Myriad Snake Den

Vast Sky Great World, Qingyang Mountain. Rain and mist curled through the air; the immortal mountain was dreamlike, its greenery picturesque.

A frail figure busied himself in the Medicine Garden, occasionally wiping the sweat from his brow. He was Bi Fan.

His thin, fragile body made anyone who saw him feel pity. Sadly, no one here would pity him.

Bi Fan had been an orphan since childhood. He had been taken in by an old man from Qingyang Sect on Qingyang Mountain who tended the Medicine Garden, and he had no idea what his parents had been like.

The old man's surname was Bi, so he had taken the surname Bi as well.

Bi Fan had now idled away fourteen years of his life, but due to malnutrition, he looked only eleven or twelve.

The old man who had taken Bi Fan in had passed away two years ago, making Bi Fan's life even more unbearably difficult.

Medicine Garden medicine boys held a very low status, no better off than the aunties who swept the grounds or cooked the meals.

By comparison, medicine boys needed a certain degree of specialized knowledge, bore heavy duties, and faced immense pressure.

If they failed to complete their tasks, they would be punished. Even the treatment they were entitled to might be revoked, leaving all their labor for nothing.

While the old man was still alive, he occasionally completed his tasks and received some rewards, among them medicinal pills such as the Body Strengthening Pill.

Bi Fan had seen Body Strengthening Pills, but he had never been blessed with the chance to use one.

Whenever the old man received a Body Strengthening Pill, he gave it to Zhu San, who managed the Medicine Garden, only asking to suffer fewer deliberate difficulties the following year.

The old man had not treated Bi Fan particularly well. He merely treated him as a servant boy, summoning and dismissing him at will.

But once the old man was gone, trouble came crashing down upon Bi Fan one after another. It was not only Zhu San who made things difficult for him; even the other medicine boys freely bullied him.

"Bi Fan, take good care of this Purple Stem Grass for me. If anything goes wrong, you'll pay for it." That was considered relatively mild.

"Idiot, the Angelica Flower is in your hands. If anything happens to it, you know what follows!"

Bi Fan was skin and bones, dull and silent. The other medicine boys called him "Idiot," his first nickname.

In truth, Bi Fan was not stupid at all, nor was he unable to speak. He simply pretended to be a fool, because it allowed him to suffer a little less.

One day, Bi Fan helped a medicine boy named Da Niu care for a Vermillion Fruit. By accident, he damaged one of its leaves.

When Da Niu learned of it, he rushed furiously to Bi Fan's Medicine Garden.

"Idiot, what did I tell you? If you caused even the slightest damage to the Vermillion Fruit, I'd cripple your arm."

As he spoke, Da Niu lunged at Bi Fan. He was so fast that Bi Fan had no time to dodge before one arm was seized in Da Niu's thick, powerful hand.

"Ah!..."

Da Niu gave a hard yank, dislocating Bi Fan's slender arm. The pain made Bi Fan tremble all over, yet he did not dare show the slightest resentment.

Endure, endure... Bi Fan kept repeating the word in his heart.

In this world, strength reigned supreme.

Bi Fan was weak—far weaker even than an ordinary person. Frail enough to be blown over by a breeze was the most fitting description.

Years of bullying had taught him the art of endurance.

What else could he do if he did not endure? He had once tried to resist, only to be beaten by a group of medicine boys until he was badly injured, bedridden for a full month before completely recovering.

From then on, Bi Fan became even more dull, more solitary, and more "stupid."

Bi Fan often had to help the other medicine boys tend their spiritual herbs, especially those with particularly harsh requirements for survival. Those medicine boys all forced Bi Fan to look after them.

In order to properly tend the other medicine boys' spiritual herbs, he failed to complete his own yearly tasks every time.

Still, the past two years had not brought no benefit at all. At the very least, he had learned many things. He understood the medicinal properties and growing conditions of many spiritual herbs far better than the other medicine boys did.

To ordinary people, Qingyang Sect was an immortal mountain, a blessed land. But to Bi Fan, it was hell.

He desperately wanted to escape Qingyang Mountain, but the mountains rose in endless layers, perilous and steep. His strength was far too lacking; he simply could not make his way down the mountain.

Every year, what Bi Fan feared most was the day the spiritual herbs were handed in. Not only did he have to return the other medicine boys' spiritual herbs intact, he also had to submit his own share of spiritual herbs to Zhu San.

Bi Fan had failed to complete his tasks for two consecutive years. If he failed to hand in this year's task as well, the consequences would be severe.

Zhu San had said it long ago: if Bi Fan did not submit the spiritual herbs on time and in full quantity, he would chop him into eight pieces.

Even after working himself to the bone, Bi Fan had been unable to complete his task. His workload had always been much heavier than the other medicine boys', and he also had to tend their spiritual herbs. Completing his own task was nothing but a castle in the air.

At the thought of Zhu San's vicious appearance, Bi Fan's heart quivered with fear.

Zhu San was fat as a winter melon, swaying from side to side as he walked. He had a fierce face and was quick to beat and curse the medicine boys under him. Not a single medicine boy on Qingyang Mountain was unafraid of him.

Zhu San had already begun collecting the spiritual herbs. Within the next day or two, he would arrive at the Medicine Garden Bi Fan tended.

Spiritual herbs needed time to grow. Bi Fan had no solution and could only sit waiting for his punishment, praying only that Zhu San would not keep his word.

Bi Fan did not sleep a wink that night. Early the next morning, he heard a loud commotion outside.

This is bad!

Zhu San was about to arrive, and quite a few medicine boys had come along to watch the excitement.

Every time the spiritual herbs were handed in, Bi Fan's grass hut was the liveliest place of all, because he failed to complete his tasks every time and was bound to be punished.

"Idiot, it's time to hand in the spiritual herbs. Why aren't you coming out to welcome Lord Zhu?"

"Idiot, you failed your task again. You really are nothing but trash—living is a pure waste of food."

There were quite a few people ridiculing Bi Fan, and even more wanted to see him punished.

Bi Fan hurriedly ran out with his head lowered. A glint of resentment flashed through his eyes, vanishing in an instant.

Zhu San ignored Bi Fan and instead carefully inspected his Medicine Garden before saying, "Bi Fan, you're getting bolder and bolder. You only completed one-third of today's task. It seems my words no longer carry any weight with you. You're courting death."

His tone was incomparably cold as his oversized palm swung toward Bi Fan's frail body.

Bi Fan did not dodge. Nor could he.

Zhu San was a Martial Force Realm expert. Bi Fan was even weaker than an ordinary person.

Though Zhu San was so fat that even walking seemed difficult for him, once he moved, he was still very fast.

Before Bi Fan could react, Zhu San's palm struck him.

Bang! A thunderous boom rang out.

Bi Fan flew more than ten meters before crashing to the ground. He spat out a mouthful of scarlet blood and lay unable to move, seemingly on the verge of passing out.

Zhu San was at the Martial Force Realm, with strength as high as one Cloudstone. Going all out, he could slap a tiger to death. He had used only thirty percent of his strength, yet Bi Fan was already barely clinging to life. (Cloudstone was an important refining material in the Vast Sky Great World. Its density was extremely high; a fist-sized piece weighed a thousand jin. In the Vast Sky Great World, Cloudstone was specifically used to test a cultivator's strength.)

In the Vast Sky Great World, cultivators were divided into the Mortal Embryo Realm, Mortal Transformation Realm, Spiritual Power Realm, and then the Immortal Spirit Realm. Upon reaching the Immortal Spirit Realm, one had to ascend to the Upper Six Realms.

The Upper Six Realms included the Buddhist Realm, Demon Realm, Immortal Realm, Spirit Realm, God Realm, and Chaos Realm. Every one of those upper realms encompassed countless starfields, vast and boundless beyond measure.

The Mortal Embryo Realm was further divided into nine levels: Strengthening, Accumulating Strength, Martial Force, Inner Breath, Viscera, Valor, Spiritual Wisdom, Great Strength, and Transformation.

At the first level, Strengthening, one tempered the body and strengthened the physique. Upon reaching this level, one possessed two hundred jin of strength, far surpassing ordinary people.

At the second level, Accumulating Strength, one tempered the body, strengthened the sinews and bones, consumed medicinal pills, and stored up power. Upon reaching the Accumulating Strength Realm, one's strength exceeded six hundred jin.

At the third level, Martial Force, one's strength exceeded a thousand jin, and one entered the ranks of preparatory cultivators.

At the fourth level, Inner Breath, one cultivated techniques, and qi began to arise within the body—this was Inner Breath. Using qi to command strength gave one explosive power, greatly enhancing every aspect of the body. Only upon reaching this stage could one be considered a true cultivator.

As for the latter five realms—Viscera, Valor, Spiritual Wisdom, Great Strength, and Transformation—they were beyond the reach of menial workers like Zhu San.

As long as one cultivated Inner Breath and was not too old, a sect would take them in as a Registered Disciple, greatly elevating their status.

Bi Fan refused to accept an ordinary life and had always trained diligently, but his body was simply too frail. He could not even reach the first level of Strengthening, so it was hardly strange that he was bullied.

"Your body isn't suited for cultivation, Bi Fan. You should give up." That was what the old man had told him before he died.

But Bi Fan had never given up. The old man had been dead for nearly three years, and Bi Fan's training regimen had steadily increased, yet the results remained meager.

I don't want to be a menial worker forever. I don't want to be bullied forever. I want to grow stronger. I want to rise above others... Bi Fan cried out inwardly in the final instant before he lost consciousness.

"Lord Zhu, Bi Fan has already passed out. He's not far from death. What should we do now? Should we throw him into the Myriad Snake Den?" A Medicine Boy stepped forward to examine Bi Fan's condition, speaking with glee at his misfortune.

Throwing him into the Myriad Snake Den was equivalent to destroying the corpse and erasing the evidence, saving them a great deal of trouble.

Zhu San waved his fat hand, and the Medicine Boys hurriedly lifted Bi Fan and headed toward the back mountain.

At the rear of Qingyang Mountain was an enormous cave, its depths unfathomable. Countless venomous snakes dwelled below, and the people of Qingyang Sect called it the Myriad Snake Den. Qingyang Sect usually threw traitors and people from hostile sects into the Myriad Snake Den. It was the most vicious punishment of all.

At the mention of the Myriad Snake Den, even the people of Qingyang Sect shuddered in fear.

The opening of the Myriad Snake Den spanned roughly a hundred meters in every direction, and its rank stench could be smelled from far away.

The smell alone was enough to make one dizzy and disoriented. From that, one could imagine just how numerous and venomous the snakes inside the Myriad Snake Den were.

The Medicine Boys did not dare approach the Myriad Snake Den too closely. They selected the two strongest among them, who hurled Bi Fan into the Myriad Snake Den. Then, chatting and laughing, they strolled away.