The next morning arrived quietly.
A golden sun slowly climbed above the distant mountains, casting warm light over Azure Wind Village.
Birds chirped.
Roosters crowed.
Farmers began preparing their tools.
Children ran through the narrow paths between the houses.
Everything was peaceful.
But inside a small wooden house at the edge of the village—
Ye Xuan was sitting cross-legged on his bed.
His eyes were closed.
His breathing was slow.
Around him, faint strands of spiritual energy were continuously entering his body.
Nine Heavens Body Tempering Art.
This was the cultivation technique he had received from the Check-In System.
It was only the first level.
Yet its quality was far beyond anything available in a small village.
Ye Xuan guided the spiritual energy through his meridians.
One cycle.
Two cycles.
Three cycles.
His muscles slowly tightened.
His bones produced faint cracking sounds.
After nearly an hour—
Boom!
A small burst of spiritual energy erupted from his body.
Ye Xuan opened his golden eyes.
"Body Tempering Fourth Layer."
He looked at his fist.
"One night."
He smiled.
"Not bad."
[Correction.]
The system's voice suddenly appeared.
Ye Xuan's smile disappeared.
"What?"
[The host's cultivation speed is not merely 'not bad'.]
[It is abnormally fast.]
Ye Xuan raised an eyebrow.
"Finally, you're complimenting me."
[The system is stating facts.]
"Still counts."
He stood from the bed and stretched.
His white hair fell over his shoulders.
After obtaining the Primordial Chaos Physique, even his body had changed considerably.
His skin was smoother.
His muscles were stronger.
His senses were sharper.
Even his already handsome face had become more refined.
Ye Xuan glanced at the bronze mirror.
"..."
He stared at himself.
Then nodded.
"Definitely handsome."
[The system agrees.]
Ye Xuan froze.
"You agree?"
[Host's narcissism is understandable.]
"..."
He narrowed his eyes.
"Was that an insult?"
[The system refuses to answer.]
Ye Xuan laughed.
He was beginning to like this strange system.
It was annoying.
But somehow entertaining.
After eating breakfast, Ye Xuan left the house.
The village was already busy.
He walked along the dirt road carrying a small wooden basket.
Grandmother Lin had asked him to collect herbs from the nearby forest.
Normally, this would have been dangerous for a thirteen-year-old.
But Ye Xuan's current physical strength was completely different.
A few minutes later, he reached the forest.
The moment he stepped beneath the trees—
Ye Xuan stopped.
His expression changed.
He could feel something.
Spiritual energy.
Much denser than inside the village.
"This place..."
He looked around.
The forest wasn't particularly large.
But several old trees had grown here for hundreds of years.
Ye Xuan suddenly understood.
"This must be why."
The forest contained more spiritual energy because of the ancient trees.
His eyes brightened.
"System."
[The system is listening.]
"Can I check in here?"
[Yes.]
Ye Xuan grinned.
"Then..."
He stepped deeper into the forest.
"Check in."
DING!
The familiar notification appeared.
[Location Check-In Successful.]
[Reward: 500 Low-Grade Spirit Stones.]
Ye Xuan blinked.
"That's it?"
[The host sounds disappointed.]
"Yesterday you gave me a physique, bloodline and cultivation talent."
[Yesterday was the Newcomer Gift Package.]
"Oh."
Ye Xuan nodded.
"Fair."
He stored the spirit stones in his storage ring.
Then he continued collecting herbs.
He had just picked a small purple flower when—
Roar!
A violent roar suddenly echoed through the forest.
Birds scattered from the trees.
Ye Xuan froze.
A huge shadow appeared between the trees.
A black wolf.
Its body was nearly two meters long.
Its eyes were blood-red.
Sharp fangs protruded from its mouth.
Ye Xuan stared at it.
The wolf stared back.
Neither moved.
Ye Xuan slowly placed the herb into his basket.
"System."
[Yes?]
"Can I beat that?"
[Yes.]
"How easily?"
[Extremely.]
The wolf suddenly lunged.
Ye Xuan's eyes sharpened.
His body moved instinctively.
Boom!
He punched forward.
His fist collided with the wolf's skull.
Bang!
The enormous beast flew backward and crashed into a tree.
Silence.
Ye Xuan stared at his fist.
The wolf didn't move.
He slowly lowered his hand.
"..."
Then he looked at the corpse.
"I killed it?"
[Correct.]
Ye Xuan walked closer.
He looked at the dead beast.
"Was that really a Body Tempering Fourth Layer cultivator's strength?"
[The host possesses the Primordial Chaos Physique.]
Ye Xuan nodded.
"So I'm stronger than ordinary cultivators."
[Significantly.]
His smile slowly returned.
"Interesting."
He didn't realize it yet.
But his first battle had already shown him something important.
The system hadn't merely given him cultivation.
It had given him an extraordinary foundation.
Meanwhile—
Several thousand kilometers away.
A woman stood in the sky.
She wore a simple white robe.
Her long black hair flowed behind her.
Her appearance was breathtaking.
She looked no older than twenty-five.
But her eyes contained an ancient calmness.
Around her body, faint spiritual energy rippled through the air.
She was traveling alone.
Her name was
Mu Qingxue
.
An Elder of one of the strongest sects in the Lower Realm—
Heavenly Frost Sect.
She had reached the
Saint Realm
.
To ordinary people, she was an existence comparable to a living deity.
Mu Qingxue was traveling because of a matter involving an ancient spiritual herb.
But halfway through her journey—
She stopped.
Her beautiful eyes narrowed.
"Hm?"
She slowly turned her head.
Her spiritual sense spread across thousands of kilometers.
Nothing.
Yet she had clearly sensed something unusual.
A strange spiritual fluctuation.
Weak.
Extremely weak.
But incredibly pure.
Mu Qingxue frowned.
"Impossible."
She extended her spiritual sense again.
This time, she focused toward the distant mountain region.
A faint golden glow appeared in her eyes.
Then—
Her expression changed.
"What is that?"
Her spiritual sense had passed over countless cultivators.
Ordinary.
Talented.
Even a few geniuses.
But none had attracted her attention.
Until now.
She saw a young boy.
White hair.
Golden eyes.
Simple village clothes.
He was walking through the forest carrying a basket of herbs.
Mu Qingxue stared.
Her expression gradually became serious.
"That physique..."
Even from thousands of kilometers away, she could sense something unusual.
It wasn't simply spiritual talent.
His body seemed to naturally absorb the spiritual energy around him.
His meridians were extraordinarily pure.
His blood contained an ancient aura.
And his foundation...
Mu Qingxue's pupils contracted.
"Perfect?"
She immediately became interested.
A thirteen-year-old village boy.
No sect.
No master.
No powerful clan.
Yet possessing such a terrifying foundation.
"This is strange."
She changed direction.
Instead of continuing toward her destination—
She flew toward the village.
Ye Xuan knew nothing about the woman approaching him.
He had returned home.
Grandmother Lin was cooking lunch.
Ye Xuan placed the herbs on the table.
"Grandma, I brought them."
She smiled.
"Good boy."
Ye Xuan sat down.
"Grandma."
"Hm?"
"Do many cultivators pass through this region?"
"Occasionally."
"Are they strong?"
Grandmother Lin laughed.
"To us, even a Qi Gathering cultivator is strong."
Ye Xuan nodded thoughtfully.
Then—
A terrifying pressure suddenly descended upon the village.
Boom!
The air itself seemed to freeze.
Every villager stopped moving.
Animals trembled.
Children began crying.
Ye Xuan's expression changed.
Grandmother Lin immediately stood up.
"What's happening?"
Ye Xuan looked toward the sky.
A white-robed woman slowly descended.
She didn't release any deliberate killing intent.
Yet the pressure from her cultivation alone was enough to make the entire village tremble.
Ye Xuan swallowed.
"So..."
He whispered.
"A real cultivator."
Mu Qingxue landed outside the village.
Her gaze swept across the houses.
Then stopped.
On Ye Xuan.
Their eyes met.
Golden eyes.
Cold blue eyes.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Mu Qingxue's expression became increasingly complicated.
She walked toward him.
Every step was graceful.
Ye Xuan watched her approach.
Beautiful.
That was his first thought.
Very beautiful.
That was his second.
His third thought was—
Definitely someone I shouldn't flirt with.
For once, Ye Xuan's survival instincts worked perfectly.
Mu Qingxue stopped before him.
"Your name."
Ye Xuan blinked.
"Ye Xuan."
"Age?"
"Thirteen."
"Who is your master?"
"I don't have one."
Mu Qingxue's eyebrows moved slightly.
"No master?"
"No."
She looked into his eyes.
"Then how did you cultivate?"
Ye Xuan's heart skipped.
He couldn't possibly tell her about the system.
He smiled innocently.
"I didn't."
Mu Qingxue stared at him.
Ye Xuan stared back.
The woman narrowed her eyes.
"You didn't?"
"No."
"Then why is spiritual energy circulating through your meridians?"
"..."
Ye Xuan cursed inwardly.
She noticed.
Mu Qingxue took one more step closer.
Her spiritual sense entered his body.
The moment she sensed his foundation—
Her expression completely changed.
"This..."
For the first time in decades—
Mu Qingxue was genuinely shocked.
His meridians.
His bones.
His blood.
His dantian.
Everything was extraordinarily pure.
And beneath all of it—
She sensed something she couldn't understand.
A terrifying potential.
She slowly withdrew her spiritual sense.
"Who are your parents?"
"They're gone."
Mu Qingxue became silent.
She looked at the young boy standing before her.
A thirteen-year-old.
Living in a remote village.
No master.
No clan.
No sect.
Yet possessing a foundation that even many ancient geniuses couldn't compare with.
Her eyes softened slightly.
"Ye Xuan."
"Yes?"
"Would you like to become my disciple?"
Ye Xuan froze.
Grandmother Lin froze.
Even the nearby villagers stared in disbelief.
Mu Qingxue continued calmly.
"I am Mu Qingxue, an Elder of the Heavenly Frost Sect."
"I will take you as my direct disciple."
Ye Xuan's heart began beating rapidly.
DING!
The system suddenly appeared.
[Major Opportunity Detected.]
[Host has encountered an extremely powerful cultivator.]
[Hidden Check-In Location discovered.]
[Heavenly Frost Sect — Special Check-In available.]
Ye Xuan's eyes widened.
He almost laughed.
This is getting interesting.
Mu Qingxue watched him quietly.
"Have you made your decision?"
Ye Xuan looked at the beautiful woman standing before him.
Then at Grandmother Lin.
Then toward the distant mountains.
His peaceful village life had lasted only a short time.
But perhaps it was time to see what existed beyond these mountains.
He took a deep breath.
Then smiled.
"Senior..."
Mu Qingxue's gaze sharpened.
"Yes?"
Ye Xuan bowed respectfully.
"I would be honored to become your disciple."
For the first time—
A faint smile appeared on Mu Qingxue's beautiful face.
"Good."
She extended her hand.
"From today onward..."
Her voice was calm.
"You are my direct disciple."
Ye Xuan looked at her hand.
Then at the endless sky.
He smiled.
His journey had officially begun. :::