I attained sainthood through alchemy on the cliff.

Chapter 18 People from the Mountain

The night wind at the cliffside is even more biting than down the mountain, howling as it sweeps across the jagged rock walls and rows of coffin niches, carrying with it an unchanging loneliness and desolation.

Yang Jin knelt in front of a newly dug cave.

The entrance to the cave is small, allowing only one person to enter by bending over. Inside, Atu has roughly renovated it into a simple tomb chamber.

Shi Jian's body has been carefully placed in it.

He found a relatively flat rock, used his finger as a pen, poured in the remaining blood and energy, and painstakingly carved the words "Tomb of my benefactor Shi Jian" on it, crooked but deeply embedded in the stone, and placed it inside the cave.

After doing all this, he took a few steps back, knelt down again, and kowtowed nine times towards the dark cave entrance.

The skull struck the rock, producing a dull thud that echoed between the cliff faces.

"Master Shi..." Yang Jin began, his voice hoarse and broken by the mountain wind, "Rest in peace. This place is high and quiet; no one can disturb you anymore. You watched me... crawl out of the coffin at the bottom of this cliff, and now, I'm bringing you up here so you can watch..."

He paused, and the suppressed grief and hatred in his chest surged up again, almost suffocating him.

"Watch how I make the Sun family pay for their crimes in blood! Watch how Sun Yaozu kneels before your grave, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness! Watch how in this Black Mountain Valley, no one will ever be able to bully the weak again!"

The vow was like a blood-stained nail, each word chiseled into the cold mountain rock, and into his own marrow.

The mountain wind howled, but no one answered.

Only the dark mountains in the distance and the sleeping village at his feet silently witnessed the transformation and resolute decision of a young man after the death of his loved ones.

"Do you want revenge?"

An old, hoarse voice, no longer listless but instead carrying a strange, penetrating quality, suddenly rang out from behind.

Yang Jin's muscles tensed up suddenly, like a frightened beast. He sprang up and turned around instantly, holding the bloodstained wood axe he had been gripping tightly in front of his chest. His bloodshot eyes were fixed on the source of the sound!

On a protruding rock at the edge of the cliff, a hunched and thin figure had appeared.

It was Chen Shan, who had been lounging in a rattan chair in the blacksmith's shop during the day.

He stood there, his tattered coarse cloth robe fluttering in the night wind, his cloudy eyes appearing unusually deep in the moonlight, calmly gazing at Yang Jin, as if he had been waiting there for a long time.

When did he arrive? I hadn't even noticed!

Yang Jin was shocked, and his killing intent and vigilance instantly reached their peak.

A-Tu also silently emerged from the shadows beside him, his mouth aimed at Chen Shan, emitting a low, threatening hiss.

"Who are you?"

Yang Jin's voice was icy, and the remaining blood and qi in his body began to circulate slowly, causing the stone skin to tighten.

Despite being severely injured and exhausted, he dared not relax in the slightest when facing this mysterious person.

In particular, the other party mentioned "revenge".

Chen Shan ignored A Tu's threat and focused his gaze on Yang Jin, looking him up and down. When he saw Yang Jin's pale face, the bandage on his chest that was bleeding, and his unusually steady stance and axe-wielding posture, a barely perceptible glint flashed in his eyes.

"Who am I? Just an old good-for-nothing who lives at the blacksmith's shop down the mountain, selling tattered books." Chen Shan smirked, a chilling smile in the night. "As for what you want to do... kid, I heard your oath. Blood for blood? Making Sun Yaozu kowtow and apologize? With your current appearance?"

He extended a withered finger and pointed it at Yang Jin from afar: "Seriously injured and still weak, you possess only a brute physique and a fierce spirit, but your martial arts skills are so crude they're almost unbearable to watch. You rely on a low-grade Yellow Rank 'Mountain Splitting Style' that you could buy at a street stall and this underground worm... Do you want to kill Sun Yaozu? Break into the Sun family mansion? Or confront the Sun family head-on, who may already be on alert and even have to bring reinforcements from the town again?"

Every word was like a cold needle, piercing Yang Jin's most realistic predicament.

He knew Chen Shan was right.

Killing Ma Liu was just the first step in venting his anger.

The real enemy, Sun Yaozu, and the entire Sun family behind him, still occupy Heishan'ao, their strength undiminished.

In his current state, he can barely protect himself, let alone seek revenge.

"So what?" Yang Jin gripped the axe handle tightly, his eyes as stubborn as a rock. "The grudge against Shi Gong cannot go unavenged! At worst, we'll fight to the death!"

"A fight to the death?" Chen Shan scoffed, shaking his head. His tone carried a hint of mockery, yet also a touch of wistful reminiscence. "Young people always think that risking your life is too simple. I've seen too many like you, full of enthusiasm, thinking that risking your life will change something. And what's the result? Just another skeleton lying on the ground, the enemy still getting away with it, and those who deserve to suffer continuing to suffer."

He paused, looking at the indomitable flame in Yang Jin's eyes, and softened his tone slightly: "You want revenge, not to die. What you need is the ability to truly kill your enemy and still survive."

"Can you teach me?" Yang Jin stared at him, not letting his guard down.

This person is too mysterious, and his appearance is too strange.

"Teach you?" Chen Shan lowered his gaze, landing on his hands, calloused and scarred from burns, trembling slightly. His voice deepened. "What profound martial arts could an old cripple like me, with all my meridians severed, my qi and blood depleted, unable to even swing a heavy hammer, possibly teach you?"

He raised his head, his gaze sharpening once more: "But I can tell you, you're on the wrong path! Or rather, you haven't even found the path yet! You possess a treasure trove but are oblivious to it!"

"What do you mean?" Yang Jin frowned.

"The membrane on your body is exceptionally tough, far surpassing that of ordinary Skin Refining Realm cultivators, and even carries a hint of mountain rock armor. This is definitely not something that can be achieved through ordinary blood and qi refinement."

Chen Shan slowly said, "What you're practicing isn't the ordinary skin-refining method like the 'Raging Bull Strength' from the Iron Bone Martial Arts School, is it? And that 'Mountain-Splitting Style,' you've only mastered the form but not the spirit. You've only grasped the crude outer shell, not the true meaning of 'splitting mountains,' let alone combined it with the power of your strange skin! You're begging with a golden bowl, using a wood-chopping axe as a divine weapon!"

Yang Jin was shocked!

This person has extremely sharp eyes; he saw through the special nature of his physique and the insufficiency of his cultivation at a glance!

He didn't actually have any orthodox cultivation techniques; he relied entirely on the Demon Ape Visualization Diagram, the essence of the earth veins, and the flesh and blood of strange beasts to create this "stone skin."

The "Splitting the Mountain" style was learned entirely on my own, without any guidance from anyone.

"You appear to have entered the Skin Refining Realm, but in reality, your foundation is weak, your blood and qi circulation is sluggish, and your fighting style is crude and unsightly. You might be able to deal with the likes of Ma Liu, but against a martial artist who has practiced proper techniques for a few days and understands the coordination of blood and qi, your brute force and clumsy defense will make you a sitting duck." Chen Shan continued his merciless analysis. "You want revenge? First, you need to survive, and then you need to truly turn this hard-earned strength into a killing weapon!"

Yang Jin remained silent.

He knew that everything Chen Shan said made sense.

In his brief encounter with Zhao Kun in the mine, if it weren't for the advantageous terrain and the trap, he would have been dead long ago.

He felt the enormous gap in strength deeply.

"Why are you helping me?" Yang Jin asked the most crucial question, recognizing the newcomer as the down-on-his-luck old martial arts master from the blacksmith shop. "Because Master Shi swapped your booklet?"

Chen Shan remained silent for a moment, gazing at the faint outline of the village in the darkness below the mountain, and slowly said, "Shi Jian was a good man, and also a fool. A good man deserves to die, but a fool... shouldn't have died in vain."

He withdrew his gaze and looked at Yang Jin with a complicated expression: "As for me... I've waited here in Black Mountain Pass for many years, watching the Sun family grow stronger, watching the martial arts school reach out, watching young people like you either get swallowed up or become hyenas like Ma Liu... It's very boring."

"I need an opportunity... a chance to see if this stagnant pool can be stirred, even boiled. I also need... an opportunity to verify some things." He paused, his tone becoming more serious. "And you, kid, there's something about you that makes me think... it might be worth a try."

"What is it?" Yang Jin pressed.

"Your eyes." Chen Shan looked directly at him. "Shi Jian's death filled your eyes with sorrow, anger, and hatred, but more than that, it showed a resolute determination to 'do it,' rather than the madness of 'mutual destruction.' You came out of the mine alive, with this alien insect and this strange cultivation... You have opportunities and secrets. I won't ask, but I want to see how far this opportunity and determination, coupled with a little bit of... perhaps outdated, but practically useful 'broken' experience, can take you."

He held up three withered fingers: "We can make a deal. I'll teach you how to truly control and utilize your existing power, how to transform the 'Mountain Splitting Style' into a real killing technique capable of cleaving through obstacles, and how to survive, hide, and gradually accumulate the resources for revenge in this Black Mountain Valley. In exchange..."

A cold glint flashed in Chen Shan's eyes: "I want you to do three things for me when you're capable. These three things won't go against your conscience, nor will they send you to your death, but I can't tell you the specifics now. You just need to answer: Do you dare, or don't you dare?"

The mountain wind howled, and the moonlight was cold and clear.

Yang Jin looked at the mysterious, down-on-his-luck old martial arts master in front of him, who seemed to know everything, and then glanced back at Shi Jian's dark tomb.

He needs power, real power.

It wasn't luck or a stroke of luck that he got through all his hard work, but rather the foundation that allowed him to keep going and fight his way back.

Chen Shan is currently the only person who could possibly provide this path.

As for the transaction... as long as it doesn't go against his original intention of avenging Shi Gong, he can afford the three things!

Faced with a blood feud, he had no other choice.

"I dare."

Yang Jin uttered two words, decisive and resolute.

A faint, enigmatic smile appeared on Chen Shan's face as he nodded. "Very good. Well then, the first lesson will begin with how not to become a sitting duck. First, you need a respectable identity and a safe place to stay."

With a flick of his wrist, as if by magic, a thin, cool-to-the-touch, skin-like object appeared in his palm.

"This is 'Thousand Faces Adhesive,' nothing rare, just a common trick used by the lowest rungs of the underworld. Wet it with water and apply it to your face; it can slightly alter your skin tone, conceal scars, and even subtly adjust your facial contours. Unless someone very familiar with you looks closely, it's hard to detect. The effect lasts three to five days, and it can be removed with water." Chen Shan tossed the item to Yang Jin. "Starting tomorrow, you'll be the mute I brought here from the Black Mountain mines to learn blacksmithing for a living, called 'Stone.' Talk less, work more, observe more, and listen more."

Yang Jin took the so-called "Thousand-Faced Glue," and felt its softness and slight elasticity, which reassured him somewhat.

With this, at least I can move around in the town or village to a limited extent without having to worry about being recognized by the Sun family's spies all the time.

"As for lodging," Chen Shan pointed down the mountain, "there's a small shed behind the blacksmith's shop where scrap and firewood are stored. If you tidy it up, you can live there. It's simple, but it's safe, right under my nose. As for food, I'll provide you with two meals a day, thin or dry. Figure it out yourself."

The conditions were harsh, but for Yang Jin at this moment, it was a godsend.

A relatively safe identity, a place to stay, and most importantly—a guide to show him the way forward.

Thank you.

Yang Jin put away the Thousand-Faced Glue and solemnly clasped his hands in a fist salute.

Chen Shan waved his hand: "Don't rush to thank me. What I'm going to teach you will be very difficult, very boring, and even... seem useless. If you can't persevere, or feel that I'm fooling you, you can leave at any time, and our deal will be void. But if you stay, you must follow my rules."

"I see."

Yang Jin nodded.

No matter how bitter life is, can it be as bitter as waiting to die in a stone coffin? Can it be as bitter as fighting a bloody battle in the mine? Can it be as bitter as watching the Stone God die tragically while you are powerless to do anything about it?

"It's almost dawn."

Chen Shan glanced at the faint glimmer of dawn appearing on the eastern horizon. "Pack your things, take your bugs, and come down the mountain with me. Remember, from now on, you are 'Stone,' a mute."

Yang Jin took one last look at Shi Jian's tomb, bowed silently, and told A Tu to seal the entrance. Then he turned around and followed Chen Shan along the treacherous cliff path toward the inconspicuous blacksmith shop at the foot of the mountain.

Atu quietly burrowed underground, like the most loyal shadow, following him away.