CHAPTER ONE - LIANG CHEN

In a world of fantasies and great myteries, there, on the streets of the capital of the country
of Zhou, a young boy named Liang Chen lived. He is an orphan who struggled for everything
he had despite having to live in the most expensive city in the country. He grew up very poor
which was a step up in his lifestyle when it was time to enter the mandatory military service.
In Zhou country, all male citizens not of noble birth are to enlist in the military when they
turn 16. All who enlisted were to serve for five years during which you will be trained and
tested and if deemed worthy you might rise in ranks and stay in the military longer. In this
world, one is recognized as an adult when one turns 16 and so did Liang Chen who saw this
as an opportunity for him to rise from his lowly street kid status to a military man-he saw
this as a springboard to becoming a wealthy man. To Liang Chen, this was the start of his
glorious life but unfortunately, things don't always go as planned.

Four years later Liang Chen who was now a twenty-year-old young man who looked strong
at a glance had risen in rank since he started but he soon realized that a certain amount of
strength was required to be promoted higher in the military. It does not matter how
intelligent you are or how resourceful you may be, might if the determining factor. Liang
Chen did not have that kind of strength, to acquire such strength certain criteria have to be
met. This is power that is beyond the capabilities of any normal man and those who wield
such power are known as cultivators. Cultivators could harness qi and use it for many
purposes, mostly in battle, but to do that one must have the ability to sense the qi and this
required a spiritual root. Then to store it within your body you needed a dantian. A dantian
is a spiritual organ located just below the naval area and acts as a storage for qi and as there
primary source of power for all cultivators.

……

Liang Chen had neither a dantian nor a spirit root and so was destined to never be a
cultivator, which is why he had no way out of the problem he was currently facing. It turns
out that during one of his protection missions, some goods had gone missing. Theft was a
major infraction on the military laws and it was clear to all that it had been stolen. He is
being accused of being the thief but Liang Chen swears he did not take it, however, he knew
who took it but could not say because the thief's status was too high that he couldn't afford
to offend him. Being the son of one of the army generals and a potential cultivator, Liang
Chen knew it was a waste of breath to point out the real thief for even if he did no one
would believe him, and even those who did believe him would not dare say anything about
it because as a consequence they might quietly disappear including him, no questions asked.
There was no way he could vindicate himself without losing his head so he received his
punishment of a dishonorable discharge and that was the last time he was spotted in the
capital. He had vanished quietly into the night, forgotten.

Liang Chen who had left the capital swore to himself that he was going to do everything
within his ability and beyond to get stronger, even if he did not have a spiritual root he was
still determined. Through his time serving in the military, he had always heard of martial
artists who through dedicated hard work and training could harness their inner force to
produce explosive strength in battle. He sought this path out because he wanted to get
stronger he needed to get stronger so as not to face such humiliation again in the future. In
terms of the will to get stronger, Liang Chen was sure he was inferior to no one and his
determination was strong.

He set out on his month-long journey to the second largest city in the country, Purple Leaf
City located in Purple County. The city and county were named after the city lord and
governor of the county Marquis Purple Leaf. Purple Leaf City is the cradle of martial arts in
the kingdom, all who aspire to become martial artists see it as a holy land. This city had
many organizations who controlled the day-to-day running of the city and sometimes had
influence within the county while obtaining benefits and making a lively-hood out of their
various dealings. One such gang is the Blood Saber gang, they had a reputation for being
very ruthless and powerful especially their leader, Chief Ouyang, one of the most powerful
martial artists within the county. This is the group Liang Chen joined and began his training
as a martial artist.

He also joined the Hunter's Association, an organization that had influence everywhere in
the kingdom and could be used to issue bounties and adventures and martial artists
qualified would complete the tasks in exchange for the promised rewards. The hunter's
association acted as a middleman and was responsible for the smooth running of every
business deal. To be qualified to accept missions you have to be a member of the
organization, You take their test and if successful you will be ranked from unranked hunter
to 9-star hunter. This represented different levels of benefits and value the organization
places on you. It also signifies your status and strength.

Liang Chen was now an unranked hunter and a martial artist, This brought him a lot of
comfort and for the next few years he lived a happy life but all good things must come to an
end for those without power.

CHAPTER TWO — THE CULTIVATION WORLD

In this cultivation world Liang Chen has heard so much of, it is said some immortals could fly
in the sky riding on flying swords, they could overturn seas with a flick of their hands and
shatter mountains with their fists and can live forever or so he has heard. There is only one
way to achieve immortality in this world and that is to follow the path of immortal
cultivation. It is said that cultivation itself is a practice that goes against the will of the
heavens as to live an eternal life one has to steal life from the heavens itself and this
requires strength which is why the heavens test your worth by sending a tribulation down on
you when there is a breakthrough.

Every time one breaks through a major realm there is a surge in strength and due to the
disturbance in the law of the world, there is a gap in the heavenly way allowing one to steal
life from the heavens itself using your newfound strength. This increases your lifespan and
for every breakthrough you make, so too does your lifespan increase.

In the immortal way of cultivation, there are Daoist cultivators who cultivate to become
immortals, Buddhist cultivators who aspire to become buddhas, and demonic cultivators
who strive to become devils. Daoists awaken spirit roots, Buddhists awaken spiritual
wisdom, and demonic cultivators have devil seeds but all their differences lead to one
inevitable end, immortality.

The immortal path of cultivation was divided into several levels;

- Houtian, where a mortal brings his body to the best condition possible. This could be done
by all as it didn't have any special requirements. People who complete Houtian usually have
a lifespan of 100 years. This was the realm Liang Chen was in but could not break through. At
the peak of the houtian one will be able to carry an object weighing 10000 jin.

- Qi condensation, where one would be able to start sensing the energy between heaven
and earth, absorb it, and store it within their dantian for their use. Cultivators of this level
usually have a lifespan of 200 years. They can start flying in the air using sword manipulation
techniques and flying swords. They also gain the ability to control spiritual qi and use it in
battle to release great strength. Officers in the army are generally at this level.

- Foundation establishment; known as the realm that determines how far one could go on
the cultivation path which depends on the grade of foundation one establishes. Foundations
are divided into three grades with grade 3 as the lowest and grade 1 as the highest. Their
lifespan is 300 years.

- Golden core realm; They condense the qi formed after their foundation into a golden
pellet. They have a lifespan of 500 years. Cultivators in this realm can float in the air without
the use of treasures and start comprehending the truths of heaven and earth.

- Nascent soul...

In this world, cultivators form groups and organizations known as sects and clans. This is
done to receive protection and resources from the organization and in return they swear
loyalty to the organization.

Liang Chen who had joined the martial arts community followed a different practice
altogether. At the peak of the houtian, martial artist push themselves further and if lucky
and the opportunity is right, they can unlock their inner strength and start using force. This
increases their combat strength and gives their martial techniques a great boost and
explosive power. Martial artists were divided into three ranks from grade 1 to grade 3, with
the latter being the strongest. It is said that a martial artist of grade 3 can rival a 2nd-level qi
condensation immortal cultivator in strength.
This world was not only ruled by men but some beasts had awakened spiritual intelligence
and could cultivate and also acquire incredible strength. They were generally known as
demonic beasts and were born with terrifying innate abilities making them stronger than the
ordinary cultivator of the same level with them in a one-on-one battle.

Like immortal cultivators demonic beasts are also divided into ranks but the limit of their
growth is also limited by their racial talents and bloodline potential.

A demonic beast of rank 1 is equal in strength to a qi condensation realm cultivator, rank 2 is

equal to a foundation establishment, and so on...

CHAPTER THREE - SPIRIT TURTLE VILLAGE

The Spirit Turtle Village is one of the busiest places within Zhou even though it is just a little
town within Purple Leaf County. Being the only village located so close and on the way to
the southern mountain ranges it had a buzzing economy as all adventurers and hunters who
wished to enter the mountains and needed supplies could get them from the village. It had
many inns and lots of businesses owned by private individuals and some by organizations.

Today was a very important day in the village as the Cloud Mist sect was conducting an
entrance test for the people of the town. if found to have talent for cultivation, it is
essentially like a carp leaping over the dragon's gate. It was a life-changing opportunity and
all wanted to be a part of the experience.

The sects of this world ruled over their territories which were hard-won through the blood
and sweat of their predecessors. They controlled countries and owned the resources in their
particular sphere of influence. Any infringement upon their resources could result in very
dire consequences. The sects were divided into different ranks depending on the strength of
the upper echelon.

The Cloud Mist sect was a rank 3 sect with the strongest person in the sect being at the peak
of the foundation establishment realm. It had in its influence many countries including Zhou.
The strongest person with Zhou was at the 7th level of the qi condensation stage, thus there
was no way a country could offend the sect. Thus the Cloud Mist sect could carry out its
entrance test without any fear that a problem may arise from within the kingdom.

Today within spirit turtle village stood a man atop a sword floating about 20 meters above
the ground. He was adorned in a blue robe embroidered with clouds on the sleeve. To
identify which sect a cultivator belonged to can be seen from the patterns on their sleeves.
The cloud patterns represented the cloud mist sect. The man atop the flying sword had long
black hair and a very stern face. Looking at him gave one the feeling that he did not belong
in the mortal world and gave one the feeling that he was immortal.

This was Jiang Nan, often referred to by the villagers as immortal Jiang. He has been in
charge of carrying out the test for the past three sessions, a test which was held once every
five years and only tested cultivators from age 16 to 25. He stood atop his flying sword
observing the process of the examination as he hoped this session would not be another
colossal disappointment and he will be able to find a good seedling to nurture. As he kept
observing the disappointment within him grew and his thoughts kept wandering when
suddenly he heard a disturbance and his eyes landed on a youth who was about 16 and
looked very ordinary. he had just been tested and was found to have an A-grade talent and a
high-grade elemental affinity with fire. This was quite a surprise for Jiang Nan as he beamed
with joy and invited the boy to move to his side. The village buzzed with cheers as all the
neighbors of the boy were happy for him. The boy moved in the direction of Jiang Nan and
stood behind him and despite him being in the air and the boy being on the ground you
could see from their positioning that he was protective of the boy.

Jiang Nan was still in glee when another noise erupted from the villagers as another person
just passed the exam he turned to look and found a young man and from the life energy
Jiang Nan sensed in him he could tell that the man was no more than 25 years of age. Jiang
Nan smiled as he thought to himself that the heavens must be smiling at him for giving him
two geniuses in one day. He examined the testing slap and saw that the man had a B-grade
talent and a mid-grade elemental affinity of water. Not talented as the first one but talented
nonetheless for Jiang Nan knew that the elders would want to take the youth as their
disciple but this one they wouldn't be interested in and this was his opportunity to secure a
student so he did not hesitate and immediately spoke

"Henceforth, you will be my student, any objections"

The man beamed with joy and immediately agreed, Who would have thought that he came
to this village by coincidence while being on the run but now has instead found an immortal
backer, he immediately bowed while greeting

"Disciple greets master"

"Good, good, from this day..."

"Ha, I finally found you, you bastard"

Jiang Nan was in a good mood and was still in the middle of making his speech when he was
interrupted. In his displeasure, he turned around to look and saw that it was a young man in
white robes, with long black hair and a saber on his waist, and if not for his weary look that
indicated that he had been traveling for a long time, he would look like a banished immortal.

This was none other than Liang Chen.

CHAPTER FOUR - HEARTLESS

It has been six years since Liang Chen left the army and during this time, through hard work,
he had made a name for himself in the world of martial arts. His martial arts practice had
reached rank 2. He has also gained a lot of wealth and even now when he appears in Spirit
Turtle Village he is on a mission.
During his years working as a hunter, he accepts tasks from the hunter association and
completes them for the bounty and it is through this method that he made a living.

His latest bounty was to hunt down and either kill or capture a criminal known as heartless.
this man is wanted for all sorts of crimes such as thievery, rape, murder, and so on and this is
what earned him the name of heartless. his latest act this time around was an assault on a
little girl and this earned the ire of the people which is why the city governor placed a bounty
on his head for the last three days, Liang Chen who accepted the mission has been in
pursuit, unfortunately, not knowing the situation ahead he charged in and wanted to arrest
the criminal but the only problem is the criminal is the man Jiang nan has decided to take in
as his disciple.

Immediately this raised a clamour among all the people present

"Who's this kid"

"he is dead for sure"

"How dare he cut short the words of an immortal"

These were some of the statements Liang Chen kept hearing and immediately a thought ran
through his brain ' Could it be I have interrupted some important event', Upon hearing the
word immortal he finally understood. Just as he came to a stop from his high speed running
his eyes landed on the man floating on the sword.

Liang Chen knew he had surely offended this immortal and had to apologize so he bowed in
deference to the immortal

"Lord immortal this one here is Liang Chen, I am sorry for interrupting you, I did not see you
earlier please forgive me". After Liang Chen finished speaking he was about to raise his head
when he heard a voice

"Is that how you should greet an immortal"

When Liang Chen turned around he realized it was heartless who had spoken but before he
even had the chance to process it, he heard his voice again

"You should kneel and kowtow "

Liang Chen was incensed and asked

"You, thief, who do you think you are talking to, do you believe I will take your life where
you stand"

"HMPH"

At this moment he heard a sound and immediately felt a sweat taste in his mouth. he
understood that this immortal was angry. he looked at Heartless and saw the hatred in his
eyes. he turned his eyes to look at the immortal again and understood it was the will of the
immortal that he kneeled and kowtow.
but what could he do other than endure, what could an ordinary man like him do?

CHAPTER FIVE - HUMILIATION, REBELLIOUS WORDS

Liang chen standing there looked at these two master and disciple in indignation, he did not
wish to kneel and kowtow to anyone in this life or the next so he thought of going against the
demands but looking at the coldness in Heartless' eyes and the slight smirk at the conner of
his mouth, Liang chen knew that is exactly what he wanted, for him to refuse and provide
immortal Jiang with a reason to kill him. Nevertheless Liang chen was still hesitant deep
within his heart but as time passed he began to feel a pressure come down on him, wanting to
bring him to his knees but the pride in him could not allow this. Liang chen thought he had
successfully resisted when he felt the pressure disappear. He knew he was not the opponent of
Jiang Nan but he never thought he couldn't resist just the spiritual pressure after putting in six
years of intensive training.

Which was why he felt very satisfied as though he had proven himself when he felt the
spiritual pressure withdraw without successfully making him kneel, only when he lifted his
head did he know how wrong he was.

He looked at Jiang Nan and saw the playful look on his face as though a cat playing with a
mouse. He saw the disdain in his eyes

'Those eyes, could it be i am still not different from an ant in their eyes?'

'Are the immortals really that powerful?'

'What has my training been for all these years'

As these thoughts kept running in Liang Chen's mind he felt an irresistible pressure emanating
from Immortal Jiang Nan, a pressure he could not resist.

Liang Chen understood that he will either kneel here today or die

'No I'd rather die than live an ignoble existence, live without dignity '

As the thoughts kept repeating he asked himself

'But what is my existence, what is my dignity Infront of an immortal, what is the dignity of an
ant Infront of an elephant if it can just be squashed anytime the elephant wants'

'if I die here then what's the purpose of the hardships I've had to undergo all these years'

'ten years is never too long for a gentleman to get his revenge, I will bid my time and look for
an opportunity to start get stronger'

At this thought Liang Chen gradually went down on his knees, lowered his head and kowtow.

This caused Jiang Nan to raise an eyebrow as from his little understanding of this young man
since they met he thought this man would rather break than bend. This made him look at the
young man in a different light but the disdain in his eyes never left Afterall trash is still trash.
Is a large ant still not an ant?, He didn't have time to pay attention to existences that are
destined to live their lives in mediocrity.

"A wise man submits to circumstances"

"Lord immortal, may I leave now?"

Liang Chen stood up and asked and realising that Jiang Nan did not want to pay further
attention to him, he turned and left. As he was leaving he heard Jiang Nan order for the
continuation of the examination but that had nothing to do with him but he could feel the
burning gazes of the onlookers and the pity on their faces. This brought him great pain and he
slowly walked out of the village

....

"Immortality, power, do these words really have no fate with me?...hahahaha fate, what is
fate?, Why should it be my fate to have no destiny with the path of cultivation"

"Who decides who gets to cultivate and who doesn't?"

"Heaven, yes, it's heaven chief Ouyang once told me, cultivation is an act that defies the
heaven and to be immortal is to seize longevity from the heavens,but... Is that really true. If
the heavens can decide who gets to be born with a spiritual root, it means those that cultivate
don't actually defy the heavens but follow heaven's chosen path for them".

"Hahahahahaha so before i was born i was already forsaken by heaven...what a joke"

.......

"If heaven forsakes me then i will find my own path that will rival the immortals. Yes i
must, ...i have to,... i will"

Liang Chen was currently seating in a small forest beside the Village, drunk, and he had been
like this for a day and a night.

He layed there not know what to do he knew that practicing martial arts was a dead end but
what could he do, he had no idea of how to move forward other than to keep training but this
time he would sharpen his battle prowess by facing his mortality in combat.

As the last thought ran through his mind he got up and slowly moved south towards the
direction of the southern mountain ranges.

It will be a long time again before anyone would lay eyes on him.

CHAPTER SIX - SOUTHERN MOUNTAIN RANGES