Han Li slowly guided the flow of energy within his meridians back to his dantian. This was the seventh major energy cycle he had completed today, and he knew his body had reached its limit. If he attempted another cycle, there was a ninety percent chance his meridians would rupture again, forcing him to once more endure that unbearable, living hell-like agony. The mere thought of the excruciating pain of his meridians tearing apart sent chills down the spine of the usually fearless Han Li, causing cold sweat to break out on his back.
It had been over half a year since Han Li joined the sect, and the formal entrance examination for probationary disciples had ended more than two months ago.
Only a small fraction of the probationary disciples were able to officially join the inner sect. The majority of those examined failed to pass this stage and had no choice but to pack their belongings and descend the mountain to become outer sect disciples.
Most of these unsuccessful children were assigned to the Treasure Gathering Hall or the Flying Bird Hall. Those with outstanding talent might receive further training and eventually be recruited into the better-treated Outer Blade Hall. Of course, the most prestigious outer sect division was the Four Seas Hall, but unfortunately, it only recruited established figures from the martial world. Without one or two impressive skills, there was no hope of joining—let alone for these still-wet-behind-the-ears children.
Whenever Han Li thought about the contents of the examination the other probationary disciples had undergone two months prior, he couldn’t help but feel a shiver of fear.
The test involved running a lap around the dozens of miles of Rainbow Cloud Mountain Range, followed by team-based combat drills in a sparsely populated forest, and finally, withstanding a certain number of moves from highly skilled senior brothers who attacked fiercely. Reflecting on all these tests, Han Li couldn’t help but feel a slight sense of schadenfreude.
Han Li and Zhang Tie did not participate in these terrifying tests. As Physician Mo had stated, they were only examined on their progress in cultivating that set of chants. However, this stage was not as easy to pass as Han Li had initially imagined. Even now, Han Li remembered the details of his cultivation practice vividly.
According to Physician Mo, this unnamed chant was divided into several layers, and Han Li and Zhang Tie were only taught the first layer. As long as the two of them could achieve some success in cultivating the first layer within six months, Physician Mo would consider them having passed. They would then become his formal disciples and enjoy the same benefits as other inner sect disciples of the Seven Mysteries Sect.
After learning about the difference in treatment between inner and outer sect disciples from others, Han Li completely abandoned any thought of slacking off for half a year and becoming an outer sect disciple to return home. For him at that time, nothing was more important than being able to earn more silver from the Seven Mysteries Sect and send it home. Having experienced extreme poverty in his childhood, he knew that every extra coin he earned would slightly improve the lives of his parents and siblings.
After obtaining the chant from Physician Mo, Han Li secluded himself in his room, devoting every waking moment to cultivation. With no guidance from Physician Mo, Han Li had to explore on his own, referencing the methods other children used to practice the Seven Mysteries Sect’s basic internal energy technique, the “Zhengyang Force,” to deduce his own cultivation method.
After three months of painstaking cultivation using this method, Han Li was astonished to find that his progress with this chant was alarmingly slow. Despite exerting immense effort, he could only produce a faint, cool stream of energy within his body—so subtle that it was almost undetectable without careful internal observation.
“Is this what the instructors call internal energy?” Han Li naturally assumed.
However, he heard from other children practicing the “Zhengyang Force” that the energy they generated was a very distinct, warm current. In contrast, the energy he produced was cold, and the effects of circulating it were vastly different.
Other children, after utilizing their “Zhengyang Force,” could already punch through bowl-thick small trees and leap more than ten feet into the air. Yet, after circulating his peculiar energy, Han Li noticed almost no significant changes compared to before. The only differences were that his spirit seemed much more vigorous, and his appetite had improved considerably since coming up the mountain. But what use was that? Watching the other children who had arrived with him demonstrate their newfound powers, Han Li grew disheartened.
This unexpected discovery nearly made Han Li give up on the efforts he had poured into the past few months. He believed his aptitude was too poor to pass Physician Mo’s examination in the remaining time and even began preparing to descend the mountain.
Then, one day, Han Li learned from Zhang Tie, who was also cultivating the chant, that Zhang Tie had experienced no changes whatsoever—no effects, and not even a trace of energy like Han Li had produced.
This accidental discovery restored some of Han Li’s lost confidence, and in the remaining days, he resumed his arduous cultivation—more diligently and fervently than ever before.
Han Li now spent every possible moment meditating and cultivating. At night, he even attempted to maintain a cultivation posture while sleeping, hoping to eke out a little more progress. Of course, this frenzied approach only lasted a few days before he abandoned it due to sleep deprivation, which hampered his daytime cultivation efficiency.
What puzzled Han Li was that after teaching them the chant, Physician Mo paid no further attention to them. He never inquired about their progress or problems in cultivation, as if he had completely forgotten their existence.
Every day, Physician Mo buried himself in a book with a black cover bearing three characters, as if the book truly contained “beautiful women and houses of gold.” At first, Han Li and Zhang Tie even thought Physician Mo had abandoned his medical practice to study for the imperial examinations. Later, after they learned to read, they recognized the three characters on the cover: “Scripture of Longevity,” a book about cultivating oneself, nurturing one’s nature, and extending one’s life.
It was then that the two realized Physician Mo wasn’t aiming to become a scholar—he wanted to live as long as the turtles in the river, surviving for thousands of years.
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