The once-in-a-century recruitment assembly of the Zhudi Mountain Sect had officially begun. The villagers ate their dinners much earlier than usual, then hurried to the open space in front of the village, bringing out small stools to sit on. The crowd was a sea of people, bustling and overwhelmingly lively. Some folks even brought out watermelons and melon seeds to snack on.
Immortals were truly a once-in-a-century sight. According to the oldest centenarian in the village, even he had no recollection of immortals ever coming to the village to hold a recruitment assembly, though he had heard from the older generation in his youth that it had indeed happened once. By his reckoning, that was a full hundred years ago.
The village chief had posted a notice in advance: the Zhudi Mountain Sect was recruiting cultivators aged nine to eighteen, of either gender, with at least five meridians unblocked, proper facial features, and sound limbs.
The requirements for handymen and miscellaneous laborers were ages fifteen to thirty, of either gender, with at least three meridians unblocked and sound limbs. As for facial features, it didn't seem to matter; the notice hadn't included that requirement anyway.
He Xiaoyao thought to himself: *Will there be a whole bunch of crooked noses, slanted mouths, and pointed ears working as handymen?* He laughed inwardly. *That’s a terrifying thought—you wouldn’t even dare go out at night.*
Despite his eager longing to enter the immortal sect and the underlying nervousness he felt, He Xiaoyao possessed a go-with-the-flow attitude of taking things as they came, which helped him relax a little. He even entertained himself with a few lukewarm jokes in his head.
When the moon finally rose, a sudden flash of brilliance lit up the sky. A large, glowing sphere drifted slowly over from the mountains in the northwest, gradually descending onto the large open ground in front of the village.
The soft sphere of light enveloped three immortals, who were riding spiritual birds and beasts. A fiery-red giant crimson bird and two large white eagles each carried an immortal. Among the arrivals was an elderly man with flowing white hair and the ethereal bearing of a transcendent being.
He cupped his fists toward the gathered crowd and said, "Greetings, villagers. Good evening. I am Meng Daoran, master of the Origin Gathering Valley of the Zhudi Mountain Sect. The male cultivator behind me is Zhang Tianming, master of our Public Academy, and this female cultivator is Qin Yueling, master of Mingyue Pavilion."
"We have come today to recruit disciples and handymen for our immortal sect. The specific requirements have been clearly stated on the notice board. Shortly, we will conduct the meridian-testing ceremony. Anyone who is interested and meets the criteria is welcome to sign up."
As He Xiaoyao listened, he couldn't help thinking how much this sounded like the tone the village chief used when running their village meetings.
At that moment, he heard the older women behind him whispering among themselves. "I heard this valley master is already over three hundred years old," one said. "How does he manage to look like he's in his thirties? He truly is an immortal—simply remarkable! If my son wasn't already too old, I'd want him to go up and get his meridians tested."
Another older woman chimed in, "Indeed, indeed. Ah, what a pity my grandson is still too young, or else I’d let him try his hand at it. Becoming an immortal cultivator would be wonderful indeed."
An older uncle behind them chuckled and said, "Hmph, as if you'd really have the heart to let them go. Once they're sent up the mountain, you might not even see them once in a lifetime. No matter how long they live, what good is it if you can never lay eyes on them?"
This probably reflected the inner thoughts of most people in the village: some felt they should send their children, while others couldn't bear the thought of parting with them.
As for someone like He Xiaoyao, who was willing to fight tooth and nail just to apply for a handyman position, he was likely the only one. He was truly unique.
After a brief bustle of preparation, the meridian-testing ceremony commenced immediately.
Out of the thirty or forty villagers who met the criteria aside from meridian blockage, only a dozen or so came forward to line up for the test—including He Xiaoyao, who was vying for a handyman position and stood right in the middle of the queue.
He Shunzi, standing beside him, asked, "Are you nervous, Xiaoyao? I wonder how many meridians I'll have unblocked."
He Xiaoyao replied, "I'm not nervous. I've known for a while that I have three meridians unblocked. Coming up for the test is just a formality."
He Shunzi gasped. "Ah? How did you know you had three meridians unblocked? Oh, right—did your master, Doctor Ye, have a way to test it for you?"
He Xiaoyao answered, "Yes, exactly."
In truth, Doctor Ye *had* tested him, but just a few days prior, the test had only shown two unblocked meridians; the third one had just been cleared through practice moments ago.
He Xiaoyao had used Ye Tangshi's method of acupuncture, piercing one acupoint after another. To his surprise, not only could it heal illnesses, but it also helped with cultivation. He thought to himself with a chuckle that this method wasn't half bad. He wondered if he could do the same for his other meridians later on.
Finally, it was He Xiaoyao's turn. He stepped up before the three immortals. Master Zhang Tianming instructed, "Place your hand on the jade talisman and hold it there quietly for a quarter of an hour."
He Xiaoyao gave the jade talisman a silent, assessing look. It emitted a soft, pale-yellow glow—a luster brighter, clearer, and more abundant than the faint light given off by the Ancient Well Village well water. When he touched it, it felt warm and smooth against his skin, a fine piece of work. It was undoubtedly a high-grade treasure.
This was a meridian-reflecting jade.
Since it was going to take as long as a quarter of an hour, He Xiaoyao simply closed his eyes and ran through his Cultivation Manual again. After cycling his True Qi inward and outward a few times, he noticed that the immortal jade actually possessed a warm spiritual qi that flowed into the meridians of his hand, a potency even greater than the well water.
Yet, in that short quarter of an hour, it only increased his cultivation base by a tiny fraction. Still, it wasn't bad at all.
Though he wasn't the type to strip the fur off a passing goose, he was following the rules without any violations. Valley Master Meng Daoran noticed that the luster of the precious jade had suddenly dimmed slightly, flickering erratically, and felt a hint of puzzlement.
After a short while, however, the test results came out. Three soft rays of light appeared around He Xiaoyao, and he was officially registered as having three meridians unblocked.
No wonder this was arranged in the dead of night; if they had tested meridians during daylight, it really wouldn't have been so easy to notice.
Once everyone had been tested, only a single twelve-year-old child in the entire village had passed.
His name was He Xiaochuan, and he had five meridians unblocked. To think, when this little fellow was three or four years old, he had accidentally fallen into the ancient well while playing. Fortunately, the adults had pulled him out in time, though he had swallowed a bellyful of water.
Could it be that he was infused with spiritual qi back then, which cleared his five meridians? What an incredible coincidence! If he had known, he should have gone for a swim in the ancient well himself.
Such things all came down to personal fortune.
He Xiaoyao knew he couldn't rely on that kind of luck; he could only depend on his own hard work.
People like Xiaochuan were born with five meridians unblocked and could directly cultivate immortality. He, on the other hand, still had to settle for being a handyman.
Still, that wasn't bad either. At least getting into the immortal sect meant he would be half an immortal himself. "Immortal He"—he chuckled quietly to himself. Long ago, his mind had already conjured images of himself with an ethereal bearing and flowing white robes, a thought that filled him with sweet delight, as if he had just consumed a whole jar of honey.
He really was a vain youth. What was youth without a bit of vanity?
He Shunzi had only two meridians unblocked. He stamped his feet in frustration and regret.
The three immortals walked calmly over to He Xiaochuan and his parents.
Meng Daoran said to the parents, "Respected villagers, your son He Xiaochuan has five meridians unblocked, which meets the entry requirements for cultivators in our immortal sect. Whether to send the child into the immortal sect is a decision for you to consider and make yourselves."
The boy's father gritted his teeth and stamped his foot. "We'll send him!"
The boy's mother asked anxiously, "Can he still come back after he goes?"
Valley Master Meng Daoran replied, "Once he goes, returning will be rather difficult, but it is still possible. Our immortal sect respects human affection and worldly ties, so we do allow cultivators to return home to visit their families. Actually, there are three to five days of leave every year, but due to heavy studies or various other reasons, it might sometimes be two or three years before they return. Once he achieves the Four-Star Stage or higher in the future, he will also have the opportunity to return home for half a month or ten days. You can simply view this as him going far away for his studies."
Xiaochuan's mother said, "As long as he can come back, that's enough. We have nothing to give the child, so for his future, he shall enter your immortal sect. Please take good care of He Xiaochuan; he is still young. We thank you."
Master Meng said calmly that they would, and symbolically handed over one thousand coins as compensation from the immortal sect to the family.
Then Meng Daoran walked briskly straight up to He Xiaoyao, wearing a kind smile as he said, "Little brother He Xiaoyao, hello! Would you like to come to our immortal sect as a handyman? Although it's called being a handyman, we love and care for each other like family here, and your lifespan could potentially reach two hundred years, you know. Think it over carefully. In truth, our handymen only work three or four hours a day, and the rest of the time is completely free—you can roam the mountains and rivers however you like. Haha, sometimes I even envy the handymen; they're carefree, don't need to cultivate, and have no dangerous missions. If you enter the mountain gate now, we can offer you a compensation of two thousand coins."
Looking at Meng Daoran's smile, He Xiaoyao thought to himself: *Is he mixing something up? Shouldn't he be flashing this kind and amiable expression at He Xiaochuan? Why go to all this trouble for a mere handyman? Whenever something is out of the ordinary, there's bound to be something fishy!* That just went to show how hard it was to recruit handymen. But even so, He Xiaoyao was dead set on entering the immortal sect, so he didn't care about any of that anymore.
At that moment, He Xiaochuan's mother suddenly spoke up, "Why did we only get a thousand coins in compensation, while the handyman gets two thousand?"
The gathered crowd shared the same puzzlement.
It was as if Meng Daoran had anticipated this question and prepared an answer long ago. With a calm expression, he explained, "This is because we currently have a very large number of cultivators within our immortal sect, but not enough people willing to do handyman work. We're short-handed, so we have no choice but to increase the benefits and terms in hopes of recruiting enough handymen as quickly as possible. Furthermore, handymen usually only live to be two hundred years old. That might sound like a lot to you, but cultivators like He Xiaochuan start out with a three-hundred-year lifespan, and later on, if their cultivation deepens, they can reach nearly a thousand years. Therefore, everyone must weigh things properly and not just look at the compensation."
He Xiaoyao thought to himself: *Hmph, handyman work is hard, so the monthly stipend must be low, and nobody wants to do it. When you can't find people, of course you have to pay more! You won't fool me that easily!* But since this was where he wanted to go anyway, even if they gave him no stipend and the work was grueling, he had already decided to go. It wasn't because he was being tricked by the man's smooth talk, but because it was what he himself wanted.
Following that thought, he smiled calmly and said, "Valley Master Meng, I agree to become a handyman for your immortal sect. When do we set off?"
Meng Daoran replied, "We will come to fetch you and He Xiaochuan tomorrow afternoon. Use this single day to spend time with your family and friends."
With that, the three immortals waved farewell to the crowd, packed up their equipment, mounted their spiritual birds and beasts, and slowly rose into the sky, heading in the direction of Zhudi Mountain.
He Shunzi stomped his foot once more in a fit of envy and jealousy, numb-ing his heel and leaving two large craters in the grass. Then he shouted to the old man beside him, "Dad, why couldn't you have given me five or six meridians? What a waste of a good opportunity."
The villagers burst into laughter. "Shunzi, how can you blame your father? Your father should be blaming your grandfather!"
With the assembly concluded and the immortals having departed, the villagers chatted animatedly for a while before dispersing to their homes.
Having two people selected from Ancient Well Village to enter the immortal sect was quite a remarkable feat. According to some well-informed elders, in many nearby villages a hundred years ago, not a single person was chosen, and if a village managed to produce even one, they would have to burn high incense and consider it a miracle. Yet Ancient Well Village had managed to produce meridian-clearing individuals in every recruitment cycle.
He Xiaoyao returned to the Ye Family Medical Clinic.
Ye Tangshi and Li Shi'an had already brewed tea and were waiting for him.
Ye Tangshi was quite pleased. Though he felt a pang of reluctance, pursuing one's aspirations and fulfilling one's ideals was far more important.
Just like himself—his dream had been to become a good doctor who relieved suffering and saved lives, and now he had achieved that dream. He knew what that feeling was like, what kind of sense of accomplishment it brought, along with such tranquility and happiness.
And his apprentice, Li Shi'an, shared that exact same dream with him and would one day reach his own goal as well.
Ye Tangshi looked at He Xiaoyao and said, "Well, Xiaoyao? You're finally going to realize your dream."
He Xiaoyao smiled and replied, "I'm merely going to be a handyman. I've been a handyman right here with you too—tell me, do you think I've done a competent job?"
Ye Tangshi said, "Competent, of course. As your employer, even if you hadn't been competent, I wouldn't tell you so right as you're about to leave, would I? Isn't that right, Shi'an?"
Li Shi'an nodded rapidly, like a chick pecking at rice, and chimed in very cooperatively, "Right! Whatever Master says is right. We would definitely not tell you now if you hadn't been competent!"
He Xiaoyao said indignantly, "Brother Shi'an, you remember this: I'm going to find the fiercest, most wicked immortal maiden and bring her back to be your wife, just to make sure you suffer for the rest of your life."
At that moment, Mistress Chen Qingshuang walked out and said, "Xiaoyao, what are you saying? You're going to be a handyman, not a matchmaker, yet here you are talking about bringing back little immortal maidens for Shi'an's wife! You should be worrying about yourself instead. Bringing an immortal down to the mortal realm isn't easy; you'd better focus on finding a kind, gentle little immortal maiden to be your wife while you're in the immortal sect. Even though cultivators and handymen are different, at least you'll be in the same place—you won't have to be like the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, separated across a river of immortals and mortals."
He Xiaoyao replied, "Right, Mistress is entirely right! Thank you for the guidance, Mistress. This junior will remember it. I shall follow the example of you and Master and find a little immortal maiden I can be with day and night."
Ye Tangshi pretended to raise his hand to strike He Xiaoyao, roaring, "You little rascal, rebelling against your elders!"
Yet He Xiaoyao's eyes welled up with tears.
What a warm and joyful scene. In this medical clinic, almost every day was filled with happiness and busy work. Such ordinary, small happinesses were a great blessing in life.
Now, he was about to leave for an unknown place. Although it was filled with anticipation, it was also fraught with uncertainty. Arriving in an unfamiliar place all by himself, lonely and solitary—would he feel like he did all those years ago, friendless and crying through those lonely nights as a crushing sense of isolation washed over him?
He sighed, raised his head to hold back his tears, and said, "Master, Mistress, thank you for raising, caring for, and teaching me all these years. I won't waste words on formal thanks. Please accept this money. I know this cannot repay your kindness in raising me, but it is a small token of my feelings. If I achieve success in the future, I will return to show my filial piety to you both." With that, he respectfully kowtowed three loud times.
Ye Tangshi said, "Oh my, now Xiaoyao's learned to put on this kind of show. All right, you can dispense with these superficial formalities. I know you'll miss me and your Mistress. As I said before, as long as you achieve your dream, that's enough. If you get the chance, remember to come back and visit us."
He Xiaoyao nodded solemnly and said, "I will definitely come back!"