This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, and people, living or dead, are purely coincidental. It does not aim to represent any culture or endorse any behavior.
*
Cultivation ruled everything in this world.
Humans and other species could sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth and break the barriers of mortality. They molded their mortal bodies through cultivation, gaining immense power and vitality.
All to reach the realm of immortals.
Billions strived from an early age to reach the Heavens and yet only a small part could cultivate. Cultivators, true gods among men and symbols of power and prestige, often treated common mortals as livestock or servants.
As time passed and society adapted, a group of supreme beings enforced honor and justice. Cultivators no longer trampled mortals with ease, but they didn’t always respect the rules. Absolute strength tore rules apart without effort, and clans and sects stood at the peak of power.
With many worlds, countless territories, and beings, humans were often mistaken as the weakest species. Traveling between worlds was difficult, but the realms contained mysterious ways and arts.
*
Soaring Country, Cloud Province, near Bluecloud City, Bright Clan.
The Bright Clan of the Cloud Province was a fourth-ranked influence inside Soaring Country. Larger than normal clans, among cultivators it couldn’t boast exceptional prestige.
A land full of spiritual energy, resources, cultivation laws, and arts affected the potential of a clan. Reaching greater heights required improvements in all those areas.
Without natural spiritual energy and resources, cultivation slowed down. Without adequate cultivation laws, cultivation had limits. Without proper arts, cultivation did not reach its potential.
Cultivator clans often settled on special locations with abundant spiritual energy. Those lacking power couldn’t earn one of those locations without great luck or sacrifice. The land of the Bright Clan that once brimmed with spiritual energy now barely stood above normal locations in the world.
The deterioration of the land contributed to the decline of the clan. It hanged on as a fourth-ranked influence by a small margin, the next years to determine its fate. All elders stood on alert.
To make things worse, the other clans pressured the Bright Clan to prevent its growth as it still possessed a large amount of land, some good pill recipes, and controlled a spirit herb garden. A thin spirit vein nourished it, and few boasted having one in their lands.
Even though they sold herbs and low-grade pills, exploration and hunting were their lifelines and main revenue. Every clan in the Cloud Province sent teams on expeditions and hunts.
The world had many mystical places to explore, some created by mysterious principles and powers, others inheritances from powerful beings. To cultivators, they presented destiny changing opportunities sent from Heaven. To a clan, a source of income, with great risk of death and conflict.
The hunt for spirit beasts was also lucrative. Blood and cores aided cultivation, the meat was rich in spiritual energy and nutrients. Hunters sold skins, scales, bones, and other rare materials to blacksmiths and alchemists. Hunting and exploration served as less prestigious clan’s backbone, and the Bright Clan was no different.
Aside from those, wars raged on as common occurrences, so clans acted as mercenaries. Prestigious clans avoided doing so not to risk arts or talents falling to the enemies.
If the royal family or the overlord of the Cloud Province waged war, the clans contributed to manpower and resources. Refuse the call, and as the war ended, they would be the target of a purge.
“How many died this time?” An old man of white long hair sat in front of a few elders of the clan with a distressed look.
“Patriarch, almost the entire team. Oldest elder also…” One middle-aged man reported.
“By the Heavens, elder Li fell?” The patriarch’s face twisted from shock.
Elder Li, the oldest in the entire clan, lived for over five hundred years with cultivation at the first layer of the Spirit Gate Realm. Within the clan, a powerhouse only second to the patriarch himself.
Body Tempering, Spirit Sea, Spirit Gate, and Heavenly Palace Realm were the cultivation realms commonly known to cultivators.
In the Body Tempering Realm, the cultivator built the foundation to strive for immortality. It focused on tempering the mortal body, cleansing impurities, and strengthening the core. At this stage, the spirit sea was still unstable and incomplete.
In the Spirit Sea Realm, the cultivator formed a complete spirit sea, allowing him to store and transform more spiritual energy and use it outside the body. At this stage, some cultivators had true elements and rare energies. Those blessed with such powers were Heaven’s Chosen talents. The Spirit Sea Realm was the beginning of a true cultivator’s path.
In the Spirit Gate Realm, the cultivator opened the inner gates. Each layer corresponded to a new gate, and each gate brought forth increased power. The inner gates linked to elements, energies, and principles of the world. From this point on, cultivation became more mysterious and difficult, a wall most couldn’t overcome.
Those three were the realms before the beginning of immortality, called “mortal cultivation”. The Heavenly Palace Realm stood between the “mortal” and “immortal” world of cultivation, an almost unreachable height to those of the Lower Realms.
Elder Li was a Spirit Gate cultivator!
As a godlike existence to a fourth-ranked influence, normally he would stay at the clan, focused on cultivation. This time the expedition’s importance made him lead the team.
“Are the other clans responsible?” One elder asked.
The middle-aged man from before shook the head, “We don’t know, this time the Thousand Gates Secret Realm was unstable. Elder Li knew the dangers but refused to turn back. The White Clan had the greatest fortune inside.”
The patriarch sighed, feeling unmotivated and without energy. The power of the Bright Clan decreased every year, and even an important figure like elder Li died.
In fact, this old man was not supposed to be the patriarch. He wanted nothing more than to go into seclusion and cultivate. The former patriarch, his grandson, died while fighting spirit beasts during an invasion. He had no choice but to step into the position once more.
“We will honor the dead with a ceremony. As for elder Li’s family, hand out an adequate compensation. Make sure not to neglect his descendants.”
In the past, the Bright Clan had many branches. Now the descendants decreased, so dividing into branches was pointless. The suffering it had been through fortified solidarity, especially among the younger disciples.
“How is the training of the younger generation?” The patriarch had great hopes of nurturing talent to change the future of the clan. Yet the lack of resources, better cultivation laws, and arts worried him.
Ming Zan, the elder in charge of training, almost sighed out loud, “They work hard. As patriarch knows, the average talent is not bad, but the conditions… we have no choice but to focus our resources.”
“Ming Qiu, Ming Bo, and Ming Lan are our greatest prospects. Ming Qiu is already at the peak of the eight layer at only fourteen years old. Ming Bo and Ming Lan are at the sixth layer, but already thirteen.”
The others were not worth mentioning. Some of the older generations had a higher cultivation base but were past the critical age.
As long as someone broke through to the Spirit Sea Realm before the age of fifteen they would consider him a genius. Not only at the Bright Clan or the Cloud Province, but the entire Soaring Country. Reaching the eight layer at that age and with the clan’s current resources meant Ming Qiu was a great talent.
“I will train those three from now on. For the others, the scripture will open again tomorrow.” The elders had a disappointed expression as the patriarch’s command ended.
In the Bright Clan, there was one ancient scripture left behind by their ancestors. A mystic treasure capable of sharing the clan’s cultivation laws and other knowledge.
The clan’s youth meditated within the scripture for a day, hoping for enlightenment, but most of the elders thought this was a waste of time because they only received basic laws. The cultivation law handed down was already in the clan and the knowledge in there only common.
A waste of time, but the patriarch wouldn’t change his mind.
**
In a spot near Bluecloud City, away from the limits of the Bright Clan, two youths fiercely exchanged blows. The leaves near the group whirled in the air, pushed by the impact of inner spiritual energy.
The first youth, with long black hair and a white training robe, had a gentle and handsome face. He had a slim figure, a defined body, determined green eyes, and cultivation at the fourth layer of the Body Tempering Realm. Ming Ren, fourteen years old.
The other youth had short brown hair and a fierce look, wearing a brown training robe. His skin color carried a tint of red and he had scarlet eyes. He was almost an entire head taller than Ming Ren, with a much larger and muscular build. Eight layer of the Body Tempering Realm, fourteen years old, Bai Xun of the White Clan.
Close to them, a girl sat on top of a rock. She had a lean and graceful body with deep mysterious brown eyes, an above-average face with tomboyish looks and a purple robe. Eight layer of the Body Tempering Realm, fourteen years old, Yun Shufen of the Cloud Clan.
Ming Ren kicked like a whip with the right leg aiming at Bai Xun’s head. He had an advantage in speed but lost in natural strength and realm. His opponent suppressed cultivation to the same realm during practice. Bai Xun raised the left hand, blocking with some difficulty, and counterattacked with a kick of his own. Ming Ren had already jumped back.
They looked at each other for a second and rushed forward. Ming Ren struck with a quick and fluid fist that carried inner spiritual energy, the [Bright Fist] art of his clan. Bai Xun wanted to meet his fist using the [One Hundred Fist] art of the White Clan but was slower. Ming Ren connected first against his chest, sending him back a few meters!
Bai Xun took little damage, having tempered his body to the eight layer.
“Hahaha, serves you right! Competing against Ming Ren with speed? Even I have a hard time doing that!” Yun Shufen teased.
Bai Xun glanced at her for a second before letting out a sigh, “Brother, I’m four layers higher than you and I still lose every time.”
“Realm isn’t everything! Our mastery over those arts is still lacking. I’d lose to you in raw strength. And besides, you’re even suppressing your cultivation,” Ming Ren smiled.
“Brother, that’s not a good way to comfort me…” Bai Xun cried.
“You don’t need any comfort,” Ming Ren paid no attention to his complaints, “Sister Shufen, are you going to spar?”
She shook the head, “I need to go back, If father finds out I’m sneaking around to train with you guys, I’m dead.”
They might be good friends, but their clans often competed. The White Clan and Bright Clan were closer, but the Cloud Clan stood in direct opposition. Aside from the City Lord’s Mansion, Bluecloud City had four fourth-ranked influences: the Bright, White, Cloud, and Silver clans.
“You should go back too, Little Ren. I heard your clan didn’t do well in the secret realm,” Yun Shufen added. One of her subordinates passed the news earlier.
Ming Ren sighed. His Bright Clan was in a precarious position lately. He did his best to cultivate but continued stuck at the fourth layer for years.
“Brother, I don’t get it, how come you can’t break through? I can beat anyone else from my generation in the White Clan, and even some seniors, but I’m powerless against you. You’re always the first to understand a technique, and you can even understand pills, but you’re stuck at the fourth layer since forever. And at the bottom, too.” Bai Xun sighed.
How could Ming Ren answer?
He used many precious herbs and methods to no avail. The elders arranged for an expert to check his constitution, only to say his talent was poor.
His mind differed from the others. In this world of cultivation, power was everything, yet he did not wish to pursue power for the sake of power.
Was this the reason?
A curious child by nature, Ming Ren wanted to know everything about the mysteries of the world. The secrets behind martial arts, the Dao of this world, and cultivation itself. He loved fighting the strong and felt a need to protect the weak.
His brain entered curious mode with a new art in front of his eyes, and he would try to replicate and understand it. With an exquisite formation, he would stare and learn about it even if he couldn’t understand a thing.
The clans measured talent by cultivation base. Untalented ones received secondary tasks and fewer resources. Some clans considered them trash, unfit to cultivate. The Bright Clan believed destiny could also affect a cultivator’s fortunes and even those without talent had a chance. The current patriarch only reached the Spirit Gate Realm by luck and not talent.
Bai Xun and Yun Shufen were the same age as him and already at the peak of the eight layer. Powerful sects and the Royal Academy already scouted both. With effort and luck, reaching the Spirit Sea Realm at fifteen would not be a dream.
“Are you stupid? Why did you ask that? Can’t you see Little Ren already has a lot on his mind, you fool?” Yun Shufen, the oldest by a month, acted as the big sister. Bai Xun apologized, he had no way of helping his good brother.
The three friends bid goodbye and went to their respective clans. Many experts lurked in the shadows, protecting their young master and mistress, the White and Cloud clans emblems hanging at their clothes. Only the Bright Clan didn’t need to send any.
Back in the Bright Clan, Ming Ren attended the ceremony in honor of the fallen. Elder Li was a kind senior that cared much for everyone in the younger generation. As for Ming Ren skipping training, the elders long stopped enforcing his schedule as only luck could change his fate as a Cultivator. They didn’t encourage him to give up but also expected nothing. If he wanted to stop training, no one would object.
‘One day I will have enough strength to protect everyone,’ Ming Ren thought.
Elder Ming Zan then announced the younger generation would gather tomorrow for the Bright Scripture. Most of the youths had no reaction to it, some even complained. One of them reacted differently.
Ming Ren’s eyes shone with excitement.