Chapter 1: Master

David Thompson raised the pestle in his hand, listlessly pounding it again and again into the mortar, slowly grinding the mud-stained, shimmering green stones inside into powder.

Although this cave was damp and cold, he wore only a coarse cloth garment. Yet his face showed utter indifference, as if none of this mattered to him at all.

He was not alone in the cave; there were other boys and girls of similar age, all with their hair tied up, all wearing the same rough cloth and hemp rope.

The only difference between them and David Thompson was that each bore obvious physical defects—some had albinism, others suffered from polio.

All sorts of congenital and acquired deformities could be found here; the small storeroom cave resembled a museum of abnormalities.

Their work was the same as David Thompson’s—pounding things—though the items varied: some pounded minerals, others medicines. But it was clear that some were not content with their work.

“Ah!” A woman’s terrified scream drew everyone’s attention.

In one corner of the cave, a chubby boy with a cleft lip wore a lecherous grin, trying to pull an albino girl into his arms.

“Just let me try once, I promise it’ll just be once, hehehe~”

David Thompson ignored the commotion, closed his eyes, and continued his work, pounding away.

As the woman’s sobs grew more and more pitiful in his ears, an annoyed David Thompson cursed under his breath, grabbed the stone medicine jar with one hand, and stood up.

“Thud”—stone struck bone with a dull thump.

The cleft-lipped fat boy, his head now bleeding, sat on the ground in a daze, clearly stunned by the blow. After two seconds, his face twisted in pain as he clutched his wound and howled.

The pale-haired, pale-skinned girl, spared from a fate of violation, clutched her clothes and hid fearfully behind David Thompson.

“I’m telling you! You’re finished! Do you know who my master is? If he finds out, he’ll kill you!” The cleft-lipped boy threatened furiously.

“He’s nothing, not even worth a fart!!” David Thompson’s words shocked everyone into silence.

No one present had ever imagined that this man would dare say such a thing.

Looking at the expressions of these so-called senior and junior brothers before him, David Thompson took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his heart.

“What’s wrong with me? Why am I getting angry with these people? My personality isn’t supposed to be this brash. I can’t let them affect who I am. That wasn’t the real me just now. Calm down, calm down.”

Just as David Thompson was trying to steady his emotions, someone called to him from the doorway.

“Junior Thompson, Junior Miller, Master summons you both.” The tall young man calling out was clearly of a different status than David Thompson, wearing a blue Daoist robe.

Though the robe looked old, its cuffs washed pale, it was still far better than the ragged hemp clothes David Thompson wore.

This man held a horsetail whisk in one arm, looking at the juniors before him with a hint of arrogance in his eyes.

Seeing the young Daoist appear, the bloodied fat boy immediately showed a gloating expression. “Haha! You’re done for! Today’s your turn.”

But David Thompson paid him no mind at all, turning to follow a woman with a crooked mouth and drooling lips toward the door. The woman’s face was waxy pale, looking very unhealthy.

After just two steps, he felt someone tugging at his sleeve, holding him back. David Thompson turned to see it was the albino girl he had just saved.

Tears welled in her eyes as she shook her head repeatedly, filled with fear.

The indifferent David Thompson was unmoved, forcefully shaking off her hand and striding forward.

Leaving the storeroom, they entered a much larger cave. The cave walls were lined with other chambers like the storeroom, each serving a different purpose. Judging by the pitted, uneven construction, the original builders were clearly not very skilled.

The entire cave was vast, with tunnels of all sizes crisscrossing like a giant ant nest.

Rotten peachwood planks were nailed above each small cave entrance, each deeply carved with the name of the chamber: Spirit Palace, Old Law Hall, Ancestral Celebration Hall, Four Sovereigns Hall.

A naturally formed cave had somehow been made to resemble a Daoist temple.

As the two continued along the cave, the crooked-mouthed woman pulled a pitch-black lump from her pocket and suddenly held it out to David Thompson, saying in her dull, slow voice, “Want some sticky candy?”

David Thompson frowned slightly, seeming to understand her simple-mindedness, and impatiently took it, stuffing it into his sleeve.

Seeing David Thompson accept it, she pulled out another piece and popped it into her own mouth, grinning foolishly as she continued, “Master is nice, Master gives candy.”

David Thompson had nothing to say to this. The two continued walking for about a quarter of an hour, until a tall, ancient-looking, pitch-black alchemy furnace appeared before him.

The furnace, billowing with green smoke, reached all the way to the cave ceiling, so huge it looked like a metal mountain.

Watching the furnace grow larger as he approached, until its shadow completely engulfed him, David Thompson felt an overwhelming sense of oppression.