Cultivating Immortality, Starting from Childhood Sweethearts

At Yun Jian Peak of the Wanjian (Myriad Sword) Sect, a young girl sat cross-legged atop a boulder.

Before her floated a crystalline longsword, transparent and gleaming. The blade, three feet long, bore water-like engravings in a tassel pattern. Though simple in design, the sword emanated an extraordinary beauty in its simplicity.

The girl's name was Xu Xue'nuo.

The sword was called Qingming.

"Clear as pristine water, refined like ancient inscriptions."

Many within the Myriad Sword Sect believed the name Qingming symbolized these qualities, perfectly aligning with the sword's aesthetic and essence.

Yet in truth, the name "Qingming" had no such profound meaning. It merely stemmed from two names.

Qingming's blade exuded a gentle white light, but the air within twenty meters of the sword was filled with sharp, piercing sword energy, completely contrary to the softness of its glow.

Tiny crystalline snowflakes flaked off Qingming's blade bit by bit, sharpening its edge further, much like a cultivator purging impurities from their body during the body refinement stage.

This process was the tempering of the sword.

Every sword cultivator needed to temper their life-bound flying sword.

For most, these swords were external items refined and fused with their spirit, with tempering focused on deepening the bond between the sword and its wielder.

But for Xu Xue'nuo, a rare innate sword-bone cultivator whose sword was an extension of her very being, there was no need to enhance the connection. Her focus lay in tempering the sword itself, akin to sharpening a blade.

Suddenly, the sword let out a resonant hum, scattering its sword energy in all directions.

Xu Xue'nuo slowly opened her eyes.

In the sky above, a blue leaderboard appeared, and with it, a line of text:

[Qin Qingwan, native of Wu Kingdom, direct disciple of the Grand Elder of the Tianxuan Sect, eight years old, has entered the Sixth Realm of Qi Cultivation—Sea Observation Realm.

Ranking on the Qingyun Ranking: Ninth.]

Xu Xue'nuo froze momentarily upon seeing the words on the leaderboard, then a faint smile curved her lips.

She had long anticipated that once Qin Qingwan embarked on the path of cultivation, she would be no less talented than herself.

"Xue'nuo, you're losing focus."

Just as she was feeling a flicker of happiness for her close friend, the voice of the Myriad Sword Sect's Sect Master resonated from the sky.

"Yes, Master," Xu Xue'nuo responded, closing her eyes again and continuing to temper her life-bound sword.

Until Qingming was fully tempered, she was forbidden from leaving the peak or having any contact with the outside world, lest external causes and effects dull her sword's edge.

"Master," she suddenly called out again, her eyes opening.

"Hmm?" The voice from the clouds sounded distant yet seemed to be right beside her.

"I wish to ask Master a question," Xu Xue'nuo said, looking toward the sky.

"Speak," replied Jiang Luoyu, her voice calm and serene.

"Master, is it true that only those with innate spiritual veins can cultivate?"

Jiang Luoyu answered, "Not so. Spiritual veins are merely pathways that draw the world's spiritual energy into the body. Those without spiritual veins lack the means to connect with heaven and earth, and thus cannot cultivate.

"But through the use of rare treasures, artificial spiritual veins can be created. However, the cost of establishing these veins is exorbitant, and they can never match the innate spiritual veins. Such cultivators find it extremely difficult to achieve greatness, and many cannot even step into the Cave Mansion Realm."

Xu Xue'nuo lowered her head, her eyes tinged with disappointment.

Jiang Luoyu, noticing her disciple's demeanor, naturally understood what was on her mind.

Back at Mingxin Sword Peak, Jiang Luoyu had glimpsed all of Xu Xue'nuo's inner illusions, learning about that young boy named Xu Ming.

Even Xue'nuo breaking through her bottleneck was all because of that boy.

"Xue'nuo, even if you help him establish artificial spiritual veins, it's futile. He will never step into the Cave Mansion Realm. His entire life, compared to yours, is but a fleeting spring and summer. You and he are destined to be as separate as immortals and mortals."

---

To the west of the Tianxuan Sect stood two mountains, their peaks so close that they formed a narrow slit of sky between them.

Beyond this Thread of Heaven was a sea of flowers, cradled between the mountains like a hidden paradise.

Amid this sea of flowers stood an eight-year-old girl.

In the span of two years, the roundness of her chin had begun to taper, hinting at the features of a young maiden. Her skin, even more snow-white and flawless than before, radiated a delicate, natural beauty that was impossible to fault. It was as if she possessed the most perfect skin under the heavens, untouched by any blemish.

Compared to her childlike innocence at six, the girl now carried an ethereal air, as though she belonged to a realm beyond the mortal world. Her peach blossom eyes seemed capable of stirring ripples across existence with a mere glance.

Anyone who had seen her wouldn't doubt that this girl would someday ascend the List of Beauties. They only wondered what rank she might achieve when she grew older—perhaps even unseating the woman who had held the top spot for five hundred years.

The girl crouched down carefully, watering the flowers in the patch before her.

This flower bed had been her own project. When she first arrived, she had begged her master for seeds to plant.

The flowers, a vibrant crimson, were called Blood Toras.

Every day, the girl would visit this patch after her cultivation, tending to the Blood Toras and wondering when they might bloom.

An entire year passed, and still, the Blood Toras did not bloom.

Frowning, the girl had tearfully asked her master, "Did I plant them wrong? Why aren't they blooming?"

Her master then revealed that Blood Toras only bloomed once every two years.

Hearing this, the girl stood frozen in place for a long time before breaking into sobs.

"Two years for one bloom? Five blooms will take ten years! I've not even been alive for ten years yet!"

The girl missed home. She missed her mother, her sister Xue'nuo, her brother Ming, and even the big white goose in his courtyard.

But after coming to the sect and learning the truth about her unique constitution, the girl understood she could never return. If she went back, she would bring harm to her mother and brother Ming.

Wiping away her tears, she continued caring for the flower bed.

During her moments of rest, her favorite pastime was sitting quietly in front of the flower patch, lost in thought.

---

Another year passed.

One day, the Blood Toras finally bloomed.

Overjoyed, the girl exclaimed, "Just four more times, and I can see Brother Ming again!"

"This is the first time in two years I've seen you smile so happily," a voice spoke.

Wangxuan, her master, walked into the valley, stopping beside her.

"Master!" Qin Qingwan ran over to him with a bright smile.

"You seem to like Blood Toras a lot," Wangxuan remarked, watching his disciple with a warm smile.

"Not really," Qin Qingwan shook her head. "But when the Blood Toras bloom four more times, I'll get to see Brother Ming again!"

Wangxuan chuckled lightly. "Eight years from now, you'll no longer look like a child. Do you think he'll recognize you?"

"What if he doesn't?" Qin Qingwan's peach blossom eyes curved into a crescent as she smiled.

"As long as I recognize him, that's enough."