The Nanhua mountain range stretches for over two thousand miles, with countless steep mountains and peaks. Poisonous snakes and ferocious beasts often appear. In addition, the mountains are shrouded in mist all year round, making it difficult to determine directions. As a result, except for the foot of the outermost peaks where some woodcutters and hunters occasionally live, the deeper parts of the mountain range are rarely visited by humans.

  In the depths of the southern mountain range, there are several peaks that are nearly a thousand zhang high surrounding a vast canyon. However, this canyon is shrouded in thick fog all year round, and nothing can be seen clearly beyond two or three zhang.

  There were also a few brave mountain people who dared to explore this strange and dense fog. However, when they walked more than ten feet into the fog, they would completely lose their direction. After struggling for several hours, they would finally run out of the range covered by the cloud and fog. But at that time, they would find themselves back where they started. After repeated failed attempts, these people eventually gave up and stopped paying attention to this mysterious valley, and even warned their family members and neighbors not to enter this place.

  One day, a young man wearing a white robe, holding a newborn baby in his arms, was running towards the direction of the gorge. His speed was extremely fast, as if he was sprinting with all his might, but his facial expression was very relaxed, as if he were strolling through a garden.

  Before long, the young man in white arrived at the Grand Canyon and stopped his steps in front of the dense clouds. He took out a red jade as big as a soybean from his pocket, whispered a few words to it, and then waved his hand, throwing the red jade into the clouds. The red jade drew a red light, quickly piercing through the thick fog, disappearing without a trace.

  About half a column of incense later, a strong gust of wind suddenly came from the depths of the canyon and blew all the way to the front of the young man in white, then actually transformed into tiny white lights in front of his eyes and disappeared.

  The young man in white seemed to be used to it and didnt show any surprised expression. He held the baby in his arms and quickly stepped into the depths of the canyon along a path about ten feet wide that was formed by the strong wind blowing away the thick fog.

  A moment later, behind the young man in white, dense clouds and fog churned and turned over, covering up the passageway that had just been formed. The Grand Canyon returned to its usual appearance.

  The young man in white walked for two or three hundred feet along the passageway before the thick fog in front of him suddenly disappeared without a trace, replaced by layers and layers of buildings that were stacked on top of each other, with roads crisscrossing each other, and occasionally there were men and women dressed like him walking among them. In this valley covered by thick fog, it turned out to be a hidden small town.

  "What? Isnt this Jian Han? Youve completed your task and returned! Whose child is the baby youre holding in your arms, did you secretly have a kid outside?" A dark-faced man of similar age to him asked in surprise.

  "Pshaw! What are you talking about? If I want to give birth, Ill just give birth, why sneak around? This kid, I dont even know whose it is, I picked him up on my way back!" the young man in white said.

  "Found one!? Why did you bring a mortal child into our family?" The black-faced man looked puzzled, with an uncertain expression.

  "This little guy has spiritual roots, dont believe me? Our family is recruiting new disciples, so I brought him back. Its strange to say, but I found this child on a desolate mountain slope, naked and not crying or making a fuss. Moreover, I searched for over ten miles around and didnt see any other human shadows! Since he has spiritual roots and I couldnt bear to abandon him in the wilderness, I brought him back to our family." The young man in white explained the childs origins briefly, seeing his opponents disbelieving expression.

  The black-faced man touched the infants slender wrist as he spoke, and after a moment of contemplation, said: "Indeed, there is a spiritual root, but it seems to be quite mixed, so the talent shouldnt be very good!"

  "Hmph, you think youre a Foundation Establishment cultivator who can determine spiritual root attributes? I wont bother with you anymore. Ill go find Third Elder and report the task to him, and ask for his instructions on how to deal with this kid." The white-clothed youth said, waving his hand in farewell, and walked along the street towards a three-story exquisite pavilion.

  Three years later, in the mysterious small town in this canyon, a three-year-old toddler who was just learning to walk was having a soft conversation with a woman in her thirties who was slightly plump and had a kind face.

  "Yun Yi, you said I was picked up by Jian Han Uncle?" The child looked up and pulled the sleeve of the woman sitting in the chair, speaking in a childish tone, word by word. Compared to other children of the same age, he spoke quite fluently.

  "Yes. Your name Wu Gen, thats what he chose." The middle-aged woman stroked the childs hair and said softly.

  She has lived in this valley since birth, and because she doesnt have any "spirit root", she became one of the few ordinary people in the small town. She has never left this small town. Since about seven or eight years ago, her main responsibility is to take care of a group of children who are just born to two or three years old, raise them until they are five years old, and then someone will come to take these children away to other places in the valley.

  She had long been accustomed to dealing with the noisy and crying infants all day, and she was getting more and more skilled. That noon, more than 20 children were having a sweet nap, and she also took the opportunity to lean on a recliner and rest for a while. Unexpectedly, Wu Gen, who usually didnt cry or make trouble and was very well-behaved, came over to ask her questions.

  "Yun Yi, why did you call me Wu Gen? Ive heard people mention something about Wu Ling Gen before, what does it mean?" The child looked up with a curious expression.

  It seems that she cant sleep anymore, anyway, she doesnt have this habit. The middle-aged woman simply held the child on her lap and started talking softly.

  "Yun Yi doesnt know either. Yun Yi heard from others that spiritual roots are innate. Only those with spiritual roots can cultivate immortal family skills, while those without spiritual roots can only be ordinary people. Youre lucky to have a good fate, born with spiritual roots, and after you turn five, the Jian family will find someone to take you to cultivate immortal methods. Yun Yi doesnt have spiritual roots, so she can only be busy for the rest of her life." The middle-aged woman replied patiently, sighing softly at the end.

  "What is Wu Ling Gen? Didnt you say Im Wu Ling Gen, so the name is called Wu Gen?" The kid kept asking one question after another.

  "Yes, Cloud Auntie heard Uncle Jian Han say that your spiritual root is the Five Spiritual Roots, which doesnt seem to be a good thing, so he gave you the name Wu Gen. As for what it specifically means, Cloud Auntie knows very little about it too. When you grow up later, you will naturally understand." The middle-aged woman always spoke in a soft and gentle tone, extremely patient, but whenever she encountered something that was hard to explain, she would pull out the phrase "youll know when you grow up" - an eternal truth.

  "Yun Yi, what is cultivation of immortal methods?" The child asked another difficult question.

  "This fairy aunt isnt clear either, having a spiritual root can cultivate immortal methods, and then one can live for hundreds of years without ever getting sick. And there are all sorts of magical techniques, each one is incredibly powerful! When the five roots grow up later, they will also be this fierce!" The womans knowledge was limited to this, in just a few short sentences she had already said out everything she knew, and her tone still carried a hint of envy."

  "Oh, where are we now?" The child changed the subject and stopped worrying about things like spiritual roots and immortal cultivation that women didnt understand very well, and instead asked some common questions that children often ask.

  "We are from Jians family in the South China Mountains." The woman also felt a slight relief in her heart, and fortunately, the child did not continue to ask questions that she found difficult to answer.

  "Where is the Nanhua mountain range?" This question seemed to have been prepared in advance, one ring linked to another.

  "The Nanhua mountain range is in the south of Jinyan country." The woman said, pinching the childs tender and lovely face.

  "Where is the Golden Flame Country?" This was the legendary child who broke the cauldron and asked to the bottom.

  "Jīn yàn guó zài tiān yuán dà lù shàng, yún yí tīng shuō, tiān yuán dà lù kě dà le, jīn yàn guó zhè me dà, yě zhǐ shì qí zhōng de yī gè wēi bù zú dào de xiǎo guó jiā ér yǐ." Fù nǚ nài xīn shí zú de huí dá dào, dàn shì gāng shuō wán, xīn li yǒu le yī sī huǐ yì. Rú guǒ zhè ge xiǎo hái jì xù zhuī wèn tā shén me shì guó jiā, shén me shì dà lù, nà tā gāi zěn me huí dá ne?

  The child didnt ask that, but instead asked a very strange question: "Yun Auntie, do you know theres a country called Datang?"