Where Was Lin Chan?

After returning to the cottage, Lin Chan ate another roasted pheasant and a roasted hare. At last, he was full.

Besides that, there was still some game left. Lin Chan strung it up and hung it in the well, saving it for tomorrow or planning to send some to Town Chief Xu's home as thanks.

For the next two days, Lin Chan tidied the house every day. Apart from practicing martial arts, he wandered around town, looking for what made this little town different from other places.

As for meat, he had Little Li and Little White hunt outside.

Raise cats for a thousand days, use them for one moment.

Lin Chan had raised those two fools for six or seven years. Now that it was time for them to repay him, he accepted their prey with a clear conscience.

The town's thousand-odd households were scattered along both sides of a small stream.

Every morning, women could be seen washing clothes by the stream. Beyond that, old men could also be seen leading people in martial arts practice on the shallows.

From Lin Chan's observations, many people in town were quite extraordinary. For instance, Shopkeeper Qian of Yuxi Town's Herbal Shop knew a great deal about medicinal herbs.

Every so often, Shopkeeper Qian sent his clerks out with a batch of medicinal ingredients. It was said they were delivered into the mountains for Shu Mountain's immortals.

Lin Chan reasonably suspected that Shopkeeper Qian also knew some methods of cultivation and pill refinement. He wanted Shopkeeper Qian to teach him a thing or two, so he had spent the past two days in Shopkeeper Qian's shop.

"Uncle Qian! When the medicinal herbs are delivered to the foot of the mountain, will those Shu Mountain immortals come down to collect them?"

After two days together, Lin Chan had become quite familiar with Shopkeeper Qian and directly began calling him uncle.

"Why would immortals need to come down in person? They have White Cranes carry them up."

Shopkeeper Qian said with a smile.

"Really?"

Lin Chan was immensely curious.

"In a few days, help me make a delivery yourself. Then won't you see for yourself?"

Shopkeeper Qian said with a smile.

"Uncle Qian! What does this poria cocos look like? Can you take some out for me to see?"

As he spoke, Lin Chan casually pointed at one of the medicinal ingredients in the medicine cabinet at the back.

"Poria cocos commonly grows around pine roots. Its nature is sweet, bland, and neutral, entering the heart, lung, spleen, and kidney meridians. It strengthens the spleen and replenishes qi, calms the heart and settles the spirit, promotes urination and seeps out dampness. It is one of the most common supplementary ingredients in pill refinement."

There happened to be no business in the shop, and Shopkeeper Qian was bored. He opened the medicine cabinet and let Lin Chan take a look. Inside were things resembling white cubes. Then he shut the cabinet again.

Yet in that brief moment, Lin Chan had learned another medicinal herb.

He had already learned about many medicinal herbs this way and felt thoroughly satisfied.

"Uncle Qian! Did you used to stay in the mountains?"

Lin Chan asked.

From their usual conversations, he had already sensed that many people in town were extraordinary, far more unfathomable than innate experts of the mundane world.

"You guessed right. I did stay in the mountains. I served as a menial for twenty years. Knowing I had no hope in cultivation, I came down the mountain and started a small medicinal-herb business here in Yuxi Town."

Since it was no secret, and since Shopkeeper Qian found Lin Chan agreeable, he told him directly.

"Uncle Qian is so learned, yet you were only a menial?"

Lin Chan was somewhat shocked. He had thought it was some secret, which was why he had never dared ask. He had not expected Shopkeeper Qian to lay everything on the table so readily.

"You could say I wasn't really a menial. There are no menials on the mountain. In name, we were Registered Disciples, but the work we did was much the same as a menial's, so we joked about it. Still, even menials had a chance to enter the sect and step into its inner halls. My talent was simply too weak, and I lacked ambition besides, so I had no choice but to leave the mountain, marry, and have children."

Shopkeeper Qian sank into his memories. Back then, among the several dozen people in their courtyard, there had still been one or two who entered the inner sect.

After hearing Shopkeeper Qian's words, Lin Chan grew somewhat flustered.

If his talent proved insufficient in the future, and he could only become a menial disciple, what then?

Fortunately, he quickly steadied himself.

For every additional year he lived, he gained another talent. Naturally, he could never be buried among the masses.

"Uncle Qian! How does one become a Registered Disciple?"

Lin Chan pressed on.

"Whenever the mountain gates open to recruit disciples, each of Shu Mountain's seven main peaks recruits only a few people into the inner sect. The odds are less than one in a hundred, even less than one in a thousand. After that, each peak selects several dozen or even over a hundred of the rejected candidates as Registered Disciples, placing their names under that peak. They also enter the mountains to cultivate, but they must perform heavy miscellaneous chores every day."

Shopkeeper Qian did not hold anything back. He said whatever he knew.

"Then Uncle Qian knows cultivation methods too!"

Lin Chan seized upon the key point.

"Methods are not lightly passed on, the Dao is not cheaply sold, teachers do not meet those walking a different road, and doctors do not call upon those who have not knocked! Stop there! Stop there!"

Shopkeeper Qian's expression turned stern as he spoke seriously.

"Sorry, Uncle Qian! I was presumptuous!"

Lin Chan hurriedly apologized. He knew his question had been inappropriate, but cultivation techniques were simply too alluring.

"Little Lin, it isn't that your uncle deliberately wants to hide it from you. These are Shu Mountain's rules. Arts learned on the mountain cannot be casually passed on to ordinary people after coming down."

Shopkeeper Qian said regretfully.

"Then you cannot even pass them on to your son?"

When Lin Chan heard the word "casually," he knew it was not impossible to teach them, only that there were conditions, so he wanted to ask further.

"Of course I can pass them on to him! Sigh! It isn't that they absolutely cannot be passed on. It is that if I do, I must bear responsibility. If you rely on your powers to commit evil in the future and are caught by Shu Mountain disciples, I will suffer disaster as well."

Shopkeeper Qian explained.

Shopkeeper Qian could bear responsibility for his own son, but he would not bear it for Lin Chan.

"So that's how it is!"

Lin Chan nodded.

Afterward, Lin Chan also asked other Registered Disciples in town who had come down from the mountain. They all said such teachings could not be lightly passed on.

Lin Chan returned home dejectedly. Just as he was carefully considering how to earn those people's approval and obtain cultivation methods from them, the Town Chief arrived at the small courtyard with two young men.

"It's you!"

Lin Chan and the leading young man spoke in unison.

This person was the very one Lin Chan had met before entering the mountains, the one who had wanted to buy Little White.

"Little Lin, so you know each other. That makes things easier. From now on, these two will stay with you for the time being. You've been in our town for a while, so tell them about the situation here."

The old Town Chief dumped the two men on Lin Chan, patted his backside, and left.

"Town Chief Grandpa!"

Lin Chan was utterly bewildered.

"Little Lin, you can do it."

The old Town Chief was in a hurry to go back for tea and chess. He waved goodbye.

"Sigh!"

Lin Chan sighed. He could only deal with the two youths.

"So you came to Shu Mountain seeking immortals too."

The Robed Young Master looked at Lin Chan and spoke casually.

At this moment, the five experts who had guarded him were nowhere to be seen. Only he and a bookish attendant had successfully reached Yuxi Town, and even their clothes were damaged.

"Yes! I never expected us to be traveling the same road. I am Lin Chan. A pleasure to meet you both!"

The old Town Chief had entrusted the two to him, so Lin Chan could only try his best to take proper care of them.

The youth glanced at the attendant. The delicate-looking attendant immediately stepped forward and said,

"This is my young master, Zhou Sheng. I am my young master's attendant, Wang Yunxuan."

"Brother Zhou! Brother Wang!"

Lin Chan cupped his hands in greeting.

After exchanging a round of pleasantries, Zhou Sheng said,

"Lin Chan, when did you arrive in Yuxi Village? Do you know which direction Shu Mountain lies? Why should we linger here? Can't we immediately go into the mountains and take a master?"

"These are Shu Mountain's rules. It is not yet time for the mountain gates to open. Even if we went now, nothing good would come of it, and we might not even find the mountain gate."

Lin Chan said.

Afterward, Zhou Sheng asked several more questions, and Lin Chan answered everything he could.

But Lin Chan could see that Zhou Sheng was dead set on going to the Shu Mountain Sword Sect.

Sure enough, after resting for only one day, Zhou Sheng and Wang Yunxuan set out into the mountains the next day.

A few days later, the two returned, bedraggled and covered in dust.

The mist around Shu Mountain was too thick. Blocked by the mist, the two could never find their bearings and merely wandered in circles, so they could only return.

After that, the three lived together in different rooms of the small courtyard. They did not disturb one another and spent several peaceful days.

Just as Lin Chan was gradually growing accustomed to such a life, two young men dressed in blue robes with white trim, swords hanging at their waists, came to the courtyard.

"Where is Lin Chan?"

The two young men asked.