Qingshan Town.
The scorching sun beat down on the earth.
Along the riverbank, amidst jagged rocks, Zhang Lin wielded his iron hammer, repeatedly striking the chisel stuck into the stones.
Sweat dripped onto the bluestone like raindrops. Zhang Lin's face was flushed and he was panting heavily. Old Yang, standing to the side, squinted and praised, "As expected of a sword immortal in the making, you are exceptionally talented. You have mastered the skill of breaking stones so quickly."
Hearing Old Yang's praise, Zhang Lin worked even harder, and soon the bluestone in front of him broke into two pieces.
"Little Zhang, if you can carve ten standard bluestone slabs today, you'll have meat to eat tonight."
Hearing that there would be meat to eat, Zhang Lin worked with all his might, but by evening he had only completed half of his goal.
Zhang Lin dragged his tired body home with Lao Yang. He sat in the yard to rest, his mouth watering as he looked at the cured meat hanging in the kitchen.
Old Yang came out carrying a bowl of murky soup with rice, and said loudly, "Although there's no meat, there's still some oil in it."
Zhang Lin looked at the murky oil in the bowl, which looked like dishwater, and it was full of leftover food. He didn't seem to mind, though. "It's good enough to have something to eat."
Watching Zhang Lin wolf down his food, Old Yang grinned from ear to ear, thinking to himself that he had struck gold this time.
Six months later.
As the sun set, Zhang Lin finally paved ten standard bluestone slabs in one day. He excitedly ran home, shouting, "Old Yang, I did it! I did it!"
Old Yang wiped the grease from his mouth, went into the yard, and said seriously, "Good lad, I knew you could do it. It's just that meat prices have gone up recently, so you'll need to forge two more bluestones so we can have money to buy meat."
Zhang Lin sat listlessly on the bench like a deflated balloon. Old Yang coughed and said, "How about this, I'll cut you some cured meat as a reward."
"Uh-huh."
Zhang Lin nodded excitedly.
Old Yang took a piece of rotten cured meat, which he had originally intended to throw away, but now he used it to cook for Zhang Lin.
Zhang Lin, however, ate with great relish.
...
Two years later.
Zhang Lin's physique had become strong and muscular, with dark skin. After finishing his work, he returned to Old Yang's house and asked with some doubt, "Old Yang, has the price of pork gone up again recently?"
Old Yang served Zhang Lin a bowl of porridge. "Of course prices have gone up. As you know, many juniors have come to Qingshan Town recently, all wanting to join the Qingshan Sword Sect, so prices have been really high lately."
Zhang Lin was drinking thin porridge. If he hadn't wanted to participate in the Green Mountain Sword Sect's assessment, he would have run away long ago.
The next day, early morning.
A sword light cleaved through the clouds that shrouded the green mountains.
"Look, it's the Green Mountain Sword Sect!"
The green mountains are majestic.
A magnificent palace stands atop the mountain.
The entire town of Qingshan became lively.
Zhang Lin was chopping firewood in the yard. Looking at the sea of clouds that had been cleaved open by a sword, he said excitedly, "Old Yang, my chance to make something of myself has come."
"Yes, yes, yes."
Old Yang nodded with a smile.
Watching Zhang Lin's departing figure, Old Yang couldn't help but laugh, "Little Zhang, stop daydreaming. There are plenty of immortals in this Qingshan Town. If you had the talent to cultivate immortality, you would have been discovered by them long ago."
With a mix of trepidation and excitement, Zhang Lin arrived at the plaza outside the Green Mountain Sword Sect's gate. The area was bustling with young people from all over the country.
An elderly man with sword-like eyebrows walked through the air and arrived at the steps outside the mountain gate. Suddenly, a powerful sword intent enveloped the square, and many juniors knelt down instantly.
During his time quarrying stones in Qingshan Town, Zhang Lin's will was tempered, and he stood still despite the powerful sword intent.
The old man with sword-like eyebrows said calmly, "The juniors who are still standing, come with me. The rest of you can go back."
The audience erupted in uproar. Many juniors expressed their incomprehension. One junior shouted, "I am Xiao Ce from the Xiao family of Nanjun. My fire spirit root is of medium to high grade. Please give me another chance."
"That's not fair, I wasn't prepared at all."
"that is."
......
The old man with sword-like eyebrows said coldly, "Hmph, opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared. Cultivating immortality requires not only talent but also a firm will. You have no chance with the Green Mountain Sword Sect."
As the sword intent dissipated, the juniors kneeling on the ground could only leave dejectedly. Zhang Lin was both surprised and delighted. He followed behind the old man with sword-like eyebrows, his joy overflowing. "Could I really be the sword immortal in the making that Old Yang was talking about?"
As they ascended the bluestone steps, Zhang Lin and dozens of other younger members arrived at the mountainside, where a huge white jade stele floated in mid-air.
The old man with sword-like eyebrows looked at them and said solemnly, "This is a spirit-testing stele. It can determine the grade of your spiritual roots. Only the ten people with the highest spiritual root grades can stay."
Upon hearing this, the younger generation present became nervous and dared not approach the spirit-testing stone tablet. Zhang Lin mustered his courage and was the first to walk to the spirit-testing stone tablet. He was enveloped by a white light, and the spirit-testing stone tablet was sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
The old man with sword-like eyebrows looked at the spirit-testing stone tablet, frowned, and said calmly, "You can go down the mountain now."
Zhang Lin was at a loss. He asked hesitantly, "But they haven't tested it yet?"
"You have a useless spiritual root. Cultivating immortality is as difficult as ascending to heaven. There's no need to compete." The old man with sword-like eyebrows shook his head in disappointment.
With his hopes dashed, Zhang Lin's mind went blank. He walked dejectedly down the mountain. Three years of hard work had ended in this way, and he found it hard to accept.
Back in Qingshan Town, Old Yang looked at Zhang Lin, who had returned dejected, and comforted him with a smile: "Little Zhang, don't be discouraged. Even if you can't cultivate immortality, you can still make a living by working with me and mining stones."
Zhang Lin clenched his fists and said with a determined look in his eyes, "I will not give up. Even if the Green Mountain Sword Sect doesn't want me, there will always be a sect that will take me in. I want to go out and make my way in the world."
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