Recruitment

After swallowing the pill, Li Jinshui slept for three whole days.

During those three days, he was at times burning hot as if engulfed in flames, and at others freezing cold as if he had fallen into an ice cavern.

Monkey stayed by his bedside, changing his cloth, feeding him water, and wiping away his sweat again and again. He was so worn out that his eyes had sunk deep into their sockets and his lips had cracked.

At dawn on the fourth day, Li Jinshui opened his eyes.

Sunlight streamed through the window lattice, spilling across the floor by the bed in a golden glow.

Li Jinshui flexed his fingers, then his toes. It hurt, but not with that piercing agony anymore. Instead, his wounds throbbed with the itchy ache of healing.

He tried to sit up.

"My goodness!" Monkey lunged over. "Don't move! You've got three broken ribs, a cracked shoulder bone, and a wound on your back deep enough to show bone. Why are you moving?"

Li Jinshui was pressed back down. He lay flat, staring at the ceiling.

"How long was I out?"

"Three days." Monkey wiped his sweat away. "Three whole days! You nearly scared me to death!"

Li Jinshui said nothing. He simply took stock of his condition.

Now that his Evergreen Art had reached mastery, his ability to heal was indeed terrifying. Someone else would have been bedridden for at least half a month with injuries this severe, but he already felt like he could get out of bed.

"Help me up. I want to walk around."

"Are you crazy?"

"Help me."

Monkey couldn't talk him out of it, so he carefully helped him up and supported him as he slowly took a few steps.

His legs were a little weak, but he could walk.

His internal organs still hurt, but the pain was bearable.

After walking a few laps, he lay back down and brought up the panel for a look.

[Realm: Inner Strength Realm (Late Stage)]

[Evergreen Art (Mastery 0/800)]

[Rock Body (Minor Success 60/200)]

...

And that Di man at the Pulse-Opening Realm who had chased him down and beaten him—he had memorized that face.

Once he reached the Pulse-Opening Realm, that man would be the first one he killed.

By the fifth day, Li Jinshui could already stroll around the barracks.

On the seventh day, he began walking around the camp entrance.

His injuries had healed by sixty or seventy percent. He still couldn't fight with all his strength, but he could walk around without trouble.

It was also during those few days that bad news came one after another.

First, there was news from General of the North-Suppressing.

After their first great victory, the Di People pretended to retreat and set an ambush.

General of the North-Suppressing pursued too far, fell into the trap, and lost thirty thousand troops. Even the general himself was seriously wounded and forced to retreat to Yanmen Pass to hold out.

When the news arrived, North-Rejecting City fell completely silent.

Thirty thousand lives.

Gone just like that.

Then came news from the south.

Taking advantage of Great Zhou's main forces being sent north, the Southern Barbarian Dynasty suddenly launched an attack. They broke through three cities in succession, their spearhead pointing straight at Jiangling, a key southern stronghold. The Imperial Court was furious and urgently dispatched an army of a hundred and fifty thousand to block them. It was said that a veteran prince, a Mystic-Penetration Realm expert, was leading the troops.

For a time, Great Zhou was fighting on both its northern and southern fronts, with flames of war raging everywhere.

The atmosphere in North-Rejecting City grew even more oppressive.

The regular troops from Capital City had lost some of their arrogance and gained a measure of solemnity. After all, their main forces had suffered heavy losses at Yanmen Pass, and the south was in crisis too. No one knew what would happen next.

The Di People's attacks hadn't stopped. Every day, several thousand men still launched an assault, then withdrew if they couldn't win, as if it were all routine.

On the ninth day, Li Jinshui returned to the battlefield.

He didn't charge too deep. He simply moved around near his own forces, killing any Di soldiers he found alone and retreating whenever he saw a large group. After reaching mastery in Inch Step, his movements had become even more nimble, allowing him to advance or retreat with ease.

[+2]

[+3]

[+1...]

His points slowly crept upward.

He wasn't greedy. He killed a few, then retreated, never giving the enemy's Pulse-Opening Realm expert a chance to set his sights on him.

The Di man at the Pulse-Opening Realm who had chased him down and beaten him was still there. Every time he saw Li Jinshui, he gave chase, but Li Jinshui always ran ahead of time and never gave him a chance.

At dusk on the eleventh day, Li Jinshui returned from the battlefield and was about to head back to the barracks when a personal guard stopped him.

"Li Jinshui? Lady Yun requests your presence."

Lady Yun.

Yun Ruoxi.

Li Jinshui paused, then followed the guard toward the General's Mansion.

In a side hall of the General's Mansion, Yun Ruoxi sat in the seat of honor, dressed in purple with her hair swept up in a high bun. She still had that lofty, superior air about her.

There was no one else in the hall besides her and a maid attending her.

After entering, Li Jinshui clasped his hands in salute. "Greetings, Lady Yun."

Yun Ruoxi raised her eyes and gave him a once-over, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly.

"Are you healed?"

"About sixty or seventy percent."

Yun Ruoxi nodded, lifted her teacup, and took a sip before speaking at an unhurried pace.

"Do you know about the Yun Family?"

Li Jinshui shook his head. "I don't."

A trace of disdain flashed through Yun Ruoxi's eyes, but she quickly concealed it. She said coolly, "The Yun Family of Yun Province is one of Great Zhou's six great houses. Our clan has an ancestor at the Mystic-Penetration Realm, more than ten at the Origin-Opening Realm, and dozens at the Pulse-Opening Realm. In Great Zhou, when the Yun Family stamps its foot, half the Imperial Court trembles."

Li Jinshui listened without a flicker of expression.

Yun Ruoxi continued, "I saw how you performed on the battlefield. You're in the late stage of the Inner Strength Realm, your blade technique is decent, your footwork is passable, and you even managed to escape from a Pulse-Opening Realm expert. You have some potential."

She paused, set down her teacup, and fixed her gaze on Li Jinshui's face.

"My Yun Family is recruiting guest retainers. With your aptitude, if you receive the Yun Family's support, you could reach the Pulse-Opening Realm within ten years."

Li Jinshui still said nothing.

The smile at the corner of Yun Ruoxi's mouth grew wider, as though she could already picture Li Jinshui kneeling before her in gratitude.

"If you're willing, you can join my Yun Family as a guest retainer. The Yun Family will provide the techniques, pills, and resources you need for your cultivation. All you need to do is serve the Yun Family when required."

She paused, her tone taking on a note of condescension.

"Besides, I have a younger cousin who is eighteen. Her aptitude is passable, and she's quite pretty too. If you perform well, I can make the decision to have you marry into the Yun Family and wed my cousin. From then on, you'll be one of us. You'll enjoy endless wealth and splendor."

When she finished, she leaned back in her chair and lifted her teacup, waiting for Li Jinshui's reaction.

In her eyes, this was a tremendous gift.

For a lowly soldier from a peasant background to climb into the Yun Family's ranks was a blessing earned over several lifetimes. Anyone else would have been moved to tears with gratitude and fallen to their knees in thanks.

But Li Jinshui simply stood there in silence for two breaths.

Then he spoke, his tone as casual as if he were remarking on the nice weather.

"Thank you for thinking so highly of me, Lady Yun. But I don't want to join the Yun Family."

Yun Ruoxi's teacup froze in midair.

She looked up at Li Jinshui, disbelief flashing in her eyes.

"What did you say?"

Li Jinshui repeated himself. "I said I won't join."

Yun Ruoxi's expression changed.

She stared at Li Jinshui, her gaze cold as winter ice.

"Do you know what you're saying?"

Li Jinshui nodded. "I do."

Yun Ruoxi let out a cold laugh. "Do you know how many people want to join the Yun Family but can't? Do you know how sought-after our guest retainer positions are? Do you know how many scions of great houses are trying to marry my cousin?"

Li Jinshui said nothing.

Yun Ruoxi stood and walked over to him, looking down at him from on high.

"You're a peasant from North-Rejecting City, with no background and no one to support you. You've survived this long on nothing but luck. The Yun Family thinks highly of you and offers you a path to the clouds, and you dare refuse?"

Li Jinshui raised his head and met her gaze.

His eyes were as still as a winter lake, unfathomable.

"Lady Yun," he said, "I may be a peasant who hasn't seen much of the world. But I know one thing—there's no such thing as a free lunch. If I take the Yun Family's things, I'll have to sell my life for the Yun Family. I don't want to sell my life to anyone."

Yun Ruoxi stared at him for a long time.

Then she smiled.

It was the sort of smile that sent a chill to the heart.

"Fine, very well." She stepped back. "If you don't want to, then forget it. But I'll warn you—today you turned me down. If you come asking my Yun Family for help someday, it won't be this easy."

Li Jinshui clasped his hands in salute. "Thank you for the warning, Lady Yun. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."

He turned and strode toward the exit.

At the doorway, Yun Ruoxi's cold voice came from behind him.

"Li Jinshui, you'll regret this."

Li Jinshui paused, but didn't look back. He continued on.

By the time he left the General's Mansion, the sky had already darkened.

He walked back to camp with steady steps, his face expressionless.

But in his heart, he was cursing up a storm.

Regret? Regret your own mother's head.

What do I care if your Yun Family thinks it's so powerful?

Once I reach the Pulse-Opening Realm, once I push my Evergreen Art further, once I master the Rock Body and the White Tiger Blade Technique—what will your Yun Family amount to?

The corners of his mouth lifted into a faint smile.

It was so slight that it was almost invisible in the night.

When he returned to the barracks, Monkey came over to him. "Jinshui, what did that woman want with you?"

Li Jinshui sat down, poured himself a bowl of water, and took a sip.

"Nothing. She wanted to recruit me as a guest retainer."

Monkey's eyes went wide. "A guest retainer? Isn't that a good thing? Did you accept?"

Li Jinshui shook his head.

Monkey froze. "Why not? That's the Yun Family!"

Li Jinshui set down the bowl and looked at him.

"Monkey, remember this."

"What?"

"Better to rely on yourself than on others."

He lay down and closed his eyes.

Monkey stood beside him, only half understanding.

Outside the window, the night deepened.

In the distant Di Camp, bonfires flickered like countless eyes.

Li Jinshui's eyes were closed, but the faint smile at the corner of his mouth had yet to fade.

Regret?

He had never known what it meant to regret.

If anyone was going to regret it, it would be someone else.