouraging thoughts about sect matters, lost their desire to talk and silently led the group forward. Han Li and the others didn’t dare speak among themselves either, perhaps already sensing that the Seven Mysteries Sect was different from their homes in some intangible way.

As they passed through a dense forest, an old man slowly emerged from the trees. He was over sixty, tall and thin, with sallow skin and shoulder-length white hair. He coughed incessantly as he walked, his labored coughing making it seem as though he might collapse at any moment, causing concern.

But Zhang Jun and Wu Mingrui showed no worry. Instead, they hurriedly approached and respectfully bowed deeply to the old man.

“Doctor Mo, greetings! Do you have any tasks for your disciples?” Zhang Jun, abandoning his usual cold demeanor, spoke with deep respect. To him, this old man was more worthy of reverence than the hall master or even the vice sect master.

“Oh, are these the new disciples who just came up the mountain?” The old man finally stopped coughing and asked in a hoarse, slow voice.

“Yes. Six of them are formal disciples, and two are nominal disciples,” Zhang Jun answered carefully.

“I’m short on help. I need one disciple to assist with pill refining and another for herb gathering. These two will come with me,” Doctor Mo said, casually pointing at Han Li and Zhang Tie, the two nominal disciples, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

“Yes, sir. These two are nominal disciples. Being chosen by you, Doctor Mo, is their great fortune. Hurry up and pay your respects to Doctor Mo! If you can learn even a fraction of his medical skills, it’ll be a blessing for your lifetimes!” The two senior brothers showed no objection, and Wu Mingrui even flattered the old man enthusiastically.

Seeing that the senior brothers had no objections, Han Li and Zhang Tie naturally had no right to protest and followed the old man into the forest.

The old man led them slowly along a path through the woods, winding left and right. Suddenly, the view opened up, revealing a lush, vibrant green valley filled with vitality.

On the left side of the valley was a large herb garden exuding a rich medicinal fragrance, filled with herbs Han Li couldn’t name. On the right were a dozen connected houses of varying sizes. Looking around, there seemed to be no other exits besides the entrance they came through.

“This is the God Hand Valley. Aside from the valley’s disciples, outsiders rarely come here unless they’re sick or injured. You two will live here from now on. Rest for now, and come to the main hall tonight—I have things to tell you.” The old man stood in front of a row of connected houses and pointed to a smaller one.

“You can call me Old Mo,” he added after a pause, “or Doctor Mo is fine too.”

With that, he ignored them, coughing as he slowly walked into a larger, more imposing house.

Exhausted, Han Li didn’t bother with Zhang Tie. He collapsed onto a wooden bed in the smaller house and fell into a deep sleep. To him, no matter what, he was now at least half a disciple of the Seven Mysteries Sect.