Chapter 1

Amidst the dancing cherry blossoms, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

In a land of clear mountains and green waters, a vast range of mountains stretched out, resembling a giant dragon lying on the earth, evoking a sense of awe-inspiring grandeur that spanned thousands of miles. This mountain range was known as the Green Dragon Mountain Range.

In the foothills of this range, there was a remote town called Wuzhen, situated at the edge, nestled among the mountains and beside the water. From a distance, it appeared to be enveloped in a mist of cooking smoke, with over a thousand households, and it was relatively prosperous.

"Ouch, it really hurts!"

A murmur came from the village of Wuzhen. The speaker was a boy of about fifteen or sixteen, dressed in a blue robe, with a clear and refined face, but a hint of pain on his small face. He clutched his chest, clearly injured, and limped forward.

Stopping before a simple room, Meng Fan looked at his home, which was usually filled with warmth and affection, but his expression was somewhat hesitant. He quickly brushed off his clothes, afraid of leaving any traces.

"Damn Lei Tao, just wait, one day I, Meng Fan, will beat you into a pig's head!"

Muttering with resentment, Meng Fan thought about what had just happened, and his face turned somewhat gloomy.

On his way home after finishing his cultivation, Meng Fan encountered his lifelong rival, Lei Tao. In just a few days, Lei Tao's strength had increased to the fifth stage of Body Tempering, and he, relying on his superior strength, got into an argument with several other young men from Wuzhen and Meng Fan, mocking him.

Meng Fan, just a fifteen-year-old boy, in a fit of anger, fought with Lei Tao and the others. Meng Fan's strength was only at the second stage of Body Tempering, and he was no match for Lei Tao, who was three stages higher. A single palm strike to Meng Fan's chest left a large bruise.

However, Meng Fan knew that the gap between him and Lei Tao was significant. Both of them cultivated the symbol of power on this continent: Primordial Energy.

Primordial Energy, the fundamental force of the universe, existed eternally in the world. Cultivators absorbed it into their bodies, and it was divided into eight realms, each with ten stages. The eight realms were further divided into the lower three realms and the upper five realms.

The lower three realms were Body Tempering, Qi Tempering, and Soul Tempering.

Although these three realms were the foundation of Primordial Energy cultivation, it was rare for an ordinary person to break through even one realm in their entire life, let alone advance from the lower three realms to the powerful upper five realms.

Meng Fan, at the age of fifteen, had reached the second stage of Body Tempering, the most basic stage, where Primordial Energy was used to nourish the body and meridians. After tidying up, Meng Fan took light steps into the simple and tidy room. There were no valuable items in the room, but it was very neat, giving a sense of home warmth.

Just as Meng Fan was about to slip into his room, a gentle voice came from behind.

"Stop, where have you been?"

The speaker was a middle-aged woman with long hair, a gentle face, and the traces of time, but she must have been a beauty in her youth. She was Meng Fan's mother, Xin Lan!

Turning around, Meng Fan gave his mother an awkward smile and said softly,

"Mother, I just came back from cultivation..."

Xin Lan gave Meng Fan a stern look and said, "You went out to cultivate, and now you're covered in dirt and injured?"

Meng Fan's face changed immediately, realizing he had been caught, and he stood still. Although Meng Fan's mother, Xin Lan, did not understand any Primordial Energy cultivation and was physically weak, she still had a natural authority in the heart of a fifteen-year-old child.

Pulling Meng Fan to the front, she undid his blue robe, and her face changed instantly. She clenched her teeth and immediately took out the healing medicine from the house, applying it to Meng Fan's body while scolding him.

"Haven't I told you many times not to fight with others? Why don't you listen?"

Hearing this, Meng Fan pouted and defended himself, "I can't stand it, Lei Tao and the others are too despicable. They not only insulted me but also said I am... a child without a father!"

As soon as he said this, Xin Lan's body stiffened, and her face turned pale. She gently applied the medicine to Meng Fan's wounds, gritting her teeth and said, "I've told you, don't care what others say. Just focus on cultivating your Primordial Energy, understand?"

Seeing his mother's expression, Meng Fan knew he had said the wrong thing. He stuck out his tongue and said no more. After applying the medicine to Meng Fan's wounds, Xin Lan stood up and said gently,

"Don't move around for the next few days. I'll make you a He Shou to help heal your injuries!"

He Shou is a first-grade spirit medicine, the most common in the world.

Meng Fan knew that all spirit medicines in the world were divided into nine grades, and each grade increased the medicinal power by a factor of two. However, a first-grade spirit medicine, while not rare, was still very precious for a family like the Mengs, where no one understood Primordial Energy cultivation.

Any spirit medicine could help to unblock the meridians of a Primordial Energy cultivator, accelerating their cultivation. The real gap between Meng Fan and others was not due to a lack of diligence—his cultivation time was nearly twice that of others.

The true difference was in the spirit medicines. Lei Tao's father and the others were all officials in Wuzhen, and although they did not have extremely precious items, they were not short of second-grade spirit medicines, which allowed Lei Tao to quickly reach the fifth stage of Body Tempering.

The only way for the Meng family to obtain spirit medicines was through the monthly distribution by Wuzhen, but they received at most two plants each month, and sometimes none at all if the Wuzhen guard team's harvest was poor. This was why Meng Fan's Primordial Energy cultivation was always weaker than that of his peers in Wuzhen.

Hearing Xin Lan's words, Meng Fan frowned and hesitated, asking,

"Mother, how much He Shou do we have left? Your illness..."

"My illness is nothing. Use it for your cultivation first."

Xin Lan smiled gently, but as soon as she finished speaking, she began to cough uncontrollably, covering her mouth with her hand, her body trembling.