Chương 1: The Realm-Breaking Pearl

Langya County, Green Bamboo Mountain! Green Bamboo Mountain rose several thousand meters into the sky, ranking among the highest peaks in a mountain range that stretched a thousand miles in every direction. And the Zhang family of Green Bamboo Mountain stood as one of the twelve great Qi Refining families of Langya County. —— Inside a cave dwelling, a young man in white robes sat cross-legged on the ground. Slowly, he opened his eyes. His hair was black as ink, his features sharp and handsome.

His eyes sparkled like stars, radiant with inner light.

"The third layer of Qi Refining Realm, complete." A faint smile touched his lips.

"Finally, I can attempt the fourth layer." His name was Zhang Huaijin, a member of the Zhang family. (Of its third generation) The second-born among his cousins. At fifteen years old, Zhang Huaijin possessed a five-element spirit root, the lowest grade and had just polished his cultivation to the peak of the third layer of Qi Refining Realm. —— This world was a world of cultivators. Cultivators lived long lives. They stood above the mundane, lofty and untouchable. Everyone yearned to become one.

To set foot on the immortal path. To wield great power. To extend their lifespan, perhaps even achieve immortality itself. But only those with spirit roots could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and embark on that path. Within the Zhang family, only those with spirit roots were permitted to live on Green Bamboo Mountain.

Because beneath the mountain ran a low-grade, first-tier spiritual vein, a source that constantly produced gentle, balanced spiritual energy to sustain the family's cultivation needs. In most places across this world, spiritual energy was either too thin or violently turbulent. Unsuitable for cultivators to absorb. But the energy from a spiritual vein was calm and harmonious, harmless to a cultivator's meridians. Thus spiritual veins were the most precious asset a cultivation powerhouse could possess.

Even if a family fell on hard times, as long as their spiritual vein remained, they would always have a chance to rise again. This low-grade, first-tier vein could comfortably support the cultivation of thirty Qi Condensation cultivators. And it was precisely because of this vein that the Zhang family of Green Bamboo Mountain had been able to thrive here, generation after generation, growing step by step into the Qi Refining Realm family they are today.

—— Zhang Huaijin, dressed in white, slowly rose to his feet and walked out of his cave dwelling. He looked out at a landscape of distant, dark green mountains, a place of remarkable beauty and spiritual energy. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The surrounding peaks were lush and verdant. From time to time, the roar of a demonic beast echoed through the valleys.

'Cultivation is hard' he thought, a flicker of emotion passing through his eyes.

'I still have to work harder.' —— It had been fifteen years since he had transmigrated to this world from modern Earth. In his previous life, he had been an orphan. He had known nothing but loneliness and hardship, without a soul to rely on. But he hadn't wallowed in self-pity or cursed the world for his misfortune. Instead, through relentless effort, he had carved out a reasonably comfortable life for himself. You know how it is, when a man has some free time, he looks for a little entertainment.

But after a simple moment of relaxation... he woke up as a newborn baby. He felt wronged. He had struggled and fought for over a decade. He had finally made his life enjoyable. And then, just like that, he ended up here. As a baby. But what was done was done. After some time of wallowing, he had no choice but to accept his fate. Then he learned that this was a world of cultivation. And Zhang Huaijin got excited. After all, who wouldn't want to cultivate?

Who wouldn't want to become an immortal, riding the wind, pursuing the great path to eternal life? Most of all, cultivation represented a hope that burned within every living being. The hope of living forever. Of endless years. Of never dying. And cultivation was the key to that dream. —— Zhang Huaijin was lucky. He had been born into a cultivation family, and he possessed a spirit root.

Compared to mortals with no spirit root at all, or rogue cultivators with no family to protect them, he was in an infinitely better starting point. True, his spirit root was only a five-element type, the slowest, the lowest. But even that was invaluable to a Qi Refining Realm clan. A Qi Refining Realm family, though considered a cultivation power, was barely an ant in the vast, boundless world of immortals. Langya County was home to three major Foundation Establishment powers and twelve Qi Refining Realm families.

And the number of rogue Qi Refining Realm cultivators was even greater. —— But since stepping onto the path of cultivation, Zhang Huaijin had truly understood how important a spirit root was. A cultivator with a five-element spirit root absorbed spiritual energy far too slowly. Even sitting on a spiritual vein, it was agonizingly slow. A cultivator with a three-element spirit root, for example, absorbed spiritual energy twice as fast as someone with a five-element root.

And that was nothing compared to the geniuses with two-element roots or the legendary heavenly spirit root. There was simply no comparison in their cultivation speeds. For instance, a five-element root cultivator might take five years to break through a single layer. But a heavenly spirit root cultivator could do it in just a few months. —— Every year, starting from age six, the Zhang family tested their children for spirit roots. Typically, if a child had one, it was detected at six.

Those found to have spirit roots were taken directly to Green Bamboo Mountain and enrolled in the family academy. There, they began four years of study: reading, writing, physical training, and the study of Daoist scriptures. All of it preparation for their future cultivation. Any child with a spirit root was usually quite precocious(gifted), so none of this was a problem if they applied themselves.

At age ten, they officially began drawing spiritual energy into their bodies and embarking on the path of cultivation. —— Now, after five years of cultivation, Zhang Huaijin has reached the peak of the third layer of Qi Refining Realm. Most cultivators with a five-element root weren't this fast. They'd be lucky to reach the second layer in 5 years. That was how agonizingly slow a five-element root was. The reason Zhang Huaijin was faster than usual was because of a pearl embedded in his chest.

There, tattooed on his skin, was a black-and-white pearl. This pearl had crossed into this world along with him. Normally, it appeared as a black-and-white tattoo on his chest. When something stirred it, it would sink back into his flesh. Only he could see this pearl. When he was little, his father had bathed him and never noticed the tattoo. Neither had his mother. And when he'd run around naked as a toddler or when playing with the other children, none of them had seen it either.

From that moment, Zhang Huaijin knew that the pearl on his chest was an extraordinary treasure. He even suspected it was the reason he had transmigrated to this world. So he never let his guard down. Once he was found to have a spirit root, he studied hard at the family academy, waiting for the day he could finally cultivate. —— And on the day he turned ten, he drew spiritual energy into his body for the first time.

The moment the first wisp of spiritual energy gathered within him, the pearl that had lain motionless for ten years finally stirred. It sent him a message.

"The Realm-Breaking Pearl." That was its name. And its function was exactly what it sounded like: it could help a cultivator break through bottlenecks. All he had to do was gather enough energy within the pearl, and it could force a breakthrough to the next level.