Once again, Qin Yun was sprawled out on the stairs leading to the Main Hall, reflecting upon the implications of his upcoming marriage. All around him, clan members passed him by as they gave him looks. You know the types: ones filled with mockery and derision. Still, Qin Yun wasn't bothered by it.

By no means was he a deviant, but anything was better than indifference. Qin Yun dreaded only two things from the bottom of his heart: boredom and solitude.

Solitude was self-explanatory. No sentient creature was poised to live alone, even if they deluded themselves into thinking they could. It was simply ingrained into their genes, and humans were no exception.

Even more so for Qin Yun, as his situation was particular; he was unique in the world. At least he never found anyone in a similar situation. Still, it wasn't something to hide. More than once, he had told those close to him in his previous lives. Yet, so few were inclined to believe him. He didn't blame them. Even he barely believed it himself.

As for boredom, that was trickier. It wasn't about boredom itself but its side effect. As you might expect, living for so long was quite a strain on the psyche. Everything became mundane after experiencing it so many times. The quest for new stimuli was always an ongoing process.

That was where the problem reared its ugly head. Seeking new and fresh experiences always meant going far beyond what was already known, which meant ever-increasing risks. As you might expect, all that awaited him at the end was death.

At first, death was interesting as it was something new, but again, too much of a good thing could also be harmful. As he knew he would always be reborn, Qin Yun went slightly mad. For a while, seeking death was like a drug, and he was an addict.

Qin Yun couldn't help but sigh as he looked back on those times. He was young and immature; he didn't know his limits. Due to his recklessness, he missed out on so many exciting worlds. Qin Yun wouldn't make the same mistake again.

As he silently pondered upon the steps, a young group of cultivators ascended the stairs toward the hall. Two men with identical features surrounded a fifteen-year-old woman as they did their best to flirt with her. Unfortunately, their efforts seemed to be in vain, as the woman's expression was the epitome of indifference.

The young men's loud voices as they recounted their feats of strength brought Qin Yun out of his reflections. He observed the noisy trio as one of his eyebrows rose slightly. He was familiar with the young woman as she was Qin Meihui’s younger sister. Basically, she was also his cousin.

Still, her expression reminded him of his Grand-Aunt Lihua. It was no wonder as they were master and disciple. They were well fitted for each other as both were much too absorbed in pursuing the Dao while possessing an interest in not much else.

Qin Yun could only shake his head at the duo’s futile attempt to garner her attention, as they were doomed to fail. Still, he wouldn’t point it out as he eagerly anticipated the climax of this train wreck of a show.

Sadly, one of the twins noticed his gaze and frowned. Qin Yun scoffed slightly and broke line of sight. It seemed he would have to miss the ending. He expected the trio to pass him by as they ascended the stairs, but it seemed the young men had other plans. Qin Yun could guess their intentions as it was all too generic.

One of them stood before him, then looked down, sneering slightly. The man opened his mouth to speak, but Qin Yun was too lazy to remember what was said. Something about being trash and the family's shame; no originality whatsoever.

Seeing that his words were being ignored, the man grew agitated. He had hoped to show his gallant features to his junior sister, thus garnering her admiration. Qin Yun had no idea how such warped thinking came to be. How was picking on someone something to be proud enough to show off? Were they touched in the head?

Did they bash each other's skulls in so hard they suffered from brain damage? It wouldn't surprise Qin Yun, as settling things through violence was the norm in this world. Whoever had the biggest fists, something or other. How very barbaric. Qin Yun expected nothing less from such a backwater world.

Qin Yun remained silent, paying no attention to the poor, mentally challenged boy. Yet, it only seemed to enrage him further. What did they want from him? They were unhappy when he showed up, calling him the family's shame. Yet, even when he kept a low profile, things didn't improve. Honestly, they should make up their minds already.

As Qin Yun expected, when the boy couldn’t get the reaction he wanted with words, he resorted to violence. Typical. A slight trace of pressure swarmed around the boy's palms as he struck forward. His eyes glowed slightly, and he sneered, expecting his strike to make short work of the failure before him.

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Qin Yun's eyes narrowed slightly, but only because of how weak that strike was. While he didn't remember who those boys were, judging by their relationship with Meihui's sister, Qin Yun could infer they were probably of similar status. Qin Yun judged that strike to be somewhere between the 2nd and 3rd level of the Qi Refining Realm.

What he used to base his observations on wasn’t the strike’s strength but its mastery over Qi. Even if the boy was holding back, this was the limit of his proficiency. Still, Qin Yun couldn’t wrap his brain around it. The boy should be somewhat talented in the clan, yet this was all he amounted to.

Qin Yun didn't bother to block; such a weak strike was beneath him. The boy's fist fell and met its target: the side of Qin Yun's head. As the two collided, the boy laughed maniacally, then turned to see the young lady's reaction to his posturing. Unfortunately, he would be disappointed as a look of surprise replaced the indifference in the lady's eyes. The boy frowned and then turned back, expecting to see Qin Yun writhing on the ground in pain, yet all he saw was Qin Yun giving him a look of pity.

Undeterred, the boy struck again, this time with all the strength he could muster. Yet, to Qin Yun, this was only slightly more potent than his previous attempt. He could only shake his head at this deplorable sight.

Qin Yun raised his hand, pointing a finger forward as he gently received the strike. The boy's fist stopped dead in its tracks, unable to move even a millimetre further as if space denied the existence of momentum.

The boy stood rooted in place, mouth slightly agape, unable to accept reality. As he was stuck in a stupor, his twin entered the fray, claiming some inane theories about how Qin Yun was a fraud, or he used some sort of artifact, or he had killed the real Qin Yun and was a doppelganger who wished to feast on their flesh. Indeed, a boy with a fertile imagination.

Qin Yun had no intention of being part of this farce. People started to gather, and Qin Yun wasn't some sort of circus show for other's entertainment. If anything, he was the one who needed to be entertained. He didn't bother to acknowledge the twins' existence and only nodded slightly to Qin Meihui's sister. It was only proper courtesy as he appreciated her sister greatly.

The girl nodded back, but soon, indifference returned to her eyes as she resumed her climb, leaving the two clowns behind. Qin Yun smiled slightly, seeing this; the girl was quite interesting. He would have to ask Meihui for her name, as he presently had no idea.

Qin Yun hadn’t bothered to remember most of the members of his own clan, as his reputation was indeed at rock bottom. Also, the idea of procreating with family wasn’t as frowned upon in this world as most cultivators weren’t bothered by things like blood relations.

It didn't surprise Qin Yun, as this world's moral bottom line was truly low. Besides, he suspected those people had no idea of such a thing as Genetic Diversity. Of course, they probably had no idea what genes were, to begin with, much less of the consequences of consanguineous breeding.

Qin Yun had no intentions of educating them, as it was pointless anyway. The only reason to avoid breeding with family was to strengthen the blood so that the whole family line would not die out due to one single cause. However, they were cultivators; ordinary diseases and toxins were a non-factor.

The second reason was purely a matter of ethics—of societal norms—which were basically non-existent here. Everything was fair game, a free-for-all, so to say. Qin Yun had never seen such massive hypocrites in all the worlds he had visited. Their so-called idea of justice was just the biggest joke ever.

As for how Qin Yun could resist the boy’s strike despite being a realm lower, well... that was Qin Yun’s little secret. It all started one day when he was bored—as everything ever did—when he pondered the implication of the word: Peak. More precisely, the Peak of the Body Strengthening Realm.

Qin Yun was a scientist, after all. Defining things and seeking answers was what he did for a living.

Most cultivators claimed to be at the peak when they were close to achieving the next realm, but that was so broad that it rubbed Qin Yun the wrong way. So, he decided to run a small experiment. He wouldn't stop until he reached the true peak of the Body Strengthening Realm. That was fifteen years ago, and he was still far from it.

Common knowledge was that each major realm was subdivided into ten minor stages, which most call levels, with the tenth being the peak. Once reached, one could attempt to break through to the next major realm.

Qin Yun’s hypothesis was thus: the so-called peak was only the bare minimum necessary to ascend to the next realm. Minimum, as opposed to maximum. Qin Yun wished to seek this maximum. Curiously enough, each level seemed to grant the same strength proportional to an individual's base power. This meant that by measuring the amount of power gained at each level, one could infer which level was indeed the peak.

Qin Yun was at the 112th level of the Body Strengthening Stage and still seemed far from the peak. Or at least, that's what he surmised. To his dismay, the strength curve after the 10th level wasn't linear but exponential, which made estimating the levels more tricky.

As such, when he broke through the 11th level, his strength began to skyrocket, but it also brought some more problems that Qin Yun had to deal with. Still, there was no need to be so strict with it, as those further levels were simply arbitrary. This was only done for intellectual curiosity's sake.

With this insignificant incident over with, Qin Yun strolled the clan’s grounds aimlessly, lost in thoughts. He had much to ponder, and wandering seemed to suit him well. Still, the sun was beginning to set as night was approaching. The meeting with the elders had taken much more time than he anticipated—really, he just slept through most of it—it was time for him to go home.

His feet led him to a massive mansion surrounded by impressive walls nestled in the centre of the clan's grounds. Still, Qin Yun didn't enter but continued on his way until he reached a secluded shack hidden in a dilapidated courtyard behind the mansion.

As he reached home, a slight smile flashed on his lips as he saw his cousin Meihui waiting for him inside. Still, his expression sunk just as fast when he heard her speak.

"Your father is waiting for you; you should go. Do not make him wait," she solemnly warned Qin Yun.

Qin Yun sighed; he simply couldn’t catch a break...