Five Taels of Immortal Fate

Hong Yuan was no hardened soul who could watch Mount Tai collapse before him without changing expression, his will as unyielding as iron or stone.

Closing his eyes and opening them again only to find himself in a completely unfamiliar world, with a new body and a new identity, had left him bewildered and panicked.

Thorns in his back, needles beneath his seat, a bone lodged in his throat...

Panic and dread weighed heavily on his heart. He barely managed to suppress them—he could hardly start screaming to vent his feelings. That would make him far too much of a small fry.

Especially since he had started out in this mysterious, unfathomable Jade Wutong Immortal Realm. His brain, steeped in countless films, novels, and horror games, could not help running wild. The more he thought, the more uneasy he became.

Discovering that his body had undergone beneficial changes beyond those of an ordinary person did at least ease his anxiety a little.

There was no time to investigate his bodily "transmigration perks." Hong Yuan focused his gaze and saw a head suddenly emerge from the floor of the stone pavilion, shrouded in swirling white mist.

Then came the upper body.

The base of this lakeside pavilion actually seemed connected to a passage. A beautiful woman climbed out, wearing a plain white dress, her cloudlike hair loosely gathered and the Jade Zither cradled in her arms. She raised her face and glanced toward the shore like a thief. Even knowing the thick fog made it impossible to distinguish five fingers from twenty or thirty feet away, she still looked rather guilty.

She exhaled, bent down to brush the dust off her skirt, and set the Jade Zither on the pavilion's wooden table. Then she knelt on a rush cushion. Still dissatisfied, she smoothed the folds of her skirt again and adjusted the slightly crooked cushion before finally giving a gentle nod and suspending her slender, fair hands above the strings.

Hong Yuan had no idea what expression to make. He kept his face blank as someone beside him muttered a curse, "This filthy fog is infuriating. It keeps me from beholding the immortal maiden's beauty. What a nuisance."

Several people nearby nodded in agreement.

Ha! If you really could see clearly, your rose-tinted lenses would probably shatter all over the ground.

Of course, perhaps not. The woman in white was exceptionally beautiful, after all. Surrounded by mist, she did have the graceful bearing of an immortal riding the wind through empty air, poised to soar away.

Twang! Twang, twang!

Clear notes rose once more, passing through the hazy white mist and washing over the courtyard like a balmy spring breeze, like a gently murmuring stream.

Hong Yuan looked intently.

The woman in white adopted a cool, detached expression. Her jeweled hairpins swayed, reflecting the last traces of sunset and making her seem even more unattainable. Her hands rose and fell within cloudlike sleeves, her long, pale fingers like sprites dancing upon the strings, each leap bringing forth a pleasing note.

At first, the music was soft and lilting, like whispered confidences, like lovers joined in harmony, tender and lingering, leaving no room for stray thoughts. Then, abruptly, a piercing note rang out.

The clear melody suddenly soared, becoming an immortal crane spreading its wings. Within a breath, it rode the clouds and mist straight into the blue heavens, rising above the jeweled terraces of the immortal realm.

It was as though heaven and humanity had been separated forever. Of the lovers once united, one fell into the mortal dust while the other ascended amidst rosy clouds. From then on, immortal and mortal walked separate roads, never to meet again through thousands upon thousands of years. It brought an irresistible urge to weep.

The music turned ethereal and otherworldly, distant and lingering, like phantom notes falling into the human world from a banquet of immortals and sages in the palaces of the highest heavens.

Hong Yuan felt rather as though he were listening to "The Wizard of Oz."

Even in another world, aesthetic appreciation was shared. This zither piece was undeniably beautiful.

The others were utterly entranced, their souls drifting beyond the clouds with the changing melody.

Especially as the mist slowly thinned. Everyone craned their necks and saw the woman in the pavilion, her white robes brighter than snow. Though seventy or eighty feet away and not clearly visible, that faint haze was enough for their minds to sketch a vision of perfect beauty.

The distance between the shore and the pavilion was like the heavenly chasm between mortals and an immortal maiden, impossible to cross. They could only hold their breath, admire her immortal beauty, and quietly listen to her celestial music.

As the melody gradually softened and its lingering notes seemed to approach their conclusion, a crisp, sweet voice suddenly sounded. "Twelve jade towers borrow phoenix and crane; rainbow robes secretly lock the cloud corridors. A little maid chants spells, holding moonlight in her palm; the cinnabar furnace exhales empty mist, and silken stockings give rise to fragrance..."

Footsteps came from a quiet corridor nearby. Several lights slowly approached, each carried by a pretty maid holding a lantern. Their leader was particularly lovely. Though her hair, too, was arranged in a maid's looped bun, she wore gorgeous rainbow-hued robes and held an ornate palace lantern. She walked gracefully up to the great incense burner, smiling as she said, "This maid is called Xiao Chan, a lantern attendant serving the Immortal Maidens. Greetings to all you immortal seedlings!"

She gave an elegant bow, her bearing graceful, drawing almost everyone's gaze.

Only Hong Yuan noticed thick mist spreading across the lake again. Waves stirred, and the stone pavilion silently sank out of sight, taking that "Miaoyun Immortal Maiden" with it.

Hong Yuan caught the scene without revealing anything.

If his hearing and vision had not become much sharper, immersed in this carefully crafted atmosphere, he might really have believed this was an immortal realm.

Of course, even now, Hong Yuan had not ruled it out entirely.

After all, he knew very little about this world. Most of the original owner's decade or so of memories concerned studying and schooling; he had barely even left the county seat. A single leaf obscured the whole landscape, making those memories of little use as a reference.

All he could say was that he now harbored suspicions about this so-called "Jade Wutong Immortal Realm," privately wondering whether it was some people's trickery, dressing themselves up as gods and ghosts.

He did not act rashly. Remaining silent, he turned his gaze to "Xiao Chan" and her group of maids.

If this immortal realm was real, it certainly inspired awe. If it was fake, the wealth and resources on display were even more alarming.

How could Hong Yuan dare to be anything but cautious?

Yang Lie, the Hook-nosed Youth, and the other "old hands" bowed with practiced familiarity. "Greetings, Immortal Maiden Xiao Chan."

Seeing this, everyone else hurried forward to follow suit, Hong Yuan included.

"Mm, dispense with the formalities!" Only after everyone had bowed did the maid Xiao Chan nod with a light laugh. Her lovely eyes moved over them, their autumn-water clarity seemingly filled with seductive charm. Beneath her gaze, some in the garden felt their bones and muscles turn soft, unable to tear their eyes away.

A smile rested on Xiao Chan's lips as she examined everyone in the garden. Satisfaction appeared on her pretty face. "There are a few more new seedlings this time than last. Hopefully, a few more will be able to stay..."

She waved her sleeve and singled out one of the maids behind her. "Guo'er, take the seedlings who have already entered the inner chambers ahead. Do not keep the Immortal Maidens waiting."

"Yes!" Guo'er nodded to Yang Lie, the Hook-nosed Youth, and the others, then led the way. Their group turned into a corridor.

A dozen or so people remained in the garden. Before Xiao Chan could speak, someone asked impatiently, "Immortal Maiden Xiao Chan, what should we do next?"

Xiao Chan smiled. "Do not be anxious. Since you were selected to enter the immortal realm, most of you will be able to remain. You need only have your capacity tested and pass!"

"What is capacity?"

"What happens if we cannot pass?"

Xiao Chan waved a hand to quiet their clamor, her pretty face solemn. "Seeking immortality and the Dao, the true path to everlasting life—how difficult a pursuit is that? Throughout history, kings, nobles, generals, and ministers have spent boundless wealth and effort, all for nothing. Only the Immortal Maidens of our Jade Wutong Immortal Realm, in their compassion for the world, have opened these immortal gates to recruit seedlings..."

"But even when the Immortal Maidens bestow a path to immortality, there are hurdles to stepping onto it. First comes natural aptitude, second comes capacity. None of you lack aptitude, but as for capacity..."

Xiao Chan paused, then smiled again. "Still, even if you cannot enter this time, there is no need to lose heart. Another opportunity may arise later. Nor will our immortal realm let you leave empty-handed. Five taels of immortal fate will be presented to you as a parting gift!"

Five taels of immortal fate!

Does this "immortal currency" mean silver?

Hong Yuan's face twitched. Xiao Chan was already carrying her palace lantern among the crowd. Suddenly, she reached him and tilted her pretty face up to study him, an unusual gleam in her eyes.

"Immortal Maiden Xiao Chan, is something wrong with me?" Hong Yuan touched his face and smiled faintly, presenting the demeanor of a refined gentleman while inwardly becoming more alert.

A blush rose on Xiao Chan's rosy cheeks. His smile seemed positively dazzling. She hurriedly said, "No! This maid has long heard of Young Master Hong's reputation. I never expected to meet you today. You... you are even better-looking than I heard!"

Hong Yuan's eyes flickered. "Oh, Miss Xiao Chan, you know of me? What an honor!"

He smoothly changed "Immortal Maiden" to "Miss" to draw them closer, his mind racing.

Hong Yuan did have a modest reputation in Qingxu County. He had always been learned and talented, a promising scholar of Qingxu Academy, and had been born with handsome features. With both talent and looks, it would have been hard not to gain a name.

Of course, after the Imperial Court abolished the Civil Service Examinations, that little hollow reputation had long since scattered on the breeze.

And Xiao Chan having heard his name meant one thing: even if this Jade Wutong Immortal Realm was not within Qingxu County, it was certainly not far away.

Xiao Chan did not become angry when he called her "Miss." Instead, she smiled sweetly. "Of course I have heard your name. Besides, Young Master Hong's 'Immortal-Mortal Contract' was signed with this maid."

"Immortal-Mortal Contract?" Hong Yuan's expression stiffened, his scalp inexplicably prickling. "What is that? When did I sign it? Miss Xiao Chan, please do not tease me."

"Why would I tease you, young master? Once you sign an Immortal-Mortal Contract, you belong to the immortal realm, body and soul. Even if your capacity is a little lacking, you will not be thrown out. Aside from Young Master Hong, there is one other person in this garden who signed the same contract..."

Xiao Chan beckoned behind her. A little maid brought forward a silk-bound book. Xiao Chan took it, opened it, and extracted a golden sheet as thin as a cicada's wing, unfolding it before Hong Yuan.

Hong Yuan scanned its contents. It was essentially a deed selling himself into bondage. When his gaze reached the signature at the bottom of the golden sheet, there, unmistakably, was his name: "Hong Yuan."

But it was not his own signature.

Still, the longer Hong Yuan looked at those two characters, the more familiar the handwriting seemed. An image gradually emerged in his mind: a fat man with honest-looking features, a kindly face, and a beaming smile.

Hong Yuan's face darkened like still water.

Xiao Chan tapped the red print beside the signature and smiled. "You were utterly drunk that day, young master. Your good friend Huang brought you here and signed this Immortal-Mortal Contract on your behalf. You agreed at the time, too. You pressed this fingerprint down yourself."

You've said it so sincerely. How could I possibly not believe you? Would I even be human?

Hong Yuan did not argue. This world had a setting resembling a feudal dynasty, and that contract differed little from a slave agreement. In other words, if the Jade Wutong Immortal Realm beat him to death now, the authorities would not even inquire.

Had the examinations not been abolished, his status as a scholar might have given them some pause, but—

Fatty Huang, you really were the original owner's good friend. No wonder people at the academy called you a weasel behind your back!

Hong Yuan felt it was no wonder the original owner had suffered from "shortsightedness." His judgment really had been poor, befriending someone like that.

Watching Xiao Chan chat with Hong Yuan, some of the others were already showing jealousy. One burly man with thick brows and a square face, taller and more muscular even than Yang Lie, glanced at Hong Yuan and cupped his hands toward Xiao Chan. "Immortal Maiden Xiao Chan, I am Wang Ai. May I ask how capacity is tested?"

At this, Xiao Chan returned to the maids and smiled. "Testing capacity is indeed our foremost concern. All you immortal seedlings, follow me to the Ascension Hall, enter the Flying Immortal Pool, wash away the mortal dust, and shed your mortal flesh!"

With that, Xiao Chan led the way with several maids.

"Move!" Wang Ai shoved his powerful body forward, knocking two people blocking him into a stagger. Without stopping, he swung his thick arm and drove half his body toward Hong Yuan.

Hong Yuan turned sideways and dodged.

Having failed to hit Hong Yuan, Wang Ai snorted coldly. Without looking back, he strode ahead of everyone else to follow Xiao Chan and the others.

Rock gardens and flowing water, winding paths leading into secluded places.

They crossed another courtyard and turned through two corridors. Billowing heat struck their faces, warming even the darkening, chilly night.

The plaque of the Ascension Hall came into view.

The hall doors already stood wide open.

Inside were brocade curtains with tassels and incense rising from burners. In the center lay a hot bathing pool, its steam swirling through the room. Numerous beautiful maids waited beside it, making the place resemble a blessed immortal retreat.

The hot pool was not particularly large, forty or fifty feet long and less than ten feet wide. Several screens had been erected across it as partitions, dividing it into seven smaller baths.

Pretty maids moved among them, scattering petals into the water. Others held gleaming white jade bowls and poured viscous medicinal liquid into the pools.

"Immortal Maiden Xiao Chan!" Wang Ai stopped near Xiao Chan and looked toward the hot pool.

Xiao Chan glanced at Wang Ai and clapped her hands, summoning the maids. Her expression was calm. "Everything as usual. Each of you take someone into the 'Flying Immortal Pool' to shed his mortal body... mm, and test his capacity."

"Yes!" The maids accepted their orders and went to lead the new seedlings away. A little maid approached Wang Ai and took him to a pool on the other side.

Xiao Chan, meanwhile, jogged over to Hong Yuan in a few steps. "Young Master Hong, let this maid conduct your test."

She pulled Hong Yuan over to an empty pool and reached out with her tender white hands to undo his robes. Hong Yuan "paled in alarm." "Miss Xiao Chan, what are you doing? Men and women must not touch freely. Please conduct yourself with propriety."

Seeing his frightened appearance, Xiao Chan burst into a giggle. "This is the Flying Immortal Pool. If you do not remove your clothes, how can you soak your whole body and shed your mortal flesh?"

Her little hands grabbed all the more fiercely.

"Stay away from me!"

Hong Yuan looked as though he had encountered a venomous snake or savage beast, "trembling" with fear.

He "struggled" with all his might, but he was merely a frail scholar "without the strength to truss a chicken." Even if he stood a head taller than Xiao Chan, even if she looked as though one punch would leave her whimpering, that was only appearances. She was truly an "Immortal Maiden of the immortal realm." Her two tender white hands seemed to wield the weight of a thousand tons, and she stripped off Hong Yuan's clothes in no time.

Gulp!

Xiao Chan swallowed. Her lovely eyes stared, unwilling to leave Hong Yuan's body. Her face burned as a blush spread across it. "Young master, this maid thought you were merely a delicate, scholarly gentleman. So... so gentlemen can be this strong?"

Hong Yuan, too, was momentarily stunned.

He looked down.

The original owner had spent long hours sitting in his study and neglected exercise. His body was not exactly weak, but it was certainly not robust. His arms and legs had looked thin, without much strength.

Now, however, he seemed to have undergone a complete rebirth, as though he had consumed heavenly treasures or miraculous elixirs described in martial arts novels.

His body was like refined iron forged in a furnace. His shoulders were broad, his back straight, his waist lean and firm. The little softness on his stomach had vanished without a trace, replaced by clearly defined abdominal muscles that rose and fell slightly with his breathing, like taut bowstrings brimming with explosive power.

Joy stirred in Hong Yuan's heart.

Sure enough, his transmigration perks were not merely sharper hearing and vision. His entire body had been optimized.

He reached out with one hand and drew Xiao Chan into his embrace. This little maid was petite, but she looked as though she still weighed ninety jin. Yet with only a slight exertion, Hong Yuan lifted her with one arm.

"Ah! Young master, you mustn't!" Xiao Chan cried softly, feeling her whole body turn limp. Her two little hands pushed feebly against his steel-like chest; merely touching it made her feel as though her fingers might snap.

Of course, that was only because Xiao Chan feared injuring Hong Yuan with her immortal power. Otherwise, if those countless tons of force erupted, how could a mere mortal like Hong Yuan withstand it?

"Young master, enter the Flying Immortal Pool first. Do not delay the important business. Later... when there is time later, this maid will attend to you." Xiao Chan did not seem afraid as she spoke softly.

Hong Yuan promptly set Xiao Chan down.

Once free, she puffed out her cheeks and pushed forward with both little hands. "Young master, you are too wicked!"

With a splash, Hong Yuan was pushed bodily into the hot pool.

See? How could a mortal contend with an Immortal Maiden? One flash of anger, and her true abilities showed!

Beside the pool, Xiao Chan removed her rainbow robes, leaving only thin underclothes, then leaped into the water, splashing warm water over Hong Yuan.

"This maid will help you shed the mortal dust, young master!"

She rubbed her tender white hands over Hong Yuan's body, her eyes shining and a smile on her lips. Warm water soaked her clothes, offering tantalizing glimpses beneath.

As an upright gentleman, Hong Yuan naturally understood the principle of looking at nothing improper. He immediately gave a light snort and closed his eyes. Who couldn't withstand a little test like this?

"Ah!" Before long, Xiao Chan suddenly cried out, her cheeks flushed crimson. "Young master, don't touch everywhere."

Hmm? Hong Yuan abruptly opened his eyes. He looked at Xiao Chan, then at the water concealed beneath the petals, feeling a little sore. "Miss Xiao Chan, don't be the guilty party crying foul first."

Just then, clear voices from the maids began sounding one after another from beyond the surrounding screens.

"Upper-middle capacity."

"Average. Acceptable."

"Superior!"

Before the voices faded, a disdainful scoff came from the neighboring compartment. "Inferior. This young mas... whoever you are, you may leave. You have no immortal fate with this realm. Oh! No, you do have five taels of immortal fate with us. Collect it later and leave quickly. Don't delay your journey home."

"Ah!" A man's miserable howl rose nearby, filled with grief and indignation.

"..."

Hong Yuan looked at Xiao Chan. Am I the strange one, or are you people? What exactly is this capacity test measuring?

"Nothing remarkable..." Xiao Chan answered without hesitation.

You're spouting lies!

Hong Yuan rose to his full height. The wave knocked Xiao Chan backward, making her choke on two mouthfuls of water and cough repeatedly. Hong Yuan found it nothing but noisy. Do you even know what I'm asking? And yet you just run your mouth and answer at random?

His ears buzzed, and just then an even louder exclamation rang out. "Wang Ai, Young Master Wang, supreme grade... I have never seen such a magnificent man..."

"Heh!"

Hong Yuan laughed. He had finally confirmed it: this so-called Jade Wutong Immortal Realm, these Immortal Maidens and celestial attendants, were all bullshit. If they were actual immortals, then he'd be damned!