The bright flash of the warp drive finally faded.
The massive Stark battleship floated silently over a thick, dark forest.
Down below the trees, massive, terrifying beasts roared loudly in the shadows.
The air was heavy with ancient, wild energy.
"Hide the ship right here, Little D,"
Sam instructed smoothly, looking at the main screen.
"Turn on the cloaking camouflage. We don't want any giant beasts scratching the paint."
"D understands!"
Little D said happily.
The silver Asgardian metal instantly turned completely invisible.
The ship blended perfectly with the sky.
Sam opened the bottom hatch and gently floated down to the ground.
He wasn't entirely alone.
Little D sat happily on Sam's right shoulder, while the tiny, angry wooden Hulk sat bravely on his left.
They looked around at the giant trees with wide, curious eyes.
"Stay quiet, you two,"
Sam smiled, patting them both on the head.
"Let's go see what kind of people live in this universe."
Sam walked out of the dangerous beast forest and stepped onto a wide dirt road.
He followed the road until he saw a massive, ancient city wall.
Hanging right over the heavy wooden gates was a large stone nameplate.
"Floating Cloud City,"
Sam read the name out loud. His eyes narrowed slightly.
The name sounded incredibly familiar to him.
He walked through the gates and entered the busy streets.
The city was full of people wearing ancient robes, carrying long swords, and trading glowing crystals.
As Sam walked slowly through the market, he listened closely to the people talking around him.
"Did you hear about the young miss of the Xia clan?"
An old man whispered loudly to his friend.
"She is a true, peerless genius. Her future is completely limitless."
"Yes, but what about that boy from the Xiao clan?"
The friend laughed cruelly.
"He is complete trash! His profound veins are broken. He can't cultivate at all. It is a total embarrassment for his family."
Sam completely stopped walking.
He stood in the middle of the busy street, and a slow, knowing smile grew on his face.
Floating Cloud City. A beautiful genius. A broken boy known as 'trash'.
Suddenly, everything clicked perfectly in his mind.
"Against the Gods,"
Sam whispered to himself, feeling deeply amused.
"What is that, Master?"
Little D asked softly from his shoulder.
"It is an old story I used to read back on Earth,"
Sam explained, keeping his voice very low.
"I never thought it was an actual, real universe. But here we are."
Sam closed his eyes for a second.
He let his powerful divine sense gently scan the city and the world around him.
He felt the heavy, strict laws that ruled this universe.
He compared this world's energy to his own deep cultivation.
"This is going to be very interesting,"
Sam smiled, opening his eyes.
"Why?"
Little D beeped curiously.
"Because of my strength,"
Sam answered softly, walking down the street.
"In this world, the fighters use something called profound energy. But the Qi spinning inside my Golden Core is much older and much purer. Just standing here right now, my power is already equal to a Sovereign."
"Sovereign?"
Little D asked.
"It is the absolute highest peak of mortal strength in this world,"
Sam explained.
"No one in this tiny city can even come close to hurting me."
Little H raised his tiny wooden fists and let out a quiet, happy grunt.
"Hulk strongest!"
Little H cheered softly.
"Yes, we are very strong,"
Sam chuckled, gently tapping Little H's fist.
"But we are not here to fight normal mortals. We are here to break the rules."
Sam looked up at the heavy, blue sky.
He could feel the strict laws of heaven pressing down on his shoulders.
"Once I find a safe, quiet place,"
Sam promised himself, his eyes shining with absolute determination.
"I will shatter my mortal shell. When I survive the Nine Heavenly Lightning Tribulation and reach the Nascent Soul Stage... my power will cross the boundary. I will step into the true divine way. I will become a real immortal."
Sam pulled his coat a little tighter and smiled.
"But first,"
Sam said, looking around at the busy street food stalls.
"Let's see what the food tastes like in Floating Cloud City."
Sam sat at a small wooden table outside a busy street stall.
He ordered a simple bowl of hot noodles and roasted meat.
He took a bite, and his eyes lit up.
"This is really good,"
Sam smiled.
The spices were fresh, and the meat was incredibly tender.
When he finished his meal, he called the innkeeper over.
"How much for the food?"
Sam asked.
"Only two yellow profound coins, my lord,"
The innkeeper said politely, wiping his hands on his apron.
Sam didn't have any local currency.
But he did have something else.
On his way out of the dark forest, a large, angry beast had tried to attack him.
Sam had easily defeated it and kept its glowing energy core.
Sam reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny, dark green stone.
He placed it gently on the wooden table.
"I don't have any coins,"
Sam said.
"Will this work?"
The innkeeper looked at the stone.
Suddenly, the old man's eyes went as wide as plates. His whole body started to shake.
"A... A demonic core!"
The innkeeper gasped, his voice trembling.
"And the energy... this is from a Nascent Profound Realm beast! My lord, this is worth an absolute fortune! I cannot give you enough change for this!"
"Don't worry about it,"
Sam smiled.
"Keep the change. Use it to take care of your family."
The innkeeper immediately dropped to his knees.
He bowed down, touching his forehead right to the dirt street in pure, overwhelming happiness.
"Thank you! Thank you, my noble lord!"
The old man cried happily.
Sam just waved his hand, gently told the man to stand up, and continued his walk down the busy street.
Sam explored Floating Cloud City for a little while longer. He looked at the weapon shops and the medicine stalls.
As he was walking, the noisy crowd suddenly grew very quiet.
People quickly stepped aside, making a wide path down the middle of the road.
A very beautiful woman was walking toward him.
She wore a beautiful, pure white dress.
Her face was hidden behind a thin white veil, and the air around her felt freezing cold.
Sam stopped and smiled.
He remembered her perfectly from the old story.
She was Chu Yueli, a fairy from the powerful Frozen Cloud Asgard sect.
As Chu Yueli walked past, she suddenly stopped.
She turned her head and looked straight at Sam.
Underneath her veil, her eyebrows pulled together in deep confusion.
Something felt completely wrong.
She was a very strong cultivator, so she naturally scanned everyone around her.
But when she looked at Sam, she couldn't see the depth of his cultivation at all.
Actually, she couldn't see *any* profound energy.
Even the weakest, most normal people in the city had a tiny, natural drop of profound energy in their bodies.
But Sam had absolutely zero.
He was like a completely empty space.
However, he did not look or feel like a weak mortal.
He stood there with absolute confidence, like a massive, hidden ocean.
And then, she felt something else.
She took a quiet breath, and her cold, frozen heart suddenly skipped a beat.
He smelled incredibly good.
It wasn't perfume. It was the heavy, ancient Qi of life spinning inside his Golden Core.
To her, he smelled like a perfect spring morning, fresh rain, and deep, ancient forests.
It was so comforting and pure that it made her feel completely relaxed.
Chu Yueli slowly turned and stepped right in front of him.
"Stop,"
Chu Yueli said. Her voice was cold, but her eyes were full of deep curiosity.
"Who are you?"
"Just a traveler,"
Sam answered simply, giving her a polite smile.
"My name is Sam."
"You are not a normal traveler,"
Chu Yueli said softly, looking closely at him.
"You have absolutely no profound energy in your body. Not even a single drop. That is completely impossible for a living person on this continent. Yet... you do not feel weak."
"The universe is very big, Miss,"
Sam explained gently, keeping his hands relaxed in his pockets.
"Not everyone uses the exact same energy to walk their path."
Chu Yueli took a tiny step closer.
She didn't even realize she was doing it.
She just wanted to be closer to that warm, comforting aura.
"And your scent..."
Chu Yueli whispered, losing her cold, icy mask for just a second.
"Why do you smell like... pure life?"
Sam chuckled softly. His smile was warm and bright.
"I spend a lot of time with nature,"
Sam answered kindly.
"It was very nice to meet you, Chu Yueli. Have a good day."
Sam gave her a polite nod and calmly walked past her, continuing down the street.
Chu Yueli completely froze. Her eyes went wide under her veil.
*How did he know my name?*
She thought, her mind spinning in total shock.
She quickly turned around to look at him, but he was already just a calm, normal-looking man disappearing into the busy crowd.
For the first time in her life, the cold fairy of the Frozen Cloud Asgard didn't know what to think.
Sam kept walking away from the busy market.
He looked up at the bright blue sky.
"I cannot break through in this city,"
Sam said softly to his small helpers.
"Why not, Master?"
Little D asked from his shoulder.
"The Nine Heavenly Lightning Tribulation is far too destructive,"
Sam explained, his voice turning serious.
"If I call the lightning down right now, it will completely obliterate Floating Cloud City. Every building and every person would turn to ash in a single second."
Sam shook his head.
"Even the absolute strongest fighters in this world, those in the Sovereign Profound Realm, would find it incredibly dangerous just to stand near the lightning. I need to find a completely empty wasteland to break my mortal shell."
"We will find a safe place later!"
Little D chirped happily.
"Exactly,"
Sam smiled.
They walked aimlessly through the wide, stone streets.
In the story he read back on Earth, Floating Cloud City was always called a 'small' city.
But seeing it in real life was completely different.
It was actually massive. It was easily the size of a modern human metropolis.
Eventually, Sam stopped walking.
He found himself standing across the street from a giant, wealthy estate.
The heavy front gates were covered in bright red silk and beautiful paper lanterns.
Servants were running back and forth, carrying large boxes of food and decorations.
"Why is everything so red and shiny?"
Little H asked, tilting his tiny wooden head.
"They are preparing for a grand wedding,"
Sam answered, looking up at the large golden sign above the gate.
It read: Xiao Clan.
Looking at the busy estate, Sam suddenly remembered something very important.
His eyes flashed with a sharp, calculating light.
"Little D,"
Sam whispered, a clever smile slowly forming on his face.
"Yes, Master?"
"There is a boy living inside this clan right now,"
Sam said quietly.
"His name is Xiao Che. He is the 'trash' those men in the market were laughing about. But he is secretly holding two of the greatest heavenly treasures in this entire universe."
Little D's glowing eyes blinked with pure curiosity.
"Treasures?"
Little D asked softly.
"What kind of treasures?"
"The Mirror of Samsara and the Sky Poison Pearl,"
Sam explained, keeping his voice very low.
"They are supreme divine items. They hold absolute power over life, death, and poison. They are items that even the true gods of this world would kill to have."
Sam crossed his arms and leaned against a nearby stone wall.
He was a good man, but he was also a true Cultivator.
He understood the harsh rules of the universe.
When a massive, life-changing opportunity appeared right in front of him, he could not just walk away from it.
*I am sorry, Yun Che,*
Sam thought to himself, looking at the red gates.
*But as a cultivator, I simply cannot let this chance go. These treasures are exactly what I need for my future.*
"Are we going to sneak in and steal them, Master?"
Little D whispered excitedly.
"No,"
Sam smiled smoothly, brushing some dust off his coat.
"We are not common thieves. We are going to walk right through the front door."
Sam stepped away from the wall and walked straight toward the busy gates.
"Come on,"
Sam said confidently.
"Let's go attend a wedding."
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