To better understand this world, and also to have a place to settle down, Xu Zimo began his new life as a pill servant.

His daily tasks were simple.

He only needed to add charcoal to the alchemy furnace and observe the shape of the forming pills.

Spirit Herb Mountains existed solely to refine pills for the entire Martial Heaven Sacred Ground, supplying all disciples of the sect.

Meanwhile, Xu Zimo quietly worked on recovering his strength.

Apart from tending the furnace, he also borrowed books from others and spent his spare time reading them.

On this peak, besides Shangguan Lan and Xia Wanqing, the other two girls he had met were named Huang Yi and Zhang Chunchun.

He had become fairly familiar with them.

As for the other female disciples, he had no chance to interact with them.

“Big Dummy, it’s lunch time,” Huang Yi ran over and called out.

Perhaps it was because they seldom met any men on Spirit Herb Mountains, or perhaps it was because Xu Zimo was easy on the eyes.

Except for Xia Wanqing, who kept her distance, the other three girls treated him warmly.

“I’m not hungry,” Xu Zimo said with a smile, shaking his head.

“Go on, eat. The furnace will be fine for a while,” Huang Yi laughed.

She seemed cheerful, her eyes even sparkling with delight.

“What good thing happened to you?” Xu Zimo teased.

“Senior Brother Zhuo is coming to Spirit Herb Mountains this afternoon,” Huang Yi said, her face filled with girlish joy. Then she blurted out, “Ah, forget it, you wouldn’t understand anyway.”

“What Senior Brother Zhuo? Is he more handsome than me?” Xu Zimo asked.

“Of course he’s more...” she stopped halfway, looked him over carefully, then muttered, “Well… maybe just about the same. But he’s way stronger than you. He’s the number one figure in the inner court. You couldn’t catch up to him even if you tried your hardest.”

Xu Zimo only chuckled without replying, and continued feeding charcoal into the furnace.

The firewood crackled with sharp “pop, pop” sounds.

“Oh right, Senior Sister Xia wants to see you. She told me to tell you to go after you finish eating,” Huang Yi added quickly.

“Got it,” Xu Zimo nodded.

He tidied up the furnace and then headed out.

Xia Wanqing lived in a courtyard far from the furnace.

The courtyard was serene, with willow trees planted around it, and creeping vines climbing up and over the walls.

It was warm in winter, cool in summer, with a pavilion, rockery, and flowing water.

“Senior Sister Xia,” Xu Zimo called at the door several times.

The inner room’s door swung open on its own.

“Come in.”

Xu Zimo walked into the room.

Inside was a faint, refreshing fragrance. Xia Wanqing was seated at a dressing table, dressed in a long blue gown, grooming herself.

Her jet-black hair was streaked with threads of azure.

“Senior Sister, what did you want with me?” Xu Zimo asked.

Xia Wanqing rose to her feet. Her graceful, curvy figure was revealed in full. Looking at him with a touch of laziness, she asked, “Do you know why I kept you here?”

“No,” Xu Zimo shook his head.

“To put it bluntly, I want you to marry me,” Xia Wanqing said.

“Huh?” Xu Zimo froze. “You lowly perv, you just want my body!”

“What are you imagining?!” Xia Wanqing rolled her eyes at him, then explained, “I won’t hide it. My grandfather is the Sacred Lord of Martial Heaven Sacred Ground. Logically, the position of Young Sacred Lord should pass to me. But because I’m a woman, the elders strongly oppose it. They’re afraid that if I marry, the sect will fall into someone else’s hands.” She continued calmly, “So I made a wager with my grandfather. As long as I find a husband of his approval before he steps down, then I can inherit the position of Young Sacred Lord. Do you understand?”

“So I happened to show up just at the right time,” Xu Zimo said.

“You chose me, but why me?”

“Because no one in the sect would help me, and that would create endless troubles. I chose you because we’re not close. This is just a transaction.”

Xia Wanqing’s voice was steady.

“That sounds a bit like a bad drama,” Xu Zimo thought for a moment, then said, “Why should I help you?”

“I can provide you with cultivation resources. And since you’ve lost your memory, I’ll help you uncover your identity,” Xia Wanqing replied.

“Well? Think about it.”

“Sounds tempting, but I refuse,” Xu Zimo said with a laugh. “I’m only staying here temporarily. Eventually, I’ll leave. I don’t want to get caught up in sect politics.”

“You have no reason to refuse,” Xia Wanqing said flatly.

“But I just did,” Xu Zimo replied.

“If you don’t agree, I’ll tell my grandfather that you seduced me and abandoned me, toying with my feelings.”

“You sure you want to do that?” Xu Zimo asked, smiling faintly.

“What? You don’t believe I would?” Xia Wanqing looked at him.

“Fine, I agree. When’s the wedding night? I can hardly wait,” Xu Zimo chuckled.

Xia Wanqing ignored his banter and said instead, “Since you’re going to be my husband, even if it’s in name only, you’ll still need some ability. At the very least, you have to get past my grandfather’s scrutiny.”

“That’s a problem. I’ve always been a slacker,” Xu Zimo replied.

“You’re just a mortal body right now. It’s too late to train you in martial arts.”

Xia Wanqing continued, “If martial strength won’t do, then try scholarly skill. Read more. If your literary and poetic talent shines, my grandfather might approve.”

With that, she didn’t bother asking his opinion.

She simply said, “Starting tomorrow, whatever books you want, ask the others to fetch them for you. Also, move into this courtyard. You’ll live here.”

“You’ve already arranged everything. Nothing left for me to say,” Xu Zimo waved his hand.

Leaving the courtyard, he couldn’t help but marvel at how quickly his identity had changed.

“Master,” a voice came from the God World, it was Paimon.

“What is it?” Xu Zimo asked.

“You need to be careful of certain people,” Paimon warned.

“The Heavenly Court, the Ten God Bloodlines first of all, and also certain ancient hidden races. Since you’ve come here, you may encounter them at any time.”

“With my ascension, I’m sure they’ll be eager to hunt me down,” Xu Zimo smiled.

“That’s not a concern for now. The Heavenly Court is in the Calamity Immortal Heaven, the Ten God Bloodlines are in Infinite Heaven. Here in the Mortal Ascension Heaven, the threat is minimal,” Paimon said. “If possible, without alerting them, unsealing the Primordial Demon Cave where we were exiled would be the best step. That way, your strength will grow again. Only when you’ve amassed enough power to challenge the Nine Heavens itself will it be wise to act.”

“No rush. Let me first adapt to this world,” Xu Zimo replied.

That afternoon, he moved into Xia Wanqing’s courtyard.

He lived right next door to her.

He no longer had to tend the alchemy furnace, and could instead openly spend his time reading books.

The Sovereign Mountain Range were under the rule of the Star River God-Dynasty.

Beyond this empire, there were others, as well as countless dynasties and holy lands across the Outer Heavens, spreading their teachings to the world.

This place was but a corner of the Four Domains of the Mortal Ascension Heaven.