Good morning! －－－－－ Somewhere on a cliff face, more than ten li outside Zhuqi County, Apothecary Wang, carrying two bundles of rope, nimbly scaled the precipice. From the top, he tossed down one thick rope and one thin rope, signaling for his apprentices to ascend.

Yang Yichen looked up at the sheer cliff face, two to three hundred zhang high, swallowed hard, his eyes wide with disbelief.

“Sweet heavens, how high is this? If I fall, won’t I turn into a pancake?”

Feng Xiao nudged him, chuckling. “Hurry up, Senior Brother. You’re the eldest apprentice; you have to set the example in everything. Master is waiting up top! If you don’t move soon, he’ll come down here and give you a beating.”

Qian Ruoxiu and Sun Ying, taking shelter beneath a shady, small tree, watched the three of them secretly.

Ye Qin, meanwhile, was resting on a nearby patch of grass, conserving his energy, silently contemplating this final month of wilderness survival training. Once this month was over, they would officially accompany the herb gatherers into the mountains to collect medicinal plants.

On the very first day of survival training, their Master gave them a harsh initiation, forcing them to run fifty laps around the outskirts of Zhuqi County, nearly rattling their skeletons apart. Fortunately, the five of them were all sons and daughters of common folk—from blacksmiths, farmers, hunters, and weavers—raised to endure hardship from childhood. Moreover, they had already completed five months of basic zhan zhuang (pole-standing) training; otherwise, they wouldn't have survived such rigorous exercise.

After those fifty laps, all four others—including the agile Feng Xiao—collapsed, save for Ye Qin. His internally cultivated technique, the Ju Qi Ning Shen (Gathering Qi and Concentrating Spirit), displayed its unique power for the first time. His physical endurance had completely surpassed that of Yang Yichen, Feng Xiao, Qian Ruoxiu, and Sun Ying.

Thankfully, they were supplied with ample rice daily, along with a few fragrant slivers of meat. A single night’s rest was enough for them to regain their stamina.

The following three to five days brought ever heavier tasks.

They went from sprinting across barren wilderness to swimming and paddling in river valleys, then climbing rugged mountains and forcing their way through dense forests, leaving them covered in cuts and bruises. These were merely scrapes; smearing some styptic herbs on them caused no major hindrance.

Then, the next three to five days, they were ordered to poke hornet nests and anthills, wade through muddy gullies to catch leeches, capture scorpions and centipedes, drive away mosquitoes in the wild, catch field mice, and deal with poisonous snakes. They were covered in itchy red welts from head to toe. They dug traps, slew wild beasts, and played around with every small insect, ant, and beast until they were satisfied.

By today, Apothecary Wang had them run thirty laps outside the county before leading them to the base of this towering, steep cliff. He commanded the five of them to climb it. If one slipped and fell, the outcome would be severe injury, if not death. Fortunately, Apothecary Wang hadn't intended for them to die; he had brought ropes.

Ye Qin feared neither hardship nor exhaustion.

After finishing his run, he immediately found a patch of grass to sit in meditation, restoring his physical strength and true energy (zhenqi).

Persuaded by Feng Xiao, Yang Yichen was the first to start climbing.

For safety, he tied the thinner rope around his waist, then held the thick rope while beginning his ascent.

The thick rope had knots, making it less prone to slipping. Nevertheless, he exerted the utmost strength, using both hands and feet, yet only managed to climb about one hundred and ten zhang before hanging halfway up, unable to move up or down, completely spent. Climbing upward demanded exponentially more energy than running on flat ground. By the time he reached that point, even his fingers were numb and useless.

The external martial art he practiced, the Hu Quan (Tiger Fist), was fierce but lacked sustained endurance. If he hadn't run the thirty laps beforehand, he might have found a little extra strength to climb.

“Master, let me down! I can’t climb anymore!” Yang Yichen cried out loudly.

Apothecary Wang sat atop the peak, watching with cold indifference, offering no reaction whatsoever.

Three shichen.

Yang Yichen hung suspended halfway up for a full three shichen. He cried for a while, stopped, rested sufficiently, and then continued climbing. If he stopped climbing, his only other option was to hang there until he died halfway up the cliff.

From the scorching midday sun until nearly dusk, Yang Yichen finally hauled himself onto the summit, collapsing onto the rocky surface.

Apothecary Wang grunted in dissatisfaction.

“Useless! After five months of training, it takes you half a day just to climb a mountain!”

Ye Qin, Feng Xiao, and the others below could only crane their necks, staring blankly at Yang Yichen, who had been suspended for three shichen. A chill went through their hearts. If they were dangling halfway up, they couldn't expect their Master to lift a finger to save them.

“Second Senior Brother, it’s your turn!”

Feng Xiao nervously nudged Ye Qin.

Ye Qin hesitated, then pulled a large steamed bun (mantou) from his robes, tore off half, and ate it before beginning to climb. He had eaten in the morning, and now it was nearly evening; having not eaten since, he knew he wouldn't have the strength to climb otherwise.

Feng Xiao, spotting the bun in Ye Qin’s hand, gasped.

“Wow, Second Senior Brother, you secretly smuggled a bun out this morning! You fully anticipated not having lunch. Truly cunning, a brilliant strategist! Your junior brother here admires you completely!” He then put on a show of bowing deeply.

Ye Qin felt both amused and annoyed, ignoring him. He carried the bun not because he knew there would be no lunch, but because it had recently become a habit to always keep some food on hand for peace of mind.

He first secured the thin rope firmly around his waist, then, taking the thick rope, he began to climb at an unhurried pace. Having witnessed the suffering Yang Yichen endured, he was extremely cautious, trying to conserve every shred of energy.

In half a ke (a quarter of an hour), he had ascended over a hundred zhang.

Ye Qin soon felt a slight weakening; his limbs grew numb, his body felt heavy, and he inwardly muttered a warning. Climbing a mountain doubled the energy expenditure the higher one ascended.

He immediately stopped and began circulating the zhenqi in his dantian. Soon, a warm current flowed through his meridians and limbs, gradually easing his body and causing the numbness to recede.

This was one benefit Ye Qin discovered after cultivating the Zuo Wang Jing (Classic of Sitting in Oblivion): no matter how exhausted his body became, running the cultivation technique would quickly alleviate fatigue.

Ye Qin resumed climbing. Whenever the feeling of numbness returned, he would stop and circulate his internal energy. Later on, he had to circulate his internal energy almost every time he climbed another ten zhang.

It took him three ke to reach the summit, panting heavily. One shichen is eight ke; three ke was less than half a shichen.

Apothecary Wang’s eyebrow lifted slightly. He hadn't expected Ye Qin to arrive so quickly—a full seven or eight times faster than Yang Yichen. He uttered a noncommittal "Hm," then waved Ye Qin aside.

Ye Qin wasn't sure if the Master was pleased or not, so he obediently stepped aside, catching sight of Yang Yichen lying limply on the ground, utterly drained. He thought for a moment, gave Yang Yichen a meaningful look, and tossed him the remaining half of the bun he still held.

Yang Yichen gratefully accepted the bread, covertly wolfing down the entire half-bun while turning his back to Apothecary Wang. He had been starving.

Next was Feng Xiao.

Feng Xiao’s Ti Yun Zong (Cloud-Treading Vertical Movement) skill was ideally suited for climbing. With a single leap, he could soar upward over a zhang, so he covered the first hundred zhang much faster than Ye Qin.

However, beyond a hundred zhang, his speed dropped drastically. Feng Xiao’s stamina began to fail. The higher he climbed, the harder it became; he could no longer sustain his lightness skill and had to rely on his hands and feet.

After about half a shichen, Feng Xiao finally scrambled onto the cliff edge. Ignoring his sweat-soaked brow, he quickly approached Apothecary Wang, bowed, and said with a smile, “Master, how was my performance? I didn’t bring shame upon your esteemed personage, did I?”

“Hmph. If a master of lightness skill is this slow, only when you can surpass Ye Qin’s speed will you have truly earned my respect,” Apothecary Wang remarked sarcastically.

Feng Xiao lowered his head, daring not say anything more. That weirdo, the Second Senior Brother, might lack martial power, but his abnormal stamina was something Feng Xiao wouldn't dare compete with.

The sun had already set, and darkness fell.

Apothecary Wang’s training was not over because of the darkness.

Qian Ruoxiu and Sun Ying, the two young girls, still had to painstakingly climb in the dark—a task far more difficult than by day. Not until midnight did the two finally reach the summit.

Apothecary Wang instructed them to find edible roots and insects on the mountaintop, and then ordered them to descend in the darkness. This cycle of climbing up and down continued for a full half a month.

As the final month of practical field training concluded, the five of them were nearly tanned dark brown. Their survival skills in climbing and navigating waterways had greatly increased, officially training them into five herb-gathering acolytes qualified to follow the master gatherers into the mountains.