Lin Shanyin.
He had grown up in a tribe of the Roulan People on the Far North Grassland.
His mother was one of the Roulan People, while his father was human.
It was said that his father had fled to the Far North Grassland with grave injuries and been rescued by his mother. He had been born afterward.
But once his father recovered, he left and never returned.
He knew he was different from everyone else. The other children in the tribe could practice the tribe's immortal arts and awaken the power passed down through their bloodlines by their distant ancestors.
He could not.
Because he was of mixed blood, the Roulan bloodline within him had been tainted by the blood of the human father he had never met. The Roulan ancestors no longer blessed him.
Thus, he could not practice the Roulan People's cultivation methods. Every day, he could only watch enviously as the other children cultivated under the elders' guidance.
Fortunately, everyone in the tribe took good care of him.
"Little Shanyin, there's really nothing wrong with being an ordinary person."
"Lin Shanyin, we'll protect you from now on!"
Those warm yet difficult days passed like that.
Until one night, when he braved a blizzard and left his tent to search for three sheep that had not returned.
He failed to find the sheep and nearly froze to death himself. He had no choice but to shelter in a crevice in a cliff. After a night there, the blizzard showed no sign of easing, and he was hungry.
So he had to explore deeper into the crevice, hoping to find something to eat.
To his delight, there was a pool of clear spring water at the end of the crevice, with fish faintly visible swimming beneath its surface.