A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality · Chat

Er Lengzi stared wide-eyed at the black roof plastered with thatch and mud. The old cotton quilt covering him had turned a dark yellow, its original color unrecognizable, and it gave off a faint, lingering smell of mildew. Pressed closely beside him was his second older brother, Han Zhu, sleeping soundly, letting out bursts of snores of varying volume from time to time. About half a zhang away from the bed was an earthen wall plastered with yellow mud. Due to the passage of time, a few inconspicuous, thin cracks had opened up on the wall. Through these cracks, Mother Han's nagging complaints could be faintly heard, occasionally mixed with the "smack, smack" sound of Father Han puffing on his dry tobacco pipe. Er Lengzi slowly closed his somewhat dry, strained eyes, forcing himself into a deep sleep as early as possible. He knew very well that if he didn't obediently go to sleep, he wouldn't be able to get up early tomorrow, and thus wouldn't be able to go into the mountains to gather dry firewood with his friends as agreed. Er Lengzi's surname was Han, and his given name was Li. His parents could never have come up with such a proper-sounding name. He was a native of Wuli Village, Green Ox Town, Jing Province in the State of Yue of the Tiannan Region. He was of the Yan ethnic group, and the fourth child in his family. Because they were poor, his eldest brother worked as an apprentice for a craftsman in the city, a position introduced by his Third Uncle, "Fatty Han", who was a shopkeeper at a restaurant in the city. Third Uncle was a rare wealthy person in the Han family, and he took quite good care of Han Li's family. Han Li had met Third Uncle a few times and knew that the restaurant he worked at belonged to a martial arts faction called the "Seven Mysteries Sect". Third Uncle himself was an outer sect disciple of the Seven Mysteries Sect. Third Uncle said that children aged seven to twelve like Han Li could be recommended to participate in the Seven Mysteries Sect's test for recruiting inner sect disciples. If he could become an inner sect disciple, he could practice martial arts for free, never worry about food and drink, and even receive over a tael of loose silver for pocket money every month. Han Li rolled over and tucked his freezing hands into the torn cotton quilt. In a few days, Third Uncle would come to pick him up. He didn't know what the Seven Mysteries Sect looked like, nor did he know if he could pass the inner sect disciple test. He only knew that with one less mouth to feed at home, his father would cough a few times less, and his mother's furrowed brow could relax a bit. The heavy night pressed down on the few dilapidated earthen houses of Wuli Village. Outside, the mountain shadows connected into a pitch-black expanse, like a giant beast lying motionless in wait. A few dog barks could be faintly heard in the distance, but they were quickly scattered by the wind.