“You... why did you come here?” Ethan Brooks glanced at the crack on the mountainside below. It was extremely steep, impossible for anyone to climb down. Even a slight misstep would send one tumbling into the great river at the foot of the mountain.

Especially since the river was rapid—falling in meant almost certain death.

“It's not just me, there are a few others from nearby counties. We're all here. Mr. Brooks, let's talk later, please get us out first.” Henry Smith spoke anxiously. Perhaps because he had been leaning out for too long, as soon as he finished speaking, his hand grabbed at empty air. If not for a companion grabbing his clothes from behind, he would have slipped and fallen, making Henry Smith's face turn even paler from fright.

Ethan Brooks saw the danger, but he had come up the mountain alone and had no rope, so there was no way to rescue them. He looked back at the wild vines covering the mountain, his eyes lighting up as he immediately began searching.

He was already thin and weak, and after two incense sticks’ time, he finally found a vine long enough. Panting, he hurriedly rolled up the vine and returned to the edge of the cliff, calling out Henry Smith's name as he bent down to lower the vine down the cliff.

“You still haven’t said—how did you all get down there?” Ethan Brooks asked along the vine.

“Flew!” The one who said this wasn’t Henry Smith, but a boy of about eight or nine next to him, who stuck his head out and spoke loudly, looking sturdy and energetic.

“Nonsense, flew? If you could fly down, why not fly back up now?” Ethan Brooks mocked, simply pulling the vine up a bit.

“Don’t listen to him. We were caught by a woman who could fly. She said she was taking us to some sect to be laborers.” Henry Smith quickly explained, afraid that Ethan Brooks would take the vine back.

“More nonsense. Flying? That’s a legendary immortal—who would believe that?” Ethan Brooks scoffed inwardly. He’d read plenty of stories about people meeting immortals and becoming rich, but those were just tales to fool people.

The vine soon reached the crack in the cliff, and Henry Smith grabbed it. But suddenly, Ethan Brooks felt a chill behind him, as if the temperature around him had dropped to winter, making him shiver. Instinctively turning around, he cried out in shock, nearly stepping off the cliff.

A woman with a pale face, ageless in appearance, dressed in a silver robe, stood there staring at Ethan Brooks expressionlessly. She was stunningly beautiful, but her deathly white face and chilling aura made her seem as if she had just crawled out of a grave.

“Some talent. Since you came on your own, consider it your fate.”

Her voice sounded in his ears like bones scraping together. Especially her eyes—they seemed to contain some strange power. Just one glance made Ethan Brooks feel a wave of cold sweep over his body, as if he had no secrets before her, completely seen through.

As her words echoed, the woman flicked her wide sleeve, and a gust of green wind instantly swept up Ethan Brooks. As he cried out in alarm, the woman leapt off the cliff with him. The scene happened so fast that Ethan Brooks's mind went blank.

When they reached the crack, the woman flung her hand, tossing Ethan Brooks directly into the crevice. The green wind howled as she stepped in herself. Her arrival made Henry Smith and the other two boys shrink back in terror.

The woman stood there silently, only glancing up at the vine hanging down from above.

Ethan Brooks trembled, his heart pounding. After getting up, he quickly looked around. The crack was small, barely enough space for a few people to stand.

When his gaze fell on Henry Smith, he saw the two boys beside him—one sturdy and energetic, the other fair-skinned and chubby. Both were trembling, faces full of fear, on the verge of tears.

“Just one short. You’ll join them.” The woman, her face emotionless as ever, stopped looking at the vine and turned her gaze to Ethan Brooks.

“Who... who are you?” Ethan Brooks forced himself to suppress his fear. He had read many books and was strong-willed. Though terrified, he knew he must not panic now.

The woman said nothing. She raised her right hand and waved. The green wind appeared again, sweeping up Ethan Brooks, Henry Smith, and the others. Together with the woman, they flew out of the cave, soaring straight into the sky and vanishing in an instant. Only the great green mountain remained, still towering, gradually merging into the darkness of dusk.

Ethan Brooks's face was pale. He saw himself within the green wind, actually crossing the heavens, flying swiftly through the world. The wind howled into his mouth, making it hard to breathe, but a single word kept echoing in his mind.

“Immortal?” He lasted only a few dozen breaths before he could bear it no longer, his vision going black as he fainted.

When he opened his eyes, he was already on a flat stone clearing halfway up a mountain. Peaks rose all around, shrouded in clouds and mist—clearly not the mortal world. He could see exquisite pavilions encircling the mountains, everything unfamiliar.

Beside him, Henry Smith and the other two boys had also woken up, trembling in fear as they stared at the woman standing ahead with her back to them.

In front of the woman stood two men in green robes, both appearing to be about twenty years old. Their eyes were sunken, pupils a vivid green, making them look terrifying.