126, I have been infected. I do not know which strain it is, but my head feels like it is about to explode.

The process of these children climbing the mountain was quite tedious, but it did not take long to determine the locations of Han Li and Zhang Tie.

After about an hour of running, a child in the bamboo forest appeared to be losing his strength. Watching his dark skin and the way he scrambled with both hands and feet, it was clear that this must be Han Li.

Soon, the first one, Wu Yan, climbed to the top of the Bone-Refining Cliff, looking down at the others who were lagging behind. By noon, only seven children had made it to the top. Elder Yue looked at the sun, which had reached its zenith.

"Very well. From now on, there are six disciples who may join the Hundred-Section Hall and become inner disciples immediately," Elder Yue announced. "First place goes to Wu Yan, who, due to his outstanding performance, may enter the Seven-Mysteries Hall directly to learn the sect's unique techniques."

After speaking, Elder Yue stroked his chin and glanced at Zhang Tie and Han Li, who stood behind the others. Seeing their evident hard work and resilience, he accepted them as resident disciples, tasking them with building their foundations alongside the senior brothers. Shortly after, the senior disciples led the seven newcomers into the Hundred-Section Hall, while Lin Yang returned to his academy to await his new students.

...

At the Seven-Mysteries Sect in Jing Prefecture, Yue State.

It was the morning of the second day, and it was time for Lin Yang to instruct his pupils. As he was explaining the basics of calligraphy and the human meridians to the new arrivals, a disciple appeared at the door, bringing in a dark-skinned child and a sturdy, honest-looking boy.

"Master Lin, these are the two disciples sent by Doctor Mo," the disciple said. "Doctor Mo mentioned that they have been studying literacy for the past few months."

"Very well, you two, sit at the front," Lin Yang said.

Zhang Tie and Han Li sat at the desk in front of Lin Yang, looking somewhat uneasy.

"What are your names?" Lin Yang asked, despite already knowing.

Han Li stood up. His complexion was very dark—a healthy, sun-kissed dark rather than anything else. Though small in stature, his muscles were well-proportioned. His features were not striking, but they were common and pleasing to the eye. While nervous, his eyes held a glimmer of cunning and intelligence. His voice was firm and articulate as he replied, "Master, my name is Han Li."

Zhang Tie, on the other hand, looked like the embodiment of an honest person; even as a child, he was remarkably robust. After Han Li spoke, Zhang Tie fidgeted, at a loss, until he caught Han Li's encouraging look. He whispered, "My name is Zhang Tie."

"Very well, sit down."

Lin Yang's teaching session was standard; he had no intention of giving these two special treatment. Furthermore, showing them too much attention might arouse the suspicion of the sensitive Han Li.

...

A month later, Lin Yang finally spotted Han Li wandering through the God-Hand Valley. As soon as he saw him, Lin Yang flew into the air above the valley.

Below, Han Li walked with his head down, looking distracted and sullen. As he wandered through the small woods, Lin Yang began to scan every inch of the land with his divine sense. His consciousness swept across the valley, capturing every leaf and every pebble in his mind. Yet, the small green bottle was nowhere to be seen.

"How can this be? Does the small green bottle have some kind of shielding effect?"

Lin Yang cast an illusion spell and descended onto the path. Because of the spell, Han Li did not notice him. Lin Yang walked ahead of the boy, searching the path with his naked eyes. He examined every inch of ground, even brushing aside leaves with his hands.

Finally, after a quarter of an hour, he saw the mouth of a jade bottle protruding from the earth.

"This is the legendary Heaven-Sovereign Bottle."

Looking at the object—which currently could only ripen spiritual herbs but would eventually become a supreme treasure of the Immortal World—Lin Yang felt a surge of greed. However, his reason and self-confidence suppressed the urge. He felt a profound internal struggle, but eventually, he looked up at the birds flying freely in the sky and made his decision.

"I refuse to believe that with my own golden finger, I cannot achieve greatness on my own. If I cannot succeed with my own gifts, then having the Heaven-Sovereign Bottle is useless to me."

Having resolved this, Lin Yang left the bottle where it lay and departed. He was unaware that at that moment, a vast amount of energy was surging between heaven and earth; had he dared to touch the bottle, he would have been rejected and expelled by the world itself.

The true reason for this was that the entire world existed because of Han Li. In the future, the Heavenly Venerable Han would transcend to become a true master of existence. For someone who achieves such a state, traversing the corridors of time is a mere trifle. This state of "achieving one's true self" means breaking through the river of time, allowing one to exert full power at any given moment—a feat exemplified by figures like the Desolate Heavenly Emperor and Ye Hei.

Han Li remained unchanged, his mind still scattered and troubled as he walked along the path. A moment later, he stubbed his toe against a hard object, causing blood to flow. Even though he had already practiced the first layer of the Elephant Armor Technique, which made his skin and flesh tough, the impact still drew blood.

Seeing the injured Han Li, Lin Yang sighed and left the area. He returned to the private school, offered the manager a casual excuse for his departure, left the Seven-Mysteries Sect, and returned to the Cloud-Severing Mountain Range.

...

Lin Yang crossed the distance of a state and returned to the mountains. He had already claimed the teleportation array there. Now, he needed to find a way to make "Old Demon Han" discover one of the arrays.

"There are three spiritual veins left in Yellow Maple Valley. If I set up teleportation arrays in the other three, then, through the world's self-correcting forces, Han Li should be guided there."

The Heavenly Dao is the most unpredictable thing in the world. Although it is a program without consciousness, it always pulls everything back to its intended track. Bugs like Lin Yang are what influence that track. But the existence of bugs implies the possibility of repair, so the Heavenly Dao sometimes defaults to accepting their existence. It is like the classic programmer’s adage: "If the code runs, don't touch it; fix it only if the problem becomes critical."

Lin Yang spent his time installing three teleportation arrays across the spiritual veins of Yellow Maple Valley. He even weathered them to look old and ensured they connected to the teleportation array on that isolated island in the Chaotic Star Sea. As for what would become of Old Demon Han in the future, that was no longer Lin Yang's concern.

The only reason he had spent so much time looking for Han Li was due to the lingering nostalgia from his past life.