In a secluded mountain valley of an unnad tiline, Yun Lintian sat motionless upon a flat stone. Snow piled upon his shoulders, his hair, his lashes—yet he did not stir.
For three years, he had sat thus.
The accumulated power of Primordial Gods churned within him, their essences resisting assimilation. Golden veins pulsed beneath his skin as he forcibly refined them, one by one, turning stolen divinity into his own strength.
Seasons changed. The snow lted, then returned. Animals ca and went, sensing the dangerous aura yet finding the strange man harmless in his stillness.
Then, one winter morning—
A rustle in the undergrowth.
A girl of perhaps twelve stumbled into the clearing, her thin robes tattered, her lips blue with cold. Hunger hollowed her cheeks, yet her dark eyes burned with stubborn will to survive.
Yun ii froze when she saw the snow-covered figure.
"A dead cultivator?" she whispered, her breath puffing white.
Hesitantly, she approached. The wild berry in her palm—her only food after three days of searching—felt suddenly heavy. Her mother’s words echoed in her mind: "Always show respect to the dead, ii. Their spirits watch over us."
With trembling fingers, she placed the berry before Yun Lintian’s crossed legs. She clasped her hands and bowed.
"May... may you find peace in the next life," she murmured.
A gust of wind scattered the snow from Yun Lintian’s face.
His eyes opened.
Yun ii scread, scrambling backward. "Y-you’re alive?!"
Yun Lintian regarded her silently. His gaze dropped to the single, withered berry—more precious than any treasure to this starving child.
Sothing long buried stirred in his chest.
Without a word, he raised a hand. A wisp of green energy—the power of life—flowed into Yun ii.
"Ah!" She gasped as warmth flooded her limbs. The constant ache of hunger vanished. Her ridians, previously clogged with impurities, burned clean in an instant. The power settled in her body, forming the foundation of a cultivation path far beyond her world’s understanding.
"This... what is this?" Yun ii looked at her arms in confusion.
Yun Lintian didn’t say anything and continued to stare at her.
"T-Thank you, Senior," Yun ii stuttered. "My mother... She’s sick—I was looking for dicine—"
She tried to explain to Yun Lintian, who didn’t even ask her a question.
Suddenly, a storage ring landed in the snow before her. Yun Lintian’s voice was quiet.
"Go ho."
Yun ii grabbed the ring, sensing the imnse treasures within—spiritual herbs, pills, even cultivation manuals. Tears welled in her eyes.
"Thank you, immortal!" She kowtowed deeply. "May I know your na? I swear to repay this kindness!"
A long pause. The wind howled through the valley.
"Yun Lintian."
The na hung in the air as he closed his eyes once more. The snow began to gather on his motionless form again.
Yun ii kowtowed three more tis before sprinting toward ho, her heart lighter than it had been in years.
Just like that, Yun Lintian sat motionless for another month, the snow piling high around him.
The God Slaying Sword hovered nearby, its dark blade humming faintly as it absorbed the residual divine energy leaking from his body.
Suddenly—
His eyes snapped open.
A frown creased his brow as he sensed it—the faint aura of his storage ring being forcibly opened. His divine sense exploded outward, covering hundreds of miles in an instant.
At the edge of the forest, a village burned.
Houses collapsed into roaring flas. The streets ran red with blood as cultivators in black robes slaughtered villagers for sport. Their laughter echoed amidst the screams.
In a small hut at the village outskirts, Yun ii lay sprawled on the ground, blood dripping from her nose. Her mother was pinned against the wall by a sneering cultivator, his fingers digging into her throat.
Another cultivator—taller, with a cruel smirk—twirled Yun Lintian’s storage ring in his hand.
"Where did a little rat like you get sothing like this?" he demanded, kicking Yun ii in the ribs.
She gasped but didn’t answer.
The cultivator’s smirk widened. He turned to his companion. "Break one of the woman’s fingers."
The other cultivator grinned, wrenching Yun ii’s mother’s pinky finger backward with a sickening crack.
"NO!" Yun ii scread.
The lead cultivator crouched before her. "Tell who gave you this ring, and I’ll let your mother live."
Yun ii’s lips trembled. Tears stread down her face. But she clenched her fists and spat, "Go to hell!"
The cultivator sighed. "Pity. Such a pretty face, such talent... wasted." He raised his sword. "Kill the mother first. Let the girl watch."
The blade descended—
And froze midair.
A voice, colder than the deepest winter, spoke from the shadows.
"Why?"
Everyone in the hut stiffened. The cultivators whirled around, their blood running cold.
Yun Lintian stood there, having appeared without the slightest ripple of energy. His golden and black eyes burned into Yun ii.
"Why didn’t you tell them about ?"
Yun ii’s breath hitched. Fresh tears spilled over. "M-Mother taught ... never to betray a benefactor. Even if it costs my life."
Yun Lintian stared at her for a long mont. Then, slowly, he turned to the terrified woman still pinned against the wall.
"You raised a good daughter."
The cultivators finally snapped out of their shock. The one holding Yun ii’s mother snarled, "Who the hell are—"
Puff!
His arm fell to the floor, severed at the elbow.
A second later, the other cultivator’s arm followed.
They barely had ti to scream before Yun Lintian flicked his wrist. Yun ii’s mother was yanked from her captor’s grip and deposited gently beside her daughter.
Yun ii sobbed, clutching her mother close. "Thank you... thank you, Senior Yun!"
Yun Lintian didn’t respond. He turned his gaze to the two writhing cultivators.
Their eyes widened in realization.
"W-Wait—"
Yun Lintian raised a single finger.
The God Slaying Sword shot forward.
Two heads hit the ground.
The remaining black-robed cultivators froze as an oppressive aura blanketed the entire village.
One by one, their bodies stiffened. Their eyes bulged.
Then—
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Like overripe fruit, their heads exploded.
Not a single drop of blood touched the surviving villagers.
Inside the hut, Yun ii trembled as she watched Yun Lintian step toward the door.
"Senior... where are you going?"
He paused.
"I’m leaving."
However, before Yun Lintian could take another step, he suddenly felt a chill running down his spine.
Puff!
As he turned around, Yun ii’s head was already flying into the air. Her eyes were still filling with concerns... Clearly, she didn’t even know how she died...
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