"I've heard of it."
Taiping hen said with a look of longing:
"Uncle Zhao at the vilge entrance said that there is an immortal on Yunlu Mountain not far from our vilge. A few years ago, the Snake Demon in Qingshui Town was killed by the immortal from the mountain, flying and esg, very impressive."
The old man chuckled and then asked:
"Do you want to be like those immortals, Taiping? To be immortal and fly in the sky?"
"I do, of course I do."
Little Taiping nodded without hesitation, but then scratched his head and smiled awkwardly:
"But Uncle Zhao said that to cultivate, you must have innate spiritual bones. If you have innate spiritual bones, your name will automatically appear on the immortal status. At that time, an immortal will personally e down the mountain to take you up the mountain to cultivate. Otherwise, as a mere mortal, you ot cultivate immortality."
It could be heard that Taiping's tone was actually somewhat disappointed.
"Taiping..."
The old maated for a moment, then looked at Taiping with a serious expression, l his void asking:
"If there is an opportunity that could give you the immortal status, but it es with the risk of losing your life, would you be willing?"
"An opportunity... to obtain the immortal status?"
Little Taiping was first surprised, then began to think seriously.
"Grandfather, if there really is su opportunity, I would like to give it a try."
After a moment, he looked up, his eyes firmly fixed on the old man lying on the bed.
"Why? There is a risk of losing your life, you know."
The old man smiled and stared at Little Taiping's eyes.
"If I bee an immortal, I help cure your illness, right?"
Little Taiping answered matter-of-factly.
The old man was first stunned by his words, then smiled again.
"Taiping, take... take this."
Theruggled to lift his hand and handed a slightly worn-out wooden box to Taiping.
"Grandfather?"
Taiping looked at the wooden box in his hand with some fusion.
Since he could remember, his grandfather had been very careful in keeping this wooden box, not allowing ao see it.
"Open it..."
The old man said with great effort.
"Okay..."
Although someuzzled, Taiping obediently nodded and opehe wooden box.
After opening the wooden box, Little Taiping saw only a vermilion ill and an ordinary soybean seed inside.
"This vermilion ill was given to me by a Taoist I met ten years ago. It is also called the spiritual bones pill. After taking it, it transform mortal bones into spiritual bones and make your name appear on the immortal status."
Before Taiping could ask, the old man poio the vermilion ill in the box and expined.
"Is there really su immortal medie in the world?"
Little boy Taiping looked incredulous.
"In this vast world, there is nothing that is raordinary. What is a spiritual bones pill pared to that?"
The old man nodded seriously.
"Sihis spiritual bones pill has such miraculous effects, why didn't you take it, grandfather?"
Little Taiping suddenly thought of a question.
"That Taoist said that the spiritual bones pill must be taken by childreween the ages of nine and eleven to be effective. When I obtaihis spiritual bones pill, I was already sixty-three years old, and your father and your sed uncle and third uncle have also reached the age of wisdom. It is useless for us to take it."
The old man smiled bitterly.
It could be seen that he had regrets in his heart.
Who would be willing to miss su immortal fate if they could?
"Moreover, after taking this spiritual bones pill, its effely sts for half a year. If you ot reach the Qi densation Realm, as the immortals call it, within half a year, your status as a mere mortal will be discovered by the sect. Your name will be removed from the immortal status. Lightly, you will be expelled from the sect, and heavily, your memory will be wiped away, turning you into a foolish child."
The old man furrowed his brow.
Taiping was startled by these words.
But after thinking carefully for a long time, he still nodded and looked at the old man early:
"Grandfather, I still want to give it a try."
In his view, once he ehe immortal sed cultivated immortal arts, he would be able to cure his grandfather's illness.
So it was worth taking the risk.
"Alright."
Seeing Taiping's firm determination, the old man nodded with great satisfa, then took the ill from his hand, peeled off the yer of wax robe on top, and ha to Little Taiping's mouth:
"Eat it."
Little Taiping didn't hesitate and swallowed the spiritual bones pill in one gulp.
After the elixir entered his stomach, Taiping only felt a warm current, as if a warm hand was caressing his whole body.
But other than that, there was nothing special.
"Is that all?"
Little Taiping asked the old man with a surprised expression.
"In a few days, an immortal from the mountain will e down to pick you up."
The old man smiled and nodded.
At this moment, his expression was plex, with both joy and worry.
Of course, he was delighted that Taiping was his favorite grandson and could embark oh of seeking immortality and inquiring the Dao.His worry stemmed from the fact that this path was bound to be fraught with hardships. Little Taiping might not even st half a year before being expelled from the mountain gate, reduced to a Foolish Child, leading a miserable life.
"Endless mortal world, Mortal Bones seek Immortal Fate. If one does not taste all the dangers of the world, how one opee to the jade tower?"
The old man suddenly recalled the words of the begging Daoist before he left.
With this thought, his gaze became firm again—"It's right to let Taiping embark on this path!"
"Grandpa, what's the use of this bean?"
Taiping, feeling someprehensive, suddenly picked up the soybean in the wooden box.
"This was also left by the old Daoist. However, he didn't specify its fun. He only said that if one day you are fortunate enough to ehe Immortal Sect, use the Spiritual Soil in the mountain to pnt this soybean. By then, you will gain anreat Fortuity..."
The old man answered weakly.
"Cough cough cough..."
After saying this, he began to cough violently.
"Grandpa, drink some water and stop talking."
Taiping stepped forward to support the old man with some .
"Taiping... keep that bean... what grandpa told you tonight... 't... 't tell... tell anyone..."
The old man firmly grasped Little Taiping's wrist.
"Grandpa, don't worry, I won't tell anyone!"
Little Taiping nodded vigorously.
"Taiping, although you possess Early Wisdom, the world is full of dangers. You must be very careful..."
At this moment, the old man, who was coughing so hard that blood spilled from the er of his mouth, suddenly held Little Taiping's shoulders tightly, stared at him with his eyes, and shouted with all his strength:
"Taiping, grandpa has spent his whole life searg for the path of immortality, but in the end, he was trapped by these Mortal Bones. You must fight for it! Fight for all the Mortal Bones in the world!"
After saying this, the old man stiffened and fell straight onto the bed.
"Grand... Grandpa?"
Little Taipi a chill in his heart.
His small hand tremblingly reached out to the old man's nose, only to find that the old man had stopped breathing, his eyes dimmed instantly.
"I... I don't have a grandpa anymore..."
Little Taiping stood there in a daze, tears swirling in his eyes. Eventually, he burst into tears.
He didn't cry when his parents died a few years ago, he didn't cry when he fell down the hillside while Herb Gathering, and he didn't cry when he was trapped by a Jackal at the entrance of a cave for days and nights without food or water.
Because he knew he wasn't alone, he still had his grandpa.
***
That night, Little Taiping lost his grandpa.
That night, another name was added to the roster of the Spiritual Boele of the Qingxua on Yunlu Mountain—Xu Taiping.
"At the foot of Yunlu Mountain, in Green Bull Vilge, a boy named Xu Taiping has developed Spiritual Bones. Quickly notify the Peak Master of the Seventh Peak to send a Disciple down the mountain to guide him."
The Elder atg over the Deceased at the Spiritual Boele pced a letter in the mouth of a White e at the gate.
"Disciple obeys."
The White e spoke human nguage, then spread its wings and flew into the sky.
