Since young, billions strive to reach the heavens, but only a small part of society were capable of cultivating. Cultivators were true G.o.ds among men, and symbol of power and prestige. Many wars erupted and common lives treated as livestock, living only at the whims of those powerful beings.

As time pa.s.sed and society adapted, some supreme beings enforced honor. Cultivators could no longer easily trample mortals, but this rule was not always respected. Absolute power was capable of tearing rules apart without effort.

There were many worlds, countless territories, and beings. Humans were only one race and often mistaken as the weakest species. Traveling between worlds was not an easy task, but the upper realms were full of mysterious ways and arts.

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Soaring Country, Cloud Province, Near Bluecloud City, Bright Clan.

The Bright Clan of the Cloud province was a fourth-ranked influence inside Soaring Country. While far larger and more powerful than normal clans, among cultivators it could not boast to have exceptional prestige.

In a clan of cultivators, the number of resources, cultivation laws, and spirit techniques it possessed directly impacted its potential. Being situated in a land full of Spirit Energy was also a requirement for reaching greater heights.

Unfortunately, the land the Bright Clan was located on, although once br.i.m.m.i.n.g with Spirit Energy, was now barely above normal locations in the world. There were many special locations with abundant spirit energy, and most clans would settle on those, but those without sufficient power like the Bright Clan could not hope to wrestle one of those locations away without great luck or cost.

This was one of the factors that caused the decline of the clan. In fact, it was barely hanging on as a fourth-ranked influence. The years to come would be essential in determining the clan's fate, so all the elders were on edge. To make things worse, many other clans exerted pressure on the Bright Clan to prevent its growth.

Although declining, it still had a large amount of land and controlled a good amount of resources, among them a spirit herb garden and a few alchemic recipes. A small spirit vein nourished the land the garden was on. While not as effective as in the past, not many could boast having a spirit vein in their lands.

The Bright Clan biggest revenue was not alchemy, even though it had a few recipes and sold herbs and low-quality pills. As with almost every other clan in the Cloud province, they constantly had exploration and hunting teams dispatched in expeditions.

There were many mystical places to explore under the heavens. Some of them were an inheritance from powerful beings. To cultivators, they could be destiny changing opportunities sent from heaven itself, and a source of great income to a clan. This came with a great risk of death and conflict.

Hunting spirit beasts was also very profitable. Their blood and cores served to aid one's cultivation, while the meat was often rich in spiritual power and nutrition. Skin, scales, and other rare materials could also be sold. Those two activities served as the backbone of some Clan's and were dealt with the greatest importance.

Apart from those, wars were also common occurrences, so the Clans could act as mercenaries. If the Royal Family or the overlords of the Cloud province went to war, the Clan was also obligated to contribute with manpower and resources.

"How many did we lose this time?' An old man of completely white long hair sat in front of a few elders of the clan. He had a distressed look on his face.

"Patriarch, almost the entire team was wiped out. Oldest Elder also died…" The middle-aged man gave his report reluctantly.

"Heavens! How could this be? Elder Li died?" The old man nearly died from shock. Aside from him, Elder Li was the oldest one in the entire clan. He lived over five hundred years and possessed cultivation at the first level of the Spirit Gate Realm. While he could not be called extremely gifted, within the clan he was a powerhouse only second to the Patriarch himself.

The known cultivation realms to the Bright Clan are Body Tempering, Spirit Sea, Spirit Gate, and Heavenly Palace Realm.

In the Body Tempering Realm, the focus was on building the mortal body into a foundation that can reach immortality.

In the Spirit Realm, the cultivator was able to form his complete Spirit Sea, use Spirit Energy freely outside the body, and discover his True Elements and Rare Energies. This was the beginning of a True Cultivator's Path.

In the Spirit Gate Realm, the cultivator was able to open his Inner Gates to increase his power. The Inner Gates were inherently linked to Elements and Energies. Those three were considered the realms before the beginning of immortality and therefore referred as "Mortal Cultivation". The Heavenly Palace Realm was considered between the "Mortal" and "Immortal" world of cultivation, an almost unreachable height to those of the Lower Realms.

Elder Li was a Spirit Gate cultivator! His existence to a fourth-ranked clan was nearly G.o.dlike. In normal times he would be at the Clan, focused on cultivation, but this time the expedition was of great importance and so he personally led the team.

"Are the other Clans involved in this?" One of the other elders asked.

The middle-aged man from before shook his head, "We can't know for sure but I believe not. This time the Thousand Gates Secret Realm was extremely unstable. Elder Li knew of the dangers but he refused to turn back. The White Clan had the greatest fortune."

The Patriarch sighed. He was extremely tired. The power of the Bright Clan decreased every year, and even an important figure like Elder Li died. In fact, this old man was not supposed to be the patriarch. He wanted nothing more than to go into seclusion and cultivate, but the former Patriarch, his grandson, died while fighting Spirit Beasts during an invasion.

"We shall honor the dead with a ceremony. As for Elder Li's family, hand out adequate compensation from the treasure and make sure not to neglect his descendants."

In the past, the Bright Clan had many branches, but now the number of descendants was less and less, so dividing into branches was meaningless. The suffering it had been through worked greatly to fortify solidarity.

"How is the training of the younger generation going?" The Patriarch asked. He had great hopes of nurturing future talent that could change the future of his clan, but the lack of resources and better cultivation laws was worrying.

Ming Zan, the elder in charge of the training, almost sighed out loud, "They are working diligently. As patriarch knows, the average talent is not bad, but the conditions… We have no choice but to focus our resources on a few. Ming Qiu, Ming Bo and Ming Lan are our greatest prospects. Ming Qiu is already at the peak of the eight-layer of the body refining realm at only fourteen years old. Ming Bo and Ming Lan are at the sixth layer, but they are already thirteen," The rest were not worth mentioning. Some of the older generation had a higher cultivation base but were already much past that critical age.

As long as someone broke through to the Spirit Realm before the age of fifteen he would be considered a genius not only at the Bright Clan or the Cloud Province but the entirety of Soaring Country. Being at the eight-layer at that age and with the clan's current resources meant Ming Qiu was a great talent, if not a genius.

"I will train those three personally from now on. For the rest, we will open the scripture again tomorrow." When the Patriarch command ended, many of the Elders had disappointed expressions on their faces.

In the Bright Clan, there was one ancient scripture said to be the left behind by their ancestors. It was a mystic treasure capable of sharing the clan's cultivation laws and other knowledge. The Clan youth would meditate and connect with the scripture for an entire day, hoping for some enlightenment.

But most of the Elders thought this was a waste of time. No one has ever gotten anything good out of the scripture aside from the basic laws. The cultivation law was the same as the one pa.s.sed down in the clan, and the knowledge in there was only common. In short, they felt it was a waste of time, but the Patriarch was not flexible in this regard.

A bit far from there, in a spot closer to Bluecloud City, two youths fiercely exchanged blows. The first one had long black hair and wore a training robe, with a gentle looking handsome face and determined green eyes. He had a slim but defined body and his cultivation was at the fourth layer of the Body Tempering Realm. His name was Ming Ren and he was already fourteen years old.

The other youth had short brown hair and a fierce look, also wearing a training robe. His skin color was redder, he had a much larger build and was taller than Ming Ren. His eyes were pure red and his cultivation was at the eight-layer of the Body Tempering Realm at fourteen years old. His name was Bai Xun of the White Clan.

Not far from there, a girl sat on top of a rock. With a slim and graceful body and deep mysterious brown eyes, she had an above average face with tomboyish looks. Her cultivation was at the eight-layer of the Body Tempering Realm and her name was Yun Shufen of the Cloud Clan.

Ming Ren advanced, his kick like a whip aiming at Bai Xun's head with the right leg. He had a speed advantage but lost in both natural strength and realm. Since they were practicing, Bai Xun suppressed his cultivation to the same realm.

Bai Xun raised his left hand and blocked with some difficulty, managing to counterattack with a kick of his own immediately after, but Ming Ren had already jumped backward.

They both looked at each other for a second and went forward. Ming Ren struck with a quick and fluid fist that seemed to carry some qi, the [Bright Fist] Art of his clan. Bai Xun wanted to meet fist with a fist, but he was much heavier and slower, using the [One Hundred Fist] Art of the White Clan.

Ming Ren connected first and sent his opponent back a few meters!

Since Bai Xun already tempered his body to the eight-layer the attack did little damage.

"Haha, serves you right, competing against Ming Ren with speed? Even I have a hard time doing that!" Yun Shufen teased.

Bai Xun only glanced at her for a second before letting out a sigh, "Brother, I'm four layers higher than you and I still lose every time."

"Hahaha, realm isn't everything! Our mastery over those arts is still lacking, but I'd lose to you in raw strength. Besides, you're even suppressing your cultivation," Ming Ren smiled.

"Brother, that's not a good way to comfort me…" Bai Xun cried.

"You don't need any comfort. Big Sister Shufen, are you going to spar?"

She shook her head, "I need to go back. If my father finds out I'm sneaking around to train with you guys I'm dead."

The three of them might be good friends, but their clans were always in a position of compet.i.tion. Although the White Clan and The Bright Clan were somewhat close, her Cloud Clan was often in direct opposition. The four fourth-ranked influences of Bluecloud city were the Bright Clan, The White Clan, The Cloud Clan, and the Silver Clan.

"You should go back too, Little Ren. I heard you Clan didn't do well in the Secret Realm", Yun Shufen added.

Ming Ren sighed. His Bright Clan was in a precarious position lately, and he was doing his best to cultivate, but he was stuck at the fourth layer for years. No matter how much he tried he was unable to break through.

"Brother, I don't get it. How come you can't break through? I can beat anyone else from my generation in the White Clan and even a few seniors, but I'm powerless against you. You're always the first to understand a technique and you can even concoct pills, but you're stuck at the fourth layer since forever. And at the bottom, too." Bai Xun sighed.

But how could Ming Ren answer? He used many precious herbs and methods to no avail. The elders arranged for an expert do check his const.i.tution but he only said his talent was poor. In truth, he was a little different from the others. In this world of cultivation, power is everything, but he did not wish to pursue power for the sake of status.

He was a curious child by nature. He wanted to know how far he could get, what he could learn from the mysteries, the secrets behind Martial Arts, and the secrets behind the Dao of this world. He loved fighting the strong and felt a need to protect the weak. If he saw a new art in front of his eyes, his brain would go into curious mode and he'd try to replicate and understand that art. If he saw an exquisite formation, he'd try to learn about it.

The clans used cultivation base to judge talent. Those with poor talent would be delegated to secondary tasks and receive fewer resources. At some clans, they would be considered trash, but the Bright Clan believed destiny could also affect a cultivator's fortunes. The current patriarch only reached the Spirit Gate Realm by luck, and not talent.

Both Bai Xun and Yun Shufen were at the same age as him, but already at the peak of the eight-layer, and considered great talents in their respective clans. They were even scouted by powerful sects and the Royal Academy.

"Are you stupid? Why did you ask that? Can't you see Little Ren already has a lot on his mind, you fool?" Yun Shufen was the oldest by a month and acted as the Big Sister.

Bai Xun sighed and apologized. He had no way of helping his good brother.

The three friends bid their goodbyes and each went to their respective clans. Unknown to them, there were many experts lurking in the shadows. They were from the White and Cloud Clans, protecting their young master and mistress. Only the Bright Clan didn't need to send any.

Back in the clan, Ming Ren attended the ceremony in honor of the fallen. Elder Li was a kind person that cared much for everyone in the younger generation. As for him skipping training, the Elders long ago stopped enforcing his schedule as they felt it was pointless for him to train any further. Although they didn't encourage him to give up they also didn't have any hope placed on him.

'One day I'll have enough strength to protect everyone,' he silently thought, just as Elder Ming Zan announced that the younger generation will gather tomorrow for the Bright Scripture. Most of the youths had no reaction to it, and some even complained a little, but one of them was different.

Ming Ren eyes shone with excitement.