After walking for a full quarter of an hour, the three finally arrived at a secluded corner of the Heavenly Fiend Gang's compound.

Situated against the mountain, it was an isolated courtyard.

Over a hundred guards armed with steel blades and crossbows patrolled the perimeter. Tall and cold-faced, they exuded an immense, intangible pressure.

Upon entering the courtyard, rows of side rooms came into view.

Behind these rooms, nestled at the foot of the mountain, stood a detached two-story building.

The land surrounding the small building had been cleared and divided into neat, orderly plots, planted with various unknown medicinal herbs.

One of the burly guards pointed toward the side rooms and commanded,

"Pick an empty room. Three meals a day will be delivered to you. Until someone calls for you, you are strictly forbidden from stepping outside."

After speaking, the man stared coldly at Song Wen, silently urging him to hurry up and choose.

Song Wen randomly picked an empty room and walked inside.

The room contained only a table and chairs, a bed with basic bedding, and a teapot resting on the table. There was absolutely nothing else.

After a brief look around, Song Wen turned and closed the door.

As he did, he took the opportunity to observe the situation outside.

The two burly men had already left the courtyard. With the heavy guard presence outside, they were not the least bit worried that Song Wen might try anything foolish.

Once the door clicked shut, Song Wen's expression twisted into one of fierce anger.

Up until now, he had been forcefully suppressing his rage.

The Heavenly Fiend Gang's absolute dominance and his own utter powerlessness filled his heart with suffocating resentment and hatred.

In this moment, an intense, desperate thirst for power surged within him.

Yesterday, while begging outside the teahouse, he had overheard the patrons whispering. He learned that in this world, there were martial artists capable of leaping over roofs and scaling walls.

Right now, he wished more than anything that he was a powerful martial hero who could slaughter his way straight through the entire Heavenly Fiend Gang.

Song Wen remained locked in that room for seven full days.

For the first two days, his heart seethed with indignant fury over the Heavenly Fiend Gang's tyrannical arrogance.

Being meat on the chopping block without the slightest ability to resist was a truly wretched feeling.

Fortunately, someone delivered food punctually at every mealtime. The meals weren't bad, either, offering both meat and vegetables.

After getting through those initial two days, Song Wen's mind gradually calmed down.

By the final two days, he had figured it out. Confining them to these rooms was likely a deliberate tactic by the Heavenly Fiend Gang to grind down their rebellious spirits and force them to accept reality.

On the eighth day, Song Wen finally heard a voice shouting outside.

"Everyone, out of your rooms immediately. Anyone who dawdles will face severe punishment!"

Soon after, the continuous sound of doors opening echoed throughout the courtyard.

Song Wen pushed his door open and stepped outside.

In the yard before the rooms, roughly a hundred teenagers were already gathered in scattered groups. Further away stood over a dozen blade-wielding members of the Heavenly Fiend Gang.

The youths huddled in threes and fives. Clearly, like Song Wen, they had mostly been brought here under duress, and many were muttering their grievances in hushed tones.

These teenagers were all locals of Yancheng and well aware of the Heavenly Fiend Gang's dominance. Although they seethed with anger and resentment, they could only point and whisper at the guards. They dared to be angry, but not to speak out.

Among them was a plump teenager in luxurious clothes who stood out like a crane in a flock of chickens against the impoverished, scrawny youths.

The plump youth angrily roared,

"Your Heavenly Fiend Gang has some nerve, daring to kidnap this young master! My father, Zhang Erhe, is the County Magistrate of Qingyuan County! You'd better escort me back immediately!"

His belligerent shouts were loud enough to draw the attention of everyone present.

Song Wen's gaze was drawn to him as well.

Qingyuan County was a subordinate county of Yancheng, located barely a hundred li away.

In the Qian Kingdom, a County Magistrate held considerable power.

Song Wen was curious to see how the Heavenly Fiend Gang would handle this plump youth.

Was this kid just the foolish son of a wealthy family, blind to reality? Or had the Heavenly Fiend Gang made a mistake and kicked an iron plate?

Hearing his shouting, the guards showed a hint of hesitation in their eyes, yet they remained where they stood. It clearly wasn't the first time they had heard him bring up his identity. However, they also seemed to find the issue of handling him somewhat thorny.

Just then, a figure stepped out from behind the guards.

The newcomer was a slender man of about forty, sporting a distinctive thin mustache.

Seeing the plump youth roaring in the courtyard, the mustached man's eyes flashed with deep impatience.

He raised his right hand, a piece of yellow talisman paper pinched between his fingers, and gave a light shout.

"Go!"

The talisman in his hand abruptly burst into ashes, and a fireball the size of a human head manifested out of thin air.

The fireball radiated a terrifying, scorching heat, causing the surrounding space to ripple and distort.

The fireball shot forward with the speed of lightning, howling fiercely as it arrived before the plump youth in the blink of an eye.

Staring at the fireball that had suddenly appeared before him, the plump youth's eyes filled with stark terror. Just as the thought of running crossed his mind, the fireball slammed directly into his chest.

His heavy body absorbed the tremendous impact, sending him flying completely off his feet.

"Ah-!"

Amidst his piercing, agonized shrieks, the scorching flames rapidly engulfed his entire body.

Before he even hit the ground, he was already a human torch.

Sizzling and crackling sounds of burning fat filled the air, soon followed by the sickening stench of charring flesh.

A mere dozen breaths later, a living, breathing person had been reduced to a pile of ashes. Not even a fragment of bone remained.

Everyone was stunned by the sudden horror. Over a hundred youths stared in pale, deathly silence at the spot where the plump teenager had burned.

Despite having lived two lives, Song Wen was equally terrified by the scene.

He was horrified by the absolute audacity of the Heavenly Fiend Gang to murder a County Magistrate's son in broad daylight. They clearly placed no importance on the Qian Kingdom's royal court-or the hundred-plus youths witnessing it.

He was also deeply shaken by the mustached man's methods. Summoning a fireball with nothing but a yellow talisman-this was clearly no martial arts technique. It looked exactly like the abilities of the cultivators from the legends of his past life!

Could this be a cultivation world?

Just as doubt and uncertainty whirled in Song Wen's mind, someone in the courtyard answered his question.

"He's an Immortal!"

A simply dressed youth wearing patched clothes suddenly dropped to his knees, shouting with an expression of mingled terror and profound reverence.

The cry jolted the rest of the crowd awake. More and more youths dropped to their knees, bowing in submission to the mustached man.

The mustached man's miraculous and ruthless methods instantly snuffed out any lingering thoughts of rebellion among them.

Following the crowd's reaction, Song Wen also dropped to his knees.

His heart roiled like turbulent waves.

This was true power. It was vastly superior to those martial heroes who merely leapt over rooftops.

One day, I must possess this kind of power too.

Having endured consecutive days of helpless subjugation, Song Wen's eyes filled with an unshakeable resolve.

The power of an Immortal would guarantee his rise as a strong figure in this world. Never again would he be manipulated like a pawn or bullied at will.

The mustached man's immortal technique hadn't just cowed the youths; even the Heavenly Fiend Gang guards showed deep reverence and fear in their eyes.

Taking in the scene, the mustached man's lips curled into a satisfied smile.

The effect of killing a chicken to warn the monkeys had perfectly met his expectations.

His gaze swept disdainfully over the kneeling youths, naturally exuding the lofty aura of a supreme entity fully in control.

"I am a cultivator of the Immortal Dao, known as Daoist Master Jiyin. I practice orthodox and righteous Daoist arts, so you have no need to fear."

"You have been gathered here so that I may bestow upon you a great Fated Chance-the chance to attain the Dao, become Immortals, and seek eternal life."

"For the next month, I will personally teach you all the immortal cultivation technique, the Everlasting Longevity Art. Anyone who successfully manages to 'draw Qi into the body' within a month will become my personal disciple."

"I expect you to cherish this Fated Chance. Even if those who draw Qi into the body fail to achieve eternal life, they will still possess formidable strength. Wealth, honor, and glory will be yours for the taking."

As soon as Jiyin finished speaking, intense excitement rippled through the teenagers. Everyone stared fervently at him, their eyes burning with expectation and desperate longing.

Song Wen also felt a surge of excitement. He had never expected that obtaining a Fated Chance to cultivate would be this simple.

Yet, simultaneously, a sharp sense of vigilance rose in his heart.

Jiyin's psychological manipulation was incredibly effective. First, he used thunderous brutality to shatter their wills, then dangled a Fated Chance to buy their absolute loyalty.

It was the classic tactic of giving a slap followed by a sweet date. As a result, every single youth here would pour their blood, sweat, and tears into practicing the Everlasting Longevity Art.

Things are definitely not as simple as Jiyin makes them out to be. Who would hand out a Fated Chance of cultivation for nothing in return? Jiyin must have an ulterior motive. This Fated Chance is probably going to come at a terrible price.