Doctor Mo

After a moment, Han Li felt a tightness around his waist and his body lighten as he was suddenly lifted upward.

Turning his head, he saw it was the older apprentice behind him who had grabbed him with one arm while nimbly climbing with the other hand and both legs. Han Li also noticed the sun hanging high in the middle of the sky.

So he really hadn't managed to finish the climb after all. Han Li felt a pang of disappointment. He had tried so hard, so why was he still slower than others?

In the blink of an eye, they reached the cliff top. Before him were only six children sitting to the side, resting. Wu Yan was talking with a richly dressed old man of about fifty, who stood with his hands behind his back. Hall Master Yue and Protector Wang stood beside him, along with several others, all waiting as the young apprentices one by one brought up the slower children.

After a while, all the children had been brought up. Hall Master Yue stepped forward and faced the group solemnly.

"This time, seven have passed. Among them, six will enter our Hundred Forging Hall and officially become inner disciples of the sect," he said slowly.

"The other one, Wu Yan, was the first to reach the cliff top. His performance was outstanding, so he is directly recommended to the Seven Peaks Hall to study the sect's ultimate techniques." Hall Master Yue glanced back at the old man in the robe, who stroked his beard and nodded in satisfaction.

"As for the rest..." Hall Master Yue looked over the remaining children, gently stroking his chin with his right hand, thinking for a moment before speaking:

"Zhang Tie and Han Li. Although you two did not arrive at the cliff top on time, your performance was noteworthy. You seem able to endure the hardships of martial training. You will first study under a few instructors in the sect. After half a year, we will test you again. If you pass, you will become formal inner disciples. If not, you will be sent to the outer sect and become outer disciples."

Han Li glanced at the other child who had stepped forward with him, Zhang Tie. He was the one who had been hanging on the rope right behind him, almost reaching the top.

"Protector Wang, give the remaining children some silver and send them all home," Hall Master Yue said coldly to the last group of children.

"Yes!"

Protector Wang stepped forward, bowed in acknowledgment, and led the failed children down the cliff.

"Zhang Jun, Wu Mingrui, take those who passed to our hall and deliver them to Vice Hall Master Gu and Instructor Li."

Two more young men stepped forward to obey, dividing Han Li and the others into two groups and heading down the cliff. One of them was the cold-faced older apprentice. As they descended, Han Li couldn't help but glance at Wu Yan, who was still talking with the old man in the blue robe, showing no sign of moving.

"He's different from you. He's a core disciple sent to Seven Peaks Hall. Once he finishes his training, he'll at least become a Protector," another apprentice with a long, thin face explained, seemingly reading the question in Han Li's mind. There was a note of unmistakable envy and jealousy in his voice.

"Isn't it just because he has a relative who's a vice sect master? If not for his cousin marrying Vice Sect Master Ma as a second wife, would he—older than the entry requirement—still get into Seven Peaks Hall?" The cold-faced apprentice's words sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"Zhang Jun, are you tired of living? Can we just casually discuss the vice sect master? If another disciple hears, both of us will face wall-facing penance!" The thin-faced apprentice was startled and hurriedly looked around. Seeing no outsiders except the children, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhang Jun snorted coldly, apparently also mindful of the risk, and fell silent. Han Li finally learned that the cold-faced apprentice was named Zhang Jun. He only half-understood what they were saying, but he vaguely grasped that Wu Yan hadn't entered Seven Peaks Hall through real ability. Instead, it was because he had a relative who was a vice sect master, a backer that let him get in effortlessly.

Walking along the mountain path, both apprentices were brooding over the discouraging realities within the sect. They had no mood to speak anymore and silently led the way forward. Han Li and the others dared not speak privately either. Perhaps they had already begun to sense that the Seven Mysteries Sect was different from their homes.

As they passed through a dense forest, an old man slowly emerged from the woods. He was over sixty, tall and thin, with sallow skin and long white hair that reached his shoulders. He walked with a constant stoop, coughing. His cough was so harsh it seemed he might collapse at any moment, a worrying sight.

Yet Zhang Jun and the other apprentice showed no concern. Instead, they hurried forward and bowed deeply to the old man.

"Doctor Mo, how are you? Is there anything you need us to do?" Zhang Jun's usual cold expression vanished, replaced by respect. To him, this old man was even more worthy of respect than a hall master or even the vice sect master.

"Oh, are these the new disciples just arrived?" The old man finally stopped coughing and asked in a hoarse, slow voice.

"Yes. Among them are six formal disciples and two disciples on probation," Zhang Jun answered carefully.

"I'm short of hands. I need one disciple to help refine medicine and one to gather herbs. These two will come with me." The old man, Doctor Mo, casually pointed at the two disciples on probation—Han Li and Zhang Tie. His tone left no room for argument.

"As you command. These two are disciples on probation. Being chosen by you, Doctor Mo, is their fortune. Come and pay your respects! If you can learn even a fraction of his medical skill, it will be the making of your lives!" The two apprentices showed no objection, and the thin-faced Wu Mingrui even lavished praise on the old man.

Seeing that the senior apprentices had no issue with it, Han Li and Zhang Tie naturally had no right to refuse. They followed the old man into the forest.

Doctor Mo led them slowly along the forest path, turning this way and that, until suddenly the scene opened up. A lush, vibrant green valley appeared before them, full of life.

To the left of the valley was a large medicinal field that emitted a dense herbal fragrance. The field was planted with many herbs Han Li couldn't name. To the right were over a dozen houses of various sizes clustered together. Looking around, apart from the entrance they had come through, there seemed to be no other way out.

"This is Divine Hand Valley. Aside from the disciples who live here, outsiders rarely come unless they're sick or injured. You two will live here from now on. Go rest first. Come to the main hall tonight. I have something to say to you." The old man pointed to the smaller of the connected houses.

"You may call me Old Mo from now on," he said after a pause. "Or you can call me Doctor Mo."

With that, Doctor Mo ignored them, coughed his way into another larger, more imposing house, and disappeared inside.

Han Li was already exhausted. Ignoring the other boy named Zhang Tie, he threw himself onto a wooden bed in the room and fell deeply asleep. For him, no matter what, he was now half a disciple of the Seven Mysteries Sect.