Immortal Path in the Palm of a Mortal's Hand

The Crimson Cloud Immortal, who had been standing quietly to the side, moved slightly and silently stepped forward, taking the jade box directly from Chen Fan's hand. His fingertips turned the black leaves, his eyes blazing, and he sent a wisp of pure divine sense deep into the roots. After a few breaths, the corner of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

"Over three hundred years old, in perfect condition, roots undamaged." Master Chiyun's voice was calm, yet carried a hint of barely perceptible satisfaction. The jade box snapped shut and vanished instantly into his sleeve.

Master Chiyun's gaze returned to Chen Fan, sweeping over his disheveled and injured appearance, especially the torn black scale armor on his right chest and the blood-stained strips of cloth. He said indifferently, "From this day forward, you will be my disciple."

The air seemed to freeze for a moment upon hearing this. The young deacon recording the events paused, his pen still. The eyes of the disciples behind him instantly focused on Chen Fan, a mixture of surprise, envy, and jealousy. Deacon Sun also raised his eyes briefly, then regained his composure and continued recording.

With a flick of his wrist, Master Chiyun produced a jade elixir bottle, which he casually tossed to Chen Fan.

"Here's a reward for you."

Chen Fan caught it steadily with both hands. The bottle was slightly heavy, made of warm, smooth jade, and its surface was engraved with intricate sealing runes that isolated the energy within. He did not open it to examine it on the spot.

"Thank you, Master!" Chen Fan bowed respectfully. The movement aggravated the broken bone in his right chest, and the intense pain caused the muscles at the corner of his eye to twitch uncontrollably. However, a hint of uncontrollable "joy" appeared on his face at the right moment.

Master Chiyun nodded slightly, said no more, and turned to leave.

After Master Chiyun's figure disappeared into the distance, Chen Fan straightened up, the "joy" on his face fading quickly like a tide, returning to his usual composure. He stuffed the jade bottle into the depths of his storage bag. Deacon Sun handed him the jade slip with the recorded information, and Chen Fan used his finger as a seal to apply his magical imprint. Deacon Sun gestured with his chin towards the edge of the camp, "Go wait over there, we'll depart at Shenshi (3-5 PM)."

Chen Fan followed instructions and walked to the edge of the camp. He found a rock half-buried in the sand, sat down, closed his eyes to regulate his breathing, and silently endured the dull pain in his chest, as if the brief "joy" had never happened.

The other disciples were still undergoing checks. Han Yunzhi, who was at the back of the line, walked unsteadily to Deacon Sun. She silently opened her storage bag and began taking out spiritual herbs.

The first plant, the Jade Spirit Grass (in the jade box). Deacon Sun has examined it.

The second one, the Red Essence Ganoderma. Deacon Sun raised an eyebrow slightly.

The third plant was a chalcedony flower. Deacon Sun examined it against the light.

Finally, she took out a wooden box, opened it, and revealed a spiritual herb with pale gold color and leaves as fine as needles.

"Golden needle grass! A hundred years old!" the steward exclaimed in a low voice.

Deacon Sun's gaze sharpened.

The two spirit-sniffing beasts approached again, repeatedly sniffing around Han Yunzhi's storage bag and her entire body with exceptional care. One of them sniffed the box of golden needle grass for a long time, its nostrils twitching rapidly more than ten times, before finally hesitating and retreating without giving any warning.

"Four spiritual herbs," Deacon Sun noted. "Any more?"

Han Yunzhi gently shook her head.

After pressing her fingerprint, she silently put away her storage bag, walked to the edge of the camp, squatted down two or three steps away from Chen Fan, hugged her knees, rested her chin on her knees, and stared unfocused at the sand.

At Shen Shi (3-5 PM), the enormous flying spirit ship slowly ascended into the air, carrying the silent survivors, breaking through the clouds and flying towards the distant Spirit Beast Mountain.

The following evening, the spirit boat finally landed on the spacious plaza of the main peak of Spirit Beast Mountain. Deacon Sun was the first to step out of the cabin, his gaze sweeping over the fourteen figures who had returned weary and bloodied. His voice was calm and unwavering: "Go back and wait. Once the merit points have been verified, you will be notified, at the latest within three days."

The crowd felt as if they had been granted a pardon and quickly dispersed.

Chen Fan returned to the familiar old stone chamber on Fire Cloud Peak, closed the heavy stone door behind him, and activated the isolation barrier. He didn't immediately take inventory, but instead took out the jade elixir bottle given to him by True Person Crimson Cloud from his robes and uncorked it.

A pill the size of a longan, deep blue in color, with a shimmering aura as if it contained a living being, lay quietly at the bottom of the bottle—a Foundation Establishment Pill! It was exactly the same as the one he had won in the sect competition. He glanced at it twice, confirmed it was correct, resealed it, and put it into the deepest part of his storage bag.

Then, he emptied his storage bag of everything. The demonic beast materials—the tough skin of the Crimson Scale Python, its pungent gall bladder and venom sac, the hard scales and sharp claws of the Ironclad Lizard, and most conspicuously, the dozens of dark silver feathers gleaming with a cold metallic sheen, the hooked black beak, and the gleaming claws of the second-tier Silver Feathered Eagle—were piled on the ground. These were his private treasures, earned at the cost of his life.

Next came the treatment. He removed his blood-stained and tattered Taoist robe and unwrapped the cloth strip wrapped around his right chest. Three deep, bone-revealing bloodstains had congealed into dark red scabs, the surrounding flesh swollen and shiny. Two ribs were broken, and a noticeable hard nodule could be felt at the break. Enduring the excruciating pain, he took healing and bone-setting pills, sat cross-legged to regulate his breathing, guiding the medicinal power to the wounds, and then tightly rewrapped the cloth strip to secure it.

Ironclad lay beside the futon, clutching a small piece of spirit stone fragment, munching on it with a "crunch crunch" sound. The new membrane on its carapace had already turned light brown.

Just as the three-day deadline arrived, a message talisman slipped into the crack of the stone gate as promised.

Mission Hall.

Deacon Zhou flipped through the jade slip: "Chen Fan. Submit five spiritual herbs: Golden Leaf Sword Grass, White Velvet Fruit, Purple Heart Grass, Vermilion Fruit, and Black Jade Flower. Total of one hundred and thirty merit points."

"Not counting the Mystic Soul Grass?" Chen Fan asked calmly.

"This is something designated by Uncle-Master Chiyun, so merit is not considered." Deacon Zhou said flatly without looking up.

"One Foundation Establishment Pill."

Deacon Zhou took out a jade elixir bottle from the sealed wooden box behind him and pushed it in front of Chen Fan.

Chen Fan picked up the pill bottle, scanned it with his divine sense, and confirmed that the Foundation Establishment Pill was in good condition, no different from the previous two, before putting it into his storage bag.

"Also, Uncle-Master Chiyun has reported your status as a registered disciple. Your access to the Scripture Pavilion has been upgraded to the second level, and your cave dwelling can be moved to the middle section of the Fire Cloud Peak spiritual vein. Do you wish to change it?"

"Change."

Deacon Zhou tossed over a bronze token engraved with cloud patterns. "New cave dwelling restriction token. Old cave dwelling must be vacated within three days."

Chen Fan caught the token; it felt solid and cold to the touch. He turned and walked out of the side hall.

Han Yunzhi was at the back of the line, her hands tightly gripping her storage bag, her knuckles white. As Chen Fan passed by, she looked up, her eyes filled with inquiry and hidden nervousness.

"Senior Brother Chen, have you switched yet?"

"One." Chen Fan continued walking.

Han Yunzhi nodded and didn't ask any further questions. She simply lowered her head, her gaze returning to the storage bag she was clutching tightly, as if it contained all her hopes.

Stepping out of the side hall, the sunlight on the main peak plaza was intense and dazzling. Ironclad poked its little head out of the spirit beast pouch, its whiskers swaying contentedly a few times in the direction of the sunlight.

Three Foundation Building Pills!

One was won in the sect competition. One was bestowed as a reward by True Person Chiyun. One was obtained by risking one's life in the forbidden area.

With three Foundation Establishment Pills in hand, the chance of successfully establishing one's foundation is over 60%!

He gripped the cool bronze plaque engraved with cloud patterns in his pocket. The spiritual energy concentration in the middle section of the Fire Cloud Peak spiritual vein was more than 30% higher than that in the old stone chamber.

That afternoon, the old stone chamber was emptied. The old futon that had been with him for so long and the dim oil lamp were left behind. He only took the old wooden box left by his parents, the fragments of spirit stones gnawed by the armor, and the pills and materials that belonged to him on the jade shelf.

The new cave dwelling is located halfway up Fire Cloud Peak, facing south. Inside, there is a room and a hall, with a separate cultivation room. On the floor, the profound patterns of a spirit-gathering array are clearly engraved, and wisps of spiritual energy slowly seep out from the array patterns. Chen Fan inserted the restriction token into the groove by the door. With a soft "hum," a pale blue light screen instantly rose up, completely enveloping the entire cave dwelling.

The armored figure leaped off his shoulder and quickly crawled around the new territory on its six legs, finally choosing a smooth, warm bluestone in the corner of the training room, where it lay down contentedly.

Chen Fan put the items away properly. Finally, he sat cross-legged on the brand-new futon, took out three identical jade pill bottles, and placed them in a row on the ground in front of him. The deep blue pills swirled with a restrained and mysterious azure halo in the slightly dim cave, like three small stars hidden deep in a galaxy.

The armored creature climbed down from the bluestone and approached the three pills that emitted strange fluctuations. Its slender tentacles swayed gently towards the pill bottle, conveying curiosity and a hint of instinctive desire.

"It's nothing," Chen Fan said in a low, calm voice.

The armored tentacles drooped slightly, lying quietly beside his legs, no longer moving.