In the cultivation world, a fight was usually straightforward. Whoever had the higher realm would win. If a Lock Opening cultivator fought against a Core Splitting cultivator, the Core Splitting cultivator would emerge victorious. Even a difference of a single stage was usually enough to determine the winner from the start. But this held true only if one excluded the five great sects.

The five great sects possessed top-notch cultivation methods and techniques refined over thousands of years. Even then, improvements were still happening. While the rate wasn't exponential and the process was long and difficult, there was no doubt that the quality of disciples from the five great sects kept increasing.

That's why the sects guarded their secrets religiously. Even so, innovations always leaked out, making the cultivation world generally stronger now than it had been millions of years ago.

In one of the gardens of a small clan called the Wang clan, sitting amid a serene garden accompanied by the night moon and stars, sat one who studied a leaked cultivation scripture from the Purple Moon Sect.

His name was Wang Tao, and he was a genius who appeared perhaps once in ten thousand years. The elders and the clan leader held great hopes for him, and Wang Tao himself understood he was born for greatness.

Wang Tao tried to memorize every word of the Wind and Earth Scripture. While mild dyslexia slowed his reading compared to others, he possessed the iron will to endure. The Wind and Earth Scripture combined wind and earth affinities; since he only had an earth affinity, the scripture wasn't a perfect fit. But no better scripture was available, so, as always, he endured.

After reading for several hours, Wang Tao closed the scripture and his eyes, digesting its meaning and cultivation method.

Wind and earth are two separate elements, and yet they're intertwined. Wind blows seeds to faraway lands, and the earth accepts them. Without wind, seeds, life, forests, trees, and flowers wouldn't spread. Without earth to accept them, there would be no life. The two elements work together with others to nurture life. But these elements aren't always gentle. The wind can uproot giant trees, and the earth can shake so the trees fall. Two elements that nurture life can also destroy it.

A sense of comprehension, a potential cycling path, suddenly clarified in his mind. Wang Tao smiled, then stood up.

Wang Tao was eighteen, and while only at the Lock Opening realm's third stage, he was nonetheless considered a genius. After all, he had lived his first seventeen years as a cripple and had only begun cultivating about a year prior. Although he couldn't participate in the recent Purple Moon Sect entrance exam, he believed his genius would eventually be recognized and he would be accepted as a disciple.

"With my newly awakened bloodline, I'll become a peerless genius," Wang Tao grinned.

He had green hair the color of ancient trees, sharp eyes, two straight eyebrows that looked like fine swords, and skin that was smooth and healthy. In the city of Green Valley, he was considered one of the most handsome young men ever.

"One day, everyone will know my name. I'll be rich beyond belief, with more spirit stones than I can count! All the beautiful women will want me! And I'll have so much power, even the great sects will fear me! This whole world will be mine to enjoy. It'll be perfect."

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Trying to quell his excitement and fantasies, he calmed his mind. Before those dreams could become reality, he needed to endure and work hard. So, he prepared to cultivate.

He inhaled deeply, closed his eyes, and began to move.

First, he punched the air before him, creating a ripple that made the grass and nearby tree leaves dance. As he punched, he felt the surrounding qi stir excitedly, and he absorbed it into his body.

He rotated and kicked. Again, the wind rippled, leaves and grass swayed, and he absorbed the eager qi surrounding him.

He performed several dozen basic punches and kicks, eyes closed, face a mask of seriousness. Inside, however, he felt giddy. He hated meditating for hours, so he had devised this simple method to cultivate while moving. The elders claimed his invention wasn't new and was usually inefficient, but he knew better. While perhaps not novel, his method incorporated his bloodline and was three times faster than normal cultivation.

As he cultivated while practicing kicks and punches, he submerged himself in focus. His senses shut out all distractions as he greedily absorbed the qi in his vicinity.

His bloodline was both strong and subtle. Instead of granting a unique ability, it gave him limitless endurance. Since awakening it a year ago—after nearly drowning himself and a bully in the river—he never needed sleep, never felt hungry, never tired physically or mentally, never ran out of qi, and experienced other effects he could feel but couldn't yet describe. Even after a year, he was still exploring his bloodline, conducting experiments to unravel its mysteries.

He called this bloodline Unlimited Endurance.

When the elders learned about his bloodline, they nearly died from shock. It was indeed a fearsome power. One key to becoming a strong cultivator was willpower, and his bloodline gave him an unlimited supply. Nothing could stop him as long as he kept moving and studying. Moreover, since he didn't need rest, food, or sleep, he had twenty-four hours a day to study and practice, effectively making his days twice as long as others.

But the true power of Wang Tao's bloodline lay in its effect on his mind. While others struggled with mental fatigue, loss of focus, and the psychological toll of endless cultivation, Wang Tao's mind remained eternally sharp and clear. No matter how long he studied or how intensely he practiced, his concentration never wavered.

"Truly, if this world is a story, then I am the main character!" He opened his eyes, punched the air as hard as he could, and shouted joyfully.

In his heart, there was no doubt. He even began planning that later, after becoming an Immortal, he would write a book about his journey. His book would become mandatory reading, protected by laws he would enact to prevent plagiarism. Anyone who dared copy it would be severely punished! Even if they only copied the title, he would strike them down!

Wang Tao giggled like a child and continued cultivating, moving his body around.

This time, he didn't break his concentration just to shout. He truly submerged himself back into that world of focus, ignoring everything, absorbing qi with all his effort, trying to open the next lock to advance further.

As he cultivated, a time came when the surrounding qi felt chaotic, as if a tornado of energy was scattering it. Wang Tao decided not to dwell on the reason, instead chasing the fleeing qi. After all, he was in the heart of his clan compound where only elders were typically permitted. Surely, no one in Green Valley could enter without being scolded and chased away by the elders. He felt like a king, with the elders as his guard dogs.

The chaotic qi persisted for several hours. While it made absorbing qi slightly harder, he managed to draw in the energy around him. Eventually, the qi settled, and he began absorbing it more quickly.

As he did so, he suddenly felt his right foot grow heavy, as if something were tied to it. He ignored it for several moments, but when the heaviness persisted, he thought perhaps his foot had caught on something. So, he opened his eyes to check.

When he saw a bloodied hand gripping his right ankle, Wang Tao blinked several times. The hand was white and wrinkled, yet its grip felt strong. Red blood coated most of the fingers clamped around his ankle, as if the hand had been dipped into a pool of blood.

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