Qingyun Mountain Path!

Qingyun Mountain Path.

"What the hell is this?!"

Ye Xuan wanted to curse.

At that moment, he was sprawled across a slab of bluestone like a dead dog.

So this was transmigration?

Was that it?

He lowered his head to look at his tender little hands, then at his pitifully short, skinny legs.

Ye Xuan felt like his life had gone dark.

He'd been a fine young man, six feet tall. He'd closed his eyes, opened them again, and shrunk into a little kid of about ten.

Rejuvenation sounded great.

But in this cultivation world, without high-speed trains or airplanes, it was practically a hellish start.

"System?"

He silently repeated the word for the eight hundredth time.

There wasn't even a single "Ding!"

"Old master?"

He shouted at the battered ring on his hand.

The ring stayed silent. Not a ghost in sight.

Ye Xuan rolled over and lay spread-eagled, silently making plans.

He was at the foot of Qingyun Mountain, three li up the path.

According to the original story, Qingyun Sect was at the summit.

All he had to do was climb up, find a master, and learn the Sword Control Technique. Even if he couldn't reach the Taiqing Realm, living for a few hundred years shouldn't be a problem, right?

And if all else failed, with the wisdom of a modern man and his several decades of life experience, he could probably land a comfortable job as an outer-sect steward.

The ideal was wonderful.

The reality was that this little body couldn't even take down the wild monsters outside Novice Village.

How long had he been climbing?

Less than half an hour!

His legs already felt like they were filled with lead.

Forget Qingyun Sect. Even the monkeys halfway up the mountain could come down and teach him a lesson whenever they pleased.

"No. I can't just keep climbing."

Ye Xuan grabbed a handful of dead grass and rubbed the dirt on his face around, making himself look even more miserable.

Better to lie in wait than exhaust himself halfway up the mountain and end up as wolf food.

Qingyun Sect was such a huge sect!

Surely someone had to come down to buy vegetables. Surely someone had to come down to deliver a message.

All he had to do was catch a living cultivator.

With his silver tongue and this harmless-looking little face, he refused to believe he couldn't hitch a ride!

Just then—

"Whoosh!"

A piercing whistle suddenly came from overhead, as though it were tearing the air apart.

Ye Xuan sprang upright, ignoring the sharp pain in his backside from hitting the stones, and looked up.

A streak of blazing red light cut through the clouds, wobbling as it came down toward him.

It didn't look like someone flying on a sword. It looked more like drunk flying.

"Someone!"

Ye Xuan's eyes lit up. He was happier than if he'd seen his own father.

The red light dropped lower, bringing a gust of wind that set the leaves around them rustling wildly.

As the light faded, a broad-shouldered figure came into view.

The man wore a coarse-cloth Daoist robe. He was tall and burly, with a square face and a good-natured air.

He was carrying an enormous cloth sack and sweating profusely as he drew in his sword.

That look...

That demeanor...

That broad sword that looked so heavy...

Song Daren, Great Bamboo Peak's chief Tian Buyi's eldest disciple!

Ye Xuan's heart skipped a beat, then surged with joy.

Song Daren was well known in Qingyun Sect as a good-hearted man!

If he'd run into those arrogant show-offs from Dragon Head Peak, looking like a little beggar, he probably wouldn't even have had the chance to speak before they blew him away!

But Song Daren was different. The man had a soft heart!

Heaven was on his side!

Ye Xuan instantly became an award-winning actor. His eyes reddened, and the tears came at once, without even a moment's preparation.

"Who's there?"

Song Daren had just landed and hadn't even steadied himself before warily scanning his surroundings.

He'd gone down the mountain to buy some supplies.

On his way back, he'd passed this spot.

Song Daren had vaguely sensed a living presence, so he'd brought down his sword to investigate.

When he looked down, he saw a little mud monkey curled up beside a slab of bluestone.

The child looked seven or eight, with tattered clothes and a dirty little face.

Only his eyes were bright and black, brimming with tears as he watched Song Daren timidly.

"A child?"

"What are you doing here?"

"This is the middle of nowhere. Aren't you afraid a wolf will snatch you up?"

Song Daren froze, then scratched the back of his head. His good-natured look grew even more pronounced.

Now!

Ye Xuan lunged forward and wrapped both arms around Song Daren's leg.

He did it with such practiced ease that it was almost heartbreaking, as if he'd rehearsed it countless times.

"Immortal Brother!"

The cry was so heartrending and plaintive.

The child's clear voice held three parts terror, three parts grievance, and four parts excitement at seeing his savior.

Song Daren stiffened at the embrace, and he nearly dropped the cloth sack in his hand.

"Hey, hey, don't call me that!"

"I'm not an immortal. I'm a cultivator... I'm a disciple of Qingyun Sect."

"Let go first. We can talk."

Song Daren was at a loss.

He wanted to push the filthy child away, but he was afraid of hurting him. In the end, he could only sigh helplessly.

Ye Xuan clung even tighter.

As if! Let go?

If he let go, Song Daren would leave. Who else was he supposed to turn to?

"I won't let go!"

"If I let go, I'll die!"

Ye Xuan wiped his snot and tears all over the hem of Song Daren's Daoist robe.

"Immortal Brother!"

"Please take me in!"

"I want to cultivate! I want to learn how to protect myself!"

Ye Xuan tilted his head up.

His little face was full of determination and despair!

Song Daren's head was already throbbing.

He dreaded situations like this most.

If it had been a demon or monster, he'd have summoned his Ten Tiger Sword without a second thought.

But this was a child!

"Cultivate?"

"Little brother, cultivation isn't child's play."

"Besides, Qingyun Sect is extremely strict about accepting disciples. Not just anyone can join."

"Where are your parents? I'll take you home."

Song Daren gave a wry smile and crouched down, trying to reason with the little child clinging to him.

Home?

Ye Xuan sneered inwardly.

My home's on a tiny, crappy planet. You can't take me there!

"I don't have a home anymore."

"The flood came. My father was gone, and then my mother was gone too."

"Everyone in the village died. I was the only one who escaped..."

Ye Xuan lowered his head. His voice immediately turned subdued, carrying a heart-wrenching emptiness.

He'd been rehearsing this story in his head for ages!

A tried-and-true sob story, guaranteed to tug at anyone's heartstrings!

Sure enough!

Song Daren's expression softened at once.

His slight impatience vanished completely, replaced by deep sympathy.

"Th-this world..."

"What a poor child."

"But even so, I can't just bring you up the mountain."

"If Master finds out, he'll surely punish me."

Song Daren sighed and patted Ye Xuan on the head, his voice much gentler now.

At the thought of Tian Buyi's scowl,

Song Daren couldn't help shivering!

His master had been in a foul mood lately, constantly losing his temper over the mediocre aptitude of Great Bamboo Peak's disciples.

If he brought back some strange little beggar, he'd probably get chewed out until he was covered in spit.

"I'm not afraid of hardship!"

"I'm not afraid of getting tired!"

"Immortal Brother, just let me try!"

"I can chop wood and tend the fire on the mountain!"

"As long as I can stay up there, I'll do anything!"

Ye Xuan seized the opportunity and stared intently at Song Daren.

Then,

he deliberately showed off his scratched-up arm.

A little more suffering for the sob story!

Song Daren looked at the bloodstains on the child's thin arm, and his resolve began to crumble.

This child... certainly had a lot of grit.