Young Master Qing
The Ying Xian Continent was a place where the revered are those with strength, where the voices heard are only those with capabilities and where those with achievements in cultivation are either worshipped as gods or feared as devils.
Nowadays, it was the age of relative peace, but several millennia ago, Ying Xian was a nameless, war-torn land straight out from the depths of hell, a broken piece of the world that was wholly painted in blood and carnage, where hundreds of races and clans once battled for territory and resources—to be more precise, for survival.
The 'Wood' Qing Clan was one of those that had given birth to the most Spiritual Body owners for generations and generations, an ancient family that had seen way too many heaven-defying talents and freaks from their descendants.
With their unparalleled prowess in battle, coupled by their advantage of having good ancestors who had accumulated thousands of years' worth of cultivation techniques and divine arts, they had stood out from the hundreds of human cultivator clans and fearless heroes who had fought in war, allowing them to become one of the hegemony of the Ying Xian continent.
Thus, the Qing Blessed Lands was born.
As the controller of one of the strongest empires that vanguard the northern human territories, as the strongest-known experts who had laid down their lives to preserve what remained of the human clans from tens of thousands of years ago, the Imperial Family of the Qing Blessed Lands, the Qings, was exactly the kind of clan that was more a sect than anything.
They had power, wealth and destiny of a nation.
To them, nothing mattered more than to keep what they were already holding.
Preservation. Expansion. Only more and never less...
As such, to be talented in cultivation was a given for each and every descendant in the clan.
As long as they had the blood of Qing in them, no matter if they be from the main branch or side lineages, intermarried into other influences, they were tested and stringently trained.
To have a high comprehension of the Dao was a must if you want to be a side lord, a commanding military officer... and of course, if one were aiming to have a shot at the throne.
To be a Qing means one is meant to be revered the moment one is born.
To be a Qing means one is exceptional, nothing less than outstanding.
It was both a gift and a curse.
And for the young lord of the Blood Commandant's Royal House who was born a cultivation cripple... it was a curse.
Before the sun had risen that day, Qing Wu You was already awake.
His young, frail body stood outside barefooted the courtyard, his feet enjoying the soft texture of the spiritual grass under them.
To most people, it was common knowledge that humans experience their coming-of-age ceremonies around the ages ten to thirteen, where a person could determine whether he or she had the ability to enter the glorious path of cultivation by having him or her absorb spiritual qi.
If one were to start cultivating at the age of nine, there was a high chance of the mortal body exploding.
On the other hand, those who had awakened later than thirteen were discovered to be incapable of cultivating past the third stage of the first realm of cultivation, the Blood Stage of the Body Washing Realm. Their strength, though much more than an ordinary mortal's, was nothing to speak of.
However, what most people did not know, the Qing Imperial Family had an ancient relict that allowed them to let their descendants begin their cultivation at the age of eight.
And it was at that very ceremony on his eighth birthday that Qing Wu You was found to be incapable of cultivation.
His meridians were full of holes and his body could not hold qi.
The only son of the Second Prince, the Blood Commandant...
The eldest grandson of the current Qing Emperor...
...a cripple.
Although most people avoided talking in front of him, Qing Wu You could feel the pity and the disdain that others had for him. Even his lord father no longer paid him as much attention as before.
He was a smart and observant boy, and before his awakening ceremony, expectations were already set due to his high intelligence.
Everyone favored that he would be an outstanding cultivator like his cousin, Princess Chuntao.
The only question was supposed to be if he would exceed those expectations.
No one could have guessed that the Royal House of the Blood Commandant would have given birth to such a useless son.
Once a proud dragon in the sky, doted dearly by his family, now had to lower its head and bow before earth.
Qing Wu You was treated like an insect on a rice field, with sincerity as invisible and as cold as the winter wind that blows at night.
One of the reasons why he had joined this mission under his cousin was to gain experience and accumulate merit... the other being just so he could escape prying eyes and probably find a way to disappear from his lord father's disappointed gaze.
If the little girl from beyond the borders could not help him find a way to cultivate, he would really like to disappear...
--
Yin had been too focused earlier on healing her injured little playmate that she whimsically named Ye Zhihao.
She did not pay particular attention to the forest and her surroundings. Truth be told, she rarely did, unless she's seeking something entertaining or interesting.
Not that she planned to keep her abilities a secret and be the tiger pretending to be a pig. That would be too boring.
The fact that people would come to investigate the unnatural source of yin qi or the oppressive suffocating aura, well, whatever they were supposed to be doing, all that had been taken into consideration.
Or to be more precise, Yin was pretty free-spirited. She never bothered thinking about consequences—might as well say she had considered it.
Living honestly and freely was more her style. If it attracts people with devious plans, then so be it.
The more troubles there were, the more fun the days ahead would be.
And what that means was precisely...to incite an explosion! Ruthless explosions! Fearlessly continuous explosions!
Because she could afford it!
Yin was one without the fear of getting blown away. In fact, she enjoyed it. Why would she limit it?
Was that not also the reason why she chose this little boy?
So when she thought about healing her new playmate, she did not hold back. This way was the fastest way. After all, she wouldn't want to miss her lunch date with the guy she wanted to scam.
About several breaths after she released her extremely cold qi, on the centermost courtyard inside Ye Sect, Qing Wu You suddenly felt a strange resonance coming from the eastern side of the Ye Sect.
Something was calling him over...
Qing Wu You was a mortal. He had no divine sense that would allow him to detect anything wrong with the qi in the area.
But now... to have this strange pull... what could that be...?
"Xiao Ku!" he shouted. An old man dressed in servant garbs appeared out of nowhere. "Can you feel that?"
"Answering the young master, there is a strong fluctuation of extremely cold qi coming from the forest behind Ye Sect. It seems like experts are fighting. One might be another demonic cultivator on the same level as the Ghost Blade. Would you like me to send out someone to check?"
Experts? But the feeling he was having seemed to warm and kind...
"Bring me there!"
The poor unsuspecting boy had no idea what he was about to face.