Deep within the highest Heavens, there was a hidden realm. Inside there was a mountain that pierced the sky and held a thousand heavenly flowers. A simple path scaled the mountain, with greater heights containing nobler flowers. Decorations became more intricate and beautiful, the scenery more magnificent yet dangerous.
It was an unparalleled place unlike any other, but there was no real value in it. The Qi within the realm was extremely dense, though unusable. The flowers were so powerful and saturated with the Qi, yet were inaccessible. The mountain itself would take a mortal's lifetime to climb.
But at the peak, away from all the extravagances and worldliness below, there was a stone chair and stone table off to the side. At the center was a lone flower with four closed dainty translucent petals and a white core. The entire realm was bathed and nurtured from the Heavens above, but none more so than the lone flower at the peak.
It would then be found by the Heavenly Dao Pavilion, who would name the realm, 'Bailou Garden,' as inscribed on the stone table.
At first, the realm was ignored since there was nothing to gain, but when the Pavilion Master scaled to the peak, he saw the importance of the lone flower.
He kowtowed, shocking his disciples who followed him. The last he prostrated was for the passing of his master a hundred thousand years ago.
He simply said in reverence, "This lowly one greets the one that is beloved by the Heavens."
Upon hearing those words, his disciples followed suit. They understood what that meant.
The Heavens acknowledged the Pavilion Master's words. 'This one is called Tian Li. Soon, it will blossom, and have a name of its own.'
The Pavilion Master prostrated deeper as he interpreted the words of the Heavens. He stood up swiftly and ordered his disciples. "Soon, the Tian Li will blossom spiritual intelligence. We must keep the flower protected and see it mature!"
The disciples saluted and said in unison, "We heed the Master's words!"
The one currently tasked over watching the Tian Li was Kong Ming, and never had he been more anxious in his hundred years of living! The original person tasked to watch the flower was on a break, and Kong Ming didn't take it as seriously as her. Somewhere along the way, he fell asleep. His inattentiveness lasted only as long as it took to blink, but by the time Kong Ming awoke, the flower was gone.
At first, he thought he was dreaming. Few knew of the flower's existence and fewer dared to provoke the Heavenly Dao Pavilion.
When the realization struck, Kong Ming felt his soul age a hundred years in horror. How was he supposed to answer to the Pavilion Master?
The Pavilion Master was a kindly old man who never seemed to become angry, so Kong Ming felt that he could talk to him. He was more worried about the Heavens' wrath or what the other Heavenly Dao Pavilion members would think.
Just before he could do anything, Kong Ming saw from above the silhouette of a man walking up the mountain. He immediately recognized him.
'God Slaying Butcherer.' 'Heavenly Executioner.' 'The Demon Sealing Sect's Divine Prodigy.'
Those were some of the secret "honorary titles" of Zhan Zheng Jiao. That was when Kong Ming recalled a rumor, that the Tian Li was a betrothed gift from the Pavilion Master.
Kong Ming's aged soul felt his soul wanting to escape his body. If he ran away, he would die. If he stood still, he would die. If he pleaded to live, he would die anyway because that was the consequence of being alive beside Zhan Zheng Jiao. His body froze in position, wanting only to be seen as an out-of-place ornament.
Zhan Zheng Jiao with firm footsteps headed up the mountain. He decided to walk the mountain's path on foot instead of taking shortcuts. He had now walked almost a century, going through perilous changes in extreme weather and defeating countless dangerous beasts. He did little to look at the thousand heavenly flowers, his eyes were set only for the one at the peak.
When Zhan Zheng Jiao reached the top, his face darkened. He walked past Kong Ming, unaware of his dismay and only finding the person strange for standing idly there.
As Zhan Zheng Jiao stood staring at the empty bed of soil, he looked nothing but calm. He wondered, 'Where is the Tian Li flower?'
In the next moment, the small realm seemed to quiver with fear.
"Where is the guardian!?"
Everything seemed to stop with that shout. The monsters froze, the flowers stopped shining, and the realm became quiet.
In the silence, Zhan Zheng Jiao recalled the guardian requesting a break and was replaced by Kong Ming. He remembered seeing Kong Ming somewhere along the way and when he turned around, he saw him still and frozen, as if he had died.
Many questions appeared in Zhan Zheng Jiao's mind. The Tian Li flower was a unique heavenly existence as it was the one beloved by the Heavens. Not many dared to try and exploit such an existence, only those powerful enough would covet them. He then thought about those who opposed the Heavenly Dao Pavilion.
Thinking this, Zhan Zheng Jiao's mood darkened even further. The air around him seemed to freeze as he thought up a list of people that needed to be executed.
His thoughts were interrupted by Kong Ming, who was now in the lowest kowtow physically possible.
"Heavenly Executioner. Please spare my life! I wouldn't dare steal the Tian Li flower!"
Zhan Zheng Jiao hearing this sighed and shook his head in regret. "You couldn't even uproot the flower with all your strength. We should've chosen more carefully."
Kong Ming didn't register the insult, only knowing that Zhan Zheng Jiao had spared him. His face lit up with pure joy, he looked as if he had met the love of his life. "Thank you Heavenly Executioner! You are too gracious!"
Zhan Zheng Jiao couldn't help but be irked by his enthusiasm. He quickly thought up something to do about him. "Your task was to guard the Tian Li flower, and now it's missing. Appropriate punishments must be met."
Kong Ming nodded eagerly. He had only expected one thing, which was death. A punishment to wave his immense sin was more than he could ask for.
"Crawl back down the Bailou Garden. Follow the path." Zhan Zheng Jiao casually walked out while Kong Ming digested his task. His face had gone from happiness to shock, and then to anger and finally pain in a matter of seconds.
His fragile soul, which had just recently returned to its body, was finally dealt the last blow. Kong Ming collapsed, feeling pain all over.
Huan Jin lay on a massive round boulder, leisurely basking in the warmth of the sky. Although he appeared to be nothing, he was gathering Qi. The Qi around the bamboo jungle was swirling like a hurricane, all funneling toward Huan Jin.
The bamboos were not ordinary. They were spiritual plants that took strength of the Earth to grow, subsequently releasing Qi as a byproduct. This made it so that even the most powerful blow from an Ascended cultivator would barely scratch the surface of a matured stalk.
The path to the center of the bamboo forest took hundreds of thousands of years to create. It was ultimately worth it as it produced the densest Qi known anywhere, besides the Bailou Garden.
Though the bamboo forest was so important that it elevated the Heavenly Dao Pavilion to the strongest force, few would dare to step in. The Qi was so dense that it could easily block meridians and overwhelm the dantians of anyone trying to cultivate it.
Huan Jin however absorbed it as easily as if he was drinking water. He wasn't even in the bamboo forest to cultivate, instead relishing in the total peace and tranquility of it.
Just as Huan Jin felt in tune with the Heavens and was about to sleep, he sensed someone enter the bamboo forest. He waited for the person to find Zhan Zheng Jiao with a grave face.
"Senior brother." Zhan Zheng Jiao bowed with slight courtesy. "I am here to cultivate."
Huan Jin chuckled upon hearing that. His junior brother would only come here if he became angry at something. "What happened this time?"
Zhan Zheng Jiao, recalling what had occurred could only be filled with regret. He was afraid that if this emotion continued, he would truly murder the people on his list. "Senior Brother, the Tian Li has disappeared."
Huan Jin's amusement instantly ceased, instead, a frown formed on his face. "Who dares?"
Zhan Zheng Jiao shook his head. "I will dwell on it later. I need to rest my soul."
Huan Jin nodded and jumped off the boulder. His junior was someone with a special physique so it must be properly stabilized.
As he began to walk out, Huan Jin said, "If Junior Brother ever needs my assistance on this matter, do not hesitate to ask."
"I will."
Zhan Zheng Jiao waited for Huan Jin to leave the realm before a thousand cuts on the bamboos appeared.