Bamboo Forest Village lay quietly at the foot of the mountain, with a river flowing through it, nourishing the land.
The village had flat terrain, surrounded by vast farmlands, where people lived by farming and hunting.
It was dusk, and farmers, after a day's hard work, were carrying their tools and leading their plowing oxen, heading home one after another…
In the northwest corner of the village, there was a solitary small wooden house, set a little apart from the other houses in the village, appearing particularly remote.
This was the Old Fang family's home.
Old Fang, an old bachelor who had lived his entire life in the village, had no wife or children.
Fortunately, when he was sixty, he found an infant from an unknown place, and thus had a grandson.
It was a pity that Old Fang had passed away half a year ago, leaving only his fifteen-year-old grandson, Fang Hong, at home.
At this moment, Fang Hong wore a worn straw hat and a short-sleeved coarse cloth shirt, his thin face looking even more tired under the glow of the setting sun.
He carried a bamboo basket in his right hand, filled with three lively, jumping fish, and a fishing rod in his left, as he slowly walked towards his home.
Upon returning home, Fang Hong entered the thatched kitchen, hung the fishing rod on the wall, then slumped onto a low wooden stool, letting out a long sigh.
His gaze fell upon the three large, live fish in the bamboo basket, and a look of joy involuntarily appeared on his face.
After an afternoon of fishing by the river, he finally had some harvest; tonight, he could enjoy delicious fish soup.
Suddenly, Fang Hong seemed to remember something and reached into his chest pocket, pulling out a black gourd.
This black gourd was about three inches in size, without a lid, and was entirely ink-black.
The gourd body was carved with a ferocious skull, its eyes hollow and deep, looking somewhat eerie.
Fang Hong placed the black gourd in his palm and examined it carefully.
He didn't know what this black gourd was, because he had fished it out of the river while fishing.
At the time, he just felt that the gourd had a warm, smooth texture, like some kind of beautiful jade, and thought it might be something valuable, so he brought it back…
"Whoosh whoosh!"
Just as Fang Hong was curiously examining the black gourd, two whistling sounds suddenly came from the sky!
Fang Hong's heart jumped, and he quickly walked out of the kitchen, looking up.
He saw two streaks of light cut across the sky; two Immortals were flying on swords, heading towards the village.
"Immortals! It's Immortals!"
"The Immortals are here again!!" Fang Hong's spirits lifted, his face full of pleasant surprise.
The so-called Immortals were cultivators, possessing magical power, capable of flying on swords, transcending the mundane, and roaming between heaven and earth.
Every few years, Immortals would come to the village to recruit children with Spiritual Roots to cultivate in the Immortal Sect.
Now that the Immortals had descended again, did this mean he also had a chance to become a cultivator?
Thinking of this, Fang Hong could no longer contain his excitement.
He hurried back to the small wooden house, casually threw the black gourd on the table, and no longer had the mind to study it.
Then, Fang Hong rummaged through the wooden cabinet for a relatively clean set of clothes and quickly changed into them.
Although these clothes were also a bit old, in Fang Hong's opinion, they were the most presentable attire at the moment, and he hoped to leave a good impression on the Immortals.
After changing, Fang Hong excitedly ran towards the village square, his steps light and his heart full of anticipation.
When Fang Hong arrived at the village square, many villagers had already gathered there.
They were gathered together, whispering, their faces filled with curiosity.
In front of the villagers stood an old man and a young man.
The old man wore a white robe, his hair and beard all white; although he seemed very old, his complexion was rosy, and his back was straight, truly looking like an old Immortal.
And the young man standing beside him also had an extraordinary appearance and a tall, straight figure; at this moment, he stood respectfully beside the old man.
"Greetings to the two Immortal Sirs…" Seeing the Immortals arrive, the villagers all bowed to them, their faces filled with reverence.
"You may dispense with the formalities. Have the children in the village who are ten years old or older come here to test for Spiritual Roots. If they have Spiritual Roots, they can follow us to the Taiyi Sect for cultivation," the White-robed Old Man raised his hand and commanded calmly.
"Quick! Have all the children in the village who are ten years old or older come over." The old village chief, leaning on his cane, shouted.
Hearing the village chief's words, the villagers all took action.
"Zhuzi, hurry and get in line! Maybe our Zhuzi can become an Immortal!"
"Gouwazi, you go up too."
…
Immediately, boys and girls flocked towards the line, forming a queue in front of the two Immortals.
Seeing this, Fang Hong also quickly joined the line, obediently taking his place.
At this moment, a villager saw the Immortals standing and thought of getting stools for them to sit on.
Just as he was about to turn to fetch the stools, the White-robed Old Man gently waved his hand.
In an instant, a spiritual light flashed, and a table and two chairs appeared out of thin air before everyone.
This miraculous scene left the boys and girls stunned, and Fang Hong was equally amazed.
He only saw a spiritual light flash from the gray cloth pouch at the old man's waist, and the table and chairs appeared!
After conjuring the table and chairs, the White-robed Old Man scanned the crowd, and seeing that most of the children had arrived, he gestured to the young man beside him.
The young Immortal understood, nodded, and then walked to the table and sat down.
Immediately after, he conjured a crystal ball out of thin air, and at the same time, paper and a pen also appeared on the table.
"This is a Spirit Testing Stone. Place your hand on it to detect your Spiritual Root. Begin," the young Immortal said indifferently.
The boy at the front of the line nervously stepped forward, his small face flushed red, his hands trembling slightly as he placed them on the crystal ball.
Everyone around fell silent, their eyes fixed on the crystal ball.
However, after a while, the crystal ball remained motionless…
"No Spiritual Root. Step down," the young Immortal shook his head, his tone somewhat cold.
Upon hearing this result, the boy's small face immediately became dejected.
He silently retreated to the side, his head bowed, his heart filled with disappointment; having no Spiritual Root meant he was fated to be without cultivation.
The next boy continued forward for testing. Fang Hong stood in the line, his face appearing calm on the surface, but his heart was very uneasy.
When he was a child, he always listened to his grandfather tell stories of Immortals, which made him yearn for them immensely.
He so hoped that he could also become a cultivator, flying on a sword like an Immortal, roaming between heaven and earth.
However, he also worried that he would be like the boy before him, without a Spiritual Root, unable to embark on the path of cultivation…
"Slap!"
Just as Fang Hong was feeling anxious, a fat hand suddenly landed on his shoulder!
Fang Hong was startled, his body stiffened abruptly, and he quickly turned his head to see a tall, stout man standing behind him.
Upon seeing this Fat Man, Fang Hong's face immediately turned pale and became unsightly!
The person who came was none other than Liu Pangzi, who often bullied him in the village.
Liu Pangzi's face was full of flesh, and he was grinning widely at this moment, his smile carrying a hint of malice…