The Immortal Realm stretches endlessly, a world of splendor that mortals cannot comprehend.
The skies swirl with silver and gold, clouds glowing like molten light, and stars drift lazily, as if aware of their own existence.
Mountains rise like ancient gods, piercing the heavens, while rivers flow with light instead of water, carrying energies that nurture every living thing and cultivator alike.
The air hums with power.
Every breath is infused with the essence of the cosmos; every step upon the land is a brush against the threads of fate itself.
Mountains are alive with ancient energy, forests whisper the secrets of a thousand years, and even time bends for those strong enough to command it.
Amidst this grandeur, countless sects and clans shine like constellations in the star-strewn sky.
The Lin Clan is among them—or rather, it once is.
Once, their name shakes heaven and earth, their cultivators feared and respected across the ten greatest clans.
Now, the clan teeters on the edge of obscurity.
Their strongest force - Lin Zhen, an Immortal Venerable, has fallen into an ancient secret realm, never to return.
The Lin Clan loses its place among the ten greatest families, their glory fading into shadow.
And yet, even in the shadows, life persists.
Tonight, in the largest chamber of the Lin estate, a woman screams, her cries echoing through the halls.
Pain twists her body, but beyond it, a fragile hope stirs—the birth of a child.
The newborn cries, piercing the night. The heavens react immediately.
Constellations quiver.
Distant mountains tremble.
Even the fabric of existence beyond the Immortal Realm ripples in response.
Life has arrived that could alter destiny itself.
But tragedy accompanies it.
Lin Yu's mother does not survive after giving birth.
Her fading gaze finds Elder Mei, her closest friend, and she whispers with the last of her strength: "Take… him… protect him… no matter what…"
Elder Mei leans closer, gripping the child tightly.
Around them, the air thrums with celestial energy, the heavens themselves holding their breath.
The weight of the moment presses on her shoulders, yet she knows: this child—so small, so fragile, yet touched by the cosmos—will be her responsibility.
Lin Yu opens his eyes for the first time, and in that instant, the threads of destiny begin to stir.
The Immortal Realm itself seems to acknowledge him, a tiny life against the vast expanse, already carrying the promise of upheaval.
The cries of the newborn fill the chamber, mingling with the faint scent of incense and the lingering aura of loss.
Lin Yu stirs in Elder Mei's arms, tiny fists clenching and unclenching, a life so fragile yet already heavy with fate.
The elders of the Lin Clan gather, their robes swishing quietly against the polished stone floor.
Their gazes are sharp, cold, and unyielding, like blades judging every heartbeat in the room.
They bend toward the child, their hands glowing faintly with probing energy, testing for spirit roots—the measure of an immortal's worth.
A flicker of expectation crosses their faces as the first probe passes through Lin Yu.
Then a second, a third.
Nothing.
Silence stretches across the chamber, suffocating and absolute.
Elder Mei tightens her hold, her eyes narrowing, a storm brewing behind her calm exterior.
"What… does this mean?" she asks quietly, but her voice carries the weight of fury restrained.
The head elder straightens, his expression grim.
"No detectable spirit root… nothing at all. He cannot cultivate. He… is trash."
The words strike Elder Mei like a thunderclap, but she keeps her voice steady, biting back the heat that threatens to spill out.
"This… is impossible. The heavens themselves have acknowledged his birth. You dare call him trash?"
Another elder scoffs.
"Acknowledged by the heavens? He is nothing. The Lin Clan cannot afford to raise weakness under our name. This child… brings shame upon the family."
Elder Mei feels her blood boil, but she does not lash out.
Instead, she bends down, pressing the tiny infant closer to her chest.
His small, quivering form is so vulnerable, yet there is a spark—an almost imperceptible pulse beneath the surface.
She senses it, faint but defiant, and her heart clenches.
"No one will touch him," she declares, her voice sharp as steel.
"I swear it. I will protect him with my life. Even if the heavens themselves conspire against him, even if the Lin Clan casts him aside."
The elders exchange uneasy glances, the weight of her words momentarily halting their judgment.
But their decision is already made, the verdict sealed.
Lin Yu is marked as worthless in the eyes of his clan, an outcast born of a fading family.
Elder Mei does not flinch.
She whispers softly to the infant, brushing a strand of hair from his forehead.
"Do you hear me, little one? The world may look down on you… may cast you into shadows… but you are stronger than they can see. One day, they will know your name."
Even as Lin Yu squirms in her arms, unaware of the full gravity of this moment, something stirs deep within him—a latent pulse of power, dormant but alive.
It waits, patient, tied to the tides of rage and grief that will one day awaken it.
And tonight, in this quiet chamber of judgment and sorrow, Lin Yu's life begins as the world turns its back on him.
The night air shimmers with tension.
Elder Lin Yue's aura burns like molten metal, his eyes fixed on the chamber where Elder Mei clutches Lin Yu.
A divination had come to him through an immortal friend.
"The child of the Lin Clan will rise beyond all, shaking heaven and earth. None can stop him. Only if he dies young will your descendants thrive."
The prophecy twists in Kang Yue's mind like fire.
He will not allow it.
Not tonight.
Not ever.
Elder Mei senses him first—the pulse of ambition, the deadly intent.
"Lin Yu… hold on!" she hisses, vanishing with the child in her arms.
Her movements blur as she speeds up, leaving only afterimages in the moonlight.
She cultivates the Phantom Gale Steps which focuses in speed.
She channels her immortal qi into her legs and core, focusing her consciousness on the flow of spiritual energy around her.
By synchronizing her breathing with the ambient spiritual qi, she taps into the surrounding energies, compressing time and space for her own movement.
As her qi surges, the air around her body bends and vibrates, scattering light and sound.
This creates afterimages and disorients enemies, making her movements nearly impossible to track.
With this, she is considered to be the fastest among all the elders rivaling the former Clan head.
Outside the chamber, chaos erupts.
Lin Yue strikes first, summoning Heavenstrike Thunder, a bolt of immortal lightning that rends the air and scorches stone.
Sparks shower across the courtyard as the air vibrates with raw power.
From the shadows, Elder Mei's loyal retainers leap into action, their bodies flaring with spiritual qi.
One by one, they intercept Kang Yue's disciples, clashing with devastating force.
Energy beams cut through the night, walls shattering, and every strike resonates with a power that can level mountains.
But the enemy is relentless.
One by one, the retainers fall, bodies smoking, faces etched with defiance until their final breaths.
Each life lost is a hammer blow to Elder Mei's heart, but she cannot stop—not for them, not for Lin Yu.
She moves faster, weaving through the crumbling estate, dodging bolts of Heavenstrike Thunder.
A searing strike grazes her back; pain flares, and blood stains her robes.
"Ughh"
She grits her teeth, refusing to falter.
Lin Yue snarls, advancing with lethal precision.
The air around him hums with storm energy.
She counters it with a sudden burst of immortal qi channeled onto her feet, but her speed was slowed, each movement weighed down by the wound and grief.
She reaches the far wall of the estate—hidden behind vines and ancient stone, a secret passage she had discovered long ago.
With a final, desperate leap, she plunges into the darkness.
The passage twists unnaturally, carved through the rock, lined with faint runes that resonate with immortal energy.
Behind her, Kang Yue and his disciples storm the estate, but the entrance collapses under the strain of spiritual energy, leaving only echoes of rage and lightning.
The passage opens into a secluded space far from any civilization, a place untouched and alive with dense spiritual qi, a residue of its connection to the Immortal Realm.
Elder Mei collapses on the soft grass, Lin Yu safe in her arms.
The wound in her back burns, and blood flows freely, yet her gaze is unwavering.
"Rest… little one…" she whispers, pressing her palm to his tiny head.
"You have survived… but one day, you will grow stronger than any of them… stronger than all who wish you harm."
The valley hums with latent energy, the spiritual qi dense and wild.
Elder Mei knows it will nurture Lin Yu, that this isolated refuge may give him the start he needs.
But her body is failing.
Her life has been bought at a heavy cost, and the first chapter of their escape closes with one bitter truth that the road ahead is paved with blood and sacrifice.