Harold Whitman quickened his pace, crossed over a ridge, keeping his nephew in suspense, and only then answered unhurriedly, “This formula is inspired by the phrase ‘none but Mount Wu’s clouds will do.’ I gathered seventy-four kinds of medicinal herbs, six types of insects, experimented dozens of times, and finally refined it for six days and nights before I succeeded in making Wu Mountain! This formula is tasteless at first, but moments later, a sweet fragrance rushes straight to your bones. Nowhere else in the world can you find such a lingering sweetness! After taking Wu Mountain, even honey will taste unbearably bitter, impossible to swallow. Even if you grit your teeth and force it down with your eyes closed, your stomach will feel so bitter you’ll have to throw it all up!”

Logan Whitman was startled: “If you can’t eat anything, wouldn’t you starve to death?”

Harold Whitman let out a cold laugh: “Without the antidote, a person would literally starve themselves to death!”

Logan Whitman drew in a sharp breath. This ‘Wu Mountain’ formula, with its poetic name and sweet aftertaste, was actually a thousand times more poisonous than hemlock. Compared to ‘Wu Mountain,’ his own little sunshine-dispersing pill with its kiddie snack flavor really was child’s play.

Harold Whitman smiled and patted him on the shoulder. “This kind of test is about your state of mind and character. When I first created Wu Mountain, I did pretty well on the solution, but the patriarch said my temperament was too dark and I wasn’t fit to lead the whole clan, so he didn’t pass the position on to me.”

Logan Whitman looked up in astonishment, staring blankly at his uncle, not understanding why he was telling him all this, or what he was supposed to say in response.

But Harold Whitman just laughed heartily, reached out, and gave Logan Whitman a flick on the forehead. “What are you thinking about? What I mean is, right now you don’t need to worry about using formulas to answer questions. Matters of the heart can’t be forced!”

Harold Whitman paused, then continued, “Poisons are divided by the five elements. Plants, animals, birds, beasts, insects—all have their own attributes. Which part of them can be used in a formula, what effects different materials will have when combined, what kind of heat to use in refining—these are things you might not remember even if you spent your whole life studying. More often, you have to rely on intuition! I brought you into the mountains this time so you could learn the real skills our Wen ancestors left behind! Put your heart into it, and in a couple of years your horizons will naturally broaden. When your great-grandfather gives you a test, you’ll have your own answer. If you do well, you’ll get to play mahjong with the three great-grandpas, haha!”

Logan Whitman suddenly understood, hurried a few steps to walk alongside his uncle. “So first I have to train in these mountains, learn some useful skills, develop a poison formula that suits me, and in a couple of years great-grandpa will give me a test, and if I pass, I’ll be considered a graduate?”

Harold Whitman nodded. “That’s about right. But to create a formula that matches your own constitution, and to keep using the wrong techniques to refine poisons into your body, that’s not easy. You’ll have to take it slow.”

“So for these two years, I’ll be learning from you?”

Harold Whitman burst out laughing. “Kid, I don’t have that much free time! Our Wen family has too many things to handle outside. Just for you, this little rascal, I’ve already delayed two years. Of course, someone will teach you once you’re in the mountains. You’ll see!”

After a few more steps, Logan Whitman looked at his uncle again, full of questions. “You mean, these years I’ll be learning the insights our ancestors left behind?”

Harold Whitman waved his hand impatiently. “You’ll know when the time comes. No point asking now.”

“That’s not what I mean, I mean…” Logan Whitman stammered for a long time, his face turning red, and finally said awkwardly, “None of our ancestors ever figured out the way to cultivate to immortality… If I just follow their insights and skills, I don’t think… I don’t think I’ll become an immortal.” Ever since he learned his family had a background in cultivation, he’d been obsessed with the idea. You couldn’t blame him—what young person doesn’t dream of ascending to immortality and flying around the world?

His uncle stumbled, then smacked Logan Whitman on the back of the head. “What kind of nonsense is in that wooden head of yours! In two thousand years, our Wen family has produced countless geniuses, pushed the art of poison to its limits, and still never attained the Dao. Even back then, ancestor Lance Whitman didn’t succeed in the end. You’d better give up on that idea and focus on developing a poison formula that suits your own body! As for cultivating to immortality—heh, in my opinion, that’s just a beautiful dream. It’s fine to dream once in a while, but if you think about it all day, you’ll just fall behind in your studies!”

Logan Whitman was stunned. “Ancestor Lance Whitman?”

His uncle snorted and said no more, just lowered his head and hurried on, clearly not wanting to discuss the topic further.

Logan Whitman pulled out a carrot, munching as he started humming ‘Invisible Wings.’

Invisible wings make dreams last longer than the sky, leaving a wish for myself to imagine…

Harold Whitman burst out laughing and kicked him in the butt.

The uncle and nephew joked as they walked, never slowing their pace. Without seeming to exert themselves, they hopped and skipped through the endless green mountains, and before long, their figures were completely swallowed up by the vast wilderness.