Someone thought that when the old immortal arrived, he seemed to have bloodstains on him—could it be that he was being hunted by an enemy?

What if the old immortal was already dead, and his enemies came looking for him and implicated us—what would we do then?

Those who had this thought immediately wanted to throw Henry Foster into the pigsty!

But there were also those who disagreed—what if the old immortal came back? Wouldn’t a good thing turn into a disaster then?

Torn between both sides, it was the old clan chief who made the decision: this child absolutely could not be abandoned. The old immortal could ride the clouds and drive the mist; if he got angry, this tiny Niutou Village would never be able to withstand it. Nor could they let him starve to death—they had to raise him for now. If the old immortal really did return one day, this would be their bargaining chip to ask him for a share of immortal fate. So, they had to take good care of him in the village...

That’s what they said, but no one was willing to adopt the baby.

If things really were as some guessed, and the old immortal was dead and his enemies came looking, whoever adopted him would be in for bad luck, wouldn’t they?

In the end, it was still the old clan chief who made the decision: take turns raising him!

In this tiny Niutou Village, with dozens of households—pig butchers, cattle slaughterers, teachers, hunters—no one could escape!

And so, with just this one sentence, Henry Foster was passed from family to family, one day at a time, and managed to survive.

The old immortal never returned, so he had no choice but to keep living in Niutou Village, gradually growing up. He couldn’t go without a name forever, so the only somewhat learned man in town, Mr. Bolton, gave him a name on the spot based on his origins.

No one knew where he came from, so his surname was Fang; since he was brought by an immortal, he must be a noble person, so his given name was Gui!

Though the name had some thought behind it, Henry Foster really did sound like he belonged in Niutou Village!

In this Niutou Village, Henry Foster slowly grew to be about ten years old. At first, the old immortal’s lingering prestige was still there, so he lived quite comfortably. No matter whose house he went to, he always had something to eat, and could even pick the best food. But who would have thought, after ten years without the old immortal’s return, the townspeople’s attitude toward Henry Foster gradually changed. They didn’t exactly shut him out, but there was definitely some dislike!

He still had food and clothes, but they got worse and worse.

Before, whoever’s turn it was would obediently take him in, but now, people started making excuses and acting strange!

As for Henry Foster, he’d heard since he was little that he was brought by the old immortal, so he was destined to be no ordinary person. Maybe there was a huge immortal inheritance waiting for him to claim one day. How could someone so remarkable tolerate being treated with such disdain?

Absolutely not!

It was one thing to dislike him in your heart, but to show it on your face—wasn’t that just making things hard for Master Foster?

So Henry Foster got clever. When the townspeople started grumbling because he’d stolen a chicken, he got angry. “I treat this Niutou Village as my home. If a family member is hungry and catches a chicken to eat, how can that be called stealing?”

He slapped the table and decided to boast with real backbone, saying that last night he dreamed of an old immortal, with white beard and eyebrows, riding the wind and driving lightning—clearly a very wealthy immortal. The immortal told him to meet at Black Wind Mountain, thirty li away, the next day, with important matters to entrust to him. He said he stole the chicken today to use as rations for the journey.

The villagers of Niutou Village were immediately frightened when they heard this. They didn’t know if it was true or not, but they were a bit in awe and didn’t dare argue anymore. Henry Foster was very pleased with himself and decided to actually make a trip to Black Wind Mountain. When he came back, he’d just tell them he met the old immortal, but the immortal told him to wait another ten years before returning. He’d see who in town would dare not fear him then...

He chose Black Wind Mountain for a reason. There were always legends of ghosts and gods there, and wild beasts roamed. By choosing this place, he could prevent the townspeople from secretly following him to spy. Master Foster had always been meticulous!

But even Henry Foster himself didn’t expect his luck to be even better than he imagined.

Maybe it was thanks to the copper coin—he actually did meet an immortal!

The copper coin on his chest was the only keepsake Henry Foster had. He’d worn it since birth. The coin was round on the outside and square on the inside, with an ancient bronze color, and the words “Qian Yuan Tong Bao” inscribed on it. No one knew which country it was from—not even the well-traveled Walter Redman or The Village Chief knew its origin. But Henry Foster always carried it with him and had discovered its special properties.

Whenever he didn’t know what to do, he just used the coin for divination, and he’d immediately be able to make the choice most favorable to himself.

For example, when he was little and didn’t know whether to pick sour dates on the south mountain or look for bird nests on the north mountain, he’d flip the coin: heads for north, tails for south. If he followed the coin and went north, he’d find not only bird nests but also a whole patch of ripe sour dates. When he didn’t know whether to eat at Butcher Thompson’s or Scholar Bolton’s house, he’d toss the coin and hurry to Scholar Bolton’s. Sure enough, he’d find that Butcher Thompson, who slaughtered pigs every day, was eating cornmeal porridge, while the poor Scholar Bolton was secretly stewing meat!

This time, he was going to save someone, and it was also thanks to the coin’s decision—sure enough, he had a stroke of great luck!

After all, this was an immortal...

Chapter Three: Immortal Pills and Centipedes