Synopsis: In the magnificent world of cultivation, all battle for the goal of achieving immortality. However, in terms of comprehending martial arts, he was trash. In terms of innate talent, he was trash. In case of battle instincts, he was trash. So why did so many peerless geniuses gather around him, he who should not be of their world in the first place? +++ Inside a small cottage built upon a mountainous hill, a man in a white coat was examining the back of a long haired young teen who laid upon the operating table. Pressing his fingers gently on the jadelike back exposed to him, he examined the teen’s flesh and bone, his marrow and bloodline. “So you have already reached peak Ninth Stage Body Refinement. Ah, only a hair away from entering the Qi Condensation realm at the age of 15... Little sister, you are certainly the apex talent of our Shangyang Family.” The man’s voice was a bit hoarse as he spoke, as if he was an old geezer. “Elder brother, this is all due to your help. You are the best herbal healer in this territory around the Shangyang Town and if not for your help, I would have needed to traverse the deadly road to join the Clear Yang Sect and vie for a spot in the Outer Sect Competition.” The voice was that of a girl. She was the topmost among the younger generation of the Shangyang Family, despite her not hailing from the Shangyang Clan. In truth, she had been adopted by the white-coated young man’s father back before his death. “At your realm and age, you can directly enter the Clear Yang Sect as an Inner Disciple. They will certainly provide you with resources to become a true cultivator and after that, your talent will allow you to soar into the sky and leave our Chunyang State behind…” The young man coughed into a white handkerchief before adjusting himself. The Shangyang Family was a family that could be said to be quite rich. It controlled a large territory, could harvest herbs for refinement and had even had a cultivation heritage. Yet all this was not enough to allow their topmost descendents to roam horizontally and vertically across the Chunyang State, they could only confine themselves to a small town. The Zhenyuan Kingdom consisted of many states, among which one was the Chunyang State. Yet this vast Kingdom was only one of the many Kingdoms that fell into the control of the Shuangrue Empire. This Empire was only one of the many that fell under the Thousandsun Dynasty, which was the only force that managed to unify the world together! And yet, this Dynasty was controlled by an even more unfathomable force, the Yuan God Divine Sect! The Clear Yang Sect was one of the many sects planted across the boundless world by the Yang God Divine Sect for harvesting talents. “Elder brother, don’t you worry. After I enter the sect, I will cultivate quickly… If not for your Seamless Imperfection Deficiency, we could go together…” With her face turned away, the girl spoke enthusiastically but moroseness crept into her ending words. A hint of affection could be sensed in her voice. “Well then. Most of my salves and incenses are useless to you now. But since you will be leaving soon, I need to gift you something…” He ignored her words, leaving the girl in the hall of the cottage. She waited in anticipation, thinking of the surprise. She was extremely shocked when he returned holding four chains to which four animals were bound. The roars of a white tiger, a giant black patched lizard, a red crowned chicken and a black bear shook the air. “Your Nine Yin Flowering Physique will allow you to quickly cultivate, build a solid foundation by cultivating extreme pure Qi and even allow you insight into the Great Yin Dao. However, it is easy to notice and can tempt all males, be they cultivators or beasts.” The man in the white coat kept on speaking, but the girl’s heart felt that her dear brother was acting strange. “These beasts… are all Yang natured spiritual beasts and even they are tempted by your body as a bite will allow them to become Godbeasts and gain sapience. Using a certain technique, they are fully under my control. If I remove their chains…” The white coated boy revealed a long blade sheathed on his hip, the white color camouflaging it from view. The sword flashed and the chains seemed to be cut. The beasts pounced upon the operating table upon which the girl laid. She instinctively closed her eyes. A sharp pain cut into the girl’s back. A few moments passed. The girl realized that the pain was more like an illusion, as no blood had fallen. Only a sharp feeling still remained on her back, as if she had been whipped. A few moments later, her white coated elder brother reappeared beside her. “Heh, weren’t you scared?” His tone was of satisfaction at a prank well done. “As if I could, ever not trust, elder brother.” The words were stuttering, still showing her fear. Yet the strong feeling of trust in the words said by the girl caused him to back off. “I am not your true elder brother in the first place… I have been simply taking care of you since my parents passed on. But now, I won’t be capable of it anymore. Since you will be leaving this clan, you have to hide your talents as a chicken, all because you have no backing. Only after getting a good master worth following can you reveal yourself as a phoenix…” The little girl lazily nodded at her brother’s exhortations. Meanwhile, the ring on her fingers shone, unnoticed by the two. She took a look at the four beasts. All of them were slumped over, dead with a hole in their hearts. The pain on her back was from the fiery hot blood splashing on it. Her elder brother finally took out some other herbal syrups and salves, liberally splattering them on her back. After came the massage. Unknown to her, the demonic beast blood, herbal syrups and salves mixed together to form a print of four beasts on her back. “Anyway, this is a simplified version of the Tiger-Bear, Dragon-Phoenix Bloodspirit Salve. The true version requires the blood of Godbeasts, but the heartblood of Demonic Beasts at the peak of their strength can be used for rudimentary effects. This salve will allow your body to emit the aura of Overflowing Yang for a few months, concealing your Nine-Yin Flowering Physique. After you enter the sect and get your hands on some cultivation technique, try and get your grubby fingers on some hiding or concealment technique. That will be a more permanent solution.” Saying this, he concluded the massage and turned away. The rustling of clothes was heard as she immediately put on her clothes. When the soft noises ended, he asked without turning back. “Done putting on some clothes yet?” “Yes elder brother, you can turn around mow.” His little sister was now clad in the white martial robe of the Shangyang Clan. Her face seemed a bit down seeing that he never turned around, but it was a normal occurrence after all. He silently stripped off the chains that were still bound the beast corpses, putting them away. “Help me take out these husks. ” Hearing this, the little sister quickly appeared to help. She was surprised to find that the corpses seemed suspiciously light. But not caring, she took advantage of this strange situation to pick up all the corpses. The white coated elder brother walked on outside the cottage, and the strong little sister followed taking along the corpses. “You must be wondering, why the corpses are so light? Well, I did call them husks and that’s what they are. These beasts were on a strict diet of herbs that would divert blood vitality and demonic energy to their hearts to refine their heart’s blood. Now that it all is pasted on your back, they are meatbags without meat.” The girl knew he would clarify after acting, having become used to his habits after years together. “Was raising them difficult?” The girl asked thoughtlessly, but the face of the boy turned a bit purple at this. “I bought them from the Town’s Auction two years back as cubs by paying good money and raised them for even more. But they were fattened up for you, so it was a good investment.” The boy’s words were nonchalant, but the care he showed for her could be seen through his actions. The girl seemed to pause for a moment to think before speaking. “Um, isn’t the energy diffused from the salve useful for cultivation?” “Actually yes it is, you could probably breakthrough to Qi Condensation with it. But well… you don’t have a cultivation technique, do you?” The words were a bit smug. “Actually, I… no you are right, I don’t.” The girl nearly exposed herself, but quickly denied it. “Our clan has a cultivation heritage, but it consists of martial arts for tempering the body, allowing one to cultivate through Body Refinement. If you look through the Clan’s library, you will find some scriptures where some methods to enter Qi Condensation are listed. But they are not a part of systemized cultivation manuals, so they will just trash your potential. Quickly run to the Clear Yang Sect, get a cultivation manual and then speak.” Saying this, he arrived at a spot under some trees. Without needing to speak, she knew what he wanted. Immediately putting down the husks, she attacked the earth with her palm, creating a small hole in the earth formed by the ground softening into mud. The beast husks were buried into the bottom of the mud, before a stroke of fingers over the mud returned it to hard ground. “You are quite strong.” Hearing the obvious statement, the little sister couldn’t help her smile. “Says the guy who stabbed four beasts in their hearts with a blink.” “That required a lot of preparation. I am not a cultivator, you know?” At his carefree words, the girl bit her lip. “Elder brother, I… I’ll be leaving today.” She seemed to want to say something. “I know. That’s what you told me a week back.” His words were still carefree, as if he didn’t understand the feelings of the girl. “Elder brother… I will need some time to cultivate to Foundation Establishment. Before that, I won’t be allowed to leave the Sect.” Her feet seemed to lighten and her body mildly shook. His smile widened into a smirk. “Don’t make castles in the sky, you haven’t reached Qi Condensation yet. Half a century is a record for geniuses.” “But… but… elder brother, would you be around after half a century? Your Seamless Imperfection Deficiency… it is…” She broke down into tears. If she took that long, perhaps she wouldn’t even be able to bury her elder brother’s corpse after returning. “I know. Ordinary mortals may live for two 60-year cycles, but the Seamless Imperfection Deficiency is restricted to one. But don’t worry, I will make good use of those years that I have. And you too have to make good use of your time as well.” Seeing him standing strong while she cried, she knew that he had already come to terms with his fate. “Seamless Imperfection, why is it seamless?! For cultivation to begin, there must be seams for qi to gather inside the body. A body which has perfect meridians and a pure dantian without impurities yet can’t cultivate, this is a joke made by Heaven! Perfection invites Heavenly Retribution, but you are only mortal! Why…” Her soft voice had become hoarse from her scream. “Calm down. I’ll still live. You have to try hard and cultivate to an immortal.” The nonchalance was evident in his tone. “I’ll come back to you after 5 years.” Hearing this, the boy was a bit shocked. “It is impossible to enter Foundation Establishment, you’ll only give yourself Qi Deviation…” He wanted to speak more but was stopped when she continued to speak. “I’ll come back to you after 5 years! Wait for me, okay?” Saying this, the teary-eyed girl broke out into a run. +++ She only looked back when she had left him behind. The forest was only filled with miscellaneous noises, yet her elder brother’s hoarse voice was no longer here. Resolutely, she held out her finger and stroked the green-jeweled ring upon it. A spirit, a beautiful lady of 30 or so years of age flew out. Before she could say anything, the girl asked her. “I need to breakthrough to Foundation Establishment in 5 years.” “So you have resolved yourself. Well then, let’s use the Tiger-Bear, Dragon-Phoenix Bloodspirit Salve your brother refined for you for its true use. After you breakthrough to First Stage Qi Condensation, you can keep up your momentum until Foundation Establishment.” The beautiful spirit flicked her finger, causing a formation to appear on the earth. All the vibrant life energy in the forest seemed to dull, gathering on the formation. These was no need to speak more. The girl sat down and began cultivating. The 54 Yin Spirit Channels on her body opened up due to her cultivation technique. The 54 Yang Spirit Channels of her body were already opened due to her brother’s salve. With all of Yin-Yang opened up in concert with the formation laid down, her body madly attracted the energy of Heaven and Earth. When one first began cultivating qi, it would be gaseous and even a hint of it entering the dantian would be an achievement as it would dissipate with a thought. But when she began cultivating, the gas began congealing into drops of liquid, filling her dantian and forming a small puddle. The bloody painting of four beasts on her back began dissipating slowly as the puddle of water in her dantian began boiling, returning it to gas and increasing it in quantity. Meanwhile, her cultivation technique would liquefy the gaseous qi again. This process repeated for a total of nine times before the qi finally went through a great transformation and began solidifying, turning icy. Finally, a sheet of ice covered the floor of her dantian. “The Supreme Nine Ice Empress Sutra can cultivate Ice Pillars during Foundation Establishment. During peak Ninth Stage Qi Condensation, a layer of ice may cover the Sea of Qi. But to refine a sheet of ice during the breakthrough to Qi Condensation… without the elder brother of yours, even your supreme innate constitution wouldn’t be capable of accomplishing this.” The ice cold woman who tried her hardest to break her away from her love for her elder brother finally capitulated. “My Elder Brother… can’t he be saved?” Before this, all answers had been no. But this time, she hoped for a different answer. “Not in his life... But after entering peak Core Formation, you can mark his soul. After his death, if you can enter Nascent Soul realm, you will be able to hunt down his reincarnation and accompany him until his memories of the past return.” The words had a great challenge. Entering Foundation Establishment in half a century was a mark of geniuses, but for these geniuses reaching Core Formation in two centuries was expected. Reaching peak Core Formation before he died would be hard and she obviously couldn’t reach this level while accompanying him for his remaining life. No matter how many ruins she entered for treasures, only closed door cultivation for decades would help her reach Core Formation. “Let’s go then. I can’t dawdle on this path.” The girl exuded power, scaring away all the beasts from bothering her. Her path was straight, on the other side of the forest to enter the Clear Yang Sect. Meanwhile, the spirit returned to the ring. Within the darkness, she smilingly spoke to herself, her words unheard by the girl. “Dear disciple, your devotion for your brother is admirable. Falling in love with a guy who is going to die as a mortal… I permit it. After you enter Core Formation, while you could mark his, can you find out where he will reincarnate? Perhaps not in this world, perhaps in another world… As you search for him, you will need strength. And as long as you search for him, there is no need for other men… Your devotion to him won’t allow you to fall into the hands of other men. Like this, I don’t need to worry about your cultivation being seized by trickery and can fully concentrate on training you…” “Of course, the best way of treating that deficiency of his is Yin-Yang dual cultivation, but it will a waste for my dear disciple. If he dies, Heaven won't be callous enough to curse him once more, will it? As expected, the only good men are dead men.” With a devious smirk on her face, the spirit thought about that ill-fated brother. A kind, virtuous person, he still had no strength to oppose heaven. But she forgot. He had no need to oppose heaven, for Heaven had also granted him a gift and a curse. If the curse was his deficiency, could the gift be the devotion of the girl? +++ A/N: Hi, this is a oneshot. While it seems incomplete, that's how it is. To help you not attach yourself to the story, I didn't even add a name for our hero and heroine! A kind, virtuous protagonist who does not oppose heaven and does not have battle instincts, only supported by the kindness of the Heavens... Hahaha, I can't even think of a scenario where this story can have a conclusion. If you have any ideas, do tell me.